“Lin Feng! Blood-energy reading: 78 units! Failed!”
The cold, mechanical voice rang through the blood-energy testing hall at Jiangnan No. 1 High School, like a pebble dropped into a vat of boiling oil, instantly setting off the crowd's chatter.
Lin Feng stood frozen in front of the testing machine, clutching the test slip that had just been printed. The black characters “78 units” and “Failed” burned into his eyes like red-hot brands.
78 units... 78 again.
He was still a full 22 units short of the 100-unit minimum required for the college entrance exam.
“I knew it! Our school's top scorer, Lin, still didn't make the cut. He's the biggest good-for-nothing in the history of our school!”
“Wow, three years ago he got into No. 1 High with the city's top score in academic subjects. Who would've thought he'd turn out to have such terrible blood energy?”
“Exactly! What good are top academic scores nowadays? If your blood-energy reading is below 100 units, you can't go to university after the college entrance exam. You're no better off than someone who never went to school!”
The piercing mockery stabbed at Lin Feng's ears. He lowered his head, his fringe hiding the self-mockery in his eyes.
Three years ago, he had entered No. 1 High beneath the halo of being the top academic student. He thought he could be like the protagonist of a novel and make up for his weak blood energy with intelligence. But reality had slapped him hard.
