Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Sovereign's Arrival

“Sis, our school’s group chat is going wild—they’re saying there’s some monstrous talent who skipped a grade into senior year, finished all their English, Math, and Science exam papers in half an hour, and rumor has it they even scored perfect marks. Is that you? The moment I saw it, I just knew it had to be you—no one else could do that!”

It was Sunday afternoon, and Wu Tong was working through practice problems when Jin Xin burst through her door, breathless. Judging by his state, he’d clearly rushed straight over to her house.

“Jin Xin, what’s all this about monsters? Why are you here at this hour in this heat? Look at you, your face is beet red from the sun. Be careful you don’t get heatstroke!” Ms. Jin, having just opened the door for her nephew, saw him bolt straight for her daughter’s room. As she was about to close the door, she caught the tail end of his words. She paused, then noticed Jin Yuan and his wife carrying armfuls of bags behind him.

“Jin Xin, is that any way to speak to your little sister?” A monster? More like a genius—a star has fallen into our family!

Ms. Jin’s inquiry and Xu Meifeng’s scolding overlapped almost simultaneously.

“Auntie, your daughter—my little sister—has just performed a miracle! Last time in the grade-eleven placement test, she scored full marks in five subjects except Chinese, totaling 733 points, which already shocked the whole school. And this time, she just got into grade eleven, skipped ahead to take the senior exam, and scored perfect marks in English, Math, and Science. Rumor says she got 140 in Chinese, so that’s a total of 740 out of 750—she only lost ten points! Auntie, you’re a teacher, you know what these scores mean!” Jin Xin took a deep breath and rattled off the news like firecrackers.

“Seven hundred and forty?” Wu Jingzhong, who had just stepped out of his room, and Ms. Jin both gasped. They knew all too well what that meant. “You’re saying this is Tong Tong?”

The couple turned to Wu Tong. That silly child—such a big deal and she hadn’t said a word?

“Of course it’s my sister! Who else could pull off such a miracle?” Jin Xin scratched his head, grinning from ear to ear, as if he himself had earned the score. He was genuinely happy for Wu Tong.

Wu Tong, still halfway through her practice problems and not entirely out of her deep concentration, simply wrote out the rest of the solution, skipping half the steps, then looked up at the family crowding her room. “The results are out already? A bit higher than I expected. My feeling about the Chinese exam was right—I did pretty well!”

For English, Math, and Science, full marks were just routine for her. As for Chinese, aiming for an even higher score was already quite a stretch—it all depended on how she performed that day.

Compared to her family’s excitement, Wu Tong’s reaction was almost too calm. Of course, she was happy—hard work rewarded feels good, and skipping a grade seemed to be a success. But that was all. The challenge of more advanced mathematics made her acutely aware that she was just stepping over the threshold of this grand hall; real mastery was still far ahead.

“How about you, big brother? How did your math go this time?”

“Heh heh… Not bad! I got a 141. Still a bit behind you, but I’m thrilled!” Jin Xin grinned so widely his eyes disappeared. It was his highest math score ever, and his joy was palpable. Now he realized that the better you get, the easier it feels—it was true. This time, he didn’t struggle nearly as much as before.

“Tong Tong, I don’t even know what to say! Your silly brother just sits back and enjoys the ride. You tutor him so diligently and never even tell me, so I can reward you properly!” Xu Meifeng was genuinely grateful. That her daughter could inspire Jin Xin to study hard and score well made her feel she hadn’t doted on the child enough. For her only son, she might grumble, but she still wanted the best for his future. If he could keep improving, get into a good college, and have a bright future ahead, she’d give Wu Tong her heart if she could.

“Big sister, brother-in-law, there’s no need for empty words of thanks. From now on, Jin Xin is yours to command—any heavy lifting, don’t trouble Tong Tong, just get Jin Xin to do it!” Xu Meifeng gave her son a hearty slap on the back, happily ‘selling’ him off.

“Oh, listen to you! It’s only right that Tong Tong helps Jin Xin, given her abilities!” Ms. Jin, still a bit bewildered, waved her hand in agreement with her sister-in-law, then turned to her precious daughter, hoping she’d explain what was going on.

“I just wanted to wait until I had the results before I said anything,” Wu Tong summarized simply, facing the expectant faces. “I believed I could do it, but that was just my belief. To really prove it, I needed the school’s test as evidence. Now, the results show—I’m learning pretty well.”

No more will you worry yourselves sick over my grades, white-haired with anxiety, pouring out your hearts in vain, only for everything to go in the wrong direction! Wu Tong said silently to herself.

More than just ‘pretty well’! Jin Yuan rubbed his head, for the first time thinking maybe there was a streak of genius in his genes after all—just that he’d squandered it! But he was overjoyed for Wu Tong, proud beyond words. “Looks like we’re about to have a top scholar in the family! The ancestors must be smiling down on us!”

“It’s still too soon to say. There’s a year left before the college entrance exam,” Ms. Jin modestly deflected, but in her heart, she, like Wu Jingzhong, was bursting with pride. Their daughter—oh, she was full of surprises. These scores were something to boast about!

Ms. Jin had no complaints about her child’s bold choices. As long as she was on the right path, eager to learn, they would support her with both hands.

Wu Tong smiled at her parents. This was the scene she had dreamed of—her parents bathed in the glow of her achievements.

The teaching staff of the senior year were nothing if not efficient. By the time the students returned for evening self-study on Sunday, the honor roll for the first monthly exam was already posted. Wu Tong’s name stood tall at the top, mirroring the honor roll for grade eleven that had been up barely a week. The dazzling symmetry of her name left the crowd of students gaping in astonishment.

“Damn…”

“Holy… This is unreal!”

“The Demon King has arrived—it’s a new era of her rule!”

Exclamations of awe echoed through the hallways. As Wu Tong returned to class with her schoolbag, the gaze of every passing student held nothing but reverence.

When someone is just a little better, others may feel jealousy. But when someone reaches the realm of the divine, standing so high above, there is no room for envy—only awe. The gap had become an unbridgeable chasm: one still at the foot of the mountain, the other already reigning from the summit, surveying all below.