Start as a top student after transmigrating.

Lunchtime at the No. 1 Middle School cafeteria.

"You changed your schedule too?"

I didn't go home to cook. Time is already tight, and it's hard to concentrate on studying in the evening. If I spend even more time cooking, I'm afraid I won't be able to study at noon either.

So the group decided to eat in the cafeteria and cook on Saturdays and Sundays when they have time.

"It's not exactly a change in time, it's just that the morning self-study session has been extended, and the fifth period of voluntary evening self-study has been changed into a formal evening self-study session," Han Ning'er said while taking small bites of her meal.

"School won't let out until 11:30 at night." Liu Yumo found the thought terrifying.

No. 1 Middle School is like a mental hospital.

Anyone who can graduate smoothly without going crazy is a genius.

"It's the last semester, there are only about a hundred days left. Let's grit our teeth and get through it," Chen Dong encouraged everyone.

After a quick meal in the cafeteria, the group prepared to return to their rented apartment to study.

On the way, Han Ning'er and her friends deliberately lagged behind.

"What should we do? The study schedule has changed, so we can't get together in the evenings. And Dong-ge's birthday is on Tuesday. How are we going to celebrate for him?" Han Ning'er whispered.

She always remembered Chen Dong's birthday. The two years ago, they had a falling out and there was nothing they could do. This year was the first birthday after they made up, and Han Ning'er wanted to celebrate with Chen Dong.

But time doesn't allow it.

"Let's do it ahead of time," Liu Yumo said casually.

He didn't think birthdays were anything special. That's the difference between boys and girls; they don't really care about holidays, anniversaries, or birthdays.

In modern terms, it lacked a sense of ritual.

"Turning eighteen is different; your coming-of-age birthday is very meaningful." Jiang Lina rolled her eyes at Liu Yumo, reminding him that life should have a sense of ritual and not be so dull.

What's the point?

Liu Yumo couldn't understand. It's just a birthday. A day is still 24 hours. The planet isn't going to give you an extra second.

"What are you guys whispering about in the back? Hurry up."

Seeing that the group was walking slower and slower, Chen Dong turned around and urged them on.

"Here it comes, here it comes."

Han Ning'er looked up and casually agreed, then lowered her voice and said, "Think it over carefully. We can't let Brother Dong know in advance, especially Xiao Mo, keep your mouths shut."

Liu Yumo's mouth was definitely sealed shut; he didn't take it seriously at all.

In the past, when it was my best friend's birthday, if I could make him happy by staying up all night, I would call him my godfather.

……

At noon, Chen Dong and his group returned to Qingjiang Middle School, while Han Ning'er and Jing Shanshan returned to another school.

During the journey, Jing Shanshan asked, "Sister Han, what are Dong-ge's hobbies?"

"Smoking, drinking, and getting perms," ​​Han Ning'er blurted out, then blinked and added, "But those were all old hobbies; I don't do them anymore."

Jing Shanshan breathed a sigh of relief.

Although she knew Chen Dong used to be a troublemaker, she had seen him without any of those bad habits during the time she had known him. If he had continued to maintain those habits, she would never have been able to understand how he could have lost to a hoodlum.

"Do you want to buy Dong-ge a gift?" Han Ning'er asked Jing Shanshan.

"Dong-ge is a really nice guy. He accepted me into the study group and even taught me his problem-solving methods. Putting aside how to celebrate my coming-of-age birthday, I think I should prepare a gift to show my appreciation." Jing Shanshan blinked and smiled innocently.

She really likes this friendship and definitely wants to maintain it, as evidenced by the scarves she sent to her friends before.

It's my good friend's 18th birthday, how could I not celebrate? Celebrating together is one thing, but giving her a gift separately is another.

However, she had only been in the group for a short time and had limited understanding of everyone. She didn't know what Chen Dong's hobbies or interests were, so she asked Han Ning'er privately.

"I definitely can't buy cigarettes or alcohol for Dong-ge, and he probably won't like getting a perm either. Sister Han, do you know what Dong-ge's favorite food is?"

Jing Shanshan shifted her focus from hobbies to food.

"You want to send some food?" Han Ning'er asked with a smile.

"Okay, let's find out first, so we won't have too much trouble choosing a gift later," Jing Shanshan nodded.

At times like this, she felt that adults' social etiquette was excellent; there was no need to consider what to give or worry about decision paralysis—just give money and it would be done.

If you need something or want something, buy it yourself. Use your money wisely, and everyone will be happy.

But they are different. Given Dong Ge's personality, he definitely wouldn't accept money directly, and might even get a scolding from him. Gifts are the most suitable option.

It best expresses one's feelings.

"You should be able to tell from his eating habits that Dong-ge likes sweets, but not in the way a child likes candy. In Dong-ge's words, life is already bitter enough, so he needs to give himself a little sweetness," Han Ning'er replied.

"Sweets?" Jing Shanshan noted it down.

Also noted down was the last sentence: Life is already bitter enough, so give yourself a little sweetness.

The more you savor it, the more philosophical it becomes.

Life is indeed very bitter, so we are born to cry, to cry out the suffering of our lives.

Since life is full of bitterness, remember to give yourself some sweetness and be kind to yourself. You've had enough of the bitterness from the outside world; only you can give yourself sweetness.

As expected of Dong Ge, even a casual remark is so profound, with deep meaning and philosophical implications. No wonder he gets such high scores on his Chinese composition.

There are reasons for all of this.

Jing Shanshan suddenly felt a little admiration for Chen Dong, with a touch of worship.

Little did he know, Chen Dong was simply rewarding his past self.

……

Evening self-study.

The study group split into two sides, and Han Ning'er and Jing Shanshan stopped skipping class and studied diligently in the classroom. They were even deskmates now.

Since Wang Yi made a fool of himself in front of an expert and Jing Shanshan joined the study group, Han Ning'er changed her deskmate. She didn't need the teacher's permission; her own consent was enough.

During evening self-study, both girls were diligently working on practice problems.

"Shanshan, can you help me with this problem? I'm having trouble figuring it out." During self-study, Han Ning'er, who was diligently working on her problems, would sometimes frown and doodle on her draft paper. Finally, she patted her deskmate, Jing Shanshan.

"Let me see."

Jing Shanshan took the question and carefully read it, occasionally flipping through her notebook. Then she took the scratch paper and explained it to Han Ning'er.

"Following my usual approach, I would solve this problem like this: first step like this, then like this, then like this, and finally connect the key concepts..."

Han Ning'er saw that Jing Shanshan's problem-solving approach had suddenly become clear and praised her, "As expected of a super genius, your thinking is really amazing. You can even solve such a difficult problem."

Jing Shanshan humbly replied, "My thinking isn't flexible enough. I've studied Dong Ge's approach. If he were doing this problem, he would definitely do it this way first, and then this way..."

While speaking, Jing Shanshan also offered a second optimal solution.

Han Ning'er, who was standing next to her, was stunned.

What an amazing academic genius! She can solve problems that she couldn't figure out in a matter of minutes, and even quickly come up with a second, better solution.

Do you even want people to live?

"What are you daydreaming about? Did you even understand this line of thinking?" Jing Shanshan wrote her answer and, seeing Han Ning'er lost in thought, patted her on the shoulder.

"oh oh."

Han Ning'er snapped out of her reverie and asked curiously, "Shanshan, are you still studying Dong Ge's problem-solving approach?"

"Of course we need to study it. Looking at the martial arts world of Qingjiang, I have dominated for two and a half years. It's lonely and isolated at the top. Suddenly being dethroned as the number one in the world, I naturally need to get to know him properly."

"Even if you lose, you should know where you went wrong."

Jing Shanshan said in a somewhat childish way.

That was her initial reason for joining the study group.

She wanted to see just how strong the expert who defeated her really was. She had studied Chen Dong's problem-solving habits, problem-solving approaches, and the knowledge system he had built.

Often, when she asked Chen Dong questions, it wasn't because she didn't know the answers, but because she wanted to learn from his thought process, to improve herself and prepare for future challenges.

"Let me show you the unparalleled secret manual that I've replicated recently." As she spoke, Jing Shanshan took out a knowledge notebook filled with explanations of various questions.

It seems to be a deeper knowledge system framework.

It covers everything from physics and chemistry to mathematics.

"This is the problem-solving approach I've figured out for Dong Ge. I've completely replicated his skills. Know yourself and your enemy, and you can counter any move. It's still uncertain who will win or lose in the next mock exam."

Jing Shanshan's eyes were filled with fighting spirit.

For a peerless genius like her, failure is acceptable, but she will never lose confidence and become despondent. What she needs to do is understand the "enemy", become familiar with the "enemy", and then become the "enemy" herself, so as to finally achieve a "counterattack".

Whether she can reach the final step is unknown, but Jing Shanshan is now showing signs of reaching the third level.

She imitated Chen Dong's way of explaining problems to Han Ning'er, including the thought process, steps, and even the tone of voice, as if they were really going to become 'enemies'.

"Shanshan, have you ever heard of the story of Dong Shi imitating Xi Shi?"

Han Ning'er couldn't help but feel a little worried.

She's also a top student, so she can understand how Jing Shanshan felt about losing first place in the city. But without Dong Ge backing her up, Jing Shanshan's condition looked a little worrying.

Don't let it become a persistent inner demon.

If you end up neither becoming like Brother Dong nor surpassing him, but instead lose yourself, that would be a case of going astray.

"Don't worry, I'm just studying Dong Ge's ideas. I haven't abandoned my own techniques. Only by leveraging strengths and compensating for weaknesses can I become stronger." Jing Shanshan smiled calmly.

She understood what Jing Shanshan was worried about, but she wasn't the kind of weak-willed pseudo-prodigy. Dong Ge was strong, and that's what she learned from his strength.

As someone with top-tier qualifications, she deeply understands one principle: anyone stronger than herself, whether friend or foe, is worth learning from. She never becomes complacent or arrogant.

"Are you sure?" Han Ning'er was still a little uneasy.

"Don't worry, just listen to my explanation. When Dong-ge explains problems to us, don't just memorize the ideas; learn to integrate them."

"I'll show you my notes later. I'll try to integrate them into a new knowledge framework so that I can complete the transformation and be qualified to challenge the experts."

Han Ning'er looked intently at Jing Shanshan, her lips trembling.

……

The words are divided into two parts.

During evening self-study, Chen Dong didn't do practice problems. Instead, he was organizing the plot of Battle Through the Heavens and listing out detailed outlines, down to the main points of each chapter, so that he could start writing as soon as he got home.

Occasionally, Liu Yumo would ask him a few questions. Now, Liu Yumo has a pretty good grasp of the basic knowledge and can handle most of the easier problems. He has gradually begun to tackle more difficult ones.

"Chen Dong, come to my office."

Just as Chen Dong was engrossed in sorting out the detailed outline, he suddenly felt someone tap him on the shoulder. He instinctively looked up and saw that it was none other than Lao Yang.

Old Yang's voice was very soft, but the evening self-study session was very quiet, and the surrounding students heard it and subconsciously looked over.

"Okay."

Chen Dong closed his notebook and followed behind Lao Yang with a very calm demeanor.

Chen Dong used to go to the office without any fear, so why would he be afraid now? Even if Lao Yang saw him not studying during evening self-study but instead listing novel plots.

But did Lao Yang really see it?

He had already come up with an excuse: that was the framework of my newly established knowledge system.

The city's number one secret technique is incredibly profound. Don't worry if you don't understand it; you just need to believe it!