Chapter 001: Waking Up to Find Several Beautiful Girlfriends
At dawn, sparrows chirped noisily on the branches. As the sun broke over the eastern sky, the first rays of light flooded the earth. The alarm clock rang on time, and as usual, Xiao Yang woke up, swinging out of bed with practiced ease.
Today was a special day. After twelve years of study, the day of the college entrance examination had finally arrived. For Xiao Yang, born to an ordinary family, this exam was a crucial gateway that would determine the course of his future. His parents had worked tirelessly, spending all their savings to support his education, and his older sister had gone to work as soon as she finished middle school. The weight of their expectations pressed heavily on his shoulders—failure was not an option.
“Yang Yang, time to get up,” his mother’s voice, Li Yunfang, called from outside.
“Yeah, I’m up,” Xiao Yang replied, dressing quickly and stepping out of his room.
His mother was nearly done preparing breakfast, while his father, Xiao Yongjun, was on the phone, urging his sister and brother-in-law to hurry. Xiao Yang headed to the bathroom to wash up—pouring water, squeezing toothpaste, starting to brush his teeth.
As he brushed, his gaze lifted and he froze. Above the mirror, taped to the wall, was a slogan: “Work hard—become a martial artist!”
What on earth? Who put that there? It certainly wasn’t him. His parents were far too old for that sort of adolescent enthusiasm. Ignoring it, Xiao Yang kept brushing.
Ding-dong! The doorbell rang.
His father opened the door, and his sister, Xiao Luan, along with his brother-in-law, Lin Hai, entered.
“What took you so long? Today is the most important day in your brother’s life!” his father complained.
His sister came straight in, “Is Xiao Yang up?”
“Yeah, Sis, Bro-in-law, I’m brushing my teeth,” Xiao Yang called from the bathroom.
His sister went to help their mother in the kitchen, while Lin Hai explained to their father, “There was a minor fender bender on the way, otherwise we’d have been here sooner.”
“What happened? Is it serious? That’s not a good omen,” his father’s expression darkened, as he was a superstitious man.
“It’s nothing, just a little scrape—can’t even see the mark unless you look closely,” Lin Hai reassured him, then turned to Xiao Yang, “You confident about the exam?”
Xiao Yang, still washing his face, mumbled, “I am!”
Lin Hai added with a smile, “Yesterday, your sister and I went to the temple to light incense and pray for you. With your talent and hard work, you’re bound to succeed.”
His father, hearing this, immediately brightened, “Did you draw a fortune stick?”
“Sure did—a top-tier one!” Lin Hai grinned.
His father was overjoyed, “Looks like our family is about to have a martial artist. The ancestors are watching over us!”
Xiao Yang, towel in hand, froze at this. Martial artist? Why did that sound so odd? Did he mishear? Surely his father meant their family was about to produce a university student. That had to be it.
But just as he was thinking this, Lin Hai’s voice drifted over, “Of course, of course. Xiao Yang, your sister has supported you wholeheartedly in your martial arts training. Once you become a martial artist, don’t forget her!”
Xiao Luan glared at her husband, “Don’t talk nonsense! Xiao Yang, don’t worry about anything else—just focus on your exam. As long as you become a martial artist, I’ll be content, and so will Mom and Dad.”
Xiao Yang was utterly stunned. This wasn’t a hallucination! What was going on with the world? Was it him, or the world that was out of joint? His family was all talking about martial artists—had he read too many novels? Was this a dream?
He pinched his own cheek, hard. Ouch! Harder still—ouch! The pain made him shiver. This wasn’t a dream.
He noticed his strength seemed greatly increased. Looking more closely, he was still himself, but stronger—his body filled with energy, his spirit brighter, his appearance even more handsome and striking.
After three seconds of staring, Xiao Yang realized the truth: though this body was ninety-nine percent like his own, it was definitely not his previous body.
Glancing at the slogan on the wall—“Work hard, become a martial artist”—a chill ran down his spine. His whole body shivered.
Could it be... he had traveled to another world?
Xiao Yang shot out of the bathroom and rushed into his room.
“What’s with you, running around in such a hurry?” his sister called, carrying breakfast from the kitchen. “Come eat! Energetic Mushroom and Purplehorn Bull Demon Meat stew—guaranteed to keep you energized all day and ace your exam!”
“One sec, I’ll be right out,” Xiao Yang replied from his room.
He dashed to the bedside, flipping up the covers. Beneath the blanket lay a book—the one he’d read before bed last night. Since he was sure he had transmigrated, this was the first thing he checked: the last thing he touched before falling asleep.
Last night, he’d been reading a “Book of the College Entrance Examination”—full of top students’ experiences. But now, to his astonishment, the cover read “Transdimensional Tome.”
The Book of the College Entrance Exam had become the Transdimensional Tome!
As Xiao Yang picked up the tome, a message entered his mind: Transdimensional Tome: Cooldown time—30 days.
The book was thin. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t open it—the pages seemed fused together.
What did a 30-day cooldown mean? Could it be, in 30 days, the Transdimensional Tome would send him back to Earth?
Though he didn’t understand this world, his family hadn’t changed. It seemed likely he had transmigrated into a parallel self. A parallel self was still himself, wasn’t it?
He had to do well in today’s exam—he mustn’t embarrass himself.
“Yang Yang, breakfast’s getting cold,” his mother called. “Eat, then head to school. Today is your most important day. Don’t be late.”
“Coming,” Xiao Yang replied, placing the book back under the blanket.
He stepped out. Everything looked familiar, yet felt strangely foreign.
“Didn’t sleep well last night?” his sister observed. “This is your big day—you need energy. Come, eat. The Purplehorn Bull Demon Meat will keep you sharp.”
She pulled him to the table.
Xiao Yang noticed his breakfast was special—a bowl of Energetic Mushroom and Purplehorn Bull Demon Meat stew. The other four had the usual soy milk and fried dough sticks.
Feeling awkward about eating alone, he said, “Why is there only one bowl? Let’s share it!”
As he pushed the bowl forward, his family all looked at him with odd expressions.
“Are you silly?” his mother pushed the bowl back. “That stew is a rare tonic for you. For us, it’s just an indulgence—we can’t absorb its energy, so it’d be wasted. Of course it’s all for you.”
His sister smiled gently, “Don’t stress, Xiao Yang. Our family may not be wealthy, and you haven’t had much in the way of tonics, but you have great talent and your grades are always top of the class. Just do your best, and you’ll get into Martial Arts University.”
Lin Hai chimed in, “I believe in you—you can do it.”
His father added, “Don’t overthink it. Focus on the exam. Today’s the day to leap over the dragon gate.”
Xiao Yang dared not say more, worried he’d give himself away. He had no memories of this world, so he could only observe and listen, keeping his head down as he ate.
The first bite of Purplehorn Bull Demon Meat made his very soul tremble. Delicious—unbelievably delicious! He had never tasted anything like it in his life. He felt a trickle of energy infusing his body, a sensation so wonderful he nearly groaned aloud.
Compared to this, Earth’s food was utterly lacking.
He finished the bowl, wishing for more.
Of course, the actual energy within the stew was modest, barely affecting his physical strength. But if he ate it regularly, the cumulative effect would surely be remarkable.
Even without this world’s memories, Xiao Yang could judge that this breakfast was not cheap. Otherwise, its taste alone would make it a luxury.
His family didn’t eat it—not because they didn’t want to, but because they couldn’t afford to.
Thinking of his life on Earth—his parents working themselves to exhaustion, his sister leaving school to help support the family, later marrying well but still helping out—Xiao Yang realized, in this world, martial arts training must require even greater expense. His family must have suffered a lot for his sake, and his brother-in-law must be a generous man, or else his sister would have become a burden in the eyes of her in-laws.
He didn’t know the details of today’s exam, but he clenched his teeth with resolve: he would pass, become a martial artist, and never let his family down.
After breakfast, they all piled into his brother-in-law’s car and set out for the exam site.
Sitting in the front passenger seat, Xiao Yang watched the city streets roll by, noticing slogans about martial artists everywhere. Shop signs along the avenue were full of references to martial arts.
In this world, martial artists were clearly of great importance. His family’s hopes for him, and the atmosphere of the city, made that evident. Here, the martial arts entrance exam was even more significant than Earth’s college entrance exam.
As they neared the exam hall, every road and intersection was managed by traffic police to keep the way clear.
Lin Hai dropped Xiao Yang at the school gate—now called the Number One Martial School of Yuezhou, not the Number One High School—and was quickly urged to leave by the police.
“Yang Yang, good luck!”
“Do your best!”
“Don’t be nervous, Xiao Yang.”
“You can do it!” His parents, sister, and brother-in-law all cheered him on.
He hadn’t yet entered the building when a chubby student ran up behind him and clapped his shoulder.
“Chen Wanglong,” Xiao Yang turned, returning the gesture, feeling a wave of relief. The world had changed, but his classmates hadn’t. Otherwise, it would have been terribly awkward not to recognize anyone.
Chen Wanglong was his deskmate and a good friend.
They walked toward the school together, Xiao Yang prodding, “How’s your prep?”
“What can I say? I heard the standards are even higher this year—just have to leave it to fate,” Chen replied with a sigh.
Xiao Yang, clueless about the standards, joked, “Your folks want you to succeed—if you don’t pass, they’ll skin you alive!”
Chen sighed, “I’m not like you. You’re good at everything, but my reaction speed is hampered by my build.”
“You’re still doing well,” Xiao Yang encouraged.
Chen couldn’t muster any optimism, “You’re the lucky one. Even if you don’t pass, you can get by on your looks. If I fail, well... I’ll just have to inherit the family business.”
Xiao Yang rolled his eyes. Was that a compliment? Must be nice to have a wealthy family.
Just then, another classmate caught up.
“Here comes Xu Superman—look at him, so smug about his grades,” Chen grumbled.
“Xu Superman” was his nickname; his real name was Xu Chao, always top of the class.
Xu Chao, more talkative than Chen, caught up and said, “Xiao Yang, Chen Wanglong, did you hear? This year’s standards are 240 kilograms of punch force, 9.6 meters per second burst speed, and 0.1 second reaction time—tougher than last year. Chen, you’d better step up, or you won’t make it, no matter how good your other results are.”
He sounded unconcerned; clearly, the requirements didn’t trouble him.
Chen just looked glum.
Xiao Yang said, “With standards this high, I might be in danger too.”
Xu Chao glanced at him, “You? You’re well above the cutoff in every category. You’ll be fine.”
From this, Xiao Yang finally had a sense of how he measured up: his confidence soared.
Xu Chao grinned, “With my stats, it wouldn’t matter if they raised the bar to ninety percent of a Grade One martial artist’s level—I’d still get in. It’s almost impossible not to.”
He slung his arms around their shoulders, grinning.
“Yeah, yeah, you’re amazing,” Xiao Yang replied with a laugh.
Xu Chao was a braggart, but a good friend. He kept up a steady stream of chatter as they walked. Through his words, Xiao Yang gleaned bits of information, gradually piecing together an understanding of this new world.
Suddenly, Xu Chao’s tone turned mischievous: “Hey, Xiao Yang—your girlfriend’s waiting for you over there!”
Chen grinned too, “The class goddess wants to have a word with you, huh?”
Xu Ruoqing stood with her high ponytail, flawless face, white T-shirt, tight jeans, slender waist and long legs.
Xiao Yang’s heart skipped a beat. Xu Ruoqing was beautiful, confident, and top of the class—a secret crush for many boys, including his former self.
To think that, in this world, she was his girlfriend—was this real? Did he really have such a beautiful girlfriend?
“I want to talk to Xiao Yang—why don’t you two head to class first?” Xu Ruoqing said, glancing at Xu Chao and Chen.
They grinned, clapped Xiao Yang on the shoulder, and ran off.
Standing before Xu Ruoqing, Xiao Yang felt a strange mix of excitement and nerves.
She walked up confidently, looped her arms around his neck. Xiao Yang stiffened. Was it really this open here? It was only high school—were students allowed to hug in school?
“Did you miss me during your revision?” Xu Ruoqing pouted, her eyes sparkling.
How could he say no? “Yes,” Xiao Yang nodded.
“Really? Then why aren’t you hugging me?” she teased, eyes smoldering.
Hug? Well, why not! Trying to look calm, heart pounding, Xiao Yang gingerly placed his hands on her waist.
As she hugged his neck, her top lifted, revealing smooth, warm skin beneath his hands. He swallowed hard.
“That’s more like it,” Xu Ruoqing giggled, radiant as sunlight. Rising on tiptoe, she kissed his cheek.
Xiao Yang’s heart raced. Was this world really so open? Hugging and kissing in the schoolyard?
It felt strange, but thrilling.
Xu Ruoqing smiled, “I heard the standards are even higher this year. Work hard—you must get in.”
“I’ll do my best,” Xiao Yang promised.
She smiled and whispered in his ear, “If you pass, I’ll grant you one wish. Whatever you want—I’ll make it happen. So do your best!”
With a warm breath against his ear, Xiao Yang felt a shiver run through him.
As she walked away, he stood rooted, tingling from head to toe. Eighteen years old, and never before had he been so brazenly teased.
He was more determined than ever—he had to succeed!
Following his new memories, Xiao Yang made his way to Class 3-1. The classroom was already half full. Seeing so many familiar faces, he felt a bittersweet blend of nostalgia and strangeness.
He glanced at Xu Ruoqing, who winked at him. Smiling, he headed for his seat.
Chen Wanglong grinned mischievously, whispering, “I heard a lot of couples promised to celebrate with fireworks if they both pass. You two, huh?”
Xiao Yang just rolled his eyes, saying nothing.
“You don’t have to say it—I get it!” Chen nudged him, grinning with envy. “Everyone has a crush on the class goddess, but she only likes you. Guess it pays to have saved her once—you lucky dog!”
At that moment, their homeroom teacher, Deng Xiang, entered. The class fell silent.
Standing at the podium, he swept his gaze over the students. “You’ve spent three years studying at the Number One Martial School. Today is the moment of truth. If you succeed, congratulations—you’ll enter Jiangnan Martial University, become a martial artist, and rise into the privileged class. If you fail, it all amounts to nothing.”
Every student at this school had talent for cultivation—one in a hundred. In theory, with enough resources, any of them could become martial artists. But places at the martial arts university were limited, so not everyone would make it.
Still, the acceptance rate was high—over sixty percent. Most would pass, but some would not.
Those whose grades lagged looked anxious.
The exam began with Class 3-1. Official examiners from Jiangnan Martial University—true martial artists—had come to oversee the process. All results would be machine-tested and recorded, ranked for fair and impartial selection.
There were sixty students in the class, divided into twelve groups of five.
Xu Chao was in the first group, Xiao Yang in the second, Chen Wanglong in the fourth, and Xu Ruoqing in the eighth.
Xu Chao emerged from the exam room brimming with confidence, nodding to Xiao Yang—he was clearly assured of success.
Then it was the second group’s turn.
The exam room was divided into three sections: punch force, speed, and reaction time, each with its own examiner and assistant.
“You Wenhao!” the examiner called.
You Wenhao stepped forward.
The assistant pointed to the punch force tester, “Stand behind the yellow line—no stepping or body momentum. Make a fist and hit with all your strength. The machine will measure your punch force.”
You Wenhao took his stance, right hand clenched, twisted his waist, and punched.
The handle swung back, then rebounded. The display read: 241.35 kilograms.
The number flashed on the big screen. The three examiners logged his result.
Next, the examiner called, “Xiao Yang!”
He stepped up, fixed his stance, and struck with all his might.
242.77 kilograms.
Xiao Yang felt awkward—he lacked this world’s fighting experience, unable to use his body’s strength perfectly. Still, he’d beaten the standard and edged out You Wenhao.
Back on Earth, You Wenhao came from a powerful family and was arrogant; they didn’t get along. Judging by his haughty look here, things were probably the same.
As long as he passed and outperformed You Wenhao, that was enough.
The next three students tested in turn:
Liang Qiu—236.92 kilograms
Yun Ying—239.68 kilograms
Zuo Nan—241.07 kilograms
Xiao Yang, though not by much, ranked first among his group.
Next up was the speed test—burst speed measured over a short distance, standard set at 9.6 meters per second.
The results:
You Wenhao—9.68 m/s
Xiao Yang—9.72 m/s
Liang Qiu—9.51 m/s
Yun Ying—9.58 m/s
Zuo Nan—9.63 m/s
Again, Xiao Yang took first.
Finally, the reaction test:
You Wenhao—0.09 s
Xiao Yang—0.08 s
Liang Qiu—0.12 s
Yun Ying—0.10 s
Zuo Nan—0.09 s
The exam was complete. Of the five, two didn’t make the cut.
Xiao Yang’s results, while just over the required threshold, were the best among those who passed.
According to Chen Wanglong, in past years if the number of students passing all three tests was insufficient, a few top scorers who missed one standard would still be admitted.
Xiao Yang’s performance seemed more than solid.