As soon as I finished speaking, my left hand swiftly formed a hand seal. I silently recited an incantation. I was going to teach her a little lesson.
Grandpa had once told me, “If you’ve put up with enough, then there’s no need to keep putting up with it.”
I wasn’t the sort of person who let others walk all over me. When the time came to strike back, I had to do it.
Tô Tích Thủy froze for a moment, then burst out laughing, clearly not believing a word I’d said.
“I want to see what kind of disaster will befall me within ten steps. Just watch—I’ll expose you, you fake fortune-teller, in front of everyone!”
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps.
The other students in class started counting along excitedly.
The farther she walked, the wider Tô Tích Thủy’s smirk grew.
By the ninth step, many people had lost interest, and their counting had grown less steady.
Tô Tích Thủy, however, was brimming with confidence. She pointed at me smugly. “Vệ Vũ, got anything else to say? You fraud—get out of this school!”
I curled my lip into a smile. “Don’t rush. That was only the ninth step. There’s one more.”
With that, I deliberately stepped farther away to avoid getting caught in the fallout. I knew punishment never missed its mark.
“Fine! I’ll take that tenth step, then. Let’s see who ends up on their knees!”
Under everyone’s gaze, Tô Tích Thủy slowly lifted her right foot.
And just as she was about to set it down…
“BOOM!!”
A loud explosion rang out overhead.
The next instant, a massive torrent of wastewater, along with all kinds of filthy, unidentified trash, came crashing down from the ceiling, drenching Tô Tích Thủy.
She was soaked from head to toe. The sewage pipe upstairs had burst. For a moment, the world seemed to fall silent.
It took a long while for the students to come to their senses and start whispering among themselves.
“Th-this… it really worked?”
“It happened on the tenth step exactly!”
“Wasn’t that pipe replaced just last week? How did it suddenly burst?”
“Vệ Vũ is incredible…”
I pinched my nose and said coolly, “Believe me now?”
Tô Tích Thủy was still rooted to the spot. She reached up to touch her hair and pulled down a clump of soggy, yellowed toilet paper.
Then her eyes flew wide and her mouth opened in a shrill, agonized scream, like a pig being slaughtered. Before she could catch her breath, her eyes rolled back and she fainted on the spot. But no one dared touch her.
That spot… was just too filthy.
The pipe in the ceiling was still leaking.
Someone hurried off to get a teacher.
I shook my head and sighed. “At last, she’s gotten a little payback.”
The irritation in my heart vanished at once. I picked up my report card and happily returned to my seat.
Thắng Nam, the vengeful spirit Chấp Nhiệm Sát, was still bent over a pile of exam papers, without even looking up.
What a stubborn ghost.
Even with all that commotion, it seemed that nothing mattered to her besides exams and top honors.
Embarrassed, I tried to hide my report card, but I accidentally dropped it beside her.
Thắng Nam rarely spared a glance in my direction, but she did this time. Then she said coldly, “With grades like these, you won’t pass. Keep working.”
I pretended not to care. “I’m a Taoist priestess, after all. Exams aren’t my goal.”
That’s what I said, but these days even the monks in the temples are all graduate students.
Without an education, I wouldn’t even be able to work as a Taoist priestess.
Besides, plenty of ghosts are well-educated nowadays. I couldn’t afford any communication problems.
Thinking of that made me feel guilty.
“Hey, Thắng Nam, why are you so fixated on the college entrance exam? You study day and night like this—is it really fun?”
She didn’t answer me. But I could feel her whole body trembling.
Just then, the homeroom teacher hurried over with a group of people.
Tô Tích Thủy was taken to the school’s vehicle.
And from that day on…
For a long time after the incident at school, Tô Tích Thủy didn’t show up again. I heard her family had hired top tutors to teach her at home so she could focus entirely on the college entrance exam.
Three days before the exam, she returned to class with a mask covering her face. A strong perfume filled the room; it seemed to be a lingering consequence of getting drenched in sewage last time. She walked slowly over to my desk, then suddenly slammed her hand down on it, her eyes full of challenge. “What good is cramming at the last minute? With your pathetic brains, you could read every book in the world and it still wouldn’t help!”
I glared at her and snapped, “Don’t bother me while I’m studying.”
Perhaps the last incident still haunted her. Tô Tích Thủy didn’t press the issue and simply turned away in a huff.
Watching her walk away, I thought to myself: even if you steal someone else’s destiny of wealth and status, you still have to work for your own grades. The Heavenly Dao is always fair; no one can have a perfectly fortunate fate in every way. If someone is destined for a long life and great wealth, then their path through school is bound to be full of obstacles. So I didn’t believe Tô Tích Thủy could get an outstanding result on this exam.
Although she had never taken a test or a practice exam, I’d seen her homework before.
To put it bluntly, her level was about the same as mine. Nothing special.
Whenever someone asked why she refused to take practice exams, Tô Tích Thủy would always answer with her chin held high, “What’s the point of worrying about these stupid little tests? I’ll show you what I can really do on the college entrance exam. Just wait—you’ll all be amazed!”
I’d heard those words far too many times.
Everyone was wary of her family’s influence, but no one truly believed she was capable. Neither did I. Unless her family paid to interfere, she wouldn’t amount to anything.
The college entrance exam was over in no time. When the scores were released, Tô Tích Thủy didn’t brag as she usually did, which made me feel that something was off.
Then, right after that, she casually posted her score report in the class group chat.
Total score: 708.
Rank: Top scorer in the province.
Damn it.
She had effortlessly claimed the top spot on the college entrance exam.
She casually posted another message: “I told you, I’d show my real ability when it came time for the college entrance exam. Just watch—you’ll all be stunned. Becoming the top scorer in the province was a piece of cake! I didn’t brag sooner because I was afraid I’d put too much pressure on you. After all, not everyone is born with talent.”
Even just looking at the screen, I could imagine how smug she must have looked.
The whole class was stunned.
No one could deny the facts before them. The score report from the system couldn’t be faked.
One by one, people began sending their congratulations. Even the homeroom teacher praised her, calling her the pride of the class and the best student he had ever taught.
Tô Tích Thủy’s achievement quickly drew attention from the media. A stream of reporters arrived at the school, eager to interview the newly crowned provincial top scorer.
And she didn’t disappoint them.
Early the next morning, Tô Tích Thủy rode through the school gates in a luxury car. Someone had even rolled out a red carpet for her.
Anyone looking on would have thought some famous star had just arrived at school.
She was surrounded by cameras and microphones as questions came at her one after another: “What’s the secret to getting such a high score?”
Tô Tích Thủy knew exactly how to make the most of her looks.
She posed nonstop for the cameras, strolling from the school gate to her classroom at her leisure and letting reporters photograph her for hours.
At last, she smiled faintly and said, “To me, this score is just a tiny glimmer in my life. My talent goes far beyond being the top scorer in the province!”
Tô Tích Thủy’s image as a “school goddess” immediately took off across social media.
People showered her with praise:
[Beautiful and brilliant!]
[My goddess of youth!]
[Perfect inside and out!]
[Not only beautiful, but rich, too!]
Even our classmates couldn’t hide their admiration.
Top scorer in the province!
In ancient times, this would have been the title of the top scholar, the one whose name topped the imperial examination list.
Tô Tích Thủy was clearly enjoying the attention, her radiant smile never leaving her face.
But suddenly, she noticed that I was still sitting quietly in a corner, without offering my congratulations like everyone else.
She marched straight over to me and deliberately raised her voice to draw everyone’s attention. “Look at this little Taoist girl. She buried herself in her books every day, and still barely scored high enough to get into a second-tier college.”
She clicked her tongue, her eyes full of contempt. “How about I have my private tutors give you a few lessons? After all, someone without talent will never understand what it feels like to be gifted!”
She deliberately humiliated me in front of everyone. I clenched my fists, ready to teach her a little lesson.
But just as Tô Tích Thủy came closer, I suddenly sensed a strange trace of energy lingering around her…
The exchange spell!