Chapter Forty-Four: A Record Broken

At 2:06 in the afternoon, the finals of the junior boys’ 100-meter race officially began.

With a sharp whistle from the starting official, the nine contestants surged forward almost simultaneously, racing toward the finish line a hundred meters away. Cheers from the spectators resounded in waves.

“Wei Linxi, go for it!”
“Luo Fei, go for it!”
“Zhou Xuan, go for it!”
“Wang Wen, go for it!”
“Class Four, go for it!”

Since the morning’s high jump, long jump, and shot put events had already concluded, many teachers now had free time and gathered to watch the afternoon finals. At the finish line, the PE teacher and several others were focused intently on the 100-meter race.

“As expected, Zhou Xuan’s start was too slow, and his form was hardly standard. If he underwent specialized training, he could easily improve by half a second,” commented PE teacher Li Yunxi.

Another teacher agreed, adding, “Zhou Xuan has no experience at all—what a pity. But even so, he runs this fast; he’s a real talent.”

“Regarding starting technique, Wei Linxi did the best. In that aspect alone, he’s roughly 0.4 seconds faster than Zhou Xuan. If Zhou Xuan could improve his start, rhythm, and gear, he’d gain at least another 0.4 seconds.”

“Look, Zhou Xuan is catching up! His speed is incredible; he’s just barely trailing Wei Linxi, and he’s overtaken Luo Fei,” one teacher exclaimed, watching Zhou Xuan on the track in disbelief.

Only thirty meters in, Zhou Xuan, who had fallen 0.5 seconds behind at the start, had already caught up with and surpassed Luo Fei. He pulled level with Wei Linxi and the two raced side by side past the sixty-meter mark, entering the final forty meters of the sprint.

Class Six’s supporters, seeing Zhou Xuan’s extraordinary effort, shouted loudly, “Go, Zhou Xuan!”

Girls from other classes who liked Zhou Xuan joined in, “Go, Zhou Xuan!”

This left some of the boys from other classes speechless. “How can you do that? You’re cheering for someone from another class instead of your own!”

Li Yunxi, delighted, said, “Well done, Zhou Xuan! He really held back earlier—his speed is too much!”

“Damn, Zhou Xuan can really endure!” Wang Wen, running fourth and trailing Zhou Xuan by more than ten meters, recalled the preliminary heats that morning.

Even if he was labelled the perpetual third-place finisher, Zhou Xuan had concealed most of his true ability. That level of cunning was remarkable; it seemed his second place in the 200-meter preliminaries was another deliberate act.

The final forty meters—the moment for the sprint had arrived.

No matter how hard Wei Linxi pushed himself, Zhou Xuan remained shoulder to shoulder, and began to edge ahead. In the last thirty meters, Zhou Xuan had already surpassed Wei Linxi by half a body length.

“He’s overtaken! Zhou Xuan has overtaken Wei Linxi! What am I seeing?” the spectators shouted, unable to believe their eyes.

Wei Linxi’s legend ended then and there, defeated by Zhou Xuan, whom everyone had assumed would not even place.

“Is today April Fool’s Day?” the students from Class Two could hardly believe it.

In the final twenty meters, Zhou Xuan employed his “Minor Zhou Tian Breathing Technique” and began his last burst. This time, he aimed to break the record.

He shot forward like a bolt of lightning, his speed rising to another level; instantly, he surged ahead of Wei Linxi and raced toward the finish.

Seeing Zhou Xuan so far ahead, Wei Linxi was overwhelmed with anguish and cried out, “What kind of monster is this? Where did he come from?”

“Excellent! Excellent! Excellent!” Li Yunxi exclaimed as Zhou Xuan crossed the finish line, repeating his praise three times.

Wei Linxi crossed second, his face ashen. The first place he’d thought was guaranteed had been snatched away by Zhou Xuan with ease.

Only now did he realize that Zhou Xuan’s true strength was at least a whole level above his own, and that Zhou Xuan had been hiding his abilities all along.

He didn’t mind losing to someone stronger, but Zhou Xuan’s concealment had led everyone to think he was nothing special—no threat at all.

Reflecting on it, it seemed he had underestimated his opponent and deserved to lose.

Next, Wang Wen, who finished fourth, and Li Jing, who finished fifth, crossed the line one after the other.

Wang Wen’s face was grim, and he stepped aside, sighing quietly.

Li Jing, however, went straight to Zhou Xuan and, panting, said, “Zhou Xuan, just as I thought—you’re amazing.”

A few minutes later, the announcement came over the loudspeaker.

“We now announce the results of the junior boys’ 100-meter finals!” Everyone eagerly awaited Zhou Xuan’s time.

“First place: Zhou Xuan, Class Six, Grade Three, time: 10.95.”

“First place: Wei Linxi, Class Two, Grade Three, time: 11.48.”
“First place: Luo Fei, Class Five, Grade Three, time: 12.05.”

The announcement left the crowd utterly stunned.

“10.95! How is that possible?”

For everyone present, this was an astonishing result.

Zhou Xuan had not only broken the school’s sports day record but matched or surpassed the best city-level student record of 10.99, previously held by a student from Third City High.

It was a landmark moment—a major turning point. It signified that NC County Middle School had made tremendous progress in athletics. For the school leaders, it was a highlight worthy of widespread publicity.

As school leaders, their ambitions extended beyond this modest sports day. They were thinking ahead to next year’s city student games, and even the provincial and national student competitions, hoping for an extraordinary performance.

It was clear that after today, reports about Zhou Xuan would make their way to the administrations of the two most renowned middle schools in NC County—First and Second Middle School.

At the finish line, Wei Linxi, Luo Fei, Wang Wen, and others were speechless, unable to believe what had happened.

Before their very eyes, a new record-breaker for the city’s student 100-meter dash had emerged, when earlier, they had been adamant he wouldn’t even place.

Victory had shifted in an instant, leaving no time to react.

Just moments before the results were announced, Wei Linxi had resolved to take his opponents seriously in the future, to train harder and defeat Zhou Xuan.

But as Zhou Xuan’s time was announced, despair swept over them.

Having practiced the 100-meter sprint many times, they knew just how difficult it was to break ten seconds.

And let’s not forget, Zhou Xuan’s gear was subpar and his starting posture was off. With proper training in these two areas, Zhou Xuan could easily shave another 0.5 seconds off his time. That would put him below 10.45 seconds—a nationally recognized athlete’s standard, qualifying for provincial and even city-level national teams.

Class Six’s students crowded forward with congratulations, even the homeroom teacher rushed over to thank Zhou Xuan for his outstanding performance.

Meanwhile, Zhou Xuan’s miraculous achievement spread quickly throughout the school, elevating his fame to new heights.