Chapter 47
Even in the realm of high school mathematics, where the gap between Bai Laotou and Tang Lingwu isn't that vast, Tang Lingwu's assistance to Zheng Fa is even more significant.
Zheng Fa flipped through the questions he had jotted down, realizing he had asked nearly everything he wanted to know. He hesitated for a moment before looking at Tang Lingwu.
"I have something I’d like your help with."
Tang Lingwu looked up at him, puzzled.
"I want to understand the differences in our bodies."
"..." Tang Lingwu narrowed her eyes slightly, staring at Zheng Fa for a full half-minute before speaking. "It's in the biology textbook."
"Uh, you misunderstood. I want to know if I'm the only one in this world who can cultivate the Ling He Shen (Spirit Crane Body)."
Since coming to the modern world, Zheng Fa had become more certain of one thing—while the energy from cultivating the Ling He Shen still resided within him, he could no longer sense that strange power in the void.
According to Zheng Fa's previous thoughts, the Ling He Shen should be relatively easy for modern people to cultivate, given the existence of documentaries and videos.
But no matter how Tang Lingwu and Bai Laotou visualized it, their bodies showed no signs of response.
Moreover, considering that the Xuanwei Realm had immortal techniques while this world did not, the most natural conclusion was that this world lacked the so-called spiritual energy.
However, there was another possibility: Zheng Fa's body was different from those in this world, which is why only he could succeed.
Tang Lingwu looked at Zheng Fa with a hint of skepticism, and he tried to maintain a sincere expression.
"How do we test it?"
"You just need to assume the Song He Zhuang (Pine Crane Posture) and visualize it."
Tang Lingwu stood up and took the stance of the Song He Zhuang, while Zheng Fa positioned himself behind her. "Excuse me."
He gently placed his fingers on her back, at the midpoint of her spine.
Tang Lingwu's body shivered.
"What’s wrong?"
"It tickles."
"If there's anywhere else that feels uncomfortable, just let me know."
Zheng Fa said this and closed his eyes, cautiously sending his energy into Tang Lingwu's body.
His energy was already limited, and he dared not send too much. He carefully transmitted a small thread, afraid of accidentally harming Tang Lingwu.
In his mind, if there was any spiritual energy left in this world, it would be contained within his body and energy.
Of course, he couldn't dissect Tang Lingwu to compare their physical differences.
Nor could he cut off a piece of flesh to feed her.
He could only attempt to use his energy to see what would happen.
Zheng Fa kept his energy focused on Tang Lingwu's spine, waiting for her reaction.
Gradually, Tang Lingwu's body began to tremble gently.
Zheng Fa felt the energy he had sent into her body starting to pulse.
The rhythm was exactly the same as when he practiced the Ling He Xin Jing (Spirit Crane Heart Sutra)!
...
In the classroom upstairs, Wang Chen and his deskmate were huddled together, peering out the window at Zheng Fa and Tang Lingwu.
Zheng Fa and Tang Lingwu hadn’t thought to hide from anyone; they had gone downstairs simply to avoid disturbing others with their discussion.
"What are they doing?"
"Move over a bit, let me see!"
"Aren't you supposed to be studying?" his deskmate shot Wang Chen a glare.
"Books aren't as interesting as sweet romance!"
"What’s so interesting?"
Suddenly, a dazzling reflection appeared on the window, and a bald head emerged behind them.
"Teacher...!"
Wang Chen and his deskmate jumped in surprise and quickly turned around.
"I could hear you two talking from the hallway! You two are the loudest in the whole class!" Old Chen scolded, his face stern. "Do you know there's an exam coming up? Are you studying well? How many points do you think you can score?"
Seeing that the two were silent, he pressed on, "What were you two just looking at?"
Wang Chen shuffled sideways, trying to cover up.
Old Chen gave him a long, hard look, then pushed him aside to see Zheng Fa and Tang Lingwu's strange posture.
"What are they doing?"
Old Chen said, his tone heavy.
"Uh, Zheng Fa said he was asking Tang Lingwu for help with studying."
"Asking for help?" Old Chen's face turned cold, his voice laced with anger. "I’d like to know what kind of knowledge is so obscure that it needs to be transmitted through physical contact?"
---
Chapter 54: The Beloved Disciple
"Oh no! This month's exam was so hard! Who came up with those last two math problems? I didn't even write a single answer!"
Zheng Fa glanced at his book, listening to Wang Chen behind him, who was clutching his head in despair.
He looked around the classroom; the atmosphere was a bit gloomy after the exam, with many students looking unwell, seemingly convinced they hadn’t done well.
"Zheng Fa, how did you do?" Wang Chen poked him in the arm.
"I don’t know, I haven’t checked the answers."
Not checking answers after an exam was a habit of Zheng Fa's.
But he felt he had done reasonably well.
The test was indeed challenging, but he thought he had performed better than before—partly because the math paper that had Wang Chen lamenting had felt manageable after the guidance from Bai Laotou and Tang Lingwu.
In fact, he even had time to check his answers twice after finishing.
Moreover, after mastering the Ling He Shen, he felt his memory and reaction speed had improved significantly, likely boosting his performance in other subjects as well.
Wang Chen, knowing Zheng Fa's habit, nodded and suddenly said, "Zheng Fa, you're in trouble this time. Old Chen is definitely going to come after you."
"Come after me?"
"He can tolerate you for three days, which is a record."
"Record?"
"The record for those who have an interest in Tang Lingwu getting hammered within two days. If it weren't for the exam, he would have called you to the office by now."
Wang Chen said this with certainty, as he always seemed particularly knowledgeable about such matters.
Zheng Fa shook his head. He and Tang Lingwu could only meet at school, and he had never thought of hiding anything from anyone.
If Old Chen saw them, then so be it.
As for physical contact... Zheng Fa truly had no ulterior motives.
Whether the Ling He Shen could be cultivated in the modern world was crucial for him, as it related to the value of what he had learned in the Xuanwei Realm in this contemporary setting.
From his experiment with Tang Lingwu, it seemed his energy could help her cultivate the Ling He Shen, or at least a version of it—modern conditions meant she couldn’t sense the strange power in the void, but her body would still undergo similar changes.
In terms of cultivation speed, Zheng Fa's energy was weak and could not replace the entire environment of the Xuanwei Realm.
Tang Lingwu, using his energy to cultivate, would progress much slower than he did in the Xuanwei Realm; she might need to practice dozens or even hundreds of times to match what he could achieve in one session there.
However, the fact that he could enable someone to cultivate was Zheng Fa's unique advantage in this world.
The modern world was not a place where one could casually practice the Ling He Shen; leveraging the knowledge from the Xuanwei Realm to attract people like Bai Laotou and learn what he needed was the best way for him to maximize the advantage of crossing between two realms.
"If Old Chen comes after you, just admit your mistake and say you won't date Tang Lingwu anymore," Wang Chen continued to offer advice.
"I'm not dating Tang Lingwu," Zheng Fa corrected him.
"With your behavior, even I, as your brother, can't stand it. You’ve already made a move and still don’t want to take responsibility?" Wang Chen's eyes showed disdain. "Besides, Old Chen sees everything clearly!"
Dating Tang Lingwu?
Zheng Fa believed he had no such intentions.
As for Tang Lingwu...
If the way she looked at him could be called the awakening of love, then her gaze at bubble tea must be a lifelong devotion.
In Tang Lingwu's eyes, he was probably Zheng, the "Bubble Tea Supply Package," the "Beauty Department Master," and "Not So Bright" Fa.
Zheng Fa believed that as long as he stood upright, he had nothing to fear.
Seeing Zheng Fa's calm demeanor, Wang Chen interpreted it as a sign of indifference: "Let me tell you, you think Old Chen not coming after you means he’s tolerating you? I bet he’s waiting for the exam results. If you score even a little lower, he’ll settle the old and new scores together. The longer he waits, the bigger the blow will be!"
...
The day after the joint monthly exam, rumors about the results began circulating in the class.
"Did you hear? Tang Lingwu is probably first in our class again."
Wang Chen was gossiping with Zheng Fa about what he had heard.
"Isn't she always first?" Zheng Fa wasn't surprised.
"You don’t understand. If she comes in first again, she’s Old Chen’s favorite disciple, his prized possession. Just think about it—do you think you can get away with touching his precious gem? He’ll tear you apart!"
Zheng Fa shot Wang Chen a sideways glance, slightly frowning. "I get the feeling you’re looking forward to Old Chen scolding me?"
"I’m just looking out for you as a brother," Wang Chen said earnestly.
"Really?"
"I just want you to get a good scolding," Wang Chen gritted his teeth. "But the other guys want to kill you."
As the two chatted, a series of footsteps echoed from outside the classroom, accompanied by Old Chen's voice.
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