Chapter 148
Their expressions were nearly identical in their despair—had it really only been an hour since the exam started, and yet you’ve finished again?
Even the supervising teacher, a woman, couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Zheng Fa’s paper, and only left slowly after seeing it filled to the brim.
For Zheng Fa, the college entrance examination was no longer a challenge.
Especially after he had gained some cultivation, his reaction speed and memory had improved significantly.
If the exam paper didn’t contain any tricky or obscure questions, he could finish it in less than an hour, even having time to check his answers.
At this moment, it was still too early to submit his paper, so Zheng Fa sat in his seat, already contemplating his plans for the future.
Previously, he had been illiterate, and to keep up with the learning pace, he had studied diligently for at least five years:
In the Xuanwei Realm, even while working in the fields under the blazing sun, he felt nothing but focused on memorizing the textbooks he had written down.
In the modern world, he had spent nearly five years hardly stepping outside, rarely indulging in entertainment, living a life almost isolated from the world.
The college entrance examination was a testament to his relentless efforts day after day.
But university was a different matter.
He had no compelling reason to attend college, or rather, the things others cared about didn’t matter to him.
He didn’t need a diploma to gain wealth and status in the modern world—just like Tang Lingwu said, I don’t need a diploma.
Zheng Fa’s purpose in going to university, on a smaller scale, was to truly learn how to conduct research and organize a laboratory, thereby maximizing the value of the nursing home.
On a larger scale, he aimed to cultivate his scientific thinking to unravel the true path of immortality—Zheng Fa understood that the greatest advantage modernity could offer him was thought.
He wanted to learn more.
Of course, he also hoped to attract more scholars to join the nursing home.
Now practicing the Ling Shan Method, his desire to establish the nursing home had grown more urgent—he was currently facing two rather troublesome topics in the "Fu Dao Foundation Establishment Method":
First, after discovering the Three Sons Symbol Law, he needed to conduct research on two types of unknown sub-symbols, A and B.
Especially after studying the sub-symbols within Lin Bufan, Zheng Fa had gained some inspiration:
He had no leads on the A-type sub-symbols for now.
But he had two hypotheses regarding the B-type sub-symbols—
First, these are directional sub-symbols; for instance, among the two sub-symbols within Lin Bufan, one might point to the Grand Freedom Demon Sect’s Demon Ancestor, while the other might point to himself.
This aligns with what Tang Lingwu proposed—that these types of sub-symbols are interactive—equivalent to the hardware of a computer for all things in the world.
The biggest problem with this hypothesis is that the number of potential targets is overwhelming.
If that’s the case, then the B-type sub-symbols could be infinite.
Second, these might be sub-symbols that interact with more fundamental elements.
This hypothesis was derived from Zheng Fa’s model of the four fundamental forces.
The advantage of this hypothesis is that it could be sufficiently concise.
The downside is that it’s purely speculative, with no evidence whatsoever.
The second topic was actually older—what is the essence of the Yin-Yang Symbol Diagram? This had troubled Zheng Fa for quite some time.
He still couldn’t grasp the concept of Yin and Yang mutually generating each other.
…
At this point, he had already reached the sixth level of Qi Refinement.
Given his current pace of cultivation, he estimated he could reach the seventh level of Qi Refinement by August, truly beginning to implement the Ling Shan Method.
When the college entrance examination ended and Zheng Fa walked out of the exam hall, he was a bit surprised—he didn’t see Tang Lingwu waiting for him.
For the past two days, every time he finished an exam, he would see Tang Lingwu waiting for him at the door.
But now, after the exam, she was nowhere to be found.
Instead, it was the old man Bai who came to pick him up.
“What are you looking at?” Old man Bai, noticing Zheng Fa’s searching gaze, patted him on the shoulder and said, “What’s wrong? Isn’t it enough that I’m here to pick you up?”
Zheng Fa shook his head and didn’t say much.
He followed old man Bai onto the bus.
The bus swayed gently as it moved.
There were many other examinees on the bus, their faces showing signs of relaxation, chatting in small groups.
“How did it go?” Old man Bai asked Zheng Fa.
“Not bad, I guess?”
“Is Beijing University a sure thing?”
With that one question, the surrounding students fell silent, all turning to look at old man Bai, their faces saying three words—
“Really daring to dream!”
“It should be fine.”
Zheng Fa nodded; the chances of the top three students from Qing Shui High School getting into Beijing University were quite high.
Then he noticed the group of people on the bus staring at him in silence, their faces again saying three words—
“Really full of himself!”
…
After getting off the bus, Zheng Fa exchanged a glance with old man Bai, both of them breaking into laughter. During that last stretch of the ride, they hadn’t dared to say a word.
“So when are we going to Beijing? Wait for the acceptance letter?”
“Let’s go early; the nursing home is the most important thing.”
“When?”
“I still have some things to take care of at home, probably early July.”
“What things?”
“I have some errands to run, to thank the teachers and staff who have taken care of me over the years, and also… to visit my parents’ graves.”
To be honest, he still didn’t know what his relationship was with this body, but the parents of this body had raised him, and he owed them a debt of gratitude.
Now that he was leaving his hometown, it was only right to pay them a visit.
“...Alright.”
The two of them walked silently into the Qing Shui Middle School residential area when old man Bai suddenly said, “Come eat at my place; the meal is ready.” Zheng Fa turned to look at him and nodded.
As soon as he entered old man Bai’s house, he was a bit surprised—
He was surprised not by Tang Lingwu being there.
But that Teacher Tian was also present.
The two were in the kitchen, with Tang Lingwu standing at the stove, wielding a spatula as if facing a formidable enemy.
Teacher Tian stood beside her, seemingly giving guidance.
Upon seeing the two return, Teacher Tian stepped out of the kitchen.
Tang Lingwu seemed shy and instead hid inside, not showing herself.
“Teacher Tian, what are you doing here?”
“Old Bai said that since you finished your college entrance exam, while others are having celebratory meals, he wanted to throw one for you too,” Teacher Tian said with a smile, “But… this guy can’t cook!”
“So you called her over?”
“I happened to be free.”
Teacher Tian waved her hand, laughing heartily.
Zheng Fa glanced at old man Bai, who was grinning sheepishly—this old man wanted to surprise him and had even gone around to ask Teacher Tian for help.
On the other hand, it was quite touching that Teacher Tian was willing to cook this meal for him, having only met him once.
As for whether Teacher Tian knew he might be able to help her with her illness—based on his understanding of old man Bai, this old man was quite perceptive.
“What about her?” Zheng Fa looked toward the kitchen, where Tang Lingwu was still hiding.
Teacher Tian gave Zheng Fa a knowing look and said, “She? I don’t know what happened, but it seems she suddenly developed an interest in cooking.”
Her tone suggested she was fully aware of the situation.
…
During the meal, Zheng Fa quickly understood why old man Bai had invited Teacher Tian over—she truly had skills!
Even a simple plate of vegetables tasted not only fresh but also sweet, without any hint of bitterness.
“Aunt Tian, your cooking is better than any restaurant I’ve been to!”
Tang Lingwu praised, and given her background, that was quite a compliment.
“I used to work in a very remote place for research,” Teacher Tian said with a smile, “There were no restaurants, so I had no choice but to practice.”
“Wait a minute, you call me Grandpa, and you call her Aunt?” Seeing the two getting along so well, old man Bai felt both pleased and puzzled, “There’s a generational gap here!”
“Do you have any objections?” In this regard, even the easygoing Teacher Tian wouldn’t back down, giving old man Bai a sideways glance, causing him to close his mouth in silence.
Zheng Fa watched as Tang Lingwu leaned toward Teacher Tian, whispering, and he realized another trait of this girl—she was a treasure in the eyes of the elderly.
In such a short time, these two had become so close.
As he observed, Zheng Fa noticed Tang Lingwu’s little actions—she quietly moved the plate of scrambled eggs with tomatoes she had made in front of herself, covering it with her hand, and began to eat it all by herself.
While eating, she frowned, looking a bit dejected.
To be honest, the dish wasn’t bad for a beginner; at least it was cooked through.
But compared to Teacher Tian’s skills, it had many flaws—the tomatoes were too hard, the eggs were overcooked, and most importantly, there was too much salt.
No wonder Tang Lingwu felt a bit embarrassed, after all her hard work, she was trying to hide it, unwilling to share it with others.
Zheng Fa reached out and rescued the plate of scrambled eggs with tomatoes from under Tang Lingwu’s arm.
“Salty!” Tang Lingwu exclaimed anxiously.
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