A professor seeks immortality through cultivation? A top student disagrees: I only believe in science!

In front of the Administrative Building, a deathly silence lasted for a full half-minute.

The crack created by that single stomp was like a chasm, completely severing the understanding of the old era.

The wind blew past, swirling up a few fragments of stone debris that struck Principal Zhang Bowen's trouser leg.

The old principal, renowned both domestically and internationally and who had spent his life defending the spirit of science, suddenly shuddered, as if waking from a long dream.

He looked at the terrifying footprint on the ground, then raised his head to look at Sun Lei, who stood with his hands behind his back, his expression indifferent.

The next second, the fear, doubt, and anger on Zhang Bowen's face rapidly receded at a visible speed.

Replacing them was an unprecedented, almost fanatical

—obsequiousness!

"Ahem... well..."

Zhang Bowen rubbed his hands. His originally straight posture unconsciously bent slightly.

He quickly walked up to Sun Lei, his face plastered with a chrysanthemum-like smile.

"Sun Lei... oh no, Chief Instructor Sun!"

"My voice was a bit loud just now, please don't take it to heart."

"You just asked... if it was qualified?"

"Yes! Extremely qualified! It is absolutely deserving!"

"If this kind of divine Cultivation Technique that seizes the creation of the world isn't qualified to be a mandatory course, then what other course does Qingbei University have that is presentable?"

"Even Quantum Mechanics has to step aside in the face of this stomp!"

This rapid change of face stunned the group of professors behind him.

Wait... Principal, where is your integrity? Where is your scholarly moral fiber?

However, before anyone could react, Professor Wang of the Physics Department, who had been the most vocal earlier, moved even faster than the Principal!

The sixty-something-year-old man darted forward.

Completely ignoring the dust on the ground, he crouched down next to the footprint, extending a trembling finger to trace the cracks along the edge.

As he touched it, he muttered to himself, "No assistance... only pure physical strength..."

"This isn't scientific... but it is Cultivating Immortality!"

Suddenly, Professor Wang raised his head, his cloudy old eyes blazing with a wolf-like hunger as he stared intensely at Sun Lei.

"Instructor Sun! Tell me, is this... is this what that 'Basic Body Forging Art' trains you to do?"

Sun Lei nodded faintly: "Precisely."

"Then can I Cultivate?!"

Professor Wang stepped forward and grabbed Sun Lei's sleeve, spitting excitedly: "I'm sixty-two this year. Although I have a slipped disc and a bit of high blood pressure, I have a heart devoted to the Dao!"

"Instructor, do you think I still have a chance?"

As soon as he said this, the professors who had been righteously indignant and threatening to resign moments before, dropped the act!

"Instructor! I want to Cultivate too! Although I work in literature, I've had a dream of Cultivating Immortality since I was a child!"

"Instructor Sun, can this Cultivation Technique cure baldness? If it can, I don't need funding anymore, I just want a spot for Cultivating Immortality!"

"What spot? You were the one cursing the loudest just now! If there's a spot, it should go to me first!"

"Get lost! Even seniority won't get you a turn! Instructor, let me go first!"

"Old bastard... you're going too far!!"

Sun Lei's mouth couldn't help but twitch as he watched this group of normally high-and-mighty top scholars fighting tooth and nail over a spot for Cultivating Immortality.

The speed of their change of expression was faster than turning a page.

"Quiet down!"

Sun Lei coldly shouted, instantly silencing the group of fanatical old men.

"Whether you can Cultivate depends on Aptitude and perseverance."

"The immediate priority now is the students."

He looked at Zhang Bowen: "Principal Zhang, sound the alarm immediately. Full school assembly!"

"Wooo

—wooo

—wooo

—!!!"

A piercing and urgent air-raid siren suddenly echoed throughout the entire Qingbei campus without warning.

Immediately afterward, Principal Zhang's voice, filled with urgency and excitement, came over the campus broadcast.

"Emergency Notice! Attention all faculty and students!"

"Immediately put down everything you are doing! Assemble at the East District Grand Sports Field within ten minutes!"

"This is a Level One Order! Latecomers will be expelled!"

Amidst the siren, the entire Qingbei University instantly erupted.

But unlike previous panics, this time, the expression on the faces of the vast majority of students was

—ecstasy!

As the group with the fastest internet speed and the wildest imaginations, they had already devoured the trending topics over the past few days!

"Holy crap! Level One Order? Full school assembly? Bros, is that finally happening?!"

"Definitely! Haven't you seen the news? The Ministry of Education even issued a Red-headed Document! The Cultivating Immortality course!"

"Aah! I finally waited for this day! I knew Taibai Academy was real!"

"Hurry, hurry! If we're late, we won't get a spot in the front row, and that will delay my Foundation Establishment!"

In an instant, the entire Qingbei campus boiled over.

Countless students poured out of dormitories and academic buildings like a tide.

Their faces held no fear or complaint, only uncontrollable excitement and anticipation.

The online buzz over the past few days had completely whetted their appetite,

Now that the school was making such a grand display, anyone who surfed the web regularly could guess the gist of it.

Cultivating Immortality! That was Cultivating Immortality!

Who wouldn't want to fly on a sword? Who wouldn't want eternal life?

However, within this surging crowd, a small group of people stood out, looking utterly out of place.

These were the "die-hards" in the libraries and labs.

They were Qingbei's top students, the future scientists.

To prepare for various competitions and tackle scientific research problems, they had essentially been offline and secluded, working day and night, completely unaware that the outside world had changed.

"What's going on? An air-raid drill?"

"Are they crazy? My data is only halfway through!"

"Expel us? Has the principal gone mad? I'm rushing to publish my paper!"

These top students, faces full of indignation, were reluctantly dragged toward the sports field by their roommates, clutching their books and laptops,

constantly complaining about this "waste of life."

Ten minutes later.

The East District Grand Sports Field was packed with people.

Sun Lei stood on the rostrum, looking at the young, immature faces below.

He could clearly feel that the atmosphere below was strangely polarized.

Most students had fiery eyes and were overwhelmingly excited, wishing they could start Cultivating Immortality right now.

But the small cluster of students in the front row, wearing thick glasses and clutching books, frowned, their faces full of impatience and indignation.

"I am your Chief Instructor, Sun Lei."

Sun Lei wasted no words and got straight to the point.

"Starting today, all existing professional courses at Qingbei University are suspended!"

"All teaching resources will be allocated toward the 'Basic Body Forging Course'!"

"We only have one thing to do

—Cultivate!"

"Whoosh

—!!!"

As soon as the words fell, a thunderous cheer instantly erupted below the stage.

"Awesome! Long live Cultivating Immortality!"

"Instructor, I love you! I want to Practice Qi! I want Foundation Establishment! I want Immortal Ascension!!"

However, amidst the deafening cheers, a sharp, discordant voice suddenly rang out.

"I object!!"

At the very front of the line, a tall, skinny boy wearing black-rimmed glasses suddenly raised his hand and shouted, his face flushed red.

The surrounding cheers instantly ceased.

Everyone looked at the boy.

That was Li Wen, a Genius from the Qingbei Youth Class, a legend in the Physics Department, said to have an IQ of 160!

He had been secluded in the lab for a full half-month to tackle a research topic, not even turning on his phone.

Li Wen pushed away the roommate trying to restrain him and angrily pointed at Sun Lei on the stage!

"Who are you? Why do you have the right to suspend our classes?"

"Do you know how precious time is to us? Do you know what interrupting an experiment means?"

"We came to Qingbei to learn knowledge, to climb the peak of science! We didn't come here to play these boring military training games with you!"

"What Body Forging? What Cultivation? It's simply feudal superstition! It's anti-intellectual!"

The more Li Wen spoke, the more agitated he became. He represented the voices of the "offline" top students.

In their view, this was an absurd farce, an insult to their intelligence!

The informed students below looked at Li Wen, their eyes turning strange.

"Did this guy just get online?"

"Shh, don't talk. God Li has been in the lab these past few days; he probably doesn't know the world has changed."

"Oh no, oh no, isn't he walking right into the line of fire?"

Sun Lei looked down at Li Wen, watching this angry young man who firmly believed in science.

He wasn't angry; instead, he showed a hint of appreciation.

But it was only appreciation.

"You think this is feudal superstition?" Sun Lei asked faintly.

"Isn't it?" Li Wen retorted proudly, sticking out his neck. "I am a Physics student. I only believe in data, I believe in truth!"

"The human body has limits. So-called Cultivation is nothing but self-deception!"

"A fine belief in truth."

Sun Lei nodded and slowly walked down the rostrum, the crowd automatically parting to form a path.

Sun Lei walked straight to the edge of the sports field.

To prevent vehicles from entering the track, solid stone pillars were erected every two meters to block them.

These pillars were as thick as a thigh, carved from a single piece of the hardest granite, and deeply buried underground

—truly solid as a rock.

He reached out and patted the stone pillar, producing a muffled sound.

Then, he turned to Li Wen and asked calmly:

"What does your physics tell you would happen if a person, without using any tools, crashed into this solid granite pillar at full speed?"

Li Wen sneered and immediately blurted out: "Force is reciprocal! That person's scapula would suffer a comminuted fracture, internal organs would rupture from the impact, and they would most likely die on the spot!"

"Very good, a very scientific answer." Sun Lei nodded.

He then took a few steps back under the rapt attention of everyone present.

His body sank slightly, lowering his center of gravity.

"Then open your eyes wide and watch carefully."

"This is... the physics of the new era!"

Before he finished speaking.

Boom!

The turf beneath Sun Lei's feet instantly exploded, sending dirt flying!

His entire body shot forward like a cannonball, covering several meters in less than half a second!

There was no flashy movement.

It was the simplest, most brutal move

—The Mountain Lean!

"Bang

—!!!"

A muffled, earth-shattering explosion ripped across the sports field like thunder!

This was immediately followed by the sound of shattering stone fragments spraying everywhere!

Under Li Wen's horrified gaze,

the incredibly hard, solid granite pillar

—powerful enough to smash the front of a car

—directly exploded from Sun Lei's impact!

The terrifying force instantly penetrated the interior of the pillar. The previously intact stone pillar seemed to have been detonated by internal explosives,

the upper half instantly shattered into dust and fragments that shot backward!

Only a broken base remained, standing alone on the spot, the cross-section a shocking sight!

Meanwhile, Sun Lei merely brushed the stone chips off his shoulder and turned around as if nothing had happened.

He was completely unharmed!

Li Wen's mouth fell open, and the pen in his hand clattered to the ground.

All the formulas and theorems he prided himself on instantly collapsed and shattered in his mind.

A body of flesh and blood... smashed granite?!

This doesn't conform to mechanics... This isn't science!!!

Sun Lei looked at this group of top students whose worldviews had been utterly shattered.

His voice remained calm, yet it exploded like thunder in everyone's hearts.

"This is Cultivation."

"Now, does anyone still think this is feudal superstition?"