197: Chapter 197 Tianhe Tutoring Center: The Biggest Black Market in All Realms
In the first-tier classroom, the lights were a sickly white.
Hundreds of spies and informants from various major factions were packed inside like sardines in a can, their eyes vacant, their faces haggard.
On the blackboard before them, the Purple Mansion Holy Son, Xiao Tianjiao, was in a state of extreme excitement. His hair was disheveled, he had already broken three pieces of chalk in his hand, and the blackboard was densely covered with formulas that made one want to vomit at a glance.
"Do you understand?"
Xiao Tianjiao slammed his hand against the blackboard, sending a cloud of chalk dust flying.
"This is the **'Spherical Cow'** model!"
"As long as we assume the cow is a perfectly smooth sphere in a vacuum, we can calculate its maximum milk production speed!"
A deathly silence fell over the room.
A Golden Core Stage spy from the Beast Taming Sect raised a trembling hand.
"Um... Holy Son Xiao."
"I'm from the Beast Taming Sect. Our cows... they have hair, and they aren't round..."
"Silence! Superficial!"
A piece of chalk, launched with pinpoint accuracy (ballistics calculated, dead center between the eyes), struck the spy's forehead.
"If the real cow isn't round, that's *its* fault! It's imperfect evolution!"
"We must use mathematics to correct it! To 'polish' it into a sphere!"
The Beast Taming Sect spy covered his forehead, on the verge of tears.
He wanted to argue, but seeing the Big Yellow Dog sharpening a scalpel on a whetstone beside him, he wisely chose to keep his mouth shut.
"Alright, Teaching Assistant Xiao, hold on for a moment."
Just as the spies felt they were on the verge of Qi Deviation, that devilishly gentle voice finally sounded.
Li Mo pushed the door open and entered.
In his hand was a thick stack of freshly printed flyers, the scent of ink still on them. A commercially polite smile, the kind that says 'better late than never,' was plastered on his face.
"Students, how was this trial lesson?"
Li Mo asked with a beaming smile.
Silence reigned below the podium.
How did it feel?
It felt like having their souls searched by a hundred Nascent Soul Stage old monsters in succession. The shame of having their intelligence ground into the dirt made them want to self-destruct on the spot.
But they had to admit...
That thing called 'science,' though bizarre, carried a sharpness that seemed to point directly to the Origin of the Dao.
Especially the spy from the Star Pavilion. Staring at the rough sketch of a 'gravitational lens' on the blackboard, his eyes actually shone with a fanatical obsession, something akin to 'hearing the Dao in the morning.'
"Since no one is speaking, I'll take that as everyone being very satisfied."
Li Mo walked up to the podium and began handing out the stack of flyers.
"We're all smart people here, what you'd commonly call 'spies.'"
"I know exactly why you're all here."
"Want an Opportunity? Want a Legacy? Want to know why the Purple Mansion Holy Son went mad... ahem, why he had an Epiphany?"
Li Mo pointed a thumb over his shoulder at Xiao Tianjiao.
At that moment, Xiao Tianjiao was drawing circles in the air, radiating a palpably intimidating 'top student aura.'
"I can give it to you."
Li Mo's voice was dripping with temptation.
"We at the Tianhe Tutorial Class are open for business."
"As long as you want to learn, I dare to teach."
"Whether it's the 'Guide to Making Railguns,' the 'Immortal Water Formula,' or even... 'An Introduction to Quantum Cultivation.'"
"We have it all."
Hearing this, the spies below the podium began breathing heavily.
Wasn't this exactly what they had risked their lives to infiltrate for?
That legendary Magic Treasure that could blow a mountain apart with one shot! That divine water that could make a Saintess young again!
"However."
Li Mo rapped his knuckles on the desk, his eyes instantly turning shrewd.
"Knowledge is priceless."
"But tuition fees have a price."
He pointed to the price list on the flyer.
The spies looked down and collectively gasped.
The temperature in the entire classroom seemed to drop several degrees.
**[Tianhe Tutorial Class · Course Selection Price List (Trial Version)]**
"'Elementary Physics (Mechanics)': Price: One Profound Rank High Grade Cultivation Technique, or equivalent value Spirit Materials."
"'Intermediate Chemistry (Explosives)': Price: One Earth Rank Low Grade Pill Formula, or ten thousand-year-old Spirit Medicines."
"'Electromagnetism (Railgun Specialization)': Price: One Earth Rank High Grade Lightning-type Magic Treasure, or a Sect's core Secret Manual Incomplete Manual."
"'Advanced Mathematics (Calculus)': Price: One Heaven Rank Cultivation Technique/Secret Manual (requires authentication for authenticity by Head Teacher Big Yellow Dog)."
"'Quantum Mechanics (Holy Son Special Edition)': Price: That's a different price altogether (selling yourself is recommended)."
"This... this is robbery!"
A spy from the Loose Cultivator Alliance couldn't help but jump up.
"A lousy book, and you want a Profound Rank Cultivation Technique for it? Why don't you just rob us!"
"Rob?"
Li Mo shook his head, looking disdainful.
"Robbing isn't as profitable as running a school!"
"And you think that's a lousy book?"
Li Mo snapped his fingers.
"Teaching Assistant Xiao, demonstrate the 'gold content' of 'mechanics' for this student."
"Received."
Xiao Tianjiao's eyes turned cold.
He didn't even use spiritual power. He simply picked up a piece of chalk from the podium.
"Target distance: 5 meters. Wind speed: 0. Coriolis force negligible."
"Force application technique: Spiral Force."
*Whoosh—!*
The chalk left his hand.
It traced a bizarre arc through the air, emitting a piercing sonic boom.
Before the Loose Cultivator spy could react, he felt a chill on his shoulder.
*Thud.*
Like a bullet, the chalk pierced straight through his Protective Aura and embedded itself three inches deep into the wall behind him!
On the spy's shoulder, his clothes had burst apart, leaving behind a swollen, red bruise.
The entire room was horrified.
A piece of chalk?
No spiritual power?
It broke through the defenses of a Golden Core Stage Cultivator?
"This is 'Elementary Mechanics.'"
Li Mo said calmly.
"Master it, and grass, wood, bamboo, or stone can all become swords. Would you still care about that lousy Profound Rank Cultivation Technique?"
The Loose Cultivator spy clutched his shoulder, staring dumbly at the chalk in the wall.
The next second, he pulled out a yellowed booklet from his robe and slammed it onto the desk.
"Trade! I'll trade! This is my family's heirloom 'Severing Gate Saber'! I'll trade it for that mechanics book!"
"Deal."
Li Mo smiled, collected the booklet, and tossed him a copy of 'Five Years of Simulation, Three Years of Cultivation (Mechanics Volume).'
With the first one taking the lead, the floodgates were opened.
"I'm from the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect! I want to learn... learn that dog's 'surgery'!"
The Beast Taming Sect spy shouted, his eyes red.
He had just witnessed the Big Yellow Dog dissecting a roasted chicken with a scalpel, separating the meat from the bones while keeping the skin perfectly intact. For the Beast Taming Sect, this was practically a divine skill!
"Biological Anatomy is an advanced course."
Li Mo extended his hand. "That'll cost extra."
"Take it! This is a copy of my Ten Thousand Beasts Sect's 'Hundred Beasts Spiritual Communion Record'! It's just a copy, but it's still a core secret!"
Gritting his teeth, the spy produced a Jade Slip. For that miraculous knife skill, to make his Spirit Beast look that cool, he was going all in! Betraying his Sect? No, this was called introducing advanced technology for the Sect!
"I'm from the Star Pavilion!"
The Star Pavilion spy, who had been staring blankly at the blackboard, stood up. His eyes were frighteningly fanatical.
"That 'gravity'... that 'black hole'... what exactly are they?"
"Our Star Pavilion has observed the stars for a thousand years, yet no one has ever proposed the concept of 'spacetime curvature'!"
"I want to learn! Even if I have to steal the Pavilion Master's star chart, I want to learn!"
Li Mo looked at this distinguished disciple of the Star Pavilion and nodded in satisfaction.
"Very enlightened."
"I'll save a copy of 'A Guide to General Relativity' for you. Remember, I want the original star chart. Not a single star missing."
The situation spiraled completely out of control.
What kind of tutorial class was this?
This was clearly the biggest black market in all realms!
And also the biggest fence for stolen goods!
These elite spies from various major factions, who usually guarded their Sect's secrets more closely than their own lives...
Now, under the bombardment of 'truths' and the temptation of 'railguns' and 'immortal water,' their psychological defenses had completely crumbled.
They were like gamblers at a table.
Their chips were their own Sect's Legacies.
What they were winning back was a poison called 'science.'
"I want to learn chemistry! I want to brew the immortal water! My Dao Companion said she'll break up with me if I don't bring it back!"
"I want to learn electromagnetism! With that cannon, why would I bother practicing Flying Swords? I'll be the Thunder God directly!"
"Teacher! This 'Blazing Heaven Incineration Art' I stole... ahem, found... how many credits can I exchange it for?"
Li Mo sat on the podium, collecting books until his hands grew tired.
Before him, piles of various Jade Slips, beast hides, and ancient texts were stacked.
'Severing Gate Saber,' 'Hundred Beasts Record,' 'Star Chart,' 'Blazing Heaven Art'...
These Secret Manuals, any one of which could cause a bloodbath in the outside world, were now being tossed onto the table like cabbages.
"Squeak. (We're rich! Boss! We're rich!)"
Squeak rolled around in the pile of books, so happy it was about to faint.
"The Scripture Pavilion's collection is going to multiply several times over!"
While taking stock of the loot, Li Mo watched the prompts on his System panel going crazy.
**[Acquired Profound Rank Cultivation Technique 'Severing Gate Saber.' Extracted keyword: Weakness Insight (Advanced).]**
**[Acquired Earth Rank Secret Manual 'Hundred Beasts Spiritual Communion.' Extracted keyword: Beast Speaker (Level 10).]**
**[Acquired Heaven Rank Incomplete Manual 'Star Contemplation Chart.' Extracted golden keyword: Gravitational Pull (Elementary).]**
Awesome.
So awesome.
This was much faster than going out to find books himself.
What was this called? This was the platform economy.
Build a platform (the tutorial class), let all the 'leeks' from the world bring their own 'fertilizer' running over, begging you to harvest them.
"Don't rush, take your time."
Li Mo stored the Secret Manuals one by one into his System space (the Scripture Pavilion shelves automatically generated).
"This is just the beginning."
"Wait until they finish the basic courses and discover there are still 'advanced courses,' 'Great Master courses,' and 'Supreme VIP private tutoring courses'..."
"By then, they'll probably even steal their Sect's Mountain Protection Grand Array blueprints for me."
Li Mo glanced at the Star Pavilion spy.
The guy was hungrily clutching a copy of 'Relativity,' reading while his nose bled (overusing his brain), shouting, "Hearing the Dao in the morning, one can die content in the evening! So light can be bent!"
"What a lovely bunch of students."
Li Mo sighed.
...
Night fell.
The Scripture Pavilion of the Heavenly River Sword Sect was brightly lit.
The empty spaces on the bookshelves were being filled at a visible rate.
The originally empty second and third floors were now filled with copies of Secret Manuals from various major factions. Though many were basic Cultivation Techniques, the sheer quantity greatly enriched the Scripture Pavilion's database.
Li Mo stood on the top floor, looking down.
The 'transfer students' who had just paid their tuition had not been released.
They were assigned to the 'Second Dormitory Area' (formerly a pigsty, renovated).
But no one complained.
Everyone was burning the midnight oil, cramming desperately for tomorrow's 'pop quiz.'
"This is the power of knowledge."
Li Mo took a sip of his goji berry tea.
"Turning a bunch of scheming spies into diligent, sleep-deprived top students."
"My Karma is truly immeasurable."
Just then, the System notification sounded again.
**[Book collection has surpassed 100,000 volumes.]**
**[Knowledge System coverage rate has increased to 15%.]**
**[Congratulations, host. Scripture Pavilion level has increased.]**
**[New function unlocked: [Truth Projection].]**
**[Truth Projection: Within the range of the Scripture Pavilion, you can materialize scenes or characters from the books as 'teaching assistants' or 'guardian bosses.']**
Li Mo's eyes lit up.
Materialize characters from books?
Didn't that mean...
I could actually summon 'Emperor Newton' to teach them?
Or drag out 'Celestial Master Einstein' to debate with that Star Pavilion guy?
Or even...
If I get 'The Three-Body Problem' later, could I materialize a 'dimensional foil' as a teaching aid?
"It seems the tutorial class's teaching staff is about to be strengthened again."
Li Mo's lips curled slightly.
"I wonder when those great Confucian scholars... will arrive?"
"I can't wait to see what kind of sparks (fights) will fly when Confucius meets Emperor Newton."