56: Yingtian University, once

A ten-li long street, with people lining both sides to welcome him.

If he were the top scholar, riding a horse through the streets would be understandable.

But... he was only a Recommended Man!

The enthusiasm of the people of Ying Zhou truly made Qin Chuan feel overwhelmed.

After his face ached from smiling, he finally returned home.

Who would have thought that as soon as he entered the house, Zheng handed him a thick stack of registers.

Qin Chuan asked, puzzled, "What is this?"

Zheng replied, "These are the names of those who came to visit, send gifts, and invite you during this period."

"Ah, this..."

Qin Chuan seemed to remember something: "What about the gifts? You didn't accept them, did you?"

Zheng rolled her eyes at him and said, annoyed, "Am I such an ignorant person? If I accepted a single cent from them today, my son would have to repay ten times that amount in the future. I sent them all back."

"Mother has great foresight!"

After Zheng left, it was Chen Zhou's turn for his usual routine.

"Where are the 'Four Words of the Sage'? Quick, let me see them!"

Qin Chuan: ...

The original manuscript was eaten by Fuxi, so it was naturally gone, but this did not prevent Qin Chuan from writing another copy for the old man.

Looking at Chen Zhou, who was gleefully leaving with his manuscript, Qin Chuan sighed.

"For this family, I have truly sacrificed too much, Qing Mo!"

"I'm here~" The elusive Qing Mo poked her head out from the rooftop.

Qin Chuan: "Refuse anyone who comes to visit. Just tell them that Young Master wants to concentrate on his studies. Also, what were you doing on the rooftop?"

Qing Mo pointed below the roof tiles and said, "After half a month away, there's already a bird's nest under the eaves. I was watching them."

"A bird's nest?!"

Qin Chuan immediately became interested, had someone bring a ladder, and quickly climbed up. Sure enough, he saw it.

Not only was there a bird's nest, but there were also two eggs inside.

Qing Mo looked at Qin Chuan pitifully: "Is Young Master going to drive them away?"

Qin Chuan pondered for a moment: "Forget it, let them stay here. I didn't expect that after being away for a few days, the family would gain new members! Fortunately, it wasn't my parents who added them."

With that matter settled, Qin Chuan returned to his room alone.

Now, he finally had time to do what he had been waiting for!

—Holding the login device, he silently recited:

"Login, Yingtian Academy!"

[Login Device: Detecting login user's official title. Chen Chuan, Recommended Man, meets the entry requirements for 'Yingtian Academy'.]

Light and shadow shifted, and a vast academy appeared before his eyes!

Under the archway of Yingtian Academy, two lines of text came into view.

'The world's schools, thrive from this place.'

If White Deer Academy was a secluded hermitage in the countryside, then Yingtian Academy was a grand, officially run university.

This was not only reflected in the building area but also in the overall style.

Unlike White Deer Academy, which only had a few houses and was mostly surrounded by mountains and rivers.

Yingtian Academy was much more complex, with buildings arranged in a dense, orderly fashion.

At a glance, it was absolutely dazzling.

But...

There was no one!

Not only was there no one, but there wasn't even a single deer!

Qin Chuan: So angry and cold!

Where was the reception? Where was the novice guide? Where was the tutorial?

Ptooey!

It couldn't even compare to White Deer Academy.

Helpless, Qin Chuan had no choice but to wander alone through the vast academy.

It was clear that this place was once an absolute sanctuary for scholars, where countless students gathered to delve into their studies.

As for now—

[Chongsheng Hall: Entry forbidden.]

[Dacheng Hall: Entry forbidden.]

[Front Lecture Hall: Not yet time for class.]

After wandering around for a long time, Qin Chuan found that apart from the scenic buildings, he could only enter two places.

One was the corridor, which served as the student dormitories.

The second was a building called the 'Imperial Library'!

Although the upper floors of the Imperial Library were still off-limits, requiring him to obtain something called a 'Book Reading Permit'.

But... the first floor didn't have so many restrictions.

Looking at the surrounding bookshelves, Qin Chuan felt like he had entered a treasure trove!

—Of course, this didn't mean that the books here were more numerous than those in Jinling Library.

Rather, it was their unique nature!

For example: What exactly happened in the past of Great Zhou?

Why was the meticulously structured and painstakingly created Virtual World completely empty?

All of these questions could be answered from these books.

Just looking at the tens of thousands of books, even Qin Chuan, who had the ability to remember everything at a glance, felt overwhelmed.

He wondered if all his time before going to the capital would be enough...

However, he casually pulled out a book and looked at its title.

—"A Study of the History of the Imperial Grand World"

Qin Chuan felt that he might enjoy himself there.

Time passed without notice, and a month flew by in the blink of an eye.

The weather turned cold.

Qing Mo huddled by the brazier, emitting comfortable 'purring' sounds.

She looked at Qin Chuan, who was lying beside her, wondering what she was thinking.

Suddenly, Qin Chuan abruptly opened his eyes and sighed:

"So that's how it is!"

Qing Mo was startled by his sudden outburst and jumped up, almost getting burned by the brazier.

She could only pout and look at her young master with a wronged expression.

Qin Chuan looked at her expression and said awkwardly, "Hmm... Go brew a pot of hot tea."

Qing Mo immediately became energetic: "Okay, Young Master! Do you still want to sleep later? We're leaving for the capital tomorrow!"

Qin Chuan shook his head: "No, I'm not sleeping. Have you packed everything?"

"Yep, all packed! I'm going to brew the tea!"

A moment later, sipping the fine tea in his mouth, Qin Chuan silently pondered his discoveries in Yingtian Academy.

Undoubtedly, the ancient Great Zhou—

Or rather, it shouldn't be called Great Zhou, but there once existed a glorious civilization in this world!

The reach of that civilization had already extended beyond this world, into the entire myriad of heavens.

During this period, those predecessors came into contact with countless civilizations.

Immortal-hero? Imperial dynasties? Even sci-fi civilizations!

The relationship between these civilizations and the ancient Great Zhou was complex, but there were no blood-feud enemies in general.

This could be seen from between the lines of those books.

But for some unknown reason, one day, a catastrophe seemed to descend.

The entire ancient civilization was destroyed in an instant!

Natural disaster?

Unlikely. A civilization of that level had long since reached a point where it feared no natural disasters.

Then, it could only be a man-made disaster.

Qin Chuan thought of the abyss invasion he encountered in Qiao City, and then of the Main World's urgent demeanor.

Humanity was not alone.

This contact, at least from the current perspective, was not benevolent.

And it was imminent!

"Phew~ It's too early to think about these things. Let's just live well in this life first."

"At least... have some self-preservation ability!"

After a few thoughts, Qin Chuan looked up at the swallows returning outside the window and firmly gripped the Wanmin Umbrella in his hand.

This was his most confident reliance at the moment.

One day—he wouldn't need this umbrella and would still have ample confidence!