No one paid any attention to Su Qiangwei, who was currently having a nervous breakdown.
What?
She was the runner-up, ranked second in combat power among the current members of Caolu Academy?
In theory, that was indeed the case.
Putting aside Ma Ran, the top scholar, whether one looked at the progress of Inner Qi cultivation or the strength of superpowers, Su Qiangwei was unquestionably the strongest person in Caolu Academy!
Unfortunately, as a man who seemed to carry a spotlight with him wherever he went, Ma Ran could not possibly be overlooked.
Losers had no right to be remembered—unless their name was Yue Lun.
Everyone was still immersed in Ma Ran's performance from earlier and had yet to come back to their senses.
Just look at the things he had said!
On the way to awaken his superpower, he had cultivated a little more seriously and charged straight to the Fifth Stage of Inner Qi...
Was this guy even human?
And...
After Black Rock Martial Way cultivation reached the fifth layer, one could release Inner Qi pellets barehanded, giving oneself a short- to mid-range attack method!
Even though Ma Ran had disdainfully belittled Inner Qi pellets without leaving a trace, making them sound utterly useless, he still could not suppress the fervor of the Caolu Academy members.
"Six Meridian Divine Sword!"
"Add some color to it, and wouldn't that be the 'sword pill' from Xianxia novels?"
"If we could find a way to modify its shape, it would become an invisible flying sword!"
The young people's appetites were fired up. They frantically stuffed food into their mouths while letting their imaginations run wild and envisioning the future. They wished they could immediately make a breakthrough, reach the Fifth Stage of Inner Qi, and then display their prowess in public like Ma Ran, basking in the limelight.
Unfortunately...
The ideal was plump, but reality was painfully thin.
At present, they had not even reached the level of Inner Qi Stage One.
While enjoying breakfast, Ma Ran answered questions from the academy members who came to seek his guidance, solving many of the Inner Qi cultivation problems troubling them.
He possessed the Acting ability, allowing him to skip the arduous accumulation process directly, with no bottlenecks whatsoever.
Who else had such treatment?
Even Su Qiangwei, who was suspected of being Old Heaven's illegitimate daughter, had to cultivate bitterly!
Moreover, they could not simply bury their heads in hard training.
Whether it was the Inner Qi system of Black Rock Martial Way or superpowers, the process of improvement required patience, seriousness, and diligent thought.
Otherwise, it was easy to stop making progress.
That was what people called a bottleneck.
Take Inner Qi cultivation, for example. From refining the first wisp of Inner Qi to nurturing filled acupoints into mature miniature organs, everything was currently the greatest challenge troubling the members of Caolu Academy.
"Brother Ran, I've been recording the times you solve everyone's problems."
Dong Huaiming, Ma Ran's number-one little fanboy, held a voice recorder in his hand and leaned toward him. "I plan to organize this material into text and compile it into a book."
"I'll call it Burning Martial Arts!"
"How about it?"
Ma Ran stared expressionlessly at Xiao Ming.
To be honest...
It was terrible.
That title had neither depth nor clarity. Who the hell would know what the book was about?
However...
That naming style was indeed very much in line with Dong Huaiming's personality.
It was sufficiently chuuni.
It had the right feel.
"Then..."
Dong Huaiming read Ma Ran's expression and immediately changed his wording. "We'll save the title Burning Martial Arts for later."
Who was Xiao Ming?
He was the number-one fanboy of Caolu Academy's leading figure!
All it took was a single glance for him to immediately understand what Ma Ran was thinking.
"After Brother Ran becomes a Martial Saint, reaches the pinnacle, and achieves godhood in martial arts, we'll bring it out again."
Dong Huaiming picked up a large spoon and stirred the food in the iron basin. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. "I've got it!"
"The Next Transcendent—An Initial Analysis of Black Rock Martial Way. How about that?"
Humans had limits.
Even a diligent genius could not cultivate Inner Qi twenty-four hours a day.
And no one who spent eighteen hours cultivating every day could possibly keep it up forever!
After finishing his daily cultivation, Dong Huaiming would wander around Caolu Academy.
In just a few days, the restless boy had already explored all of Gulunzhong.
The phrase "the next transcendent" was adapted from the words "the one after the Three Dynasties" carved into the stele on the back of Gulunzhong's memorial archway.
The so-called "one after the Three Dynasties" was praise for Zhuge Liang, saying that Master Kongming was the greatest hero after the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties.
As for "the next transcendent," that reflected Xiao Ming's self-awareness as Ma Ran's die-hard fan.
Ma Ran glanced at Dong Huaiming's food basin and said with a complicated expression, "Do as you like."
Seafood Buddha Jumps Over the Wall for breakfast? That was a little heavy...
Just as Ma Ran put down his chopsticks, a junior high school student ran over, took his tray, and carried it to the dish-return area.
Xiao Ming had held back for a long time, but he still could not suppress his curiosity. He hesitated before saying, "Brother Ran, your hair..."
Ma Ran seemed to force a smile. "It's a side effect of my superpower."
"Changing the future through Limited Precognition."
"Whether things turn better or worse, it accelerates cellular aging and overdrafts one's lifespan."
Then he awkwardly changed the subject and calmly gave Dong Huaiming a brief account of his superpower awakening yesterday.
Some information only needed to reach Dong Huaiming to be equivalent to the entire Caolu Academy knowing it.
In theory, this was also a form of Acting.
However, Ma Ran could now be certain—absolutely certain—that the Acting ability would filter out the parts harmful to him, leaving only the beneficial parts.
Otherwise, from the very beginning, the person who reincarnated should not have been Ma Ran, but the few survivors and comrades who had lived through Earth's destruction.
"Oh, I see!"
Dong Huaiming's face was full of sorrow. After carefully considering his words and mulling it over for a while, he finally said cautiously, "Brother Ran, then in the future..."
"Try to use that ability as little as possible!"
Although he was a terminal case of chuuni syndrome with an unusual thought process, he had at least received many years of excellent materialist education.
In Dong Huaiming's eyes, superpowers that controlled water, fire, wind, and lightning could barely be explained using scientific theories.
However, among Limited Precognition, Myriad Transformations, aerial movement, and telepathy, aside from aerial movement sounding relatively normal, the other three were each more unscientific than the last when considered separately!
But...
Ma Ran had clearly expended some of his lifespan in order to change a certain future.
"Don't worry."
"I know my limits."
Not long after returning to his dormitory, Ma Ran received the remaining rewards for uploading Black Rock Guidance Technique.
The rest of the rewards were divided into two parts.
First was a new phone with no brand label.
Its appearance was somewhat similar to Xiaomi's latest model.
Its overall performance was exceptionally excellent, and its reliability far surpassed that of every smartphone on the market.
Most importantly, it came with an app called "Dajiang."
It was a communication and research application for China's supernatural abilities and phenomena.
Under normal circumstances, only members who had joined an academy and passed at least one month of assessment were qualified to access this app.
President Huang Weiguo had opened a back door for Ma Ran, allowing him to skip the assessment process.
Through this software, one could obtain first-hand intelligence on supernatural phenomena and stay up to date on the latest research results from other academies.
In addition, there was a certificate.
Bright red, with gilded edges!
The white bar on the back contained a written explanation.
"1. This certificate is issued by Caolu Academy. Each person is issued one for exclusive use, and it may not be lent out."
"2. Certificate holders enjoy temporary immunity from ordinary law. When involved in legal disputes, they are subject only to trial by the academy court."
"3. ..."
There were seven points in total, simply and clearly explaining the benefits certificate holders could enjoy and the obligations they needed to fulfill.
--
Thanks to Xu Ziyu for the 100-point reward of chicken drumsticks for Ma Ran!
Thanks to Little Dried Fish for the 100-point reward of chicken drumsticks for Ma Ran!
Thanks to Absolutely Awful Me for the 100-point reward!
Thanks to the Cutest Ai for the 100-point reward!
Thanks to Black Dragon Rising as Clouds Fly for the 100-point reward!
Thanks to OoO Your Little Male God OVO for the 100-point reward!
Thanks to Meowpas's Childhood Sweetheart for the 100-point reward!
Thanks to Ink Rain Star Fate for the 100-point reward!
Thanks to Moonlight Clear Wind and One Caotang for the 100-point reward!
Thanks to Autumn Wind, One Drunken Dream, Awakening After a Thousand Years for the 100-point reward!
Thank you! (▽)
The second update is complete!
Hahahah.
See you tomorrow, buddies!
Before you continue