On-the-Spot Science Lesson

On-the-Spot Science Lesson

"Drop your weapons and surrender, and the PLA will treat prisoners leniently?"

A dark-faced Daoist mustered the courage to raise his head.

Anyone with eyes could tell that if this guy didn't have a guilty conscience, then something was seriously wrong.

"Pfft!"

Goddess Yan, who had been staring blankly at Li Bai with dazed eyes, finally snapped out of it and burst out laughing.

The livestream chat exploded with a flood of 666s, perfectly arranged, even forming a pyramid wave.

6

66

666

It was safe to say their math had been taught by a PE teacher. That wasn't how sequences were arranged at all.

"Hm?"

Li Bai felt that his face was probably darker than the other man's now.

"Firmly and unswervingly follow the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, achieve economic development, social progress, cultural prosperity, thriving industries, and the people's happiness and well-being; fully build a moderately prosperous society by 2020; double the gross national product and per capita national income; adhere to an independent foreign policy of peace..."

There was actually a real tough one among these Daoists. He was probably a top student in politics class, because he recited it word for word without a single mistake.

This was over. They were done for!

The Cosplay players swayed and staggered one after another. The worshippers all wore strange expressions, while Young Master Ni, whose head was covered in bumps, felt it would be better to let Old Dad keep whipping him for a while longer.

Could everyone be a little more serious? Did they have any political awareness at all?

What was so funny?

Before that guy could get to the Eight Honors and Eight Shames or the Chinese Dream, Great Demon Li finally surrendered. He cleared his throat and interrupted the ruthless man, who was still prattling on without pause, then beckoned to the Special Duty captain guarding the entrance of Qingliang Temple.

"Take these people to the Police Department. I suspect Qingliang Temple is hiding dangerous and prohibited items, and that there's unlicensed illegal medical practice going on. While you're at it, tell them about our Party's policies."

Although promoting feudal superstition was not illegal, and there was no crime of "feudal superstition" in the law, there were still relevant statutes if it involved harming others, self-harm, collecting money, reactionary speech, or illegal assemblies.

The reason Qingliang Temple had been able to get away with things for so long was that it had exploited plenty of legal loopholes. But there was definitely no shortage of shady business. Illegal flammable and explosive materials, illegal anesthetics, and psychotropic drugs—catch them, and they'd be nailed every time.

At the end of the day, Qingliang Temple was competing with Seventh People's Hospital for business. Since Li Bai was dealing with these three old Daoists, Dean Zhou, True Man Zhou, would absolutely support him to the end. Even their colleagues across the province would probably form a team to back him up. Stealing someone's livelihood was like killing their parents—a blood feud that could never be reconciled. They had to crush those bastards.

That old fox True Man Zhou had brought up the online controversy. For all anyone knew, he was using Great Demon Li as a weapon.

"Alright!"

The Special Duty captain had already seen that Qingliang Temple was putting on a farce. He nodded decisively, directed the Special Duty officers to secure Qingliang Temple, and reported to his superiors to prepare an application for a search warrant and detention notices.

"Remember our Party's policies: confess, and you'll be treated leniently; resist, and you'll be punished severely. Defy the government, and don't even think about celebrating the New Year."

Though the investigation and interrogation were not the Special Duty team's responsibility, they could still give these Daoists a warning and set them straight.

One "greatsword" after another was drawn. These unprecedented weapons terrified everyone. The less familiar something was, the more intimidating it became. The eye-catching gear of these sword-wielding officers completely overturned everyone's understanding of the Public Security Department. One light jab was enough to make someone shake for ages—more effective than an electric baton. Getting struck by one would be even worse.

You might have three thousand Daoist arts, but one baton would teach you to kneel. A uniform and a greatsword were even more intimidating than Li Bai's hypnosis.

Even if an urban management Type 59 tank suddenly rolled out now, no one would be too surprised.

The three Daoist Masters were subdued by the Special Duty officers, yet they continued barking, meowing, braying, and grunting without pause, unable to utter a single human word. Having lost their backbone, the other Daoists were herded like sheep into a side room to await the Police Cars that would transport them away.

Facing the livestream camera, beauty anchor Dong Keyan mercilessly exposed Qingliang Temple's dirty secrets. An internet celebrity streamer who could earn a hundred thousand yuan a month relied on more than just looks and talent.

Before producing this segment, she had used every channel at her disposal to gather as much information as possible and done her homework thoroughly. Some of it was enough to send Qingliang Temple's three Daoist Masters straight to prison.

On one side, Special Duty police guarded them under strict watch; on the other, the female streamer freely tore them apart and crushed them. Qingliang Temple had fallen into the most miserable situation in its history—able only to take the beating and unable to fight back. The three Daoist Masters realized that the internet celebrity streamer, once she got going, was even more detestable than the doctors of Seventh People's Hospital.

The three Daoist Masters had mouths but could not speak. Who knew how much frustration they were holding in?

"Mr. Li, we can't take their statements while they're making these noises. Could you undo it?"

The Special Duty captain sought out Li Bai again. The one who tied the knot had to untie it. The officers coming to take over would arrive soon, and the three Daoist Masters were acting like lunatics, meowing, barking, braying, and grunting. That definitely could not go into the record, or it would become a joke.

"Sure!"

Li Bai snapped his fingers at the three Daoist Masters, who were so anxious that tears streamed down their faces.

The howls of animal speech immediately vanished. The three Daoist Masters panted heavily and clamped their hands tightly over their mouths, not daring to say another word for fear that they would once again start making the sounds of cats, dogs, and donkeys.

Everyone looked at Li Bai with reverence and awe. This was not like the Daoist magic tricks Qingliang Temple had demonstrated earlier. This was a method that produced immediate results.

Yet at this moment, someone bold still stepped forward.

"Doctor Li Bai, may I ask what you used just now? You made Qingliang Temple's three Daoist Masters unable to speak, and instead imitate the sounds of kittens, puppies, and donkeys."

Beauty anchor Dong Keyan held a wireless microphone out before Li Bai, looking every bit like a CCTV interviewer.

"This is an art!"

Li Bai nodded toward the camera. He knew that openly using hypnosis had already frightened quite a few people.

"Is it Daoist magic, witchcraft, or an evil art?"

Goddess Yan seemed to transform into a reporter, continuing to ask questions from a neutral standpoint. Her questions were also the doubts of many others.

"It's hypnosis, part of Zhu You Shu. Zhu is the zhu from congratulations, and you is the you from freedom. Witchcraft is also part of Zhu You Shu. Magic deceives the eyes, while Zhu You Shu deceives the mind and body, so the hypnosis I use is fundamentally different from Qingliang Temple's Daoist arts."

Li Bai cooperated with Dong Keyan to provide some on-the-spot popular science. Qingliang Temple was already a drowned dog anyway, so he did not mind kicking it while it was down.

"Why had I never heard of Zhu You Shu before? Could it be some lost secret art?"

Even though this was no longer the earlier spell battle, Dong Keyan's one-on-one live Q&A and revelations still attracted quite a few viewers.

The audience count in Goddess Yan's livestream was already approaching the five-hundred-thousand mark. The succession of unbelievable scenes had repeatedly shattered everyone's worldview, even making them wonder whether the world they were seeing was real.

"Zhu You Shu actually isn't all that mysterious. It belongs to the system of traditional Chinese medicine. I'm sure many people are familiar with traditional Chinese medicine, and Zhu You Shu is one of its thirteen traditional disciplines. It is a legitimate form of traditional medicine."

Li Bai smiled. He had said the same thing before to the Dong family and Third Daoist Master of Qingliang Temple. Bringing it up again now still left many people unable to believe it.

But in a world with the Internet, information was incredibly abundant, and looking things up and verifying them was effortless.

Many people found information related to Zhu You Shu. Just as Li Bai had said, it was indeed an important part of traditional Chinese medicine. They let out one disbelieving cry after another and began flooding the livestream chat with lengthy excerpts of information, continuously overturning everyone else's worldview.

"Expounder: Th-this is actually real? It really is traditional Chinese medicine? Zhu You Shu is actually traditional Chinese medicine? That's incredible. Maybe monsters and ghosts really do exist."

"This Old Man's Maiden Heart: The live reveal was exciting, but it also scared the hell out of me. This old man kneels."

"Road to Glorious Roast Chicken: Too terrifying. No wonder superstitious activities aren't considered illegal or criminal. Maybe what we see is only one part of this world—and the part the government allows us to see."

"Teluopuke: Superstition is also part of Chinese culture, with traditions spanning thousands of years. How could it be considered illegal or criminal?"

"Meow Hero: After the founding of the nation, monsters weren't allowed to become spirits. I always wondered why the government would come up with such a pointless policy. So this is the truth! The more you think about it, the scarier it gets!"

Some offered all kinds of opinions, some scared themselves, some let their imaginations run wild, and some indulged in extreme conspiracy theories. The discussion in the livestream grew increasingly heated, triggering many sensitive keywords in succession. It quickly caught the attention of the livestream platform's administrators. Only after they blocked the messages of more than a hundred viewers did the discussion gradually die down.

"Doctor Li, could you teach me hypnosis?"

Dong Keyan did not let Li Bai off so easily. A strange glimmer flashed through her beautiful eyes as she asked what many people were thinking. Viewers loved this kind of interactive livestream that gave them something to look forward to.

If one possessed such miraculous hypnosis, it would be unbelievably cool. Veteran drivers would definitely floor it.

"Sorry, your natural aptitude isn't good enough. Learning hypnosis requires talent; it isn't something ordinary people can master."

Li Bai refused immediately. Teaching it would only bring trouble upon himself. If it fell into the hands of someone with malicious intentions, it would definitely lead to all sorts of crimes.

It was like lockpicking. Any locksmith not registered with the Public Security Bureau was treated as a suspected thief. How could he teach something like that casually?