Is Anyone Going to Stop This Cheating?

Li Dong stared at his phone screen.

This [Benjamin Franklin] really hadn't been bullshitting.

Back then, to prove that lightning in the sky was not the wrath of the gods but had the same nature as static electricity on the ground, that madman had dared to fly a kite during a thunderstorm.

In the end, lightning traveled down the hemp rope and was captured in a Leyden jar. It was humanity's first true conquest of the sky's majesty!

Dmitri Mendeleev in the group was clearly silent for a while.

Compared to Franklin's suicidal performance art, riding a hot-air balloon into the sky had been quite dangerous too, but in terms of visual impact, it really fell just a tiny bit short.

Still, the creator of the periodic table was clearly a stubborn man as well.

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: A crude attempt! That was nothing more than a fool's courage!

[Benjamin Franklin]: Heh heh, I dared to fight electricity!

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: I saw storms from the sky!

[Benjamin Franklin]: Heh heh, I dared to fight electricity!

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: I dared to gamble my life at high altitude!

[Benjamin Franklin]: Heh heh, I dared to fight electricity!

Dmitri Mendeleev was clearly having trouble holding his ground. He was not good with words. If he had brought up his achievements in chemistry, Franklin would have had no chance at all. (We're not talking politics here, only academics.)

But this bearded man seemed determined to beat Franklin at "courting death," so in the end, Mendeleev lost the argument.

Li Dong, meanwhile, was shrewd as hell. He figured that as long as he helped Mendeleev save face, he would definitely be able to fleece him for some benefits.

A bold idea began brewing in his mind. So Franklin could conquer lightning, huh? But could he conquer the sky?

Li Dong immediately switched out of WeChat, opened his browser, and started searching.

"Wright Brothers Wright Flyer One schematic," "early biplane aerodynamic configuration," "early applications of internal combustion engines in aviation"...

A flood of information appeared on his phone.

With the boosts from [Logic 0.1] and [Memory 0.1], Li Dong swiftly extracted the essential information from the materials.

"There's no need for overly complicated modern aviation theory. Their era's industrial foundation couldn't produce that anyway."

"I just need to explain the three core points: the Bernoulli principle of wings, the three-axis control system, and lightweight internal combustion engines."

Li Dong packaged the materials into a document titled <A Preliminary Study of Heavier-Than-Air Aircraft Design.pdf>.

Then...

[Currently Grinding Senior-Year Problems]: @Dmitri Mendeleev, sir, there is no need to get angry over such a trivial matter.

[Currently Grinding Senior-Year Problems]: I have a way to help you win this contest of courage.

[File sent successfully: A Preliminary Study of Heavier-Than-Air Aircraft Design.pdf]

[Currently Grinding Senior-Year Problems]: I believe this material should allow you to win very thoroughly in front of Mr. Franklin.

Mendeleev also lurked in the group often, so he knew Li Dong's alias, "Currently Grinding Senior-Year Problems," quite well.

He had an idiotic nephew... ahem...

He was a big shot who could provide Newton with ideas.

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: !!!

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: Lord Senior-Year? Does the title of this material mean that you have a way to make objects heavier than air fly without relying on buoyancy?

[Currently Grinding Senior-Year Problems]: Of course. You can study the material carefully.

[Benjamin Franklin]: Cheating! This is cheating!

Yet no one paid any attention to Franklin's protest.

Just after the document was sent, an unexpected lurker was suddenly drawn out.

[Leonardo da Vinci]: Oh, God!!!

Li Dong froze.

Da Vinci?

[Leonardo da Vinci]: @Currently Grinding Senior-Year Problems, th-this... is this real?

[Leonardo da Vinci]: Fixed wings? Not flapping wings like birds? I spent my entire life drawing ornithopters and imitating the skeletons of countless birds, yet I always failed... Was my direction wrong from the very beginning?

[Leonardo da Vinci]: Sir, I will study it first. If it truly is as your material says, I will reward you generously.

Even through the screen, Li Dong could feel the old man's excitement.

For da Vinci, flight had been both his dream and his regret.

At that moment, another avatar spoke.

[Isaac Newton]: It can escape the grip of Earth's gravity?

Newton had clearly been drawn in by the topic as well, and he casually downloaded the document.

Li Dong had originally thought Newton would comment on the aerodynamics section.

However...

[Isaac Newton]: So that's how it is!

[Isaac Newton]: @Currently Grinding Senior-Year Problems, sir, the description of the "internal combustion engine" in this document has resolved a major question that puzzled me before!

[Isaac Newton]: I had been wondering how thermal energy could be efficiently converted into mechanical energy.

[Isaac Newton]: Now that I see the "four-stroke" structure mentioned in your document, this is simply a genius design! I still need to study that electric spark, but this mechanical structure is practically perfect.

Li Dong was dumbfounded.

No, big shot, were you about to steal the work of future generations again?

I only sent this to teach Mendeleev how to build an airplane!

Before Li Dong could finish complaining internally, a group announcement appeared at the top of his phone screen.

[Group member "Isaac Newton" has encountered the core principles of the "internal combustion engine" ahead of time through your document.]

[The technology tree of Parallel-Time Universe 1666 has undergone another drastic deviation...]

[The spark of the Second Industrial Revolution has been ignited ahead of time, before the First Industrial Revolution has fully unfolded.]

[Congratulations. You have once again triggered the butterfly effect. Invitation permissions unlocked.]

Immediately afterward, a red packet that only he could see appeared in the group on his screen.

Li Dong was stunned.

I really wasn't trying to fleece Newton...

Why was he shedding benefits on his own?

Though he thought that, his hand did not hesitate in the slightest as he tapped Accept.

[You have received Isaac Newton's gratitude.]

[Attribute gained: Focus +0.1 (Permanent)]

[Description: Another gift from the founder of Classical Mechanics. Your cerebral cortex seems to have undergone an elevation.]

Li Dong instantly felt the world around him become clearer.

The sight of leaves swaying in the wind, the sound of a basketball striking the ground on the distant court...

His brain could rapidly sort through all the information without any interference between them.

"This feeling..."

Li Dong took a deep breath.

"It feels amazing."

At that moment, Mendeleev finally finished reading the document.

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: Lord Senior-Year! This is incredible!

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: It turns out what we have always lacked was not wings, but a powerful heart and the correct shape of wings!

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: I heard that across the ocean, there are two foolish brothers who repair bicycles and spend all day tinkering with some kind of flying machine. I'll show them these blueprints. If we join forces, we can definitely build this thing!

[Dmitri Mendeleev]: @Benjamin Franklin, just you wait!

At that moment, in Mendeleev's parallel universe, the Wright Brothers felt as though they were living in someone else's shadow.

[Benjamin Franklin]: No cheating! This is cheating! Isn't anyone going to stop this?!

There was still only silence. No one paid him any attention.

Li Dong smiled and shook his head, then locked his phone screen.

Just as Li Dong was about to check what the invitation permissions were about...

"Li Dong!"

Zheng Hua walked in from outside the office.

"Li Dong, I've got good news for you!"

Good news?

Li Dong was somewhat dismissive inwardly.

What good news could compare to fleecing knowledge benefits from the group?

Zheng Hua slowly walked up to him and spoke earnestly.

"The principal just said that, in light of your outstanding performance in the preliminary round, the school has decided..."

"As long as you make it into the Huaxuan Cup finals, the school will directly award you a scholarship of twenty thousand yuan!"

"If you win a prize, all your tuition and fees will be waived, and you'll get another ten thousand!"

Li Dong thought he had heard wrong.

"How... how much?"

"Twenty thousand?!"

In Li Dong's eyes, that divine experience from 0.1 Focus instantly lost its appeal.

"Teacher Zheng, you're not lying to me, right?"

Li Dong was so excited that he could barely speak coherently.

"Of course I'm not lying! The principal promised it himself!"

Zheng Hua patted his chest.

At that moment, Li Dong felt more focused than ever before, more eager for knowledge than ever before.

For those twen—no, for the honor of the school!

He was going all out!