Shi Qian and the Thousand Mechanisms Art

Qingqing: What are you doing?

Chen Shu: Browsing the library.

Qingqing: On her first day of class, Xiaoxiao knocked a classmate unconscious. What do you have to say about that?

Chen Shu: How did she do it? Was anyone hurt?

Qingqing: One punch.

Chen Shu: Now that's impressive, my little sister-in-law.

Qingqing: ?

Chen Shu: She takes after you.

Qingqing: ?

Chen Shu: Fine, she's still got a way to go before she catches up to you.

Qingqing: That's not what I wanted to hear.

Chen Shu: Then what did you want to hear?

Qingqing: I asked her, and she said you told her to hit him.

Chen Shu: Did I?

Chen Shu: Oh, right. I did, I did.

He had completely forgotten. But whether he had or not, he might as well admit it first.

Chen Shu: Is it serious?

Qingqing: Not this time.

Chen Shu: Xiaoxiao knows what she's doing. Xiaoxiao's amazing. Xiaoxiao's super smart.

Qingqing: I'll come settle this with you tomorrow.

Chen Shu: ?? Aren't you a violent maniac yourself?

Qingqing: That's different.

Chen Shu: Oh, the violent older sister won't let her little sister become a violent maniac too. Such sisterly love. I'm moved.

Qingqing: Go on.

Chen Shu: Nope!

Chen Shu: I'm going back to looking at books.

Qingqing did not reply after that.

Chen Shu scratched his head. Only then did he remember what had happened.

The boy had deserved a beating.

Xiaoxiao was only fifteen, two years younger than her classmates on average, and the boy already wanted to date her. He had even gathered a bunch of people. Did he have no shame?

Should she have left him alone so he could keep pestering her?

Technology was so advanced these days, and schools were full of teachers who were cultivators. It was hard for a fight to cause any real harm. And a student like Xiaoxiao was, without exaggeration, worth more to the school than her entire class put together. They would probably just pay some compensation. It would not amount to much.

At most, it would give President Ning a little trouble—

Which was even better.

Chen Shu went on weaving through the bookshelves.

At schools like Yujing University and Ling'an Academy, the libraries held more than ten million books. They were treasure troves. You could not imagine what you might find inside.

Out-of-print books, obscure books, limited editions...

Every subject and category was there.

In ancient times, this would have been an epic, enhanced version of a scripture repository. Yet now it was open for free, undoubtedly one of the most valuable resources modern universities offered their students.

The drawback was that the vast majority of books containing restricted material had been removed.

The vast majority, but not all.

A few fish were bound to slip through the net.

Some books contained only a small amount of relevant material, or mentioned it obliquely in passing, making it easy for reviewers to miss. A substantial part of the history people knew came not from specialist historical sources, but from other books, illustrated albums, even inscriptions and vessels. As a history enthusiast, Chen Shu was adept at finding what interested him in sources that seemed unrelated to the subject, just as he had searched Yu history for Xia history.

And even among unrestricted material, a considerable amount was extremely advanced.

The government only restricted spells and other finished products that could directly harm society. Theoretical knowledge was not restricted unless it involved secrets.

Record of Jade Capital

Biography of the Martial Emperor

Esoteric Sect Anecdotes

Radical Spell Theory

The Sacred Ancestor Might Be a Transmigrator

My Aloof Campus Belle Girlfriend

These were the books that had caught Chen Shu's interest after a quick browse. Unfortunately, he could borrow only two at a time.

Which two should he choose?

What a dilemma.

He could not go wrong with the longer titles, could he?

Chen Shu checked out the books and put them in his backpack as he left the library. Then he went to collect a package, buying a few bottles of fresh milk along the way—the kind that kept for a week.

Back at the dorm, he put the milk in the fridge. It was empty apart from his soda.

Chen Shu looked at the fridge, then at the kitchen, and fell into thought.

He might as well buy a full set of cooking utensils too.

Creak...

Meng Chunqiu pushed open his door and came out. Dressed in modern clothes with traditional elements, he still looked very much like a young woman. "Brother Chen, back so late?"

"I took a look around the library."

"Oh, why didn't you ask me along? I'd have liked to look around too."

"It was on my way, that's all." Chen Shu said, "I bought some milk and soda. They're in the fridge. Help yourself whenever you like—don't stand on ceremony."

"Brother Chen is generous."

"Do you always talk like that?"

"Of course. Isn't it lovely?"

"..."

Chen Shu scratched his head and headed for his bedroom.

Meng Chunqiu hurriedly called after him. "Brother Chen, the school clubs have been recruiting these past few days. Has any club caught your eye?"

"Not at all."

"Why don't we join the Classical Poetry Club together? The Modern Poetry Club would do too. We could discuss verse and poetry. How delightful that would be."

"Ask Jiang Lai."

"He's nothing but a brute."

"I'm not cultured either."

"Alas..."

Meng Chunqiu could only sigh and say no more.

Jiang Lai was a crude brute, and it turned out Brother Chen was a common fellow too. But he could hardly blame them. People in this age were restless. Fewer and fewer could settle down to appreciate the beauty of poetry and literature, or pause to breathe in the fragrance of wildflowers by the road.

The world reeked of sour vulgarity. Only he carried the delicate fragrance of a poet. How lonely it was to live among them.

Especially in this dorm.

Clunk.

Chen Shu's bedroom door shut.

It was almost time to choose an elective physical combat class.

Physical combat was important. Its share of the final grade was basically equal to that of the most important major courses, and there were plenty of options.

Compared with his previous life, the more distinctive choices included various renowned saber, sword, and spear techniques, as well as archery and modern firearms shooting.

There were ordinary sports too.

Chen Shu planned to choose archery.

He enrolled without trouble.

Wednesday.

The morning was packed with "Moral Cultivation" and "Introductory Runes." The afternoon was packed too, entirely with "Fundamentals of Spell Principles."

The teacher listed was Shi Qian.

Chen Shu arrived early and took a seat in the middle.

Yesterday's and today's rune classes had left a deep impression on him. Many students from other majors came to sit in. Most did not take seats, but a few occupied places meant for students of the major. Arrive late, and there might be nowhere to sit.

As he expected, this class was even more popular than the rune class. The classroom was packed.

Chen Shu also spotted the senior student who had welcomed him.

What was his name again? He had forgotten.

Chen Shu waved and smiled at him.

A minute before class began, Teacher Shi Qian walked in.

Teacher Shi Qian was probably about the same age as Professor Chen. Professor Chen had been in his thirties when Chen Shu was born, so Shi Qian ought to be in his fifties now. Yet he looked even younger than Professor Chen, barely past thirty, at that prime age for a man: mature and steady without looking worn down by life.

In Chen Shu's hazy memories, he had looked just as he did now.

Like the old gentleman in the previous class, Teacher Shi Qian did not mind the students sitting in. He merely swept his gaze around the room. "Let's take attendance first. Everyone, listen up: if you see students of this major sitting on the floor or standing at the back, those of you from other majors who have seats, please give them up."

Chen Shu gave Teacher Shi Qian a mental thumbs-up.

Then the roll call began.

"Chen Shu."

"Here."

Chen Shu's student number was first.

Shi Qian glanced up at him and nodded, then moved on to the next name without a word.

Roll call took a few minutes.

Teacher Shi Qian set down the register and addressed the class. "That was mainly so I could get to know you. To be honest, I won't police you for skipping class. If you do, I'm sure you have your reasons. In that respect, I trust your personal judgment completely.

"Now, let's begin."

With his arms folded, Teacher Shi Qian leaned against the projection screen and spoke at ease. "First, I'll go over the study plan for this semester. I won't dwell on the theory. I know that isn't what you're really interested in.

"You have two choices:

"One is a simplified version of the Thousand Mechanisms Art, the foundation of modern Spiritual Cultivation.

"The other is spiritual power conversion, along with a fairly practical minor spell and a way to improve it. Once improved, it might be the sort you like."

A buzz of discussion rose at once. Some students were already getting excited.

The Thousand Mechanisms Art was a great spell developed only in modern times. Complex and ingenious, it had drawn a clear line between modern and ancient cultivators. Its difference from other spells was like that between an operating system and ordinary software. Engraved in the Spirit Sea, it could integrate other spells, making them faster, easier, and smarter to cast. Never again would anyone say, "I haven't used that spell in ages. I've forgotten it."

In the century or more since its creation, the Thousand Mechanisms Art had developed rapidly because of its importance. Its capabilities were now so powerful they seemed like a dream.

With the Thousand Mechanisms Art, you could make a spell run automatically, trigger automatically, or even activate and operate intelligently, without needing to control it yourself.

That was an astonishing capability.

Spiritual power conversion was important and practical too.

Most energy in this world was stored as spiritual power. Most machines and devices either used it directly or converted it into other forms of energy. Could cultivators supply their own spiritual power to those devices?

Yes, they could.

But it had to be converted first.

Standards for spiritual power differed, and machines and devices had different requirements for the power itself and how it was supplied. Once you learned spiritual power conversion, you would never again have to worry about your phone dying or your car breaking down on the road.

For anyone traveling in a camper van, sufficient cultivation meant complete self-sufficiency.

Teacher Shi Qian had made a generous offer.

Of the two choices, one leaned toward the combat strength of ancient cultivators, the other toward modern convenience. They would certainly learn both; the only question was which came first.

It really was hard to choose.

Chen Shu leaned slightly toward the Thousand Mechanisms Art.

Methods of spiritual power conversion were more common. He could buy one in Wide and Narrow Alley. He had not done so before only because he had other things to do.

The Thousand Mechanisms Art was sold in Wide and Narrow Alley too, but those versions were expensive and outdated. Chen Shu figured that whatever the teachers at Yujing University taught, it was unlikely to be an outdated version.

"Quiet."

Teacher Shi Qian's tone was calm. "There's no rush. You can take your time thinking about it. Neither is an option yet, anyway. If I gave them to you now, you wouldn't be able to learn them. Pay attention in class."

The room fell silent at once.

Chen Shu settled down too.

Fundamentals of Spell Principles did not go very deep, only a little beyond the level of someone who had just begun learning. It advanced step by step. But Teacher Shi Qian explained everything in great detail, leaving almost nothing out. For someone like Chen Shu, who had reached a high level largely through self-study, it filled precisely the gaps he had missed and made his foundations firmer.

There was a break as usual midway through.

Nearly four hours passed quickly.

With five minutes left, Teacher Shi Qian's internal clock alerted him. He had just finished a short section, so he stopped and told the class, "That's all for today. Write down my phone number and my Feixun contact. If you have questions, you can ask me anytime. Any questions at all. This is for students of this major only, though. Otherwise there'd be too many of you, and I could spend the whole day answering messages without getting through them. I hope you understand."

Chen Shu had the feeling he was hinting at something.

So this was the Ancient Spell Principles Studies major he'd heard about? Were all its teachers this bold? Openly going against national policy...

He loved it.

Shi Qian nodded. "There are four minutes left. Let's finish early, or the stairs will get crowded."

Everyone cheered.

They were all prospective cultivators, but they were also young men and women barely in their twenties. Youth was a beautiful thing.

Shi Qian watched them cheer as class ended and could not help smiling. Then he beckoned to Chen Shu.

Chen Shu hurriedly packed up and went over.

"Hello, Uncle Shi Qian."

"Finally, we meet. It's been years since I last saw you, hasn't it?" Holding a water cup, Shi Qian smiled at him. "Have you forgotten what I look like?"

"I really had almost forgotten. It was that close."

"Good thing we added each other on Feixin over the summer. You saw my profile picture and remembered, right?"

"That's exactly what happened."

"Come on, I'll treat you to a meal."

"Okay."