Chapter 4: The Four Great Professors—But There Are Five

Chapter 4: Four Great Professors, But Five in Total

At 9:10 p.m., Xiong Yan sat on the terrace and saw dozens of police cars parking nearby one after another. Shortly after, he heard a knock on the door.

Knock, knock.

“Come in!”

“Hello, I’m Huo Tianyan. May I ask how much longer you’ll need? Are you able to move? Can you take a car?”

“If it doesn’t affect you, we’ll be heading to the capital next. There, many people are waiting for you. To put it in your words, those are the real people who keep their word, waiting for you!”

“But precisely because of that, every move they make is closely watched by many. If the itinerary changes abruptly, it’s easy to get noticed. That’s why you were specially invited to the capital.”

“Of course, if your body can’t hold up, then wait one more day. At this time tomorrow…”

Hearing a somewhat familiar voice, Xiong Yan turned around and saw an old acquaintance.

This old acquaintance now looked a bit plump, but it wasn’t fat—he was solidly built!

Since ancient times, generals, if viewed purely through a 21st-century lens, would all be considered fat! Big fat men!

There’s a term called the “general’s belly.” In a material world without supernatural beings, to be able to fight, one must eat well and have some heft.

“Nowadays, I’m hanging on to life thanks to spiritual energy. As long as that energy flows, I can live well—walking, sitting, lying down, no problem. Once the Void Realm arrives, I can slowly recover. Right now, taking the car is no issue. Let’s talk as we go.”

“Good!”

“Fei Qubing, long time no see!”

“Huh? You know me?”

“Looks like future me is also a major figure,” Huo Tianyan said casually.

At the same time, numerous experts were observing Xiong Yan’s every move through mini cameras temporarily installed nearby.

“In the future, you and I will both be the tail end of the top tier. Compared to true powerhouses, we’re just filler. But compared to ordinary people, we’re legends among legends.”

“At that time, the military’s strongest was Chief Instructor Wang Zongchao. Even the founder of the Blood Martial Way, Martial God Peng Bing, was on par with him. Who would win? Only battle could say.”

“Then, why call me Fei Qubing? Could it be that I really am connected to Champion Marquis Hou?”

Xiong Yan nodded seriously. “With the resurgence of spiritual energy and the outbreak of spiritual tides, animals rapidly mutated, creating many demons and monsters. At first, there were frequent beast tides that looked terrifying, but humanity’s leading role on Earth was never shaken!”

“At that time, some awakened innate abilities, like me. Or like the four great professors of the scientific community—Professor Jiang, Professor Bai, Professor Lu, Professor Ji, and Colonel Chu.”

“Isn’t that five?” Huo Tianyan thought silently.

“Some people’s innate abilities were research-oriented, some were learning-oriented, and others production-oriented. All of these were part of the Supernatural Research Institute.”

“Others had combat-oriented talents, growing stronger through battle. Like Huang Feihong and Qiao Feng carrying their sound systems—no one could beat them before turning off their music!”

“Besides innate abilities, some experienced ancestral reversion in body or bloodline.”

“For example, you—you awakened your bloodline and, in a certain Void Realm, inherited part of the legacy of Champion Marquis Hou Qubing!”

“Am I really a descendant of Champion Marquis? Is my family tree true, or just my father’s drunken brag?”

“And in our world, the Han Dynasty already had supernatural powers? Or did a spiritual energy resurgence occur back then?”

Xiong Yan smiled faintly but didn’t answer, as they had already reached downstairs.

Before the person arrived, the car door opened automatically. Xiong Yan sat in the back, Huo Tianyan drove up front, and beside Xiong Yan sat another tall man.

“Hold on tight!”

A vehicle cleared the way ahead, others followed behind, a helicopter accompanied them in the sky, and even fighter jets appeared at higher altitudes.

The streets along the convoy’s path had been cleared in advance.

Military satellites kept constant watch over the surroundings for dozens, even hundreds of miles.

Soldiers, fully armed, were prepared for combat.

“Hello, my name is Chu Xuan. Judging by your eyes, it seems you know me too. So, I’m the so-called Colonel Chu?”

Shaking Chu Xuan’s outstretched hand, Xiong Yan nodded firmly. “Back then, you were the director of the Supernatural Research Institute, and I was the deputy director of one of the institute’s research subunits. Many funding requests of mine were mercilessly rejected by you.”

Hearing this, Chu Xuan gave a fake smile showing eight big white teeth.

Seeing that familiar fake smile, Xiong Yan felt as if he had returned to the past, back to the times Chu Xuan denied his funding.

“Can we talk about the future of the scientific community?”

“Sure. Back then, you created many widely applicable supernatural weapons. You insisted on explaining the supernatural through science and achieved considerable results. Your view was that the so-called supernatural was essentially advanced technology.”

This view was extremely radical and considered heretical by many supernatural beings.

“As for Professor Bai, he excelled in biology and human experiments. Through countless trials, he even created transplantable supernatural organs.”

“At that time, ordinary people could become supernatural beings by directly implanting these organs, though the cost was high and mortality rates significant.”

Human experimentation and supernatural organs—Professor Bai didn’t sound like a good person, Huo Tianyan thought silently as he drove.

“Professor Jiang was the only female among the four great professors. She had broad interests and a vivid imagination, inventing many things and seemingly knowing a bit about everything. But her inventions often inspired mixed feelings and had unexpected side effects.”

“For example, the baldness pill that boosts vitality and breaks through innate limits. Its real name doesn’t matter; what matters is that while it improves aptitude, it inevitably causes baldness!”

“I’m bald, but stronger!”

This guy didn’t sound like a good person either!

What’s going on in the future? All the rising stars are such eccentric characters? No normal ones at all? Huo Tianyan thought silently.

“As for Professors Lu Zhou and Ji Zhen, they were the purest scientists.”

“Professor Ji was from Yanjing University’s math department. He solved a series of tough math problems like the Poincaré Conjecture and the Goldbach Conjecture. After proving the path through mathematics, he teamed up with Professor Lu to tackle controlled nuclear fusion.”

“Professor Lu was brilliant in math and was the world’s top materials scientist. He invented high-energy batteries and new materials. Before my rebirth, he and Professor Ji were working together to miniaturize controlled nuclear fusion.”

“In addition, there was Professor Guan Mingguan, who handcrafted the first generation of artificial intelligence and invented controllable magnetic levitation. He was formidable, and there were others as well…”

(End of chapter)