Translator: CinderTL
Hearing the Narrator's exasperated curses, a smile crept across Feng Qi's face.
Just as he suspected, the Narrator had been present all along.
The Narrator had simply been too lazy to speak, silently observing him from the shadows.
"It's fine. You can go back to being lazy. I'll call you if I need anything."
Refused. I'm not actually present in the Reality Line. I merely sensed you cursing me and projected a fragment of my consciousness here. My projection is about to dissipate. Farewell!
Feng Qi: ...
Faced with the Narrator's stubborn denial, Feng Qi could only sigh in resignation.
But knowing the Narrator existed in the Reality Line was enough. He could consult the Narrator directly whenever problems arose.
By now, the night was deep. After washing up, Feng Qi lay in bed, closing his eyes.
Lost in thought, his mind gradually emptied, his expression softening into serenity...
The next day marked the start of the Tiger Soul Concept Competition.
After breakfast at the Academy Cafeteria, Feng Qi and Lin Ran headed to Cultivation Class One.
All the students were already assembled in the classroom.
During the online lottery, Cultivation Class One had drawn the number eight, meaning they still had some time to wait before their live presentation.
Currently, they were all staring intently at the screen behind the podium, watching the live broadcasts of other academy classes presenting their concepts.
As Feng Qi entered, the students greeted him warmly.
He nodded in acknowledgment and, with Lin Ran, found seats in the back row of the classroom.
"Brother Qi, your Human Body Deity Seeding Concept is practically guaranteed to win. I've looked into the other academy classes' concepts, and none of them come close to yours."
Feng Qi smiled calmly at Lin Ran's praise.
In truth, various research institutes had already taken notice of the Human Body Deity Seeding Concept. However, instead of contacting Feng Qi directly like Wei Wei had, they had approached Bai Fusheng to learn more about the details.
Normally, the online community would engage in heated debates about the merits of each academy class's proposed concepts.
The final outcome would then be determined by the judges' scores.
This year was an exception. His Human Body Deity Seeding Concept was a "Crushing Blow" that transcended mere concepts.
While other academy classes proposed concepts, he presented not just a concept but a complete theoretical framework.
The class currently being broadcast live was Cultivation Class Three from Gale Academy.
They had proposed a seemingly novel cultivation system concept called "Cell Regeneration," centered on using spiritual energy to stimulate cellular regeneration, thereby accelerating wound healing.
The online commentary was already tearing into the class's concept:
"What garbage concept is this? Even though I don't understand cultivation, I know human cells have a limited number of divisions. Why didn't you just call this the 'Suicide Technique'? Let me give it a 1-star rating first."
"This is hilarious! As expected, the Tiger Soul Concept Competition always brings out some ridiculous ideas. You haven't even figured out the basics of combining spiritual energy with the human body, and you're already jumping to the cellular level? Even if your concept is viable, have you considered the researchers at the Tiger Soul Research Institute who would have to refine this idea?"
"The students just talk, while the researchers break their backs. Please think about the Tiger Soul Research Institute researchers before proposing these concepts! (Disdainful emoji)"
Since the participating classes could also see the live comments, the students from Gale Academy looked visibly displeased.
They were practically itching to pull out their keyboards and start arguing with the online commenters.
Each participating class had one hour to explain their concept. While this time might not have been sufficient for a detailed explanation, the preliminary round didn't require exhaustive elaboration. The goal was simply to provide the online audience with a general understanding.
After Gale Academy's Cultivation Class One finished their presentation, the average online score appeared on the live stream.
The cultivation concept proposed by Gale Academy's students received an average score of only 3.1, a far from ideal result.
As for the fairness of the scoring, Feng Qi saw no reason to doubt its validity.
While online scoring might seem unreliable, susceptible to manipulation through paid "water armies," such tactics would be a blatant provocation of the Tiger Soul Research Institute, carrying severe consequences that no academy would dare risk.
Moreover, the online scoring system only applied to the preliminary round. The final judging in the finals would still be conducted by the Tiger Soul Research Institute's panel of experts.
The primary purpose of online scoring was to promote the Tiger Soul Concept Competition and encourage broader public participation.
With Gale Academy's segment concluded, the next class to present was Galaxy Academy's Cultivation Class Three.
The Cultivation Technique Research program at Galaxy Academy has consistently ranked among the top programs across all academies, and it was Feng Qi's original aspiration.
This year, Galaxy Academy students proposed a fascinating cultivation system concept called "Eye Technique."
The inspiration for this concept came from the domain creature known as the Hundred-Eyed Deity.
This creature was the leader of the Hundred-Eyed Tribe within the now-dispersed Hundred-Eyed Domain Field, classified as a powerful "Eerie (Tier 3)" domain creature.
The human cost of killing the Hundred-Eyed Deity was significant, with an entire B-Class Domain Combat Team perishing in the battle.
Its abilities were formidable. Covered in eyes of various colors, it could unleash diverse functions in combat.
Some eyes could spew plasma, others could create illusions, and still others could generate an invisible "momentum" to mentally suppress enemies.
As he listened to the Galaxy Academy students explain the Eye Technique concept, Feng Qi nodded in approval.
"Galaxy Academy truly lives up to its reputation. Their Eye Technique concept already has a partially developed theoretical framework, making it entirely feasible."
Lin Ran, standing beside him, chuckled and remarked,
"If we hadn't met you, I'd say Galaxy Academy still had a good chance of winning this year's Tiger Soul Concept Competition. What a pity!"
"Exactly!" Feng Qi nodded in immediate agreement, showing no false modesty.
As they continued watching, several other classes presented promising cultivation concepts, but none matched the sophistication of Galaxy Academy's Eye Technique concept.
Soon, it was lunchtime, and the Tiger Soul Concept Competition paused for a break.
After a morning of watching the competition, the students of Cultivation Class One radiated confidence, their belief in their chances of winning only strengthened.
Feng Qi and Lin Ran headed to the Academy Cafeteria for lunch, then returned to Cultivation Class One.
After about half an hour, the competition resumed.
At 2:30 PM, it was finally Star City Academy's turn to present. The live broadcast camera above the classroom screen activated.
The live feed immediately switched to Cultivation Class One's classroom.
The class monitor stood up, greeted the online viewers, and wasted no time introducing the Human Body Deity Seeding Concept.
The number of viewers in the live broadcast room exploded.
The Human Body Deity Seeding Concept had already become a hot topic online, and netizens eager to learn more were clamoring for details.
After the class monitor explained the core principles of the concept, the other students took turns standing up to elaborate on its various aspects.
An hour was clearly insufficient. The students planned to provide a brief overview during the preliminary round, aiming to give viewers a basic understanding.
Thirty minutes later, the live stream's comment section was flooded with praise:
"This is an incredibly novel cultivation system concept! It's bound to secure a place in the next update to the cultivation system. I heard Cultivation Class One at Star City Academy has already refined this concept. Is that true?"
"My teacher told me to watch this, and honestly, I'm blown away! How did Star City Academy suddenly become so dominant in Cultivation Technique Research?"
"Full marks! Absolutely full marks! The Human Body Deity Seeding Concept is incredibly practical for us body cultivation practitioners. The human body's organs have always been our weak points in combat, and this concept perfectly addresses that vulnerability."
"I gave it full marks too! Even though I don't understand cultivation, everyone else is raving about it. If I said it was bad, I'd look like an outsider. Gotta spam some 666s to show I'm in the know!"
Time was clearly running out.
After covering less than a third of their presentation, the livestream cut off, and the average score appeared in the center of the screen:
Star City Academy - Cultivation Class Average Score: 9.9/10
The classroom erupted in cheers, and the students' faces glowed with barely concealed excitement.
"Perfect!" Lin Ran exclaimed, clenching his fist in triumph, as if he himself had discovered the Human Body Deity Seeding Concept.
A smile also spread across Feng Qi's face.
At that moment, Star City Academy topped the leaderboard in the upper right corner of the livestream, pulling ahead of Galaxy Academy by a 1.7-point margin.
Bai Fusheng appeared in the doorway, giving Feng Qi a thumbs-up from afar, his smile barely contained.
Feng Qi grinned back, returning the gesture.
The live broadcast cut to the next academy's class, but after the brilliance of the previous presentation, the students' enthusiasm was noticeably subdued.
The subsequent presentations introduced several practical and novel concepts, but none could compare to the Human Body Deity Seeding Concept.
Even cultivation concepts that typically scored above 5 points suffered from the earlier presentation's impact, receiving significantly lower ratings.
As the day's live competition concluded, the preliminary rounds were set to continue for three more days. However, the Human Body Deity Seeding Concept had already ignited a firestorm of online discussion.
Netizens unanimously declared Star City Academy the dark horse of the Tiger Soul Concept Competition, predicting their victory.
Feng Qi, the originator of the concept, became a trending topic online.
This marked the first time Feng Qi had witnessed himself being widely discussed in the real-world internet, rather than in historical records.
In the principal's office, Bai Fusheng listened to the ringing phone, a hint of resignation on his face. He had lost count of how many calls he'd received tonight. When he answered, a familiar voice greeted him:
"Old Bai, I've heard that this concept was proposed by Feng Qi, a freshman at your academy. Ask him if he'd be interested in working at the Floating Research Institute after graduation."
"He's currently a substitute teacher at Star City Academy, and he'll likely stay on as faculty after graduating. Sorry..."
After turning down his old friend, Bai Fusheng smiled.
Ever since Feng Qi arrived at Star City Academy, he had consistently surprised him.
Previously, it had been Feng Qi's personal achievements. But this time, by leading Star City Academy's cultivation technique classes, Feng Qi had earned Bai Fusheng considerable prestige among his peers.
He felt immensely grateful for his earlier decision to take a risk and retain Feng Qi as an instructor.
If I hadn't acted quickly, he thought, I'd be the one tearing my hair out now, lamenting how such a brilliant young man slipped through Star City Academy's fingers.
Bai Fusheng now held boundless expectations for Feng Qi's future.
He couldn't predict how far Feng Qi would go, but he was certain that among the future statues of Star City Academy's luminaries, one would inevitably bear Feng Qi's likeness.
History would undoubtedly etch Feng Qi's era into its annals.
When future generations turned the pages of history from this era, Feng Qi would shine as one of its brightest stars.
Like a great roc riding the wind, soaring ninety thousand miles into the sky.
This young man's future held limitless promise.
(End of the Chapter)