I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times

Chapter 61: Equality Among All Beings

Zheng Fa felt a headache coming on.

He had every reason to suspect that the young girl in green before him was the reincarnation of a calculator.

She was just too good at math!

Not only did she possess a solid grasp of basic arithmetic, but she also mastered Tianyuan Technique—a mathematical system akin to solving polynomials in this world.

What amazed Zheng Fa even more was her display of a method called Zhui Technique, resembling limit calculation.

No matter how complex the problems—whether they fell within the scope of university entrance exams or not—she could solve them quickly and accurately.

Her only apparent weakness was in proofs.

She couldn't even comprehend why proofs were necessary.

From her, Zheng Fa caught a glimpse of the mathematical tendencies of the Xuanyi Realm: practicality over logic.

“Got more?” The girl set down the last question she had just solved, her eyes sparkling with delight.

The harder, more twisted, and seemingly impossible a problem was, the more thrilled she seemed!

“No more!”

Zheng Fa flatly denied her request. He had a sneaking suspicion that if he didn’t, this girl could spend an entire year immersed in this game of setting and solving perverse questions.

“Not a single one?”

“Not a single one!”

The girl stared intently at his forehead, her eyes filled with suspicion.

Zheng Fa started to wonder if she was considering prying open his head to see if there was truly nothing left inside.

“Senior Sister Zhang? What brings you here?”

A female voice broke the silence. Zheng Fa turned to see the Seventh Young Master standing beside a young girl in red, who had been the one speaking.

“Zheng Fa, this is my sister,” the Seventh Young Master introduced.

“Eldest Young Lady!” Zheng Fa stood up and greeted her respectfully, casting a glance at the girl in green. So her surname was Zhang.

This person hadn’t even introduced herself when she arrived, let alone asked permission to enter the house.

To her, nothing seemed to matter except the problems she was solving.

“I asked your family’s servants for directions to get here,” Senior Sister Zhang explained after some thought, glancing briefly at Zheng Fa. “Zheng Fa seems to be quite famous in your household; I only had to ask one person to find him.”

“I’m not asking how you got here,” the Eldest Young Lady responded, walking over to Senior Sister Zhang with a puzzled look. “I’m asking why someone of your status as a Golden Core cultivator would personally…”

Senior Sister Zhang interrupted by shaking her head and replied, “What? Would my core shatter just by coming here?”

“…”

Zheng Fa swore he saw a stifled expression on the Eldest Young Lady’s face.

“He’s my brother’s study attendant. If you want to see him, you could just summon him. Showing up yourself makes it seem like our Zhao Estate is neglecting you.”

The Seventh Young Master pouted.

Zheng Fa understood her point. The identity gap between a Golden Core cultivator and a mere study attendant was enormous.

A single word from her would suffice to make him comply.

But he didn’t feel offended—this was simply how most people in this world thought.

“I came here, didn’t I?”

“?”

A hint of confusion crossed the Eldest Young Lady’s face.

“Where I go and who I meet depends solely on my whims. What does the person’s identity matter to me?” Senior Sister Zhang glanced at the three of them. “To me, there’s no difference.”

“…”

In that small courtyard, three of them fell silent simultaneously.

The Eldest Young Lady’s face flushed red.

The Seventh Young Master gritted his teeth.

Zheng Fa… struggled to suppress his laughter.

Now, this was what “equality among all beings” truly meant!

When the Eldest Young Lady mentioned earlier that Senior Sister Zhang was a Golden Core cultivator, Zheng Fa had thought of her as approachable.

But now, her words made it abundantly clear: in her eyes, the Zhao Estate and a mere study attendant held the same weight.

It was as if she exuded a pride that said, I make friends without regard for who they are.

Approachable? No one could be more dismissive of worldly distinctions than this girl.

The Eldest Young Lady’s face alternated between pale and livid as she struggled to respond.

“Junior Sister Zhao,” Senior Sister Zhang finally spoke to her, “As cultivators, we shouldn’t burden ourselves with too many trivial attachments. You… are shackled by too much.”

The Eldest Young Lady froze in place as Senior Sister Zhang continued, “With your talent and diligence, you shouldn’t have taken ten years to build your foundation. If you don’t awaken soon, these burdens will only drag you down.”

A complex mix of bitter laughter and gratitude crossed the Eldest Young Lady’s face as she finally understood the bluntness in Senior Sister Zhang’s words.

“You’re a true cultivator, achieving a Golden Core in just a century. I…”

Senior Sister Zhang seemed to have said her piece. Hearing this, she simply nodded without further persuasion and turned to look at the Seventh Young Master.

Standing before a Golden Core cultivator, the Seventh Young Master appeared visibly nervous.

“This is my younger brother, Zhao Jingfan!” the Eldest Young Lady quickly introduced. “I was planning to take him to see you later to express our gratitude for your willingness to travel to Jingzhou City to teach him.”

Then, she patted the Seventh Young Master on the back and said, “Hurry and thank Senior Sister Zhang! Her guidance in talismans is a rare blessing for you!”

So Senior Sister Zhang was here to teach him talismans?

“No need. I don’t care for such formalities,” Senior Sister Zhang said, pointing at Zheng Fa’s head. “Besides, meeting him is the best token of appreciation I could ask for.”

Zheng Fa scratched the back of his head, feeling that she was referring not to him, but to the questions in his mind—or worse, to his brain itself.

Could this be karma for his love of collecting brains?

The Eldest Young Lady and the Seventh Young Master stared blankly at Zheng Fa, their expressions filled with a familiar emotion:

It was the same look Wang Chen gave when he saw him with Tang Lingwu.

Why him?

…

“You want me to teach you talismans? First, I need to assess your current level,” Senior Sister Zhang said, despite having dismissed the need for gratitude.

True to her decisive nature, she immediately began teaching the Seventh Young Master in Zheng Fa’s courtyard.

Zheng Fa didn’t mind having another teacher invited by the Eldest Young Lady. He wasn’t entirely confident that Old Man Bai’s notes were entirely accurate.

Modern mathematics—or rather, topology—might have applications in talisman crafting, but in this world, talismans were undeniably real. Without practical testing, Zheng Fa couldn’t be certain that what he was teaching the Seventh Young Master was useful.

His own understanding of talismans in this world was riddled with unanswered questions.

Like science, problems had to be grounded in reality to find solutions.

Whether Old Man Bai’s methods were correct and whether they addressed the mysteries of talismans both required practical insight.

When Senior Sister Zhang announced her intent to test the Seventh Young Master, his face tensed with nervousness.

The Eldest Young Lady quickly interjected, “My brother used to be a playful child and neglected his studies. If his talisman skills fall short, please don’t hold it against him.”

Zheng Fa sighed quietly. He understood that her preemptive self-criticism came from a place of goodwill, meant to shield the Seventh Young Master.

But…

Zheng Fa glanced at the boy and saw a flicker of gloom pass over his face. He bit his lip lightly, his entire body seeming even more tense.

Senior Sister Zhang nodded gently.

“To understand talismans, one must understand the Yuan Fu. So, the first question is this: what is a Yuan Fu?” she asked.

The Seventh Young Master shook his head blankly, his face clouded with shame.

Senior Sister Zhang remained calm, showing no disappointment.

Extending her index finger, she traced a pattern in the air.

A golden talisman appeared out of thin air before dissolving into three streaks of light that shot into the foreheads of the three onlookers.

“A Yuan Fu is a kind of talisman diagram,” Senior Sister Zhang said in a cool tone. “And to me, a talisman diagram is the entire world!”

The golden light of the talisman was dazzling. As it neared Zheng Fa’s forehead, he instinctively shut his eyes.

When he reopened them, the world before him… had shattered.

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