Study Monster Cultivation System
Chapter 231 - 230 Distance between brains

Gu Jianfeng, Li Zheng had certainly heard the name before.

However, in the Dragon Pearl Group, most of the time, he was referred to as "Wind God."

At this moment, Li Zheng couldn’t help but recall the "Masters List" written by Qi Yingnan—

"Gu Jianfeng, Wind God, joined the national team for mathematics competitions when he was just in ninth grade."

"Any physics problem, just a glance, and he could turn it into a math problem, then casually deliver the answer with a sweep of his sword."

"His swordplay was already unrivaled, yet he showed little interest in the conflicts of Jianghu, living detached from the world."

"By the way, Wind God is 15 years old this year..."

These legendary yet bizarre descriptions had formed a fixed impression in Li Zheng’s mind early on.

One, so young yet so intensely brainy, this guy must have very little hair.

Two, ethereal and solitary, never showing up in the group chats, he must be very aloof, probably a high-spec chilly version of Ou Xingzhuo.

Three, just 15 years old, still probably a bratty kid; if ever encountered, ready to thrash if he acts all cocky.

That’s what he thought.

Turns out, this guy had a ton of hair.

Not at all aloof, but rather silly and adorable.

Given the first two observations, how could he bear to hit such a little brother?

Li Zheng stared at Gu Jianfeng for a long time, struggling to squeeze out words through gritted teeth, "How come... you look like you’re bad at studying..."

"Haha." Gu Jianfeng scratched his head and laughed, "The teachers all say that too."

"I’ll show you a place to get a haircut. You can choose the 15 yuan one, or the 45 yuan one," Li Zheng said, pointing at Shi Yang, "That’s a 15 yuan haircut, mine is 45 yuan."

"No thanks." Gu Jianfeng recoiled a bit, looking left and right, clearly not liking it.

"Damn!" Shi Yang cursed, "For your information, mine was 98 yuan, done by a director!"

Li Zheng looked at his uneven, puff-like crew cut, and sighed helplessly, "Such a waste."

While they were talking.

A moderate thump suddenly came from the door.

Turning to look, a girl’s head poked out from the edge of the door frame.

"Hmph." She glared at Li Zheng dissatisfied.

Li Zheng shuddered, picked up his stationery, "No, I have to go, we’ll chat later."

"Count me in!" Shi Yang shamelessly followed, "How can I miss out on such a showy problem-solving session?"

This shout caught the attention of everyone around.

"Problem-solving?"

"Cobalt God and Li Zheng are going to solve problems together?"

"Typical Dragon Pearl Group, about to reveal another firsthand solution."

"Count me in, count me in, I’ll contribute my notes for free, not adding a single extra word."

Amidst the cries, a bunch of people quickly gathered their belongings.

Of course, some chose to flee the scene as quickly as possible.

They looked dreadfully at those preparing to follow Li Zheng and Shi Yang.

Isn’t living comfortably good enough?

Just as Li Zheng reached the classroom door with his bag, Lin Yujing hadn’t moved, still peering sneakily from the doorframe, mumbling, "Who is that?"

"Gu Jianfeng, the famous bigshot in our group." Li Zheng also turned to look back at the last row of the classroom.

Gu Jianfeng was trying to retrieve his Mechanics Book from the cabinet but was jostled around by a bunch of people, barely managing to squeeze through, looking very helpless.

"Is he... a boy?" Lin Yujing asked, staring at the figure.

"Should be."

"What do you mean ’should be’?"

"Just wait a second, I’ll go check..."

"No!" Lin Yujing quickly grabbed Li Zheng, seeing many eager to join, she immediately dragged Li Zheng outside, "Forget about them, let’s go."

"Oh." Li Zheng complied, then sighed, "Don’t let his age fool you, his physics skills could very well surpass both of ours."

"???" Lin Yujing looked back in shock, "’Surpass both of ours’? Get it straight, there’s at least a hundred Jiang Qinghuas between us."

"Not likely, maybe twenty at most," Li Zheng chuckled, "You’re still too young. There are always people out there better than you, you just haven’t met them yet."

"Whether they exist or not, I haven’t met any yet," Lin Yujing earnestly asked, "How many points did he get on the last question of the last test?"

"380."

"…" Lin Yujing bit her finger.

"You too, 380?" Li Zheng asked.

"Hmm..."

"I was indeed wrong..." Li Zheng grimaced in pain, "Math, math, it always comes down to math."

"Lame." Lin Yujing then asked, "How much did he score on the second question?"

"Didn’t ask."

"...Forget it, who cares about him."

Just as the two were about to leave, Shi Yang shamelessly approached them.

"The usual routine, McDonald’s to check the answers?"

"Not taking you, go stand aside." Li Zheng pushed him away.

Stumbling a few steps back, Shi Yang looked at Li Zheng and Lin Yujing huddling together and could only beat his chest in resignation, "Alas, favors love over friends, such is human nature."

"If you can’t speak properly, then don’t talk!" Li Zheng, protecting Lin Yujing, was ready to leave.

However, the situation here was really too complicated, and they were stopped again.

This time it was Qi Yingnan and Duan Peipei, who had run over, panting.

"Checking answers or not?"

"Let’s do it together, Yu Jing, Li Zheng."

These two were naturally qualified and acquaintances, and Li Zheng was willing.

But he didn’t rush to agree, instead looking towards Lin Yujing first, to gauge her expression.

People with high emotional intelligence are like that, always considering others’ opinions, rather than acting unilaterally.

This time, Lin Yujing finally nodded in agreement.

The considerate Li Zheng then smiled and said, "Alright, together."

Just as the four were about to leave, Qi Yingnan suddenly shouted, "Wind God? You were in this exam room too."

Turning around, they saw Gu Jianfeng holding a Mechanics book, blocked at the door, looking distressed.

Looking at Qi Yingnan, Gu Jianfeng was also very perplexed, "You are...?"

"I’m from the Dragon Pearl Group, I’ve seen your photo." Qi Yingnan hurried over, "Join us to check the answers? Our team is very strong."

Gu Jianfeng, looking at the overly large group, shrank back slightly, "No need..."

"Hey, the more the merrier." Qi Yingnan grabbed Gu Jianfeng’s shoulder, "Let me introduce you, this is Li Zheng, this is Lin Yujing, their skills are not necessarily inferior to yours."

Hearing this, Shi Yang, who had been left out, jumped up.

"Here, here, I’m here too, I’m Shi Yang, the grandmaster from the National Team of ICho!"

"Physics dummy, stay away." Qi Yingnan ignored him, firmly taking Gu Jianfeng to meet Li Zheng and Lin Yujing, "We will likely meet in a practical exam, so let’s get to know each other beforehand."

"Uh... sure." Gu Jianfeng flashed a goofy smile towards Li Zheng, "I know you, you still owe me a calculator."

"My bad, my bad." Li Zheng also squinted back, "Come on, checking the answers won’t take long."

"Hmm... then let’s go." Gu Jianfeng smiled foolishly, "Don’t be so careless in the finals."

Li Zheng reluctantly said, "Just this once... and you caught me..."

"Hmm..." Lin Yujing suddenly burst out, stretched her arm between the two, and scolded Li Zheng, "Liar, you’ve been careless many times, I’ve caught you at least 10 times."

Li Zheng quickly waved his hands, "What happens between us doesn’t count as being caught."

"Tsk..." Lin Yujing’s expression mysteriously softened a bit, she then squinted towards Gu Jianfeng, sizing him up.

Her purpose was actually very simple, just trying to meticulously figure out if the other person was male or female.

But Gu Jianfeng felt very uncomfortable, instinctively shrinking behind Li Zheng.

"What are you doing..." Li Zheng, protecting Gu Jianfeng, started lecturing, "You scared the kid, he’s only 15."

Listening to this statement, everyone, depending on their own perspective, had different reactions.

Lin Yujing’s perspective was undoubtedly the most critical—

"You don’t like kids, do you?"

"That depends on the person." Li Zheng said earnestly, "Who wouldn’t like a kid who studies as well as Gu Jianfeng?"

"Then... if you had a kid, he would definitely be a good student, right?" Lin Yujing pondered, "Doesn’t that mean you would definitely like kids?"

"That depends on the subject." Li Zheng pointed to Shi Yang, who had been driven far away, "If I had a kid who was good at studies like him, I might have to beat him."

Shi Yang, hearing this, nearly burst into tears.

Indeed, he used to get beaten every week in elementary school.

Was it all because he liked chemistry?

Is that what they call double standards?

...

When the group finally left the exam room, the team had grown quite large.

Naturally, based on academic performance, they split into three groups.

The first group was Li Zheng, Lin Yujing, and Gu Jianfeng.

Li Zheng was in the middle, Gu Jianfeng on the left, Lin Yujing on the right, and as they walked, they were already discussing their answers.

The second group consisted of Qi Yingnan and Duan Peipei, who were trailing behind.

They intentionally stayed back, but not because they couldn’t get a word in edgewise.

The main reason was that these three together felt like a family of three...

Butting in would have been awkward.

"Damn it, they even level up..." Qi Yingnan muttered bitterly as he walked. "I thought playing house was just for two people to show off... but this... this is the ultimate playing house... My brain must have short-circuited... Why mess with Gu Jianfeng..."

"Don’t be upset, don’t be upset." Duan Peipei consoled. "At the finals, take the national gold, we can also enjoy our days."

"Ah..." Qi Yingnan shuddered. "You mean..."

Duan Peipei quickly explained, "I mean, each of us will enjoy our days with our own loved ones."

Qi Yingnan felt stifled. "I suppose..."

"We definitely can do it." Duan Peipei spoke earnestly, "You’re a good person."

"..." Qi Yingnan felt it was too hard for him.

A double squeeze was bad enough, but now it was literally an encirclement from all sides.

The third group was the large troop led by Shi Yang.

Li Zheng, you traitor, prioritizing your girlfriend over your friends, not letting me discuss the answers, and still you won’t let me eat at McDonald’s?

I just followed, just spectated, just waiting for the answers.

This noon, we were all light bulbs.

Let me show you what a star-studded spectacle looks like!

...

Dozens of people discussing answers, there can only be one biggest winner.

Who?

McDonald’s.

Suddenly selling dozens of meals, quite magical.

Dozens of people discussing answers, there can only be one biggest loser.

Who?

McDonald’s again.

This group, spending two hours on a single meal.

Two hours is of course an exaggeration, in reality just over half an hour, Li Zheng, Lin Yujing, Gu Jianfeng, and Qi Yingnan had already recreated the semi-final questions, with Duan Peipei, due to her much lower rank, responsible for tallying and recording.

The time was mainly wasted on reconciling the answers afterward.

Among them, the first, third, fourth, fifth questions had basically no disputes.

For the second question, Gu Jianfeng and Li Zheng had the same answer, yet it was different from Lin Yujing’s, so a dispute arose.

For the sixth question, Li Zheng and Lin Yujing agreed, but their answer conflicted with Gu Jianfeng’s, leading to a dispute.

For the seventh question, Gu Jianfeng and Lin Yujing agreed on their answers, whereas Li Zheng differed, sparking a dispute.

After all, each question had at least three sub-questions; the maddening seventh question had six sub-questions, so it’s quite rare to have so few disputes.

Among them, the dispute over the seventh question ended quickly.

Mainly because Li Zheng explained his problem-solving process and calculations very clearly, and quickly Gu Jianfeng and Lin Yujing pointed out several errors.

But for the second and sixth questions, they got stuck in the mire.

Because Lin Yujing’s description of her problem-solving steps went like this—

"It’s just like this, this part only considers this, apply that formula here, isn’t it clear?"

"I’ve explained it so clearly, how are you still puzzled? All of you are weaklings."

And Gu Jianfeng’s description was like this—

"Here... just do a mental calculation..."

"This, a glance roughly gives the limit... then a slight thought in the mind, and this is the answer."

"This process can’t be spoken about... it’s like asking you to explain why 1+1 equals 2... What’s there to talk about..."

"Don’t worry about those mesons and cosmic rays, just imagine a bunch of Theory of Relativity equations shuttling through the universe... Essentially, it’s just like that, the essence of all physical processes is just like that..."

...

Time ticked by each passing second.

Li Zheng realized this was a destined fruitless discussion of answers.

The farthest distance isn’t the ends of the earth.

But rather, you have a physics brain, and I have a math brain.

Funnily enough.

These two kinds of brains.

Li Zheng couldn’t understand at all.

Ordinary brains are just too difficult.

An hour had passed, and the discussion between Lin Yujing and Gu Jianfeng had become tedious.

Lin Yujing was gasping for breath, her head bowed down on the table, "I... I don’t understand at all what you’re saying..."

"Me neither..." Gu Jianfeng, physically exhausted, collapsed in his chair, "It’s so tiring... explaining math to someone else...so tiring..."

"That’s enough." Li Zheng’s brain was also on the verge of overload, "Anyway... I can’t understand a word you two are saying."

"I can understand you..." Lin Yujing wiped her mouth, "It’s all logic that even elementary students can understand."

"Same here, Li Zheng’s way of thinking doesn’t seem problematic to me." Gu Jianfeng nodded too, "It’s the most straightforward derivation and calculation, probably just like a calculator."

"..." Li Zheng felt somewhat wronged, "Should... should I be happy about that..."

"You’re so patient; you must be a good teacher," Lin Yujing consoled, "After all, you even manage to teach Jiang Qinghua..."

"Yeah, your way of thinking has formed its own style, and you indeed have patience," Gu Jianfeng smiled, "You must be a good father, even if the mother of your children doesn’t manage anything, you would definitely take good care with patience..."

Before Li Zheng could respond, Lin Yujing uttered a "Hmm," her eyes lighting up as if she felt a sense of "liberation."

Meanwhile, Qi Yingnan had already developed dark circles: "Are you... are you done yet...?"

"Not yet, but I doubt there will be any outcome," Li Zheng nodded, "Apart from the two minor questions on question two and six, the other answers should be fine now, let’s announce them."

"They’re already announced..." Duan Peipei, exhausted, rested on the table, gesturing to the students furiously comparing answers on their phones and draft papers, "Apart from those two minor questions, I’ve also calculated your scores, want to hear them?"

As she spoke, Duan Peipei propped herself up, chuckled at the paper in hand.

So you guys have today too?

Just this once, just this moment.

Tell me, who exactly is the goddess of fate?

But before she could start chatting, Gu Jianfeng waved his hand dismissively, "No need, we’ve already figured it out."

"Hmm." Lin Yujing nodded vigourously.

Li Zheng looked confused, "??? What? When? What’s my score?"

"Those two minor questions are key; right now this score is meaningless," Gu Jianfeng chuckled.

"Yeah." Lin Yujing happily patted Li Zheng on the head, "You did well~"

"..." Li Zheng felt uneasy.

It was all because of the Waterloo on question seven.

He had understood everything.

Yet he made elementary calculation mistakes on those two minor questions...

Sure, one could call it carelessness.

But alternatively, it could be said that the intensity of the questions was so great that errors happened in the rush.

Just like in a soccer match, everyone makes mistakes.

But against stronger opponents, mistakes are undoubtedly more likely to occur.

There are exceptions, of course, like the National Soccer Team whose average rate of mistakes is quite stable, almost the same no matter the strength of the opponent.

Li Zheng thought too far ahead, quickly shook his head and leaned over to Duan Peipei’s side to peek at the scoresheet.

Due to the uncertainty of the answers for those two minor questions, the total score went from 320 to 285.

Under this premise.

[Lin Yujing: 280]

[Gu Jianfeng: 275]

[Li Zheng: 270]

Li Zheng’s eyes widened.

The gap wasn’t as big as he had anticipated.

The two minor questions, worth a total of 35 points, were up for grabs for everyone.

On the other hand.

Had Li Zheng not been careless.

His score should be... 280.

"Ah..." Li Zheng slammed his fist on the table, both excited and frustrated.

Excited about the outcome, being essentially on the same level as Lin Yujing and Gu Jianfeng without speeding up the whole process.

Frustrated about the process, the carelessness, the damn miscalculations... he could have scored much higher.

And carelessness...

Is never just because of carelessness.

"Still not enough..." Li Zheng’s eyes once again emitted a demonic gleam, "The problems... are still not enough... need to do more... more... more..."

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