Chapter 108: This Young Man, A Promising Future
Hearing the Narrator's indignant outburst, Feng Qi couldn't help but smile.
Just as he suspected, the Narrator had been there all along, silently observing him while pretending to be absent.
"Alright, you can keep slacking off. I'll call you if I need something."
[Denied. For the record, I don't actually exist in your reality. I merely sensed you badmouthing me and projected part of my consciousness into this plane. Now my projection is about to dissipate. Farewell!]
Feng Qi: …
Faced with the Narrator's relentless denial, Feng Qi had no choice but to let it go.
Still, as long as he knew the Narrator could manifest in reality, he could seek its advice when necessary.
By the time he wrapped up this exchange, it was late at night. After a quick wash, Feng Qi lay down on his bed and closed his eyes.
His mind wandered briefly before gradually emptying, his expression softening into a tranquil calm...
The next day marked the opening of the Tiger Soul Concept Competition.
After breakfast in the academy's cafeteria, Feng Qi and Lin Ran made their way to Cultivation Techniques Class 1.
By the time they arrived, all the students were already gathered.
During the online lottery draw, Class 1 had been assigned the eighth slot, meaning they still had some time before their live presentation.
For now, the students were intently watching the screen behind the podium, where the live presentations of other academies were being broadcast.
Seeing Feng Qi enter, the students greeted him warmly.
Feng Qi nodded in response, then followed Lin Ran to the back row, where they found seats.
"Qi-ge, your concept of 'Planting Deities in the Body' is basically a guaranteed win. I've looked into the ideas proposed by other academies, and none of them come close to yours," Lin Ran said, grinning.
Feng Qi simply smiled in acknowledgment.
In truth, major research institutions had already taken an interest in his "Planting Deities in the Body" concept. Unlike Wei Wei, who had contacted him directly, they had reached out to Bai Fusheng to inquire about the details.
Usually, discussions about the merits of each concept would ignite heated debates online, with the judges' scores ultimately deciding the winner.
But this year was different. Feng Qi's concept was a "dimensional suppression."
While other academies presented ideas, he delivered a fully realized theoretical framework.
On the screen, Class 3 from Gale Academy was currently presenting their concept.
Their proposal centered around a novel cultivation system called "Cell Regeneration," which aimed to accelerate healing by using spiritual energy to stimulate cellular regeneration.
The online comments section, however, was flooded with ridicule:
"What kind of trash concept is this? I might not know much about cultivation, but even I know human cells can only divide a limited number of times. Why not just call this self-destruct technique? Let me give it a 1-star rating right now."
"This is hilarious! There's always some comedic relief during the Tiger Soul Concept Competition. They haven't even figured out the basics of merging spiritual energy with the human body, and now they're jumping to the cellular level? Even if the idea is feasible, have they considered the workload this will dump on the researchers at the Tiger Soul Institute?"
"Students talk the talk; researchers break their backs. Please, think of the researchers before pitching your ideas next time! (disdain.jpg)"
As Gale Academy's team members could also see the comments, their expressions grew increasingly sour.
They looked ready to whip out keyboards and start an online brawl.
Each presenting team had an hour to explain their concept. While this time wasn't enough to delve into every detail, the preliminary round only required participants to give the audience a general understanding of their ideas.
When Gale Academy finished their presentation, the average online rating appeared on the screen: a disappointing 3.1 out of 10.
Feng Qi found the score fair.
While online ratings might seem unreliable or prone to manipulation, hiring bots to skew the results was essentially a direct challenge to the Tiger Soul Institute—a risk no academy would dare take.
Moreover, online reviews were only relevant during the preliminaries. In the finals, the Tiger Soul Institute's judging panel would have the final say.
The purpose of online ratings was to promote the competition and encourage broader public engagement.
Once Gale Academy's turn ended, the screen switched to Class 1 from Galaxy Academy.
Galaxy Academy had long been a leader in cultivation research and had been Feng Qi's dream school in the past.
Their team presented an intriguing cultivation system concept: "Eye Techniques."
This idea was inspired by the domain creature "Hundred-Eyed Deity."
As the leader of the Hundred-Eyed Tribe within the now-dispersed Hundred-Eye Domain Field, this creature was classified as "Liao" (Level 3) and was exceptionally powerful.
Eliminating the Hundred-Eyed Deity had come at a great cost to humanity, including the complete annihilation of a B-rank domain combat squad.
The Hundred-Eyed Deity's abilities were fearsome. Its body was covered in multicolored eyes, each capable of performing unique functions.
Some could fire plasma blasts, others could create illusions, and some could generate an invisible "force" to exert mental pressure on enemies.
As Galaxy Academy's students elaborated on the concept, Feng Qi nodded approvingly.
"Galaxy Academy is impressive as always. Their 'Eye Techniques' concept already includes partial theoretical development. This idea is entirely feasible."
Beside him, Lin Ran chuckled.
"If it weren't for you, I'd say Galaxy Academy had a good shot at winning this year. Too bad for them!"
"Exactly!" Feng Qi agreed, his confidence unshaken.
As the broadcast continued, several other classes presented decent concepts, but none matched the sophistication of Galaxy Academy's "Eye Techniques."
Time quickly reached lunch, and the Tiger Soul Concept Competition entered its intermission.
After watching the morning's presentations, the students of Cultivation Techniques Class 1 brimmed with confidence, their hopes of winning the championship soaring.
Feng Qi and Lin Ran took this opportunity to head to the academy cafeteria for lunch before returning to the classroom.
After a half-hour wait, 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, and the view shifted to Cultivation Techniques Class 1.
The class monitor stood up, greeted the online audience, and then wasted no time diving into the concept of "Planting Deities in the Body."
The live broadcast saw a sudden explosion in viewer numbers.
The concept had already sparked widespread discussion online, and viewers eager for details flooded the stream.
After the monitor introduced the core principles of "Planting Deities in the Body," the other students took turns elaborating on the concept, fleshing out its nuances.
An hour wasn't enough time to cover everything, so they focused on providing a concise explanation that would give viewers a general understanding.
Halfway through, the live chat was already filled with praise:
"This is such an innovative cultivation system. It's bound to carve out a niche in the updates to modern cultivation systems. I've heard rumors that Star City Academy has already refined this concept. I wonder if it's true?"
"My teacher told me to watch this, and honestly, I'm blown away. When did Star City Academy become this strong in cultivation research?"
"Full marks, absolutely full marks. The concept of 'Planting Deities in the Body' is incredibly practical for us body cultivators. Human organs are always the weak point in combat, and this idea brilliantly addresses that issue."
"Giving it a full score. I don't know much about cultivation, but since everyone else is praising it, I'll chime in to avoid feeling out of place. Here's a string of 666 to look like I know what I'm talking about."
Time ran out far too quickly.
They had barely covered a third of the material when the broadcast abruptly cut off, and the average score appeared in bold on the screen:
[Star City Academy - Cultivation Techniques Class 1: Online Average Score: 9.9/10.]
The classroom erupted in cheers, the students unable to hide their excitement.
"Perfect!" Lin Ran clenched his fist in exhilaration, as if he'd been the one to come up with the concept.
Feng Qi's face lit up with a satisfied smile.
At the top right of the live stream, the leaderboard showed Star City Academy in first place, with a 1.7-point lead over second-place Galaxy Academy.
At that moment, Bai Fusheng appeared at the classroom door, giving Feng Qi a thumbs-up with a beaming smile.
Seeing this, Feng Qi grinned and returned the gesture.
The broadcast moved on to the next academy, but after such a standout performance, the enthusiasm of the audience visibly waned.
While a few subsequent presentations introduced some novel and practical concepts, none could compare to the groundbreaking nature of "Planting Deities in the Body."
Even ideas that might have scored over 5 points in previous competitions suffered from the high bar set earlier, with their scores noticeably lower this time.
By the end of the day's preliminary round, which would continue for another three days, "Planting Deities in the Body" had already become a viral topic online.
Netizens were unanimous in their prediction: Star City Academy was the dark horse of this year's competition and the likely champion.
As the proposer of the concept, Feng Qi became the center of heated online discussions.
This was Feng Qi's first time experiencing widespread attention on the modern internet.
Previously, he had only been discussed as part of history.
Meanwhile, in the principal's office:
As yet another call came in, Bai Fusheng sighed with a mix of exasperation and amusement.
He'd lost count of how many calls he'd received that evening. Answering this one, a familiar voice greeted him:
"Old Bai, I've looked into it. This concept was proposed by one of your freshmen, Feng Qi, right? Could you ask him if he's interested in joining the Floating Research Institute after graduation?"
"He's currently teaching at Star City Academy as a substitute instructor, and he's likely to stay on as faculty after graduation. Sorry..."
After politely declining his old friend, Bai Fusheng hung up, a smile creeping onto his face.
From the moment Feng Qi joined Star City Academy, he had continually brought pleasant surprises.
Previously, Feng Qi's achievements had been personal accolades. This time, however, he had led the Cultivation Techniques Class to earn the academy widespread acclaim. Bai Fusheng couldn't be prouder of his decision to take a chance on Feng Qi.
Had he hesitated back then, he would now be lamenting the loss of such a prodigy to another institution.
As for Feng Qi's future, Bai Fusheng was filled with anticipation.
He didn't know how far Feng Qi could go, but he was certain that one day, a statue of Feng Qi would stand among the legends in Star City Academy.
History, too, would undoubtedly bear Feng Qi's mark.
When future generations looked back on this era, Feng Qi's name would shine among the stars.
"When the great bird takes flight, it rides the wind to soar to the heavens."
This young man's future is limitless.