CHAPTER 35: GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

"Master is really serious this time..."

Li Mei’s whisper was so faint it could’ve been mistaken for the buzzing of a fly.

But with his heightened senses, Wang Chen naturally heard it—and his lips twitched uncontrollably.

Just what do these disciples think of their master?

Noticing the flash of displeasure on Wang Chen’s face, both Li Mei and Lin Huang straightened immediately. Without a word, they sat cross-legged, assuming meditative postures like dutiful students awaiting their teacher’s instruction.

Seeing them finally act serious, Wang Chen nodded with satisfaction. His voice carried the calm gravity of a seasoned cultivator.

"You might already know just how heaven-defying and impossibly difficult cultivation truly is."

The words were simple, even cliché, but both disciples nodded solemnly, understanding where he was going.

As expected, Wang Chen thought smugly.

He decided it was time for a little flair. Sharpening his gaze, he silently activated Chronoblade, letting its temporal field distort the air around him.

Instantly, the dojo’s colors began to fade. The entire room turned muted and lifeless, as if time itself held its breath. The sacred stillness made both disciples straighten instinctively. Li Mei’s heart pounded fast—this aura was suffocating.

Yet despite her fear, she trusted her master. After the last incident, she knew that Wang Chen would never harm her.

Satisfied with the solemn atmosphere, Wang Chen began.

"What if I told you," he said slowly, "that back in ancient times, cultivation wasn’t this difficult? That it was as easy as breathing itself?"

Li Mei’s eyes widened. "Cultivation... easy as breathing?"

As a former Eternal Emperor, she knew better than anyone how impossibly arduous cultivation was. To say that it had once been effortless sounded like blasphemy.

Did I say too much? Wang Chen thought in panic, noticing her stunned expression. Among the three, the regressor Li Mei was the one most likely to call him out.

Luckily, Lin Huang looked genuinely intrigued, eyes shining with curiosity. Encouraged, Wang Chen relaxed and let a confident smile curve his lips.

"I understand your shock," he said, tone easing into that of a benevolent instructor. "After all, too much time has passed. But as my disciples, you can’t be like other ignorant cultivators. If someone learns that my disciples lack even basic knowledge... my reputation will crumble."

He folded his arms. "So let me start by asking: Do you know how this world came into existence?"

Lin Huang raised his hand eagerly. The question was simple, and he wanted to impress his master.

"This world—the Seven Convergence World—was formed when an exalted cultivator ascended to the heavens. The cloud he sat upon transformed into our realm."

Wang Chen’s smile froze.

What utter nonsense... these people have no clue about the most basic facts!

Without betraying his irritation, he gestured toward Li Mei. "What about you?"

Li Mei hesitated, trying to recall fragments of ancient records. She spoke delicately.

"I don’t know the exact origins of this world, but according to sacred texts, all worlds are...a dream. The Great Dream of the Heavenless Lord."

Unbelievable, Wang Chen groaned internally. Stronger than me in cultivation, yet their common sense is nonexistent.

Suppressing a sigh, he straightened his back and said flatly, "Both of you are wrong."

Li Mei frowned faintly. The Great Dream was one of the most authoritative theories in the upper realm. Yet she restrained herself, swallowing her protest. Don’t tell me Master actually believes that old talk about... atoms?

"At first," Wang Chen said, adopting a tone of patience, "I wanted to teach you advanced cultivation principles. But seeing your ignorance, I’ll begin where all true knowledge starts—with the structure and behavior of the natural world."

He paused thoughtfully. Should I start with the four states of matter? No... too basic. I need something more impressive.

His eyes gleamed. "The creation of this world began with what I call—the Big Bang. A massive explosion that gave birth to everything—the stars, the skies, and the laws that govern heaven and earth."

As his calm voice filled the hall, he elaborated on forces beyond their understanding: gravity, light, magnetism, motion, rain, mountains, and clouds. His explanation wove science and mysticism into a strange blend that left both disciples utterly stunned.

By the time he finished describing the birth of stars, the ambient qi around them had shifted. The dojo’s ceiling dimmed; shadows wavered against the bamboo floor.

Lin Huang hesitated, hand half‑raised. "Master, forgive my ignorance but... how can everything be made of atoms?"

Wang Chen smiled, ready to impress him further—but then noticed something odd. The entire room seemed darker.

Who turned off the lights?

He looked up.

The entire sky above the Phoenix and Dragon Dojo was pitch‑black. Far beyond the clouds, thunderheads gathered like walls of ink, lightning crawling through them like veins of molten gold.

Across the city, panic erupted.

An old Foundation Establishment elder stared up from a distant courtyard, voice trembling. "Such a vast tribulation cloud... Who is breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm?"

No one answered.

Streaks of lightning tore across the heavens. Cultivators scattered below, terrified of being caught in the divine punishment’s radius.

Inside the dojo, Wang Chen’s expression darkened.

Through the thick storm clouds, he saw it—two eyes. Vast, golden, emotionless—staring directly at him.

His hand instinctively reached for his sword.

"Who... is that?" he murmured.

Before he could move, Li Mei’s urgent voice rang beside him. "Master, watch out!"

He barely turned when the darkness above split open, a blinding flash tearing through the heavens.

Wang Chen tilted his head slightly, unfazed. "Lightning, huh... and what exactly is that for?"

Bang! A lightning bolt thick as an adult waist hit the poor Bodhi tree, charring its branches, poor tree took damage for nothing.

What is going on? Wang Chne thought flashed like lightning, he found what he had said to enrage the heavens.

Just then an absurd thought came to his head.

Don’t tell me, teaching the basic general knowledge to my disciple caused such a reaction.

As soon as this realization hit him, he immediately stopped thinking about all the modern knowledge, and in real time the cloud started to scatter.

After five minutes of silence everything returned to normal.

Now wang chen was sure of the fact, the heavens were purposefully gatekeeping the modern knowledge, but why?