Chapter 62

Zheng Fa had a headache.

He had ample reason to suspect the green-clad girl before him was a calculator reincarnated.

She was simply too good at calculations!

Beyond basic arithmetic, she had mastered Tianyuan Shu—a form of mathematics in this world akin to solving polynomials.

What surprised Zheng Fa even more was her display of a technique called Zhuishu, strikingly similar to his knowledge of limits.

Any problem requiring calculation within the scope of the Gaokao, no matter how complex, she could solve accurately and swiftly.

Her only weakness was proof and reasoning.

She couldn’t even understand why proof was necessary.

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

“Any more?” The girl set down the problem she had just solved, lifted her eyes, her face glowing with delight.

Zheng Fa realized: the harder, the more absurd, the more unsolvable the problem, the more excited she became!

“None!”

Zheng Fa firmly denied it; otherwise, he feared this insatiable girl would keep playing this twisted game of setting and solving problems for a year.

“Not a single one?”

“Not a single one!”

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

Zheng Fa seriously wondered if she intended to pry open his skull to check whether his brain was truly empty.

“Zhang Shijie? How did you get here?”

A woman’s voice broke the silence; Zheng Fa turned his head and saw Young Master Zhao standing behind a red-clad girl—the speaker was the red-clad girl.

“Zheng Fa, this is my sister!”

Young Master Zhao introduced her.

“Big Miss!” Zheng Fa rose to bow, glancing at the green-clad girl beside him—he now knew her surname was Zhang.

She hadn’t introduced herself upon arrival, nor had she considered whether she should even be allowed into the room.

As if everything except those problems didn’t matter at all.

“I asked your servants for directions and found my way here,” Zhang Shijie replied after a moment’s thought, glancing at Zheng Fa. “You’re quite well-known in your household—I asked one person and found you immediately.”

“I’m not asking how you got here—I’m asking why a Jin Dan would personally…”

Big Miss waved her hand, stepping beside Zhang Shijie, her expression puzzled.

Hearing this, Zheng Fa was startled—this girl was a Jin Dan?

Though he knew little of the cultivation world, from Big Miss’s surprise, confusion, and faint respect, he deduced Jin Dan must be formidable—certainly a major figure before the Zhao Household.

No wonder Big Miss was so astonished to see Zhang Shijie in his courtyard.

Zhang Shijie seemed to finally understand, nodding, then asked: “If I come personally, will my Jin Dan core shatter?”

“….”

Zheng Fa swore he saw Big Miss’s face freeze in stunned silence.

“I… he’s my brother’s servant. If you wish to see him, just summon him. You coming here like this makes the Zhao Household seem disrespectful.”

Young Master Zhao rolled his eyes.

Zheng Fa understood Big Miss’s meaning: a Jin Dan True Person versus a servant—the gap was immense.

A single word could make him obediently submit.

He didn’t feel offended; this was likely the common view in this world.

“Didn’t I come to your house too?”

“?”

A flicker of confusion crossed Big Miss’s face.

“Where I go, whom I meet—it’s all based on whim. What does this person’s status have to do with it?” Zhang Shijie glanced at the three of them: “To me, there’s no difference.”

“….”

In the small courtyard, three people fell silent at once.

Big Miss’s face flushed red.

Young Master Zhao clenched his teeth.

Zheng Fa… held back a laugh.

What is this, equality of all beings!

When Big Miss first said Zhang Shijie was a Jin Dan cultivator, Zheng Fa had thought her quite approachable.

Now he saw…

Her words amounted to saying: in my eyes, the Zhao Household, and Zhao Household’s servant, are the same.

There was an arrogance here—she didn’t care who her friends were.

“Approachable”? No one was more disdainful of others than this woman.

Big Miss’s face paled and flushed, speechless.

“Zhao Shimei,” Zhang Shijie suddenly addressed her, “as cultivators, we should not cling to useless things. You… hold on to too much.”

Big Miss froze as Zhang Shijie continued: “With your talent and diligence, you shouldn’t have taken ten years just to reach Foundation Establishment. If you don’t awaken soon, you’ll be dragged down.”

Big Miss stared blankly, finally understanding why Zhang Shijie had spoken so bluntly.

A mixture of bitter smile and gratitude appeared on her face: “Zhang Shijie, you are a true cultivator—became Jin Dan in a hundred years. I…”

Zhang Shijie had only spoken to offer this one piece of advice; hearing her response, she merely nodded, then turned to Young Master Zhao.

In front of a Jin Dan True Person, Young Master Zhao couldn’t hide his nervousness.

“This is my younger brother, Zhao Jingfan!” Big Miss hurriedly introduced him. “I was planning to bring him to you later to thank you for traveling all the way to Jingzhou to teach.”

She patted Young Master Zhao’s back. “Thank Zhang Shijie! Her willingness to guide you in talisman arts is your fortune in three lifetimes!”

So Zhang Shijie had come to teach Young Master Zhao talisman arts?

“No need,” Zhang Shijie pointed at Zheng Fa’s head. “Besides, if you want to thank me, seeing this gift is already enough.”

Zheng Fa rubbed the back of his head—he felt Zhang Shijie was pointing at the problems in his mind.

If he stretched it further, she was pointing at his brain.

Was this his karmic retribution for collecting brains?

Big Miss and Young Master Zhao stared at Zheng Fa, their expressions familiar to him:

The same look Wang Chen gave him when he walked downstairs with Tang Lingwumin—

Why him?

…

“If you want me to teach you talisman Dao, I must first assess your current level.” Though she told him not to thank her, Zhang Shijie didn’t refuse to teach Young Master Zhao.

In fact, she was decisive and action-oriented—right there in Zheng Fa’s courtyard, she began instructing him, even testing him directly.

Zheng Fa found it interesting; he had no objection to Big Miss bringing another teacher, since he wasn’t sure whether the old man’s notebook contained correct information.

The role of modern mathematics—or topology—in talisman arts had always been his speculation.

But he also knew mathematics could be derived purely through theory, while talisman arts in this world were real, and without practical validation, he couldn’t be certain his teachings to Young Master Zhao were truly useful.

He had many unresolved confusions about this world’s talisman arts.

Like science, solutions must be grounded in reality.

Whether the old man’s methods were correct, and his many confusions about talisman diagrams, required exposure to genuine talisman arts.

Young Master Zhao’s face tightened upon hearing Zhang Shijie would test him.

At that moment, Big Miss spoke: “My younger brother used to be lazy and uneducated. His talisman skills are probably beneath your notice—please don’t disdain them, Zhang Shijie.”

Zheng Fa sighed inwardly—he believed Big Miss’s preemptive belittling was well-intentioned, even protective of Young Master Zhao.

But…

Zheng Fa looked at Young Master Zhao; sure enough, a shadow of gloom crossed his face, his lower lip pressed tight, his whole posture tenser.

Zhang Shijie gave a slight nod.

“To understand talisman Dao, you must understand Yuan Fu. First question: what exactly is Yuan Fu? Do you know?” she asked Young Master Zhao.

Young Master Zhao shook his head helplessly, his face flushed with shame.

Zhang Shijie’s expression remained neutral, neither pleased nor disappointed.

She extended her right index finger and lightly traced the air.

A golden talisman appeared out of nowhere, then split into three beams of light that shot into the foreheads of the other three.

“Yuan Fu is a talisman diagram,” Zhang Shijie’s cold voice came. “And to me, talisman diagrams are this universe itself!”

The golden light from the talisman was blinding; as it neared Zheng Fa’s forehead, he involuntarily closed his eyes.

When he opened them again,

The world before him… shattered.