Chapter 194: Are You Qin Feng, or Jing Shenbing?

The "heavy bombshell" that the Wind Rising System held regarding certain key figures and their families' hidden overseas assets was detonated across the global internet like a virus, through carefully planned anonymous channels!

Secret Swiss bank accounts, shareholding structures of offshore companies, private islands purchased in the Caribbean, murky financial dealings with foreign forces, and even grey-area transaction records involving state secrets… one after another, item by item, were laid out for all to see with vivid illustrations and crystal-clear details!

The information was so shocking, the figures involved so high-ranking, that it instantly triggered a mountain-shaking, tsunami-like tremor across the globe!

International mainstream media, like sharks scenting blood, frantically followed up with reports; intelligence agencies of various countries urgently activated analytical procedures; opposition parties and civil groups in the relevant nations seized the opportunity to make trouble, demanding thorough investigations…

The towering waves of public opinion instantly swept those big shots who had originally been hiding behind the scenes, trying to confiscate Qin Feng's assets, leaving them dizzy, disoriented, and in utter disarray!

They had intended to use thunderous means to cut off Qin Feng's lifeline, but never expected Qin Feng's counterattack to be so brutal—directly flipping the table and stripping them down to their underwear!

Panic, fury, and disbelief spread rapidly within a certain hidden circle.

"How could he know this?!" "Who leaked it?!" "Suppress it immediately! Suppress it at all costs!"

Yet in the information age, trying to completely suppress a leak of this scale was nothing short of a fool's dream. Moreover, what Qin Feng deployed was not merely internet trolls, but also the information nodes controlled by "Zhulong" that had infiltrated every level, as well as the most precise placement of public opinion guided by the 【Wealth Prediction】 function.

For a time, those big shots were overwhelmed, unable to cope—where would they find the energy to continue "confiscating" Qin Feng's assets? Many even began secretly reaching out, attempting to "communicate" and "compromise" with Qin Feng.

The pressure from official quarters suddenly eased.

But Qin Feng knew this was only the beginning. This method of flipping the table through leaks, though strikingly effective, was a seven-injury fist—inflicting a thousand wounds on the enemy while suffering eight hundred of its own—unable to last, and not the royal road he pursued.

His true foundation and future lay in "New Era," in "Lingxiao," in the transcendent power the system had granted him!

Just as he was stationed at "New Era," remotely directing the public opinion war on one side while overseeing the final-stage construction of the "Lingxiao" platform on the other, an unexpected visitor, through layers of reporting by Gao Yuan, requested to see him.

The visitor was an old man, wearing a faded old-style Zhongshan suit, thin of frame, with a plain and austere face, but his eyes were unusually bright, as if able to see straight through a person's heart.

Gao Yuan led him to the door of Qin Feng's temporary office at "New Era," and said softly to Qin Feng: "Leader, this is Professor Jing, Jing Shiheng. He is a theoretical physicist and philosopher of great renown domestically… and internationally, a recognized authority especially in the fields of consciousness studies and cosmology. He… is Academician Qian Fuli's closest friend."

Qian Fuli's friend?

Qin Feng's eyes shifted slightly. At this sensitive moment, an academic authority closely connected to Qian Fuli had come calling—what was his intent? Was he standing up for Qian Fuli? Or did he have another purpose?

"Show him in," Qin Feng said calmly.

Professor Jing Shiheng walked into the office with unhurried steps. His gaze first curiously surveyed the room—full of futuristic technological feel yet temporarily serving as a Command Center—before finally settling on Qin Feng, who stood before the star chart.

He offered no pleasantries, no small talk, and did not even mention the earth-shattering events unfolding outside. Instead, he looked directly at Qin Feng and, in an inquisitive tone as if conducting some sort of academic observation, posed a question that left even Qin Feng stunned:

"Are you Qin Feng, or… Jing Shenbing?"

(Note: Jing Shenbing, here a fictional term, can be understood as an extreme, transcendent obsession and madness, akin to a fusion of "a god descended to earth" and "mental derangement," carrying a flavor of philosophical speculation.)

The office fell instantly silent.

Gao Yuan stood at the door, brows tightly knit, his hand already resting on the weapon at his waist. Su Wenqian also held her breath, watching Qin Feng with worry.

The question was too abrupt, too bizarre, even… carrying a hint of offense.

Yet after his initial surprise, Qin Feng did not get angry; instead, a flash of extreme interest gleamed in his eyes.

He waved a hand to signal Gao Yuan and Su Wenqian that there was no need for tension, then stepped forward to face Professor Jing Shiheng.

"What makes you say that, Professor Jing?" Qin Feng countered, his tone calm.

Professor Jing Shiheng's gaze, like a microscope, carefully "scanned" every flicker of expression and breath in Qin Feng, and he said slowly:

"Your actions, your methods, the power and technology you have displayed… have already far exceeded the scope of 'human,' and even the boundaries that existing science can explain."

"Surveying history, those whose deeds transcend their age fall into two kinds." "The first is one afflicted with 'Jing Shenbing,' immersed in a self-constructed mad logic—appearing omnipotent, but in truth merely a mirage of the spiritual world, destined to collapse and harm both self and others." "The second…" he paused, his gaze sharpening, "is the true 'Qin Feng,' the embodiment of some higher existence or will we have yet to understand, come to lead… or overturn this era as a 'variable.'"

"I am very curious," Jing Shiheng said, fixing his eyes on Qin Feng's, "which are you—the former, or the latter?"

These words could truly be called earth-shattering!

Elevating Qin Feng's actions directly to a discussion on the philosophical and existential plane!

Gao Yuan and Su Wenqian listened, utterly lost, yet felt an inexplicable chill.

Qin Feng was silent, holding Professor Jing Shiheng's gaze.

He could sense that the old professor had not come to pick a fight, nor to stand up for Qian Fuli—he was genuinely perplexed, genuinely probing, using a lifetime of learning and philosophical speculation to try to understand Qin Feng as an "anomalous" existence.

After a long while, Qin Feng suddenly laughed.

Not a cold laugh, nor a laugh of anger, but one tinged with a hint of appreciation and… the delight of finding a kindred spirit.

"Professor Jing, your question is very interesting," Qin Feng began, "but I think it may itself be a false proposition."

"Oh?" Jing Shiheng raised an eyebrow.

"What is madness? What is divinity?" Qin Feng paced to the window, looking out at the boundless azure sea and the nascent city-state. "From the perspective of an ant, a casual step by a human might be a catastrophe, or a divine blessing. But humans themselves know it is merely an unintentional act."

"My actions, in your eyes, may be the madness of 'Jing Shenbing,' or the miracle of 'Qin Feng.'"

"But to me…"

He turned around, his gaze clear and firm, devoid of any madness, devoid of any divine indifference—only a will pure to the extreme.

"I am simply doing what I believe is right, and what I have the ability to do."

"I believe the old order needs to be broken, so I break it." "I believe the boundaries of science need to be expanded, so I expand them." "I believe the starry sky above is worth exploring, so I explore it."

"As for the means used in the process—whether gentle or brutal, whether conforming to common sense or transcending cognition—that is merely… a difference in tools and paths."

"My core has always been me, Qin Feng."

"A person unwilling to be bound by fate and rules, and with the ability to break free of them all."

Qin Feng's voice was not loud, yet carried a power that shook the heart.

Professor Jing Shiheng listened quietly, the probing light in his eyes gradually transforming into a complex emotion—shock, relief, and a hint of… enlightenment.

He slowly exhaled, as if setting down a weight of a thousand pounds.

"I understand now," Professor Jing Shiheng nodded, a near-mischievous smile appearing on his face. "It seems this old man was overthinking. You are neither a madman afflicted with 'Jing Shenbing,' nor some visitor from beyond the heavens."

"You are simply… a fellow traveler who has walked so fast that us old fellows cannot even see your back."

Having said this, he lingered no longer. He gave Qin Feng a slight nod, turned, and left the office with the same unhurried composure with which he had arrived.

Came suddenly, left cleanly.

Leaving only a thoughtful Qin Feng in the office, along with Gao Yuan and Su Wenqian exchanging bewildered glances, at a loss.

Qin Feng watched Professor Jing Shiheng's departing back, the corners of his mouth curving slightly upward.

This old professor is rather interesting.

He may not be able to offer technical help, but this way of thinking that transcends the mundane and cuts straight to the essence is exactly what the Rule Analysis team needs.

"It seems the Science Council of the New Era can have another interesting member." Qin Feng murmured softly.

As for the storm at home?

After this conversation with Professor Jing Shiheng, Qin Feng's heart had become even more clear and resolute.

He no longer paid attention to those clamorous public opinions and wretched opponents.

His gaze once again turned to the nearly completed "Lingxiao" in the factory, to the depths of the ocean, to the endless starry sky.

He is Qin Feng.

That is enough.

As for whether others think he is a god or a lunatic?

Does that matter?