Chapter 46: How are humans supposed to have children with a dragon that big?

"Huff... huff..."

Lu Mingfei was running, gasping for air.

Ideals are beautiful, but reality is cruel.

Not until he actually tried it did Lu Mingfei realize that trying to accomplish the "multitasking" feat of reciting formulas and thinking through exercises while running was—difficult, truly too difficult!

The reason is simple: unlike walking or jogging, high-intensity long-distance running requires a massive consumption of oxygen.

The Schedule Plan allocates time based on Lu Mingfei's physical fitness and real-time status; if Lu Mingfei doesn't want to be shocked, his speed must be maintained at a state that pushes his body to its limit of aerobic metabolism.

At this time, 80-95% of the human body's maximum oxygen uptake is used for muscle activity, and only the remaining oxygen is distributed to other organs.

But as the organ that consumes the most calories in the human body, the brain consumes 20% of oxygen even in a resting state!

To accomplish basic memorization and learning, brain oxygen consumption must increase by at least 10%. And if one wants to enter a "Flow State," which is equivalent to "overclocking" the brain, that requires an additional 10-20% on top of that!

This means that if Lu Mingfei wants to complete routine learning during high-intensity running, or even enter "Flow State" mode, he must at least fill this 20-45% "gap"—his maximum oxygen uptake.

This cannot be achieved simply by increasing lung capacity; it also requires improving cardiopulmonary coordination, namely heart pumping capacity, blood oxygen-carrying capacity, and the efficiency of muscle mitochondria in utilizing oxygen...

After analyzing it this way, Lu Mingfei knew that this was simply something he could not achieve at his current stage.

But he was still trying, still... persevering.

Giving up is certainly an option, and there wouldn't even be a penalty, because this is his own spontaneous behavior.

The Schedule Plan only ensures he completes the already established plan, and will not change or add to it... at least not within this month.

But Lu Mingfei is afraid; it is true that he fears hardship, fatigue, and trouble, but he fears death even more!

The cruelty of that monster called a "Death Servant" is still vivid in his mind; at the time, it had disappeared, rather than being vaporized by Senior Brother Chu... Heaven knows if it might suddenly pop out from some dark corner!

What if it sets its sights on him?

If he gives up now, what will he do when he is just one entry away from reaching LV1 in 【Physics】 and surviving?

Therefore—

Even if the efficiency is shockingly lower compared to the "Flow State," and even far inferior to his normal state;

Even if he is tortured throughout this process, becoming mentally dazed at times, and nearly getting shocked several times because his footsteps involuntarily slowed down;

Even if the 96/100 on the 【Physics】 Proficiency panel hasn't changed by the time he runs to the gymnasium...

Lu Mingfei is still continuing.

The panel not changing doesn't mean it hasn't increased; the digits after the decimal point aren't displayed, and even if it takes several minutes to memorize one formula or one theorem, it still means he is "becoming stronger"!

It's just a mere four points of proficiency; even if it's like chopping a tree with a small knife, Lu Mingfei is going to grind it out today!

"Once, just this once! Once I grind this out this time, there won't be a next time."

Lu Mingfei thought to himself, his pace finally able to slow down as he stepped into the Qingning Basketball Hall.

"Too tired, too torturous! I must have been crazy to think of doing this..."

The Schedule Plan remained silent, merely observing and recording.

The setting sun fell on the red and green plastic court, casting a glow on that dribbling, running figure. His sharp-featured face was expressionless; he looked just like an ordinary, sports-loving, handsome, model student.

The kind that is harmless to humans and animals, and loved by everyone.

After changing his clothes and arriving at the side of the court, the corners of Lu Mingfei's eyes twitched slightly as he saw this scene.

If it were before, he probably would have thought the same. But after experiencing the battle with the Death Servant last night, he knew what kind of violent power was hidden beneath Senior Brother Chu's physique.

He was practically a walking, self-propelled napalm bomber!

"Start?"

Chu Zihang leaped lightly, sent the basketball into the hoop with his right hand, and then caught it with his left. He stood still, looking at Lu Mingfei, his tone flat and his words concise, as always.

"Sure, Senior Brother, what are we practicing today?"

After a day of easing his nerves, Lu Mingfei was already able to look at his senior brother directly without subconsciously developing a "I must strike first" mentality because of how he was beaten last night.

"Anything is fine."

Chu Zihang tossed the ball to Lu Mingfei and explained, "Today, I'll mainly introduce you to things about 'that world'."

Lu Mingfei caught the ball easily, his expression turning stern. He first performed a three-step layup to enter a training state to avoid being shocked, and only then spoke with slightly rapid breathing.

"Go ahead, Senior Brother."

Chu Zihang didn't mind Lu Mingfei's actions; after these few days, he roughly knew that Lu Mingfei's "habit" was that he had to be doing some "serious business" with his hands, and communication could still proceed normally.

So, he watched Lu Mingfei's running and jumping figure and said slowly.

"Before humans, the ones who ruled this world were dragons."

Lu Mingfei's figure faltered: "Senior Brother, although I basically never listened in history class, I do know that dinosaurs were once the masters of the Earth; 'Jurassic Park' is quite good."

There was a retort Lu Mingfei held back—Senior Brother, how is this any different from starting a story from Pangu creating the world?

"No, I'm not talking about dinosaurs."

Chu Zihang shook his head; he had also had Lu Mingfei's misunderstanding during his entrance training.

"I mean the real dragons from myths and legends, those that possess extraordinary power!"

Who knows how much time had passed.

"So, dragons were once the masters of the world; they possessed bodies stronger than alloys and peerless, powerful vitality, and they also mastered an extraordinary power called 'Spirit Speech.' Humans at that time were just slaves."

Lu Mingfei's mouth was already hanging open; his gaze was dull, and he was relying entirely on muscle memory to perform high-intensity basketball practice.

"And humans obtained the power of dragons through 'hybridization,' giving birth to Hybrids, thereby launching a dragon-slaying campaign and successfully covering up the dragon race in history... that's not right, is it!"

"What part?"

Chu Zihang quickly recalled whether there were any loopholes in what he had said. After finishing his recollection, he guessed that the part Lu Mingfei felt was wrong was probably "how could Hybrid humans possibly defeat dragons."

He was already prepared to explain—Dragon History had covered this, citing "the great spirit of selfless sacrifice of our predecessors, and humans uniting as one to face the internal divisions and infighting of the dragon race," or something similar.

Afterwards, he heard Lu Mingfei's words.

"How can a human and such a huge dragon... have children?"

There was a trace of slight terror in Lu Mingfei's expression, as if he were imagining some kind of scene.

Perhaps only he would think of this first!

Chu Zihang was unfazed and explained earnestly: "Dragons, as a type of creature, have already surpassed the understanding of our current scientific system; they can transform from dragon form into human form."

"Oh... wait, that's not right either, is it?"

Lu Mingfei asked, frowning in thought.

"What about reproductive isolation?"

"If they just simply transform into human form and can give birth to a first-generation Hybrid, that would be one thing; after all, there are exceptions like mules and 'ligers'. But, Senior Brother, you said that Hybrids can normally produce offspring, which means reproductive isolation doesn't exist at all!"

"Between humans and dragons... there is no reproductive isolation, so doesn't that make them the same species? Does that mean that after a dragon transforms into a human, from the perspective of Biology, they are human?"

Chu Zihang fell silent; his academic performance was excellent, and even after starting to evolve into a cold-faced, violent killing machine upon entering university, he had not forgotten the knowledge he had learned before.

What Lu Mingfei said seemed... to make sense?

And during the time he was silent, Lu Mingfei had already begun his habitual divergence of thought.

"In that case, maybe there are many dragons hiding right beside us, and they might even look very good!"

"Senior Brother, you have to be careful; don't accidentally fall in love with a hidden, pretty little female dragon... well, okay, you probably don't need to worry too much about that, who knows when you'll ever open your heart to romance, ahem!"

"But come to think of it, when a dragon transforms into a human, they count as the same species as humans. If we exclude the idea that 'those who are not of our race must have a different heart,' then assimilation is possible."

"Humans have good and bad... maybe dragons do too? Have we never thought about winning over a group, dividing a group, and suppressing a group?"

"Humans have traitors, so dragons can have 'dragon traitors' too!"

This chapter is 2.5K! 5K today! Please follow and vote with monthly tickets~

Because it involves the tone of the entire book, this chapter took a bit longer to write, sorry for keeping everyone waiting~

In general, I love eating Vinegar Blood Duck, I only love happy endings and don't like tragedies, and I won't be handing out any knives, so dear readers can rest assured while reading!

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(End of chapter)