Full-Time Martial Saint

After a long wait, Chen Lin finally answered the phone.

"Brother, I'm sorry, I was so engrossed in my book that I didn't notice."

Chen Cong smiled and said "It's nothing," and then directly expressed his thoughts.

Having spent most of his time at home and rarely socializing, Chen Lin was visibly nervous upon hearing this. He said, "Brother, this won't do. I... I've been reading books about star artifacts for the past week, but this stuff is too profound. I... there are still so many things I don't understand."

"Then ask," Chen Cong said with a smile. "The other person is a specially recruited student from the Star Weapon Research Institute; he's a genius."

Chen Lin on the other end of the phone remained silent.

He spent a week reading books and materials related to star artifacts, neglecting sleep and meals. He gradually became fascinated by this mysterious knowledge from another world, and Ning Shuang, a genius girl in this field, held an irresistible allure for him.

"I'll send you my contact number in a bit, just consider it doing me a favor."

Having offered this enticing remark, Chen Cong used this sentence to shut Chen Lin up before he could refuse, and then hung up the phone.

After sending Ning Shuang's contact number, Chen Cong couldn't help but smile.

He did this not because he hoped Chen Linzhen would achieve great success in star artifact research, but simply to help his younger brother, who lacked interpersonal skills, while also getting rid of Ning Shuang.

Even if we take a step back, if that eccentric genius girl from the Ning family were genuinely interested in offering some guidance, it might bring some light and hope to her brother's dull life.

……

Hengjin Huafu residential community.

In the living room, Chen Lin stared at the contact number on the message, his expression contorted for a long time before finally mustering the courage to call.

The phone was answered almost instantly after only one ring.

"Hello, I'm Chen..."

"You've read the three hypotheses in the kraft paper bag, right? What are your thoughts?" Before Chen Lin could even finish his self-introduction, Ning Shuang's emotionless voice came through the phone.

Chen Lin paused for a moment, then said cautiously, "I've read the information, but... I didn't know much about star artifacts before, so I can't give an evaluation."

"Then let's start by talking about your understanding of star artifacts. What do you think is the key challenge in replicating star artifacts?"

Faced with Ning Shuang's direct question, Chen Lin paused for a moment, then asked uncertainly, "The synthesis of materials? And... the forging conditions?"

"Anything else?" Ning Shuang asked again after a moment of silence.

Chen Lin's brain was working frantically, constantly searching through all the books he had read in the past few days related to star artifacts.

"There's one more thing I'm not sure about. A couple of days ago, I carefully observed some of the pictures of star artifacts in the book 'Illustrations of Star Artifacts,' and I noticed that the patterns on the surface of each star artifact seem to be different, just like a person's fingerprint, each one is unique."

"I'm not sure how these patterns were formed, nor do I know their specific function, but intuitively... I feel that these patterns must be something special."

"Those are star patterns," Ning Shuang continued, picking up the thread. "Industry experts generally agree that the formation of star patterns is related to the techniques used by those ancient star artifact forgers, the materials they used, and even the external conditions and personal habits during forging."

"My personal view is that the star pattern is an extremely complex technological barrier. It is like a lock that prevents humanity from replicating star artifacts."

Lock!?

A glint of light flashed in Chen Lin's eyes, and he couldn't help but ask, "You mean, as long as we can decipher the secrets of the star patterns, we have a chance to replicate or even forge real star artifacts?"

"Your idea is too naive." Ning Shuang gave her evaluation without any politeness as soon as he finished speaking.

"Unraveling the secrets of the star patterns does offer hope of understanding the forging principles of star artifacts, but according to research data, at least half of the core materials used to forge star artifacts do not exist on Earth."

"On an optimistic note, if we master the principles of star weapon forging and find the perfect substitute material, we might be able to replicate a lower-level substitute that possesses some of the power of a star weapon. I'll name it 'Star Weapon Imitation'."

Chen Lin, who didn't have much social interaction to begin with, was somewhat taken aback by Ning Shuang's straightforward personality, which showed no tact whatsoever. However, his embarrassment was quickly dispelled by the "Star Imitator," and like a humble and eager-to-learn elementary school student, he asked again:

How much have you studied star patterns?

As soon as he finished speaking, the bracelet suddenly vibrated slightly, followed by a file transfer notification.

"These are some research notes on star patterns. After you've read them, we can discuss this topic in detail next time. That's all for today, bye." Ning Shuang ended the call without giving Chen Lin a chance to speak.

Chen Lin stared at the bracelet on his wrist in surprise, then smiled and shook his head. Without thinking much about it, he began to carefully browse through the research notes related to the star patterns.

……

Xiangcheng No.1 Middle School.

It took Chen Cong a long time to recover after emerging from the void, as the discomfort caused by the severe depletion of his mental energy gradually subsided.

He glanced at the time; it was 11:30 p.m.

"I wonder if Xiaolin and Ning Shuang have talked on the phone..." he thought to himself, and immediately sent a message to Chen Lin.

The message was sent out almost instantly, and Chen Lin called immediately.

"It's so late, you're still awake?" Chen Cong asked with a smile as the call connected.

Chen Lin replied softly, "Not yet, I'm still looking at the information Ning Shuang sent."

"Oh?" Hearing this, Chen Lin was secretly pleased: "So you called her?"

Chen Lin replied, "I did call him. We chatted for a while. He's very straightforward, but his words can be quite hurtful."

Because of his physical condition, he was a very sensitive person. Although he knew that Ning Shuang's words were just her personality and did not have any subjective emotions or feelings, he was still a little bothered by them.

Chen Lin chuckled and comforted her, "Nobody's perfect. In her brother's words, she's put all her emotional intelligence into her IQ. You should be more understanding."

Chen Lin picked up the conversation: "How can I be qualified to say whether I should take responsibility or not? But she is indeed very capable."

"Alright, bro, I'm not talking to you anymore. I need to hurry up and look at the information she gave me, so I don't get completely crushed by her next call."

Chen suppressed a laugh and gave a soft "Mmm," adding, "Take care of yourself too, and don't stay up too late."

He hung up the phone, breathed a sigh of relief, climbed into bed, and fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, Chen Cong woke up at six o'clock as usual.

After a quick wash, a meal, and some standing meditation, he went outside the school to buy some fruit and carried it to Zhang Kui's detached villa.

Besides asking for guidance on Bajiquan after achieving a minor level of proficiency, he also had another matter he wanted Zhang Kui to help with.

The backyard of the villa.

Zhang Kui's expression turned somewhat strange after hearing Chen Cong's words.

"Your homeroom teacher spoke to me privately the day before yesterday and said that the academic affairs office received a report that some students were openly providing paid private tutoring to other students at school, which seriously affected the school's atmosphere and discipline."

"Director Liu's idea is that each class should first conduct a self-examination and self-correction to understand the situation clearly, and then report to the Academic Affairs Office on Monday for processing."

Upon hearing this, Chen Cong's expression suddenly changed.

When he took money to instruct Ning Yuhang and the others, he was worried that this kind of thing would happen.

Xiangcheng No.1 Middle School has a clear rule that teachers and students are strictly prohibited from charging money for private tutoring for anyone during school hours. Anyone found doing so will be expelled immediately.

This is why Zhao Cheng later mentioned that other classmates wanted to join the private coaching group, and Zhao Cheng refused without hesitation.

With too many people involved, there's too much to talk about. The money he receives from the small group is enough for him to eat nutritious meals every day. There's no need to risk recruiting more people and increasing the risk of exposure.

However, the news eventually leaked out.

Moreover, judging from Zhang Kui's words, he and his homeroom teacher, Ma Xinhua, had basically confirmed that he was the one providing paid private tutoring.

"Ms. Zhang, how will the academic affairs office handle this? Will I be expelled?"

Calming down, Chen asked in a slow voice.

Now that things have come to this, he no longer intends to hide it from Zhang Kui.