But before they could take any action.
Lin Beichen’s voice rang out.
"No need, no need, I’m fine."
At this moment, all the various pains from tempering his heart had already faded. Apart from his skin being flushed red and taking a while to return to normal, Lin Beichen looked as if nothing had happened.
Feeling the puzzled and astonished glances of the surrounding students, Lin Beichen knew that there’s no way he could explain it clearly to them.
It would be a waste of breath.
It was better to prove he was fine by his actions.
He smiled and nodded at the students around him, expressing his gratitude for their kindness, and then he left the gymnasium directly.
Leaving behind a crowd of people staring blankly as he gradually disappeared from their sight.
"Is he really okay?"
The students recalled the way Lin Beichen looked when he left, his posture straight, his steps steady and strong, he didn’t look like he was in trouble at all.
But what was that state he was just in?
They didn’t understand.
At the same time, the forum of Imperial Capital University was filled with posts about the two mysterious lightning strikes on a sunny day.
[Another sunny day thunderbolt, the last time I saw such a strange scene was at the beginning of the school year when a lightning bolt knocked out power in the teaching building!]
[What’s going on, is our Imperial Capital University so prone to getting struck by lightning? Even on a sunny day, it doesn’t spare our school, and this time there were two lightning bolts, striking fiercely!]
[I was just in class, and suddenly there were two crashes of thunder, you tell me if that’s scary or not!]
[...]
Thunder on a clear day is not a common phenomenon.
And yet, in the span of over a month, it happened twice, and the second time there were two lightning strikes in quick succession, which was truly bizarre.
However, these posts just expressed confusion and surprise, not making much of an impact.
The excitement died down after a while.
Just as this incident was about to be old news on the forum,
The students who had gone to the gym posted a few updates that brought the topic back to the forefront.
[This time, the two lightning strikes hit the front of Lin Beichen’s gym, turning the steps of the gym into rubble.]
[Live photo of the gym entrance.JPG!]
[...]
"Oh my God, such a huge charred area, the lightning really struck the entrance of the gym!"
"The power of this lightning is really something, it turned the steps into this, tsk tsk tsk."
"..."
Students continued building on these newly posted threads.
Quickly, one comment grabbed everyone’s attention.
"Didn’t Lin Beichen say in an interview that he was researching Thunder Skills and cultivating immortality? Could it be that he summoned the lightning? LMAO.JPG"
It was evident that this comment was made in jest, and the replies were also filled with humor, poking fun at the idea.
"You know what, I actually think your idea is kinda interesting."
"Bro, I’m with you on that one."
"..."
No one took it seriously.
However, mentioning Lin Beichen reminded those students who were at the gym about his earlier state, and they started sharing.
"Lin Beichen was in the gym at that time, his body was flushed red and drenched, looking quite terrifying."
"I had just arrived outside the gym and heard screams. When I went in, I saw Lin Beichen collapsed on the ground, shivering."
"To add to what the person above said, that’s indeed what happened, but after we gathered around, Lin Beichen walked away as if nothing had happened."
"..."
They shared this information.
Everyone started to speculate various theories.
Some said Lin Beichen was using the opportunity of the lightning strike to create some hype for himself.
Others suspected that the lightning strikes might really have something to do with Lin Beichen. After all, two strikes hitting the exact same spot on a sunny day was too much of a coincidence, but no one could say for sure what the connection was.
Yet no one seriously considered the cultivation theory.
The idea of cultivating and the unexplained double lightning strikes in the same place...
If you had to choose between the two possibilities,
Anyone would undoubtedly choose the latter.
In ordinary people’s minds, cultivation was just too far-fetched!
...
Evening, dormitory 207.
The three roommates of Han Yuan returned from their classes to find Lin Beichen sitting at his desk, intently looking at the computer.
Han Yuan teased, "Well, well, if it isn’t Lin Beichen, our rare guest."
"..."
Lin Beichen turned his head and shot him a glance, said nothing, and then went back to looking at his computer. He had long become immune to Han Yuan’s sarcastic remarks.
Seeing that Lin Beichen ignored him, Han Yuan couldn’t help but roll his eyes: "You disappear without a word, and when you come back, you don’t say anything to anyone."
As he spoke, he waved his phone at Lin Beichen.
The screen displayed the Imperial Capital University’s forum.
"If it weren’t for the forum, we wouldn’t even know you had come back."
At this, Han Yuan swiftly changed his tone and asked quickly, "Where have you been these past few days? And what’s this about the gym and two lightning strikes? Did you actually see them hit the gym entrance? Does it really have something to do with you?"
He was like a classic gossip monger!
Initially, Lin Beichen felt a bit guilty towards his roommates upon hearing Han Yuan’s mention of them, but after this barrage of questions, he felt no guilt and simply ignored them.
Sure enough!
Wu You and Liang Dong weren’t particularly interested in the issues Han Yuan pointed out about Lin Beichen, nor were they curious about those questions.
Liang Dong was more concerned and asked, "Beichen, is your body okay?"
Lin Beichen smiled, "I’m fine."
"That’s good to hear."
Liang Dong sat down and started organizing his things.
Seeing himself being ignored, Han Yuan was furious, and without any regard for courtesy, he went up behind Lin Beichen and gave him a playful arm lock around the neck.
"You little rascal, daring to ignore me, I’ll... Haha haha ha!"
Before Han Yuan could finish, Lin Beichen countered by tickling his sides, breaking free from the hold.
Knowing his weak spot had been discovered, Han Yuan dared not act up again.
Sitting at his own desk, Wu You was drawn to their playful banter. When he turned around, he spotted the screen of Lin Beichen’s computer.
The screen showed all the active volcanoes in Great Xia.
And...
All the tabs at the top of the page were also related to volcanoes.
Wu You asked quizzically, "Hey, Beichen, why are you searching for volcanoes? Are you planning to go to a volcano?"
"Yes, that’s right."
Lin Beichen had been thinking on his way back from the gym about where the Fire Element in heaven and earth would be more abundant. While tempering his heart in the gym, he realized that the Fire Element in the air was too sparse.
For now, when he had just started cultivating the Fire Element, it might barely suffice.
But as cultivation deepened and the heart tempering became more intense,
The sparse Fire Element in the air wouldn’t cut it.
After thinking it through, he recalled the time he felt the Fire Element during the base explosion. He speculated that near volcanoes, especially around the caldera, the Fire Element should be exceptionally abundant.
Of course, he wasn’t sure if his speculation was correct, but it seemed likely.
He planned to go near a volcano to feel and confirm it.
Han Yuan looked at Lin Beichen with a mixture of envy and resentment, "Watching you run off to have fun every day, especially with the counselor’s permission, do you know how much it pains your brothers here?"
"I don’t know."
"How about you ask the counselor to let me tag along next time, and I’ll explain it to you on the way?"
"No need."
Lin Beichen flatly rejected Han Yuan.
Just then, Liang Dong thought of something and smiled, "Beichen, if you want to go to a volcano... I have some good news for you."
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