I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times

Vol 2 Chapter 178: Cultivation Reform Begins with Thunder Techniques

No matter how hard little Zheng Shan rubbed, the electric potential generated by friction was minuscule—the spark it created was completely invisible to the average mortal.

But no one in this classroom was an ordinary mortal.

Cultivators’ senses were far beyond that of normal humans.

Not to mention, quite a few disciples had cultivated eye techniques like the Void-Seeking Spirit Eyes.

So how could they not see that Zheng Shan had no cultivation at all—

And that Zheng Fa hadn't used any spells either?

Yet that tiny spark of electricity felt like a thunderclap in a silent hall, stunning the thousands of people into complete silence.

Zheng Fa looked at his master, whose eyes were locked onto the silk and amber in Zheng Shan’s hands, his expression complex—confused, shaken, but most of all… thoughtful.

Zheng Fa gently patted her head and smiled, saying, “Don’t stare at her, everyone. She doesn’t understand any of this.”

His little sister was just an actor—following a script, that’s all.

The Sect Master shook his head. “If Martial Aunt Huang hadn’t said this little one has no Dao Body…”

He trailed off, falling silent for a while before asking, “So, tell me… what is thunder technique?”

The other disciples all looked to Zheng Fa too. What had just happened completely upended their understanding.

Now their Sect Master’s question voiced the exact thing they were all burning to know.

Zheng Fa thought for a moment and waved his finger twice in the air, conjuring a glowing screen before him.

“Master, I believe thunder technique—actually has two components: ‘thunder’ and ‘technique.’”

On the screen appeared the two characters: 雷 (thunder) and 法 (technique).

“Thunder… is a phenomenon.”

As he spoke, the 雷 character on the screen rippled, transforming into flashes of lightning.

“Technique… is a tool.”

Then the characters 雷 and 法 morphed into the words: phenomenon and tool.

When he said this, Senior Sister Zhang’s expression subtly changed—she seemed to gain some insight.

But the rest still looked confused, unsure of what he meant.

And yet, they couldn’t shake the feeling that what Zheng Fa was saying was… something entirely new to the Xuanyi Realm.

Zheng Fa paused.

He noticed his master’s face suddenly showing a hint of anxiety.

“Keep going!”

Martial Uncle Pang and Martial Aunt Huang both glanced at him—

Weren’t you just accusing your disciple of upending tradition?

Now you’re the most eager one in the room?

…

Seeing the confusion on their faces, Zheng Fa didn’t rush to explain but asked instead:

“Then, can anyone tell me—where do our current thunder techniques come from?”

Zhou Qianyuan quickly answered, “Passed down from the ancients!”

Zheng Fa nodded, “Good answer. Then how did the ancients create those thunder techniques?”

Everyone looked around at each other. The answer was on the tip of their tongues, but they didn’t quite know how to say it.

Finally, the Sect Master spoke: “They observed the ways of heaven and followed the actions of heaven.”

Zheng Fa clapped his hands. “The ways of heaven—that’s phenomenon. The actions of heaven—that’s method.”

When they heard this, everyone felt like they were starting to understand a little—but still, something was missing. They all fell into deep thought.

Zheng Fa smiled and tapped the screen again.

Between phenomenon and tool, a new word suddenly appeared—“knowledge.”

They weren’t fools. At once, everyone understood what Zheng Fa meant, and their faces lit up with realization.

The words on the screen changed again, finally settling into three statements:

“Observe phenomena, derive knowledge.”

“Use knowledge to create methods.”

“Knowledge is power.”

…

“Knowledge is power?” the Sect Master murmured, feeling that the phrase was incredibly simple—yet it seemed to touch upon the very essence of cultivation techniques.

But Martial Uncle Pang frowned and spoke up, “Nephew, if you say knowledge is power—

Then since knowledge depends on everyone’s individual observation and comprehension, doesn’t that mean knowledge differs from person to person?”

As he said this, he couldn’t help but glance at Senior Sister Zhang.

Seemed he was recalling past conflicts between their two lineages.

Zheng Fa nodded, “That’s exactly the flaw in our cultivation methods—

They lack experimentation.”

“Experimentation?”

“Not every realization qualifies as knowledge,” Zheng Fa continued after a moment’s thought. “A theory that hasn’t been tested is only a hypothesis.”

Senior Sister Zhang stared intently at Zheng Fa, as if she realized he’d just struck at the core of her own cultivation philosophy.

“The simplest form of verification is how the ancients created spells—

They observed the talisman diagrams in the air, used spiritual power to replicate their paths, and thereby triggered spell effects.”

“That… is the most basic form of experimentation.”

Hearing that, the audience began to understand more clearly.

“Then by that logic, didn’t the ancients already conduct experiments?”

Martial Uncle Pang furrowed his brow.

“That’s why they were able to create cultivation methods. But the problem is, experimentation in the past often stopped right there—

They couldn’t extract the more fundamental knowledge.”

With that, Zheng Fa sighed.

Having traveled between the modern world and the Xuanyi Realm, he naturally saw more clearly the difference between the two.

In his eyes, in terms of intelligence, capability, and cunning, Xuanyi cultivators were in no way inferior—

In fact, thanks to cultivation, they were far more destructive and resilient than modern humans.

But they rarely asked the most essential questions—

What is spiritual energy?

Why do cultivation techniques work?

What is the true essence of cultivation?

Yes, there was innovation. But that innovation seemed more like a series of fortunate accidents passed down through generations.

Simply put, there was no systematic method of research.

To Zheng Fa, the greatest difference between the two worlds was this:

The modern world excels at understanding the world—but finds it extremely difficult to change it.

Take extending human lifespan, for example… despite centuries of scientific advancement, humanity still hasn’t broken through its natural lifespan.

But for cultivators in the Xuanyi Realm, altering the world is almost too easy.

They don’t even need to ask those “pointless” questions—just follow the path of cultivation and gain power and longevity naturally.

That ease has stifled much of their drive to explore.

If not for the current decline of spiritual energy, most people probably wouldn’t even dream of creating new methods.

Zheng Fa’s greatest fortune was this:

He had received a modern education—he understood the value of methods to know the world.

…And on the other hand, he had the chance to cultivate Immortal techniques.

This class today—Zheng Fa didn’t just want to teach his thunder techniques. What he truly wanted was to use the topic of thunder techniques to introduce a methodology.

But judging by the expressions on the disciples’ faces… they probably still didn’t quite get it.

He’d expected this.

So Zheng Fa continued, “For example, earlier, when I asked what thunder technique is, your answers reflected what people in the Xuanyi Realm treat as truth—thunder techniques can only be wielded by cultivators, because only with spiritual power can one generate the force of heavenly thunder.”

“But just now, my little sister’s experiment… proved that knowledge wrong.”

At those words, the audience finally began to grasp his point.

“So, thunder techniques… have nothing to do with spiritual power?”

The Sect Master said slowly.

“Excellent, Master—you’ve just used an experiment to summarize a new piece of knowledge!” Zheng Fa praised.

The Sect Master grinned at first—

But then he suddenly realized something was off…

His smile froze.

And slowly, he wiped it from his face.

His eyes locked onto Zheng Fa like daggers.

“You rebellious brat!”