Aslan had sent out an announcement to the Solar System with regards to the exchange placement. The entire Solar System was aroused with excitement.
It was said that when the Solar System Federation’s minister of education received the news, he almost stopped breathing. They had all thought that the application sent to Aslan this year would again be rejected. Who would have thought that they would approve it this time?
There were just too many who wanted to go to Aslan, but no matter who, and no matter how wealthy or powerful, Aslan would always reply with a smile: Sorry, your application has not been approved.
When the news about Aslan agreeing to have exchange students came, God knows how many prestigious families laid eyes on this opportunity, pulled strings, and even resorted to bribery to fight for a place for their own family.
“With regards to this, it must be handled properly and nicely. The conditions they have laid out is to select the most outstanding student in the Solar System. For that, we have to take things seriously right till the end. Nobody shall have any personal gains in this matter.”
The Chairman of the Solar System Federation formally declared at the federal meeting. He no longer used political terms. It was straight up a warning.
“This exchange is an opportunity for the entire Federation. It seems that Aslan only agreed for an exchange due to political reasons, but for the federation, this is our chance to show our new generation to the entire Milky Way. The sun is rising. We are not sending a bunch of spoiled kids to be mocked.”
All the underhanded dealings were squelched by the Chairman. The Solar System began its strict, open, fair, and just selection.
The whole matter had been viewed and dealt with as a political event that was pivotal to the resuscitation of the Solar System and was being closely supervised by every single citizen.
The entire Federation was excited. Everyone knew that the Solar System was regaining its place in the world. First economically, then academically…
The selections were highly intense. Many prodigies and geniuses had failed to make it. The quota that Aslan gave was only six. Being a genius was not enough. You had to be a genius that shone brightly before others.
Earth, Mars, Moon, Republic of Caragal, Europa…
Another wave of academic competition was raised between the key players of the Federation.
Finally, the list of names was revealed….
Earth: Wang Zheng, Ye Zisu.
Moon: Su Sa.
Mars: Dale.
Republic of Caragal: Gilbert.
Europa: Song Naina.
“Earth took two spots! That’s unfair!”
“Nothing unfair about that. Ye Zisu was appointed by Aslan. Even if not for this opportunity, Aslan would also privately send her an invitation to study abroad.”
The outstanding performance of the Wind God had caused a heated whirlwind in the Milky Way. As the designer of this mech, Ye Zisu had actually received an invitation from the Aslan Empire prior to this.
As for Wang Zheng’s appointment, it was definitely undebatable. His contribution to the Space Theory had received recognition from the topmost class of scientific giants in the Milky Way.
But Student Wang Zheng was clearly upset. Of course he wanted to go to Aslan… Aina must be waiting for him there.
But…
“Why didn’t I get the place under the Mech Department but rather under the Physics Department?”
Wang Zheng had been stated as a student from the Physics Department on the list, and not the Mech Department like he had hoped for.
The answer Xiao Fei gave him was: If you had used your identity as a mech student, you may not have been chosen. To put it more directly, Aslan had no eyes for the military standards of the Solar System Federation.
Wang Zheng crumbled. Physics Department….. so be it.
At the celebratory dinner in Ares College, President Gu Te’s eyes were teary. He patted Wang Zheng and Ye Zisu on the shoulder hard and did not say a thing. Anything said at this time would be superfluous.
The teaching staff was very agitated, too. Those who didn’t usually drink also opened bottles of beer and cheered.
The rise of Ares College was now unstoppable. In the latest rankings, they had come in first on Earth, and third in the entire Solar System. They were right behind the Moon’s Moonlight College and Mars’ Heavenly Star College.
What the students felt was a bright future ahead of them. In particular, the freshmen who had just been enrolled. Their seniors’ proactiveness had inspired them to fight for themselves. Be it learning or training, they all felt a lot more energetic.
Xiao Fei drank too. Her face was blushing red. She grabbed Wang Zheng and Ye Zisu and said, “The capital of Aslan is really pretty fun. When we get there, I’ll show you around…”
“Eh? Professor, you’re going to Aslan too?”
“You’re going, why can’t I?”
“It’s not that…”
“It’s not just me, Professor Marcus will be going too. We’re going to conduct experiments mainly. If we want to speed up the realization of our theories, we have to borrow Aslan’s technology… more accurately, their equipment. Stingy, miserly Aslan. They just refuse to export the equipment.”
Xiao Fei and company departed on a later date. Wang Zheng and Ye Zisu had already set off on their journey. Before they left, Yan Xiaosu had teared up like an abandoned pet dog. He finally let go when Wang Zheng promised to get Aina to introduce him to a new girlfriend.
This time around, when traveling to Aslan, they took the super long distance interstellar flight named Newcomen.
“Su Sa from Moonlight College. Nice to meet you.”
At the dinner party on Newcomen, everybody introduced themselves to one another. Su Sa from Moon was a graceful girl. Her fingers were long and tender, and her nails were elegantly painted. She was as arrogant as a princess. People from the Moon were born with a feeling of superiority.
The news had introduced Su Sa as the most talented economics prodigy the Solar System had seen in a few hundred years. She had published numerous academic papers on prominent financial magazines, and her article, “Integrating the Laws of Generalisation with Quantification of Minute Communities,” had been widely recognized.
“Wang Zheng, Ares College, Physics Department.” Wang Zheng chuckled.
“Ye Zisu, Ares College. Please treat me kindly.”
The rest did not care much for Earth. Short termed growth could not change a perception built over a long period of time.
“Dale, Mars. No need to be kind. Pretty lady, you wanna get some coffee later?” Dale from Mars was a professor in bioengineering. Just like Wang Zheng, he was a student and an honorary professor in college. He had a slightly narcissistic and wild personality, and was said to be very well liked by girls.
“Caragal, Gilbert.” Gilbert had a very soft voice. It was as if he was afraid he’d be spotted. However, his talent in computing and internet put him in the top thousand in the entire Milky Way and the whole of mankind.
Do not belittle this ranking. One thousand may sound like a lot, but on average, not every planet could have a genius like him.
“Song Naina, Europa. Nothing special about me. I only know how to study.” Unlike ordinary Europa people, Song Naina had soft and tender skin, and the tan in her skin reflected a different, unique grace. Her snow white teeth made her more affable, and she had a gentle look. Very pretty. Her full lips brought out a feeling of sexiness through her innocent look.
After a brief round of introductions, everybody soon felt more at ease. It was just that the things they talked about were a bit profound…
“Sorry, I’m not interested in coffee. I’m even less interested in you.” Moon’s Su Sa rejected Dale’s invitation sharply.
Dale smiled chivalrously, turned around, and extended the same invitation to Song Naina. A cup of coffee later? If you don’t like coffee, we can get tea.
Song Naina graciously accepted, but turned around to bring Gilbert along.
“Can I not go….”
“No, you can’t. I heard you’re very good at modifying electronic devices. Could you take a look at my Skylink later and see if there’s any room for improvement?”
“Oh… your Skylink belongs to the Manifestation 0908 series. You can make improvements, but just to check, what is your core application? That is, the Skylink application that you use most frequently and can’t do without.”
Su Sa had held on to Ye Zisu, and they started talking about topics unique to girls. How to draw their brows so they wouldn’t look uneven, how to apply blusher so that their faces would look more well defined…
Wang Zheng happily enjoyed his food. They had booked a luxury suite, and everything was the best. Even the food was prepared by the head chef. Other passengers did not have such good fortune.
Here, no one minded Wang Zheng’s identity or achievements. Everyone had their own achievements they were proud of.
IG Team Leader? It was not something of their level, and they could not feel how great an achievement it was.
Space-time theory? Wasn’t that something done by Xiao Fei?
Only Xiao Fei would flatter her own students like that. It can only be said that he was extremely, extremely in luck.
For Wang Zheng, this was a rare moment of peace and quiet. Back at Ares College, other than attending classes, he had to deliver classes on Xiao Fei’s behalf, and he could only work on his Primordial Regression Technique at night. In the battle against the pirates, he indeed saw his own weakness and his lack of technique in using force, his Ability X in particular. He only knew how to erupt at a basic level. It was really bad. Otherwise, Black Charcoal Head and Bonehead wouldn’t have had to exert themselves.
He took a deep breath and focused all his attention on the Primordial Regression Technique.
Unlike training on the ground, the Primordial Regression Technique felt lighter and more fluid in space. The cycle and change of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth felt a lot clearer. Attraction, inhibition, change. Wang Zheng had an illusion that he encompassed the universe, or the universe was taking him in. It was as if he was conversing with the universe.
After days of traveling, Dale was close to getting Song Naina. The two of them came and went together, seemingly close. But it was clear that Song Naina was not an ignorant woman, and she did not really let Dale take advantage of her. To Wang Zheng, Song Naina was just making use of Dale to pass time.
Dale, on the other hand, was doing his best to charm her. He came from a prestigious family on Mars, and even though it was not as old and powerful as the Lie family, its capabilities were not to be undermined.
It was the last day of their journey. When Newcomen leapt out of the subspace, Wang Zheng couldn’t bear to leave. Time had passed by very quickly.
“Dear passengers, we will arrive at Aslan’s Okimia Space Harbor in thirty minutes…”
“Dale, does your family really own property on Aslan?” Song Naina was very interested in that. Anything that had to do with Aslan felt classy and elegant, the same way potties used by emperors could also become antiques and artifacts.
“Heh. No need to doubt that. According to how Aslan treats their exchange students, we should automatically report to the Royal College when we arrive. I’ve already sent a message for our family’s servant in Aslan to come pick us up later. A born and bred Aslanian.”
No matter how advanced Aslan was, it was still a monarchy, and the rich and powerful were masters. Social class still existed, and the royalty and aristocrats belonged to the ruling class, while the citizens were the middle class. Below them were the commoners, and these so-called commoners were essentially servants. It’s just that the term “commoners” seemed more graceful.
Hiring an Aslanian commoner as a helper in Aslan was most certainly a classic move of arrogance.
“Really, an Aslanian?” Song Naina batted her eyelids, with a seductive look in her eyes. She was playing hard to get with Dale. She wouldn’t be cherished if she was too easy to get.
“Whether it’s real or not, you’ll know when you see it.”
Dale was very proud of himself. Anybody who had a huge property on Aslan, or could order Aslanians around, would feel proud of him or herself. It felt just like an ordinary man having the power to order heavenly guards around.