NOVPUBThe great powers from Shenzhou and their equivalents on Earth indeed had some mysterious connection. Wang Qi had not yet found the inevitable rule between the two. However, he had noticed some peculiar phenomena.
The great powers of Shenzhou not only had achievements similar to their Earth counterparts but also had similar personalities. Even more striking and exaggerated was that they also had similar social relationships.
This was why the name "Chen Youjia" particularly bothered Wang Qi.
What was the surname of Chen Jingyun's daoist partner again? Was it "You"? 𝔫𝖔𝖛𝖕𝔲𝔟.𝔠𝖔𝖒
Chen Feng's face stiffened momentarily. However, this disciple from the Yangshen Pavilion quickly controlled his emotions and said, "Well, about that question…"
Chen Youjia did not give Chen Feng any face, "Yes, my father is the one who kicked you out of the Wanfa Sect."
"You are Chen Jingyun's daughter?" Wang Qi's complexion immediately darkened a few degrees.
To be fair, Chen Youjia hadn't done anything to make Wang Qi dislike her. Although she acted in a weird and incomprehensible manner, many of the elites in the Immortal Dao were like this, and Wang Qi himself had similar tendencies; being less talkative and stoic might be somewhat unappealing, but Wang Qi, deeply influenced by the internet subculture of a previous life, could still find it charming.
But there was one thing.
Recalling this person was Chen Jingyun's daughter made me feel irked, damn it!
Chen Feng's head throbbed slightly, "Well… uh, Wang Qi, think about it this way. What Master Chen did wasn't quite proper, but it really has nothing to do with Youjia, right?"
Wang Qi and Chen Youjia continued to stare at each other, silent. Chen Feng looked between them and cautiously made a suggestion, "How about… we eat first?"
Chen Feng and Chen Youjia were indeed old friends. His suggestion coincided with Chen Youjia's current thoughts. As soon as she heard the mention of eating, Chen Youjia, who was already not keen on maintaining the awkward situation with Wang Qi, immediately agreed. According to the principle of the minority following the majority, with two out of three wanting to eat, Wang Qi shamefully complied.
The takeaway delivered by a Flying Sword was very lavish. The main dish was a small barrel of polished rice served in a wooden barrel with a lotus leaf underneath, each grain shining with a visible animal fat scent. The main course was similar to mapo tofu, with tender tofu mixed in a red spicy soup, filled with multiple spices like Sichuan peppercorns and zanthoxylum.
The meal was indeed good, no wonder I'm out of money…
Wang Qi thought maliciously, while unapologetically serving himself a large bowl.
Perhaps because of a familiar face, or maybe because the spicy tofu was truly hot, Chen Youjia ate much slower than when Wang Qi had first seen her, but it was only a shift from non-stop eating to resting five seconds after every minute—still impressively fast.
After finishing the meal, Chen Youjia packed up the utensils into the lunchbox and placed it back on the Flying Sword. She then injected a segment of Mana into the Flying Sword. The specially made Flying Sword trembled, then flew back in the direction it had come from.
Then, there was another awkward silence.
In an effort to break the awkwardness, Chen Feng slapped the table, "I mean, you two don't need to act like this right when you meet, do you?"
Wang Qi maintained a stiff expression, "I think we also have a problem."
Chen Youjia's expression, already indifferent, now revealed even less of her thoughts, "Likewise."
Chen Feng seemed to know what Chen Youjia was thinking and turned to Wang Qi, "Wang Qi, you're not a petty person, right…"
"I'm sorry, but I've always had a short fuse."
"Cough cough..." Chen Feng was choked by Wang Qi's words and it took him a while to catch his breath, "You shouldn't hold a grudge against Youjia too. What is this? It's like guilt by association, very primitive and highly irrational."
"'Transference' is a very common psychological phenomenon," Wang Qi said bluntly. "Besides, I don't hate her. I just don't have a good impression."
Chen Youjia rarely nodded: "I feel the same."
"I..." Chen Feng patted his own face, "Youjia, don't add to the chaos... and you don't have any reason to dislike him either."
"It's just lack of fondness," Chen Youjia explained.
Chen Feng forced a smile: "Don't look at Wang Qi as just being at the Qi Cultivation Stage, his mathematics is actually very strong..."
"That is exactly why I don't like him," Chen Youjia looked directly at Wang Qi. "I always believe that the 'Well-Ordering Theorem' is obviously correct..."
"On what basis? Intuition?" Wang Qi scoffed. "So, you're on the Mathematics Lord's side?"
"If not relying on mathematical intuition, what can you do?" Chen Youjia retorted, "Before you choose what mathematical tools to use to prove your point, shouldn't you first prove why you chose these 'tools'?"
Wang Qi sneered, "Leaving aside the choice of 'tools', what other 'tools' do you have? Not using proof by contradiction, refusing the law of excluded middle, refusing transfinite numbers, refusing the axiom of choice..."
If Chen Feng knew Earth's internet slang, he would definitely say, "Holy shit, this is a mess." He didn't expect it, didn't expect that the two partners he had finally recruited had such terrifying ideological differences.
An intellectual battle, relentless until death.
And what was even more frustrating was that they both came from the Wanfa Sect. Mathematics isn't like ordinary natural sciences, there can't be experiments, and you can't use the most direct phenomena to decide a winner directly. For mathematics, it is very natural for different mathematicians to have different understandings.
Chen Feng, feeling helpless, stopped the two of them arguing and then asked quietly, "Youjia... You clearly think this issue is 'irrelevant', right? Your path isn't even in this direction..."
"Sorry, I lost my composure," Chen Youjia still appeared indifferent, not showing any remorse, "To go further in the path of mathematics, one must understand these aspects. I indeed do not plan to invest much effort in studying this area, but that does not hinder my inclination towards the Mathematics Lord's philosophy." Then, she continued looking at Wang Qi, "You're in trouble now."
Consequently, the first gathering of Chen Feng's partners ended without joy.
Chen Feng escorted Wang Qi out of the yard, whispering to him, "Wang Qi, although Youjia is a bit strange, she isn't malicious."
Wang Qi turned his head away, "Damn it... Initially, I just couldn't help but think of her dad whenever I saw her, and it was because of her dad that I ended up here. Then, after being together for a while, I thought she was different from her dad, and so we could joyfully seek the Dao together—look at her now! 'You're in trouble'; what kind of person says that?"
Chen Feng sighed, "I really thought that your cultivation philosophies were similar... I mean, both Youjia's Magic Foundation and your theories are essentially the same."
"Explain that."
"Your paper, the one about the design of the Magic Foundation, it has at least two citations, one of me, one of Youjia." Chen Feng was vaguely annoyed, "I originally thought, we are all geniuses, and our cultivation paths are so similar, if we could support each other, it would be great. But now... sigh."
