Seeking Truth with a Sword

The number of Disciples at the Academic Palace was neither too many nor too few. Hundreds of Doctors and Instructors were spread across various subjects. Some subjects had multiple teachers, but it still didn't feel like quite enough.

National history, Mathematics, and Yu Law classes, with fifty to sixty students each, were considered small. Agricultural Science classes, with over a hundred students, were considered large. Natural Science and Military Studies fell somewhere in between.

Natural Science here did not refer to moral theology but to Astronomy and geography.

Dr. Su Feng, who taught Natural Science, was a middle-aged Confucian Scholar with a demeanor similar to Pu Liuxuan. He was well-versed in Astronomy, acoustics, geology, biology, and engineering. Dr. Su Feng also held numerous inventions and patents in fields such as ceramics, metal forging, papermaking, textiles, grain processing, and mining equipment. Additionally, he served as the head of the Academic Palace Patent Office.

The high-precision grand clock in the Imperial Palace Ganlu Hall, which utilized a stationary escapement mechanism (including the escapement wheel, fork, and balance spring) and was accurate to the second, was his invention.

For this, the Haotian Temple had specially sent people to Chang'an to present Su Feng with a gift in gratitude for his contribution. This high-precision grand clock meant that the Haotian Bell ringings could be more regular and uniform across different regions, helping to guard against Aliens.

This course covered Astronomy, geography, biology, and physics. Naturally, it was much more interesting than national history. However, due to Su Feng's introverted nature and lack of eloquence, an Instructor usually lectured while he contributed from the sidelines.

Moreover, the black lacquered boards and white chalk already being trialed in the Academic Palace and some private schools in Chang'an were his invention.

White chalk, a deposit of Calcium carbonate, was easily erasable when written on a black-lacquered wooden board. It was essentially chalk and a blackboard.

Apart from Natural Science, there were also painting, music, Herbal Medicine, and Military Studies classes.

Dr. Du Qinyin, who taught painting, created lifelike paintings and had a free-spirited personality. After a few classes on basic painting techniques, she allowed the students to freely express themselves by painting still lifes and would review their work later.

If students were talented and interested in learning, this Doctor would continue to teach them. Otherwise, she let them paint for fun.

Even more free-spirited was the music Professor Zhong Qin. He would decide what to teach based on which instrument he carried when he stepped out, be it a pipa, a sanxian, a xiao flute, a drum, or a xun.

Once, he didn't bring any instrument and simply plucked a willow leaf from a tree to play.

As for Herbal Medicine—a subject Li Ang was very interested in—Herbal Medicine Doctor Sun Pu cultivated a large number of rare plants in greenhouses, including potential Mutated Objects.

These included, for example, a mulberry-like fruit that caused hallucinations and unconsciousness for several hours after consumption, colorful mushrooms resembling human fingers, and vine-like potted plants that could extend tendrils to devour passing rodents and birds.

Besides cultivating these bizarre plants, the Herbal Medicine course also taught how to concoct medicinal preparations from them.

The effects of these concoctions were not beyond Li Ang's imagination. At least for now, there didn't seem to be any medicines that could prepare someone for surgery in a short time.

Apart from Herbal Medicine, the other two subjects were Military Studies and Hundred Beasts.

The Military Studies Professor, Qi Ju, was a Body Refining Cultivator. He spent the first few lessons in the classroom explaining how to march and deploy troops, establish encampments, manage grain and grass, and assess military strength. In later lessons, the venue shifted to the Martial Arts Arena. There, students had to don medium armor, wield Blunt Blades, apply Basic Talismans to prevent injuries, and engage in simulated duels.

The matchups included one-on-one, many-on-many, and one-on-many duels. The locations varied: woodlands, plains, workshop streets, or inside buildings.

This practice aimed to let students personally experience the battlefield and establish a baseline understanding of combat power, using ordinary people as the reference point.

Military Studies also included basic military theory and practical drills, covering topics such as finding directions, assassination, infiltration, tracking, and counter-tracking.

According to Professor Qi Ju, the first and second academic years focused on the basics of Military Studies. Starting from the third year, students would delve into advanced military theory, studying the role of talismanic magic and other similar powers in warfare, and their impact on its nature.

Professor Qi Ju continued, "War is a Cultivator's war. A single Cultivator from the Candle Cloud Realm can release talismans, Magic, and Mind potent enough to distort the terrain of a small battlefield segment, thereby changing the balance of power between opposing forces.

"Even those below the Candle Cloud Realm, such as High-level Cloud Patrol Realm Cultivators, can change the course of a war by infiltrating deep into enemy lines alone to harass, strike, and disrupt supply lines.

"Ordinary people are too fragile compared to Cultivators. If a Cloud Patrol Realm Cultivator acts recklessly and without obstruction, they could assassinate all the officials in an entire state overnight, completely destroying its administrative system.

"Yet, war is not solely a Cultivator's conflict.

"Even the most powerful Cultivator, including those in the Candle Cloud Realm, can grow weary and tired. If pierced by blades or Crossbow Arrows, they too will die instantly—unless they are Martial Arts Grandmasters specializing in Body Refinement.

"A Candle Cloud Realm Cultivator can only be effectively engaged and stalled by two peers of the same realm or seven to ten High-level Cloud Patrol Realm Cultivators.

"Once pinned down, their opponents can employ tactics of repeated attacks and delays.

"They wait for heavily equipped cavalry wielding specialized weapons to arrive at the battle. These cavalry would then launch volleys of talisman-laden Crossbow Arrows and flying arrows at the Cultivator, or deploy Mutated Objects, to wear them down through attrition.

"This strategy can literally drag a Candle Cloud Realm Cultivator to their death. This is how the armies of various nations deal with such powerful individuals.

"For any country to survive, it must possess a sufficient number of top-tier Cultivators. Whether it's Yu Country, Nanzhou, West Jing, or the Turkic states, losing too many Candle Cloud Realm Cultivators in a short period means powerful Cultivators from other nations can penetrate deeply at will. They can casually destroy administrative and logistical support systems, leaving the defending nation with only one desperate, self-damaging recourse: the indiscriminate use of Mutated Objects.

"Furthermore, this principle implies that if a balance of power exists between the top-tier forces of opposing sides, war is unlikely to erupt—unless one side secretly masters a unique technological advantage and is willing to risk everything."

Most freshmen were captivated by the words of Military Studies Professor Qi Ju.

Every Candle Cloud Realm Cultivator was a crucial national asset, a cornerstone of the state.

Able to turn the tide of battle across thousands of miles single-handedly, a sword once commanding a million troops.

How powerful, how dashing, how... enviable.

Only a few students wore thoughtful expressions—they were reflecting on what they had learned in national history.

Merely by existing, a Candle Cloud Realm Cultivator could subdue foes without fighting.

Two hundred years ago, West Jing was defeated by Nanzhou in the Battle of Zhao River, resulting in the annihilation of four hundred thousand soldiers. Yet, Nanzhou did not succeed in eliminating or annexing West Jing.

A key reason was that the post-war balance of Candle Cloud Realm Cultivators between the two sides stood at ten to nine, still an equilibrium.

Currently, Yu Country holds advantages in overall national power and the number of Candle Cloud Realm Cultivators over surrounding nations. However, it has not aggressively waged war for three primary reasons:

First, West Jing, Nanzhou, and the Turkic states have an unspoken agreement to prevent their top-tier Cultivators from attacking one another, thereby collectively constraining Yu Country.

Second, the natural barriers of mountains and marshes in West Jing and Nanzhou make it difficult for large armies to cross. This also complicates the effective garrisoning, administration, and governance of any conquered territories.

Third, the Academic Palace's advancements in agricultural production technology have substantially mitigated the impact of floods, droughts, and locust plagues on agriculture, thereby alleviating food pressure within Yu Country.

Although land monopolization remains rampant in some areas, the number of displaced people has at least significantly decreased.

If any one of these three conditions were no longer met, war could potentially erupt.

Listening to Military Studies Professor Qi Ju speak eloquently at the front, Li Ang felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

Had his anti-malaria strategies, in some way, accelerated the pace of war?