Chapter 367: One-Vote Veto

“Anyway, Fang Ze, thank you for the kind offer. I’m already grateful enough that you can help me with the visa. You just got back from the United States, so you should take this time to get some proper rest.”

…

Jiang Ran’s trip to Switzerland this time was to communicate with Professor Noah.

Whether by raising his hand to ask a question during the lecture or getting a chance to chat privately, Jiang Ran didn’t want anyone to notice anything unusual about him.

Safety first, caution first.

It was perfectly reasonable for someone like him to be interested in Professor Noah’s lecture. However, for someone with his negligible academic background to challenge the world-famous Professor Noah would be more than a little presumptuous.

Therefore, it was better to avoid any potential complications. He wasn’t planning on letting Fang Ze accompany him to Switzerland.

“Alright.”

Fang Ze didn’t press the matter. He took out his phone and started searching for the relevant information.

“Let me see what’s required to apply for a European visa, then. We can get everything ready together.”

…

For the next two days, Jiang Ran was busy with his visa application. By day, he ran back and forth between various administrative offices. By night, he continued to use the Positron Cannon to travel to the year 2045, exploring the Virtual Digital World with Cheng Mengxue.

He knew full well that his days with Cheng Mengxue were numbered.

Once he arrived in Switzerland and finished his exchange with Professor Noah at the Zurich Polytechnic Institute, the temporal Butterfly Effect would, in all likelihood, occur again. The Future World of 2045 would change along with it.

‘What kind of world will it become?’

Jiang Ran had no way of knowing, no way of predicting.

He only hoped it would be a future where people could truly live and work in peace, a world that had developed for the better.

That way, he could obtain more useful technology from the Future World and find more clues to repair the Positron Cannon or develop a Time Travel Machine… After all, saving Cheng Mengxue and returning to World Line 0 was his main mission. He had never forgotten this original goal.

…

「September 17, 2045. The Future Virtual World, Library.」

By now, Jiang Ran had mastered the art of cajoling Cheng Mengxue, using her like a personal wishing machine to roam freely throughout the Virtual World.

Since it was clear that Pompey hadn’t left behind any treasure, there was naturally no need to bring Sang Biao along on his adventures.

Every time he entered the Virtual World, Jiang Ran would ride his flying motorcycle straight to the Human Civilization Memorial Hall, then slide down the ventilation duct alone… along the way, he’d give the chubby guy who was always stuck in the middle a good kick to send him the rest of the way down.

Then, as always, he would take the roller coaster to find Cheng Mengxue and explore the future city with her.

Today, the two of them came to the library, ready to try the so-called “Knowledge Injection Technology.”

The girl who sold them juice earlier had said that learning things in school was easy for them. Whatever knowledge they wanted to learn could be directly “injected” into their brains by a machine. Not only would they remember it perfectly, but they would never forget it. That was why everyone was so erudite and could graduate from university by the age of twelve.

‘As a student from the Dragon Country who had endured nine years of compulsory education plus three grueling years of high school, how could he pass up such a shortcut to academic success?’

Jiang Ran had to give it a try. He wanted to see if he could truly become an “academic heavyweight” and go back to give Teacher Zhang Yang a shock! He would show him what it means for the tables to turn, and that you should never underestimate the young and powerless!

The library had a self-service knowledge-download area. All you had to do was select a category from the directory, sit in a chair, and put on a helmet that resembled a pair of headphones to have the knowledge fed into your brain.

“This is amazing!”

Cheng Mengxue exclaimed in awe.

“If we had this technology in the real world, we wouldn’t need to rely on rote memorization anymore. Everyone could get a perfect score on their exams!”

“Heh, but wouldn’t that just create a new kind of rat race?”

Jiang Ran chuckled.

“Everyone getting a perfect score is no different from everyone getting a zero. It’s like watching a movie in a theater. Whether everyone is standing or everyone is sitting, the viewing experience is the same… But if one person stands up, everyone else is forced to stand up too, or they won’t be able to see the screen.”

“That’s why a ‘cheating’ method of learning like this can only be allowed under a Utopian social system. After all, there’s no competition here, no pressure. Everyone can do what they love… so perfect scores and zero scores don’t really matter.”

“Let’s see… What knowledge should I download? Why isn’t there a ‘select all’ button?”

The greedy Jiang Ran wished he could stuff the entire library into his brain.

But unfortunately, a notice was posted in the most conspicuous spot on the device. It warned that due to the brain’s unique retrieval mechanism, it was not advisable to import too much knowledge at once. Doing so would inevitably lead to confused thoughts and muddled information.

“The brain needs time to digest knowledge and complete its logical understanding.”

A nearby staff member overheard Jiang Ran’s wild idea and came over to advise him.

“Even as a Digital Life, the brain’s thought processes are still consistent with its original form. Mr. Pompey once said that one of the human brain’s characteristics is that it is ‘slow to store, but fast to retrieve.'”

“So, young man, please don’t be in such a rush for results. You have to give your brain enough time to digest, understand, and build a logical framework.”

“These machines have limits. Each person is only allowed to download the knowledge from one subcategory per week.”

Jiang Ran scratched his head. ‘I see.’

“Thanks for the reminder. No wonder… even with knowledge injection technology, university graduation is still delayed until age twelve.”

“Heh, that’s not actually the reason.”

The library staff member explained to Jiang Ran with a smile:

“Those ‘brand-new lives’ born in the Digital World aren’t subject to this limitation. Their brains are far more developed than those of us normal humans. Even if they inject a massive amount of knowledge at once, they would never get it mixed up.”