What if I don't want to ascend to immortality?

Chapter 43 Warming the Room

The cacophony of cicadas tore off the last page of July from the calendar.

The sun no longer hesitated to unleash its heat, turning the school building, which was designed to train students' spiritual control without air conditioning, into a giant oven.

The density of sweat beads on a person's forehead in the classroom has become one of the standards for measuring ability.

Those who can remain refreshed under these conditions are considered among the better teachers.

In Meng Qingtong's mind, who was always meticulous and calculating, it was fine to use the precious spiritual power to protect her eyes and body, but wouldn't it be a waste to use it to resist the cold and heat?
There's no benefit to any training without overexertion; she's arguably the most qualified person in the entire Second Hospital to say this. Who would willingly endure such excruciating pain just to avoid the heat?

Not to mention that the heat-prevention method only makes the spirit master "not hot," and has absolutely nothing to do with "cooling down."

She wiped her sweat, looked down at her phone hidden in the drawer with only half of its screen showing, and sighed mournfully.

There are still no new available delegates.

If she has a request, she can skip class without feeling guilty or remorse.

Whoosh.

A crumpled piece of paper hit her forehead with perfect accuracy.

She hissed, quickly hid her phone, sat up straight, and stared wide-eyed at the podium, where Han Jie, who had just finished flicking the paper ball, was continuing his lesson in a holographic image.

Less than half a month after joining the hospital, Han Jie became the most popular male teacher in the Second Affiliated Hospital, far surpassing the second-place candidate in popularity.

Normally, the course "In-depth Research on Spirit Arrays" is considered very unpopular in the Second Academy, with small classrooms often not even half full.

Back then, Meng Qingtong could book the entire last row of these classes by herself. If there was nothing new to take notes on, she could simply lie down on all four chairs and sleep without any problem.

Now, they were forced to move to a larger, hotter classroom at the end of the corridor, with twenty folding chairs added to the space in front of the first row. Meng Qingtong sat down in a familiar corner and looked around. There were no empty seats, and even the people standing at the back door were those who hadn't enrolled in the course and were just there to freeload. Some managed to sneak in, while others arrived late and couldn't get in no matter how hard they tried.

When the idol group Lingmao Girls came to the Second Hospital for a fan meeting, the large classroom was never this crowded.

Because on Han Jie's fifth day at work, a chaotic situation arose where students had no seats available for their courses, the courses he teaches, which are all the courses Meng Qingtong has chosen, are now subject to a temporary seating priority rule.

Students who have already enrolled in the course are seated first, followed by teachers who come to audit the class, and finally, if there are any remaining seats, it's the turn of the group of outsiders who are just there to audit the class.

The group of students who audited classes even spontaneously divided themselves into different tiers, operating on unspoken rules. The top students who were eager to learn but were simply out of the loop and missed out on a spot were first, followed by those with connections who had acquaintances to help them reserve seats. After round after round, the girls who were purely infatuated with Han Jie's face and figure could only gather near the back door.

Admittedly, for a group of spiritual practitioners whose average appearance is outstanding, judging solely on looks is a rare occurrence.

But Teacher Han not only has a beautiful face and a great figure, but also a seemingly inexhaustible knowledge base.

For every course he taught, he could come up with something new that was better than the existing textbooks. Some were better by a few points, some by a lot, and some were simply rewritten by him, just like the study of spirit runes.

Now, in every class he teaches, there's always at least one vice dean among the faculty members who are auditing. The vice deans basically come whoever is available; the record is that all of them are present, which scared several young teachers who came to audit into making a hasty retreat halfway through.

Judging from this situation, Han Jie is sure to be bombarded with questions after class. Even though he usually finishes twenty minutes early to allow time, he still has to answer questions until the class runs overtime.

Normally it would be fine, but if I leave any later today, it will cause problems.

Meng Qingtong complained to herself, propped her chin on her hand, and continued to stare blankly at the podium.

It wasn't that she didn't want to study hard; it was just that Teacher Han was giving her so much extra help. She had already memorized the material being taught on stage the night before last, and could apply it fluently during her practice last night.

She is now quite certain that Han Jie went to the Second Hospital to become a teacher for at least one important reason: to reduce her psychological burden when learning these things.

—Look, I teach every student, I'm just teaching you, my partner, first, so don't feel like you owe me anything.

How could I not feel indebted to you, you big fool?

She pursed her lips, her bright eyes glistening with a faint sheen.

Fortunately, so far, Han Jie seems quite responsible and even enjoys himself when he stands on the podium, without appearing reluctant or bothered. Otherwise, Meng Qingtong would have begged him to just teach her at home, even if it meant contradicting herself.

She couldn't bear to see others suffer because of her, let alone Han Jie, her "partner" who held an increasingly special place in her heart.

Soon, Han Jie waved his hand, and the panoramic courseware dissipated into a shower of tiny particles of light, returning to the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. "So, that concludes today's tips on improving the spirit array. If you all practice diligently every day as I instructed, the power of the spirit array can be increased by nearly 20%. Don't slack off. Students with questions, please raise your hands now."

Most of the students below were familiar faces who had been following Teacher Han's classes for at least ten days. They all knew that it wasn't their turn to ask questions yet, and they all looked at the teachers who had taken the best seats in the first two rows.

The young man from the Spiritual Law Department was the first to raise his hand, and stood up seriously like the students to ask his question: "Teacher Han, my question is the same as last time. I am more concerned about whether this technique has universal applicability."

Han Jie nodded, swiped a few times on the screen next to the blackboard, and sent a document to the teacher preparation platform. "Compared to the last one, the adaptability is slightly worse. The spirit array works best, followed by spirit artifacts and spirit envoys. Spirit magic can be used, but the maximum improvement is only half a percent. Remember to ask me for the subsequent courseware each time."

The teacher nodded, sat down, and couldn't hide her surprise and delight.

In the spiritual magic system, where top-tier spiritual arts mostly pursue instantaneous and extreme damage, even a 50% improvement is a terrifying number.

If it weren't for the tangible benefits they could gain from Han Jie's classes, the teachers in the Spiritual Magic Department wouldn't have dared to audit them.

After all, this genius not only broke the record that Yagyu Yume could have held for a long time when he joined the company, but he was also rumored to be the culprit who rubbed Director Yagyu's face into the bottom of a pit, causing her to take annual leave until now.

Another teacher stood up and asked about the parts of the lesson plan he didn't quite understand when preparing the lesson.

As Meng Qingtong watched Han Jie patiently and meticulously answer his questions, her eyes unconsciously sparkled with admiration.

I never expected him to be so handsome when he's being so refined. I'll take advantage of this holiday to pick out a pair of non-prescription glasses for him; he'll look absolutely stunning.

Uh...wouldn't that attract even more infatuated girls to audit the class?
She pursed her lips, suddenly feeling a little conflicted.

She was silently condemning this selfish mentality when she heard Han Jie raise his voice on the podium and say, "Those of you who are going to ask questions today, please write them down first. I'll help you solve them later. I'm officially moving today, and I have to go to my new house for a housewarming party at noon, so I won't stay here any longer. get out of class dismissed."

Meng Qingtong was taken aback. She hadn't expected that he would not only not extend the class time, but would also leave ten minutes early, leaving early with a clear conscience in front of the vice dean below.

Seeing that Han Jie was actually packing his things, one of the bold girls from the group by the back door suddenly asked loudly, "Teacher Han, who did you invite to help you with the housewarming party? Can I go?"

"Yes, yes, I want to go too. Teacher Han, I'm a good cook, how about I cook for you?"

"Teacher Han, I know feng shui. May I go take a look?"

Han Jie frowned slightly, almost imperceptibly.

Fortunately, his partner was there, and he was already used to delegating these troublesome trivial matters to his partner. So, he naturally looked up and said, "I don't know who I asked. Qing Tong made the decisions; I'm too lazy to ask."

brush.

All eyes in the classroom were on Meng Qingtong.

Meng Qingtong felt that the beating Teacher Liu received back then was really unfair.

Back then, you, Senior Han, said you were afraid of rumors spreading around the college, which is why you were beaten so badly. But after you started working, you weren't afraid of rumors at all.

They entered the gate together, exited the gate together, and attended classes in the same classroom, one on the podium and the other in a seat. They even went to the research institute together, one giving instructions and the other just spacing out.

What else is there to pass on? Now even the braised pork vendor across the street from the Second Hospital knows to ask Han Jie which one he wants to eat first when he sees Meng Qingtong.

Besides... not all of them can be considered rumors.

Meng Qingtong let out a long sigh, picked up her backpack, stood up, looked around, and smiled sweetly, "I'm sorry, Teacher Han's new house is still being tidied and cleaned, so it's not suitable for entertaining outsiders. Today is just a family and friends gathering."

She tossed her backpack behind her and winked at Mi Xiaojia beside her, "Xiaojia, I'm going to buy groceries in a bit. Urge Dean Fang not to be too late."

"Oh, okay, I'll go find Dean Fang right now." Mi Xiaojia snapped out of her daze and quickly packed her schoolbag.

"Let's go, Teacher Han." She walked briskly behind Han Jie toward the classroom door. When they were almost at the door, she turned her head and gave the girls behind her, who had different expressions, a cold glance with undisguised hostility.

While she was busy painting the moat, Meng Qingtong didn't expect Han Jie to suddenly stop in front of her. She let out a soft cry and bumped into his back hard. Her nose felt like it had been pressed with a sour date, and she almost burst into tears.

"What's wrong..." She casually patted Han Jie's arm, as was her habit. Anyway, according to their tacit understanding, once they were out of the classroom, they didn't need to care about their teacher-student relationship.

Han Jie silently stepped aside and tilted his head slightly in front of him.

A pale-faced boy stood there. When he saw Meng Qingtong, a blush of excitement appeared on his cheeks. He stared at Han Jie and repeated what he had just said: "Teacher Han, I would like to talk to you privately."

Han Jie said calmly, "I have no interest in chatting privately with strangers."

Meng Qingtong looked at the boy in surprise, "Tao Yang, what are you trying to do? If you have something to say, talk to me. Don't get involved with Han Jie."

Tao Yang's breathing quickened. "Meng Qingtong, do you know what you're doing?"

She pouted and said impatiently, "What's it to you?"

She's been helping with the move these past two days, and then she got her period, so she's already in a much more irritable mood than usual. Even Han Jie, who's tutoring her at night, knows to try and soothe her. Why is she acting like this now? Is she trying to get herself killed?
"Let's go, let's go, Brother Han, don't waste time here. There's a whole table of food waiting for me to cook." She deliberately used a coquettish way of addressing him and gently pushed Han Jie.

Han Jie didn't move.

He looked at Tao Yang and said slowly, "Qing Tong is not only my partner but also my student. She also has something that I care about very much. You can't even imagine how important she is. So, whatever your thoughts or intentions are toward her, you'd better think twice before you try to get past me."

When he used the word "you all," Meng Qingtong realized that there were several boys watching from a distance at the other end of the corridor. A quick glance revealed that they were all boys who had expressed their affection for her directly or indirectly in the past.

"Many of the rumors are true." Han Jie looked at the anger in Tao Yang's eyes and said, "For example, the reason why Teacher Liu took annual leave and did not come to school was not wrong."

After that, he turned and left.

Meng Qingtong shook her head, worried about what would happen after Liu Shengmeng returned from his leave.

Tao Yang watched as Meng Qingtong walked naturally to Han Jie's side and walked alongside him, and couldn't help but shout, "Han Jie! Don't you think it's shameless of you, a teacher, to pursue a girl!"

Han Jie didn't bother to answer and went straight downstairs.

A boy who knew Tao Yang came over and punched him angrily, "Are you stupid? The whole college knows that Teacher Han gave up a high-paying job at the Third Academy to come here for Meng Qingtong. Those infatuated girls think that having a lot of breasts can make them smash through walls. Why are you going crazy? Do you really think that writing a love letter is like stamping it?"

Tao Yang didn't speak, but mechanically gripped the railing, watching Meng Qingtong's receding figure below, clenching his teeth tightly...

Previously, Meng Qingtong preferred the academy area to the small rented apartment.

But recently, the attention focused on her has made even someone as strong-willed as her start to feel uncomfortable.

She could only look at Han Jie beside her and comfort herself, saying that this is what they call "you can't have everything."

Moreover, compared to what she lost, she gained far more, so much so that it made her somewhat apprehensive.

If it weren't for Han Jie, and her unwavering commitment to her past vow, she doesn't know how long she would have had to work so hard to afford this big house.

It's a three-bedroom, two-living room, two-bathroom apartment on the third floor, right across from the Second Hospital. It's a three-minute walk to the classroom where you can wait for the teacher to take attendance. It's a fully furnished new apartment with appliances, which is like moving in with just your bags for a cultivator like Han Jie who doesn't have strong material needs.

Even the slightly picky Meng Qingtong only brought over the unused talismans, materials, and her childhood treasure—a large teddy bear.

A couple of days ago, Han Jie decorated the spacious and bright kitchen. He spent all the money to buy all the kitchen utensils that might be needed. After that, all that was left was to slowly add the details.

Standing in the kitchen she had personally decorated, looking around, Meng Qingtong still felt like she was in a dream, as if she might accidentally open her eyes and wake up.

Fang Min, Mi Xiaojia, Qiao Mu, Lin Sisi, and Xiao Tu have all arrived.

However, Han Jie, the owner listed on the property certificate, showed no awareness of entertaining guests and remained standing at the kitchen doorway, his usual auspicious spot, watching Meng Qingtong busy herself.

As she watched the food slowly changing color in the oven, wondering if she should try adding a small spirit array to it to see if it could improve the taste, Han Jie suddenly asked, "How much do you know about that Tao Yang?"

Huh? Is Senior Han jealous?
She chuckled inwardly, but refrained from turning her head to avoid revealing her true feelings. She feigned composure and said, "I've always said I'm quite popular in the college. How could there not be a few guys who have feelings for me? I just didn't expect him to be so childish as to come directly to you. He's clearly in his twenties, but his mental age is worrying."

Han Jie said in a deep voice, "Has he ever acted so rashly and childishly before?"

Seeing that his expression was strange, Meng Qingtong began to take it seriously.

After shedding the previous irritating veil, she finally noticed that something was wrong.

Tao Yang and she used to attend the same general education classes. Her strongest impression of that boy was that he was very shy and quiet, and even his confession was a very subtle love letter.

After a gossipy woman leaked the story about writing love letters, he never spoke to Meng Qingtong again.

Thinking about it carefully, what happened today is indeed very unusual.

She frowned and couldn't help but say, "Could it be some evil spirit coming to the Second Hospital to cause trouble? Isn't this like an old man who's had enough of life?"

(End of this chapter)