Cultivation is Just That Scientific

Li Shiming was not content with leading an ordinary life. While his memories from his past life included some knowledge, like that of creating a generator, he didn’t possess the skills to execute much of it, especially in a way that would meet the needs of this world.

Without the help of a large server, his abilities were limited.

However, with the support of a large server, countless possibilities would open up for him.

With this thought in mind, he activated the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) to power up the large IBMz15 server, then booted the system.

The lights on the large server’s rack flickered on, and Li Shiming sensed the rapid consumption of power within the UPS. Just the startup alone caused the power levels to drop sharply, nearing the warning line.

He felt a surge of panic. Without enough power to support the system, a sudden power cut could damage the internal components of the large server.

His consciousness entered the large IBMz15 server, and in an instant, he gained complete awareness of its status.

The primary energy consumers were the CPU and memory self-checks. He used his consciousness to turn off individual CPUs, leaving just one running, and reduced the memory to 64 GB.

All other storage units, except for the Linux system and some minimal available space, were also shut down.

This immediately brought the power consumption of the large server to a level that the UPS could support.

The IBMz15 was far more complex than the UPS, and had he not been extremely familiar with the server, having maintained it for a year, he wouldn’t have been able to make such adjustments with his mind in such a short time.

Inside the IBMz15, his perspective was vastly different from merely observing the server rack.

He could clearly sense the internal structure of each component, as well as how it operated.

When his consciousness reached the display processor, a familiar interface appeared in front of him: it was the Linux graphical interface of the IBMz15.

He attempted to interact with the Linux interface and found he could control it normally.

His eyes became the server’s monitor, and his mind operated as the mouse and keyboard.

He didn’t open the stored files on the server, as accessing those would require activating more storage units, which would consume a lot of power. He didn’t need them yet, nor did he want to increase the power load.

Instead, he created a new document and tried typing.

To his surprise, he didn’t need an input method; words appeared one after another as his consciousness guided them.

He recalled a text he had memorized during school, “Back shadow” by Zhu Ziqing.

As he thought about typing it out, the full text of the essay appeared instantly on the document.

Though it wasn’t a long piece, it appeared in its entirety at once, an unbelievable speed at which it was written.

Next, he accessed the memories from this life and decided to have the entire “Selected Classics” (经义选) transcribed.

The “Selected Classics” was a collection of classical texts compiled by the Li family over generations, similar to the “Five-Year High School Exam, Three-Year Simulation” from his past life, serving as a study aid for exams.

Once again, it was instantaneous—hundreds of thousands of characters from the “Selected Classics” appeared on the document, nearly two million words in total.

He saved the document and named it “Selected Classics.”

He had a strong feeling that after copying the text, the content of the “Selected Classics” was deeply imprinted in his mind and would never be forgotten.

Li Shiming moved his thoughts slightly, and he could recall any part of the “Selected Classics” from the document.

He tested pulling his consciousness away from the IBMz15, and the vivid, almost engraved memory sensation disappeared, returning to his normal mental state.

He wasn’t disappointed. Although he still needed the IBMz15 to assist, as long as he stayed connected for long periods, it was as if he was continuously reading the “Selected Classics.”

It wasn’t just reading one part at a time; it was as if he was reading nearly two million characters all at once.

While this might not show immediate results, over time, even when disconnected from the IBMz15, the effects would likely stay.

“I’ll find time to load the remaining four million characters of the ‘Selected Classics’ onto the server!” Li Shiming said to himself with a smile, but then he quickly slapped his head.

He almost forgot an important task. He had activated the server’s storage array and started searching for information on the chicken mother beads (鸡母珠 – rosary peas).

Upon finding the data, an idea formed—could he use the deadly poison from the chicken mother beads to create a lethal weapon?

But he worried that grinding the pearl into powder might slow down the poison’s effectiveness.

He remembered reading reports in his past life about the medicinal value of chicken mother beads, which contained highly toxic “abrin toxin.”

The information on the server confirmed it, and he found methods to extract the “abrin toxin” from the beads.

However, extracting it required phosphoric acid, ammonium sulfate, glycerol, and a centrifuge.

He transferred the necessary information to memory and shut down the storage array, which consumed too much power.

Now, armed with all the relevant data, although he wasn’t a chemist, he felt confident that he could extract the chemicals he needed in this world.

He wrote down a list of materials with a brush, adding a few more items to the list.

Since he already had glycerol, to make ammonium sulfate, he would need to prepare sulfuric acid. Once he had that, he could make nitroglycerin.

After his kidnapping by Wang, the Chief of the Escort Agency, he understood just how dangerous this world was.

He needed something to defend himself. Not to harm others, but at the very least, to protect against external threats.

“Master, the herbs are here!” The young servant named Mo Yan called from outside the study.

“I need them in an hour!” Li Shiming handed over the list to Mo Yan, giving his instructions.

Mo Yan glanced at the list, and a wry smile appeared on his face.

“Master, I’ll run myself ragged to get everything in an hour. I’m not worried about myself, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to fulfill your order in time!” Mo Yan said with a flattering smile.

“Don’t you have a few others to help you run errands? Just tell them it’s my order. I’ll reward you once it’s done!” Li Shiming waved his hand.

“Master, I’ll get it done in an hour!” Mo Yan, seeing the promise of a reward, didn’t argue and hurried off.

Though the items on the list were not easy for others to purchase, things like certain minerals were hard to come by, they could be sourced through connections with the Nanling prefecture’s warehouse, though it might need a bit more work.