The laboratory was plunged into a suffocating silence after Lam Minh's question. All eyes, from the scientists and assistants to Professor Lan Anh, were fixed on the 16-year-old student standing there with an innocent expression.
Doctor Quang, who had just been lecturing him moments ago, now stood frozen, a cold sweat breaking out on the back of his neck. The issue of the resistant energy frequency was a core secret of the "Inner Core" research project, known only to a few key personnel. How could an outsider like Lam Minh state it so accurately?
"You... you..." Doctor Quang stammered, at a loss for words. "How did you know about this?"
Lam Minh maintained his guileless smile and scratched his head. "Oh, I just took a wild guess. I saw two opposing waveforms on the chart, which looked like what I read in a physics book about matter and antimatter, so I just asked randomly. I must have been wrong, right?"
A wild guess? Asked randomly?
No one believed this reason, but no one could refute it either. His explanation sounded naive, yet it was strangely logical.
Professor Lan Anh was the first to recover. She looked at Lam Minh with completely different eyes, no longer the gaze of an adult looking at a child, but the curiosity and respect of a scientist for a genius intellect.
"You... you're right," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "That is precisely the problem we're facing. We still haven't found a way to neutralize that self-defense mechanism."
She looked at Lam Minh, her eyes full of hope, like a drowning person clutching at a straw. "Lam Minh, you... you 'guessed' the problem, so can you 'guess' the solution?"
All the scientists in the room held their breath, straining to hear.
Lam Minh put on a thoughtful expression, scratching his chin. He couldn't just say, "use a stream of qi with a similar property but a lower frequency to neutralize it." He needed a more "scientific" explanation.
After a moment of "thinking," he said hesitantly.
"Um... in my opinion... if it operates on the principle of antimatter, then perhaps we shouldn't try to 'attack' it with a stronger energy source. The harder we attack, the stronger it will resist. Instead, why don't we try to 'cajole' it?"
"'Cajole' it?" The whole lab was bewildered. What kind of scientific term was that?
"Yes, what I mean is," Lam Minh explained, "instead of using a high-voltage current, let's try using an extremely small energy stream, with the same frequency as the 'Inner Core's' energy, but with a much lower amplitude. It's like whispering to it instead of screaming in its face. Perhaps when it senses a 'friendly' and 'non-threatening' energy source, its defense mechanism won't be activated. Then, we can gradually increase the intensity."
Lam Minh's explanation, though using very "everyday" words, opened up an entirely new line of thought for the scientists. They were so used to using force to suppress things that they had forgotten that sometimes, gentleness is more effective.
"Same frequency... low amplitude..." Professor Lan Anh murmured, her eyes shining brightly. "That's right! Why didn't we think of that! It's like the principle of resonance in physics! Doctor Quang, quickly! Run the test immediately!"
Doctor Quang, now completely convinced, nodded his head vigorously and rushed with his colleagues to prepare for the new experiment. His initial arrogance had vanished, replaced by a sense of urgency and a little shame.
To Quyen stood beside them, looking at Lam Minh's back with a complex feeling in her heart. She knew he was a great fighter, but she never imagined his knowledge was so profound that he could even guide top scientists. This guy, just how many more secrets did he have? Was he even human? Or was he some kind of alien disguised as a student?
While everyone was busy, Lam Minh approached the corpse of the Foundation Establishment creature, observing it intently. He wasn't very interested in the "Inner Core," as he knew it was a cultivator's Golden Core. What interested him was its meridian system.
He raised his hand, intending to touch a main meridian on the corpse's arm.
"Wait, dear!" Professor Lan Anh quickly stopped him. "Don't touch it! Even though it's dead, there's still residual energy in its body, which is very dangerous."
"It's okay," Lam Minh smiled. "I'll just take a quick look."
He ignored the warning and gently placed his finger on it. A tiny stream of qi from his fingertip seeped inside, probing the structure of the creature's meridians.
Compared to the Qi Refining Realm, the meridians of a Foundation Establishment cultivator were wider, more durable, and much smoother. The flow of qi within them met almost no obstruction. This was the reason why the power of the Foundation Establishment Realm was so superior.
"So that's how it is," he murmured. "To break through to Foundation Establishment, it's not enough to just compress qi; you also have to use that compressed qi to 'carve' and 'expand' the meridians. A process that is both painful and dangerous."
The knowledge he had just gained was more valuable than a thousand immortality points. It gave him a clearer view of the cultivation path ahead.
Just then, a cheer erupted in the lab.
"Success! Professor, it's a success!" Doctor Quang shouted, his voice filled with joy. "We've neutralized the self-defense mechanism! The Inner Core's energy is stabilizing!"
The entire lab burst into celebration. They had solved a problem that had plagued them for a long time.
Professor Lan Anh turned to look at Lam Minh, her eyes filled with indescribable gratitude and appreciation. She walked over and clasped his hand tightly.
"Lam Minh, I... I don't know how to thank you. You have helped humanity's science take a great leap forward."
She looked at him, then made an offer no one expected.
"Lam Minh, would you like to become... a special consultant for our laboratory?"
To Quyen's jaw dropped. Doctor Quang and the other scientists looked at each other, and no one objected. After what had happened, they were completely convinced that this student possessed a transcendent intellect.
Lam Minh scratched his head again, feigning a difficult position.
"Well... being a consultant is too grand. But if you all run into any difficult problems from time to time, I can come and 'take a wild guess' to help out."
He was once again being unbelievably humble, but in everyone's eyes, his image had become immensely tall. He wasn't just a hero on the battlefield