Chapter 141: The Ancients [Chapter 17]

What the burly man had just said was enough to show just how heavy that stone truly was. Even so, the strong man accepted the challenge and set about trying to move the boulder with all his might.

He loosened up his joints, stepped forward to tackle the massive rock, rubbed his palms together briefly, and placed his hands against the surface. Then, dropping his center of gravity, he planted his horse stance firmly and powerfully, immediately revealing himself to be a man trained in martial arts. With a powerful push from both feet against the ground, he let out a roar.

"Hah..."

Accompanied by a deep shout, the heavily built man shoved with all his strength, but the stone didn't budge an inch.

The onlookers did not laugh, for this was only to be expected; how could a thousand-jin boulder be shaken so easily?

Yet this outcome did not dishearten the burly man; instead, it ignited his hidden potential. After a brief preparation, he managed to acquire a hemp rope thicker than Fang Nian's arm from somewhere. He looped the rope around his torso and, like a horse pulling a cart, dug his feet resolutely into the earth, using the force of his entire body to haul the huge rock.

"Hah..."

Another furious roar escaped him. At this point, it was clearly visible that the burly man was exerting every last ounce of strength within him, holding nothing back.

At last, the stone stirred. It merely shifted slightly before the rope snapped under the strain, yet the challenge still remained uncompleted.

Fang Nian smiled, then turned to the brawny man and said, "Is it my turn now?"

The man shook his head and apologized to the middle-aged man, saying, "I am terribly sorry, sir, I wasn't able to move it."

The man waved his hand dismissively, then pointed at Fang Nian, who had already set up his equipment.

Fang Nian had constructed a lever in front of the massive stone. With a single, fierce press on the opposite end of the lever, the boulder moved, rolling a considerable distance away.

The strong man was left dumbfounded by the sight, and the spectators were equally stunned by Fang Nian's action.

"Goodness me, I never knew it could be done like that. I've truly learned a new trick today."

"That is remarkable indeed. Who would have thought that a simple, unremarkable stick could pry open such a massive rock? It really opens one's eyes."

"Indeed. It seems we severely underestimated our friend here earlier."

...

Seeing Fang Nian's bizarre method, the middle-aged man grew immensely curious about how he had accomplished it and inquired, "Little brother, would you mind explaining to me how you managed that?"

Fang Nian was taken aback, not expecting the man before him to be so eager for knowledge. He nodded and explained, "Levers are categorized into force-multiplying levers, distance-multiplying levers, and equal-arm levers. The principle of the lever is also known as the 'condition for lever equilibrium.' For a lever to be in balance, the two torques acting upon it must be equal in magnitude."

"That is, effort multiplied by effort arm equals resistance multiplied by resistance arm, expressed algebraically as $F_1 cdot L_1 = F_2 cdot L_2$. Here, $F_1$ represents the effort, $L_1$ the effort arm, $F_2$ the resistance, and $L_2$ the resistance arm. As can be seen from the formula, for the lever to achieve balance, however many times longer the effort arm is compared to the resistance arm, the resistance will be that same multiple of the effort."

"The ancient Greek scientist Archimedes proposed the principle of the lever in his book *On the Equilibrium of Planes*, and that is how it is explained."

Fang Nian recited the text he had memorized from his school days to the middle-aged man, instantly feeling a surge of sophistication. As the saying goes: *Give me a lever long enough, and I shall move the earth itself*—let alone a paltry stone.

However, the middle-aged man understood not a single word of what Fang Nian had said and found himself utterly baffled, yet he still cupped his fists in salute and said, "My young friend is truly a person of great talent."

Having secured victory in the first round, Fang Nian turned his gaze back to the middle-aged man. "Sir, it is your turn."

...

Back in the real world, Xia Muyan watched Fang Nian showing off before the ancients, unable to keep from covering her mouth in a suppressed giggle. She was genuinely astounded by both his talent and his utter shamelessness.

"Showing off in front of people from antiquity, you really are something else."

Meanwhile, however, the veiled woman in the viewing gallery looked upon Fang Nian with an even deeper expression of disdain.

"A dog can never change its habit of eating feces."

At the same time, Bai Zhe had also emerged from the secret chamber. Although he was slightly slower than Fang Nian, he had still completed the first task within a quite reasonable timeframe.

Returning to the hunting grounds:

Having successfully triumphed over the brute-force contender, Fang Nian now had to face the intellect-based contender. He had to admit that he rather admired the character of the man before him. To accept failure without casting blame, and to face the future with humility—the man was undoubtedly blessed with immense talent.

Curious, Fang Nian asked, "Before our competition begins, might I ask your esteemed name?"

The middle-aged man was momentarily startled, but then politely cupped his fists toward Fang Nian and replied, "I am Chen Deng, styled Yuanlong."

Upon hearing this name, Fang Nian froze in astonishment. He truly was a monumental talent.

Chen Deng, courtesy name Yuanlong, was a native of Huaipu in Xiapi. He served as a general and official in the late Eastern Han dynasty, and was the son of Chen Gui, the Chancellor of Pei. Open-minded and calm by nature, he possessed extraordinary tactical wisdom. In his youth, he harbored ambitions of aiding the world and saving the people, reading extensively and acquiring vast erudition. At the age of twenty-five, he was nominated as a filial and incorrupt official, subsequently serving as the Magistrate of Dongyang. Despite his youth, he was capable of empathizing with the hardships of the common folk, comforting the weak and nurturing the orphaned, which earned him the deep respect of the populace.

Later, Tao Qian, the Governor of Xuzhou, promoted him to the post of Commandant of Agriculture, placing him in charge of agricultural production throughout the province. He personally inspected the soil conditions across Xuzhou, developed water conservation projects, and expanded farmland irrigation, allowing the agriculture of Xuzhou—which had repeatedly suffered devastation at the end of the Han dynasty—to experience a certain degree of recovery. The people lived in peace and contentment, and "rice harvests piled high in abundance."

At the beginning of the Jian'an era, he was sent as an envoy to Xu, where he presented Cao Cao with a strategy to annihilate Lü Bu, and was subsequently appointed as the Administrator of Guangling. For his meritorious service in eliminating Lü Bu, he was further granted the title of General Who Subdues Waves, and later transferred to serve as the Administrator of Dongcheng. He passed away at the age of thirty-nine. During the reign of Emperor Wen of Wei, in recognition of Chen Deng's achievements, his son Chen Su was appointed as a Gentleman of the Palace.

Fang Nian found it somewhat baffling that Chen Deng, who had spent his entire life serving as a government official, had ended up here making a living through street performances.

Yet, realization soon dawned upon him. Although this world possessed an Eastern Han dynasty and a Three Kingdoms period, due to certain reasons, the Three Kingdoms of this era seemed distinct from the Earth Fang Nian knew. Thus, some discrepancies were only natural, and it was entirely possible that Chen Deng's life trajectory had also shifted.

With this thought, Fang Nian turned his curious gaze toward the burly man, addressing them both. "I am Fang Nian, styled Xiaoxiong. I am very pleased to meet the two of you."

Hearing this, the burly man quickly reported his own name as well. "Brother, I am Zhou Cang, styled Yuanfu. Thank you for your guidance just now."

Hearing this name as well, Fang Nian felt a wave of delight mingled with a sense of unreality.

One had to remember that these figures had previously existed only in history or within video games. In the past, Fang Nian knew only of their combat prowess and life stories, or perhaps what weapons they wielded and what armor they wore.

Yet now, these very individuals had manifested right before his eyes, a prospect that proved immensely exhilarating. Although this was merely a segment within the hunting grounds, even so, Fang Nian found the experience profoundly thrilling. To realize that such unreal figures could appear directly before one was a truly joyful sensation. Fang Nian grew increasingly fond of this hunting arena; perhaps he too would one day take to the battlefield and slay the enemy.