Genius Playground

There had to be other [secrets].

But the man was true to his nature—impossibly tight-lipped. Prying his mouth open was far too difficult.

Whenever he asked a core question,

the man would just throw the same sentence back at him:

”If we really manage to break out of prison, then I’ll tell you.”

Before going to sleep last night, Jiang Ran had figured it out.

This was the ace the Assassin kept hidden up his sleeve.

’Since he’s already accepted that I’m a Time Traveler, he must be expecting me to lead the escape, but he’s also on guard against me trying to get information out of him.’

’So, until he achieves his true goal—a successful prison break—he’ll never be stupid enough to just tell me the final answer.’

It was the Assassin’s ace, and also his bargaining chip.

However, Teacher Zhang Yang’s denial didn’t really prove anything.

His denial was just that of a researcher being cautious; it didn’t represent the truth.

And it wasn’t hard to see that Teacher Zhang Yang had never even heard the rumors about the Time Travel Machine.

When it came to unorthodox matters,

Jiang Ran definitely trusted the mysterious Assassin more than the Bookworm, Teacher Zhang Yang.

At least...

The Assassin was the real deal. Not only was he agile and highly respected, but he had also identified him as a Time Traveler right away. This meant he was definitely no ordinary person and must have come into contact with things related to Time Travel through some channel.

”Then let me ask it a different way.”

Jiang Ran adjusted his line of thinking.

”Teacher Zhang, is there a recognized genius at East Sea University?”

”The kind who isn’t just exceptionally intelligent, but a super genius whose thinking and abilities are far beyond those of an ordinary person?”

”Someone so brilliant that... if people found out one day that he’d secretly invented a Time Travel Machine, no one would be surprised and would just think, ’Of course he did’?”

”[There actually is someone like that.]”

Unexpectedly, Teacher Zhang Yang answered without any hesitation:

”If you’re talking about a recognized super genius, then in all the years of East Sea University, there’s only one person who fits that title. In fact, he more than fits it.”

”This person is very famous. You’ve definitely heard his name. Almost everyone in the Dragon Country knows his name, though many might not know he was a student at East Sea University.”

”Who?” Jiang Ran urged impatiently.

As he spoke of this, a trace of pride appeared on Zhang Yang’s old, wrinkled face.

”I even taught him. He once took my general education course. A truly brilliant kid. His name is—”

”[Lu Yu]”

...

Upon hearing the name, the Assassin remained calm, showing no reaction. But Sang Biao and the hothead had looks of sudden realization.

”Oh, it’s him.” ”Yeah, he’s a genius for sure.”

Jiang Ran blinked, looking at the two brutes, who didn’t seem to have much going on upstairs.

’Even Sang Biao has heard of this Lu Yu person?’

’It seemed the genius’s fame was truly legendary.’

”What did he do? What are his achievements?”

Jiang Ran pressed on.

”To become a household name and a recognized genius, he must have some incredible achievements, right?”

”Of course.”

Zhang Yang chuckled.

”Lu Yu is, without a doubt, a super genius in mathematics. The only reason he might not be compared to Gauss is simply that he hasn’t died yet.”

”Of course, you’ll probably think I’m saying this with a teacher’s bias, but in my eyes, Lu Yu really is just that outstanding.”

”What did he actually do?!” Jiang Ran was getting impatient.

’Teachers are always like this when they start praising their students.’

”It’s incredible that you don’t even know about Lu Yu.”

Zhang Yang shook his head and said seriously,

”While he was still in university, Lu Yu plucked the most dazzling jewel from the crown of mathematics!”

Hearing this, Jiang Ran grew solemn and drew in a sharp breath.

’The most dazzling jewel from the crown of mathematics?’

’The only thing that could be elevated to such a status seemed to be... ’

”Don’t tell me...”

”That’s right.”

Zhang Yang huffed, his voice firm and decisive.

”At the young age of 20, Lu Yu solved the problem that had plagued the world of mathematics for over three centuries—”

”Goldbach’s Conjecture!”

BOOM!

The moment his suspicion was confirmed, a bolt of lightning seemed to strike Jiang Ran’s mind, nearly blasting him back to 2025.

’Goldbach’s Conjecture?’

’This ultimate problem that had stumped countless mathematical geniuses throughout history was actually solved by a 20-year-old university student?’

’Even in a novel, a plot like this would be pure fantasy!’

If he really did solve Goldbach’s Conjecture, then what Teacher Zhang Yang just said about him being comparable to the Math Prince, Gauss, was no exaggeration at all.

After all, Gauss was hailed as the highest mountain and longest river in the world of mathematics. Yet even he, the Math Prince, had exhausted his entire life only to admit defeat in the face of Goldbach’s Conjecture.

Likewise, other famous mathematicians like Euler, Riemann, and Dirichlet had also challenged Goldbach’s Conjecture, but at most, they could only prove a portion of its ”weak conjecture,” unable to touch the core conjecture itself.

”Unbelievable.”

Jiang Ran clicked his tongue.

To someone who doesn’t understand mathematics, solving Goldbach’s Conjecture might seem like just answering a very difficult math problem, not something of great significance. That’s why many amateur scientists make it their first target.

But once you’ve entered the world of mathematics and reached the pantheon of higher mathematics... you naturally understand what a god-tier existence Goldbach’s Conjecture truly is.

Age 20. Lu Yu. A student at East Sea University. Solved Goldbach’s Conjecture.

Unbelievable.

Truly unbelievable.