The next day marked the third day after the Red Glow, and the temperature had already dropped by fifteen or sixteen degrees. It was just after the Mid-Autumn Festival, yet it already felt like winter had arrived.
Students on campus had already started wearing their thick winter clothes early.
Fatty Kou, bundled up like a ball, complained, "What kind of crazy weather is this? Did autumn and winter switch places? We just finished Mid-Autumn, and it skipped straight past the falling leaves to the bone-chilling winds!"
Li Fan looked at Fatty Kou's mismatched outfit—a proper little suit with a vest and white shirt underneath, and a down jacket on top. The ensemble exuded a certain flamboyance.
"The bone-chilling wind is good; it might just extinguish that restless fire of yours."
"Hey, watch your mouth. I've been pure for three years, and finally got a date with my goddess. Don't mess it up for me later."
"Sigh, there's no saving you. Simps don't deserve sympathy."
"By the way, what have you been busy with these past few days? You keep missing calls."
"Not much, but Fatty, do you trust me?"
"Just say it, no need for a preamble."
Li Fan was used to communicating with Fatty Kou in this straightforward manner, so he said seriously, "After today, go back and prepare water and supplies. Stay home quietly during the National Day holiday, don't go anywhere. Wait for the school's notice before coming back."
Fatty Kou frowned at Li Fan's serious demeanor and said, "Your words sound familiar, like a scene from an apocalyptic novel on Tomato Listen, where characters warn their friends and family."
"Dead Fatty, I'm serious. Don't take it lightly."
"Alright, alright, I'll listen to you. I'll go home and stay in today."
Fatty Kou replied impatiently, looking around, and suddenly his eyes lit up. He pointed excitedly at two girls walking out of the dormitory building, "Look, my goddess is here. I'm such a good buddy, right? Knowing my goddess brought her department's beauty along, I had to bring you. If you can win her over, I won't feel guilty about leaving you single."
Li Fan followed Fatty Kou's gaze and saw the two girls. His expression froze for a moment, then he collected himself and asked, "Fatty Kou, which one is your goddess?"
Fatty Kou, slightly embarrassed, said, "The one in the off-white coat and yoga pants. Pretty, right? And her figure is amazing."
Li Fan glanced at Fatty Kou with pity. The girl he pointed to, Liu Ruyan, was the same one he saw clinging to Xie Debiao's arm two nights ago.
But before he could warn Fatty, the two girls had already approached.
Liu Ruyan wasn't surprised to see Li Fan; instead, she smiled and nodded at him, as if she wasn't the person from two nights ago.
Fatty Kou eagerly took out two packaged teas with milk from his coat and offered them, saying, "Ruyan, you must be freezing. Warm your hands up quickly. I bought these hot and kept them warm in my coat."
Liu Ruyan accepted the tea with milk, casually thanked him, then looked at Li Fan and said, "So this is the Li Fan you told me about. Very handsome. Hi, I'm Liu Ruyan, and this is my bestie, Wu Shanshan."
Fatty Kou put his arm around Li Fan's shoulder and said, "Yes, this is my good buddy. Not only is he smart and handsome, but he also has an eight-pack."
While promoting Li Fan, Fatty Kou was looking at the girl beside Liu Ruyan. This girl was very quiet, with a gentle smile on her face.
She had willow-leaf eyebrows, an oval face, skin as fair as jade, a high ponytail, a white down jacket paired with tight jeans, and white sneakers.
She gave off the impression of a well-behaved girl. If Liu Ruyan was an eight, she would be a nine.
Wu Shanshan curiously looked at Li Fan and greeted him with a smile, "Hello, top student."
"Hello."
Li Fan just glanced at her briefly, responded with a single word, and then turned his attention back to Fatty Kou.
"Alright, stop boasting. Let's go, I have things to do this afternoon."
With that, Li Fan put his arm around Fatty Kou's shoulder and walked ahead, with the two girls following behind.
Fatty Kou whispered unhappily, "What's wrong with you? Why so cold? You're not, you know, bent, are you?"
Li Fan smiled faintly and asked, "Do you really like that Liu Ruyan?"
"Yeah, I fell for her at first sight during the freshman welcome party. This is my first date with her, don't mess it up for me, be enthusiastic."
"Your first date with her?"
"Yeah, you don't know, she's a good girl. Many guys have pursued her, but she hasn't agreed to any of them."
Li Fan instantly understood. After thinking for a moment, he realized what was going on, but he didn't expose Liu Ruyan's little scheme.
This kind of thing was trivial compared to the impending Doomsday. He couldn't be bothered to waste energy on it.
The Astronomy Club was founded by the Astronomy Department at Xigong University. Although it was a school club, it had official backing.
Several renowned astronomy professors in the country were among its managers. They held gatherings for astronomy enthusiasts periodically, during which various extraterrestrial meteorites were exhibited.
When the four of them arrived at the planetarium, there were already many university students there, gathered around an astronomy professor who was explaining the origin and composition of a black stone on display.
"This stone is from the 2012 Leonid meteor shower, purchased by the school for a high price of 1.2 million.
Through the college's research, this stone contains 21 elements not found on Earth.
Four of them still have not had their atomic structures analyzed."
At this point, a student curiously asked, "Professor, are there really extraterrestrial life forms?"
"Extraterrestrial life forms certainly exist, but with our current level of technology, we haven't detected any life-bearing planets yet.
However, based on some of the extraterrestrial meteorites we've collected over the years, a few show the possibility of extraterrestrial life."
"Professor, wasn't there a recent acquisition of a special meteorite? Is it this one?"
The professor shook his head and said to an assistant beside him, "Xiao Li, go bring the D011 meteorite."
The assistant left and soon returned with a silver box about the size of a shoebox.
The professor took the box, placed it on the display table, and opened the lid to reveal a diamond-shaped meteorite.
The students gasped in amazement at the meteorite in the professor's hand, "It's so beautiful!"
"Is this a meteorite? Aren't meteorites supposed to be blackened by atmospheric friction and burning? How can it look like a crystal?"
"This is a diamond, right? Could it be from the planet 55 Cancri e?"
Li Fan wasn't interested in these things, so as soon as he entered, he was searching on his phone for gas stations and shooting clubs in Chang'an Prefecture.
A quick look at "pawread.com" will leave you more fulfilled.
But the surrounding chatter interrupted him, and a casual glance left him stunned.
The diamond-shaped crystal was all too familiar; it was this thing that had cost him his life.
This crystal was smaller than the one he had smashed, but it was entirely translucent, without the black spheres inside.
However, Li Fan felt that this thing was the same as the one he had broken, so he unconsciously moved closer.
Seeing the students' enthusiasm and skepticism, the professor pressed his hands down to quiet them, then explained, "This stone wasn't brought by a meteorite; it was excavated during the Qinbei Oilfield drilling.
At first, it was thought to be a natural diamond, but after our analysis, it's not composed of carbon but some unknown element.
The National Academy of Sciences and our college have conducted detailed element analyses, and this element doesn't exist on Earth.
However, according to calculations by the National Academy of Sciences, the energy contained in this crystal is 3,000 times that of uranium and plutonium."
"Professor, if this element were made into a bomb, wouldn't it be more terrifying than a nuclear bomb?"
The professor replied disappointedly, "In theory, yes, but we've tried many times and can't extract the unknown element.
After today's exhibition, it will be sent to the National Academy of Sciences in Shangjing for further analysis..."
Whatever the professor said next, Li Fan wasn't listening because his right arm had started to heat up. He stood up and asked, "Professor, can I touch it?"
Li Fan had a feeling that this thing was useful to him and might unravel the mystery of why he was reborn.
The professor nodded with a smile and said, "If you're not afraid of this unknown radiation source, you can certainly come and touch it."
Hearing the professor's approval, several brave students followed Li Fan onto the display platform.
Li Fan didn't rush to touch it immediately because the closer he got to the crystal, the stronger the heat sensation in his arm became, now tingling slightly.
The students crowded around to touch the meteorite, and Li Fan joined them, reaching out his right hand to touch it.
The moment he touched it, it felt as if his right arm was being sucked in. A torrent of heat flowed from the meteorite straight to his right arm, then spread throughout his body, finally rushing to his brain.
The sudden change shocked Li Fan, making him want to pull back his arm, but he couldn't. It was as if he were immobilized, and he could only let the energy surge into his body.