No Money to Cultivate Immortality?

Hearing what Director Gao had said, Zhang Yu’s heart stirred. He knew that the in-department competition was an internal selection event organized by Wanfa University itself. The so-called “first place represents the Civil Engineering Department in the intercollegiate league” was merely a rule set by the department—a convenient way to resolve disputes between the War Faction and Peace Faction.

In theory, the lineup for the team could be adjusted to a certain extent.

Though such adjustments always carried the whiff of backdoor deals.

Still, Zhang Yu thought, by the time they pulled such strings, he’d already have his Military License. Even if someone tried to kick up a fuss, no one would dare complain too loudly.

“Using real strength to game the system... damn, that feels good.”

Director Gao continued, “Alright, focus on recovering from your injuries for now.”

“If you don’t want to go to the hospital, get treated by Xiao Qingxuan.”

“But keep in mind, traditional medicine doesn’t always align with Immortal Dao tech. A lot of its underlying principles are still unclear—believe it or not, up to you.”

Zhang Yu raised an eyebrow. “Believe it or not?”

Director Gao said, “If it works, great. If it doesn’t, stop.”…

After finalizing the contract, Zhang Yu gained a monthly 30-spirit-coin reimbursement allowance.

On the way back to the dorm, he was already brainstorming how best to spend that money.

“Definitely need Spiritual Realm services.”

“And some potion and Dao Technique support too.”

“Sigh… no reimbursement for artifact refinement materials though. I’ll just have to squeeze the rest out of this 30-spirit-coin allowance.”

“Whatever I save, I’ll funnel into refining techniques.”

With a sigh in his heart, Zhang Yu returned to his dorm and once again entered the Supreme Purity Realm to resume his artifact refinement studies.

He silently mused, “Once I get the Military License, I’ll need to hustle on the Civil Engineering Seven Absolutes. I probably won’t have much time left for online classes.”

Even though it was almost certain that he’d get the license this time, Zhang Yu didn’t allow himself too much pride.

After all, his real goal was to compete in the Ten Major Leagues and get into one of the Ten Major Sects.

And to achieve that… he still felt like he was running out of time.

Especially after witnessing last year’s battle between Mo Shangjin and Xuan Liangtian. It had made him realize just how far behind he still was from the upperclassmen who had already mastered military-grade martial techniques.

Even Mo Shangjin hadn’t been able to defeat Heavenly Demon University and win first place in the intercollegiate civil engineering league.

Above Mo Shangjin were students from elite universities’ flagship programs—those wielding military-grade Dao Techniques, military-grade Law Husks, military-grade artifacts… even Divine Spirit Roots.

Zhang Yu sighed in his heart. “I’m still three or four tiers below the top undergrads, aren’t I?”

“And if I want to transfer to the Artifact Refinement Department before graduation… I’ll need to push even harder.”

That thought alone tightened every muscle in Zhang Yu’s body. He clenched his focus and used this recovery period to squeeze in more virtual lectures in the Supreme Purity Realm.

…

While Zhang Yu was racing against time, silently grinding away…

On a training field somewhere…

A senior Civil Engineering student was laughing as he said to Ping Han, “Han-ge, this time you’ve got the Military License in the bag, right?”

Ping Han waved it off. “Results aren’t out yet.”

“But the others who took the exam said you were clearly the top performer out there. If you didn’t get it, who would?”

Ping Han cut him off. “Don’t jinx it. Let’s wait for the official announcement.”

Just then, another student chimed in, “Han-ge, what’s your take on the trend of Nectar Coin?”

Ping Han smiled confidently. “Divine Lord Nectar is an old-school Nascent Soul cultivator backed by Pleasure and Harmony University. Dual Cultivation is a fundamental pillar of Immortal Dao technology. It’s in constant demand…”

“And tomorrow marks the start of Divine Lord Nectar’s giveaway. With such great news, the price is bound to soar again.”

“The redemption event—Thousand Cultivators Convention—will even be livestreamed. It’s going to kick off a whole new chapter in the dual cultivation industry. A vacuum effect, really. Now’s the window to make serious cash.”

“If you ask me, there’s only one move—buy.”

“No matter when, it’s never too late to buy Nectar Coin.”

The crowd of students nodded in fervent agreement, more focused than they’d ever been in class.

When Mo Shangjin arrived, this was the scene he saw—everyone gathered around Ping Han, hanging on his every word about Nectar Coin.

His brows twitched as he coughed deliberately. “Time to train.”

He had to repeat himself multiple times before the competition team finally dispersed reluctantly. His frown deepened with every moment.

Ping Han grinned at him. “Old Mo, did you read the material I sent you?”

Mo Shangjin replied coolly, “Nectar Coin’s too volatile. I’m not playing that game.”

Ping Han laughed. “I know, you’re loyal to our school’s coin. Only invest in Wanfa University’s currency.”

“But seriously, you should give this a shot. Between Divine Lord Nectar’s lottery and the Thousand Cultivators Convention, the price is only going up. It’s free money, Mo.”

Mo Shangjin raised a hand to shut him up. “Enough. I don’t want to hear it. And during training, stop talking about speculation. It’s throwing off the team’s focus.”

But over the next few days, as rumors of Ping Han securing the Military License spread, and Nectar Coin prices continued to climb, Mo Shangjin noticed a shift in the team’s energy.

During training, teammates were constantly distracted—checking charts, zoning out, whispering about coin prices.

Some even started borrowing money from him to double down on Nectar Coin.

Even Ping Han seemed to be pulling away—chatting with investors in online groups or hyping Nectar Coin on forums instead of focusing on the team.

Eventually, Mo Shangjin snapped.

He confronted Ping Han head-on, but the latter stood his ground.

“We’re obviously ranked first in the in-department competition,” Ping Han said. “No need to push so hard in training, right?”

“If we’ve got spare time, why not borrow more and invest more in Nectar Coin?”

“Speculating gives you real returns. That’s way more reliable than your so-called training.”

The argument escalated. Mo Shangjin finally blasted him away with a single palm strike.

“If you’re going to keep poisoning the team with this crypto nonsense,” he said coldly, “then leave.”

Ping Han picked himself up from where he landed—hundreds of meters away—and glared at him.

“Mo Shangjin! You may be stronger now with your military-grade martial techniques. You can kick me out, sure.”

“But once the Military License results come in, and I master the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might… you’ll beg me to come back.”

…

In the dorm, Zhang Yu was testing his punches and footwork.

“My injuries are pretty much healed.”

“Looks like I can go back to the worksite tomorrow.”

Just then, a message arrived from True Lord Magneto.

True Lord Magneto: Your 30-spirit-coin monthly cultivation stipend can now be used to order artifacts from Ye Xingli.

True Lord Magneto: Ye Xingli will assign commissions to you, and you’ll refine the artifacts yourself.

Zhang Yu’s eyes lit up. If he was the one refining them… didn’t that mean the artifact and the artifact budget both went to him?

“At most, I’ll have to pay for materials.”

He smirked inwardly. “With this setup, I can use all 30 spirit coins a month for artifact refinement.”

And so, over the next few days, Zhang Yu resumed his grind—rotating between classrooms, worksites, the Spiritual Realm, and the Supreme Purity Realm.

Classes, work, civil engineering studies, artifact refinement lectures, hands-on cultivation of refining techniques… it devoured his whole life.

But with more financial support, his refining skills improved rapidly, and a new idea took shape.

Looking at the Chain Diagram for the Appraisal Technique’s refining genius set, Zhang Yu thought, “Now that I’ve got more resources, maybe it’s time to try cultivating artifact refinement Techniques.”

As expected, the department’s civil engineering competition was moved up, just like Director Gao said.

Zhang Yu and Shi Huaiyu teamed up again for the first round.

Same format as last time: high-speed sprints in a chaotic force field. The top 20 teams advanced.

The matchups for the next stage had already been decided, and when Zhang Yu saw his opponent, he raised an eyebrow.

“Ma Xuan again?”

He recalled the brutal fight from last year and measured it against his own year’s worth of progress.

“This time should be a breeze.”

…

In Ma Xuan’s competition group chat:

Ma Xuan: Can’t believe we’re up against Zhang Yu again.

Su Yanyang: I’ve got this. I’ll carry us.

Su Yanyang: I’ve seen Zhang Yu’s skills. No way his growth this year matches mine.

Ma Xuan: Haha! With the two of us and a well-timed Small Threefold Harmony, we can definitely beat him and Shi Huaiyu.

Ji Yuanshu saw the chat and felt his fighting spirit surge. “With Su Yanyang on board, we’ll definitely win. That’ll push my composite score back up—or even past Zhang Yu’s.”

Ma Xuan: Let’s plan our strategy.

Su Yanyang: Ever since that loss, I’ve studied Zhang Yu’s playstyle thoroughly. I’ve got a foolproof plan.

Su Yanyang: His tactics are annoying but full of flaws. Shut him down, and the rest are no threat.

Su Yanyang: And thanks to all the coin-trading lately, our strength has skyrocketed.

Ma Xuan, Ji Yuanshu, and the rest grew more confident the more they listened—Su Yanyang’s breakdowns were sharp, and the battle plan seemed solid.

But suddenly, Su Yanyang stopped replying.

Ma Xuan waited… pinged the group.

Ma Xuan: Old Su?

Ma Xuan: Where are you?

After a long pause…

Su Yanyang: [裂开]

Su Yanyang: [苦涩]

Ma Xuan: Use words, damn it! What happened?

Su Yanyang: The Military License results are out.