No Money to Cultivate Immortality?

Immortal Soldier University.

Wangou Xuan stared at the teacher in front of him, utterly astonished. “Teacher, are you serious?”

The teacher nodded and looked toward the colossal puppet in the distance. “Yes. The post-match repair costs will be fully reimbursed.”

“For the upcoming match against Wanfa University, no matter how badly the Earthshaker Deity gets damaged, the school will cover it.”

Wangou Xuan’s heart surged with excitement upon hearing that. He nearly wanted the massive puppet before him to self-destruct right then and there so he could claim a reimbursement and swap it for a brand-new one.

The gigantic military-grade puppet—Earthshaker Deity—was the military backbone of the Civil Engineering Department at Immortal Soldier University.

After years of upgrades and maintenance, Earthshaker Deity had been repeatedly used by Civil Engineering students who had passed the Military License Exam. Its construction abilities were beyond question—whether it was the ten-thousand-unit mana-powered dantian inside, the terrain-altering Earthvein shock joints, or the recently installed Genvein Aspect added to win a Spirit Vein relocation contract last year—all of it gave Earthshaker Deity work capabilities far beyond that of a standard Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Such a military-grade puppet should have been a prime contender for first place in the cross-campus civil engineering competitions. But the burden of maintenance costs had always held Wangou Xuan back from unleashing its full power each year.

In past matches, he had often used his teammates as human shields for the Earthshaker Deity. After all, repairing teammates was often cheaper than repairing the puppet.

He often lamented, “It’s my lack of Immortal Dao potential that’s holding the Earthshaker Deity back.”Now, with the promise of fully reimbursed repair costs for the next match, Wangou Xuan felt his combat potential explode—skyrocketing so fast it was unfamiliar even to himself.

This battle would not only allow him to unleash Earthshaker Deity’s full might, but the more brutal the combat, the more damage it took, the more new parts it could get afterward—making it even stronger. And stronger meant more money in future projects!

Just then, the teacher noticed Wangou Xuan’s changing expression and quickly added, “Intentional damage won’t be reimbursed.”

“Just fight normally and crush that Zhang Yu. Understood?”

Wangou Xuan let out a sigh of regret and nodded. “Understood.”

The teacher continued, “And about what I asked you to do during the match—you remember, right?”

A cruel smile curled across Wangou Xuan’s lips. “Using the opportunity of the competition, I’ll thoroughly ravage Zhang Yu on the field!”

The teacher frowned and corrected him, “What nonsense are you spouting?”

“It’s not just you—it’s your whole team.”

“Once you’ve subdued him completely, collect his physical samples. And follow the procedure your professor taught you to test his body…”

Wangou Xuan nodded eagerly. With full reimbursement behind him, he was brimming with confidence.

The only concern left was—what if Zhang Yu didn’t show up for the next match?

At this moment, that was Wangou Xuan’s biggest fear.

“Zhang Yu, you have to show up for the competition.”

“I can’t wait…”

…

Wanfa University.

Ping Han looked at the familiar street scenes and bustling crowds, feeling a wave of sentiment wash over him.

“Who’d have thought I, Ping Han, would return here one day.”

Someone gently touched him, a hand brushing along his side, and said, “You remember your mission, right?”

Ping Han quivered slightly in response, signaling that he hadn’t forgotten.

The woman, Fu Xinyao from Pleasure and Harmony University, gave a slight nod and tightened her hold on Ping Han’s lower abdomen. “So don’t do anything extra.”

“Our mission this time is just to locate the Nascent Soul Yin Artifact. Nothing more.”

“No matter what feelings you’ve got—regret, debts, grudges—forget them all.”

Ping Han quickly replied, “I know. I’m just the Yin Artifact of Divine Lord Nectar.”

He understood clearly that his role as the ‘Wanfa mole’ and guide for Pleasure and Harmony University was just a casual move by Divine Lord Nectar—one that wouldn’t really affect anything. The divine lord could wipe him out with a single thought.

But for Ping Han, the success or failure of this mission would determine his very fate.

“I’ll take you to Zhang Yu first,” he volunteered. “Since he’s part of the Yin Artifact project, just following him should eventually lead us to the lab.”

But moments later, Ping Han frowned helplessly. “No good. You don’t have a Wanfa University student identity. There are too many restricted areas.”

Only now did Ping Han realize that this campus he had once moved freely through was filled with strict boundaries for outsiders—boundaries he had simply never noticed before.

Fu Xinyao wasn’t surprised. If a prestigious school like Wanfa let her wander around freely and casually find its secrets, that would be shocking.

She had been prepared for this mission to take time.

After all, without this opportunity, how could she have ever gained access to a Nascent Soul–level Law Husk of Divine Lord Nectar?

Just thinking about it filled her with excitement. She touched Ping Han again and thought to herself, “This trip to Wanfa is the perfect chance to test the power of this Nascent Soul Law Husk and prove the might of Pleasure and Harmony techniques.”

Then she asked aloud, “Do you know anyone?”

After dozens of attempts, Ping Han slumped in defeat—he’d been blocked by every single one of his contacts.

“Useless,” Fu Xinyao sighed.

“Let’s take it slow. Where do Civil Engineering and Security Department students usually hang out?”

Ping Han pleaded, “Can we… not target the Civil Engineering Department?”

Crack! A sharp burst of electricity flared from Fu Xinyao’s fingertips, zapping him.

She giggled softly and murmured, “Looks like you haven’t been properly trained yet. You’ve got no awareness of what it means to be an Artifact Spirit.”

“You still think you’re a Civil Engineering student from Wanfa University? Don’t want to help me deal with your old department?”

“Then I will target Civil Engineering students. The poorest, lowest-performing, ugliest ones…”

Squawk! Ping Han screamed internally, his body convulsing, but he clenched his jaw tight and didn’t dare utter a single protest.

…

Warning lights buzzed.

Zhang Yu stared at the red alerts before him, baffled. “What’s going on?”

“What do you mean I’m forbidden from leaving Wanfa University?”

He followed the Spiritual Realm Projection’s alert to its listed address—and was immediately flooded with manuals and documentation to read.

With unfinished engineering projects and unpaid bills on his mind, Zhang Yu grew more and more irritable. Even the Divine Spirit Root in his dantian trembled with agitation.

At the same time, the four white ox heads in his mind bellowed in fury—and a fifth ox head even bulged beneath his skin, threatening to burst free.

Zhang Yu’s flesh quivered violently in response to their roar, like every fiber of his being had gained awareness and was ready to burst from his body.

Exhale…

Zhang Yu slowly let out a breath, calming the storm inside.

When testing the emotional amplification ability of his Divine Spirit Root, he’d found that it not only enhanced the effects of his Chain Diagram set but also seemed to strengthen his Dao Heart, amplifying techniques like the Sacrificial Oxheart Technique and the Limitless Heart: Inner Incarnate Body.

As he reined in his emotions, his once-stirred Dao Heart began to settle.

“How long do they expect me to keep digging through all this?”

With his mind back under control, Zhang Yu’s thoughts kicked into high gear. A few guesses surfaced.

He recalled words from Daoist Tianzhang and the professor who had toured the lab. Most likely, this lockdown had to do with the Yin Artifact project.

He reached out directly to True Lord Magneto and explained the situation.

…

Back at the research division of Wanfa University.

Feng Yuhan glanced at the alert confirming Zhang Yu’s lockdown and nodded. “Hmph. Good thing I prepared ahead of time—otherwise we’d have lost university assets just like that.”

“Do you think other universities are blind? You think Divine Lord Nectar will just let this go?”

“Sigh, restricting him from leaving the campus should’ve been basic procedure, and yet I had to step in personally.”

He glanced at surveillance footage to confirm Zhang Yu had turned back, then started drafting the next round of paperwork.

“Yes, the outside world is dangerous… but the university campus isn’t risk-free either.”

“There are probably already spies from other schools trying to sniff out experimental intel—hunting for Zhang Yu.”

“The Nascent Soul Yin Artifact is of massive importance—not just for the tech, but also because it involves Nectar. We can’t let anything leak.”

“Zhang Yu, like the Yin Artifact itself, should be sealed in the lab. He can study, cultivate, and live there…”

Muttering as he composed documents, Feng Yuhan finally sighed. “If it weren’t for me, who knows how many assets True Lord Magneto would’ve lost by now?”

“This is too risky. I need to get the higher-ups involved.”

With that, he sent off the file—with a copy to the Vice Chancellor.

…

Not long after Zhang Yu returned to his dorm, the projection of True Lord Magneto descended before him.

Looking him in the eye, the True Lord said, “I’ve looked into it. It was Feng Yuhan from the research division who submitted the lockdown request. He wants you confined to campus.”

“Divine Lord Wanhua approved it.”

“What?” Zhang Yu exclaimed. “Even a Divine Lord approved it?”

True Lord Magneto replied calmly, “Divine Lords have countless responsibilities. This kind of small request doesn’t mean much to them. If it seems reasonable, it’s granted. If it becomes unreasonable, they can revoke it at any time.”

“I’m here to ask—what do you think?”