High Martial Arts: Enlightenment after Practices

Chapter 63: Chapter 63: What to Do When You’re Out of Money

Time flew by, and soon it was the end of March.

Xu Wuyi once again collected his resource subsidy of 100,000 Federation Coins from the school. Combined with what he had left over, his available funds became a little more comfortable.

His Life Energy Level had already risen to 12.2, a frighteningly fast pace that left the class’s second-ranked student, Zeng Bonan, far behind.

Zeng Bonan and Hu Haobo were both still only at Level 11.7.

In the month since the joint exam, the two of them had only increased their levels by 0.2. It was estimated they would reach around Level 12.2 by the time of the college entrance exams. This was a normal rate of progress.

But Xu Wuyi had jumped 0.6 levels in a single month, a speed that had already surpassed the norm.

His classmates could only marvel at this, but the two teachers understood that it was because he was making progress in his cultivation of the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace.

However, a grim new problem also surfaced.

As his cultivation of the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace deepened, Xu Wuyi’s body demanded more and more Energy. The explosive growth of his Life Energy Level did not come without a price.

Originally, one bottle of D-Level Qi Blood Potion was enough to sustain his absorption and consumption for five to six days. This was only slightly faster than his classmates and was still within a normal range.

But now, that period was shortening drastically.

After his first Enlightenment, he found that he could completely digest and absorb a bottle of D-Level Qi Blood Potion in three days at most, and this speed seemed to be increasing.

’At this rate, it’ll soon be one bottle every two days...’

One bottle of D-Level Qi Blood Potion cost 30,000 Federation Coins through the school’s exchange channel.

One bottle every three days meant ten bottles a month—300,000 Federation Coins!

The school’s bi-weekly subsidy was only 100,000 Federation Coins. Adding that to his remaining 200,000 in savings, he could hold out for two more months at most.

But what if his consumption really did accelerate to one bottle every two days?

That would be fifteen bottles a month—450,000 Federation Coins!

In the path of Martial Arts, the four pillars are resources, techniques, companions, and location. With ”resources” being the foremost, he was now experiencing this firsthand.

Without enough resources to support him, even the greatest talent and most heaven-defying comprehension would mean little; his cultivation speed would be drastically reduced.

He realized he had to find a new source of income. Relying solely on the school’s subsidy was no longer enough to keep up with his current rate of consumption.

「...」

The next day, Xu Wuyi found Teacher Wang Wenhai in the rest area of the Martial Arts Dojo and explained his predicament.

”Teacher Wang, I’ve been consuming Qi Blood Potions very quickly while cultivating the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace.”

Xu Wuyi didn’t beat around the bush. ”At this rate, the school subsidy won’t be enough. I was wondering, aside from the school subsidy, are there any other ways for a student like me to earn some Federation Coins?”

Wang Wenhai wasn’t surprised by Xu Wuyi’s increased consumption. He nodded. ”When cultivating a High-Tier Cultivation Technique, an increase in resource consumption is inevitable.”

”Compared to other Cultivation Techniques, a Body Refining Technique like the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace is actually one of the least resource-dependent types. Or rather, you just haven’t reached the stage where it becomes truly resource-dependent yet.”

”Your current consumption is more of a natural requirement for raising your Life Energy Level.”

”As for earning money...”

He mulled it over for a moment, then looked at Xu Wuyi. ”As a student, there really aren’t many ways to earn money, and most require either strength or special skills. If you want to make money, there are really only a few paths.”

”First, underground fighting. The money is fast, but the risks are extremely high, and it’s illegal. If you get caught, your future is ruined. Don’t even think about this path.”

Wang Wenhai immediately ruled out the most dangerous option.

”Second, you could join a private corporation or family and become one of their externally cultivated prospects. You’d sign restrictive agreements in exchange for resources.”

”But you’d lose some of your freedom and could be controlled by them in the future. With your potential, I don’t recommend this path.”

Xu Wuyi nodded silently. He had no desire to ’sell’ himself so early on.

But he asked an additional question, ”Teacher Wang, I’ve heard that major powers like the Star Martial Group and Galaxy Company also sign students, providing resources for their development under relatively generous terms.”

”That’s true.” Wang Wenhai nodded. ”The major powers enjoy cultivating geniuses and don’t impose too many restrictions. However... the organizations at the level of the Three Greats have a tacit understanding. They don’t just cast a wide net when signing people.”

His gaze toward Xu Wuyi held a trace of regret. ”In Dongjiang Province, only a very small, top-tier group of people get selected by those powers each year, and they’re mostly university students. High school students are extremely rare.”

”Among those taking the college entrance exams this year, as far as I know, not a single one has been signed. I heard Chu Shanhe interviewed with Galaxy Company, but he didn’t pass in the end.”

Xu Wuyi was taken aback. Chu Shanhe was widely considered the most likely top scorer in this year’s martial arts exam. Even he couldn’t meet their requirements?

As if reading his thoughts, Wang Wenhai smiled. ”A genius who stands out in high school won’t necessarily remain a genius forever. Once you become a true Martial Artist in university, the path of Martial Arts has only just begun.”

”There are countless cases across the Entire Federation of top exam scorers fading into obscurity.”

”I understand,” Xu Wuyi said with a nod. ”Teacher Wang, please continue.”

”Third is to go through official or semi-official channels,” Wang Wenhai continued. ”For example, you can accept low-risk missions posted by the Martial Arts Association or the city hall. These missions usually offer a base reward.”

”They mainly involve tracking down specific individuals or clearing out Star Realm Exotic Beasts. The ones that Martial Disciples are allowed to participate in generally don’t have a high degree of danger.”

”Additionally, if you have a particular specialty, like Potion identification, basic rune-carving, or a special Spirit Talent like Su Yueling, you could also try to pick up some related freelance work.”

Wang Wenhai paused, looked at the attentively listening Xu Wuyi, and shook his head. ”But to be honest, these tasks are not very suitable for you. First, the pay isn’t great, and second, they are time-consuming and labor-intensive.”

”The few Federation Coins you’d earn might not even cover the value of the time you wasted, once you convert it into Qi Blood Potions.”

Xu Wuyi sighed inwardly, realizing the problem himself.

For him, while resources were important, time was just as indispensable.

During this race against time to prepare for the college entrance exams, he simply didn’t have a large amount of time to spend on earning money.

And if he really wanted to rely on his martial strength to earn money easily, that wasn’t very realistic either.

This was because many Social Martial Artists, after years of struggle, could slowly grind their way to Level 20 and above just by accumulating time, becoming Official Martial Artists.

These people were already in their thirties or forties, their potential exhausted, making further progress difficult. But their martial strength still surpassed Xu Wuyi’s at his current level.

When it came to accepting missions that required martial strength, they were naturally a better fit.

”After all that, there’s really only one option left.” Seeing Xu Wuyi’s worried expression, Wang Wenhai actually smiled.

”If you can’t earn money, you can take out a loan!”

”Huh?”