[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-ascending-to-divinity":3,"chapter-ascending-to-divinity-ascending-to-divinity-chapter-54":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Ascending to Divinity",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2280604,4461,"Chapter 54: Sinking Fish","ascending-to-divinity-chapter-54",54,"\u003Cp>The campus cultivation chamber is one of the most expensive places in the academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cultivation time must be purchased with academic credits, and it is very costly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Academic credits have many uses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They can buy things unavailable outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many students only come to the campus cultivation chamber\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>when they hit a bottleneck or plateau in their cultivation, and buy a bit of time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one had ever thought to list the campus cultivation chamber as a delivery address.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian’s idea here was originally a sudden whim.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But once he thought of it,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian immediately changed his delivery address.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“10 units of cultivation herbs purchased successfully!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your total expenditure this time: 5000 shopping credits.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your remaining shopping credit balance: 29500.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your goods will be delivered personally by vehicle within three hours.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian swiped away the message.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned off his identity device.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hours earlier, Jiang Jian had already purchased 16 units of cultivation herbs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But those herbs were delivered to the dormitory building.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Achieving deep cultivation focus requires time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian changed his delivery address, preferring to reorder and wait in the chamber rather than make another round trip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His cultivation time had been renewed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The chamber was once again filled with spiritual energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian did not deliberately wait for the cultivation herbs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, he sat on the floor and continued cultivating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time passed slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shadows and light outside the windows shifted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Darkness gradually faded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dawn arrived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eight hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian only opened the door to receive the goods and retrieve the cultivation herbs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the rest of the time,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he devoted himself entirely to cultivation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The spiritual foundation in the Shenque point\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>increased, bit by bit,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>slowly yet steadily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your cultivation chamber time has expired.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Please purchase more soon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The alert sounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian opened his eyes and looked out the window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Golden-red sunlight spilled in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It bathed Jiang Jian’s pupils, steeping them in golden radiance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From noon yesterday to this morning,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>eighteen hours of cultivation\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>had once again enhanced Jiang Jian’s perception and control of spiritual energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shenque point.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Like an insatiable abyss.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the campus cultivation chamber,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>one day of cultivation equals a hundred days outside.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian sensed the spiritual energy in his Shenque point, his brow slightly furrowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But the Shenque point is still empty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It seems,”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“that all these days of cultivation\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>have merely laid a foundation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian stood up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He packed his bag and left the cultivation chamber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he stepped off the elevator and exited the cultivation building’s gate,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian looked around—it was eerily quiet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did he realize:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>fewer and fewer students were coming to the campus cultivation chamber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only a scattered few dozen remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A quick glance revealed many were from the First Academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before the cultivation building, it was utterly deserted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nothing like the bustling crowds on the first day of school.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first-year campus had 1,800 new students.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most came to the chamber just for novelty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>this was a black hole that consumed academic credits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Credits could buy many precious items on the academy’s platform.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their acquisition channels were scarce.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To merely accelerate cultivation progress\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and burn through precious credits—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>to many students, this seemed foolish.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No wonder,”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“ninety-nine percent of people\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>remain trapped for life in the Divine Bestowal Realm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian glanced at the silent building behind him and boarded the autonomous air pod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As humans, our lifespans are limited.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cultivation is indeed difficult.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But,”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“the Surge Spring Realm—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>they lack even the courage to look at it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They dare not even imagine it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In that case, saving their credits for other uses is actually the right choice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the cabin,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian cultivated in silence, yet many thoughts passed through his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Linjiang Academy,”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“marketed as the top Divine Bestowal university in Linjiang Prefecture.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet now,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>of this year’s 1,800 students,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>only a tiny few might ever reach the Surge Spring Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“With my cultivation,”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“the Shenque spiritual foundation still creeps like a tortoise.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What about students with average talent? Their path must be even more hopeless.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of this,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian suddenly thought of his sister, Jiang Zhao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her Divine Bestowal talent was Level 2: “Intent,” Spirit-Shadow Mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Level 3 talents receive support packages from the Prefectural Office.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Though the Surge Spring Realm is hard, it is not beyond reach.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But Level 2 talent—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fully cultivating the spirit essence in the Shenque Point has become vastly more difficult!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And a Level 1 talent...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian’s expression was blank, thinking of Zhao Jianxue from Guangling City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No matter how hard you try, it seems pointless.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Train until you die.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s still hard to fully cultivate the Shenque Point’s spirit essence.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even with a Level 1 talent...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The differences are enormous, depending on the type.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even the best \"Shu\"...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Can only guarantee you’ll land a decent job, be slightly better than ordinary people, and earn Alliance Coins easily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Facing the distant Spring Surge Realm...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Level 1 talent is still far too weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only wealthy families and aristocratic heirs can afford expensive second talents using massive amounts of Alliance Coins, reducing the impact of their innate talents.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Level 3 talent orb, even the cheapest \"Ti,\" costs over a million Alliance Coins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Commoners simply cannot afford it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"These letters are all from Jiang Zhao.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian set aside his thoughts, opened his identity device, and checked his unread emails.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A girl’s pleasant voice rang out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Jiang Jian, how’s your illness? Have you been taking your medicine on time?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Jiang Jian, my cultivation is going well—I’ve already sensed the spiritual energy!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But spiritual herbs are so expensive—one dose costs 500 Alliance Coins, and I don’t want to spend money on them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Jiang Jian, I really don’t want to spend Alliance Coins on spiritual herbs!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I bought one on the first day of school—it did nothing, and it broke my heart.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Also, no one goes to our academy’s cultivation chamber.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Many classmates are making friends, chatting, socializing.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The food here is cheap and delicious.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Jiang Jian, I’ve made new friends—my roommate.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Cultivation is so boring. Every time I decide to train, I have to force myself.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Theory classes are interesting—I love them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Anhe Academy isn’t single apartments—it’s dormitories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dozens of images attached to the message arrived one after another.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian read through every email from Jiang Zhao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He fell silent for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian replied: \"Do you still have enough money?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few seconds later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A notification sounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Zhao directly called a real-time communication.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian tapped to accept.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The 50,000 Alliance Coins you gave me last time? I haven’t even spent half.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Zhao, just woken up, sounded drowsy: \"Jiang Jian, you’re up so early.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian said softly: \"Didn’t I tell you to buy spiritual herbs?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Zhao said: \"They’re so expensive—500 Alliance Coins per dose. Do they even work? I bought one before and felt nothing.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the other end, Jiang Zhao’s tone turned concerned: \"Jiang Jian, you said after the Divine Bestowal Ceremony you haven’t had another episode—but you still need to take your medicine on time, just in case!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian nodded, his tone growing slightly solemn: \"Jiang Zhao.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Zhao paused: \"What?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since childhood...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every time...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian spoke in this tone...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Zhao knew she could no longer act on impulse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don’t let the money I gave you rot in your account—spend it on spiritual herbs.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian spoke softly: \"It’s not that the herbs don’t work—it’s that you’re not focused on cultivation.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Without small steps, you cannot reach a thousand miles.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Cultivation is inherently a matter of long-term accumulation.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don’t be stingy—spend it all, then ask me for more.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As for the cultivation chamber...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If you have enough credits, try to go as often as you can.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Zhao whispered: \"Okay.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Jian ended the call without saying more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His younger sister Jiang Zhao listened to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Jiang Jian knew better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cultivation is an act that must come from within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A hint is enough—more words are useless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how much others say, it’s never as effective as doing it from the heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dum!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A notification sounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another email from Jiang Zhao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Jiang Jian, I’ll work hard at cultivation.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Below the email was a photo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The girl, in pajamas, leaned against her bedpost, giving a victory gesture.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1403,"2026-06-20T01:21:34.271Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","8e208ca3905c4826211a5401a407dca54d8ebc27ebff54048390d12606dd0a4b","ascending-to-divinity-chapter-55","ascending-to-divinity-chapter-53",306,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fascending-to-divinity-cover.jpg"]