[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-no-money-what-cultivation":3,"chapter-no-money-what-cultivation-no-money-what-cultivation-chapter-139":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","No Money, What Cultivation?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},163488,323,"Chapter 139: Difficulty Breathing (Thanks to 'Your Father Laughs Heartily' for Alliance Leader)","no-money-what-cultivation-chapter-139",139,"\u003Cp>On the sidewalk of the expressway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two figures, one after the other, stirred up gusts of wind as they sped straight toward the Spirit Machine Reserve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Except that at this moment, aside from Zhang Yu dashing along with his Car Legs technique.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen’s body occasionally flashed with a streak of electric light, and she was also following behind Zhang Yu using her newly learned Electric Light Legs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike Zhang Yu, who focused on improving his physical strength, Bai Zhenzhen, because she was participating in the martial arts track, had recently devoted more effort to practicing martial arts techniques, in addition to improving her Dao Heart, magical power, and physical strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This Electric Light Steps technique was a combat technique that allowed Bai Zhenzhen to move at high speed over short distances in battle. It was more flexible, more versatile, and more explosive than the Car Legs, making it more suitable for combat. At this moment, she was using it to travel and practice at the same time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the sunlight, Bai Zhenzhen could also feel streams of warmth flowing continuously within her body—it was her True Spiritual Root absorbing the spiritual machine from the radiance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the True Spiritual Root had gradually adapted to the light-dark adjustment and could understand Bai Zhenzhen’s intent, so it wouldn’t make her become dark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the other side, Zhang Yu, bathed in sunlight, felt as if molten lava was flowing through his entire body, frantically inhaling and exhaling the spiritual machine from the sun’s radiance falling from the sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, he was doing a mental calculation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This trip to the Spirit Machine Reserve was to use Xiong Wenwu’s connections to see if they could rent a spot on a spirit vein cheaply for breathing exercises.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, these past few days… although his physical strength had increased rapidly, relying solely on techniques to improve his Dao Heart and magical power was still too slow for Zhang Yu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And it was said that not only was the spiritual machine in a spirit vein dense, greatly increasing the efficiency of refining magical power, but staying there for a long time could also improve one’s constitution, ward off illness, and prolong life—countless benefits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Renting an entire spirit vein is definitely out of the question. With the small amount of money I have, I’ll see if I can rent a spot so that A Zhen and I can do breathing exercises inside the spirit vein.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During this period, although there was income from the Dark Tutoring World, Le Mulan, Yu Xinghan, and Song Hailong, and he had also received the first endorsement fee of 200,000.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, Zhang Yu’s expenses were also considerable—for example, a Hunyuan Pill every three days cost 24,000, and each set of Nine Dragon Acupuncture cost another 10,500. Recently, because he had been focusing on body refinement, his physical strength kept increasing, and his food expenses had now reached 1,500 per day. After early May, he also paid back 15,000 in loan interest…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu looked again at his account balance—570,000.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought to himself, “Renting a spot inside a spirit vein shouldn’t be a big problem, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two continued speeding along, and gradually more and more factories appeared around them. From the huge chimneys, wisps of white smoke continuously billowed out, and they could see some factories bearing the sign of Red Tower Ranch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Zhang Yu’s gaze swept over these rows of factories, he was suddenly startled: “What’s that?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They saw that on what was presumably factory land, there was now only a stretch of ruins, with broken walls and collapsed structures everywhere, as if a great battle had taken place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Furthermore, a palm print several hundred meters wide was on a hillside not far behind, and on the hillside were remnants of various towers, walls, and machinery fragments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheets of light curtains enveloped the ruins, and various warning signs appeared on the light curtains, like the cordon at a murder scene.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu said, “Did a war break out?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen glanced at it and said, “You don’t even know this? It was pretty popular online half a year ago—a factory was investigated for tax evasion.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The tax evaders resisted on the spot, using all kinds of flying swords and magical treasures, and killed most of the tax inspectors who came to investigate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu was shocked: “Are tax evaders in Kunxu this fierce?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen continued, “Then the tax inspectors invoked the divine power of the God of Tribute and Tax Supervision. With one palm strike, the entire factory was destroyed, and at the same time, the souls of most of the criminals were extracted.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Most?” Zhang Yu marveled. “What about those whose souls weren’t extracted? Did they die or escape?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen said, “They committed suicide the moment they saw the God of Tribute and Tax Supervision descend.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu swallowed his saliva, once again glad that he hadn’t evaded taxes in Kunxu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two continued speeding along, and soon they saw a huge arc appear on the distant horizon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was their destination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was said that long, long ago, this Spirit Machine Reserve was once the territory of demon beasts, and there were even several powerful Great Demons lurking within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The so-called Great Demons were powerful monsters; now such monsters are called demon descendants.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike demon beasts, which are treated as animals, demon descendants often possess true intelligence and can integrate into society, living and working.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But later, the Great Demons here were defeated by the company’s security forces, the reserve changed hands several times, and was eventually bought by Red Tower Ranch, which has operated it ever since.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was said that the reserve still retains its original natural features and the various demon beasts that originally lived there, of course… all of which have become assets of Red Tower Ranch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Zhang Yu, looking closely now, could see that there seemed to be an enormous glass dome covering the continuous mountains and hills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And as the two drew closer, they could still see densely packed runes constantly appearing on the glass cover—the power of a formation isolating the inside from the outside world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides that, Zhang Yu could also see many red warning characters on it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All were something like \"Red Tower Ranch Private Property, Please Purchase Tickets and Enter Through the Main Gate.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen looked at it and cursed, \"How stingy! Are they unwilling to let even a little bit of the air from the reserve leak out?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had originally thought she could skim some of the spiritual energy and air coming from inside along the reserve's boundary, but now it looked like they had already prepared for that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two continued forward and arrived at the ticket booth at the main entrance of the Spiritual Energy Reserve. Seeing that the ticket price was only five yuan, Bai Zhenzhen and Zhang Yu were both shocked—what difference was this from free? Was Red Tower Ranch doing charity?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen immediately retracted her earlier comment about stinginess. How could Red Tower Ranch be stingy? They were generous beyond measure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two opened their phones, wanting to see if there were any discounts, and were astonished to find that the reserve's rating was only 1.3.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after the ticket seller stuck an air meter, spiritual energy monitor, weight monitor, and various other devices onto their bodies, the two understood why the ticket seemed almost free and why the rating was so low.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ticket seller said, \"The air inside the reserve costs 1999 yuan per cubic meter, water costs 2888 yuan per liter, and each unit of spiritual energy costs 3999 yuan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The price list for all plants, animals, and even soil, stones, and other materials in the reserve is in the user manual. I'll send it to you; please accept it...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu looked at the densely packed fee list in the user manual and was left speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside this Spiritual Energy Reserve, everything—air, water, food, or anything else—costs money. An ordinary person could go bankrupt just by picking up a few stones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen said nervously, \"Yu Zi, try not to breathe too much once we get inside. This is way too expensive.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After buying tickets, the two first entered the sealed chamber. As the rear door closed behind them, they were completely isolated from the outside world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, as the front door opened, Zhang Yu felt an extremely fresh wave of air rush toward his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just by taking a deep breath, Zhang Yu felt his entire body become comfortable and relaxed, as if every bit of his flesh and blood had loosened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"At a glance... \u003Cp>\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is... air?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then what was I breathing before?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt that the air he usually breathed was practically car exhaust in comparison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So I've been in such terrible air all along? And I just got used to it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu stepped out of the sealed chamber, fully immersing himself in the environment of the reserve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Taking a deep breath, Zhang Yu felt as if his entire body had been cleansed. The qi, blood, and magical power inside him became more lively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even at this marginal location, Zhang Yu could sense that the concentration of spiritual energy in the air was already comparable to the quiet room with spirit-gathering effects inside Songyang High School.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the two walked briskly along the sightseeing path, the spiritual energy in the air grew denser. Bai Zhenzhen's spiritual energy meter had already risen to over 500, scaring her into immediately suppressing her true spiritual root, temporarily stopping it from absorbing spiritual energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu also felt that the spiritual energy his Great Sun Qi Sea absorbed from the radiance was even richer. A single day of breathing and refining here might be equivalent to several days outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen patted her chest in lingering fear and said, \"This damn place is way too easy to go bankrupt in. Let's meet Xiong Wenwu and get out of here ASAP.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu nodded. Staying in this Spiritual Energy Reserve made him feel even more dangerous than being at a gang fight scene.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought to himself, \"If just breathing and absorbing in the outer area costs this much, how much would it cost to actually get onto a real spirit vein...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, he began to doubt whether he could afford to rent a spot on a spirit vein this time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially when he opened the map and saw that there were three spirit veins running through seven major zones and over twenty hills in the reserve, but all of them were inaccessible to tourists—either long-term leased private territories or various ranches, factories, plantations...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, all the areas tourists could enter were on the outskirts of the spirit veins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet even the cost of breathing and absorbing long-term in these peripheral areas was something Zhang Yu couldn't afford.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sigh, ordinary tourists can only enter the reserve and skim the edges of the spirit veins to absorb a little—they don't even have a way to get inside.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By now, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen had given up any hope of renting a spot on a spirit vein. If they could just find a cheap way to skim the air on the outskirts, they would already be satisfied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let's go see Xiong Wenwu first and see what he has to say.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiong Wenwu had arranged to meet them at the breeding base, a remote location on the edge of the reserve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two followed the map as they advanced. Every time they passed a mountain peak, they could feel strands of spiritual energy shooting up into the sky from the peaks that were heavily blocked by layers of light screens and formations—the spiritual energy was so dense it looked like it was about to rain spiritual energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen and Zhang Yu even saw light rain falling from time to time on those mountains. The rainwater steamed with spiritual energy, and they watched in silent amazement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These peaks are where the true spirit veins are located.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike the tourist area where Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen were walking now, which was merely the peripheral area of the spirit vein, where they could only breathe a bit of the air and spirit energy that leaked down from above.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen could hardly imagine what those people staying on the mountains were actually doing, that they needed to inhale and exhale such a vast amount of spirit energy, and how much money it must cost per second.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And below the peaks, on the outside of the light barrier that separated tourists, on the side belonging to the tourist area.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu would occasionally see various poor people carrying oxygen tanks and water bottles, squeezing into spots at the foot of the mountain, like small fish clinging to a whale, sucking up the spirit energy overflowing from the spirit vein, gaining cultivation efficiency far beyond that of the outside world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No... Zhang Yu denied the thought that had just crossed his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"These are hardly the poor—being able to mooch off the breathing at the foot of this mountain, by the standards of the charges here... they're all wealthy people compared to us.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There really are so damn many rich people in Kunxu.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Zhenzhen beside him said, \"If I'd known earlier, we should have brought oxygen tanks too—breathing here is way too uneconomical.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Yu nodded in profound agreement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After more than ten minutes, the two finally arrived at what was called the breeding base.\u003C\u002Fp>",2278,"2026-05-29T04:54:22.303Z","2026-06-01T04:29:11.989Z",1,"deepseek-v4-flash","57ac2f8af766e686a7aef29ccddc2b2c74d5a03ec114838a907bf54058d93307","no-money-what-cultivation-chapter-140","no-money-what-cultivation-chapter-138",711,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fno-money-what-cultivation-cover.jpg"]