Chapter 388: Winner's Joy

Inside the Yuan Magnetic Passage.

Gongshu Jin scrolled through the messages received in his pupil display while advancing at high speed.

As soon as he made progress, Gongshu Jin posted on his social feed about placing seventh in the Civil Engineering competition and securing the right to use the Xuanhuang Zhenyue Seal.

In Gongshu Jin's view, this was only natural—when you improve, you have to show it off boldly; otherwise, how else would your loan limit increase? How else would your family bonds deepen? How else would your blood kinship strengthen? How else would your school friendships be maintained?

Soon after he posted, a flood of comments poured in.

There were congratulatory messages, inquiries for details, offers of spare funds, and a constant stream of sales pitches from people selling pills, Dao arts services, and various immortal cultivation products.

Even some fellow Fourth Layer natives living on the Second Layer sent him questions.

Although Gongshu Jin had added some group chats for Fourth Layer folks on the Second Layer and befriended a few Fourth Layer natives,

being in the Civil Engineering department—without a top ranking in the whole department or even in his class—he was largely unremarkable among the majority of Fourth Layer natives.

Rarely did any Fourth Layer native approach him with questions, so Gongshu Jin couldn't help but feel pleased.

Just then, another person sent him a message.

Ji Yuanshu: Gongshu Jin, hello.

Gongshu Jin thought to himself: "Hmm? Isn't this Ji Yuanshu, the former class top who is now fifth in the class?"

With the settlement of the competition's composite scores, the class rankings—which had originally been close—underwent drastic changes.

The trio who had originally been third, fourth, and fifth—Gongshu Jin, Ying Xin, and Yu Xinghan—each moved up one spot, pushing Ji Yuanshu down to fifth.

Every time he thought about how he once looked up to this Sixth Layer bigshot, now firmly trampled under his feet, Gongshu Jin felt that the money he had spent was well worth it.

Gongshu Jin: What do you want?

Ji Yuanshu: Did the other Qijue in your team go to Zhang Yu?

Gongshu Jin: Yes.

Ji Yuanshu: The War Faction gave you quite a bit of support, right?

Gongshu Jin: Without Director Gao's support, we definitely wouldn't have made it this far.

Ji Yuanshu: [Thumbs up]

After finishing the exchange with Ji Yuanshu, an idea arose in Gongshu Jin's mind.

"Come to think of it, if I can master three of the Civil Engineering Qijue before Ji Yuanshu does and grasp the Lesser Three Harmonies, then perhaps I can always stay one step ahead of him in my future civil engineering career."

How could he get ahead of Ji Yuanshu faster?

Gongshu Jin had tried pouring money into himself, but in the end he failed.

Later, he poured money into the competition team and successfully obtained the Xuanhuang Zhenyue Seal.

"To be precise, it's not that I poured money into the competition team, but that I invested in my confidence in Zhang Yu."

"I need to keep maintaining a good relationship with Zhang Yu. If there is another opportunity like this, I must seize it firmly."

"What does Zhang Yu like?"

Gongshu Jin's mind sifted through information about Zhang Yu.

"Overtime? Taking medicine? Eating? Massage?"

Ying Clan Ancestral Shrine Complex

Ying Xin: I got seventh place in the Civil Engineering competition!

Ying Xin: Ranking screenshot. Image file

Third Generation Patriarch: Good, good, did you use the bone ash?

Ying Xin: Great-grandfather, thanks to smearing your bone ash on the arena, we managed to hold out during the first half of the final match.

Fifth Generation Patriarch: Now you're a staunch student of the War Faction. Next, find a way to take a good teacher.

Fifth Generation Madam: Send the bone ash when you need to. If you run out of money, we'll send you more.

Fourth-generation head: Especially that Zhang Yu, you need to build a good relationship with him, preferably get him to join our family.

Ying Xin: I've tested the waters, but I feel this guy is probably one of those ascetic practitioners who aren't interested in that sort of thing—his eyes are only on cultivation and overtime work.

Feeling the warmth of her family elders, Ying Xin smiled softly.

Suddenly her gaze sharpened, and she asked: Where's the Heaven Ancestor?

Fifth-generation head: The First Generation has temporarily frozen his consciousness.

Fifth-generation head: The cost of maintaining his consciousness keeps rising, so he has to stay frozen most of the time to survive on the minimum expense.

Fifth-generation head: But it's fine—as long as we pay his fees on time, he can hold on a bit longer.

Ying Xin sighed inwardly. Even if he could hold on, as more descendants were frozen and those who weren't grew more distant from the first-generation head... stopping the payments was just a matter of time.

Unless a descendant could rise above, achieve great success, and make a fortune, it might be possible to let the ancestors live another life—until the fees couldn't be sustained again.

…

Yu Xinghan continuously observed the muscle fibers of Shi Huaiyu before him using his third-eye divine ability.

Then, with force in his fingertips, he injected streams of power deep into her body.

At the same time, a surge of mana followed closely, drilling into her meridians.

This was a massage technique Yu Xinghan had learned from Professor Gong of Construction Site Health Management. It could regulate muscles and tendons while relieving meridian wear and improving mana cultivation efficiency.

However, while learning these techniques, Yu Xinghan also realized they were equally skilled at destroying bodies and meridians—lethal moves.

When he asked Professor Gong about this, the latter chuckled and said: "It does incorporate some ancient assassination techniques."

"But just knowing that is enough. Nowadays, killing mainly relies on money—with money, you can kill however you want; without it, you can't even afford to kill an ordinary person. Assassination techniques are basically useless."

"You have a great talent for physical therapy and rehabilitation. With the current upheavals in the academic world and the clouds of war hanging over us, I believe rehabilitation and physical therapy will have huge markets not just on construction sites but in many fields. Work hard."

Seeing Shi Huaiyu let out a comfortable moan, Yu Xinghan suggested: "Senior, I'll do a kidney maintenance treatment for you later. Do you want to get a membership card?"

"I guarantee it's cheaper than going to a shop."

Over this period, Yu Xinghan had turned almost every contestant on the competition team into a client, and through them, he started developing more upperclassmen clients. Thinking about his rising comprehensive score and income, he felt increasingly grateful that he had joined this competition team.

Just then, Yu Xinghan received a message from Lian Tianji.

Lian Tianji: Brother Xinghan, I saw your Moments post. Congratz on getting seventh in the competition.

Yu Xinghan: I saw the photo in your Moments too. Is that girl your classmate from Hehuan University?

Lian Tianji: That's me.

Yu Xinghan: Huh?

Lian Tianji: After I successfully established my foundation, I transferred to the Foundation Establishment Yang Pole Class in the department. Here, only the top student of the class can be a man.

Yu Xinghan: Huh?!

Lian Tianji: Conversely, in the Yin Pole Class, only the top student can be a woman.

Lian Tianji: Before choosing my class, I thought it over carefully. In the end, I decided to endure hardship first and enjoy later.

At that moment, Shi Huaiyu under Yu Xinghan's hands grunted in pain and said: "Yu Xinghan, what are you doing?"

Yu Xinghan quickly apologized and refocused his attention on Shi Huaiyu.

At the same time, a voice echoed in his mind.

"Zhang Yu! Hehuan University is not our paradise!"

"But if it's not as a local student, but as a tourist..."

Yu Xinghan had to admit that interest had stirred within him.

Just then, Li Xuelian also sent a message.

Li Xuelian: Good performance. I didn't waste my time raising you and Zhang Yu back then.

Li Xuelian: I've contacted a batch of injured from the Security Department for you.

Li Xuelian: Try to see if you can do business with them.

…

Yu Xinghan returned to the dormitory and was about to tell Zhang Yu about the intelligence on Hehuan University, but after a glance at the other's current state, he knew he was on a call with Bai Zhenzhen.

Bai Zhenzhen looked at Zhang Yu and said happily, "Your team took seventh place in this department competition?"

Zhang Yu nodded and recounted the process of the competition, which made Bai Zhenzhen on the other end smile.

Bai Zhenzhen: "Great, now both of us are getting closer and closer to the Top Ten League."

Zhang Yu nodded: "Mm, A'Zhen, let's progress together. In the future, we can even enter a sect together."

Fuji thought to herself: "One participates in a multi-school league, the other in a department competition—the gap is huge... Bai Zhenzhen really is polishing Zhang Yu's image."

Bai Zhenzhen: "Haha, during this competition, the Blue Silk Flying Sword that Mom gave you worked well, right?"

Zhang Yu: "It works well, but there aren't enough. Can I get a few more?"

Bai Zhenzhen: "You think it's as easy as pulling out a strand of hair? That was forged with Seven Emotions Sword Intent—it can't be conjured at will."

Bai Zhenzhen: "Besides, as your strength improves, this Blue Silk Flying Sword will be more and more inadequate. At that time, you can just exchange it for a new magical artifact."

Zhang Yu, however, shook his head and said, "There's no need to change it. Even if I don't use the Blue Silk Flying Sword for battle, it can connect to the network at critical moments. I want to keep it with me at all times."

Bai Zhenzhen suddenly asked curiously, "You carry it on you all the time?"

Zhang Yu smiled and raised his right hand, showing that the Blue Silk Flying Sword was like a ring, slipped over his finger, and said, "Mm, I always carry it with me. In the wild, it can connect to the network; on the construction site, it can cut materials. Very convenient."

Bai Zhenzhen looked at the strand of hair on his finger and asked, "Then... you don't bring it when you're having fun, do you?"

Zhang Yu was slightly stunned, then angrily said, "That's not called having fun! That's work, earning money. Don't forget that you were also raised by me, bit by bit, until you graduated high school."

Bai Zhenzhen: "Mm-hmm... work."

Bai Zhenzhen added, "By the way, can you stop discussing so much nonsense with Wen Wuyai?"

Zhang Yu nodded: "Just by casually sending something every day, I get money. It's hard to stop."

Bai Zhenzhen rolled her eyes: "Every time he sees me now, he talks about civil engineering and construction sites. I'm damn near annoyed to death by him."

Zhang Yu said, "Then I'll think of a solution."

On the other side, after Bai Zhenzhen ended the call, the voice of the Seven Emotions Divine Lord emerged in her ear: "You two, what do you take Wen Wuyai for?"

Bai Zhenzhen was startled by the sudden voice, then patted her chest and said, "As Zhang Yu's wallet."

The Seven Emotions Divine Lord asked curiously, "At this point, you still don't think the gap between Zhang Yu and you is too great?"

"Not to mention Zhang Yu himself; even the best student in their department is far inferior to Wen Wuyai."

"Wen Wuyai is a friend of your own level, and in the long run, a more suitable connection for you."

Bai Zhenzhen said, "Mom, if everything is about money and benefits, is that still emotion? Can we still cultivate the Extreme Emotion Sword Dao?"

The Seven Emotions Divine Lord said calmly, "If wealth and benefits are turned into a part of measuring emotions, how could that not be the Extreme Emotion Sword Dao?"

Bai Zhenzhen said, "But if we can transcend all this and use pure, extreme emotions to drive the sword intent, isn't that what Mom would rather see?"

"Are you trying to figure out my thoughts?" The Seven Emotions Divine Lord smiled. "The time and life of a transformation deity are far broader than you imagine. Instead of guessing my intentions, you should spend more time recognizing the most genuine thoughts in your own heart."