Chapter 397: For Zhang Yu, the Artifact Spirit

"Did he refuse?"

"I see."

"It's fine, you can go back to work."

After cutting off communication with Yue Mulan, Yin Jiurao's face showed a thoughtful expression.

"A Foundation Establishment student from the first layer actually refuses to sell reproduction rights? Not even selling the seeds anymore?"

"There must be something fishy about this."

As a professor in the Pharmacology Department, Yin Jiurao wouldn't normally be interested in the seeds of a Civil Engineering Department Foundation Establishment student, even if he had made it into the top ten of the competition by his sophomore year.

But an acquaintance had specifically asked her to study Zhang Yu's materials and told her some astonishing news.

Wen Wuya, a Nascent Soul disciple of Heavenly Sword University, is Zhang Yu's dual cultivation partner.

Zhang Yu must have some secret that made Wen Wuya want to dual cultivate with him.

However, when Yin Jiurao first heard this rumor, she still didn't take it seriously.

Especially after studying the data collected by the Biology Department, she became even more convinced this was an unreliable piece of gossip.

After all, Zhang Yu had once sold some physical materials to the Biology Department, and after studying them, Yin Jiurao found nothing special about them.

At least in terms of bloodline information and dual cultivation potential, Yin Jiurao saw nothing remarkable.

Why would a dignified Nascent Soul disciple seek out a student with no dual cultivation potential to dual cultivate with?

Until... Yin Jiurao received another piece of information.

"Did Wen Wuya transform herself into a biological female?"

"But his gender identity is clearly male."

Why would someone whose gender identity is male transform themselves into a female?

Staring at Zhang Yu's data, a guess so far-fetched even she found it hard to believe surfaced in Yin Jiurao's mind.

"Could it be that Wen Wuya wanted to dual cultivate with Zhang Yu, and that's why she...?"

Yin Jiurao felt she might have underestimated Zhang Yu; there might really be some secret about this kid.

And after Zhang Yu rejected her offer, it only made her more suspicious that something was off.

"Heh heh."

"Since he won't sell for money, I'll have to try another method."

Yin Jiurao decided to initiate the seed-stealing plan.

She thought to herself, "I wonder when Wen Wuya and Zhang Yu will actually cultivate? If I could use this opportunity to indirectly steal a copy of Wen Wuya's bloodline information through Zhang Yu, that would be a huge win."

Feng Tingting: Junior Zhang Yu, why don't you install a magical-mechanical body?

Feng Tingting: You're not one of those old-fashioned Magic Tool faction people, are you?

Feng Tingting: Sigh, our Equipment Refining Department has the Magic Tool faction and the Magical-Mechanical Body faction. Those old professors in the Magic Tool faction insist on the supremacy of magic tools, saying magical-mechanical bodies are heretical.

Feng Tingting: They're always trying to set up unmanned, soul-less production lines, saying that keeping part of the physical body when installing a magical-mechanical body is a total drag, and we should go full magic tool, completely abandoning flesh and blood and human form...

Zhang Yu found the messages from Feng Tingting quite amusing.

This senior sister from the Equipment Refining Department had added him as a friend after the last gathering, and since then, she would occasionally send him all sorts of random gossip, apparently treating him as a good friend.

Zhang Yu felt as if she was trying to build rapport with him through her daily chats.

But after hearing a lot of gossip from her, Zhang Yu decided to listen more and talk less, because who knew how many places this senior sister would spread whatever he said.

Closing Feng Tingting's chat window, Zhang Yu refocused his attention on the magic tool refining before him.

He hadn't gone to the pharmaceutical factory construction site today but had instead taken time to come to the refining lab for cultivation.

Since the production technique for Azure Sky Sand had long met the requirements for the Azure Sky Cloud Pouch, Zhang Yu began preparing to refine the Cloud Pouch.

Beams of magical power flashed, and a small cyan pouch slowly floated down before him. A level-1 Azure Sky Cloud Pouch had been successfully refined.

This Azure Cloud Net cost Zhang Yu around 8 spirit coins in total. He didn't plan to make a second one; next, he intended to raise the skill level of the Azure Cloud Net through spiritual world simulation, and in the future, repeatedly refine and adjust this magic tool to gradually improve its grade.

Night Star璃 (Ye Xingli) turned her head, looking at the Azure Cloud Net in Zhang Yu's hand, and said with a slight smile, "Zhang Yu, congratulations."

Compared to the Azure Sand, this Azure Cloud Net, in Ye Xingli's view, could truly be considered a magic tool.

Zhang Yu said, "Senior, thank you for your help during this time."

After some polite exchanges, Zhang Yu curiously asked, "Senior, last time I heard Wu Ya mention that you were in the top five of the Hundred Schools in the Dharmic Skeleton Design Competition?"

Ye Xingli waved her hand and said casually, "It's just a design competition. Some people's artifact refining skills are above mine, but if it's a contest of a single Dharmic Skeleton design, they might not necessarily surpass me."

"Just like Senior Yan Qianji, the Nascent Soul disciple in our department, only got tenth place in that design competition. This stuff sometimes has a lot to do with inspiration."

Zhang Yu then said, "Senior, I don't know much about intelligent magic tools. Do you think my Azure Cloud Net can carry a soul cultivator?"

...At the pharmaceutical factory construction site.

Zhang Yu decided to test the Azure Cloud Net he had refined.

He gently patted the Azure Cloud Net at his waist. As a surge of mana was injected into it, the magic tool floated into the air, then the net's opening spread, spitting out streams of Azure Sand.

Each stream of Azure Sand aimed at the positions of the Formless Warriors and was precisely infused into these humanoid azure qi constructs.

Zhang Yu nodded slightly. This made using the Azure Sand much more convenient.

And in the future, as the grade of the Azure Cloud Net increases, not only could it accurately release and retract more Azure Sand, but it could even enhance the efficacy of the Azure Sand.

Of course, if he had to split off a thread of thought to use the Azure Cloud Net himself, that would be too troublesome. So after asking Senior for help, Zhang Yu specially equipped this magic tool with an intelligent system.

Zhang Yu asked, "Old Zhao, how does it feel?"

From the Azure Cloud Net came Zhao Tianxing's excited voice: "Zhang Yu! I've become an artifact spirit just like that!"

"Among the seniors graduating from our school each year, not many become artifact spirits right after graduation. I never thought I could operate a magic tool before even graduating."

"This magic tool of yours is so easy to use. The operation is smooth, the mana flow is seamless. I can hit wherever I point."

Zhang Yu felt a bit embarrassed hearing this. His level 1 crappy little magic tool couldn't be that good.

It could only be said that he and Zhao Tianxing—one had just made a magic tool, the other had just become an artifact spirit—were basically noobs helping each other out.

Zhang Yu continued, "Alright then, Old Zhao, from now on you help me operate the Azure Cloud Net."

Zhao Tianxing replied, "No problem. Operating this thing doesn't use much computational pool power. I can do it effortlessly while I'm working."

Zhang Yu said, "No need to keep an eye on it all the time. I'll only hire you for a few hours each day at most."

Although operating the Azure Cloud Net was simple and consumed very little of a soul cultivator's spiritual world computational pool, Zhang Yu was not well-off after all and couldn't afford to keep Zhao Tianxing on standby all the time.

But Zhao Tianxing took this job very seriously. Even while working, he was already revising his resume.

"Serving as the main artifact spirit of a top-100 student in the Civil Engineering Department of Wanfa University, responsible for resource planning, logistics services, and close-range serial transmission operator for large-scale construction."

Zhao Tianxing looked at this job description, combined with his previous competition experience, and felt that his income could increase again.

Zhang Yu glanced at the Azure Cloud Net operating normally, left three threads of thought to continue directing the Formless Warriors, while he himself wrapped his body in Formless Cloud Qi and began cultivating the eighth martial art of the Martial Saint Body.

Although these days he had to participate in the pharmaceutical factory construction, drug trials, study civil engineering and artifact refining courses, and practice his refining skills, Zhang Yu was still confident he could complete the cultivation of this eighth martial art within the month.

"I wonder what the second level effect of the Martial Saint Body will be?"

At the same time, as he switched his Chain Diagram set to the University Saint Body for martial cultivation, he felt the tentacles of the Divine Spirit Root inside him stirring, beginning adaptive reinforcement again.

Zhang Yu had never forgotten that in his previous rounds of cultivation, each time he could feel that the adaptive reinforcement of the Green Lotus Sword Embryo was a gradual growth process.

This was also one of the effects of the Dao Seed that he had summarized after replicating this Dao Seed.

Although up to now, it only allowed his Chain Diagram set to retain a 1% effect after switching, that was only a little over a month.

"In less than a year, when I switch to the University Saint Body, I'll probably be able to retain a 10% effect from the commonly used Civil Engineering Saint Body and Qi Pulse Eternal Flow."

"In a few more years… it depends on the upper limit of this Green Lotus Sword Embryo."

Every time he thought of this, Zhang Yu couldn't help but marvel at the terror of the Divine Spirit Root. Combined with his Chain Diagram, it produced an explosive improvement.

As for the active effects of the Green Lotus Sword Embryo besides adaptive reinforcement… Zhang Yu's mind flashed with the scene of Bai Zhenzhen hiding her flying sword and dominating the competition.

He quickly suppressed the restlessness in his heart: "Hold back, Zhang Yu. If you use the active effect of this Divine Spirit Root and get discovered, it will be big trouble."

……

Inside the medicine testing room.

Yue Mulan injected the entire tube of experimental drug into Zhang Yu's body.

Zhang Yu was already used to this. Although the side effects of this experimental drug were not small, with his physical strength, plus the effects of body activation and the Great Sage Body, he could completely withstand it.

Even Xiao Qingxuan, who used to often accompany him, no longer comes with him for the drug trials.

But this time, as the drug entered his body, Zhang Yu felt something clearly wrong.

The blood in his body flowed rapidly, waves of heat surged continuously from his limbs and bones, and his whole body became hotter and hotter.

Zhang Yu looked at Yue Mulan before him, and a sudden impulse surged in his heart.

Seeing Zhang Yu's abnormality, Yue Mulan exclaimed in surprise, "Zhang Yu, what's wrong with you?"

Zhang Yu waved his hand and said calmly, "It's a small matter. Let me first suppress it with my supreme will, then we'll talk."

He twitched his eyelid, clicked on the avatar of Lian Tianji, and then opened his video.

Watching Lian Tianji's video, Zhang Yu felt that the myriad distracting thoughts that had just surged in his mind suddenly dissipated completely.