No Money to Cultivate Immortality?

No Money to Cultivate Immortality?

Inside the dorm.

Le Mulan pulled out a bottle of black liquid and said, “I brought the potion for you.”

She hesitated before asking, “But are you sure you want to use it?”

Zhang Yu took the bottle, eyeing the faint swirling mist and shifting light inside. “Don’t worry. I can handle it.”

Ever since Zhang Yu became Director Gao’s registered disciple, he’d been granted access to a wider range of pharmaceutical exchanges. Many experimental compounds from the Pharmacology Department’s labs were now available to him at a discount.

However, these lab-made drugs, while powerful, often came with intense side effects. That’s why Zhang Yu had been working with Le Mulan to screen them carefully.

After much trial and error, he settled on the Heavenly Demon Mimicry Aerosol.

Staring at the bottle, Zhang Yu thought to himself, “My heart technique’s already running constantly at the realm of Spirit-Flesh Fusion, endlessly tempering my Dao Heart.”

“My mana flows nonstop through passive breathing. As long as I remember to eat spirit stones, that part’s covered.”

“The only shortfall is physical strength... Most of my cultivation focuses on Earth-Wood Saint Body techniques, which relate to combat or construction. They’re not true body-refining techniques.”

“Sure, my physique improves a bit during practice, but it’s nowhere near the level of actual body refinement.”

He especially noticed a fiery energy smoldering within him and thought, Eating so much Virility Meat without proper body training? What a waste.

Wouldn’t that mean I’ve been enduring all this for nothing?

He twisted the bottle open, inhaled deeply, and a cloud of mist surged out, slithering into his body like a living thing.

Immediately afterward, Zhang Yu began cultivating the Endless Spring and Autumn Meditation.

As his session ended, he felt the aerosolized medicine come alive inside him, forming countless tiny hands that pummeled and twisted his muscles, damaging them while simultaneously reforging them.

The harsh internal pounding also agitated the fiery energy left by the Virility Meat, which now nourished his flesh and blood.

So this is the effect of the Heavenly Demon Mimicry Aerosol—it simulates the results of a body-refining technique and keeps working even after you stop training.

The drawback, of course... once you start, it keeps going for days, potentially causing serious physical damage or even death.

Still, Zhang Yu was confident his body could take it.

What truly stopped him from using it regularly wasn’t fear—it was the cost.

“Even with the discount, each bottle’s nearly 0.9 spirit coins. Damn, that’s expensive.”

Spirit coin balance -0.9

Time to earn some cash.

After testing the drug, Zhang Yu and Le Mulan left the dorm, where they found Xuange waiting outside.

Zhang Yu had grown familiar with Le Mulan’s classmate by now.

After all, the guy had closed doors for them, taken out their trash, and submitted more than a few dormmate applications, clearly hoping to move in. His entry requests were frequent.

At that moment, Zhang Yu glanced at Xuange’s chest and thought, Flame Sun Mana Vein? This guy has a Dao Seed too?

After sensing it, he confirmed that the Flame Sun Mana Vein, like Le Mulan’s, was a mana-type Dao Seed. Unlocking it required improving one’s mana quality.

150% mana quality, huh?

Xuange, meanwhile, squirmed slightly under Zhang Yu’s gaze.

Suddenly, Zhang Yu said, “Xuange, right? Let me give you some pointers.”

He asked Le Mulan to go on ahead, then brought Xuange back into the dorm.

Xuange followed eagerly, heart pounding: Is it finally my turn? It’s finally my turn, isn’t it?

He asked, “Should I go wash up first?”

Zhang Yu frowned. “What’s there to wash?”

As Xuange wondered why this didn’t match the tutorials he’d studied, Zhang Yu placed a palm on his back.

The next second, two streams of mana—one icy, one fiery—collided inside Xuange.

Xuange felt his mana quality rise before his eyes. The burning mana in his body surged, circulation speeding up, and his breathing became far more efficient than usual.

Meanwhile, Zhang Yu’s EyeNet implant buzzed—it was Bai Zhenzhen contacting him.

Bai Zhenzhen: “Yuzi? What are you up to?”

Zhang Yu panned his camera around the room and calmly replied, “Selling mana.”

He focused the camera on Xuange. “Here’s the client.”

“Feel better now?”

Bai Zhenzhen eyed Xuange for a moment, saw that he was male, and nodded in relief.

She knew Zhang Yu had no talent for Dual Cultivation. His body barely reacted to anyone unless they were biologically female.

Sigh, she thought, if you had the talent, I’d be the first to cheer you on. But if it’s just a hobby, isn’t it a waste of your cultivation time?

Zhang Yu said, “Ah-Zhen, I told you—you don’t have to worry. With my iron will, you think I can’t hold it in?”

Bai Zhenzhen replied, “It’s not that I don’t trust you. I’m just worried you’ll get distracted and fall behind.”

“Well, keep working hard. I’ll send you some more meat in a few days.”

After ending the call, Zhang Yu continued channeling mana into Xuange for another ten minutes.

Withdrawing his hand, Zhang Yu asked, “So? Want to buy some mana?”

Xuange thought, Oh, he was trying to sell me mana?

He was a little disappointed, but then recalled the sensation just now. Feels just like Le Mulan’s cold-type mana.

It really boosted both my mana quality and breathing efficiency.

And it looks like he wants to do this off-platform. Should be cheaper that way.

After some back-and-forth, they struck a private deal: Xuange would buy 10,000 units of mana from Zhang Yu each month for 1 spirit coin.

Watching Xuange walk away, Zhang Yu mused, I wonder what kind of power the Flame Sun Mana Vein has.

Whatever it did, a steady monthly income was always welcome.

Spirit coin balance +1

…

Inside the Supreme Purity Realm.

Zhang Yu’s multi-threaded consciousness was blazing through four screens simultaneously.

Each displayed a different course: Artifact Power Mechanics, Spiritual Energy Materials and Molding Techniques, Mana Transmission and Conduction, and Truefire Processing Techniques.

As the content raced by, countless lines of text and diagrams were seared into Zhang Yu’s mind, forced into memory.

To boost his efficiency, he had spent 0.06 spirit coins today to activate Heart-Clarifying Technique for two hours—an enhancement that gave him photographic memory for the duration.

At a 20× time acceleration in the Supreme Purity Realm, that meant 40 hours of total memorization.

Factor in his fourfold consciousness, and Zhang Yu effectively had 160 hours of rapid memory absorption.

After spending 0.96 spirit coins on online course videos and textbooks, he didn’t aim for understanding—just memorization. He would digest it all later.

“This should drastically boost my study efficiency.”

To transfer into the Artifact Refinement Department and pass all its three-year courses, Zhang Yu was constantly optimizing his learning strategy.

But one thing he couldn’t dodge—course fees.

“Refinement textbooks and classes are insanely expensive.”

“One semester’s courses must cost ten times what Civil Engineering does.”

“Not to mention the material costs and lab rental fees…”

Looking at the Truefire Processing Techniques syllabus, Zhang Yu noticed it included not just theory but hands-on experiments that required purchasing materials and booking labs.

Spirit coin balance -1.56

…

On the construction site, Floor 667.

Zhang Yu was practicing the fourth technique in the Earth-Wood Saint Body set—Ground-Grasping Claw—following Endless Spring and Autumn Meditation, Sky-Flipping Seal, and Purple Sky Heaven-Net Style.

Qi surged from his palm. A powerful suction force emanated outward, lifting several tons of cargo with ease.

“Too bad the Civil Engineering curriculum includes so few techniques that actually match the Earth-Wood Saint Body. I still have to buy most of the set myself.”

Around him, humanoid qi constructs flickered as they helped with various chores.

Under the guidance of his multi-threaded thinking, Zhang Yu deployed other martial techniques as needed: Sky-Flipping Seal, Xuanhuang Mountain-Suppressing Seal, Purple Sky Heaven-Net Style…

The more techniques he mastered, the more roles he could take on at the worksite.

Combined with his multitasking and the Formless Golem’s assistance, his income for October had climbed steadily. Today marked a new personal best for daily earnings.

Spirit coin balance +0.21

After an all-nighter of labor, Zhang Yu not only made cultivation progress and earned more money, but also felt that burning heat inside him finally subside. His whole body felt refreshed.

Fu Ji remarked, “Zhang Yu, ever since you started abstaining, your work and study efficiency have skyrocketed.”

“Once the Virility Meat is fully digested, you should really stick with it.”

Zhang Yu replied calmly, “Stuff like that never mattered much to me anyway. I don’t get why you and Ah-Zhen worry so much.”

“I’ve been abstinent for over two weeks now, and my self-control’s so strong it scares even me.”

“I have this feeling that when the Ten University League Tournament rolls around, I’ll be Wanfa University’s secret weapon against Pleasure and Harmony University.”

As he walked back toward the dorm, Zhang Yu suddenly caught sight of a seductive beauty ad and frowned. “I haven’t searched for anything like that in over two weeks. What’s up with this algorithm?”

Fu Ji chimed in, “Maybe it noticed you haven’t searched for that stuff lately and figured you’re in a psychologically vulnerable period, so it started targeting your weak points.”

“Hang in there, Zhang Yu. Don’t fall for the bait.”

Zhang Yu sneered, “A mere ad dares to shake my Dao Heart?”

But after another thousand meters, with ads getting increasingly explicit, Zhang Yu’s face flushed, and his steps quickened.

He growled, “Damn algorithm. It’s not just kicking me while I’m down—it’s aiming right at my soft spot.”