Chapter 464: Zhang Yu and the Surge of Spirit Coins

Boom—boom—boom—BOOM!

Amid thunderous blasts, Zhang Yu unleashed the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might, hammering the ground below with punch after punch.

Swept repeatedly by Earthfiend Gravity, the land convulsed like a continuous earthquake, threatening to tear apart everything above and below.

Dust and sand surged skyward, morphing into black dragons that howled across the battlefield, tearing through anything alive.

Gravity fields of Earthfiend origin flared to life one after another, locking madly onto every enemy.

As Zhang Yu unleashed this storm of attacks, characters danced wildly in Chan Rong’s ocular husk, flooding him with frantic messages from his teammates.

“Stop him!”

“I can’t hold out! Another hit and my Law Husk’s finished!”

“Chan Rong, where the hell are you?!”

Chan Rong replied tersely: “Hold on! Victory is close!”

He activated the Great Sun Aspects and charged at Zhang Yu, launching searing flames that slammed into Zhang Yu’s body again and again.

Despite the desperate calls for aid, Chan Rong gave it everything he had, launching a frenzied assault.

But Zhang Yu didn’t flinch. Wrapped in raging firelight, pummeled relentlessly by Chan Rong’s blows, he remained unmoved—focused only on slamming his palms into the ground again and again, wringing every second out of the attack window.

Under the ferocious power of the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might, the entire battlefield churned like a boiling sea. Not only did it grind the construction site to rubble, it shattered Chan Rong’s team—one after another, they surrendered outright.

…

In the spectator stands of the Spiritual Realm.

Wangou Xuan said calmly, “It’s over.”

On the field, Zhang Yu had beaten back all of Chan Rong’s teammates and switched fully to defense. He concealed his position, dodged attacks, and stopped engaging Chan Rong head-on—his sole aim was to drag things out.

Wangou Xuan added, “The array formation of Wanfa University will soon be complete.”

“If Zhang Yu pulls back just a little and gets the array’s support, he’ll be even less afraid of Chan Rong.”

“Chan Rong can’t break through Zhang Yu’s ironclad defense, and he’s not strong enough to beat the rest of Wanfa University either.”

As expected, the rest of the match played out exactly as Wangou Xuan had predicted. When the competition finally ended, Chan Rong still hadn’t managed to defeat Zhang Yu.

Wangou Xuan evaluated, “In the end, the Great Sun Aspects from Vajra University are no match for Wanfa University’s Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might.”

“The power and versatility of these two military-grade Techniques aren’t even in the same league.”

“Even if Chan Rong’s mastery of his Technique runs deeper, it doesn’t matter.”

Beside him, Yue Guanqiong said coldly, “In that case, it looks like we’ll still have to face Wanfa University in this year’s intercollegiate tournament.”

Wangou Xuan frowned. “If it’s just Zhang Yu alone, that wouldn’t be a problem.”

“He may be talented, with rapid martial progress, uncanny tactical instincts, and a tanky suite of defensive Techniques—but he’s not rich.”

Yue Guanqiong nodded slightly. Not being rich... that was a far greater flaw than mediocre talent.

After all, with enough money, even mediocre talent could be force-fed into excellence.

But no amount of talent could generate wealth out of thin air.

Yue Guanqiong analyzed, “No matter how fast his cultivation advances, without the funds for a Seven Absolutes Law Husk or top-tier artifacts, his construction output and destructive capability will always fall short.”

“He can only use his Technique advantage to bully someone like Chan Rong who uses the Great Sun Aspects.”

But what truly worried Wangou Xuan and Yue Guanqiong wasn’t just Zhang Yu.

One Zhang Yu, they could handle.

But what if Mo Shangjin showed up?

Still injured and unseen since the last round, Mo Shangjin’s shadow now loomed large in their minds.

…

Outside the arena.

Chan Rong blocked Wanfa University’s team.

Zhang Yu tilted his head. “Something you need?”

Chan Rong said, “How much for a friend slot?”

Zhang Yu blinked. “Huh?”

Chan Rong said flatly, “I’ll pay up to 12 spirit coins.”

After this match, Chan Rong had made a judgment—Zhang Yu’s friend slot was worth buying. There was profit potential here.

Especially since Zhang Yu only had a single ocular husk, yet displayed monstrous martial prowess. To Chan Rong, that made him a high-potential stock.

That level of strength meant he had the means to earn money. Maybe not this year, but next year or the year after, he’d surely rise.

And only one ocular husk? That meant massive room for future spending. Once he had money, he’d need to buy—hard.

After all, Zhang Yu was from the Civil Engineering Department. He wasn’t in Artifact Refinement—he couldn’t make his own gear. Law Husks and artifacts would all have to be purchased.

“Zhang Yu may not have the money for a new Law Husk now, or any real artifacts, but sooner or later he’ll need them.”

“He won’t stick to just one Seven Absolutes Law Husk from Wanfa University. He’ll need backups for different situations, and to reduce wear and tear on the main set…”

Winning or losing the match didn’t matter—Chan Rong wasn’t about to miss a money-making opportunity.

Especially since they’d surrendered early. No major losses.

Not like last year, when Mo Shangjin blew up his entire team’s Law Husks and artifacts in one brutal strike.

Zhang Yu had no idea what Chan Rong was thinking. After a bit of haggling, he sold the friend slot for 13 spirit coins, cheerfully boosting his bank balance.

…

Aboard the flying vessel departing Vajra University, Mo Shangjin’s projection spoke:

“Well done in this round.”

“Especially Zhang Yu—he leveraged his Technique advantage to bridge the power gap between the teams…”

Next to him, Su Yanyang recalled the battle and sighed in relief.

Good thing Zhang Yu mastered the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might. Now I can slack a bit in the next matches, save some Immortal Dao potential, and let him carry the team.

But victory didn’t bring peace for long—Mo Shangjin soon gave them more to worry about.

“Based on the tournament schedule and team strengths, our toughest opponents ahead are Heavenly Sword University and Immortal Soldier University.”

“I watched their recent matches. Both teams are strong this year.”

Mo Shangjin continued, “Here’s their match footage. Watch it when you have time.”

Zhang Yu casually opened the video and watched.

One scene showed the arena cleaved in two by a single sword strike from Heavenly Sword University.

Another, Immortal Soldier University overturning the battlefield with a giant puppet.

The strength of both teams was undeniable.

Mo Shangjin said, “In terms of raw strength, both are currently stronger than you.”

“And beyond that… both teams harbor particular hostility toward Wanfa University.”

Zhang Yu raised an eyebrow. “Hostility? Why?”

Mo Shangjin sighed. “Old grudges from your senior classmates.”

“I’ve tried for years to mend things, but no luck.”

“In any case, be careful when facing them.”

As he watched the battle clips, Zhang Yu thought to himself,

As time goes on, I’ll be able to reveal more and more of my strength.

But beyond Techniques, the area where I can most easily grow stronger… is artifacts.

After practicing and applying the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might for some time, Zhang Yu realized the gear he’d forged last year was falling behind.

They still handled construction grunt work.

But during full-power combat using the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might, they couldn’t keep up.

He thought, If I can upgrade my gear, my power will improve significantly.

But that takes money. And skill.

For money, he remembered he still needed to pay his construction team’s wages.

For skill, he’d need more lab time, more simulations in the Spiritual Realm. All of which required—again—money.

Sigh… Guess I’ll wait for the project payment.

…

In the Civil Engineering Department’s faculty chat group.

The geology teacher Wei Huai messaged: Headquarters is investigating how Zhang Yu got authorized for four of the Seven Absolutes in such a short time.

Wei Huai: That doesn’t seem strictly compliant with the rules…

Tu Lishan: It was for the department’s performance this year. The higher-ups will understand.

Wei Huai: What if it still violates regulations, and he loses anyway?

Wei Huai: The other top ten schools all build their strength steadily on military-grade Techniques. They’re solid.

Wei Huai: Rushing things like Zhang Yu did may backfire. Even if he has the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might, he might not win.

Tu Lishan: Congrats to the competition team for defeating Vajra University! [confetti] [confetti] [confetti]

Tu Lishan: Director Gao, I had Mo Shangjin upload the match video.

Reading the chat, Director Gao sneered inwardly.

He knew Wei Huai’s remarks came straight from Director Lin.

Although they’d successfully pressured Zhang Yu into learning the Civil Engineering Seven Absolutes as fast as possible, Director Gao knew the Peace Faction was just waiting for him to fail—to use that as ammo against them.

Fortunately, that kid delivered.

Looking at the schedule, Gao sighed.

But next month, we might face Heavenly Sword University or Immortal Soldier University. Their Civil Engineering Departments are no pushovers.

He also recalled the attention from Daoist Qiyun recently.

Gao knew that Principal Qiyun had been keeping an eye on the department’s results.

After all, it was he who recommended Zhang Yu in the first place.

If the results were poor, and Director Lin and the Finance Department launched another attack, it would reflect badly on him too.

So after today’s victory, Gao immediately reported to Daoist Qiyun.

Daoist Qiyun replied: Not bad.

Gao: Zhang Yu recently started a company and took on one of our school’s construction projects.

Gao: It’s a small operation with poor cash flow. I was wondering if the school could help.

Daoist Qiyun: The school has always supported student entrepreneurship.

Daoist Qiyun: I’ll speak to the relevant parties and try to speed things up.

Daoist Qiyun: Tell Zhang Yu to keep working hard.

Daoist Qiyun: Aim for top three. The prizes for this tournament are excellent.

Seeing the message, Director Gao breathed a little easier.

That should mean Zhang Yu’s project payment won’t be delayed for long.

That would give him a major boost in strength—and help the team climb higher in the rankings.

…

Time passed quickly. Before long, it was early February.

Zhang Yu had just wrapped up all the work on his project. He activated the Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Might and soared into the sky, heading back toward University City.

Along the way, he scrolled through messages.

Feng Tingting: Ugh! My thesis got rejected again!

Zhang Yu chuckled. He knew the Artifact Refinement Department got more paper-heavy with each year.

By the time you reached the Gold Core or Nascent Soul stages, it only got worse.

Gold Core still required exams.

Nascent Soul didn’t—but it demanded papers, research results, and panel reviews.

Just then, Zhang Yu’s eyes lit up.

The project payment had just landed.

His spirit coin balance skyrocketed—over 140!