Chapter 272: Heading to the Second Layer of Kunxu

Chapter 272: Bound for the Second Tier of Kunxu

A few days later.

Inside the hospital.

Zhang Yu bolted upright from his hospital bed, looking somewhat blankly at the immaculate ward before him.

Beside the bed, the voice of Daoist Xinghuo carried over: "I thought you would be waking up right around today, but it turns out it was a bit faster than I anticipated."

Zhang Yu snapped his head around, staring at Daoist Xinghuo beside him as he murmured, "I..."

The next moment, he rubbed his own head, feeling a wave of sharp pain emanating from his brain.

"Hiss..." Countless images surfaced in Zhang Yu's mind, and he gradually recalled what had happened.

"An explosion... and then the building suddenly collapsed."

"I tried to leap from the window to the adjacent skyscraper, but someone struck me back inside..."

Then, a sky full of construction materials had come crashing down.

Zhang Yu remembered relying on his Formless Cloud Aegis and Nine Heavens Cloudforce to resist with all his might, and after finally being buried, he had actively entered the state of suspended animation through the Spring and Autumn Endless Chan, while striving to maintain the Shattered Ox Body and Mind Art.

He thought of nothing, contemplated nothing, feeling only that he was within a vast, dark world of consciousness, sustaining the regeneration of his own flesh and blood.

The next moment, Zhang Yu suddenly snapped to reality: "Where is A-Zhen? How is A-Zhen?"

Daoist Xinghuo looked at Zhang Yu with a somewhat complex gaze and said, "Rest assured, she is unharmed."

Only then did Zhang Yu breathe a sigh of relief, asking, "Did the Orthogod arrive? Did they catch the people who ambushed me?"

Filled with murderous intent, he said, "Who on earth attacked me? I want them to pay in compensation until they die!"

Daoist Xinghuo said, "Two Foundation Establishment cultivators on the verge of dying from old age. They jammed the network near the apartment building and used forged data to temporarily make the Orthogod believe everything was normal locally."

Zhang Yu asked, "Were they caught?"

Daoist Xinghuo said flatly, "They committed suicide before they could be captured, and all their assets were thoroughly laundered prior to their suicide. They were clearly well-prepared for the mission's failure."

"As for the person behind them, according to the clues Deng Bingding has currently unearthed... it might be Wang Yin of the Oasis Group."

Zhang Yu's gaze froze: "Him again."

Daoist Xinghuo spoke indifferently, "However, his strike this time violated a taboo, especially since you have already negotiated terms with Wanfa University and are an agreed-upon talent. Striking like this before the college entrance examination is far too egregious."

"The physical bodies and souls of over a hundred related personnel have already been dealt with, and the upper echelons of the Oasis Group have also paid a massive fine. Wang Yin should not dare to use such methods against you again in the future."

Zhang Yu said coldly, "So he will use other methods?"

Daoist Xinghuo said, "Normal academic competition and business competition are things no one will interfere with, of course."

Yet in his heart, Daoist Xinghuo secretly thought, "But... is it really just Wang Yin? To pay such a massive price just to deal with Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen?"

"Did Wang Yin also perceive the potential of those two, intending to eliminate a future bane in advance?"

"Or was it the Nether University, or even the Nether Palace... Did someone there perceive Zhang Yu's extraordinary nature just as I did, and thus wanted to stifle this future genius student of Wanfa University in the cradle?"

Daoist Xinghuo could not be certain, and could only keep this conjecture suppressed in his heart for the time being.

In any case, there was still a month left before Zhang Yu would head to Wanfa University. Once he entered Wanfa University, there would be no need to worry about pressure from Nether University.

As for the remaining month, he decided to accompany Zhang Yu for a bit longer, serving both as protection and taking advantage of this final period to further guide him.

Right at that moment, Zhang Yu looked at his phone and said, "Why can't I get through to A-Zhen's phone?"

Daoist Xinghuo fell silent for a moment, and ultimately said, "In the process of fighting those two Foundation Establishment cultivators, A-Zhen awakened a divine spiritual root."

"It was precisely the appearance of the divine spiritual root that drew the Orthogod to the scene ahead of time."

Hearing these words, Zhang Yu's expression changed drastically, thinking to himself, "Damn it! A-Zhen usually represses her true spiritual root to keep it from evolving. She must have been forced by those two fellows to unleash it."

Zhang Yu looked anxiously at Daoist Xinghuo and asked, "Then what happened to A-Zhen afterward?"

Watching the shift in Zhang Yu's expression, Daoist Xinghuo estimated in his mind that the secret of Bai Zhenzhen's spiritual root was likely something the Zhang Yu before him had long known.

Whenever he thought of this, Daoist Xinghuo felt somewhat deeply moved: "To think that these two disciples I guided would truly surprise me, each one more than the last."

"I originally thought that Zhang Yu's suspected Martial Dao Sacred Physique was already a rare talent the likes of which I would seldom encounter in this lifetime."

"Yet I never expected Bai Zhenzhen to be even more terrifying, possessing a naturally evolving spiritual root that has actually evolved into a divine spiritual root... Her natural talent is even above Zhang Yu's."

However, Daoist Xinghuo knew now was not the time to dwell on this. Upon hearing Zhang Yu's question, he answered, "She was taken away by the Orthogod."

"But you do not need to worry. According to Deng Bingding... Bai Zhenzhen is currently safe. Instead, she was protected by Lord Qiqing of Tianjian University, and in the future, she will likely enter Tianjian University and become a disciple of Lord Qiqing."

Daoist Xinghuo explained, "Lord Qiqing is a Soul Transformation Sword Immortal who has always wanted to find a successor for the Ultimate Passion Sword Dao. It is said that during the Foundation Establishment examination, he already thought very highly of Bai Zhenzhen."

Zhang Yu froze slightly upon hearing this, thinking to himself, "Deng Bingding seemed to have mentioned that during the initial Dao Heart test, some great figure above was quite satisfied with A-Zhen's performance in the illusionary realm, which was why they granted an interest-free loan to A-Zhen, who wasn't even first place at the time."

"Could it be this Lord Qiqing? Can this Soul Transformation Sword Immortal... view the contents of the Foundation Establishment examination?"

Zhang Yu then recalled how, when the top ten universities had previously offered their terms, it was also Tianjian University that gave A-Zhen the best enrollment conditions.

Daoist Xinghuo continued to comfort him, "Even if it is a divine spiritual root, A-Zhen has after all already established her foundation. Forcible extraction of the divine spiritual root would only ruin it. Now that she has gained the cultivation of a Soul Transformation Lord from Tianjian University, it is instead a good thing."

Zhang Yu nodded slightly. Although he still felt somewhat uneasy in his heart, he knew that he could change nothing at this moment.

"She is still on the first tier, right? Then can I go find her?"

Daoist Xinghuo shook his head: "Once the college entrance examination is over, she will ascend to the second tier. But her current security level is extremely high; no one is permitted to see her."

"But rest assured, as long as you both enter the second tier and attend university in the future, there will always be opportunities for you to meet."

Seeing Zhang Yu's expression relax slightly, Daoist Xinghuo sighed secretly in his heart, "Though it is said... that after a divine spiritual root establishes its foundation, extracting it would ruin it, it is not as if there are no methods to refine both the person and the root into a Dharma Skeleton."

But whether this Lord Qiqing would do such a thing, Daoist Xinghuo was uncertain, and thus did not wish to speak of it to cause Zhang Yu further futile worry.

Aside from this, he thought of another issue. "Alas, to think that I also misjudged; Bai Zhenzhen's aptitude actually far exceeds Zhang Yu's."

"Now that she possesses a divine spiritual root and has become the disciple of a Soul Transformation Lord, if Lord Qiqing truly intends to nurture her... I fear that after entering university, the gap in cultivation between Bai Zhenzhen and Zhang Yu will rapidly widen, and the distance between the two in ranking, wealth, and status will grow further and further apart."

Looking at the Zhang Yu before him, Daoist Xinghuo thought to himself, "Even if they were cherished friends in high school, I fear their feelings will eventually sour and change over time."

Daoist Xinghuo had already witnessed too many similar occurrences, but he knew that saying anything to Zhang Yu at this moment would be useless. All of this could ultimately only be felt slowly and digested gradually by the persons involved.

Right at that moment, Zhang Yu was seen scrambling out of the hospital bed. While twisting his body and performing the movements of the Spring and Autumn Endless Chan, he said, "Master, I feel that my body is mostly recovered now. Can we start training directly?"

At this moment, Zhang Yu's eyes were filled with fighting spirit, seemingly burning with an endless hunger for power and cultivation.

Daoist Xinghuo nodded: "You have indeed mostly recovered. Let's go then. Do not exercise here and disturb the other patients."

Over the course of the following month, apart from breathing and respiring at the spiritual vein, Daoist Xinghuo guided Zhang Yu through bitter cultivation every day, almost without rest day or night.

Particularly upon sensing that insatiable hunger for the immortal path and cultivation within Zhang Yu's heart, Daoist Xinghuo put even more strenuous effort into his guidance.

Meanwhile, Yu Xinghan would occasionally join in, receiving Daoist Xinghuo's hellish training together with him.

...

At the same time.

Within a certain spiritual vein on the first tier.

Bai Zhenzhen, who was currently engaged in respiration, suddenly opened her eyes, looked at the Deng Bingding before her, and said, "Wandering Deity Deng, could I trouble you to bring a message to Zhang Yu?"

Deng Bingding smiled slightly: "No problem. What message do you wish to bring?"

Looking at the Bai Zhenzhen before him, Deng Bingding secretly marveled in his heart, "To think it is an evolving spiritual root. It is already a divine spiritual root now; could it not evolve into an immortal spiritual root in the future? Wouldn't that make her a true seed of the sect?"

"So it seems, Zhang Yu might just be a decoy after all."

"Is this Bai Zhenzhen the talent that the higher-ups are truly planning to cultivate?"

Thinking this, Deng Bingding grew even more impressed by the foresight of those above: "This move is hidden so deeply. If it weren't for Netherworld University's accidental discovery this time... Hmm? Could it be... that Netherworld University is also using Wang Yin's incident as an excuse, and their real target isn't Zhang Yu, but rather aiming to eliminate Bai Zhenzhen early?"

Deng Bingding couldn't be certain, but he felt that Bai Zhenzhen before him was becoming increasingly important and mysterious.

"Compared to her, Zhang Yu seems like just an ordinary student."

"But their relationship seems quite good for now. I should try to befriend both sides."

...

Inside the training hall.

Zhang Yu lay twisted on the ground, enduring the pain as he straightened his dislocated limbs one by one.

Just then, a message came through on his phone from Deng Bingding.

"Ah Zhen asked him to pass a message to me?"

Bai Zhenzhen: Yu, I'm doing well. Focus on your college entrance exams. Once I'm up there, I'll find a way to come for you.

Reading the message, Zhang Yu felt a sense of relief.

The voice of Starfire Master echoed: "Had enough rest? How long are you going to lie there?"

Zhang Yu gritted his teeth and stood up abruptly: "Let's continue."

...

A month passed in a flash.

With the end of the college entrance exams, Zhang Yu and the others concluded their three years of high school.

On this day, aboard the flying vessel heading toward the Ascension Platform.

Zhang Yu watched as Songyang City grew smaller beneath his feet, the past three years seeming to flash through his mind.

Just then, Yu Xinghan patted him on the shoulder and said, "Brother, what do you think about joining Heavenly Sword University once we're up there? With Sister Zhen looking out for us, wouldn't it be easier to get by?"

Zhang Yu had considered this question before and now shook his head: "Forget it. Neither of us is skilled in what Heavenly Sword University teaches. Going there would only hold Ah Zhen back."

Zhang Yu knew that all his current preparations were geared toward the path of Ten Thousand Arts University.

If he went to Heavenly Sword, it would undoubtedly slow down his progress in improving his strength.

He thought to himself: "In this world, strength is ultimately the most important thing. Without enough strength, what use is it to see Ah Zhen?"

"Without enough strength, I can't even protect myself."

Le Mulan approached and asked, "Zhang Yu, are you also choosing Ten Thousand Arts University? Which department are you planning to join?"

Zhang Yu replied casually, "Civil Engineering Department."

Le Mulan was slightly taken aback: "Ci... Civil Engineering Department?"

Just then, a scream echoed through the air. Zhang Yu turned sharply to see Xiong Wenwu pinned to the ground, with several people kneeling on the black bear's back.

"You! What are you hiding in your rear? Smuggling contraband, aren't you?"

"Stop squeezing!" Xiong Wenwu's face flushed red: "You're squeezing the hemorrhoids that flared up again two days ago."

At the same time, a groaning voice echoed in Zhang Yu's mind.

"How long have I been asleep?"

(End of Chapter)