Chapter 471: Yu Xinghan's Speed

Chapter 471: The Velocity of Yu Xinghan

True Monarch Tianzhang asked in surprise, "Yin Jiurao pays you 25 spirit coins a pop?"

"Are you certain it isn't you paying her 25 spirit coins?"

To the True Monarch, the idea that Yin Jiurao would pay Zhang Yu for the privilege of cultivation seemed an inversion of the natural order, a violation of the Yin-Yang Dao, and entirely contrary to the laws of heaven.

Zhang Yu hesitated for a moment, his gaze sweeping over his classmates nearby.

True Monarch Tianzhang raised a hand, casting a silence charm, and said, "Speak. They cannot hear you now."

Beside them, Gongshu Jin, Ying Xin, and Yu Xinghan let out long, heavy sighs, lamenting their inability to hear the ensuing details.

Though they were aware of Zhang Yu selling seeds to the professors of the Pharmacology Department, even Yu Xinghan had never heard the specifics from him.

How could he not be interested in such a lucrative business?

Yu Xinghan stared at the projected text before him, thinking, "Alas, the poorer one is, the less one hears of how the wealthy make their fortunes."

The text beneath the silence charm read: Will you pay 30 spirit coins to Zhang Yu to listen to the muted content?

Zhang Yu said, "What Professor Yin Jiurao pays for is..."

"On-site inspection..."

"A firm grip..."

"An instantaneous extraction..."

"That is what commands the price of 25 spirit coins."

Zhang Yu added proudly, "If it were a Yin-artifact, the time and effort required would be greater, and the price would naturally have to rise."

Hearing this, True Monarch Tianzhang frowned inwardly.

He knew that if the boy were so candid—even inviting him to verify the price with Yin Jiurao directly—he was likely telling the truth.

Still, verification was essential.

Of course, to avoid alerting the target, the True Monarch did not go directly to Yin Jiurao to ask about Zhang Yu's rates.

He intended to browse her latest papers first to see if he could find any clues.

After all, for a pharmacology professor to purchase materials from Zhang Yu and personally harvest and inspect them, it must be related to her research.

Her most recent publications would surely reflect her current focus.

Vast streams of text and diagrams flickered rapidly through the True Monarch's ocular implants; in the blink of an eye, he had scanned the entire paper.

With his lightning-fast cognition and formidable capacity for comprehension, he finished reviewing Yin Jiurao’s latest work in moments.

To be honest, he did not fully understand it.

After all, every field is a mountain; as an expert in the Department of Talismans, it was perfectly normal for him to struggle with the intricacies of pharmacology.

True Monarch Tianzhang understood that this was no longer the ancient era, where great masters could contemplate the Immortal Dao and grasp profound truths at will.

Today, research into the techniques of the Immortal Dao had become increasingly specialized and arduous; even university professors, despite their best efforts, could only achieve breakthroughs in narrow, isolated fields.

If the great masters of the past were like pioneers carving out mountain peaks, then today’s professors were merely studying why a single blade of grass on those peaks had grown crooked.

It was hard to say which was superior, but one thing was certain: modern research would no longer trigger the world-shaking transformations of the past.

Though he missed many details, the True Monarch grasped the gist: the paper concerned drug adaptability, genetic material, bloodlines, and various elements of the Immortal Dao.

And the research materials, clearly, came from Zhang Yu.

It seemed the price Zhang Yu claimed to charge Yin Jiurao was likely genuine.

Mentally cursing the complication, the True Monarch looked at Zhang Yu and said, "25 spirit coins is too expensive; we cannot pay that."

"Furthermore, we have no need for the byproducts after each experiment. You may take them back and sell them to whomever you please."

Zhang Yu replied, "But they’ve already been extracted; they aren't fresh anymore. Who would buy them?"

True Monarch Tianzhang: "Three spirit coins at most."

He reminded Zhang Yu, "Once our experiments begin, we require volume. Three spirit coins is quite generous."

Zhang Yu naturally disagreed, and after a bout of haggling, the two remained at an impasse.

The True Monarch stopped looking at Zhang Yu and turned his gaze to Yu Xinghan.

He thought to himself, "You are not the only test subject here, Zhang Yu."

The True Monarch recalled the data he had just scanned; Yu Xinghan was every bit as excellent as Zhang Yu.

He dismissed the silence charm and looked at Yu Xinghan, asking, "You... did you want to withdraw just now?"

Zhang Yu was unbothered; with so many subjects, he could hardly stop the True Monarch from choosing another.

Yu Xinghan, however, felt a jolt. Thinking of the progress Zhang Yu had just made, he stepped out from behind Ying Xin and Gongshu Jin.

With a solemn expression, Yu Xinghan declared, "For the sake of the school and the advancement of Immortal Dao technology, I am duty-bound."

The next moment, the True Monarch channeled his magic, and the Yin-artifact, which had been dormant, stirred once more.

The Qionjiang Maiden No. 48, who had been anxious about her failure and terrified of the consequences, felt the True Monarch’s command. She lunged at Yu Xinghan like a rabid dog. Driven by a hatred for her work and a fear of unemployment, she now only craved simple, low-effort tasks.

Yu Xinghan was clearly such a target.

"According to the data, this one must also have low resistance."

"But I must prevent any accidents..."

The Yin-artifact transformed into a mist of light, instantly enveloping Yu Xinghan from head to toe.

This confirmed to the Qionjiang Maiden No. 48 that he could not trigger the non-interference list.

"Watch me finish him in an instant!"

Feeling the light mist wrap around him, Yu Xinghan thought with pride, "The efficiency I have honed for years has finally found its purpose."

Since his high school days of selling seeds, Yu Xinghan had moved from being a slave to his desires to tempering his Daoist heart, finally gaining control over his impulses.

Through constant practice and learning, he had come to understand certain truths.

For instance, when selling seeds for the same reward, the higher the speed and efficiency, the more money one could earn per unit of time.

Moreover, the faster the process, the less time it occupied, making it less likely to interfere with his studies and cultivation.

Or, when cultivating together, was it more profitable to complete one session in an hour, or ten?

The result was obvious.

Yu Xinghan thought, "This is why one should charge by the count, not by the time, when cultivating together!"

"This is what they call 'Speed breaks all techniques'!"

Through repeated tempering and accumulation, Yu Xinghan had been striving for breakthroughs in velocity.

In the past, when he still held expectations for Hehuan University, he had dreamed of joining his companions at the Thousand-Cultivator Assembly.

He dreamed that when Zhang Yu boasted of completing five sessions at the assembly, and Gongshu Jin sighed with envy at his own three, and Li Xiao felt inferior for having completed none, he, Yu Xinghan, could stand tall and declare: Ten!

At this very moment, feeling the warmth radiating from the mist and his consciousness drifting between waking and dreaming, Yu Xinghan thought, "Zhang Yu made such great progress... if I can succeed a few more times, how much stronger will I become?"

Even as Yu Xinghan was lost in his grand imaginings, he felt the magical power throughout his entire body surge forth, rushing wildly toward the female organ.

Within the span of a mere few breaths, the Nectarous Maiden felt that she had already sucked the entirety of Yu Xinghan's magical power completely dry.

She looked at Yu Xinghan before her with a hint of surprise, thinking to herself, "This fellow... is so fast. Though his resistance is very low, it still shouldn't be this fast."

"This is a complete, unreserved release of body and soul, a state of profound mental relaxation, and a heart filled with utter sincerity."

"This lad... perhaps through his repeated bouts of self-study, has already accumulated a subtle inkling of the Grand Dao of Yin and Yang."

Although the Nectarous Maiden Forty-Eight had evaluated both Zhang Yu and Yu Xinghan as exceedingly weak just after completing her initial probing.

Yet, this weakness in resistance... did not necessarily mean they were inferior.

For instance, the Nectarous Maiden knew that in many normal sessions of dual cultivation where energy flowed back and forth, speed was a paramount factor; after all, completing the work more efficiently within a given unit of time had always been a crucial criterion of evaluation.

And if it were a matter of unilateral extraction, speed became all the more vital.

Take the Yu Xinghan before her eyes, who in the Nectarous Maiden's estimation was a far superior subject for work than Zhang Yu.

It was just that this sort of high speed was more of an altruistic trait; only when both parties worked at high speed could it prove mutually beneficial.

When it came to resisting unilateral extraction, however, high resistance was the true advantage.

Even as the Nectarous Maiden pondered, she had already completed two consecutive rounds of work, not only devouring all of Yu Xinghan's magical power but swallowing a massive portion of his vital essence and blood in a single gulp.

Only then did the Nectarous Maiden return to her original position with satisfaction, activating the spiritual mechanism circuits within her body to digest the fruits of this harvest.

With a soft, muffled thud, under the shocked gazes of the crowd, Yu Xinghan, now deathly pale with hollow cheeks, collapsed onto the ground.

Zhang Yu and the others rushed to support Yu Xinghan, shouting, "Xinghan! Are you alright?"

Perfected Lord Tianzhang, who had been observing all along, also revealed a look of surprise, thinking, "There was no backward surge of magical power like there was with Zhang Yu, meaning it wasn't a normal, reciprocal dual cultivation? It was merely... a unilateral extraction?"

"The rules inherent in this... perhaps bear a close connection to the Nectarous Divine Lord's insights into the Grand Dao of Yin and Yang."

While Perfected Lord Tianzhang was lost in thought, he heard Zhang Yu speak up, "Yu Xinghan is about to kick the bucket, you all need to think of something fast."

Perfected Lord Tianzhang replied, "Rest assured, we will arrange for a medical team to treat him."

Yu Xinghan said with great difficulty, "This experiment of yours is far too dangerous, it poses a major safety hazard to all the testing students."

Perfected Lord Tianzhang said, "Rest assured, if you have any subsequent issues, you can come find us at any time, and we will look after you."

Yu Xinghan said, "This is not just a problem for me alone!"

"Exactly!" Zhang Yu stepped up to stand beside Yu Xinghan, "This is not just Yu Xinghan's problem alone."

Gongshu Jin and Ying Xin, upon hearing this, also stepped up one after another to stand behind the two of some.

Looking at the civil engineering students acting in perfect unison, Perfected Lord Tianzhang said indifferently, "Alright, you will be compensated with a sum of money."

Yu Xinghan's eyes lit up, and his deathly pale complexion grew flushed with color in the blink of an eye, "How much compensation?"

Grateful for the grand bounty from 'phands'

Grateful for the grand bounty from 'Cherry Candy'

(End of Chapter)