Chapter 593: Demon Rations Cut Off

Chapter 593: The Demon Grain Supply Is Cut Off

Zhang Yu pinched a Daoist seal, and as the 20th-level Formless Heart Weapon of the Heaven and Earth Ruin Tribulation surged, he felt a faint connection form with every object in the laboratory.

With a mere injection of mana, he could temporarily turn these items into his own magical treasures, further ignite them with the Fire Tribulation to push them into an overload mode, or channel Spirit Realm traffic to integrate them into the Spirit Realm network.

Zhang Yu mused: "If I push them with the Heaven and Earth Ruin Tribulation's Formless Heart Weapon and then link them to the Taihao Sword Realm, every enchanted temporary treasure... will become a part of my Taihao Sacred Law Sword Array."

While practicing the 20th-level Formless Heart Weapon, Zhang Yu mentally cataloged the military-grade power currently at his disposal.

He thought to himself: "The Heavenly Kunlun and the Heavenly Sun Brilliance God are my most effective construction tools, and the Sword Array, by unfolding the Sword Realm, can unify all my power; under such integration, the Formless Heart Weapon can further amplify my various capabilities."

"But this alone is not enough."

"After all, I lack a Divine Spirit Root that I can use at full capacity in battle, and the Green Lotus Sword Embryo can only serve as a passive trait."

"I possess no military-grade Dharma Remains on my person."

"Nor have I reached the upper limit for the number of military-grade treasures I can operate."

Zhang Yu knew that the top students among the Ten Great Universities all possessed Divine Spirit Roots, military-grade treasures, military-grade Dharma Remains, and had mastered military-grade techniques.

"Even with Bei Wufeng's assistance during the competition, a sword array composed of twenty-four Taihao Sacred Law flying swords is still insufficient."

"To defeat powerhouses like Dao Qiankun and Kuang Tianqing and seize the top spot in the Ten Universities League, I need even greater strength."

Zhang Yu understood that compared to the years of accumulation by the top scholars of the Ten Universities, his time for growth had been far too short.

Especially now, with only a little over a month remaining.

Thus, after concluding his practice of the Formless Heart Weapon, Zhang Yu threw himself heart and soul into a new project.

The Azure Water Gold Crystal Armor, the blueprint for a magical treasure obtained as the first prize in the Civil Engineering Competition, became his latest research objective.

However, the design blueprints for this armor had recently been deciphered by the Artifact Refining Department, making every refining step and processing method crystal clear.

Zhang Yu chose this armor not only because it represented military-grade power, but because his observations suggested it belonged to the "Great Sage Successor" chain of Dharma diagrams.

Zhang Yu speculated that the armor likely contained one of the "Great Sage Successor" techniques. By choosing the Azure Water Gold Crystal Armor, he hoped to gain both a new military-grade power and the technique hidden within—a true double victory.

Consulting the blueprints, Zhang Yu purchased a series of online courses, intending to use the Spirit Realm acceleration function of the Taiqing Realm to devour the necessary foundational knowledge.

Only upon seeing the detailed contents of the Azure Water Gold Crystal Armor's design for the first time did Zhang Yu truly begin to understand it.

"To be precise, the Azure Water Gold Crystal Armor is a bio-armor manufactured using biomimetic demon technology."

"Once refined, this armor will envelop the flesh like a living organism, even fusing with the body's tissues to become an additional organ."

Zhang Yu thought: "In this light, the Azure Water Gold Crystal Armor is actually something between a magical treasure and a Dharma Remains."

"But what kind of technique is hidden inside?"

At first glance, Zhang Yu found no clues, but he believed that as long as he continued his research, he would eventually crack the mystery.

...

Time flew by, and it was August.

Just as Zhang Yu was focused on the Azure Water Gold Crystal Armor, another major event caused quite a stir on the second level of Kunxu.

A vocational college under the Wanfa University, known as the Shanhai Vocational Institute, was rocked by a systemic corruption scandal, with a large number of personnel—from the principal down to the students—found to be followers of the Dual Cultivation Sect.

Once the incident broke out, it drew the attention of multiple factions, and several True Gods descended directly to seal off the entire school.

By the time Zhang Yu learned of the matter, all the Dual Cultivation Sect members within the college had been detained, the school was being dismantled, and a large number of teachers and students were being transferred to other vocational colleges.

"This Shanhai Vocational Institute... it seems to be the school that Shui Haiyu attended."

Zhang Yu remembered this student from the data he had collected on vocational students; it was precisely because the other party had been entangled in the Dual Cultivation Sect's affairs that it had drawn the attention of True Person Xuyang to his own activities.

"The entire school was dismantled because of the Dual Cultivation Sect?"

"Could it be that the investigation into Shui Haiyu has yielded results?"

Zhang Yu asked Zhang Pianpian, and her response confirmed his suspicions.

Zhang Pianpian said: "Shui Haiyu was indeed framed. Because he had sent his investigative footage to so many places, the Dual Cultivation Sect created the illusion that he had joined their ranks to resolve the trouble."

Zhang Yu asked: "But didn't Shui Haiyu commit suicide? Did his soul not transmit any information through the Spirit Realm?"

Zhang Pianpian replied: "The Dual Cultivation Sect intercepted his soul."

Hearing this, Zhang Yu was shocked: "Intercepted his soul? Does this mean the Dual Cultivation Sect has found a loophole in the Spirit Realm? Or have the True Gods also been influenced by them?"

Regardless of the answer, Zhang Yu felt that the waters here were deeper than he had originally imagined.

Zhang Pianpian did not explain the inside story, only adding: "Junior, I expect to head to the third level of Kunxu for graduate studies in September."

"As for you..."

In truth, Zhang Pianpian did not want Zhang Yu to participate in the upcoming Ten Universities League.

During her time investigating the Dual Cultivation Sect, she had sensed the undercurrents surging throughout the second level of Kunxu. It was as if several invisible hands were pulling strings behind the Ten Universities, preparing for some earth-shattering event.

It was only as the date of the Ten Universities League approached that these undercurrents gradually subsided.

But Zhang Pianpian understood that this was not the end of the matter, but rather the calm before the storm, a sign that an even more turbulent tide was coming.

She had a premonition that during the Ten Universities League, right among the ten schools, something cataclysmic was about to be triggered.

And as the most high-profile stage, the Ten Universities League would inevitably be the place where conflicts were most intense.

"Zhang Yu, don't participate in the Ten Universities League."

Zhang Pianpian ultimately did not say these words, for she knew Zhang Yu had already paid too much and made up his mind; he could not be dissuaded by a few sentences.

"At least Zhang Yu shouldn't be the focus of attention during the league."

Thinking this, Zhang Pianpian reminded him: "Be careful during the league. Because of the reward of a self-selected Immortal Sect technique, this competition has attracted too much attention, and conflicts are likely to break out on-site."

"Remember, if you encounter danger, run immediately; it doesn't matter if you forfeit the match."

"If something happens, remember to contact your teacher."

"If it's inconvenient to contact your teacher, send me a message."

"Once I receive the relayed message on the third level, I will reply to you as soon as possible."

After receiving Zhang Pianpian's instructions, Zhang Yu ended the call and returned to his study of the Azure Water Gold Crystal Armor.

Soon, another matter began to circulate widely within Wanfa University.

Unlike the commotion caused by the dismantling of the vocational college, this news was whispered only among teachers and students, consisting entirely of gossip; there were no news reports, nor any official response.

Feng Tingting: Jin Guangyuan, the second-ranked student in the Finance Department, has been kicked off the school team and expelled!

Zhang Yu was stunned: Expelled? What did he do?

Feng Tingting: No one knows. I heard he was taken away by a True God right after work.

Feng Tingting: No one has seen him since.

Zhang Yu's heart stirred, and he recalled the words of True Person Xuyang.

"Could this Jin Guangyuan be the finance student who was in contact with True Person Xuyang?"

Zhang Yu opened the school team group and found that Jin Guangyuan, who had once been there, was indeed gone.

He then checked the school's Top 50 group, and Jin Guangyuan was no longer there either.

Shan Congning, who had been purged from the group when Zhang Yu squeezed into the top fifty and pushed her into fifty-first place, suddenly reappeared.

Shan Congning: I have returned.

Seeing this, Zhang Yu could not help but sigh to himself: "The top fifty in the entire school, the second-ranked student of the Finance Department, just expelled like that?"

He sent a message to Master Xuyang to inquire, but the other party replied: Little friend, this matter cannot be spoken of for the time being.

Staring at the reply, Zhang Yu fell into deep thought, musing: "It seems... it is highly likely related to Master Xuyang's own affairs."

As Jin Guangyuan was expelled, perhaps it was merely Zhang Yu’s imagination, but the denunciation from the demon-descendants suddenly lost its momentum.

The most obvious sign was the rapid decline in comments on his posts; the demon-descendants’ messages were now less than a tenth of what they once were.

Fuji chuckled: "Heh, the second-ranked student of the Finance Department being expelled must mean the department has lost the upper hand in their power struggle and been suppressed by the likes of Ciji."

"And the demon-descendants who came to Wanfa University are backed by the Finance Department."

"Most likely, the Finance Department has stopped the funding, the supply of demon-grain has been cut off, and those leading the charge for money have naturally stopped working, so the momentum has withered."

Zhang Yu found Fuji’s speculation quite logical, yet even though the ringleaders had vanished, the prejudice the demon-descendants held against him remained deep-seated.

For instance, at this very moment, Zhang Yu had made a rare visit to the construction site, only to feel the hostility radiating from the gazes of the many demon-descendants present.

After all, in the spirit-sight of the demon-descendants, Zhang Yu’s aura burned a deep, bruised purple, marking him as one of the top hundred figures on their list of pariahs.

Zhang Yu, however, remained indifferent.

Two military certifications shimmered behind him, and with his school-wide ranking of eighteenth hovering above his head, he spoke calmly: "All of you..."

"Little beasts!" Shi Yunxiang stood beside Zhang Yu, shouting to the shock of the gathered demon-descendants.

Zhang Yu: "I am a man who despises rework; you had best cooperate fully with my work from here on out, otherwise..."

Shi Yunxiang: "I will eat you all."

Zhang Yu: "Did you hear that, everyone..."

Shi Yunxiang: "You little beasts!"