Chapter 289: I Want to Join the Joyful Union Study Group
Hearing Fu Ji’s words, Zhang Yu nodded, mentally communicating, “This place is good. I don’t sense any cameras.”
“What do you think, Fu Ji?”
Fu Ji sensed the surroundings and replied, “This will do.”
She transformed back into a tattered rag doll, placing herself — as a symbol of the Evil God — on the altar made of stacked concrete.
Zhang Yu then placed one of his Time-Worn Demonic Eyes, acting as a medium for human-divine connection, into Fu Ji’s arms.
As Fu Ji tapped the air, a series of arcane incantations flowed from her lips. In the next moment, an invisible surge of Evil God Power coursed through the Time-Worn Demonic Eye, connecting to the Spirit Realm Network.
Fu Ji sighed, “Alas, limited resources, insufficient offerings, and a small-scale ritual mean the effects will be modest today.”
“The Surveillance Ritual can only control one camera within a 10-meter radius.”
“The Anti-Surveillance Ritual should temporarily block all cameras within a 15-meter radius.”
As the ritual concluded, Zhang Yu sensed two new ritual powers within him and asked, “What about your own network connection? Is that complete too?”
Fu Ji chuckled. “The Roaming Ritual is complete. I can now access the Spirit Realm Network through your Bionic Eye.”
In the eyes of the Evil God, the world was no longer monotonous. She could now perceive Spirit Realm Projections and even browse the network.
Zhang Yu quickly tested the power of the Surveillance Ritual.
First, he used the Detection Ritual to sense a nearby surveillance camera. As the Surveillance Ritual activated, a live feed appeared in his vision.
With a mental command, he rotated the camera, capturing a panoramic view of the surroundings.
Feeling the effects of the Surveillance Ritual, Zhang Yu thought, “This Surveillance Ritual’s power… could be useful at construction sites in the future.”
“It could help me scavenge unclaimed ingredients.”
“But having both my own perspective and the surveillance feed feels strange… My movements have become sluggish, lacking their usual agility.”
“I’ll need practice.”
After completing the ritual, Zhang Yu moved to another location and resumed cultivating the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art.
Over the next few days, in addition to attending classes and practicing his cultivation art, Zhang Yu occasionally used the Surveillance Ritual to practice coordinating his own perspective with the surveillance feed.
That day, Zhang Yu had just returned to his dormitory. While taking his compounded medicine, he monitored the street outside using the surveillance cameras, observing the crowds passing through the dormitory area.
Suddenly, Le Mulan’s figure appeared on the monitor.
Besides Le Mulan, Zhang Yu also noticed a young man walking beside her.
Xuan Ge strolled beside Le Mulan, his gaze sweeping over the surroundings of the 125th floor. He thought to himself, “As expected, after coming up from the First Layer, Le Mulan’s financial situation is quite modest. She can only afford to stay here temporarily.”
“I heard she’s sharing a room with someone?”
“In that case, if I show a little more sincerity, I should be able to negotiate an even lower price for dual cultivation with her.”
“Or… I could let her move into my dormitory to offset the dual cultivation fees.”
While Xuan Ge’s mind raced with calculations, he said aloud, “Student Le, the dormitory conditions on the 125th floor are rather poor, and the spiritual energy here is far inferior to that of the upper residences. Have you considered transferring to a better place?”
Le Mulan replied calmly, “The conditions here may be modest, but my roommates are all very kind. Being with them… I feel it greatly benefits my studies.”
Xuan Ge chuckled inwardly. “What academic benefit could she possibly gain from rooming with students on the 125th floor? They’re probably just poor wretches from the First Layer.”
Just then, Le Mulan said, “I’m almost there, Xuan Ge. You can go ahead if you have other plans. You didn’t really need to come this far with me.”
Xuan Ge smiled. “It’s on my way, and I said I wanted to be friends. Can’t we chat a bit while walking?”
“Now that we’re at the dorm, won’t you invite me in for a while?”
At that moment, the dorm door opened, and Yu Xinghan emerged, having just finished his cement-mixed medicine.
He looked at Le Mulan and said, “The medicine’s here. Zhang Yu and I took ours since you weren’t back yet. Don’t forget to take your share when you go in.”
Since the four roommates returned at different times, they often discussed their medicine schedules online and ordered the compounded medicine in advance.
After speaking to Le Mulan, Yu Xinghan turned to Xuan Ge and asked, “Are you a classmate?”
The moment Xuan Ge saw Yu Xinghan, he froze slightly.
Staring at the Foundation Establishment Class ranking above Yu Xinghan’s head, he thought in astonishment, “Foundation Establishment Class?”
Looking at the ranking above the other student’s head, Xuan Ge felt an overwhelming pressure wash over him, causing his body to tremble slightly.
“Le Mulan is living with a Foundation Establishment Student?”
Just as Xuan Ge was still reeling from this revelation, Zhang Yu emerged from the dormitory, intending to go out for body refinement.
Seeing Zhang Yu’s ranking as 8th in the Foundation Establishment Class, Xuan Ge felt the pressure in the air grow even heavier, forcing him to take a step back.
“No wonder he’s ranked 8th in the Foundation Establishment Class,” Xuan Ge thought to himself. “Just seeing his ranking above his head exerts such immense pressure!”
His relaxed smile stiffened into a polite, cautious expression as he said, “I’m Le Mulan’s classmate. My name is Xuan Ge. Greetings, seniors.”
At that moment, a graceful figure swept past Xuan Ge and entered the dormitory — Zhang Pianpian, returning from class for lunch.
Seeing the words “Talisman Department, Foundation Establishment Stage, Rank 49” floating above Zhang Pianpian’s head, Xuan Ge felt the air freeze around him. His breathing quickened, and he thought in shock, “Is she an academic overachiever who’s made it into the department rankings?”
After seeing three Foundation Establishment Students in a row, Xuan Ge’s thoughts shifted repeatedly, ultimately settling on a single question: “Why is Le Mulan living with three Foundation Establishment Students?”
“Could I have misjudged her? Is her network and background even more impressive than I thought?”
At that moment, Xuan Ge had also internally abandoned his original plan… of using money to coerce Le Mulan into dual cultivation.
“If Le Mulan truly has such connections, then it shouldn’t be me throwing money at her to cultivate with me.”
“It should be her throwing money at me to cultivate with her, to improve her performance… That’s how it should be!”
“I almost lost out…”
Xuan Ge muttered to himself, narrowly avoiding a mistake. Then he wondered, “But she doesn’t seem interested?”
“Could she not know the benefits of dual cultivation?”
“If she was focused solely on academics in high school and didn’t learn about this, it’s not impossible.”
“Then I’ll have to properly educate her about the necessity of dual cultivation during university.”
“But…”
The thought of two men and two women sharing such a small dorm sent a jolt through Xuan Ge. “Could this be a Joyful Union Study Group? Have they already formed dual cultivation partnerships? Is that why Le Mulan isn’t interested in me?”
“Exactly! Why bother dual cultivate with me when you can do it with Foundation Establishment Students?”
The thought of Le Mulan receiving special attention from three Foundation Establishment Students in this small dormitory, and the possibility that they were engaging in wild, all-night quad cultivation sessions after school, filled Xuan Ge with intense… envy.
“How did you even get matched into such a high-level group?”
Xuan Ge had always believed he should have been admitted to Joyful Union University, but his elders had forbidden it.
Now, staring at Zhang Yu, he desperately wanted to shout, “Can I join?”
Just then, Zhang Yu noticed Xuan Ge’s distracted expression and asked, “Huh? Why are you still here?”
Xuan Ge took a deep breath, but ultimately lacked the courage to voice his true feelings. He could only murmur, “Senior, I’ll be going now.”
“See you tomorrow, Le Mulan.”
At that moment, Xuan Ge resolved to uncover whether this group was indeed researching dual cultivation.
If so, he would spend any amount of money to join.
If not, he would make it his mission to educate Le Mulan on the benefits of dual cultivation.
Zhang Yu turned to Le Mulan, sensing something odd in her recent glances. “Is there something you want to say?”
Le Mulan quickly lowered her head. “No… nothing at all.”
“Could Zhang Yu have noticed? Impossible. I haven’t even had a chance to act yet,” she thought to herself.
“So, his guard has been raised since that incident,” Le Mulan frowned slightly. “Lately, he’s been leaving early and returning late, only staying in the dorm for meals… and when he’s talking to Bai Zhenzhen.”
“And Yu Xinghan is always there whenever we eat…”
Noticing Le Mulan’s distracted expression, Zhang Yu pursed his lips, temporarily suppressing his suspicions. He headed back to the space below the 100th floor to continue his body refinement.
Over the next few days, Zhang Yu diligently cultivated, finally advancing the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art to Level 20 by the day before the exam.
His fundamental attributes also improved significantly: his dao heart reached Level 11 (87.3%), his magic power surged to 314.2, and his physical strength reached Level 11.29.
Simultaneously, Zhang Yu’s understanding of the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art deepened once more. His ability to unleash its latent potential reached an unprecedented level, as if he had undergone years of arduous cultivation.
The operation of the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art’s latent potential activation became increasingly intuitive and effortless in his mind.
With a low roar, Zhang Yu’s muscles bulged, veins throbbing across his body. Scalding steam billowed from his pores, and his skin flushed crimson, as if about to bleed.
Zhang Yu could feel his magic power flowing in reverse as the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art activated, temporarily boosting his physical strength by a full 1.5 levels.
In this state, he could completely overwhelm his former self with sheer physical might alone.
However, Zhang Yu also sensed that countless muscle fibers were tearing throughout his body, and his internal organs were operating beyond their limits. Any sudden exertion would inevitably trigger a backlash, resulting in torn tendons and shattered bones.
But in the next instant, Zhang Yu’s swollen muscles deflated like a punctured balloon, his entire body shrinking visibly.
Zhang Yu could feel the temporary boost to his physical strength gradually decreasing from 1.5 to 1.0 points.
His muscles relaxed completely, and his once crimson skin gradually returned to its normal hue.
The temporary boost to his physical strength continued to diminish, dropping from 1.0 to Level 0.8 points, then to 0.5.
Zhang Yu thought to himself, “This is the Level 20 effect of the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art, allowing me to control the intensity of my internal potential’s eruption at will. I can go as low as Level 0.1 points without issue, and at the highest, I can break through the 1.5 points, achieving a second tier burst effect.”
As for how powerful the second-tier burst effect truly was, Zhang Yu hadn’t tested it yet and had no immediate plans to do so.
“At my current level, I can likely sustain a temporary 0.8 point boost to my physical strength using only the Crippled Ox Body-Sacrifice Heart Art.”
“If I combine that with the Martial Dao Sacred Embryo’s self-healing capabilities, a temporary 1.2 point boost should be manageable.”
“With the addition of healing elixirs or daoist arts enhancements, even a temporary 1.5 point boost to my physical strength would likely consume minimal lifespan.”
In the next moment, Zhang Yu deactivated the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art, and all the extraordinary phenomena surrounding him vanished.
The following day, the three-month foundational course concluded, and the Foundation Establishment Class faced its first examination.