Chapter 323: Graveyard Blind Box
By mid-April, Zhang Yu, Yu Xinghan, Li Xiao, and the other students had already reached the tenth underground level.
This graveyard restoration project attracted not only first-year students but also many outstanding upperclassmen from Myriad Laws University, Celestial Monsters University, and Netherworld University.
Leading the group was Tian Yang, a sixth-year student responsible for guiding, supervising, and coordinating the students’ efforts.
As Zhang Yu walked through the wide underground passage, he could feel the concentration of spiritual energy in the air growing denser with each step.
According to Zhang Yu’s knowledge, the underground Spirit Veins beneath Myriad Laws University City were not naturally formed. Instead, during the city’s construction, the terrain had been deliberately altered to converge eighty-eight Spirit Veins into this location.
The passage they were currently traversing led directly to one of these Spirit Veins.
Moments later, a massive metal gate loomed before them.
Sensing the subtle flow of Magic Power emanating from within, Zhang Yu could feel the potent formation energy surging behind the gate.
Tian Yang, leading the way, announced, “The graveyard is ahead. Line up and pass through one by one. Don’t crowd together.”
In Zhang Yu’s Bionic Eye, a line of text materialized above the gate: Converging Dragon Garden Magic Power Production Co., Ltd.
Zhang Yu understood immediately that “graveyard” and “underground cemetery” were merely colloquial; the company’s official name was the true designation.
In the next moment, as the sealed door hissed open, a frigid gust of air rushed out.
Instantly, the surrounding air seemed to thicken, becoming viscous and oppressive.
As Zhang Yu stepped further inside, the air not only grew increasingly dense but also became noticeably more humid. Spiritual energy began to coalesce into shimmering droplets, swirling through the air like a multicolored mist.
Zhang Yu took a deep breath. As his internal Magic Power circulated, he felt a surge of spiritual energy flood into him, subtly enhancing his Magic Power and nourishing his flesh and blood.
Beside him, Yu Xinghan exclaimed, “No wonder this project requires special qualifications. Working here… even just breathing is a benefit!”
Zhang Yu nodded slightly in agreement, thinking, “Good thing spiritual energy on the Second Layer isn’t this valuable, or we’d probably need oxygen tanks just to work here.”
In addition to the thickening spiritual energy, the air temperature was also plummeting.
Zhang Yu surmised that this was likely to dissipate the heat generated by the corpse components, which continuously circulated their Magic Power and performed breathing techniques day and night.
Simultaneously, a notification and a series of options appeared in Zhang Yu’s Bionic Eye.
Welcome to Converging Dragon Garden!
Visitor Guide
Pay Respects to Loved Ones
Product Showcase
Purchase Merchandise
Contact Us
Job Openings
Zhang Yu casually selected “Visitor Guide” and a map of the entire Converging Dragon Garden appeared before him, divided into sections: Efficiency Zone, Benevolence Zone, Gratitude Zone, Harmony Zone…
“What’s the Efficiency Zone?” Zhang Yu wondered, clicking to investigate. He soon understood: to conserve space, corpse components of lower value had been stripped of unnecessary parts, their structures optimized and compressed, then stored in corpse cabinets and connected to breathing technique clusters in the smallest possible footprint.
Just then, Li Xiao called out from beside him, “Hey, check out these merchandise blind boxes! There’s some good stuff inside!”
Hearing this, Zhang Yu glanced at the merchandise section displayed in his Bionic Eye and thought, “Can they really sell discarded corpse components as blind boxes after dismantling them?”
Staring at the various skin, flesh, limbs, meridians, Dantian… that might appear in the blind boxes, Zhang Yu couldn’t help but frown. “They’re actually selling this crap?”
Yu Xinghan beside him chimed in, “Exactly! These corpse components operate 24/7. The organs salvaged from the discarded ones must be completely deteriorated by now — older than me! How could they possibly still be usable?”
Li Xiao couldn’t help but say, “If only I could pull a Golden Core or even a Nascent Soul organ…”
Yu Xinghan dismissed his words, “Little Li, why are you always chasing these get-rich-quick schemes? These are blind boxes, but the people packing them aren’t blind. Do you really think they’d let you get your hands on anything truly valuable?”
“On the Immortal Dao, shortcuts are a major taboo — they’re reserved for the wealthy. We poor cultivators have to take the long, hard road: borrowing bit by bit, repaying bit by bit. Stop dreaming of getting rich overnight.”
“Besides, think about it. How many corpse components are discarded here each year? Can they really dispose of all of them just by selling blind boxes? There must be other disposal channels. Who knows where all those corpse components and organs coming in and out are from, or what their quality is…”
Just as Yu Xinghan was waxing eloquent, a voice suddenly interrupted him.
“Fellow student, Myriad Laws University is a legitimate university, and Converging Dragon Garden is a legally operated cemetery — not like Netherworld University, which sells living people as corpse components. Every organ and every corpse component here has been obtained through proper death, with clear records of origin and destination.”
Everyone turned to look at the young man who had spoken. Tian Yang, the team leader, quickly interjected, “Manager Sun, my junior brother doesn’t know anything and was just spouting nonsense. Please ignore him.”
Manager Sun cast a cold glance at Yu Xinghan before saying nothing more. He turned to Tian Yang and said, “The cemetery area needing repairs is quite extensive this time. Thank you all for your hard work.”
After delivering his instructions, Manager Sun departed, and Tian Yang immediately began assigning tasks.
Moments later, directional arrows and individual task assignments appeared in the Bionic Eyes of the team members.
Following the arrow’s guidance, Zhang Yu continued forward, gradually separating from his classmates.
As he walked past rows upon rows of densely packed iron canisters, he thought, “These must be where the corpse components are stored.”
Soon, Zhang Yu came across a vast area where countless iron canisters lay crushed and twisted on the ground.
He also observed extensive damage to the surrounding infrastructure: fractured ground, broken formation foundations, severed spiritual energy circuits, ruptured nutrient pipelines, disconnected Spirit Realm Network nodes, and smashed surveillance cameras.
Zhang Yu wondered, “Is this the area I’m supposed to repair?”
“Even the network is down?”
A flicker flashed in his Bionic Eye, and the project files and repair blueprints he had downloaded earlier appeared one by one.
“Speaking of which… what caused such catastrophic damage here?”
“The official explanation claims that an overconcentration of spiritual energy led to corpse mutation, creating zombies. But universities and corporations in Kunxu generally mistrust these superficial explanations.”
Zhang Yu shook his head, temporarily suppressing his distractions and preparing to work.
As for the necessary preparation before starting work? Taking his medicine, of course.
After all, for Zhang Yu, freeloading and eating his fill was his primary reason for coming to the construction site; work was merely a side benefit.
Thanks to Director Gao’s special treatment, Zhang Yu could still claim up to ten free doses of life-shortening drugs daily.
Tribulation Blood Dispersal: temporarily and violently expands blood vessels and meridians, stimulates the Dantian and heart’s pulsations, and savagely accelerates the flow of vital energy and Magic Power throughout the body…
Spirit Root Stimulant: stimulates the central nexus of the Spirit Root, increasing its sensitivity and thickness, temporarily enhancing its efficiency and endurance…
One after another, Zhang Yu injected doses of these potent Tiger Wolf Medicines into his body.
This time, focusing on the breathing technique, Zhang Yu chose drugs primarily related to Magic Power circulation.
He sat cross-legged, already circulating the sixth set of the Qi Meridian Everflow breathing technique — the Superior Foundation Establishment Magic Power Art.
Zhang Yu selected this technique not only for its compatibility with the Qi Meridian Everflow series but also because it could subtly enhance his Magic Power Quality while absorbing and refining spiritual energy.
As he activated the breathing technique, his Magic Power, already violently surging under the drug’s influence, roared through his meridians like a giant dragon, emitting a series of whistling sounds.
Simultaneously, his Qi Sea Spirit Root, now at 100% fusion, grew thicker and more vigorous under the drug’s stimulation, frantically absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy.
The dense spiritual energy, previously swirling in the air like colorful clouds, was now drawn toward Zhang Yu as if by a tornado.
“Too dense… This spiritual energy is far too dense…”
Feeling the jade-like spiritual energy accumulating madly in his meridians, Zhang Yu couldn’t help but marvel. He was convinced he had chosen the right project this time.
After circulating the breathing technique for a while, the Superior Foundation Establishment Magic Power Art broke through to level 3.
Meanwhile, Zhang Yu waved his hand, unleashing streams of Gang Qi to manipulate the Formless Cloud Gang, sweeping across the site to begin clearing debris and starting work.
Although this method was slower, Zhang Yu prioritized cultivating his breathing technique while working. He was willing to sacrifice some efficiency for the sake of practice, even if it meant earning slightly less.
Over the next few days, Zhang Yu immersed himself daily in both breathing exercises and his work. He spent most of his time at the construction site, reveling in the thrill of his Magic Power and breathing technique constantly improving.
During these days at the site, Zhang Yu also encountered Che Yufei and Shi Yunxiang again.
According to these senior students, the cemetery project was considered a “health-preserving” assignment compared to outdoor projects. Not only was it much safer, but the constant immersion in dense spiritual energy also offered significant physical benefits.
One day, Zhang Yu and Shi Yunxiang walked together toward their assigned work areas.
As they reached a fork in the path, Shi Yunxiang said, “Zhang Yu, could you walk with me a little further? It’s not far, just a few more steps.”
“Hmm?” Zhang Yu looked puzzled at his classmate, who had a rugged face and a lion’s head. “Are you… afraid of the cemetery?”
“What’s there to fear in a cemetery? Would you be afraid in a Bionic shop?” Shi Yunxiang shook his head. “I’m afraid of people.”
“Haven’t you noticed? Many of my colleagues harbor predatory intentions toward me.”
“Huh?” Zhang Yu responded, taken aback.
Shi Yunxiang sighed. “Every year, lone monsterfolk are devoured, sometimes even gang-raped. The cemetery district, with its sparse population, is a hotspot for such cases. That’s why I avoid moving alone whenever possible.”
“I can tell from the way you look at me — there’s no such desire in your eyes.”
Zhang Yu pursed his lips. Though he was ravenously hungry for meat, he genuinely had no interest in eating sentient beings.
“Since you’re a monsterfolk, why didn’t you go to Celestial Monsters University?” Zhang Yu asked. He remembered that back in Songyang City, almost all the academic overachievers from Red Pagoda had applied to Celestial Monsters University.
Shi Yunxiang shook his head. “Celestial Monsters University assigns majors based on bloodline. I could only have gotten into their reproductive studies department, and I had no interest in that. So I worked hard to get into Myriad Laws University instead.”
As they spoke, Zhang Yu had already escorted Shi Yunxiang to his workplace and was now walking back alone.
But as he passed through a heavily damaged area lacking network coverage and surveillance, Zhang Yu’s eyes suddenly narrowed.
Through the all-encompassing vision granted by his Third Eye Mystic Power, he saw a figure dart out from the darkness, striking at him like a bolt of black lightning.