No Money to Cultivate Immortality?

As the final surge of the Nine Heavens Cloudstride Force dissipated, Ping Han roared and burst forth from the ground, blades flashing in all directions as he charged at Zhang Yu.

A thunderous cacophony like a thousand bolts of lightning erupted across the battlefield.

The blade force in Ping Han’s hands transformed into a blinding spray of emerald light, flashing like a comet streaking across the sky.

Zhang Yu’s oncoming barrage of palm strikes glowed with radiant gold and white, crashing forward like a world-rending cyclone, constantly surging to engulf Ping Han.

Green and gold clashed violently in midair, each instant detonating with what sounded like hundreds of simultaneous explosions.

Ping Han felt each of his slashes twisted and redirected by Zhang Yu’s power, transforming into strikes that rebounded onto himself.

At the same time, Zhang Yu infused every attack with the might of the Goldfilament Jade Disk, the Groundfiend Bottle, and the Ground-Stabilizing Seal, seamlessly transformed and propelled forward by the Nine Heavens Cloudstride Force into an endless tide of palm strikes.

In this intense clash, Ping Han felt himself being steadily overpowered.

He had tried boosting his visual effects again mid-fight, even deploying the Way of Humanity Flood, but it no longer affected Zhang Yu.

Ping Han thought to himself, “Did he shut off his EyeNet connection?”Indeed, Zhang Yu had temporarily disabled his EyeNet interface. After completing his appraisal with the Appraisal Technique and memorizing Ping Han’s weak points, he had shut it down.

At this moment, no Law Husk was assisting him—he relied entirely on his own body, mana, and Martial Qi to drive his offense.

Every ounce of strength, every sliver of thought, was being wrung dry to defeat Ping Han with absolute force.

Palm after palm after palm.

To Ping Han, it felt like he was being devoured by a storm of palm shadows.

Zhang Yu appeared before him like a flood of crushing tsunamis. No matter how many slashes Ping Han unleashed, they were all returned with doubled fury.

Boom!

Another palm slammed into Ping Han’s back, but he remained upright, steady, and continued fighting without panic.

Ping Han thought, “Fighting like this—how long can you keep it up?”

“You really think your martial arts can break through this armor of mine?”

“How could hard-earned martial skill compare to a suit of expensive armor?”

But Zhang Yu’s onslaught never stopped. Ping Han’s surprise soon turned to hesitation… then disbelief.

Just as Zhang Yu’s attacks seemed to slow down, and Ping Han thought he was running out of steam, his offensive suddenly spiked again, returning to its peak in seconds.

Ping Han’s confusion deepened, eventually giving way to shock—until a crushing blow struck his leg.

Crack!

A crisp sound rang from within the armor.

“What?!”

More and more cracks echoed out as Martial Qi flooded through the gaps, pounding into Ping Han’s body.

In a storm of deafening impacts, blood mist began bursting from Ping Han’s battered frame.

He let out a furious roar, trying to retreat, but a blood-soaked figure crashed into him head-on.

“Ping Han!”

Zhang Yu, wrapped in crimson Martial Qi, grabbed Ping Han by the arm.

Zhang Yu said, “If that crypto money was really yours, why don’t you dare to go all out?”

“What nonsense are you spouting?!” Ping Han roared, slashing his other hand, wreathed in blade force, at Zhang Yu.

At point-blank range, the two clashed again.

Each of Ping Han’s blade slashes scattered Zhang Yu’s blood-colored Martial Qi, while Zhang Yu’s palm strikes tore through the cracks in Ping Han’s armor, slamming into his body with brutal force.

Suddenly, Ping Han felt his Law Husk malfunction. The hand wielding the blade went limp.

“What?!”

As Ping Han stared in disbelief, Zhang Yu—bloody and battered—grabbed him by the head.

“Ping Han, the financial pressure from trading crypto left you afraid to risk it all.”

“Because that money was never really yours.”

Zhang Yu’s other hand, glowing with crimson Martial Qi, struck rapid pressure points on Ping Han’s limbs, paralyzing the Law Husks in his arms and legs.

Zhang Yu said coldly, “One little risk, and your whole position could collapse.”

“You don’t dare go all in—not because you’re weak, but because you’re afraid of crypto volatility, afraid your leverage will fluctuate, afraid you won’t have the cash to cover…”

“So even in a life-or-death match, you hold back.”

Boom!

Zhang Yu hurled Ping Han forward by the head.

As Ping Han’s body streaked like a black line through the air, Zhang Yu closed in with another crushing blow that slammed him into the ground.

“Come on, Ping Han! Fight back!”

“You still have energy, still have money—why don’t you retaliate?”

“Scared of draining your balance? Scared of Nectar Coin fluctuations?”

Ping Han gritted his teeth, staring at Zhang Yu through a blur of pain. He seemed ready to strike—but each time, he stopped himself.

With a thunderous crash, Zhang Yu shattered Ping Han’s chestplate, seized him by the head, and said icily, “Surrender.”

“This is what you’re thinking, isn’t it?”

“You know you can’t beat me.”

“And if you keep going, it’ll mess with your trading.”

Ping Han glared at him, his face flushing with shame and anger—Zhang Yu had hit the mark.

Just then, the crowd let out a collective groan. Above the battlefield, streams of projected text filled the sky.

“No, Zhang Yu! Let Ping Han go!”

“You’ll crash the coin price!”

“Please, Zhang Yu, stop!”

“Trash Ping Han!”

Zhang Yu, with his EyeNet reactivated, looked up and shouted:

“Stop trading that damn crypto! If getting rich was that easy, do you think it’d be your turn?!”

“Look at him!” Zhang Yu swung Ping Han’s limp body. “You think he can still be my opponent after trading?!”

The sky fell silent for a breath.

Then came uproarious laughter.

Ping Han pointed to the coin price display on his chest. “It’s up again.”

“Sixteen point ninety-one!”

“Everyone, it’s climbing again!”

Zhang Yu slammed another punch into Ping Han’s head. A burst of blood exploded from his helmet.

A moment later, Ping Han surrendered.

“Zhang Yu, this match is yours.”

“You’re right. To me, crypto is more important than you.”

He shed his armor and helmet, looked skyward, then pointed to the coin price and shouted:

“Look, it’s still going up!”

“No need to panic—one little Civil Engineering match can’t shake Nectar Coin!”

“This is a Nascent Soul-level market move. The more you buy now, the faster it climbs, the more you profit!”

Zhang Yu stared at Ping Han—bloodied, disfigured, grinning wildly. It was as if he were the real victor.

In the sky, the projected messages began to synchronize, forming massive flashing texts:

Buy! Buy! Buy! Rise! Buy! Rise! Rise!

As those words surged, Zhang Yu felt he could see, through the Spiritual Realm Network, the faces of countless twisted, frenzied speculators.

Beside him, Ping Han laughed wildly: “Buy Nectar Coin, everyone! Let’s sprint down the Immortal Path together!”

Buy! Charge! Buy! Rise! Buy! Charge!

Zhang Yu watched, a helpless sigh rising in his heart. “These people…”

Fu Ji said, “Don’t overthink it. The meaning of a poor person’s life is to be harvested by the rich.”

“Ping Han was right about one thing—poor folks don’t count as people. At best, they’re ghosts.”

“Nectar Coin is their tribulation. Only those who survive it can become human again.”

“And there’s no telling how many are clawing their way up just for that one chance.”

Zhang Yu said inwardly, “I don’t think I can complete Director Gao’s mission after all.”

Fu Ji replied, “Director Gao never expected you to do it alone. Besides, this is a Nascent Soul confrontation—you’re just caught in the crossfire.”

Zhang Yu’s heart stirred. “A Nascent Soul confrontation? You mean Nectar Coin has affected other Nascent Souls’ interests… Someone will target Divine Lord Nectar?”

Fu Ji said, “It’s inevitable. Every university and college—none are free from Nascent Soul influence.”

“To stand firm is already hard. To go against the current? Almost impossible.”

As she spoke, Zhang Yu saw a message appear:

Che Yufei: “Senior, are you really going to sell?”

Shi Huaiyu: “Junior, you sold everything?”

Su Yanyang: “Bro, is it really that risky?”

Fu Ji chuckled. “See? You did make an impact today. Some people are thinking twice.”

At the same time Ping Han surrendered, his teammates, including Ji Yuanshu, also forfeited. They gathered quickly and left the arena—not looking particularly dejected, but chatting merrily about the rising coin price.

Meanwhile, as Zhang Yu and his team exited, he noticed that aside from Xiao Qingxuan, everyone else looked conflicted, worried, hesitant—not like victors at all.

Zhang Yu said, “If you bought Nectar Coin, sell it now.”

“You’re in the green, right?”

Che Yufei nodded. “I’ll sell now.”

Zhang Yu turned to the hesitant Shi Huaiyu. “Senior, sell it.”

Shi Huaiyu said with difficulty, “But… it’s still going up.”

“Maybe… wait a few more days?”

Zhang Yu sighed and didn’t press further.

Just then, Xiao Qingxuan said, “Huaiyu, sell it. Or do you want to get wrecked again? Use a Ghost Kidney again?”

Shi Huaiyu looked at him, then sighed. “Alright, alright. I’ll sell.”

…

Meanwhile, above the arena.

From the Finance Department, Jiu Tianliu chuckled. “Ah, the will of the people.”

“Zhang Yu may be stronger than Ping Han, but he can’t suppress the people’s desire to get rich.”

Beside him, Yan Qianji scoffed. “The people? All I saw was your Finance Department rigging the narrative, stirring opinion, manipulating them.”

Jiu Tianliu said, “Brother Qianji, you really misunderstand our department.”

“If you’re willing, come visit us. I’ll explain it all slowly.”

“I’ll even help you find some funding. Your Artifact Refinement Department’s budget’s been tight, hasn’t it?”

Yan Qianji tilted his head. “Your Finance Department is due for another reckoning.”

“When you’re forced to liquidate, save me a few chunks of your Law Husk and flesh. I’ll pay top price.”

Jiu Tianliu laughed. “In this economy? I hear many of your department’s factories are bleeding money. When you go bankrupt, let me know. I’ll make a fair offer.”

Their gazes clashed in the Spiritual Realm.

In the next instant, both vanished.

In the days that followed, Zhang Yu no longer concerned himself with Nectar Coin. He studied, cultivated, and joined competitions on schedule—living out his university life, one calm day at a time.