"What Kind of Immortal Cultivation Can You Do Without Money?"
By Xiong Lang Gou
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close The ticking of the clock continued, and Zhang Yu in the classroom was earnestly working on the test paper in front of him.
But the test paper seemed endless; no matter how he worked on it, how he filled it out, there was never a moment when he would finish.
And his seat was getting farther and farther away from his classmates, gradually obscuring the figures in front of him, as if he were being swallowed up by the darkness behind him.
Cold sweat broke out on his forehead, panic surged in his heart, and his hands, which had been writing, began to weaken, losing their strength.
Until he, along with countless books and test papers, fell into that bottomless darkness, Zhang Yu suddenly woke up from his bed.
"Was I dreaming?"
"It seems to be all memories from Zhang Yu's past."
He rubbed his head, feeling countless fragmented memories belonging to the original owner of this body rising and falling, changing unpredictably in his mind. Although Zhang Yu had now taken control of this body, he hadn't fully integrated the original memories. Many details required focused recall to remember.
Especially the memories of yesterday's bizarre ritual; even a slight recollection made him dizzy, and he couldn't remember what had happened.
He checked his phone and saw it was only 5 a.m. He wanted to go back to sleep, but found he couldn't fall asleep.
It was as if getting up at 5 a.m. for school every day had become an instinct for this body.
"Why do I feel guilty about lying down?"
Zhang Yu sat up, thinking this was probably the influence of the original owner's memories.
Rubbing his slightly deflated stomach, Zhang Yu simply stood up, thinking, "Oh well, I'll go to school. At least I can get a meal."
He remembered that Songyang High School provided three meals a day, and the monthly food allowance had already been deposited into his card.
Now burdened with a debt of 700,000 yuan and only fifty-odd yuan to his name, he couldn't afford to eat out.
So, leaving his sweltering apartment, he walked through a sewage-filled alley and squeezed onto a bus with a group of people.
Squeezed into the bus, a mix of sweat and food odors, the air conditioning felt practically nonexistent. Zhang Yu felt like a distorted takeout delivery, being jostled and bounced towards the city center.
After an hour and a half and changing buses twice, a sweat-soaked Zhang Yu finally managed to get off.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Zhang Yu thought to himself, "Speaking of which, why am I a commuter student?"
"Oh, I remember now, it's because I can't afford accommodation."
Unlike where Zhang Yu lived, the place he got off at was in the city center. Everywhere he looked were tall buildings and clean, wide roads; even the air felt much fresher.
The men and women walking on the street were mostly well-dressed, exuding an air of urban sophistication.
After walking and stopping frequently, Zhang Yu finally arrived at the school gate. From afar, he could see the large characters "Songyang Senior High School" on the entrance.
On the electronic screen at the school gate, there was a list of report cards, listing the top ten students from each of the three high school grades for the previous month.
This clearly showed that Songyang High School placed great emphasis on student performance.
If Zhang Yu were to summarize his observations, Songyang High School was a world where grades were paramount, a place where everyone was obsessed with academics.
Studying and taking exams were as natural as breathing here, and almost everyone harbored extreme prejudice against students based on their scores.
"Your score is so low, no wonder you waited so long in line at the cafeteria!" "Your score is so low, you don't deserve to eat at the same table as us in the cafeteria!" "Top students should insult underachievers!"... These were all examples of positive energy on campus.
"This is a world obsessed with grades, a hell for underachievers."
Zhang Yu glanced at the screen displaying "Zhang Yu, 10th in the first year of high school," and sighed inwardly, "At least I'm one of the high scorers."
"Although my ranking might seem a bit undeserved right now, at least I haven't been exposed yet, so I should still be able to live a decent life at school, right?"
Songyang High School's cafeteria served breakfast, so Zhang Yu followed his memory there.
As he walked, he noticed that although there were many students queuing for food, they were all incredibly quiet. Almost everyone waited silently, quietly took their food, and quietly found a seat to eat, like gears precisely engaged in their work.
Some students even read while eating, making the most of every minute to study.
He randomly found a seat and took a bite of his meat bun when he noticed someone sitting down in the empty seat in front of him.
It was a girl with long, black hair and a fair complexion.
The other person's name flashed through Zhang Yu's mind.
"Bai Zhenzhen."
"To be precise, Bai Zhenzhen, the top student in the first year of high school, the woman at the very top of the first-year student hierarchy."
Looking at the girl sitting across from him, drinking porridge, Zhang Yu thought, "Is she my friend?"
"Because I'm in the top ten of the grade? Is this what they call the elite student circle?"
Bai Zhenzhen was the kind of person who, if she didn't smile, seemed to be sulking. Even ordinary words from her carried a sense of aloofness, keeping people at a distance.
Like now, sitting across from Zhang Yu, even without saying a word, she made Zhang Yu wonder if she had a problem with him.
Just as Zhang Yu was focusing on recalling memories of Bai Zhenzhen, trying to confirm their relationship,
he heard the girl say, "After you finish eating, go to the small garden. I'll wait for you there."
Watching her departing figure, a thoughtful look flashed in Zhang Yu's eyes.
A moment later, after he had finished eating and drinking, he left the cafeteria and went to the small garden behind the school.
This was a quiet spot behind the dormitory buildings, and with most students heading to the teaching buildings, it was almost deserted.
Bai Zhenzhen was standing in front of a flower bed. Hearing Zhang Yu's footsteps, she turned around and quickly walked to him.
"Dad!"
She knelt down with a thud, hugging Zhang Yu's leg, and said, "There were too many people in the cafeteria, I was too embarrassed to say anything."
"Lend me some money, my loan is almost a month overdue! I'll kneel down for you..."
Looking at this scene, Zhang Yu cursed inwardly, "What kind of lousy school is this? Are the top student and the tenth-ranked student just showing off with loans?"
Zhang Yu also remembered that he and Bai Zhenzhen didn't know each other through any academic circle, but because she was his upline who had tried to sell him a loan.
Let me introduce again, Zhang Yu's classmate, Bai Zhenzhen. They're best buddies who share information about various loan platforms and have a strong bond of friendship, borrowing money together everywhere.
Thinking about how Bai Zhenzhen had been secretly plotting to borrow money from him behind that cold, poker-faced demeanor in the cafeteria, Zhang Yu shook his head helplessly: "Let go of me first. Where would I get the money to lend you?"
Bai Zhenzhen shook her head and said, "You're only tenth in the grade. How much money could you possibly need? Your loan application must be much less than mine, right?"
Then, she added stiffly and shyly, "As long as you help me pay off my debts, I'll do whatever you want."
Zhang Yu's eyes lit up at her words. Looking at Bai Zhenzhen's previously icy expression now radiant with happiness, he found her strangely charming.
He looked Bai Zhenzhen up and down, asking, "Really, anything?"
Bai Zhenzhen bit her lip and nodded, "Yes."
Zhang Yu: "Then can I use you as collateral?"
Bai Zhenzhen released her grip, glaring at Zhang Yu, "Yu Zi, you really have no money?"
Zhang Yu took out his phone and showed his balance and overdue payment information.
Bai Zhenzhen stood up, patted her dusty trousers, and looked at Zhang Yu incredulously. "You owe 700,000? Even after graduating from university, it'll probably take a long time to pay it off."
"You're only a high school freshman, and you're already spending money like this?"
Bai Zhenzhen shook her head repeatedly. "Zhang Yu, how exactly did you spend this money?"
Zhang Yu rubbed his head and said, "I forgot… let me think."
Bai Zhenzhen looked at Zhang Yu suspiciously. "You didn't invest it in anything, did you? Were you scammed?"
As Zhang Yu tried to recall, he became uncertain. "I don't think…"
Bai Zhenzhen's expression suddenly turned serious. The more she thought about it, the more suspicious Zhang Yu's spending of over 700,000 seemed. "Let me see your phone."
Zhang Yu understood that she was concerned for him. After all, investment, fraud, gambling, sudden death, and qi deviation were the top five causes of death in Songyang City, with qi deviation ranking fifth.
At that moment, doubts about the original owner of this body also welled up in his mind. He immediately took out his phone: "I also wanted to review how this money was spent, so let's take a look at the transaction history together."
The two of them scanned the phone screen and saw Zhang Yu's original body's expenses one by one.
As Zhang Yu saw these, many details from related memories flooded back into his mind.
Dan Ding Pharmacy - 280.00
Dan Ding Pharmacy - 250.00
Time Waits for No One - Quiet Room - 120.00
Zhang Yu said as he looked, "I bought pills at the school pharmacy, and then rented a quiet room to practice meditation..."
Besides general education courses like Chinese, mathematics, physics, and history, Songyang High School's curriculum also included courses related to immortality cultivation.
The so-called immortality cultivation path is the path of cultivation from human to immortal, which is the most important and highest-scoring content in the entire high school curriculum, and a key factor for entering prestigious universities.
Breathing exercises are the most fundamental skill in the Immortal Path. By gathering the spiritual energy of the atmosphere through breathing, a cultivator can accumulate magical power within their body.
Only with sufficient magical power can one achieve greater combat strength and ascend to higher realms. Magical power is the foundation of all Immortal Path techniques.
For example, to break through from the Qi Refining realm to the Foundation Establishment realm, the required magical power is over 60 points, while the upper limit of magical power that can be mastered at the Qi Refining realm is 100 points.
In the system that the ten major sects have strived to build, everything is standardized and digitized to the greatest extent possible, even magical power. For instance, the magical power tests in schools are all accurate to one decimal place.
Bai Zhenzhen nodded slightly and continued flipping through the pages.
Shuixiu Catering Service Co., Ltd. - 532.00
Zhang Yu said, "This is a supplementary meal in the cafeteria; it costs quite a bit."
In Immortal Path cultivation, the strength of the physical body is equally crucial, and consuming large amounts of food rich in spiritual energy and Immortal Path elements is a daily part of a cultivator's life, known as dietary supplementation.
Longxiang Education Service Co., Ltd. - 1500.00
Longxiang Education Service Co., Ltd. - 3000.00
Zhang Yu recalled for a moment and said, "Um... this is the tutoring fee from last time, and the cost of renting a spiritual root."
A spiritual root is a special talent, possessed only by a very few geniuses, which can greatly increase a cultivator's cultivation efficiency and combat power.
As the most famous threshold for the immortal path in the past, even Zhang Yu and his mother, who were in junior high school, knew about the various legends surrounding spiritual roots. So much so that when Zhang Yu was paying off his tutoring loans, he used renting a spiritual root as an excuse to get money from his mother.
However, with the increasingly advanced immortal path technology now, ordinary people like Zhang Yu, who don't have spiritual roots, can now pay to rent them to improve their cultivation efficiency.
Continuing to flip through the pages, apart from Zhang Yu's initial explanation, the subsequent expense items were almost all similar, almost entirely related to immortal path cultivation.
After quickly reviewing Zhang Yu's expenses over the past few months, Bai Yiyi looked at him with pity: "You really did spend that much on your cultivation?"
"And you only managed to get tenth place with over 700,000 in debt?"
"It's only been three months since the semester started, right? What are you going to do next?"
As someone who had only been in another world for one day, Zhang Yu was naturally clueless about the future. He shrugged and said, "I'll just muddle through for now and figure things out slowly."
Glancing at the time, it was almost time for class, so the two chatted as they walked towards the teaching building.
"How come you, who owes over 700,000, look more relaxed than me, who owes over 200,000?"
Bai Zhenzhen, looking at Zhang Yu's calm demeanor, reminded him, "You won't have any more money to spend on your studies!"
"Do you know the consequences of not having money to study? Do you know how dangerous our situation is right now?"
Zhang Yu: "What consequences?"
Bai Zhenzhen said, "There are only three weeks until the monthly exam. In three weeks, you won't have money to rent a spiritual root, money to buy pills, money to attend tutoring classes, or even money for your daily supplements... while everyone else is improving every minute. It's normal for your grade ranking to drop by dozens of places, and then you'll be kicked out of the model class!"
Combined with Bai Zhenzhen's words, many related memories flooded Zhang Yu's mind.
There were ten classes in the entire first year of high school, from Class 1 to Class 10, divided according to the monthly exam scores.
Based on Zhang Yu's ranking, he was naturally assigned to the class with the best benefits, also known as the model class.
Besides the regular general education exams, the most important factor in the monthly exam results is ultimately the student's cultivation level in the Immortal Path.
After all, general education only accounts for 50 points, while the remaining Immortal Path subjects add up to a full 650 points.
Especially since everyone is a first-year high school student and only officially began cultivating after the start of the semester, their cultivation levels are actually quite similar.
Although he appears to be tenth place, if he doesn't maintain his current rate of improvement in the coming weeks, he could easily fall dozens of places behind.
Bai Zhenzhen continued, "If you keep being broke, your ranking will get worse and worse, your treatment will get lower and lower, and in this vicious cycle, you'll be kicked down from Class 1 to Class 10!"
Her face was grave. "Without money and good grades, you'll become combustible trash in the teachers' eyes, a joke among the students in the model classes, and an object for those extras in the regular classes to achieve cheap self-superiority!"
Bai Zhenzhen clutched her head. "In that situation, forget about cultivation resources, you'll even have trouble maintaining a stable Dao heart. Your grades will only get worse, and eventually you'll fall below the elimination line, ending up with injuries and a mountain of debt, kicked out of Songyang High School."
Seemingly seeing that tragic future in her mind, Bai Zhenzhen looked up at the sky and sighed, "Do you want to live a life despised by the entire school?" "At the bottom of the chain, repeatedly humiliated! Will you ultimately become a high school dropout and social scum?"
Zhang Yu smirked, "Then what do you suggest I do?"
Bai Zhenzhen was silent for a moment, then turned to him, "Brother, to be honest... owing 700,000 to only reach tenth place, you might really not be suited for the path of immortality."
"I don't know how you got into Songyang, but my suggestion is... drop out and get a job, otherwise I'm afraid you'll sink deeper and deeper."
Zhang Yu didn't respond, but a sigh escaped his lips: "The only good thing about this damn world is that I can cultivate immortality, and after only one day here I'm told I don't have the talent?"
Back in the classroom, Zhang Yu picked up his vibrating phone and saw that Bai Zhenzhen had transferred 500 yuan to him and sent a message.
Bai Zhenzhen: Pay the water and electricity bills first.
Zhang Yu was slightly taken aback, then suddenly smelled his clothes, immediately realizing that Bai Zhenzhen had smelled the odor of his unwashed body.
Although he himself was used to the smell, it would likely be quite noticeable to others.
Thinking of the other person
Despite his dire financial situation, they still sent him money. Zhang Yu sighed inwardly, typed a long message on his phone, then deleted it all, finally replying: "Thank you."
After replying, Zhang Yu looked at his palm and noticed that the symbol on it was half-filled with black.
Throughout his journey to school and into the classroom, Zhang Yu had noticed that only he could see the symbol on his palm.
He calculated the time and estimated that the symbol would be completely filled with black that night, but he wondered what would happen after it was completely filled.