Forcing Liu Dali to sign the IOU, Fang Ping sighed. This was better than nothing.
This poor devil. He had guessed it earlier. That he might not have much savings. However, he had never expected that he was poor to this extent.
When this fellow was done writing the IOU, he still intended to borrow some money from Fang Ping. Fang Ping nearly hammered him to death.
“Report yourself to Distance, then establish a new media company. This is the perfect timing.
“Complete the procedures as soon as possible. Soon, the second National Martial Arts University Championship will begin. I’ll think of a way to film an online exclusive broadcast. It’ll be sensational the first time itself.”
Liu Dali’s eyes sparkled instantly. He asked quickly, “An exclusive one?”
“I’ll try my best to strive for it.”
Fang Ping was unsure either. However, as last year’s champion team, asking for an online exclusive right alone should not pose too big of a problem.
If it was really impossible, then spend some money. It would be only one time and the website would be popular.
“Promote it first. The competition this time is not something like a Rank-1 martial artists’ fight can compare to. It’s mainly Middle-ranked combat, all of them prodigies of the present era.”
Fang Ping was not embarrassed when he said this.
Who would not be considered a genius for being able to become a Middle-ranked martial artist while one was still attending university?
Every martial artist advanced rapidly before the age of 30.
Becoming a Middle-ranked martial artist at twenty-three four years old, and one might be able to advance into Rank-6 around thirty years old. One could even try breaking through Grandmaster.
In recent years, many Grandmasters around forty to fifty years old of age were the martial arts university’s prodigies in those days.
The Middle-ranked martial artists’ championship participants this time had a high chance of becoming Grandmasters in the future. There would be a great deal of them too.
“Middle-ranked combat!”
Liu Dali was suddenly interested. After thinking for a while, he probed, “Are Middle-ranked martial artists really strong?”
Fang Ping let out a faint smile. “They’re alright. But, hitting a Rank-3 Vitality martial artist like you is only a matter of a slap. If you don’t believe it, I can let you have a taste of it!”
Liu Dali was indeed a Vitality martial artist.
Of course, he knew Combat Techniques too, though only the basics.
When fighting against an Upper-stage Rank-3 martial artist like Liu Dali, Fang Ping could kill him in one slash at Upper-stage Rank-3, let alone right now. Maybe he could even do it at Early-stage Rank-3.
Liu Dali looked sheepish. Seriously?
Nevertheless, he dared not try it out. When Fang Ping landed behind him earlier, he could hardly sense a thing. This was already very dangerous.
“Alright, cut the crap. Go there now.”
“What about my matters here...”
“How much money can you earn from filming a bunch of Rank-1 martial artists fighting. One that was not even an exclusive too? Go and report yourself now. Chop, chop!”
Liu Dali was helpless. ‘I’ve embarked on a hopeless adventure.’
With no other choice, Liu Dali took his video camera and left dejectedly.
Before he left, Liu Dali suddenly turned his head to look at Fang Yuan, looking slightly irritated. “Little kid, you’re something!”
Fang Yuan puffed up her cheeks and mumbled, “I’m not even holding you responsible for this. You played with my feelings!”
Initially, she thought that she could get some money this time. Liu Dali was so poor now, Fang Yuan was more infuriated than him. Did Liu Dali even deserve to be angry?
Liu Dali was completely speechless, leaving grumpily.
Once he had left, Fang Yuan asked curiously, “Bro, is your company big?”
She knew Fang Ping was running a company. After all, Fang Ping went all out with the advertisements last time.
“It’s alright.”
“How many staff?”
“A few hundred.”
“What about the scale? The assets?”
Fang Ping was slightly irritated. “Do you only care about these things? Put more effort into martial arts. Don’t you have any idea what kind of talent you have?”
Fang Yuan sighed. “It’s because I have terrible talents, that’s why I’m concerned about these things. Bro, why don’t I manage the company for you next time? I don’t have a future in martial arts anyway...”
Fang Ping was losing it.
So, had he really sent a blow so great that she had given up on all hope?
“We’ll leave this for another day. Train harder for now and put everything else aside.”
“You’re right. I still need to return to Sun City now... It’ll be really soon, though. In Year 12, I’ll come to Magic City. Bro, when the time comes, I’ll help you take care of the company while attending university, how’s that?”
Fang Yuan was looking forward to it and was in high spirits.
Fang Ping was helpless instead. ‘I’m afraid that once you start taking care of the company, it’ll fall into your hands in no time.
‘But... that’s not entirely impossible either.’
“We’ll talk about it some other time, under the condition that you pass MCMAU’s entrance test. I’ll tell you this now. When the time comes, if you enroll without the ability of an Upper-stage Rank-1 and above, MCMAU will not be opened to you. You’ll deal with this yourself!”
Fang Yuan’s expression collapsed immediately. Upper-stage Rank-1... that should not be a problem, right?
Actually, she had started practicing martial arts at an early age. Children of powerhouses started martial arts at a young age, though they would not cultivate and learned only basic knowledge.
Pole-standing would be the only one they would cultivate.
Fang Yuan started pole-standing at 14. It was not considered too late. Right now, she had already completed once honing. Most certainly not slow either.
There were still more than two years left. Whether she broke through as martial artist right now and started cultivating, or honed her bones twice before cultivating, it should be enough for her to cultivate up until Upper-stage Rank-1.
...
After lecturing his sister, Fang Ping watched the competition for a moment. He did not stay for long, leaving the gym very soon.
...
In the next few days, Fang Ping would watch the competition sometimes and accompany his family to go for a stroll at other times.
Everyone in MCMAU realized that Devil King Fang seemed to enjoy wielding saber recently.
No matter what he was doing, his saber would not leave his side.
Once, the Chaos-vanquishing Saber had been separated from its master with no one to suppress it. Its blood and Qi spurted out.
When Fang Ping started using Vitality and Mentality to maintain it, Chaos-vanquishing Saber returned to its serene state, looking extremely reserved.
Except for a minority of people, most people did not know that the saber that Fang Ping was wielding was the famed Bandit-slayer Saber.
...
When Lu Fengrou saw that Fang Ping did not part with his saber, she frowned slightly, asking, “Are you maintaining the saber by accumulating strength?”
Fang Ping nodded.
“Your Vitality is powerful, so it isn’t like you can’t maintain the saber, nor will it delay your cultivation progress... but...”
Lu Fengrou said, “But, it’s best if you don’t use it during the championship.”
“Why?”
“Zhang Dingnan has maintained this saber of yours for many years. This is a saber that’s meant to slaughter. If you continue maintaining it, it will be difficult for you to control it then. It can be fatal.”
“What you’re saying is, they can’t block it?”
Fang Ping’s eyes glinted a little. Lu Fengrou muttered, “It depends on who you’re up against. But, using it on them is slightly wasteful.
“You’ve maintained the saber for a few months. If you employ it, based on your circumstances, you can easily kill a Catacombs Rank-5 with a slash.”
Fang Ping’s innate traits were to die for. Strong in Vitality, physique, and Mentality, paired with a desirable saber that had been maintained for a few months. Killing a Rank-5 martial artist would pose almost no difficulty at all.
“Rank-5 only?”
Fang Ping looked slightly unsatisfied. ‘My ability right now is even stronger. I’ve already killed a Rank-5 when I was with Qin Fengqing earlier.
‘I can only hack a Rank-5 now... this didn’t sound very worthwhile.’
Lu Fengrou rolled her eyes. This kid was very arrogant now.
“These things aside, how’s your cultivation progress recently?”
“It’s alright. I’m still stabilizing the Upper-stage realm recently, continuing to maintain my heart. Even so, my physique is strong. Although the rest of my four internal organs are not honed nor transformed, I feel much stronger than a typical Rank-4 martial artist. By the time I cultivate, my speed won’t be slow”
Fang Ping stabilizing his realm lately was one thing; the second thing was so that he would not waste Wealth.
Now, he was mostly relying completely on himself to replenish Vitality. When it really could not work, he would spend some cash to purchase some pills to take. His Wealth, however, had remained untouched all the while.
So close to hitting 1 billion. If he used it now, no one could tell when was the next time he would ever hit 1 billion again.
Moreover, after the upgrade this time, it might just be tens of billions Wealth the next time it happened again.
Fang Ping dared not imagine whether he could even accumulate tens of billions.
Therefore, in the short term, the upgrade this time was his only shot at upgrading the system for once.
“It’s good to stabilize it for a period of time as well.”
After saying that, Lu Fengrou thought for a while, saying, “I’ll be going out for the next few days. If you have any questions with regards to cultivation, you can ask the rest, Wu Kuishan and the rest included.”
“Going out? To the Catacombs?”
Lu Fengrou nodded.
Fang Ping frowned suddenly, asking in a low voice, “Are you about to breakthrough?”
“No. Just a bit more.”
Lu Fengrou’s progress had been fast lately. Ever since she entered the Pressure Room, her Mentality grew at rapid speed. As of now, she was already close to 900Hz.
She had hit a plateau recently however.
She prepared to fight a few rounds at Magic City’s Catacombs first, and see if she could break through the plateau.
“Mm. I understand now.”
Lu Fengrou did not say much either. Finally, she pondered for a while before deciding to say, “The Martial Arts University Championship is secondary, really. The primary thing is still keeping your own cultivation progress going, not slowing down. In a situation where you realize you are unable to defeat the opponent, just admit defeat. Don’t give yourself a hard time just because of your pride.
“Even if you’re not dead, sustaining critical injuries will hold you back too.
“When the time comes, you will have a high chance of encountering Rank-5s. They’re no weaklings, do you think they can be so easily surpassed and defeated by you?”
“Instructor, don’t worry. When you come back, maybe I’ll already be a Rank-6...”
Lu Fengrou was speechless. This kid’s ambition had grown out of bounds.
So, you want to surpass me at the period while you were still on campus?
“I’m leaving now. Take care of your senior brothers and sisters. Ye Qing lost to Monk Jiese this time, unable to take this bit of loss. Let him settle for a period of time in Peak Rank-3. Don’t be in a hurry to breakthrough...”
“Mm. I got it. As for Monk Jiese, I will teach him a lesson next time and avenge Brother Ye.”
Lu Fengrou ignored him. ‘If you’re so capable, try going to Wanshan Temple and teach him a lesson then.’
After encouraging Fang Ping for some time, Lu Fengrou made Fang Ping leave.
She did not stay at the university. On that day, Lu Fengrou left for the Catacombs.
Lu Fengrou had left. Even Old Man Li said that he wanted to self-isolate lately and was nowhere to be seen.
It was also unsure whether Lion Tang was about to breakthrough soon, missing on campus.
Wu Kuishan went to Capital City and seemed busy attending to some matters. Huang Jing often disappeared too.
Although the Martial Arts Rank-1 competition made MCMAU seem lively and bustling with noise, in reality, it was getting more deserted.
As soon as these guys left, Fang Ping and three other deans became the university’s de facto person in charge instead.
...
October 28th.
The first round of the top hundred’s competition had ended; Top 50 contestants were selected.
As for the Fang family, they were ready to return as well.
Initially, Fang Yuan made a racket saying that she wanted to watch the finals. But, she had taken too many days of leave. Fang Mingrong was unwilling to allow her to apply for any more leave. As for watching the competition, it was the same for her to watch it through the television when they returned.
His trip to Magic City this time was mainly to visit his son.
Seeing that his son was safe and sound, both husband and wife could be at ease now.
Train station.
Fang Yuan had gotten slightly wild recently, reluctant to part, saying, “Bro, after I buy a car and get a license next time, I’ll come and visit you again.”
Fang Ping burst out laughing. “You can afford a car?”
“That... I can’t. You can sponsor me for a bit.”
Fang Yuan’s eyes were spinning round and round. A car, nearly. She could still afford it.
She had saved up a lot the past two years too.
The club membership fee was only a small portion. She used to open up a pole-standing class, profiting a lot from there too.
Yuan Ping Club was not really established for fun either. During the school holidays, many vendor stalls at some of the Sun City street markets were set up by Yuan Ping Club members.
Fang Yuan did not set up the vendor stalls herself, though she invested and participated in shareholding.
Supplying some people with the capital to replenish their stocks, and taking a percentage of the dividend. She did earn some from it.
After so many days of staying in Capital City this time, Fang Yuan had gotten some other new ideas.
After returning to Sun City, it was time for Yuan Ping Club to go through reformation, moving toward the right track.
The club was unworthy of the reputation.
She planned to establish Yuan Ping Corporation, officially starting up a business.
There were so many members in Yuan Ping Club, children of the big shots even. Thousands of students representing tens of thousands of parents.
These parents flooded various industries.
Doing a little business should not be too hard.
Two days ago, she coaxed and pestered Fang Ping into bringing her to Distance. Fang Yuan had obtained Li Chengze’s phone number in private.
She could also seek guidance in anything that she did not know.
There was no bright future in setting up vendor stalls.
Only by starting up a company like Fang Ping would she be able to make big bucks.
Fang Ping was no god, so he could not make out what his sister was thinking about.
Asking no more, he pinched his sister’s cheeks that had become slightly thin. Fang Ping sighed softly. Her chubby cheeks had gradually thinned down. He was somewhat upset by it.
It was now the end of October. Nanjiang’s Catacombs would open anytime. Hopefully, it would not affect Sun City.
“Be careful after you go home. Take care of mom and dad. Try your best to stay in Sun City.”
Just a few days ago, he had lured and killed three cult powerhouses.
The cult higher-ups knew about this incident too.
Things like taking revenge on martial artists’ families rarely occurred.
A grim way of saying this was that many martial artists were used to family members dying.
When you kill the other party’s family members, the other party would not fall apart, he would only fight you to death.
Although it would not create too big of an impact when cult martial artists killed a few ordinary people, it would only increase their chances of getting exposed. However, to fight against mainstream martial artists, and to vent out anger, they might do it.
Even so, Fang Ping could not protect his parents all the time. He could only inform Bai Jinshan afterward, asking him to stay more vigilant.
Recently, the number of powerhouses in the government of Auspicious Peace had surged. Cult powerhouses would not take the risk to emerge in Sun City.
As for inviting his parents to stay in Magic City... Fang Ping did think of it, though Fang Mingrong and Li Yuying were both reluctant.
If that was the case, Fang Ping could not force them either.
If cult powerhouses had set their minds on taking revenge, they would not be safe even if they stayed in Magic City.
Fang Yuan allowed Fang Ping to pinch her cheeks. She had gotten used to it anyway.
Up until the train was about to depart, Fang Yuan slapped Fang Ping’s claws away, waving her hand. “Fang Ping, take care of yourself too. Get me a sister-in-law soon. Otherwise, it’ll be really embarrassing. Didn’t I already tell you that you can’t get a wife!”
“Little brat!”
Fang Ping laughed whilst scolding, waving his hand, watching his parents and sister board the train.
...
Returned to MCMAU.
Fang Ping bolted straight for the dean’s office.
Not sure if Old Huang was around. Not sure if he paid any attention to his favor of asking him to sell the heart essence last time either. Right now, this was the final push that he needed.
After the system was upgraded, he should also start cultivating peacefully and to make preparations for the upcoming championship and the opening of Nanjiang’s Catacombs.
As soon as he knocked on the door, Huang Jing’s voice could be heard coming from the other side of the door.
Fang Ping pushed the door and walked it. He was just about to ask when Huang Jing’s head started hurting, saying, “You’ve asked four to five times this month. Are you that desperate for these tens of millions? Don’t ask anymore. I’ve sold it. Don’t even think about asking me to do this kind of thing again!”
This kid. Asking every day. Asking every day. It made Huang Jing’s head hurt.
Although the heart essence’s value was high, it was an item that was not too big of a deal for Grandmasters. If it was not because of Fang Ping’s constant pestering every day, Huang Jing might have really forgotten about it.
“You’ve sold it?”
Fang Ping was overjoyed, asking hurriedly, “How much?”
“50 million. Do you think I will take advantage of you for something as petty as this?” Huang Jing glared at him.
Fang Ping laughed dryly. Was I even referring to this?
50 million!
If that was the case, his Wealth had finally hit 1 billion now!
The next moment, Fang Ping asked in a hurry, “Dean, about the money...”
Huang Jing was mentally and emotionally tired. This kid was really persistent.
He had no intention of arguing with him. Huang Jing said impatiently, “Give it some time. I’ve given your card number to the person. Do you think I will handle your money? Who knows what happens then. Though I’ve sold it for 50 million yet you kid demands for several hundred million. I won’t subsidize!”
“Why do you say that. Dean, aren’t you questioning my moral standards...”
The words had yet to fall from his lips when Huang Jing waved his hand, like sweeping trash, sweeping Fang Ping out of the door. The office door slammed with a bang.
Did you even have any moral standards left?
You carried yourself as a decent and proper person outside; strict and cold-hearted in front of the new students. In front of the instructors, everyone knew that you, kid, were an impudent child.