In the grand meeting room of the instructors’ quarters.
When Fang Ping arrived, Luo Yichuan, Tang Feng, and a few others were already gathered.
Seeing Fang Ping’s arrival, Luo Yichuan said, “We’ve received news a long time ago. There are quite some instructors who volunteered to go. After some screening, we’ve limited the number of people to below 30.
“Now, including me, there are 4 Rank-6 martial artists, 12 Rank-5 martial artists, and 12 Rank-4 martial artists, totaling at 28.”
Hearing that, Fang Ping hurriedly said, “From the martial arts society, we’re sending 7 Rank-4 martial artists and 24 martial artists above Upper Rank-3.”
Luo Yichuan’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. Tang Feng lapsed into a temporary silence before saying, “Isn’t that a bit risky?
“Half of the student martial artists above Upper Rank-3 are going!”
“I’m thinking martial artists who are Rank-3 or 4 should follow the main group and enter the Catacombs at a later time. It should still be safe. A few Rank-4 martial artists, along with the Rank-5 or 6 martial artists, can move independently or with the main group. As for the overall situation, we’ll discuss that once we get there.
“This time, with Old Liu in the equation, MCMAU are sending in one high-ranked martial artist, 35 middle-ranked, and 24 martial artists above Upper Rank-3. This should be enough to reinstate MCMAU’s status.
“Of course, I have my selfish motives too.
“This matter is partially personal too. Before my return, I’ve communicated with Nanjiang’s side. Now, Nanjiang’s Ministry of Finance is anxious too, but the Ministry of Finance is willing to subsidize MCMAU 300 million in cash to purchase pills and weapons.
“I’ll be investing 300 million from my savings and totaling the funds up to 600 million for instructors and students to get the equipment they need.”
Tang Feng could not help staring long and hard at Fang Ping. After a short pause, he said, “Save your own money. Everyone’s going to Nanjiang, it’s not because...”
Fang Ping shook his head and said, “Don’t say that, Instructor Tang. It’s a land of opportunities, but the risk is even greater. Everyone could have stayed put initially. The reason why MCMAU is sending so many people is because of my relentless encouragement.
“300 million isn’t much. Money is merely an external possession. It’s alright as long as we have enough to spend.”
Once Fang Ping said that, Luo Yichuan and Tang Feng could not help but look at Fang Ping differently!
He was truly a changed person!
Fang Ping in the past was the complete opposite of who he was today! Back in those days, Fang Ping kept asking and asking. Due to this, Tang Feng expressed his dissatisfaction at Fang Ping several times.
However, everything changed since Fang Ping became the president of the Martial Arts Society!
All the alloys that he grabbed during the championship were all handed into the Martial Arts Society.
All the proceeds from the grand martial arts competition that he organized went to the university as well.
Today, Fang Ping took out a large sum of money and invested it into MCMAU. This selfless act... It caused Tang Feng so much confusion. He did not believe that anybody could change so much!
Luo Yichuan was engulfed in mixed emotions. If he was asked to subsidize 300 million to the university... It might be possible for him to produce that amount of money, but it was really difficult to do.
Fang Ping was just a student, and he earned all that money on his own.
MCMAU’s instructors and students did not agree to go to Nanjiang simply because Fang Ping asked them to. Nobody would say anything if he did not plan to spend money.
Yet, he did not just spend his money—he gave a huge sum of money!
Luo Yichuan patted Fang Ping’s shoulders and said with a smile, “Each age brings forth new genius on this noble land. Seeing you reminds me of the old vice-chancellor.”
The old vice-chancellor was a powerhouse who everyone respected.
It was not simply due to his strength!
In the eyes of MCMAU’s teachers and students, the old vice-chancellor was an irreplaceable presence.
Today, it felt like Fang Ping was following the old vice-chancellor’s footsteps by selflessly contributing for MCMAU’s sake. For a prodigy like him to appear in MCMAU, it was truly MCMAU’s honor!
Fang Ping replied humbly, “Dean Luo, stop teasing me. How can I compare myself to the old vice-chancellor? I’m just giving whatever little effort I can give.”
Money was truly an external possession!
Fang Ping really had a lot of money left. Since his return from the Catacombs last time, the amount of money he had reached 600 million!
After that, he invested a lot of money into his company. Thus, his company had been expanding throughout the whole country.
Nevertheless, his investments had yet to reach 200 million, which left him with nearly 400 million on his hands.
In truth, Fang Ping did not need these. It was more important that he used his Wealth instead.
Surely all the MCMAU instructors and students would look at him differently after he spent this 300 million!
Not including others, the two Peak Rank-6 martial artists, Tang Feng and Luo Yichuan, were already extremely friendly toward Fang Ping.
In MCMAU, there were a total of 7 Peak Rank-6 powerhouses. After including Lu Fengrou and Old Man Li, Fang Ping estimated that he should be able to win at least 4 people over.
As for the three others... One in the Catacombs and another two deans.
For these two, Fang Ping hypothesized that it would not be hard to win them over. After all, after he became the president, Fang Ping fought for a lot of benefits for the School of Social Sciences and School of Production.
Other than the three Grandmasters, the Peak Rank-6 martial artists were the pillars who supported the university. In Fang Ping’s opinion, he should have won most of them over.
If he wanted to take over...
Forget it, he was scared that he would get beaten to death. However, now that the foundations had been laid, when he became a Grandmaster, how could MCMAU not belong to him then?
Spending a few hundred million to win over the hearts of the people of MCMAU... The transaction was worth it!
“That’s great!” Luo Yichuan exclaimed again. “Admitting Luo Sheng into MCMAU is the right thing to do. The timing was perfect as well. Now, we’re the best elite university and our funding has increased. It’ll be easier to get credits... Compared to the past, MCMAU today is more prosperous!”
Tang Feng nodded lightly in agreement too.
Today’s MCMAU was advancing at high speed. This made Tang Feng feel both glad and self-deprecating simultaneously. It seemed like the MCMAU members of his generation did not bring much progress to MCMAU.
Fang Ping said with a smile, “I’m still waiting for you two instructors to achieve breakthroughs to become Grandmasters. Everything is excellent in MCMAU, except for two things. Number one, we don’t have enough Grandmasters.
“Number two, we don’t have a Rank-9 to watch over us.
“I’m trying my best to contribute now in hopes that Vice-chancellor Wu could spend more time in cultivation. When Vice-chancellor Wu breaks through to Rank-9, MCMAU will become the real number one!
“Then, after a few more years, the wish for MCMAU to suppress the Catacombs might become a reality.”
“Grandmaster...” Luo Yichuan grinned and said, “I’m not quite there yet. But Old Tang is. I think your instructor is almost there too.
“Now that I think about it, it’s pretty exciting too. If we have 5 Grandmasters, MCMAU will...”
Fang Ping interrupted with a smile, “But it won’t just be 5. If we find my instructor’s father, I achieve another breakthrough while you and Instructor Li reach a breakthrough too... Then, MCMAU will truly be strong enough to overwhelm all other martial arts universities!”
“Dean Li...” Luo Yichuan began but hesitated to continue. Fang Ping’s eyebrows furrowed. He asked immediately, “Is Instructor Li’s injuries that serious?”
Huang Jing mentioned before that Old Man Li had a long term injury that had not been recovering for years.
Luo Yichuan sighed lightly and replied, “It’s not serious enough to affect his daily cultivation. It’s mainly his Mentality that’s damaged. The foundations of his Mentality was so severely damaged that it can’t heal completely. Now, he’s unable to expel his Mentality. The hope of becoming a Grandmaster is beyond his reach now. Sigh, what a pity!”
“Damaged Mentality?”
Next to Luo Yichuan, Tang Feng nodded and added, “That’s right. Honestly, you should be aware of this too. During the time Vice-chancellor Wu led the team of—”
“The time my instructor’s daughter died fighting?”
“Yeah, that’s the one. During the Sky Gate City-lord’s ambush, many died fighting on that day. Those who survived the attack had their Mentality severely damaged from the city-lord’s Mentality intimidation. Some of them didn’t die in the Catacombs but after their return, they passed away one after the other because they could not keep their injuries under control.
“Today... Only Vice-chancellor Wu and Dean Li survived. The vice-chancellor survived because he’s a Grandmaster-level powerhouse and can treat his injuries. He healed soon enough.
“Meanwhile, Dean Li’s injuries remain until today.”
With his eyebrows furrowed, Fang Ping said, “Is there no way to treat him?”
Tang Feng sighed and said, “There isn’t. Rank-9 powerhouses tried treating him but Dean Li’s Mentality is an utter mess. There’s no way for his Mentality to condense at all.
“With a scattered Mentality, he can no longer expel his Mentality. The situation won’t be as bad if he could expel it. Perhaps, then, he could attempt to achieve a breakthrough and heal himself.
“Sadly, it won’t work.
“After all these years, Dean Li gave up.”
Tang Feng continued. “Dean Li’s trip to Nanjiang this time should be his final bet, oh well...”
“He went to Nanjiang?” Fang Ping interrupted.
“He did. He went over a few days ago.”
Fang Ping mashed his eyebrows together and brooded for a while before saying, “He told me he has a sword that can kill a Rank-8, is that true?”
Luo Yichuan and Tang Feng exchanged glances. Tang Feng muttered, “You learned your Saber-nurturing Techniques from Dean Li, didn’t you?”
“That’s right.”
“He’s nurturing his sword too, and he’s been doing that for ten years!” Tang Feng lamented. “Since returning from the Catacombs ten years ago, he has never used his sword. For the past ten years, he’s been to the Catacombs too but that Longevity Sword was never unsheathed.
“As for whether it can kill a Rank-8, I’ve no idea either. However...” Luo Yichuan said in a low voice. “However, even if he can, bad things will happen the moment he uses his sword... The difference between Rank-6 and Rank-8 is as great as heaven and earth!
“You should understand that. As a Rank-4, do you think you’ll be able to kill a Peak Rank-6 martial artist with a single blow from your saber?
“Also, the difference between a Rank-6 and Rank-8 is far greater than the difference between a Rank-4 and Rank-6. Those are in a different ballpark.”
“Will it kill him?”
“It will definitely kill him.”
Fang Ping inhaled sharply and stopped asking questions about it. Then, he nodded and said, “Got it. Now that the passageway into the Catacombs isn’t stabilized yet, he shouldn’t have entered the Catacombs yet. Instructor Luo, let’s depart first thing in the morning!”
Luo Yichuan did not beat around the bush. He nodded and said, “I’ll inform everyone.”
“Alright, I’ll transfer the funds over later. I’ll get them to transfer the money over from Nanjiang too. I’ll have to ask for your help as instructors to distribute the money. At the very least, everyone should be guaranteed a Resurrection Pill, replace all weapons that need replacing, and there should be enough Vitality Pills to go around...”
After droning on for a short while, Fang Ping did not stay back and started to march away.
Once he left, Luo Yichuan sighed gently and said, “We’ve all misunderstood him.”
When Fang Ping was below Rank-3, he would fight over the trifling things. He would be the fastest to pounce on anything beneficial to him. On the other hand, if it was something that did not benefit him, you might not get a single response from him even if the sky fell on the university back then.
People like that might become a powerhouse one day, but they could never become leaders.
Who would have thought that Fang Ping would turn over a new leaf so drastically after he became the president of the Martial Arts Society?
Tang Feng gave a small nod. “Indeed, we misunderstood him. Perhaps, like what he said, everyone’s path is different. His time is yet to come.”
Luo Yichuan laughed and asked abruptly, “Say, what rank do you think he can achieve while he’s still on campus?”
“There’s hope on Peak Rank-6.”
“Not Rank-7?”
“Hard to tell.”
Tang Feng shook his head slightly. It was because he was currently at this level that he understood how difficult it was to achieve Rank-7.
Fang Ping might have the talent for it. He might have reached the stage of expelling his Mentality. Yet, it did not mean he would break through to Rank-7 smoothly. It depended on his luck too.
...
With Old Man Li away from MCMAU, Fang Ping did not visit the small courtyard.
Instead, he went to the Martial Arts Society and claimed his 2000 credits. He would still take what was his. Wang Jinyang did not claim his because things were not going well in Nanjiang. MCMAU was the opposite.
2000 credits... Fang Ping did not require more credits. Now that he was the Martial Arts Society’s president, he had the greatest advantage to convert credits into cash instantly.
Other students did not mind the difference between credits and cash.
With 60 million cash in hand—deducting the 300 million that he transferred to his university—the money in Fang Ping’s account shot up to 150 million once again. ‘Sometimes, money is quite easy to earn,’ Fang Ping thought.
After receiving his bonus, Fang Ping checked his stats again:
Wealth: 950 million
Vitality: 3200cal (3259cal)
Mentality: 672Hz (699Hz)
Bones honed: 177 pieces (100%), 6 pieces (90%), 23 pieces (30%+)
Storage Space: 1 cubic meter
Energy Shield: 10 thousand Wealth/minutes
Fang Ping spent a lot of his Wealth for the championship. However, it was not considered to be too much. Adding up with his cultivation, he spent a few tens of millions.
After obtaining 60 million in Wealth, his Wealth was currently higher than before.
His Vitality increased too although the increase was not obvious.
His Mentality was stuck at this value. Fang Ping suspected that perhaps it could only continue to increase after reaching Rank-5.
When his Mentality was above 700Hz, its strength would increase a lot. Fang Ping witnessed this from Yao Chengjun.
Before Yao Chengjun reached Rank-5, his Mentality was inferior to Fang Ping’s. His Mentality should have shot past 700Hz after achieving Rank-5. Iron Head Li could not defeat him and was instead suppressed. It was no easy feat.
If Fang Ping wanted to have a fair fight with Li Hansong, Fang Ping might not be up to par. With that iron head of his, if Fang Ping did not use this saber that day, he might achieve a breakthrough, including his Mentality.
“Just wait a while longer. Once my five viscera are honed and the Celestial Bridge is stabilized, I’ll have the option of a breakthrough.”
If things went quick, it would take him around ten days to half a month; if things were slow, it might take him one or two months. There was a possibility that Fang Ping could break through to Rank-5 before the coming year.
Although later than Li Hansong and the rest, once Fang Ping became Rank-5, one or two months would mean nothing to him.
When that happened, they would not be able to reach Middle-stage Rank-5 still. Fang Ping was very confident about that.
When it came to cultivation within the same ranks, those fellows were definitely not as fast as Fang Ping.
“I wonder how many people Li Hansong can send over from CCMAU. We will gather in Nanjiang tomorrow. CCMAU can be included in the manpower I bring over. If CCMAU brings more people over, we’ll have more than a hundred people with the weakest among them around Upper Rank-3. Such a lineup should be fitting for Nanjiang.”
A sizable troop of more than a hundred people that consisted mostly of Middle-ranked martial artists—this kind of strength in manpower was comparable to the strength of the entire Nanjiang province. In fact, three or five prefectural-level cities in Nanjiang would not be able to amass such a sizable lineup even with combined efforts.
If they could include the Grandmaster, Liu Polu, into their ranks, they would definitely be stronger.
“And this Old Man Li... Did the old man join the fight with a death wish?”
Fang Ping felt a slight headache. Then, he recalled Lu Fengrou, who had yet to return from the Magic City Catacombs. None of them were giving him peace of mind!
“We’ll think about that when we reach Nanjiang,” Fang Ping said to himself while shaking his head. There was no point worrying right now. He would come up with something when the time came.
...
After Fang Ping retrieved his bonus and started packing for Nanjiang, the news about how he fought for 300 million worth of subsidies and further investing another 300 million from his personal funds spread like wildfire in MCMAU.
Luo Yichuan and Tang Feng were not petty men who clung onto merits greedily. For them, there was no reason to hold back the information. Everyone should know the person who fought for everyone else’s sake as himself.
The moment the news spread, everyone who knew what was going on felt incredulous.
Fang Ping... was subsidizing everyone with his savings?
The person who was the most confused was Qin Fengqing!
Was that still the Fang Ping he knew?
Was it really Fang Ping?
When did Fang Ping become this generous? Even if he did, how was it that Qin Fengqing never noticed his generosity until today?
Furthermore, Fang Ping’s generosity, selflessness, and his willing servitude to the people... Then, everyone shifted their attention to Qin Fengqing. In comparison, Qin Fengqing was currently swarmed with endless malice!
Everyone in the Martial Arts Society looked at him weirdly!
“There. The president is indeed acting like how a president should be. No wonder Qin Fengqing remained the vice president after so many years. Judging by just their ability to look at the big picture, Qin Fengqing lost to Fang Ping by a huge margin!”
“This isn’t logical!” Distress was etched all over Qin Fengqing’s face. How did Fang Ping become like this?
In the past, whenever he got into trouble, he could always use Fang Ping as a negative example to distract everyone from scrutinizing himself.
Now that Fang Ping transformed into MCMAU’s savior, Qin Fengqing became the real villain here.
When comparing both of them together, it would seem like Qin Fengqing’s the bigger asshole here.
“Did Fang Ping... get possessed?” Qin Fengqing thought of a plot device that was common in novels and muttered, “It must be so. I’m either imagining things or Fang Ping is under possession—Fang Ping will never be that kind of person!”
Walking past a mumbling Qin Fengqing, Chen Yunxi was about to say something but she hesitated. Eventually, she heaved a sigh and swallowed her words.
People like Senior Qin would never come up to Fang Ping’s level. She knew from the start that Fang Ping was never the selfish person everyone thought he was. Now, time had proven everything.