Student Manor

Night fell. The main building of Star Radiance Group's Wuling City branch was brightly lit. The top floor held only a single office, decorated in an austere, understated style. Most martial artists at the branch were not qualified to set foot on this floor. *Ding.* The elevator doors slid open. Dressed in formal attire, Xing Ye's burly figure strode through the open door of the office. At a glance, he noticed a large, sci-fi-looking capsule pod resembling a gaming pod set up not far away. A middle-aged man wearing a specialized helmet lay inside. "General Manager," Xing Ye called softly. *Click.* The pod's transparent canopy slid back. Opening his eyes, the middle-aged man in martial arts robes sat up, took off the nearly fully enclosed helmet, and stepped out. He smiled. "Old Xing, you're here." This gentle-looking middle-aged man was none other than the General Manager of Star Radiance Group's municipal branch, "Shadow Tiger" Yang Zhiyuan—the overall head of Star Radiance Group in Wuling City. In both strength and status, he stood a cut above Xing Ye. "Have a seat first," Yang Zhiyuan said with a smile. Once Xing Ye sat down, Yang leisurely poured tea for him. "A new batch of special reserve tea just arrived. Try some—" "Right." Xing Ye downed it in a single gulp. "That's no way to drink tea," Yang Zhiyuan chuckled. "I could never get used to this stuff. Plain water is best," Xing Ye said with a shake of his head. His fiery temperament had earned him the moniker "Raging Bear" in the first place. "Haha, that won't do," Yang Zhiyuan said with a laugh. "When I step down, I plan to recommend you to the provincial branch to take over. You can't be this impatient." "General Manager," Xing Ye replied, shaking his head. "I'm fine just working under you. Once you step down, I'll apply to become a primordial martial artist and try my luck on the Primordial Star again." Yang Zhiyuan smiled without committing. Within Star Radiance Group, high-level martial artists at the Earth Martial Artist rank and above were divided into two categories: administrative martial artists and primordial martial artists. The former were appointed as executives across the civilization and basically did not venture onto the Primordial Star. The latter only retained their star rank and held nominal honorary titles, giving them the freedom to explore the Primordial Star. This arrangement was designed to prevent municipal branch executives from abruptly dying on the Primordial Star and throwing the administration into chaos. "Have you tried the new virtual pod from New Moon?" Yang Zhiyuan changed the subject, gesturing toward the nearby capsule. "The simulation fidelity is already up to seventy percent." "Haven't tried it." "Never mind seventy percent—even ninety percent fidelity is useless; it's still just a toy," Xing Ye said with a shake of his head. "For our cultivation, what matters is body scanning fidelity and spiritual force scanning fidelity. The Tianlan Realm reaches 99.99 percent. New Moon's research and development is simply too slow." "Hahaha." "This virtual pod was developed independently by our Blue Moon Alliance. How could it compare to the Tianlan Realm?" Yang Zhiyuan laughed. "Over the past decade or so, its fidelity has steadily improved, which is already quite impressive. Once it hits ninety-nine percent, it probably won't be long before it's rolled out for universal martial arts cultivation." "Then we'll be waiting a long time," Xing Ye said nonchalantly. "Even fifty years might not be enough." Xing Ye understood full well. Raising a virtual pod's fidelity from fifty percent to seventy percent was easy, but progressing further with independent research made even a single percentage increase brutally difficult. The closer one got to the hundred percent limit, the difficulty spiked by ten or a hundred times. "General Manager," Xing Ye couldn't help asking, "you didn't call me here just to drink tea and chat, did you?" "I just told you not to rush." Yang Zhiyuan smiled as he continued pouring tea. "Did Huguang Martial University notify you about Fang Yu?" "They did." Xing Ye nodded with a sigh. "I really didn't expect that kid to turn into a Tier-3 Star Seed in the blink of an eye, or that he'd prompt Sky-Patroller Ye to step in." "I looked through the records and couldn't find any connection between him and Sky-Patroller Ye. Most likely, President Baili Jing of Huguang Martial University pulled strings to make it happen," Xing Ye added. "It could also be that some of Xia Kaishan's hidden enemies tipped off Sky-Patroller Ye. I just didn't expect an exalted Sky-Patrolling Envoy to actually bother with such a minor matter," Yang Zhiyuan said calmly. "In any case, Xia Kaishan must be feeling thoroughly suffocated." Huguang Martial University had sent intelligence regarding Fang Yu to all eight municipal branches of the martial artist groups in Wuling City, though without naming him outright. However! While Tier-3 and Tier-2 Star Seeds were kept confidential from the public, upper management of the Eight Great Martial Artist Groups could obtain the information directly from the Blue Moon Alliance if they wished. Thus, a simple query had been enough for Yang Zhiyuan and Xing Ye to grasp the general sequence of events. "Serves him right," Xing Ye sneered. "That old fossil actually tried to meddle in our branch's contract signings... I've been sick of him for a long time." "Are you taking a dig at me?" Yang Zhiyuan chuckled. "I was the one who gave the order, after all." "General Manager, how could I blame you? I know you were under pressure too," Xing Ye said, shaking his head. It wasn't as if he hadn't tried; he had reported Fang Yu's situation to Yang Zhiyuan before. Yet Yang Zhiyuan's directive had been: *Protect his family and wait to see how things unfold.* The intention was crystal clear—do not burn resources to clash with Xia Kaishan, but simply observe the final outcome. If Fang Yu emerged unscathed despite Xia Kaishan's pressure, it would not be too late to consider signing him. Xing Ye had chosen to stand by. After all, without Yang Zhiyuan's backing, how could a mere branch director and ordinary Level 42 Earth Martial Artist like him possibly go toe-to-toe with Xia Kaishan? "Now, the dust has settled." "We can sign Fang Yu," Yang Zhiyuan said with a smile. "Wuling City produces only two or three Tier-3 Star Seeds a year, and they don't necessarily sign with us." "Right." "Currently, our branch has only signed two Tier-3 Star Seeds in total," Xing Ye nodded. 'Star Seed' was a status held before becoming an Earth Martial Artist. Once a seed became an Earth Martial Artist, they would step into a higher echelon, beyond the purview of municipal branches. "Still, General Manager, will Fang Yu sign?" Xing Ye hesitated slightly. "We did turn down his family's plea earlier." "Turned them down?" "His younger siblings are members of our Star Radiance Group, so we promised them protection. But him? He wasn't a member of our group at the time. What right did he have to demand that we stick our necks out for him?" Yang Zhiyuan shook his head. "Who did he think he was?" Xing Ye nodded, finding the logic sound. "This time, we will offer him our best contract terms. If he's a smart man, he'll naturally sign," Yang Zhiyuan said indifferently. "If he holds a grudge against us over what happened before..." "Then it only proves he's too naive." "If he doesn't sign, so be it. Martial arts geniuses are everywhere. Missing out on him won't hurt us," Yang Zhiyuan remarked. "Understood." Xing Ye nodded. "I'll send someone over right away." "No." Yang Zhiyuan smiled faintly. "If we can sign him, it's best that we do. You going in person will show our sincerity... If he's willing to sign, some of the terms can be relaxed a bit." Evidently, he still hoped to secure the contract. "Oh, right, General Manager—once we sign Fang Yu, what about Xia Kaishan's side?" Xing Ye asked hesitantly. "For the time being, Xia Kaishan will behave himself. Don't worry about him." *** Huguang Martial University. Though night had fallen, the campus was exceptionally lively. As transport shuttles touched down one after another, large crowds of returning students made their way back to their dormitories. Fang Yu, however, was greeted by dedicated personnel. "Student Fang Yu." A tall, attractive woman in professional business attire had been waiting beside the shuttle alongside several logistics staff members. The moment Fang Yu stepped down, they immediately walked up to greet him. "I am Heng Qiu, Deputy Director of the Logistics Department," the attractive woman said with a warm smile. "Since you need to relocate your residence, I came here specifically to receive you." "In the future, if you need anything on campus, you can reach out to me directly." "Hello, Director Heng." Fang Yu responded politely. "Alright, Student Fang Yu. Please hand your luggage over to our staff, and I will escort you to the Student Manor first," she said with a smile. Student Manor? Fang Yu paused, then nodded. "Alright." "Wang Mo, Zhang Tao, see you later!" Fang Yu waved, then boarded the reception vehicle that had been waiting for him alongside Heng Qiu. "Student Manor?" "What?" "Do Earth Contract students get treated this well?" Zhang Tao and the other students who had transferred from Wuling Martial Junior College looked at one another in bewilderment. "What the hell do you know?" Wang Mo whispered. "Not all Earth Contracts are the same. I heard that while most Earth Contract students get slightly larger villas, their living quarters aren't fundamentally different from those of elite students." "Only the absolute cream of the Earth Contract students get to live in the Student Manor—like Yan Tianheng!" "On campus, only faculty members with the rank of associate professor or higher are granted manor residences," Wang Mo remarked with awe. "This is a martial university's student manor. The construction cost was astronomical, and the quota is tiny. You couldn't buy your way in with money if you tried." "The Earth Contract Fang Yu signed must be on the same tier as Yan Tianheng's." Zhang Tao and the others caught their breath. On the same level as Yan Tianheng? *Has the gap between Fang Yu and me already grown this wide?* Zhang Tao sighed inwardly. Over the past few days, since joining a martial artist squad, he had occasionally heard senior students mention Yan Tianheng during casual conversations. That was a legendary student of Huguang Martial University. And Fang Yu was already standing shoulder to shoulder with him? Zhang Tao felt an air of unreality... Yet Wang Mo's words certainly made sense. At the university, accommodations, cultivation funding, assigned instructors, and various other privileges were all directly tied to a student's contract tier. The stronger a student's strength and talent, the better their treatment naturally was. "My bro is getting more and more incredible." Wang Mo, on the other hand, was purely thrilled. *** The vehicle drove deep into the campus. It was exceptionally quiet here. "Student Manor?" Fang Yu stepped out of the vehicle and caught his breath as he looked at the brightly lit estate ahead. With meticulously pruned trees and gardens, its footprint was astonishingly vast. "Only students with a Sky-Patrol Contract are qualified to reside in the Student Manor," Heng Qiu said as she stepped up beside him, introducing the area with a smile. "The Student Manor covers over thirty mu and contains ten individual courtyards, accommodating up to ten students at most." "Of course, including you, there are currently only five students living here." "Each courtyard has a thousand square meters of aboveground building area and five hundred square meters underground. They are equipped with dedicated audiovisual rooms, swimming pools, lounges, martial arts training rooms, star force chambers..." "Within the manor, there are also shared gravity chambers, Sky Eye Rooms, practical combat buildings... All reserved exclusively for the five Sky-Patrol Contract students." Fang Yu listened, thoroughly astounded. Such a massive manor, filled with precious instruments and facilities completely out of reach for ordinary students, dedicated entirely to serving just five people? "Let's go, Student Fang Yu," Heng Qiu said with a smile. "The other four Sky-Patrol Contract students residing in the manor are already waiting in the main dining hall to welcome you... Even Yan Tianheng came specifically for this." "Yan Tianheng is here too?" Fang Yu's eyes lit up. Of all the students at Huguang Martial University, Yan Tianheng was the one he was most curious about. For so long, he had heard the name, but had never actually met him.