Heavily in Debt

On November 6, the research institute application was submitted. On November 8, the academy granted approval for its establishment. The Single Divine Character Faction created no obstacles. Or rather, they simply did not care right now, or perhaps they had come under pressure and were forced to let Su Yu establish his institute. …… November 9. Su Yu obtained the keys to the new research institute and led a group of founding members toward the new premises, not far from the Wen Tan Research Center. Xia Huyou, Hu Qiusheng, Wu Jia... Even Zhao Ming had arrived. Chen Yong had also come, acting as Su Yu's pillar of support and offering a few suggestions along the way. At the main gate. A sense of desolation hung in the air. Weeds grew rampant. Before them stood a three-story building enclosed by a spacious courtyard. Hanging above the courtyard gate was a weather-worn, somewhat battered plaque. Peering closely, they made out the words: Lan Tian Research Institute. Chen Yong and Zhao Ming exchanged a glance. Zhao Ming smiled. "To think they allocated this place to you." While Su Yu surveyed the surroundings, Wu Jia asked curiously, "What's wrong with this place?" "The Lan Tian Research Institute..." Zhao Ming sighed wistfully, then chuckled. "Nothing much. It's just that the original master back then had quite a bit of fame." "Who was it?" Wu Jia was curious. Were they very famous? "Lan Tian, of course." Zhao Ming smiled. "It's called the Lan Tian Research Institute, so naturally it belonged to Lan Tian." Wu Jia shook her head; she didn't recognize the name. Beside them, Hu Qiusheng and Jiang Mu seemed to know. Jiang Mu frowned slightly. "Not a good omen!" Su Yu glanced over. "Who is Lan Tian?" "A traitor," Jiang Mu said impassively. "It happened twenty years ago. I only read about it in a travelogue. Lan Tian... shouldn't be called Lan Tian nowadays. He's called the Primordial Demon Cult Master!" "Huh?" Su Yu was startled. What was the story here? He knew that the two strongest among the myriad races were the god race and the demon race. Yet both races were merely broad umbrellas comprising numerous sub-races, among which the Primordial God Race and the Primordial Demon Race were the most formidable. The Primordial Demon Cult Master? Zhao Ming smiled. "Didn't know that, did you? The Primordial Demon Cult Master really did come from our academy. Of course, it's a dark history, so the academy didn't bother talking about it and sealed the records away. Lan Tian... hehe, that guy was quite the badass!" Chen Yong said calmly, "He's merely a traitor. How does that make him a badass?" Zhao Ming chuckled. "Director Chen, you can't put it like that. A traitor is a traitor, but you still have to acknowledge the man's terrifying skill!" Seeing Su Yu and the others looking curious, he explained with a smile, "Lan Tian... was once the head of the Modification faction. Age-wise... not that old, belonging to the same generation as Elder Hong and the others, and he had stepped into the Shanhai Realm long ago. Twenty years ago, he was already the department head of the Modification faction, at the seventh stage of the Shanhai Realm. Keep in mind that the Modification faction wasn't particularly powerful to begin with. "That man... went completely mad modifying himself. In the end, he suddenly got the urge to swap bodies... and ended up secretly transforming himself into a Primordial Demon body." Everyone frowned. Zhao Ming continued with a laugh, "That fellow was truly impressive. Disguised as a member of the Primordial Demon Race, he infiltrated the Primordial Demon camp on the All-Heavens Battlefield, pulled off major feats, and killed several Primordial Demon experts... Had it stopped there, he would have been a hero." Su Yu and the others nodded. Indeed. If it had stayed that way, he would have counted as a hero for successfully infiltrating the enemy by disguising himself as one of their own. Yet since he was now the Primordial Demon Cult Master, there was obviously more to the story. Sure enough, Zhao Ming continued, "In the end, a Sun & Moon expert of the Primordial Demon Race captured him. Instead of killing him, the expert told him that his modification had been a failure—that it wasn't a genuine Primordial Demon body and suffered from immense physical flaws..." Zhao Ming shrugged. "No one knows exactly what transpired, but Lan Tian was persuaded. Afterward, he returned to the Human Realm, ousted the previous Primordial Demon Cult Master, and became the new one. Over the years, the Primordial God Cult and the Primordial Demon Cult have been locked in power struggles within the Myriad Races Cult, and the Primordial Demon Cult has subtly held the upper hand..." "Is he at the Sun & Moon Realm?" "Yes, he reached Sun & Moon!" Zhao Ming nodded with a grin. "That fellow is a genius. Reaching Sun & Moon is no surprise. After all, even Elder Hong has reached it." "..." Chen Yong just stared at him! Somehow, that sounded like an insult. What did he mean by 'my master has almost reached Sun & Moon'? Zhao Ming chuckled heartily and quickly added, "Calling him a badass is no exaggeration. Modifying himself until he literally turned into a member of the Primordial Demon Race takes real skill. The Primordial Demon Race possesses incredibly robust physical bodies. How he managed that modification actually holds immense reference value. Unfortunately, he defected right after succeeding. Otherwise, we would have gained far deeper insight into the Primordial Demon Race." Su Yu asked, puzzled, "Did Principal Wan do nothing about it?" For a traitor like that, wouldn't they execute him? "What could he do?" Zhao Ming shrugged. "The man is in the Sun & Moon Realm, his movements are elusive, and he doesn't come causing trouble in the Great Xia Prefecture. Do you expect the principal to travel across the entire world hunting him down? Besides, the principal's publicly stated strength is peak Shanhai. How could he possibly catch him?" A playful look crossed his face! Publicly stated strength: peak Shanhai. Su Yu frowned. "If even a traitor like this isn't executed, where does the academy's authority stand? "The principal didn't kill him, and the Xia Family didn't kill him either?" Xia Huyou chimed in, "Kill him? Even King Daxia couldn't track him down! That guy is elusive as a ghost. On top of that, he claims to the outside world that he's actually an undercover agent planted by Principal Wan specifically to target the Primordial God Cult, and he even asks everyone to give him some leeway." "A spy?" Su Yu was surprised. Wu Jia also asked in astonishment, "He's a spy? A good guy? And he dares to brag about it everywhere?" Xia Huyou gave a wry smile. "Spy, my foot! He says that deliberately. His intention is crystal clear: telling us to leave him alone because he won't cause trouble for us, only fighting the Primordial God Cult..." Su Yu remarked, puzzled, "Fighting only the Primordial God Cult? That does sound like a good thing..." "Good thing, nothing!" Xia Huyou said exasperatedly, "Don't underestimate him! He wants to unify the Myriad Races Cult, establish a genuine faction behind human lines, and perhaps even carve out an entire prefecture of his own! People like him are the most troublesome!" Xia Huyou sighed. "To be honest, people who scream for blood and slaughter aren't terrifying. What makes this guy terrifying is that he's the chief instigator preaching peaceful coexistence! Even that proposal about establishing free trade zones in the Human Realm was his idea!" Xia Huyou shook his head. "The higher-ups all know his heart is pitch-black, but among the lower ranks... some fools genuinely think he's a good person! He preaches not harming the human race in the slightest, claiming humanity should accommodate diverse opinions and political views, offering a way out for those who don't want to fight, promising to keep them safe..." Xia Huyou said with a headache, "The Xia Family naturally wants to butcher him far more than the Primordial God Cult Master! Other cultists either incite chaos or massacre innocents. Not him. At first glance, his philosophy sounds remarkably reasonable, but in reality, it's pure sophistry!" He looked at Su Yu and said helplessly, "He claims humanity should establish free trade zones and welcome all races, because the Human Realm exerts no suppressive force, so everyone can collaborate to turn the Human Realm into the center of the myriad realms. How does that sound to you?" Su Yu frowned. Someone had said those exact words to him before—Wan Mingze. Back then, Su Yu had thoroughly cursed that notion. Today, Su Yu cursed it just the same: "Such a person deserves to die!" "Exactly!" Xia Huyou shrugged. "Yet some people think his words make sense! Why fight a war? Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone became one big family? Doesn't war cost lives? Living in harmony is so much better; turning ourselves into a trade hub and the core of the myriad realms, how splendid would that be? "He claims the myriad races aren't coming here to slaughter people, but to help us build the Human Realm! That the Human Realm has immense room for growth, free from warfare, where everyone can rise like dragons. How does that sound?" "..." Su Yu was speechless. This man... undeniably, was an extraordinarily difficult opponent. Ruthlessness wasn't what made a villain terrifying, nor was malice. What made a villain terrifying was insidious cunning! No matter how formidable an enemy was, even an Invincible, humanity could strike them down! Yet this man didn't kill bodies—he assassinated minds! The Great Xia Civilization Academy... was truly something. Even the traitors who defected from it were masterminds of deceit. Sure enough, after spending decades mingling in the academy, almost no one remained simple. Even Zhou Mingren, who had seemingly been led by the nose by them, resolved his predicament with effortless ease once he turned serious. Over the past few days, he had resolved numerous internal fissures within the Single Divine Character Faction. The faction, which had been on the verge of fracturing, seemed to have united once again. Regarding the position of lineage master, he was in no hurry to appoint anyone, instead dangling it before their eyes to keep the Lingyun experts and several elders on their best behavior. A juicy bone sat right there. He hadn't tossed it out yet, so if you behaved yourselves, it might just go to you. As a result, the Single Divine Character Faction was noticeably more united than before. "This person..." Su Yu pondered for a long while before speaking: "Deserves to be killed! And killed sooner rather than later! The Primordial Demon Cult's reputation must be pretty good right now, right?" "Yes!" Xia Huyou sighed. "In the Great Xia Prefecture, we lump them all together as the Myriad Races Cult, so people don't think much of it. But in certain other prefectures, the Myriad Races Cult and the Primordial Demon Cult are treated as distinct entities... By the way, their official name isn't the Primordial Demon Cult, but the Sacred Cult!" Xia Huyou grumbled, "Some fools actually follow suit and call it the Sacred Cult! Tell me, isn't this guy an absolute headache?" "Then over all these years, no one went after him?" Xia Huyou said gloomily, "Of course they did. Our... prefecture head personally pursued him for over three months. In the end, the man vanished into thin air, utterly impossible to find. Once the prefecture head returned, he popped right back up! He's a Modification expert who could turn himself into a Primordial Demon. Just think about how terrifying his concealment abilities must be. A slight adjustment and he becomes an entirely different person!" Su Yu was left speechless. Fair point. "So he can't be tracked?" "If an Invincible locks onto him, he can't escape. The problem is locking onto him in the first place—the guy hides far too well!" Having said that, Xia Huyou looked at the large courtyard before them and curled his lip. "To think this was his research institute. I was wondering why they were so generous as to allocate such a massive institute near the Wen Tan Research Center, where only veteran researchers usually get space. Turns out it belonged to him. What rotten luck!" The older institutes occupied large plots of land, whereas the newer ones were much smaller. Now it seemed the Single Divine Character Faction had handed Su Yu a veteran researcher's institute simply because they found it an unlucky omen, harboring nothing but ill intentions. Su Yu didn't mind in the slightest and laughed. "Doesn't matter. A bigger place is even better. Who knows, maybe that Lan Tian left some good stuff behind..." "Dream on!" Zhao Ming cut him off. "Stop daydreaming. Back when he defected, people from the Quest Realm, the War God Hall, and the Great Xia Prefecture all rushed over and turned his institute and residence upside down! Everything that could be removed was carted off. What remained was sealed away by the academy, leaving only an empty shell. "An Invincible even led the search personally! Do you really think anything good would be left for you?" Su Yu chuckled. He had only been joking. Naturally, he hadn't expected anything to actually remain. The Lan Tian Research Institute... Su Yu wasted no words, throwing a punch forward. With a booming crash, the already dilapidated sign was smashed to pieces! "From today on, this is the Primordial Spirit Research Institute!" Su Yu laughed and turned around. "Xia Huyou, I'm assigning this task to you. Get me a new plaque later!" "Are we having an unveiling ceremony?" "Just hang it up casually. No need for any ceremony." Su Yu smiled. "Come on, let's head in and take a look!" …… Just as Su Yu led the group inside to inspect the institute. At Xiuxin Pavilion. Wan Tiansheng suddenly chuckled. "That kid has guts, smashing the man's sign... quite interesting!" A playful smile crossed his face. After all these years, ever since the Lan Tian Research Institute was sealed, no one had dared touch it. Now, did Sun Xiang assign this institute to Su Yu by accident or on purpose? The academy had kept it sealed for years partly to lure Lan Tian back for a look. Back then, he had fled in a hurry, taking almost nothing with him. Yet during the subsequent search, no information regarding the Primordial Demon Race was ever uncovered. The Quest Realm, the War God Hall, and the Great Xia Prefecture all suspected that the institute contained secrets they had missed. If even an Invincible couldn't find them, they had to be monumental secrets. The Lan Tian Research Institute had remained sealed for years. It was only unsealed two years ago, after eighteen years of total silence. And now, Elder Sun had allocated it to Su Yu. Was it to spite Su Yu, or... to borrow someone else's blade to kill him? Wan Tiansheng extended his willpower, scanning the entire academy, and murmured, "Are you still lurking in the academy?" That man's concealment ability was supreme! Who knew whether he had snuck back into the Great Xia Prefecture, or even into the Civilization Academy? Now that his sign had been shattered, would he appear? Would he reveal any trace of himself? After probing for a moment, Wan Tiansheng smiled and retracted his willpower. Forget it! Even if the man were here, he wouldn't dare show himself. That fellow knew full well that many people were intentionally letting him operate, gathering the Myriad Races Cult together. Once the cult was unified, his execution day would arrive—the perfect opportunity to wipe them all out in one swoop! A few old fellows were eagerly waiting for him to do just that. Unifying the Myriad Races Cult... arranging an enthronement ceremony for him would be even better. When that time came, multiple Invincibles would likely hunt him down together. Wan Tiansheng smiled, closed his eyes to rest, and paid no more attention to it. That Su Yu fellow... whether he had good luck or bad luck was hard to say. If that guy truly was in the academy and saw Su Yu smash his sign, he probably wouldn't let Su Yu off easily. "Drawing him out wouldn't be a bad thing either!" Lan Tian... Wan Tiansheng muttered silently to himself. *An undercover agent I planted... Planted your ass! You've been trading on my reputation all these years, and I simply couldn't be bothered to deal with you.* *Once that Invincible traitor is dragged out into the light, I'll settle accounts with you!* …… "Cough, cough, cough..." Pushing open the dust-sealed door, a sharp stench of blood assaulted their senses. Wu Jia coughed repeatedly, covering her nose. "It stinks!" Zhao Ming chuckled. "Normal. The Modification faction... slaughtered countless creatures. Slicing off an arm today, cutting off a claw tomorrow. Back then, more great demons died in this institute than in the Wen Tan Research Center." "We don't take lives..." Su Yu and Chen Yong spoke in unison. Then, exchanging a glance, both chuckled and fell silent. The others stared at the two of them with bizarre expressions. Were they serious? Where did your innate blood essence come from? Did you buy it all yourselves? Zhao Ming, in particular, was utterly speechless. Did neither of them have any idea how many great demons Hong Tan had dragged into the research center over the years? And now? Not even their bones remained! Ignoring him, Su Yu stepped inside to look around. The place was vast. Yet it was also thoroughly empty! A stench of blood was nothing. Slaughter enough living beings and that smell was inevitable; even the detention area carried a hint of it, just not nearly as concentrated. Three floors above ground, three floors below. The layout was almost identical to the Wen Tan Center. The first floor served as the living quarters. The main hall was practically stripped bare, leaving behind only some dilapidated furniture—a battered sofa, broken tables, ruined wreckage all around! After decades, everything worth taking had been cleared out, and what was left behind had fallen to ruin. Not a single creature dwelled here, not even a rat. They didn't dare come; the killing intent lingering here was far too heavy. Su Yu glanced around, then turned to Xia Huyou. Xia Huyou stared back, puzzled. Why look at me? "Clean it up!" Su Yu said exasperatedly, "You're the professional! Did you forget? You have a divine character for cleaning!" "..." Fuck! You actually remembered that! Xia Huyou said in disbelief, "You didn't drag me along just for this, did you?" "Of course!" "..." Xia Huyou was speechless. *Don't you know who I am? Is this how you treat Xia Longwu's son? You really expect me to do janitorial work for you?* "Hurry up!" Su Yu chided, "This place is straightforward. Give it a sweep and we can move things in right away!" Xia Huyou felt utterly dejected. *Fuck, he really wants me to do manual labor!* Su Yu ignored his grumbling, gave a few more instructions, and said, "Senior Sister, head over to the Wen Tan Research Center in a bit and bring over the books I packed. Senior Jiang, you and Brother Hu are tasked with buying some books and reference materials to flesh out the place... Teacher Zhao, your job is to help us secure a batch of equipment..." "What equipment?" Su Yu calculated mentally and said, "Cages for holding great demons, a divine talisman formation array, a divine character preservation chamber... Nothing too complex. For anything heavily involving divine characters, I can use the Wen Tan Research Center. Our primary research focus is Primordial Spirit Apertures, so we'll definitely need some anatomical models! "Especially the highest-end human body models available right now—the fully simulated kind, including the sea of will..." "Huh?" Zhao Ming said in shock, "We need to buy those too? Those things aren't cheap! Fully simulated models aren't even mature in our academy yet. The Great Zhou Prefecture has mature technology, but purchasing a single Wanshi Realm model costs hundreds of merit points, and a Tengkong Realm one runs at least a thousand points..." "Bring back a few." "Where's the money?" "Put it on credit. Teacher, you can front it first." "..." Zhao Ming stared at him, and Su Yu stared right back. After a long pause, Zhao Ming forced a smile. "Uh... is it too late for me to back out?" "Teacher, you're not short on cash right now. I know you make plenty. Once I make money, I'll pay you back immediately!" "Xia Huyou runs a black market business. Why don't you make him front it?" Su Yu said helplessly, "I already owe him 1,100 merit points. Besides, if we need other supplies down the line, I'll have to buy from him. We can't fleece just one sheep, can we?" "..." Zhao Ming felt mentally exhausted. He glanced at Chen Yong. *Is everyone in your faction like this?* Chen Yong didn't look at him. *Don't look at me, I have no money. Lend it or don't!* Su Yu said earnestly, "Teacher, I don't borrow money from just anyone. Borrowing from you shows I trust you, and you must trust me too. If I casually sell a few items, I won't be short on cash either; I just can't be bothered selling to outsiders!" "So you're saying you're doing me a favor?" "Teacher, you joke. This shows how highly I think of you!" Su Yu smiled warmly. Zhao Ming raised an eyebrow. "If I don't lend it... does that mean when this institute produces results in the future, none of it will be credited to me?" "Pretty much." Zhao Ming laughed. "Fine! You're ruthless enough, kid! Are Hu Qiusheng and Jiang Mu doing the same, paying out of pocket for reference materials?" "Yes, put it on the ledger first. Once I have money, I'll pay it all back in one go!" Su Yu smiled. "Don't worry, I'm not someone who defaults on debts. If I really don't have the cash to repay you, I still have a few treasures on hand. Selling a couple to you would be your gain anyway!" The moment he said that, Xia Huyou chimed in hurriedly, "If you have good stuff, sell it to me first! I'll pay top dollar!" Su Yu ignored him, wandering through the hall while continuing, "Our primary focus is cultivation methods and divine characters, so expenses won't be too excessive. I've calculated it myself: all expenses combined shouldn't exceed 5,000 merit points!" Everyone was rendered speechless. *That's not too excessive?* *A mere Yangxing student, yet your tone is breathtakingly grand.* "I stopped by the library a few days ago and arranged with them to transcribe a few thousand books for me. The price isn't high, around 300 merit points. They're all materials we'll need moving forward..." Su Yu looked across the group, finally settling his gaze on Wu Jia. Wu Jia looked back at him with a pitiful expression. *Don't look at me!* *I don't have any money!* *I'm genuinely broke!* Su Yu stroked his chin and pondered for a moment before speaking: "Come to think of it, our institute is still short-handed. Wu Lan and I are old friends, so I ought to lend her a hand. I'll invite her later... As for those library books... she can front the payment first. That shouldn't be an issue, right?" Elder Wu Yuehua's grandniece was one of their own; he had to help her out! Seeing her progress so slowly, Su Yu could hardly bear to watch! The others were at a loss for words. Xia Huyou curled his lip. "Speaking of wealth, the Divine Pill Department is truly loaded, followed by the Divine Talisman Department, which is quite well-off too. Oh, and the Forging faction is wealthy as well. Non-combat specializations are all rolling in money." "Really?" Su Yu hadn't noticed! At least that old man from the Forging faction seemed quite poor. Xia Huyou sneered, "Don't bring up Teacher Zhao Li; that doesn't count. The old man has an eccentric temper. When he's in a good mood, he'll forge a weapon for someone; when he's in a bad mood, he won't lift a finger for six months. Otherwise, how could he possibly be so broke?" Su Yu ignored him. He really needed to pull Wu Lan in. Life was tough for a girl! Besides, her grandaunt was loaded! Although Wu Yuehua had a close relationship with Teacher Liu, that didn't mean Su Yu could just casually knock on her door to borrow money. Taking a roundabout route was better—it wasn't like he wouldn't repay her, and he could provide benefits in return. Lately, he planned to research methods to accelerate aperture merging. Once such a technique was developed, it would be a tremendous blessing for the Qianjun and Wanshi Realms! It would be a blessing for the Shanhai Realm too! "Oh, right, there's also Zhou Hao..." Su Yu rubbed his chin and smiled. "The Single Divine Character Faction, or other factions, will eventually try to plant a few spies here. Why not take the initiative and recruit Zhou Hao? He's a pauper, but his teacher is rich!" Members of the Xia Family were absurdly wealthy. Zhao Ming nodded, but Chen Yong said faintly, "Xia Yuwen might not have much money left either. Besides... Su Yu, don't spend recklessly. Our faction is currently saddled with quite a few external debts." "What?" Su Yu was taken aback. Deficits? *Was the massive sum of money I gave you last time still not enough?* Chen Yong looked at him and said after a long pause, "Before Master entered seclusion, he told me that the Multiple Divine Characters Faction is entrusted to you. Even the Wen Tan Research Center has been handed over to you, including our debts... You didn't know?" "Debts?" "Yes!" Chen Yong said calmly, "Your grandmaster trusts you, so I won't say much. It's not that much—that clash near Eighteenth Middle School nearly destroyed the place, and in the end, 1.2 million merit points in compensation were required. The Single Divine Character Faction pays 800,000, Xia Yuwen personally pays 100,000, and we pay 300,000. It's actually considered very lenient. Marquis Xia looked out for us, don't you know?" Su Yu was completely dumbfounded! *I didn't know a thing!* Su Yu stammered, "Uh... does... does the Single Divine Character Faction even have the money to pay that?" "They do." Chen Yong smiled. "Jiutian Academy is responsible for 300,000, the people from Wendao Academy are responsible for 100,000, and the Great Zhou Prefecture pays 300,000. The folks from our academy ended up paying even less than us—just 100,000 was enough. "Our 300,000 actually covers the liabilities of many individuals. But after all, people risked their lives to come support us; you can't make them pay out of their own pockets, can you?" Chen Yong smiled. "Take Elder He Qi, Elder Wu Yuehua, Senior Zhao Mingyue... Could we possibly make them foot the bill instead of paying it ourselves?" "..." Su Yu swallowed hard and gave a dry laugh. "You must be joking. That much money—who could possibly afford to pay that?" "Joking?" Chen Yong smiled, and Zhao Ming and the others chuckled too. Xia Huyou said exasperatedly, "Do you think the Xia Family jokes around? Do you think Marquis Xia jokes around? Su Yu, you have to pay when you owe compensation. If you don't... your family's Wen Tan Research Center will be seized before long!" Marquis Xia loved to joke on ordinary days, but when money was involved, he never joked! Su Yu was rendered utterly speechless! 1.2 million merit points! Just for damaging a small area outside Eighteenth Middle School, they were demanding 1.2 million merit points in compensation. Marquis Xia... Xia the Second was truly ruthless enough to devour people whole without spitting out the bones! "We really have to pay?" Su Yu still found it hard to believe. Was this really not a joke? Xia Huyou found it amusing. "Of course it's real! The money from the Great Zhou Prefecture has already arrived, alright? Shan Tianhao died, and they still had to pay compensation. If they didn't... people from the Great Zhou Prefecture came to our territory and wrecked our ground; if they refused to pay, our Longwu Guards would march straight to the Great Zhou Prefecture and raid their treasury. A full-blown ruckus—who's afraid of whom?" Su Yu stood frozen in a daze. "Over at Jiutian Academy, Principal Jin Yuhui practically sold the pants off his back, and the money has cleared too." Xia Huyou chuckled. "Who told them to fight so fiercely? Principal Jin Yuhui caused the most destruction, so of course he pays! Your grandmaster broke plenty of things too, so charging your side 300,000 merit points is already letting you off easy!" "Then what about the Single Divine Character Faction..." Su Yu wondered, did they still have money to pay? Xia Huyou smiled. "Don't worry, they have money. Even though they're practically tapped out, several elders scraping together can still cobble together 100,000 merit points! If all else fails, they can demand more from the Great Zhou Prefecture—the Great Zhou Prefecture is loaded!" "..." Su Yu was rendered thoroughly speechless. He now suspected the Xia Family had done this intentionally, deliberately allowing Zhou Mingren and the others to collude with the Great Zhou Prefecture so they could treat them as an ATM! Whenever they felt like it, they would shear off a layer of wool! "So you're saying I'm saddled with 300,000 in external debt?" Not Anping coins, but merit points! Fuck! He recalled now. No wonder Grandmaster had grandly told him before going into seclusion that if he lacked god and demon blood essence, he could just mortgage the Wen Tan Research Center. Turns out... the Wen Tan Research Center was practically gone already? Perhaps only a fraction of its value remained for borrowing some god and demon blood essence? All while reaping some benefits along the way? Su Yu remained in a daze and looked at Chen Yong. *Martial Uncle, you're the lineage master!* *I'm not!* Chen Yong said nonchalantly, "We can afford it. What truly matters in the Wen Tan Research Center is the data, not the location! Of course, setting up those massive formations and purchasing all that equipment cost a fortune. If we really put it up for sale, it could fetch several hundred thousand. Since Master put you in charge, if the Xia Family comes collecting, just sell the research center to settle the debt." Even the research center would have to be sold! Good grief! *Why don't you sell it yourselves instead of making me do it?* *You're setting me up to be the villain!* Only at this moment did Su Yu realize he had become an extraordinary debtor, drowning in liabilities! He was even worse off than Teacher Liu! Saddled with over 300,000 merit points in debt! His head pounded with an explosive ache. Su Yu forced a bitter smile. "Xia Yuwen and the rest are practically broke too?" "Pretty much!" Chen Yong smiled. "Of course, no matter how broke they are, scraping together some funds to nurture a student is still manageable. You can pull that Zhou Hao over and use him as experimental material in passing; that would be quite nice! "Naturally, don't leak critical information. In truth, from what I can tell, Zhou Hao probably wouldn't understand any of it anyway. Even if you showed him the materials, he might not be able to read them." Chen Yong joked casually, speaking the plain truth. Zhou Hao... how many languages did he know? Most of the research center's documents were original texts, not translations. With that said, Chen Yong added, "You'll also need to purchase a solid, large-scale defensive formation. Not to ward off physical attacks, but to prevent intrusions and eavesdropping! Ideally, one capable of jamming the senses of a Sun & Moon expert. That won't come cheap; without spending over 10,000 merit points, you won't even find one!" "..." Su Yu felt utterly exhausted. This purchase was unavoidable. Meaning he truly had to find an enormous sucker, or go unearth a buried treasure! Without it, with Wan Tiansheng's level of strength, the man could probe this place anytime he pleased, and Su Yu wouldn't even necessarily detect it. "Martial Uncle, I suddenly don't want to set up an institute anymore..." Chen Yong consoled him, "Set it up. The Wen Tan Research Center might not even belong to us anymore. If you don't build one, we'll have to relocate eventually. Establishing a nest in advance is a good idea." He actually strongly supported establishing a new institute. At least they would have a place to live, preventing Master from having nowhere to stay once he emerged from seclusion. Su Yu could be a filial granddisciple: when his grandmaster emerged, he could welcome him back to stay for a few days. After all, the library belonged to the academy, not to private individuals. Truly broke! At this moment, Su Yu felt the biting chill of poverty! What this meant was that their Multiple Divine Characters Faction currently didn't even have a place to live, let alone hold meetings or conduct research. Look at other factions—they had entire office buildings to hold their meetings in! "Marquis Xia won't come to seize the research institute right away, will he?" "Not that quickly..." Xia Huyou explained, "Even when Marquis Xia collects debts, he generally gives you some time to gather the funds. Only when you fail to scrape it together will he seize property. Three hundred thousand is no small sum; I expect he'll give your side at least six months to a year!" He felt obliged to defend his granduncle. His granduncle wasn't the sort to drive people into a corner. He would give them time to raise the money! Over six months to a year, with a half-step Sun & Moon expert in their camp, if they went out hunting great demons every single day, they could pretty much gather the funds. Killing one Shanhai great demon a day meant 180 heads in six months... Well, killing one every ten days meant eighteen heads in six months, which would just about plug the hole. His granduncle was remarkably humane. Su Yu rolled his eyes furiously! Get lost! He had finally realized that the people of the Xia Family... no, Marquis Xia was genuinely ruthless! In that previous battle, none of the factions gained any advantage; the Great Xia Prefecture alone reaped an astronomical windfall. Next time any of those factions considered starting a battle within the Great Xia Prefecture, they would have to think twice. Lest they finish fighting only to find that selling the pants off their backs wouldn't be enough to compensate the Great Xia Prefecture's losses. Black-hearted Xia the Second! Su Yu cursed again in his heart. *So what if you're in the Sun & Moon Realm? It's not like I'm cursing you to your face!*