4.92 Million and 100 Million

"By the way."

"Dad, do you remember my roommate Wang Mo?" Fang Yu asked.

"I do," Fang Ping'an said. "The son of the boss of the Shengchuan Group. You've mentioned him a few times."

"Yeah, he was also admitted to Huguang Martial Arts University on recommendation," Fang Yu said. "His dad wants to invite me to dinner tomorrow night."

"Dinner? Tomorrow?" Fang Ping'an narrowed his eyes. "Did he invite only you? Was your other roommate invited? Does he know you became a direct-entry student? Has his dad ever invited you to dinner in the past few years?"

Fang Ping'an fired off a string of questions.

"In the past three years, I've only seen his dad once, and that was from a distance," Fang Yu said thoughtfully. "I think I'm the only one he invited. Wang Mo probably told his dad about my situation... and then he invited me to dinner."

Fang Yu repeated exactly what Wang Mo had said.

"That makes sense."

"The Shengchuan Group is a major corporation with annual revenue in the billions," Fang Ping'an said. "It has businesses in several industries. It isn't particularly noteworthy nationwide, or even well known across the province... but here in Wuling City, it's definitely a major enterprise."

"He's in charge of a company that big."

"President Wang's time is valuable... He probably decided to invite you to dinner because he learned you became a direct-entry student," Fang Ping'an said. "My guess is that he wants to invest in you."

"Invest?" Fang Yu looked thoughtful.

It wasn't uncommon. Just like with his younger brother and sister: as soon as they awakened upper astral aspects, several martial artist groups had come calling, all wanting to sign them in advance.

These days, martial artist talent was the most valuable thing of all.

"There are generally three kinds of investment."

"The most common is what happened with your brother and sister: signing a contract early so that you'll work for them after you graduate," Fang Ping'an said. "But the Shengchuan Group isn't a martial artist group. They mostly hire martial artists for tax deductions... You haven't even been to Primordial Star yet, so they're unlikely to sign a contract with you."

"The second is a marriage alliance." Fang Ping'an smiled. "They find a daughter or a younger female relative of marriageable age to marry you, then give you a large dowry to tie you to their family."

"A marriage alliance?" Fang Yu's eyes widened.

That was something he had never considered.

"In ancient times, when imperial examinations were popular, there was a custom of 'catching a son-in-law beneath the examination rankings,'" Fang Ping'an said. "Since the Great Burning Heaven era, martial arts have flourished and everyone's genes have evolved, so this sort of thing has become popular again... Powerful martial artists can not only protect a family with their strength, but also improve its genes."

"A martial artist's superior genes can be passed down from generation to generation. The descendants of the strong also have a greater chance of awakening powerful void star aspects."

"That was also why the parent certificate was introduced back then."

"If the gap between the parents' genes is too wide, say, if an Earth Martial Artist marries an ordinary person, the gap between their life levels is too great... Then there's an extremely high chance their baby will be born with deformities," Fang Ping'an said. "The Blue Moon Alliance encourages martial arts and martial artists to have children, all to advance the genetic evolution of humanity as a whole."

Fang Yu nodded.

The history of the parent certificate had been covered in a dedicated lesson at college. When it was introduced, countless people had resisted and protested, but in the end it had been forcefully implemented.

On Blue Star's old lands, the requirement for a parent certificate was level 10, while on New Moon, for example, it was level 20.

Having a child without a certificate meant facing an exorbitant fine.

"Take that famous billionaire from Europa, Remy Dalton. He had more than ten children with several powerful female martial artists," Fang Ping'an said. "Those children went on to marry powerful martial artists themselves... Now their family has become a very prosperous martial artist family. I hear they even have several Sky-Roving Martial Artists."

Fang Yu was inwardly surprised as well.

The Dalton Family was very famous, not because of its wealth, but because of its reproductive strategy.

Two ordinary people could also have a child with extraordinary martial arts talent.

But when powerful martial artists had children together, the chance of producing a genius was obviously higher.

"Of course, you haven't reached that level yet," Fang Ping'an said with a smile. "From what you've said, Wang Mo only has one older sister, so it's probably not a marriage alliance."

"What's most likely..."

"Is the third kind of investment: investing in goodwill," Fang Ping'an said. "They've decided you're someone who values friendship, so they invest in you while you're relatively weak."

"When you grow strong, perhaps you'll be a great help to them."

"This kind of investment is full of uncertainty. It's a considerable gamble," Fang Ping'an said. "After all, there's no contract or legal obligation, and people's hearts can change. Human nature often can't withstand a test, either."

Fang Yu looked thoughtful.

"Dad, if Wang Mo's family... really does want to invest in me, what should I do?" Fang Yu hesitated and looked at Fang Ping'an.

"Haha, worried it'll change your friendship? That taking their money will make you feel inferior to him?" Fang Ping'an laughed.

Fang Yu listened to his father's advice.

"A martial artist should seek peace of mind and act with a clear conscience," Fang Ping'an said with a smile. "My advice is, if they really want to invest in you, accept it."

Fang Yu couldn't help looking at his father.

Fang Ping'an continued, "Why do even people as powerful as Starry Sky Martial Artists form martial artist groups? Isn't it so they can support one another at critical moments and go farther on the martial arts path? Take this time, for example. Without your mother's connections through her school, could you have gotten the Elite Contract?"

Fang Yu nodded slightly.

If Jiang Wei weren't his senior uncle, and if Senior Brother Dong hadn't sent that message... At the very least, he wouldn't have gotten the Elite Contract now.

"No matter the profession."

"A lone wolf can't go far, because there's no room for error."

"Becoming Wang Mo's roommate was your good luck, and his fateful encounter... You have a bright future, his family has money, and if you're as close as brothers, why can't you help each other succeed?" Fang Ping'an said with emotion. "Relationships are built through association. If you keep everything strictly separate, can there be any bond between you?"

"Borrowing others' influence will help you rise faster, too," Fang Ping'an said. "If you accept their kindness, remember it and repay them when you have the chance."

"Of course, that's only my advice. The Wang family might not even want to invest in you. It could really just be a meal."

"If they do want to invest, whether you accept is up to you," Fang Ping'an said. "You're grown up now. In the end, you have to make your own decision."

Night fell, and Fang Yu returned to his room.

He sat down in front of his computer.

Borrow influence from every direction to forge my own path? His father's words had struck Fang Yu deeply. On this path of martial arts cultivation, relying entirely on himself would indeed be difficult.

His parents had supported him for twenty years.

As he grew stronger, his father could no longer continue supporting him... From now on, he would have to rely more on himself.

Suddenly, Fang Yu's phone vibrated.

"Your account ending in 8629 has received 3,700,000.00 Star Coins... transferred from account ending in... Note: Elite Contract cultivation funds."

"Your account ending in 8629 has received 820,000.00 Star Coins... transferred from account ending in... Note: scholarship."

"Your account ending in 8629 has received 400,000.00 Star Coins... transferred from account ending in... Total account balance: 4,961,322.52 Star Coins."

The three deposit notifications, totaling 4.92 million Star Coins, brought a trace of excitement to Fang Yu's face.

It had all arrived!

His account balance had instantly soared to 4.96 million Star Coins... That was a staggering fortune. An ordinary martial arts undergraduate received only 1.5 million Star Coins in cultivation funds over five years.

After a little thought, Fang Yu sent another message of thanks to his senior uncle Jiang Wei, Senior Brother Dong, and his homeroom teacher Yan Fu, assuring each of them that he would keep working hard.

Fang Yu understood clearly.

These teachers and elders who had helped him so much didn't necessarily expect him to repay them right away, or even expect much repayment from him in the future.

The future was full of uncertainty.

Continuing to express his gratitude and respect was the most direct way to acknowledge and thank them for their past help. Showing them his "progress" would do even more to make these teachers and elders feel their efforts hadn't been wasted... Such feedback would give them a strong sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.

Before long.

Each of them replied in turn, offering Fang Yu encouragement.

Jiang Wei in particular told Fang Yu explicitly in his reply that he had entered his information into the school account system. Fang Yu could log in as soon as possible and look things up to prepare for the upcoming real combat on Primordial Star.

...After doing all that.

Every Star Coin brings a return.

So many Star Coins are my martial arts potential. They're enough to raise my life level by another substantial amount in a very short time. Fang Yu considered his own situation.

However.

Fang Yu didn't rush to order potions and treasures online. Instead, following Senior Uncle Jiang Wei's instructions, he logged into the Blue Moon Civilization University Network and immediately discovered something.

Under his account.

Besides being a student of Wuling City Martial Arts College, he now had another status: "Huguang Martial Arts University student (fourth-year elite student)." He was eligible to enter Huguang Martial Arts University's internal network.

He clicked to enter.

The homepage displayed information on Huguang Martial Arts University's various courses, announcements, and activities.

A row of honors announcements instantly caught Fang Yu's attention.

"Congratulations! Earth Institute student Yan Tianheng has slain an alien powerhouse. With his accumulated Civilization Points, he has become a Fourth-Tier Civilization Warrior and received the university's special-class scholarship of 100 million Star Coins."

"Congratulations! Earth Institute student Bei Bai has slain an alien powerhouse... and become a Third-Tier Civilization Warrior, receiving the university's first-class scholarship of 5 million Star Coins."

"Congratulations..."

"Congratulations..."

At that moment, all the other information faded from view. All Fang Yu could see was the figure that could set countless ordinary people's blood racing-100 million Star Coins.

"A Fourth-Tier Civilization Warrior? What's that? It actually comes with a reward of 100 million Star Coins?" Fang Yu blinked. "Is he really still a martial arts undergraduate?"

Yan Tianheng!

Fang Yu committed the name to memory.