Free Web NovelChapter 256: Chapter 215: Lake View Nine and the Privileged Class
’Now this is how a true expert carries himself. He’s nothing like those rich kids who party all the time.’
"From now on, don’t let anyone near this villa without my permission."
"Yes, sir. I’ll leave you to rest, then."
Old Liu bowed, backed away, and pulled the heavy, blast-proof door shut behind him.
With the soft CLICK of the lock, the enormous villa fell completely silent.
Han Feng loosened his collar and threw himself onto the ridiculously soft, large sofa.
’So comfortable.’
This private space, completely his own, finally allowed his tense nerves to unwind.
He lifted his wrist and lit up his personal terminal.
After his permissions were upgraded, several previously grayed-out icons were all lit up.
The first thing to pop up was the most delightful notification of all:
[Your A Level Student monthly stipend has been deposited: 10,000 Contribution Points, 100 standard Spirit Coins.]
Ten thousand Contribution Points.
One hundred Spirit Coins.
This was the basic stipend for an A Level Student—money he received without having to do anything extra.
To put that in perspective, a regular D Level Student would have to work themself to death on missions for a whole month just to earn a few hundred Contribution Points.
"The gap between the rich and the poor is almost as wide as the one between humans and dogs."
Han Feng couldn’t help but make a cynical remark.
Of course, this stipend wasn’t exactly free money.
At East Sea Martial Arts University, once a student was promoted to A Level, they were required to take on certain social obligations.
Basically, they had to complete one exclusive mission for A Level Students each semester.
The missions weren’t mandatory, of course. You could choose one yourself, or you could pay someone else to do it for you.
He opened the [Exclusive Missions for A Level Students] section.
A long, densely packed list of missions appeared.
The mission difficulties varied, ranging from a low of one star to a high of ten stars.
Han Feng casually scanned a few of them.
[Mission Codename: Deep Sea Shadow]
[Mission Difficulty: Five Stars]
[Description: Travel to the deep-sea trench 300 kilometers off the coast of the East Sea, investigate the movements of the colossal beast "Leviathan," and collect Deep Sea Spirit Marrow.]
[Warning: Extremely dangerous. Proceeding with a team is recommended.]
...
[Mission Codename: Beheading]
[Mission Difficulty: Eight Stars]
[Description: Travel to "Ruins No. 72" in the fallen zone and hunt a mutated Tier Two Late Stage Gale Dog.]
[Reward: 30,000 Contribution Points, one A Level Alloy Battle Saber.]
Every single mission reeked of blood.
This was the balance between rights and responsibilities.
To enjoy the best resources, you had to do the most dangerous work.
’These missions are either too time-consuming or the risks are uncontrollable.’
Han Feng closed the mission interface directly.
’The semester is still long, anyway. There’s no rush to do a mission.’
The top priority was to convert the sellable loot he had on hand into tangible combat strength.
After a moment’s thought, he called Steward Liu directly.
"Steward Liu, I have something to ask you."
"Please, go ahead."
"I have a batch of... miscellaneous items I brought back from the Secret Realm, mostly Demon Beast Materials and some ores, that I need to get rid of."
Han Feng’s fingers tapped lightly on the armrest. "Does the university’s resource recycling center offer house calls?"
Some of the items were a bit sensitive, and others were just too miscellaneous.
He couldn’t be bothered to make the trip himself, and besides, with his current status, waiting in line for an appraisal would be beneath him.
"Of course."
Old Liu nodded immediately. "A Level Students have priority access.
I can contact an appraiser from the recycling center right away to bring a team here. They can settle the payment with you on the spot, right in the living room."
"Excellent. Have them come over now."
"Yes."
Old Liu bowed, backed away, and stepped aside to make the call.
Less than ten minutes later, the doorbell rang.
Three uniformed staff members entered, carrying professional inspection kits.
The leader was a middle-aged man with glasses, and he was exceedingly respectful upon seeing Han Feng.
"Mr. Han, I’m the supervisor from the recycling center, ID number 093. It’s a pleasure to be of service."
Han Feng didn’t waste any words, simply pointing to a small portion of the materials he had just taken out of his Void Stone.
"Here, it’s this stuff. See what it’s worth."
There were claws and fangs from Tier Two Demon Beasts, a small pile of average-quality rare ores, standard-issue Energy Blocks he had swiped from the Star Sea Technology Base... and even a few Alloy Battle Sabers.
Keeping these things would just take up space, but it was a waste to throw them away. Better to exchange them for Cultivation Resources.
The three staff members immediately put on gloves, took out their instruments, and got to work.
"This Iron-Backed Bear Gallbladder is well-preserved, 85% intact... Um, Mr. Han, how did this bear die? The cut is very smooth."
"The purity of this Red Copper Ore is very high..."
The professionals were truly on another level. In just fifteen minutes, all the items had been sorted and appraised.
The supervisor handed him a digital invoice:
"Mr. Han, after our calculations, the total value of these materials is 203,200 Contribution Points.
If you confirm that this is correct, we can transfer the funds now."
"Isn’t this price a little low?" Han Feng asked, glancing at the list.
"This is already the highest buyback price for someone with A Level privileges, 10% higher than the market rate."
The supervisor said with an obsequious smile, "And since we came to you, we’ve also waived your processing fees."
"Fine. Make the transfer."
Han Feng had only been asking casually.
DING.
He watched as over two hundred thousand Contribution Points were added to his account. Combined with his ten-thousand-point monthly stipend and his previous savings, his net worth shot past 210,000 Contribution Points, plus over a hundred Spirit Coins.
He was officially a new-money magnate.
After seeing off the recycling staff and Old Liu, the blast-proof door clicked shut, and the enormous villa fell completely silent once more.
Han Feng loosened his collar and threw himself onto the soft, large sofa.
’So comfortable.’
This private space, completely his own, finally allowed his tense nerves to unwind.
Next up was the delightful part: shopping time.
Han Feng skillfully opened the East Sea Martial Arts University’s internal web store.
The interface for A Level access was a completely different world from the B Level one.
Not only had the variety of items doubled, but all the high-end goods that were previously marked "Out of Stock" or "Insufficient Privileges" were now freely available.
He went straight to the [Elixir Pills / Potions] category.
He could finally buy the amazing items he could only drool over before.
[Spirit Liquid Jade Dew (For Meridian Passage Realm only): Contains a vast and gentle amount of Spiritual Qi. Greatly increases Cultivation speed for the Meridian Passage Realm.
Price: 5,000 Contribution Points / bottle.]
’So fucking expensive.’
One small bottle of liquid cost as much as a normal person’s living expenses for an entire year.
But Han Feng didn’t even blink.
’Give me 20 bottles!’
[Vein Tempering Pill: Strengthens meridian toughness, expands their capacity, and assists in the construction of a Dharma Vein. Price: 8,000 Contribution Points / pill.]
This stuff was an absolute necessity for Han Feng, who practiced the Cyan Cloud Spirit Martial Technique.
The biggest difficulty in constructing a Dharma Vein wasn’t a lack of Spiritual Qi, but rather the meridians’ inability to withstand the violent surge of Energy.
With this, he would dare to step on the gas and pour Spiritual Qi into them.
’Give me 10 pills!’
After a massive shopping spree, his just-fattened wallet was instantly deflated.
Watching the numbers in his account plummet, Han Feng felt a pang of heartache.
’So this is what Cultivation Immortality is all about?’
’It’s just burning money.’
Still, the thrill of spending money like water was truly addictive.
「Half an hour later.」
A DING came from the villa’s small delivery hatch.
An exquisite metal box was transported inside.
Han Feng eagerly opened it. The pale green Jade Dew shimmered with an alluring luster, while the dark red Elixir Pills emitted a fragrant, medicinal aroma that filled the air.
’Everything is ready.’
Han Feng picked up a bottle of the Jade Dew and one Elixir Pill, then turned and walked toward the defense-grade Cultivation Chamber in the basement.
The heavy alloy door slowly closed, completely sealing off all noise from the outside world.
Han Feng sat cross-legged on a cushion, the various bottles and jars he had just spent a fortune on arranged before him.
’Five thousand Contribution Points a gulp. This better not disappoint me.’
He grabbed the bottle of pale green "Spirit Liquid Jade Dew" and tilted his head back, downing it in one go.
The liquid wasn’t sweet as he had imagined. Instead, it had a pungent, mint-like quality that rolled down his throat and into his stomach, instantly transforming into a current of icy air.
Immediately after, he tossed the dark red "Vein Tempering Pill" into his mouth.
BOOM.
It was like dousing a wok of boiling oil with a ladle of cold water.
The once-icy current in his stomach instantly boiled over, transforming into a rolling heatwave that surged madly through his meridians.
If it were an ordinary Meridian Passage Realm Martial Artist, they would probably be rolling on the ground in agony by now, forced to carefully guide the rampaging Energy.
But Han Feng was different.
His Middle Level [Innate Sword Body] was like a greedy black hole.
The moment this rampaging Medicinal Power erupted, before it even had a chance to run wild, it was forcibly suppressed by his domineering Sword Bone, tamed until it was more docile than a kitten.
’So this is the joy of combining Talent with paying to win?’
The corners of Han Feng’s mouth lifted into a slight smile.
He immediately began to circulate the Cyan Cloud Spirit Martial Technique.
The Sword Essence within his body, like combat engineers receiving an order, seized the immense Medicinal Power and charged toward the second main meridian in his arm—the Large Intestine Meridian of Hand Yangming.
