Five notifications suddenly appeared.
"Finally here, this feels great," Li Yuan said as he reached out to tap the light screen, watching a series of dazzling numbers dance before his eyes, a glimmer of joy flickering in his gaze.
After his uncle's health had steadily improved and he could set that matter aside for now, Li Yuan had been waiting for the rewards from the invitation event to come through.
It had been nearly a week, several days later than the expected payout date.
Unexpectedly, today all rewards arrived at once.
"This 3.6 million Blue Star Coins is the difference between the A-class contract for the Martial Hall's first year and the B-class contract," he muttered quietly to himself. "This 960 thousand is the extra 20% cultivation resources from the Starfire Jiangbei Branch?"
The A-class contract from the Starfire Martial Hall was standardized from the headquarters and could not be altered by anyone.
However, each level of the Martial Halls had 'self-managed funds' to provide additional rewards for exceptional talents.
After the exam at the beginning of the year, because he had earned the title of Youth Hero, the Starfire Guanshan Branch had also given Li Yuan 200,000 Blue Star Coins.
The 20% bonus from the A-class contract was managed by the Starfire Jiangbei Provincial Branch.
"Two payments, and I've already been taxed 1.14 million?" Li Yuan murmured.
He didn't dwell on it too much, knowing it was only fair to pay taxes to the country.
Avoiding taxes was shameful.
"This 2 million is the reward from Kunlun Martial University for my first in practical assessments." Li Yuan glanced at the next payment. "The 500,000 for the team competition I won was given to me quite early."
"And this 1 million is sponsor funds from the military."
"The final 1 million is the first batch of development funds given to me by Kunlun Martial University." Li Yuan thought to himself. "This is also what people call a contract deposit."
Deposits are non-refundable.
In many ways, all this money was funded by the state as a form of training support, thus, they were tax-exempt.
"If I count the 200,000 Blue Star Coins that the school rewarded me with..." Li Yuan’s smile widened. "In just half a month, I've received 9.26 million Blue Star Coins."
And this was merely the Blue Star Coins.
If he counted the 5.7 million points from the Starfire Martial Hall and the 9 million in cultivation points... Overall, his wealth had definitely exceeded 15 million Blue Star Coins over the last half month.
Perhaps to some powerful warriors or super-rich individuals, this amount might not seem like much.
But for Li Yuan? This was an astronomical figure.
Thinking of this, Li Yuan clicked into the 'Starfire' app on his smart wristband, which was issued by the Starfire Martial Hall.
He clicked on his personal account, where his entire wealth was displayed clearly:
Bank Balance: 10.89 million Blue Star Coins
Martial Hall Points: 6.73 million
Martial Hall Cultivation Points: 9.65 million
"Half a year ago, I was still a high school senior worrying about 100,000 Blue Star Coins," Li Yuan smiled softly.
In the blink of an eye, he had become a millionaire.
And we’re talking about pure cash millionaires.
It’s worth noting that for many so-called billionaires or wealthy entrepreneurs, it would be quite difficult to pull together tens of millions in cash in a short period.
"From January until now, in just over three months, I spent about 680,000 in points and around 250,000 in Blue Star Coins,” Li Yuan’s gaze swept quickly over his transaction records.
His expenditure on points primarily went towards purchasing basic Vitality-Enhancing Elixirs, deep medicinal baths, and Essence Power Pills.
The Blue Star Coins were mostly spent on daily living costs and practical combat coaching.
As for everything else, his expenses were minimal.
It could be said that the vast majority of his wealth had been devoted to cultivation.
He had spent quite a lot.
"But it’s precisely because I never thought about saving money and focused wholly on cultivation that I was able to shine so brightly in the invitation event," Li Yuan thought inwardly.
For powerful warriors, what does money mean?
The greatest significance of money is to convert it into power gradually, allowing one’s strength to increase faster.
"Looking at the time remaining this year," he reflected quietly. "I know of two amounts of money for sure."
"One is in October, when the Martial Hall will issue the second year's cultivation funds."
"The second is after entering university, Kunlun Martial University will gradually release resources from the 'S-level special training contract'."
Together, these contracts without counting cultivation points would yield Li Yuan total wealth exceeding 30 million Blue Star Coins over a year.
However, the resource distribution from the Martial Hall was once a year, while Kunlun Martial University’s cultivation resources were released after assessments every six months, making the rules different.
"No hurry, the wealth I have now is enough for me to cultivate steadily," Li Yuan’s mind felt calm. “What I need to do is put this money to good use to strengthen my own power."
He clearly understood that this money was not really earned solely through his own capabilities.
Was what he did at Jiangbei Martial University worth several million Blue Star Coins?
Not a chance!
One must have self-awareness.
"This wealth is part of the national system, as well as the entire Seven Star Alliance framework, which has established rules that lead to rewards tailored for martial arts geniuses like me," Li Yuan reflected.
What was the aim?
It wasn’t to let Li Yuan indulge in pleasures and squander money!
"But to help me become stronger, to become an Origin Warrior or even a Sky-Reaching Warrior." Li Yuan recalled what Senior Ji from the Moon Demon Star Realm had said, "To truly become a blade that protects human civilization!"
This!
Was the most significant reason Li Yuan was able to 'easily' obtain this wealth.
Today was Wednesday.
After evening classes, instead of eating at school, Li Yuan made his way straight to the Martial Hall.
Every Wednesday was Li Yuan’s practical training day.
Around eight o'clock in room 7024 of the Martial Hall, two men fully clad in protective gear wielded cold weapons, engaged in a fierce duel.
“Clang!”
Li Yuan wielded his long spear, striking like lightning with rapid succession, flowing like a river, forcing the knife and shield wielder, Fang Longhu, to retreat step by step.
It seemed he had no means to defend himself.
Suddenly, Li Yuan put strength into his waist, stepping forward sharply, swinging his spear down like a giant axe.
This was the ultimate explosion of the second move of the Five Star Techniques, named 'Galactic Waterfall.'
With twelve spear strikes as momentum accumulation, he surged forth with a terrifying presence, building his breath and offensive capabilities to their zenith.
It was akin to a mighty waterfall crashing down after falling hundreds of meters, generating a terrifying shockwave upon impact.
"Not good."
Fang Longhu’s face changed as he finally disregarded the ‘training rules,' unleashing almost all his power, his shield raised like a flash to block in front of him.
"Boom~"
The spear struck against the large shield as if it were a giant axe, and even though Li Yuan was giving it his all, Fang Longhu, as a level 15 warrior, still found it manageable to withstand the impact.
"Stop!" Fang Longhu suddenly shouted.
But Li Yuan had already halted, smiling, "Coach Fang, you lost again."
"Lost, lost!"
"I really didn't expect that with the power and speed I displayed at around level 12, I still couldn’t stop you," Fang Longhu put away his shield, feeling somewhat emotional. "If you had continued that onslaught, I might have truly lost control and hurt you."
Li Yuan smiled in response.
Though he hadn’t fully unleashed his potential, the near-threshold power combined with four variant spear techniques unleashed a formidable force.
Though, of course, it still posed no threat to Fang Longhu.
The gap between a level 12 warrior and a level 15 warrior seemed only three grades apart.
But the difference post-advancement was like night and day compared to the transition from level 6 to 9.
For entry-level warriors, every gap in body constitution represented a significant disparity.
A level 12 warrior could unleash a speed of 30 meters per second with a striking force of 3,000 kilograms.
However, level 15 warriors could exceed a speed of 50 meters per second and strike with a force easily surpassing 10,000 kilograms.
They simply weren't of the same tier.
Against a level 12 warrior, Li Yuan could still hold his own through skill.
But against Fang Longhu? The latter could defeat him in a single move simply with absolute speed and power.
Four variations of techniques could hardly compensate for the massive discrepancy in power and speed.
Crack~Crack!
Both took off their helmets.
"Li Yuan, I didn't fulfill my training duties today, so I won’t charge you for this session," Fang Longhu shook his head. "Also, moving forward, I won't be available for your practical training anymore."
"Not available?" Li Yuan was taken aback.
"I can't keep up with you," Fang Longhu laughed helplessly. "You’re simply too monstrous and improving too quickly. In just half a year, both your physical constitution and skills have skyrocketed beyond belief."
"I've been an instructor for over a decade, and I used to be skeptical about the so-called top geniuses," Fang Longhu sighed. "But now that I’ve seen you, I believe."
Li Yuan chuckled.
"Don't worry, I will report this directly to the Hall Master," Fang Longhu smiled. "I will arrange for you to get a new instructor for practical training. It’s fine to take a break for a week; just don’t pick someone randomly."
"Okay." Li Yuan nodded.
Practical training was crucial, but it was also dangerous... It didn’t mean that being strong was enough to do this job well.
Qualified practical trainers were few, and excellent ones were even rarer.
Most importantly was safety.
In practical training, it wasn't unheard of for a trainer to inadvertently injure a trainee due to lack of control.
Fang Longhu had been specifically selected by the Starfire Martial Hall for Li Yuan, and he was experienced.
Over the past six months, he had always managed to adjust his strength according to Li Yuan's progress, providing pressure without causing him any harm.
"Ding~" Fang Longhu’s smart wristband vibrated, and he looked down, saying, "Li Yuan, what's this?"
Li Yuan transferred him 20,000 Blue Star Coins.
"Coach Fang."
"Thank you for the training this half-year, don’t decline it," Li Yuan smiled warmly. "Consider this a little extra red envelope for you; don’t think it’s too small."
"Haha, thanks! I'll appreciate it." Fang Longhu exclaimed, "If there are further practical training tasks in the future, feel free to reach out to me."
Fang Longhu also intended to build a good relationship with Li Yuan.
"Alright." Li Yuan nodded in agreement.
He had the same intention; when his younger siblings required practical training in years to come, Fang Longhu would be a suitable choice.
......
At nine o'clock in the evening, in the Hall Master’s office on the twelfth floor of the Starfire Guanshan Branch.
"You want to resign as Li Yuan’s practical trainer?" Wan Qinghe gazed at Fang Longhu with confusion.
Previously, Fang Longhu had reported to Instructor Xing.
However, since January, at Wan Qinghe's order, Fang Longhu had been submitting reports on Li Yuan’s situation every half month.
"Hall Master."
"It's not that I don't want to continue, but rather that I no longer have the qualifications," Fang Longhu explained helplessly, "Li Yuan's rate of improvement is too astonishing."
"His techniques have surpassed mine by a significant amount; he should have at least a Falling Star score above 300."
"And his physical constitution? At the very least, it should be at level 9.5." Fang Longhu shook his head. "For Li Yuan's own good, the Hall Master should find someone better to guide him."
Wan Qinghe was shocked.
A Falling Star score of 300? Physical constitution over level 9.5? Just a week had passed since the invitation event, and Li Yuan had progressed even more significantly?
"Alright, you can step down. I will select someone new."
……
At ten-thirty in the evening,
Li Yuan returned home, just finished washing up when he felt his smart wristband vibrate.
"Huh? A document?"
Li Yuan clicked to view it: "A notification from Kunlun Martial University?"
(End of chapter)