Although he had been bound to the Sect Master Token, Lu Xiuyuan had never taken saving Blue Star as his responsibility alone. He was not the lord of Blue Star, nor the only living being on Blue Star, nor a peerless great genius one in ten billion. If all hope were staked on him, even if he agreed, the Heavenly Dao would never agree.
Lu Xiuyuan wanted to run a university, but a university couldn’t appear out of thin air. Even in schooling there is a division into kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, and high school. If everyone were made to attend university right off, wouldn’t his Wenxin Cultivation University really be just a kindergarten preschool class?
In the first year of admissions, the number of students on Blue Star suitable for university was “0,” and the number of teachers able to teach students was one and only one. A makeshift troupe like a preschool class was a last resort.
“There isn’t much time left for Blue Star.” Lu Xiuyuan was not threatening. His overly calm eyes seemed to show no great sense of crisis, but precisely because of that, Chief Li’s heart skipped a beat.
—The crisis was so great that no amount of worry and anxiety could produce a solution and quickly put it into action, and that was why he could be this calm.
Lu Xiuyuan used as calm and focused a tone as he could to explain Blue Star’s crisis and predicament in simple, easy-to-understand words, so the state machinery could prepare.
“Ten thousand years ago, Blue Star was invaded by heavenly demons from beyond the realm. The Immortal Way forces led by Wenxin Sect gathered all their strength and barely drove back the demon seeds, but did not achieve a complete victory, only driving them out of Blue Star. At that time Blue Star was in ruins, the living suffered, and the spirit veins were severed. To preserve Blue Star, the surviving cultivators used themselves as a formation and laid down a barrier to keep the demon seeds outside. The Heavenly Dao then fell into slumber as spiritual qi withered. Until the barrier gradually weakened, and demonic qi seeped in through the damaged cracks and woke the Heavenly Dao, and the Wenxin Sect Master and several elders also awoke from the formation.”
Lu Xiuyuan had lied only about Wenxin Sect’s current situation. The previous Sect Master and elders, or rather all the surviving cultivators, had already become nourishment for the formation. They had been willing, and no cultivator could withstand ten thousand years of spiritual qi supply.
The inconspicuous-looking middle-aged policewoman beside Chief Li nodded slightly, and Chief Li’s expression changed a little. He would rather Lu Xiuyuan were lying than have the world they depended on be suffering such a crisis.
What Lu Xiuyuan said was nine parts true and one part false, so he had no fear at all of their checking, and his eyes were naturally utterly open. Even the most seasoned, experienced detective could not have reached the conclusion “he is lying.”
By this point, everyone present believed six tenths, chilly demonic qi was drilling in from all directions, the stench of rot made them irritable the moment they smelled it, and their alarm lights as police officers were ringing nonstop.
Especially since it concerned the entire Blue Star, better to believe it than not.
Chief Li’s expression was serious: “Comrade Lu, can you contact your Sect Master?” He said with difficulty, “This involves the survival of all humanity, and we must—”
Before he finished, Lu Xiuyuan shook his head with an embarrassed look: “The Sect Master and the elders are in the formation eye of Blue Star’s barrier and cannot leave.” His eyes held a trace of sorrow. He didn’t say it too bluntly, but everyone present understood.
These highly cultivated cultivators had become batteries and, except in special circumstances, could not leave.
Perhaps the situation was even worse, after the Immortal-Demon War ended, only Wenxin Sect’s Sect Master and elders had survived? That naturally wasn’t possible. Then the question was, where had all those cultivators gone?
—Those with insufficient cultivation had perhaps long since exhausted their lifespans, or been drained dry by the formation. Only Wenxin Sect’s Sect Master and elders, with the highest cultivation, had lived to now.
Chief Li’s heart skipped a beat. If this was true, their high-end combat strength to resist the heavenly demons from beyond the realm was pitifully little.
“Zero” was possible too. After all, the barrier now isolating Blue Star from the heavenly demons from beyond the realm was being painfully held up solely by Wenxin Sect’s few Sect Master and elders.
Although the credibility was in doubt, they dared not gamble on something so important. Even if the credibility were only 0.01%, that wouldn’t do!
Lu Xiuyuan heard only the crowd’s suppressed breathing in the spacious meeting room and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Wenxin Sect, counting the Celestial Fox, was one person and one soul. What did it have to negotiate with the state machinery?
He sought help from the state machinery for the sake of cooperation, mutual benefit, and jointly solving Blue Star’s crisis, not to actually just get a staff position and draw a little salary.
The cultivation university would be run, but how, was his call.
He was the Sect Master. Wenxin Sect could have only one voice.
“Then where is Daoist Guanji slaying demons right now? Maintaining public order and protecting people’s lives and property is also our duty as police. Although we can’t fly on swords, we can help a little at least.”
Chief Li still did not give up. Lu Xiuyuan’s attitude was good, appearing to answer whatever was asked, but by Lu Xiuyuan’s own account, he had only learned this information a few days earlier from his own ancestor.
He was an honest good kid, but there was too little information!
Most crucially, he didn’t know the combat strength of the heavenly demons from beyond the realm, and couldn’t provide an accurate reference point.
A heavenly demon from beyond the realm at the Golden Core level, was its combat strength comparable to a handgun, a machine gun, or a Dongfeng express?
What cultivation level was a demon that could rival a Dongfeng express? How many were there? Could firearms hurt them? How many firearms would it take to kill one? These were questions they urgently needed answered.
“Senior Brother Guanji doesn’t like to chat and always goes out alone to slay demons, so I’m not very clear on his whereabouts. But I can send him a message by voice transmission and have him find a way to catch a few demons for you to run comparison tests.”
Chief Li’s eyes lit up at once.
“Then I’ll trouble you, Comrade Lu.” Chief Li’s good impression and satisfaction with Lu Xiuyuan grew a few more points, gentle and polite, and patriotic with the right outlook. A good young man!
Lu Xiuyuan put on a show, folding a paper crane and throwing it out. The paper crane flew a couple of times, then scattered into points of spiritual light and vanished from everyone’s sight.
“Questions like the demons’ combat strength I can’t answer, since I only drew qi into my body a few days ago.” Lu Xiuyuan finally stated the ultimate purpose of “revealing” his identity on his own initiative. “‘Wenxin Cultivation University’ is currently only a plan of mine. Although it has the Sect Master’s approval, we don’t have the qualification to run a university and, strictly speaking, are still irregular. I’d like to ask how this procedure should be handled? Can my Master and Senior Brother and the others take Xia Kingdom nationality and get ID cards?”
The state machinery ran with extreme efficiency. After the police station where Yang Kelin worked reported the news, because the matter was too earth-shaking, the higher-ups had already held several rounds of meetings and produced several versions of plans A, B, C, and D.
“What do you mean take our Xia Kingdom nationality? Comrade Guanji and the others are Xia Kingdom people to begin with! Just get a replacement ID card for them! If it’s not convenient to get them replaced now, that’s fine too, we can do it later when there’s time.”
As for the procedures for “Wenxin Cultivation University,” in theory a university like this would not be allowed to get approved, but making the procedures difficult would be even more fatal, so after two more rounds of meetings, it was handled through a special channel.
“The president is naturally my Master, 【】.” Lu Xiuyuan paused, trying hard to say 【】, but the staff member across from him handling the procedures couldn’t hear anything.
Lu Xiuyuan picked up a pen, wanting to write 【】, but when the black ink touched the paper, it left no mark.
The candidate for “vice president” that Chief Li wanted to introduce to Lu Xiuyuan was stuck in his throat just like that.
The middle-aged man beside Chief Li instead spoke with a chuckle: “The president is busy with affairs and isn’t someone just anyone can meet. Even if you meet, you’d just say President. A name is only a code name.”
Lu Xiuyuan smiled with a hint of apology: “Those heavenly demons from beyond the realm are especially treacherous and will use any means. My Master guards the most important formation eye, and perhaps for safety’s sake, veiled heaven’s secrets.”
The few of them brushed the topic off with banter.
Chief Li asked as if casually: “It’s almost time for gaokao applications. How many students will our university enroll this year? The first year, should each score line be a reference? Should we set a minimum score?”
This was cultivation, after all! Although it was a pity their own ages were wrong, compared to dwelling on having been born at the wrong time, the opportunity for the younger generation at home was what mattered.
Everyone present who knew the inside story pricked up their ears.
Lu Xiuyuan’s smile didn’t change: “Scores? This year there are no corresponding subjects, so no scores will be set.”
The crowd first rejoiced, and before the joy even showed on their faces, they heard Lu Xiuyuan say: “As for cultivation, it values ‘affinity.’ Those with affinity enter.”
Ah, this… how were they to go through the back door for quotas? If stuffing in a vice president or a party secretary didn’t work, couldn’t stuffing in students work either?
Although they were grateful to Lu Xiuyuan for reporting such important information to the country, how could they leave it entirely unattended! Running a school and teaching students was a very troublesome matter, and the students taught would be students who could one day destroy heaven and earth. If one wasn’t managed well, what if an antisocial demonic cultivator was produced?!
“Director Lu, I know ‘affinity’ is most important in cultivation, but isn’t our meeting already the greatest ‘affinity’?”
Luck was also part of strength, and if one’s luck was poor and one failed to obtain admission to the cultivation university, it could only be said that one lacked the fortune, that was the principle, but Xia Kingdom was a society of personal connections, and wasn’t Lu Xiuyuan the most typical example?
If he weren’t the descendant of the Wenxin Sect Master, with such low cultivation, could he have become the Director of Admissions? Nominally he was only a director, but everyone knew full well that in the current Wenxin Cultivation University, Lu Xiuyuan’s word was final.
Lu Xiuyuan also knew this matter couldn’t be completely shut down; it was both trading favors and a way to get more mutually beneficial, win-win cooperation with the country.
But he couldn’t agree immediately. Agreeing too easily would only make people think he could be pinned down.
Lu Xiuyuan had been building up the powerful Sect Master backer behind him all along, hadn’t he done it precisely to be able to stand a bit firmer?
Lu Xiuyuan could go through the back door himself. Double standard? It was very much a double standard, but so what?
“Senior Brother Guanji has been out of seclusion for so long and hasn’t had a proper look around. I hear tomorrow there’s some comic convention at the city sports arena, and it will be very lively. I plan to take him for a walk.”
The opportunity had been given. Whether they could seize it would depend on their own efforts.