20: Chapter 20 Final List

"Haha, well said! Bye-bye to the old, the next one will be better," Wang Mo chuckled. Glancing sideways at He Jiyu and seeing that he didn't say anything, he stopped speaking.

The three went upstairs and entered a private room.

Being Martial Artists in their prime golden years who still pursued the Martial Dao, they naturally paid close attention to their diet. After ordering a high-energy set meal, they didn't order anything else.

For Fang Yu and Wang Mo, who they ate with was more important than what they ate.

The three chatted about their freshman and sophomore days. It was mostly Fang Yu and Wang Mo talking, while He Jiyu listened for the most part... As time passed, he gradually relaxed and inadvertently brought up Ye Zhiyin again.

"Actually, you both know roughly what happened."

"It was at the beginning of sophomore year during a social mixer with the freshmen," Fang Yu said. "She was the host, so we met. She was lively and had a great personality, just a bit fond of partying... After a few more events, we became more familiar, and she often invited me out."

"Mm." Wang Mo nodded. "There were indeed plenty of events during freshman and sophomore years."

In a martial arts vocational college, students mainly focused on Martial Dao Cultivation.

However, through generations of practical experience and follow-up surveys conducted by schools and society, it had long been discovered that blindly subjecting students to military-style management and high-pressure Cultivation supervision easily led to widespread psychological issues, making their Heart-Nature more prone to distortion.

Especially for Martial Artists.

Possessing immense physical power, their destructive potential was astonishing. If their Heart-Nature became twisted, it could easily result in catastrophic consequences... Therefore, starting many years ago, even martial arts universities and vocational colleges began organizing various social activities for students.

Even the teaching methods were designed to give students more time for autonomous Cultivation.

From the perspective of the Martial Dao:

The so-called tempering of the martial mind required experiencing enough and seeing enough to make the inner heart richer and stronger, allowing one to go further on the path of the Martial Dao.

"When a girl pursues a guy, it's easy as pie. Didn't you feel any temptation back then?" Wang Mo teased.

"To say I wasn't tempted at all would be a lie," Fang Yu smiled. "But our personal pursuits were different. After I turned her down a few times... she probably got the message, and we drifted apart."

"Neither of us ever explicitly spelled it out. Now we just say hello if we bump into each other on campus... Old Mo, you went a bit too far earlier," Fang Yu shook his head.

If it had been explicitly spelled out back then, the implications would be completely different.

"Don't blame me! I thought she was the one who rejected you back then, and I wanted to stick up for you," Wang Mo threw his hands up. "After all, at our age, who could refuse a pretty girl throwing herself at them? Only a Cultivation maniac like you."

"Take my dad, for instance."

"Back then, he was worried that I was young and might get scammed out of money by some gold digger. To disillusion me about women, he took the initiative to take me to a commercial KTV right after I got into college," Wang Mo said. "The result? Now I completely disbelieve in love."

Fang Yu was taken aback.

A commercial KTV? He had only heard of them and had never been to one.

Still, Fang Yu believed in love. He simply firmly believed that he must keep his destiny in his own hands... Martial Dao was the most important thing for him at present.

In this era, even ordinary people could live past a hundred, and seventy-five was the statutory retirement age.

Powerful Martial Artists lived even longer.

Getting married? There was no need to consider it so early.

Furthermore, when it came to Martial Dao Cultivation, the efficiency before age thirty far surpassed that after thirty... Especially during the golden years, one year of painstaking Cultivation was worth five or even ten years later on.

"Old Fang, Old Mo," He Jiyu suddenly spoke, his voice sounding somewhat muffled. "Do you think I made a mistake back then? Should I not have gotten married so early?"

Fang Yu and Wang Mo exchanged a glance.

They had chatted for so long... in truth, mostly to help He Jiyu process things.

Having been roommates for three years with compatible personalities, they knew He Jiyu's situation quite well.

"It's not a matter of right or wrong," Fang Yu said. "Marrying and having kids early has its perks too... Maybe by the time your kids go to college, we won't even be married yet. It'll save you trouble later in life."

He Jiyu listened and didn't say anything further.

"Old He."

"After this meal today, who knows when we'll see each other next," Wang Mo said with a solemn expression. "Are you facing some kind of difficulty?"

"If you are, just spit it out. We'll help as much as we can," Wang Mo offered.

"It's not really a crisis," He Jiyu shook his head. "It's just that marriage is far more complicated than I imagined. As you know, Liu Ying got pregnant and gave birth recently."

Fang Yu and Wang Mo both nodded.

The three roommates had vastly different approaches to romantic relationships: Wang Mo cycled through girlfriends one after another, while Fang Yu was completely focused on Martial Dao Cultivation.

As for He Jiyu, he got a girlfriend in the second semester of his freshman year and fell deeply in love.

During their junior year, his girlfriend got pregnant with twins, so they got married... The children were born in the second semester of junior year. Since the one-month celebration feast was held in Wuling City, Fang Yu and Wang Mo had made a point to attend back then.

"Originally, I thought getting married and having kids was no big deal."

"In my plan, both my parents and Liu Ying's parents aren't that old, so they could lend a hand," He Jiyu said. "And nowadays, childcare robots can assist with raising kids... But after the babies were born, things turned out completely different from what I expected."

"Two kids... Although the state's initial subsidy was generous—100,000 Star Coins per child—Liu Ying has very high standards for the kids, so all kinds of expenses add up quickly."

"On top of that, we have to prepare to buy a house. Taking on a mortgage creates enormous financial pressure."

"Our parents haven't fully retired yet either. Plus, I have a younger brother, and she has an older brother and a younger sister, so they still need to work. Childcare robots can't fully replace human care either... Liu Ying is now a full-time stay-at-home mom," He Jiyu shook his head. "The financial pressure is huge. In short, everything is a total mess right now."

"It's completely different from what I had envisioned."

Fang Yu and Wang Mo exchanged a glance.

They had a rough idea of He Jiyu's situation and knew things weren't going smoothly, but they hadn't expected him to be bogged down in such a mess.

"The main issue is..."

"My Life Level hasn't even reached Level 15, so it's hard to find a decent job," He Jiyu said softly. "There are too many martial arts vocational college graduates these days. If your technique level isn't high enough, you can't even get in as an assistant instructor at a regular martial club."

Fang Yu understood to an extent.

Martial arts vocational students were relatively few in number compared to regular vocational or undergraduate students... However, if one's martial accomplishments weren't high, finding a high-paying job was still far from easy.

Level 15 was a hurdle for most martial arts vocational students.

Even if they experienced Awakening of a Star Phase, martial arts vocational students mostly awakened low-tier Star Phases. Without buying supplementary Cultivation drugs... reaching Level 15 by the end of junior year was no easy task.

Fang Yu was able to reach it.

On one hand, his family's investment was something most people couldn't match. On the other hand, he possessed an innate Divine Ability and extraordinary technique talent; after reaching the Micro State, his Body Tempering efficiency far surpassed what it was prior to reaching it.

The final factor was that Fang Yu was dedicated enough to the Martial Dao.

It wasn't as if consuming potion treasures would cause one's Life Level to surge automatically... The kind of Heaven And Earth Treasure that could directly boost power without requiring any effort was far too rare, costing hundreds of millions, unaffordable for anyone who wasn't a super-billionaire.

Normal potion treasures, even those worth millions like the ice-heart marrow-cleansing fruit, required the user to Cultivate diligently to maximize their effects.

Martial Dao Cultivation brought great enjoyment with every step of progress.

Yet it was equally painful.

Enjoyment and pain were not mutually exclusive... In this era, there were simply too many temptations.

Romantic passions, fine food, holographic games, the repeated exhaustion of pushing the body to its limits, mental lethargy... Overcoming all of these was extraordinarily difficult.

It required absolute discipline and focus.

Focus itself was a talent.

This was also why Fang Yu knew Wang Mo wasn't as simple as he appeared on the surface... Without a firm determination and willpower to Cultivate, merely throwing money around wouldn't have been enough for Wang Mo to reach Level 20 so quickly.

Most martial arts vocational students continued Cultivating after graduation, reaching Level 15 before the end of their prime golden age at twenty-five... Even if they didn't spend extra money, it required a massive investment of time and energy.

For someone in He Jiyu's situation, expecting to invest more time in Cultivation was clearly unrealistic.

"Old He."

"We've been roommates, so I won't beat around the bush," Wang Mo said. "A friend of mine recently opened a company and is shorthanded. I'll pass his contact info to you in a bit and explain your situation to him... Go give it a try."

"Can I really do it?" He Jiyu hesitated.

Instinctively, he wanted to decline... but remembering the phone call from his wife moments ago, he held back.

"Just go give it a shot first. If you don't think it's a good fit, no big deal," Wang Mo said with forced casualness. "Alright, time's almost up. Fang Yu and I need to head to the Martial Arts Building. You'll still be in Wuling City, so we can gather again when we get the chance."

"Okay." He Jiyu saw Fang Yu and Wang Mo out of the private room.

He watched them walk downstairs.

Taking a deep breath,

He Jiyu pulled out his phone and dialed his pinned contact. Three seconds later, the call connected, and a smile broke across his face: "Honey, how are the babies? Doing okay? Are they feeding and sleeping well? I'll be back this afternoon. As for the job hunt... don't worry. We're great brothers, they offered to help before I even brought it up. Don't worry, the pay won't be low."

"Mm, go ahead and eat first..." He Jiyu hung up the phone with a smile.

Putting away his phone,

the smile faded from his face.

"Honey, you've really suffered being with me."

"If I hadn't fallen in love back then... or even if I hadn't married and had kids, things would probably be much better now," countless thoughts swirled in He Jiyu's mind. "If I had invested more energy into Martial Dao Cultivation, though I might not have been recommended for direct admission to a martial arts university like Old Fang and Old Mo..."

"At least I wouldn't be struggling to find a decent job, needing Old Mo's help."

His technique talent was far inferior to Fang Yu's.

However, among this class of vocational students, he was considered decent... If he had worked hard enough and given Cultivation his all, reaching Life Level 15 shouldn't have been difficult.

But bogged down by life's trivialities, everything had changed.

"No wonder."

"In the past when reading history books, strategists would give lords upper, middle, and lower strategies, and the lords would often choose the middle or lower ones, making me think those lords were foolish," He Jiyu sighed softly. "Back then, Old Fang and Old Mo tried to advise me too... yet didn't I choose the lower strategy as well?"

As friends:

If not forced by life, why would he bow his head and vent his hardships to his two brothers?

He hadn't wanted to ask them for help; otherwise, he wouldn't have been submitting resumes.

He Jiyu understood... starting today, he and his two roommates were walking two entirely different paths in life. They were still pursuing the Martial Dao and striving to become stronger,

while he would have to continuously face the monster known as 'life.'

...

Walking along the road,

"Fang Yu, I used to blame my dad for shattering all my illusions about love," Wang Mo shook his head. "After seeing Old He today, I suddenly don't blame him anymore."

"Don't be too pessimistic," Fang Yu shook his head. "Getting married and having kids brings much hardship, but there is also happiness... Just as my dad said, after my mom went missing on Primal Star back then, if it weren't for us three siblings, he wouldn't have been able to pull himself out of that dark period."

"That's true," Wang Mo recalled. "My mom also said that her biggest non-regret was giving birth to me."

"Old Mo."

"The job you're introducing to Old He?" Fang Yu inquired.

"Don't worry, it's not my dad's company," Wang Mo smiled. "It's a company opened by a relative of mine. I'll give them a call to explain everything clearly... Old He never opens his mouth unless he's truly desperate, so I won't embarrass him."

"Besides..."

"Over the three years of college, I only have a few real friends... I don't want to lose one completely," Wang Mo said emotionally.

...

At two in the afternoon.

Shortly after Fang Yu and Wang Mo returned to the first-floor lobby of the Martial Arts Building, once most people had gathered,

the 10 spots for the second batch of recommended direct admissions, along with the names of the 70 students eligible for the practical assessment, appeared simultaneously on the big screen.

"I made it!"

"Awesome! Tenth place, I barely made the cut!"

"As expected, I wasn't selected. I can only wait for September's practical assessment... Primal Star, I haven't been there yet."

"Damn it! I didn't even make the practical assessment list? Am I really that bad?" Commotion erupted across the lobby as some rejoiced while others grieved.

Naturally, the most thrilled were the ten students recommended for direct admission.

The other 70 students taking the practical assessment at least had hope... The most disappointed were those who failed to even reach the practical assessment list.

"Old Fang, my name is on the direct admission list," Wang Mo was delighted at first, but then frowned. "Wait, that's not right! Old Fang, why aren't you selected?"

"Your name isn't even on the practical assessment list."

"What's going on?"