In the training hall of Songyang High School.

As Zhou Chechen drew in a deep breath, the chill around him rapidly dissipated—his Frost Heaven Freezing Field had finally withdrawn.

In front of him, Lan Ling shivered, his face purple from the cold. Only after circulating his blood and vital energy to generate heat did he start to feel a little better.

But Lan Ling didn’t seem to care about his frostbite. Instead, he grinned with satisfaction. “President, you finally got serious. You even mobilized the Zhou Family’s power, didn’t you?”

From Lan Ling’s perspective, if Zhou Chechen had gone so far as to tap into the Zhou Family’s resources just to retaliate against Zhang Yu, it meant his standing within the Zhou Family was even higher than Lan Ling had assumed.

Lan Ling went on, “Why not go all the way? Get both Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen expelled—clean sweep!”

Seeing Lan Ling’s eager face, Zhou Chechen thought to himself, Lan Ling, if only you were my real opponent… how easy that would be.

Of course, he couldn’t agree to Lan Ling’s suggestion. Per Zhou Yang’s instructions, Zhou Chechen’s task was to apply pressure on Zhang Yu gradually—enough to suffocate, but never to kill.

To crush someone without finishing them off in one blow—that's the hardest part of this operation, Zhou Chechen mused.

First, martial arts class drags him into a dead end of Basic Techniques.

Then, P.E. introduces him to addictive enhancers.

Follow that up with Dao Technique make-up classes to eat up all his after-school time for work or cultivation…

Zhou Chechen could already picture it: as Zhang Yu ran out of time to cultivate and earn money, his strength and grades would inevitably slip.

After all, even in the Immortal Path, this rule held true—skills, no matter how divine, decay without practice.

Muscles and bones would weaken without training, leading to a decline in physical strength.

Mana would diminish from lack of breathing exercises, eventually impairing one’s control over it.

And Dao Heart—without time to reinforce it through cultivation—would invite doubt, self-examination, and the gradual erosion of one’s will.

And don’t even mention the meds—without money, there’s no medicine.

If someone’s used to long-term drug enhancement and then suddenly stops… their cultivation will crash even faster.

Though Zhou Chechen didn’t believe Zhang Yu had a shot at the Ten Great Academies, even the “non-Ten” universities had massive differences between them.

The 36 Top Schools, the 72 Lower Academies, and all those knock-off diploma mills… the gap is huge.

How would it feel to go from aiming at the 36 Top Schools to slipping down into technical colleges?

Zhou Chechen couldn’t picture it exactly—but he knew it wouldn’t feel good.

He’d seen it often enough: every year, Songyang High produced a handful of poor geniuses broken by bullying into academic freefall.

Grade drops were often the most devastating blow for students in elite schools.

Take Shuang Youpeng, once their year’s top scorer. Zhou Chechen had seen him collapse under that exact pressure.

Zhang Yu might have even more talent and better grades than Youpeng had. But without considering his mysterious backer, the cost to crush him would only be a bit more time, more people, and more money.

And once Zhang Yu got used to the Berserk Dragon Enhancer—if that addictive drug was suddenly cut off—Zhou Chechen could already envision the desperation in his eyes.

And if that doesn’t work, we’ll lure him into gambling, or set up some kind of pig-butchering scam…

As for Bai Zhenzhen, even if she refuses to sell out Zhang Yu now, sooner or later their unequal treatment will breed tension…

Zhou Chechen had seen it plenty: poor kids pushed into collapse, eventually breaking and becoming obedient little dogs.

Sure, they didn’t all have Zhang Yu’s academic prowess—but human nature? That never changed.

When Zhang Yu watches his grades fall, while Bai Zhenzhen remains untouched—what will he think then?

When the poor hit rock bottom and even their closest friends prove unreliable—that’s often the final blow.

Zhou Chechen sighed. With the Zhou Family’s backing, dragging some broke student down into the abyss was all too easy.

His biggest concern now was retaliation—what if Zhang Yu’s backer struck back?

After all, Zhou Yang had said the whole point was to slowly force Zhang Yu into seeking help.

I need to think of a way to protect myself, Zhou Chechen thought grimly.

Just then, Lan Ling’s voice pulled him out of his reverie.

“President? President?”

Lan Ling looked at him. “Did you hear me? We should find a chance to expel them both.”

Though his mind had replayed the plan in a flash, Zhou Chechen knew he couldn’t share any of this with Lan Ling. Especially not Zhou Yang’s directive: that Zhou Chechen had to act under his own name, forcing Zhang Yu to seek support.

After a moment’s thought, Zhou Chechen replied with quiet detachment, “Expelling them would just give him freedom to earn money outside. Might as well keep him here and play with him slowly.”

Lan Ling’s eyes lit up. He smiled. “True! President, you really know how to play. Let’s torment him slowly then.”

Watching the credulous, eager Lan Ling before him, Zhou Chechen sighed again.

If every third-year student in Songyang City were like you… I’d already be guaranteed a place in the Ten Great Academies.

…

Meanwhile, at the front gates of Songyang High.

Zhang Yu, having just slogged through four hours of test papers, was frowning deeply, his mind busy parsing the current situation.

When he saw Bai Zhenzhen, she lifted her phone and sent him a message.

Bai Zhenzhen: Be careful. We’re being watched.

Zhang Yu’s frown deepened. After activating his detection Ritual, he, too, sensed the presence of surveillance cameras.

He messaged back: Let’s see if we can shake them.

The two immediately burst into motion, their silhouettes streaking off with sharp sonic booms.

But no matter how fast they moved, how suddenly they veered or changed course, they couldn’t shake their unseen tail.

Even ducking into the subway, then emerging at a random stop—still, they sensed the presence of cameras.

Bai Zhenzhen messaged: They’re strong. Whoever’s following us is way above our level.

She then explained how she’d tried to approach Zhou Chechen, only to be blocked by a security guard named Zhou Hao—clearly a seasoned cultivator stuck at the peak of Qi Refinement for many years.

Bai Zhenzhen: The person tailing us now might be another veteran like Zhou Hao—probably specialized in surveillance, too.

Zhang Yu understood: if this tracking continued, they wouldn’t be able to earn money in the dark tutoring sector, let alone tap into the protected zone’s spiritual vein with An’an’s help.

As he racked his brain for a solution, Fu Ji spoke into both of their minds.

“Hold back—for now.”

Bai Zhenzhen messaged: Zhou Chechen is squeezing our time for cultivation and earning money. Are we just supposed to sit here and take it?

Fu Ji, watching Zhang Yu’s phone screen, saw the message and continued, “We only succeeded against Huoshan and Song Xu because we had the information advantage—we knew what they didn’t.”

“This time, Zhou Chechen and the Zhou Family are surveilling and investigating you. The more you act, the more you expose. Meanwhile, you know far too little about them—not even what Zhou Chechen’s ultimate goal is.”

“On top of that, they have resources and influence that you two can’t begin to match.”

“In my experience, when you’re completely outclassed, blind retaliation rarely ends well.”

Fu Ji sighed. “So—endure it. Sometimes in life, you meet an opponent you just can’t beat for now. That’s when you need to learn to lie low.”

“The more overwhelming the enemy, the more you must respond with stillness. During that time, focus on your growth. Search silently for flaws. Wait for your chance.”

“Besides, for now, you still can endure.”

“Their methods haven’t landed a true blow yet. In fact, some of these tactics might even be turned to your advantage.”

“Your own talent and strength—and the Rituals I’ve granted you—are all part of the information gap you do control. Use that. Use what they don’t know. That’s how you hold your ground in this fight, until you find your opening to win.”

…

And so, the days that followed saw Zhang Yu returning to the life of a typical elite school student—shuttling between school and dorm, locked in a monotonous routine.

In general studies, he and Bai Zhenzhen used every spare moment to circulate their Heart Techniques, refining their Dao Hearts and mana little by little.

…

In P.E., under Teacher Lin Hui’s watchful gaze, Zhang Yu injected the Berserk Dragon Enhancer all at once, letting the ferocious drug energy flood his body. He then began cultivating the Crimson Marrow Primordial Energy.

On the other side, Bai Zhenzhen’s body crackled with electricity. After taking the Dragon Elephant Enhancer, she combined the drug’s effects with thunder mana and her Zhen Spirit Root to power through her Thunderquake True Body.

The thunder mana she gained from unlocking her potential worked wonders with her practice, and her Zhen Spirit Root accelerated her progress even further.

She even snuck off to the restroom every now and then for a sip from her power bank—making her body-forging progress astonishingly fast.

Luckily, since her Thunderquake True Body always involved some lightning aura, the added thunder mana didn’t attract too much attention.