Chapter 399: The Ten Great Clans Step In, The Divine Son’s Spot in Jeopardy?
FIVE MILLION??!
In a High-Level meeting room on the top floor of Jing University’s administration building.
A beam of light from the projector shone upon a snow-white screen, displaying a single, shocking number—5,000,000.
An old, white-haired professor took off his glasses, wiped them with a soft cloth, and put them back on, as if to check whether his aging eyes were playing tricks on him and had added an extra zero.
Five million points…
What did that even mean?
Five million was enough to completely empty out the current inventory of Jing University’s exchange vault—including its most treasured Holy Artifacts, unique Cultivation Techniques, and even the rarest Heavenly and Earthly Treasures—and there would still be Points left over!
The Director of Academic Affairs, Elder Wang, sat to the left of the head seat, his knuckles turning white as he gripped his thermos.
He had been the one to calculate the number, and he had been the one to report it.
He knew, of course, how absurd the number was, but he was even more aware of how immense Gu Yuexi’s contribution had been.
“Old Wang, are you sure… you didn’t miscalculate?”
“There’s no mistake.”
Elder Wang’s gaze swept over everyone present.
“Everyone here saw what Student Gu Yuexi accomplished. She didn’t just bring honor to our Jing University; she bolstered the national prestige of our Great Xia… and on the White Eagle Empire’s own turf, no less!”
“That may be true…”
A vice dean in charge of student discipline frowned, his fingers tapping lightly on the tabletop.
“But Gu Yuexi is only a first-year student. It’s not necessarily a good thing for a freshman to have so many Points in her hands.”
“Could we… perhaps withhold a portion for now? Say, we give her five hundred thousand, and then release the rest when she’s an upperclassman and more mature?”
The words sounded noble, as if spoken for the student’s own good, but they carried the distinct undertone of someone trying to welsh on a debt.
After all, five million was an enormous sum—so large that even the university’s top brass felt the sting.
“BANG!”
A loud crash echoed through the room.
The conference table shuddered, and the lids of the teacups clattered.
A burly, bearded teacher sitting at the far end of the table slammed his hand down and shot to his feet.
It was Li Heng, a combat instructor specializing in practical application, who was as famous for his explosive temper as he was for being fiercely protective of his students.
“Are you fucking kidding me?!”
“’Withhold?’ The nerve! In its centuries of history, when has our Jing University ever done something so disgraceful? And what’s wrong with her being a first-year?”
“She put her life on the line for those Points, and you’re here bullshitting me about ’maturity?’ Even if she cashed them all in for supplies and fed them to the dogs, we’d still have to give them to her!”
“Li Heng! Watch your tone!” The vice dean’s face turned a shade of deep crimson.
“This *is* my tone!”
Li Heng was completely unafraid, jutting his chin out defiantly.
“I’ll say this once: she gets what she earned, down to the last point! If you dare to withhold a single one of those five million, I, Old Li, will be the first one to raise hell! Jing University can’t afford that kind of disgrace!”
His words were crude, but no one could refute them.
He was right.
The very reason Jing University was Jing University was its pride and integrity—it always made good on its promises.
“And another thing, don’t forget!”
“Gu Yuexi has another title. She is… the Divine Son!”
As soon as he said it, the atmosphere in the room changed.
Li Heng noticed that the expressions on everyone’s faces had turned strange.
Just then, Director Zhang gave a wry laugh. He took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose, his voice tinged with deep helplessness and fatigue.
“The title of Divine Son… does it really belong to Gu Yuexi?”
“I’m not so sure.”
Li Heng’s gaze sharpened.
“Old Zhang, what do you mean by that?”
“Gu Yuexi earned the title of Divine Son almost single-handedly. How could there be any complications?”
Director Zhang tapped the table, shook his head, and uttered four words:
“The Ten Great Clans.”
He lowered his voice.
“I’ve only just caught wind of this myself.”
“The Ten Great Clans have made their move. They’ve acted jointly to put pressure on the higher-ups.”
Hearing those three words, the room fell even more silent. Even Li Heng, who had opened his mouth to speak, ultimately said nothing.
The Ten Great Clans.
In Great Xia, that name carried far too much weight.
They were the cornerstones upon which Great Xia was founded, each clan possessing an incredibly deep heritage, their tendrils reaching into every level of the Military Department and the Ministry of Education.
One could even say that the shadows of the Ten Great Clans loomed behind half of Great Xia’s power structure.
“Their reasoning is quite sanctimonious—”
“The Global Tournament is a contest between nations, and the title of Divine Son is a national resource, not personal property. While Gu Yuexi’s contributions are great, she cannot simply claim a national asset for herself.”
“So, their proposal is…”
Director Zhang paused, a sorrowful look in his eyes.
“They are willing to offer Gu Yuexi extremely generous compensation. Cultivation Techniques, resources, status—all of it is on the table.”
“But the title of Divine Son must be handed over, to be inherited by a more ’reliable’ and ’suitable’ candidate selected from within the Ten Great Clans.”
It was a blatant power play.
A completely undisguised one, at that.
Using the banner of the greater good and a sea of resources to trade for a single chance to reach the Emperor Realm.
You couldn’t say their logic was entirely flawed, but anyone could see they were just swooping in to steal the prize.
Li Heng slumped back into his chair, dejected.
If it had been just one or two of the clans, Jing University might have been able to hold its ground.
But all Ten Great Clans acting in unison… that was practically… a force of nature.
Even the Ministry of Education and the Military Department would have no choice but to yield.
As senior administrators and teachers of Jing University, they were all on Gu Yuexi’s side—whether out of a desire to protect their student or for the sake of the university’s future.
But sometimes, things were just this hopeless.
Their opponent was too powerful—so powerful that they had no choice but to bow their heads.
The question was, would that girl, Gu Yuexi, be willing to bow her head?
And how could they possibly be the ones to tell her?
The vice principal was silent for a long moment. Suddenly, a flicker of resolve appeared in his eyes.
“That’s all for today,” he said, his voice somewhat hoarse. “Issue Gu Yuexi’s reward of five million Points. Effective immediately. That much, at least, was never up for debate.”
“As for the matter of the Divine Son title…”
“For now, it’s just a rumor. Nothing is confirmed. If the situation does escalate…”
He stood up and looked out the window, in the direction of the Chancellor’s office.
“I will find a way to contact the Chancellor.”
“That’s it. Meeting adjourned.”
The Chancellor!
Hearing those two words, a spark of light returned to everyone’s eyes.
That man.
The legend of the Great Xia Martial Arts Realm. The man who had once dominated an entire era.
It was he who had single-handedly brought Jing University back from the brink of decline and returned it to its Peak. It was said that in his time, there was only one Tier-0 university on all of Blue Star, and that was Jing University!
He hadn’t shown his face at Jing University in a long time, but as long as his name was still attached to it, the university still had its backbone.
If he were willing to return…
Perhaps… there was still a chance to turn things around.
…
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