113: Chapter 113, Ranking Fifteen, Shocks All Around

The golden announcement of the Skeleton Wasteland hung above the Task Hall of Xinghe University, leaving many freshmen frozen in place, their breathing suppressed to a whisper; no one was willing to be the first to speak and break the awkward silence.

Lu Ming looked up at the writing on the light screen, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked.

After twenty-one days of waiting in vain, all he got was Wang Pingan crushing all his predictions into the mud.

He had originally plotted to drag Wang Pingan down using the Skeleton Wasteland and leverage the support of the Lu Family branch to win back his position on the resource ranking, but now that retreat had been completely blocked.

The Lu Family branch in the Central Star Domain was willing to pour resources into him only because he could still serve as the Family's signboard at Xinghe University, compete for quotas, and secure more investment.

However, with every step forward Wang Pingan took, a layer of Lu Ming's value would peel away, and the resources the Lu Family had bet on him would inevitably face redistribution.

This was the root cause of Lu Ming's relentless fixation on Wang Pingan; he was unwilling to accept that the threshold he had struggled for years to reach was being stepped over by someone from the fringe Star Domains.

Above the hall, the Mainframe light screen, which had been stuck on the task settlement interface, lit up once again as silvery-white data streams converged from all directions, illuminating the entire Freshman Management Hall.

The Grey-Robed Deacon looked up, his hand holding the task Jade Slip pausing in mid-air, his usual composure completely gone.

The freshman rankings were supposed to be updated uniformly at the end of the month, but the Mainframe had opened the ranking channel early, which meant Wang Pingan's battle achievements had already surpassed the standard settlement criteria.

Rows of names scrolled across the light screen, the top 100 rankings shifting constantly, and many freshmen currently in seclusion received notifications from the Mainframe simultaneously.

Wang Pingan, who had originally been ranked ninety-seventh, saw his name leap from the bottom of the list, passing one scion of a Central Star Domain aristocratic Family after another, finally settling at fifteenth place.

Freshman Ranking, fifteenth place, Wang Pingan.

Gasps of shock echoed through the hall; several freshmen from the Central Star Domain subconsciously took half a step back, their eyes fixed on that line of golden text.

The top twenty on the ranking list had always been the private territory of the top aristocratic families in the Central Star Domain; those people had access to high-level resources from birth, with their elders paving the way and protecting them.

For someone from the fringe Star Domains, squeezing into the top hundred was already rare, and standing in the top twenty was something that hadn't happened in many years.

Wang Pingan had come out of Tianhai Star with only the Wang Family supporting him, and despite having been at Xinghe University for only a short time, he had already fought his way to fifteenth place.

This ranking represented more than just fame; it stood for mentor attention, resource priority, task selection rights, and weight in the seed sequence observation list.

Everyone ranked ahead of him would inevitably re-evaluate this Wang Family Daoist Heir from Tianhai Star.

The popularity of the Xinghe University forum soared; battle records regarding the Skeleton Wasteland were dug up, and entries like "Heavy Armor Legion," "Pure Yang Burst Bomb," and "Undead Resurrection Law" flooded the homepage.

"So, this is how a Heavy Armor Legion can fight the undead?"

"Two hundred Purple Mansion heavy artillery pieces suppressing a sea of ten million bones—how is this the foundation a freshman should have?"

"The point isn't the heavy armor; Wang Pingan's Hundred Arts Hall System can modify equipment directly on the battlefield, and he even forcefully dismantled the Undead Resurrection Law."

"He cleared the Skeleton Wasteland alone; it would be a problem if his ranking didn't rise. Fifteenth place is already a conservative estimate."

There were also those who were unconvinced, insisting that Wang Pingan simply took advantage of the heavy artillery and Pure Yang Materials and might not be able to achieve such results on a different battlefield.

As soon as such remarks surfaced, they were immediately shut down by the task records of the Skeleton Wasteland, where three first-tier student teams had been wiped out, failing even to retreat.

Wang Pingan accepted the task alone, cleared it in twenty-one days, and suffered zero casualties among his main combat forces; this concrete result was in the Mainframe's files, and no one could ignore it.

Lu Ming stood in the center of the Task Hall, and the few freshmen who had originally surrounded him quietly stepped back, distancing themselves for fear of being associated with him.

He gritted his teeth, unable to squeeze out a single word of rebuttal. Wang Pingan had already walked too far past him; looking back at him would be superfluous.

On the other side, Wang Pingan had already left the Freshman Management Hall and was returning to the Wang Family Mansion along the floating streets of Galaxy City; the commotion outside did not affect his pace in the slightest.

His goal in taking the Skeleton Wasteland was never to win a ranking, but to obtain the Soul Power Origin and complete war resources left behind by that undead Divine Kingdom.

The ranking was merely an incidental result; what truly determined the future was the constantly expanding land, population, legions, and Hundred Arts Hall System within his Divine Kingdom.

As soon as the gates of the Wang Family Mansion opened, Wang Cang hurried out to greet him, his usually composed face filled with joy.

"Daoist Heir, the freshman ranking has been updated early, and you have ranked fifteenth. It is the talk of the town on Tianhai Star, and the ancestral grounds have sent three messages in a row asking about the results."

Wang Pingan nodded slightly without stopping his pace: "First, send the list of spoils from the Skeleton Wasteland to the secret chamber; other news can wait."

Wang Cang followed behind him, taking the opportunity to produce four gold-stamped Jade Slips: "Four high-level mentors have also sent people to express their interest in taking you as a disciple, and one of them is a sixth-tier deity."

Hearing the words "sixth-tier deity," the Wang Family members in the mansion stopped what they were doing, their eyes filled with expectation.

Wang Pingan took the Jade Slips but did not open them; he scanned the covers and immediately handed all four letters of intent back to Wang Cang.

"Politely decline them all."

Wang Cang froze in place and hurriedly reminded him: "Daoist Heir, the resources, Legacy, and connections of high-level mentors are extremely important, and a sixth-tier deity is even rarer to encounter."

Wang Pingan stepped over the threshold of the inner hall without looking back: "I have no intention of taking on a master at the moment."

He stopped in front of the stone door of the secret chamber and turned to look at Wang Cang: "Tell them that Wang Pingan appreciates their regard. When I reach a higher position, I will invite all the Seniors for tea."

Wang Cang was silent for a moment, then nodded solemnly and tucked the four Jade Slips into his sleeves: "I understand. I will go and reply personally so as not to leave any misunderstandings for anyone."

Wang Pingan had no intention of taking a master, nor did he count on relying on others to gain a foothold. His Divine Kingdom was evolving every day, and outsiders simply could not keep up with his path.

Wang Zhenyuan stepped out from the shadows of the long corridor, his grey-black battle robe devoid of any extra ornamentation, his gaze sweeping over the Formation nodes on the exterior of the mansion.

"Half of the eyes watching outside the mansion have been withdrawn."

Wang Cang frowned: "Have they backed down?"

Wang Zhenyuan shook his head: "Some have retreated, some have gone back to change masters, and others feel that the Daoist Heir is already worth a higher price."

He raised his hand and flicked out a Divine Thought imprint, which contained records of over a dozen different auras: "The resource merchants withdrew the fastest, fearing we would follow the vine to find the melon."

"The Central Star Domain aristocratic families have left quite a few people behind, still waiting for the half-year review, wanting to see if the Daoist Heir can continue to charge upward."

"Several dark lines of alien races have also been broken; with the undead Divine Kingdom of the Skeleton Wasteland breached, many people have started to re-evaluate the Tianhai Wang Family."

Wang Pingan listened without a ripple on his face: "Keep watching those who remain outside. If anyone dares to reach out, chop their hands off."

Wang Zhenyuan nodded, the fierce aura unique to a veteran of the borderlands showing in his eyes: "Understood. I will let them know that Galaxy City is not a place where just anyone can stick their claws in."

Wang Pingan pushed open the secret chamber door, and Wang Cang immediately sent the storage box containing the spoils into the center of the Formation platform, the box covered with verification talismans from the school.

The resources left behind by the Skeleton Wasteland were diverse: high-level undead bone Materials, Death Knight bone armor fragments, bone dragon wing bones, soul fire crystals, Death Qi crystals, and a large amount of usable Yin-attribute mineral Materials.

If all these resources were piled into the Divine Kingdom, they would be difficult to digest in the short term and would instead occupy storage, Formations, and the manpower of the Hundred Arts Hall.

Wang Pingan opened the Federation's exclusive trading page and accessed the anonymous trading channel. All goods were verified by the Mainframe, ensuring the seller's identity would never be exposed.

He broke the undead bone Materials into 187 lots, the soul fire crystals into 72 lots, the Yin-attribute mineral Materials into 96 lots, and even cut the bone dragon wing bones into several batches.

The price for each batch of goods was set just slightly below the average market price, enough to attract buyers.

Once the orders were posted, the trading System began matching them with demand, and Artifact Refining workshops, undead material merchants, soul Medicinal Pill merchants, and Formation trade associations sent confirmation messages one after another.

The high-level undead bone Materials were snapped up by Artifact Refining workshops, the soul fire crystals were locked in by the Alchemy trade association, and the bone dragon wing bones were taken directly by a flying Magical Artifact merchant.

The numbers in his Divine Power account continued to jump. Wang Pingan didn't wait long before all the spoils were traded, and the Divine Power value in his account rapidly filled up.

He withdrew the proceeds from the sale along with the previously accumulated Divine Power value and shifted his gaze to the post-war construction page of the Grade-A mall.

The core Origin brought by the Skeleton Wasteland leaned toward soul and Yin earth; without enough Formations and cultivation Materials to suppress the residual Death Qi, subsequent development would inevitably sow hidden dangers.

Wang Pingan did not buy high-damage weapons, nor did he continue to expand the Heavy Artillery Battalion; instead, he poured all his funds into a soul-stabilization System.

Spirit-Nourishing Formation Plates, Soul-Cleansing Spirit Sand, Yin earth cultivation substrates, Earth Vein Harmonizing Stones, Soul-Protecting Medicinal Field Mother Plants, and Soul Power storage crystal pillars—one resource after another was swept directly into his order.

The discount in the Grade-A mall brought by his S+ rating took effect; the originally expensive Spirit-Nourishing Formation Plates were discounted by 30%, and Wang Pingan bought enough to cover the northern Yin earth directly.

When Wang Cang received the logistics list, his eyelids twitched several times: "Daoist Heir, this batch of resources is enough to build several soul cultivation zones. Are you planning to eat the Yin earth dry?"

Wang Pingan confirmed the last order, his tone crisp: "The things brought back from the Skeleton Wasteland must be transformed into the Divine Kingdom's own foundation."

"Yin earth can nurture souls, undead bone Materials can forge armor, and soul fire crystals can be used for Alchemy. If we just pile them in the warehouse, the Skeleton Wasteland would have been fought in vain."

Wang Zhenyuan, standing outside the door of the secret chamber, heard these words and said nothing, simply reinforcing the mansion's spatial sealing Formation by another layer.

Wang Pingan sat cross-legged on the Formation platform, his consciousness passing through the Divine Kingdom channel, and the 80,000 square kilometers of territory spread out in his Divine Thought.

At the northern edge, the newly integrated 20,000 square kilometers of Yin earth lay behind the mountains, the grey-black land extending to the horizon, with Soul Power surging deep within the soil layers.

There were no undead roars or churning bone seas there, but residual Death Qi still lurked in the soil layers, and the slightest negligence would contaminate the surrounding Earth Veins.

Wang Pingan stood in the firmament of the Divine Kingdom, golden Divine Fire shining toward the north; Wang Mu and Wang Shan had long been waiting with their people at the edge of the Yin earth.

Behind Wang Mu stood the heads of the Formation Hall, Spirit Planting Department, Alchemy Pavilion, and Medical Cultivator Camp, with thousands of Cultivators holding Formation Plates and Materials, their ranks stretching for miles.

Behind Wang Shan were 20,000 elites of the Immortal Martial Legion, with shield soldiers, blade soldiers, the Artillery Battalion, maintenance teams, and logistics queues lined up neatly, their military flags snapping in the north wind.

Wang Pingan issued a divine decree: "For the northern Yin earth, first clear the residual Death Qi, then build the Spirit-Nourishing Platforms and Shura Fields; everyone is to act according to military orders."

Wang Mu bowed and accepted the order: "Your subject will first stabilize the Earth Veins, then channel the Soul Power; I will never let Death Qi flow into the heart of the Divine Kingdom."

Wang Shan shouldered his crimson flame saber and looked toward the depths of the Yin earth: "I'll go and trample this land solid. Whoever dares to let the Death Qi rise again, I'll kick them into the Soul-Cleansing Pool first."

Suppressed laughter echoed from within the military Formation, diluting the long-tense atmosphere slightly, and then everyone quickly took their positions.

Wang Pingan raised his hand, and the power of the Master of Time spread from his Divine Core, golden patterns extending outward along the 80,000 square kilometers of territory.

One day in the outside world, ten years in the Divine Kingdom.

The transformation project of the northern Yin earth thus began.