Chapter Thirty-Seven: Spiritual Medicine Collaboration and a Retreat from the Trial

“Professor Qian…” As soon as they arrived at the research institute, they spotted Professor Qian Shanmeng waiting by the entrance from afar.

Chao was surprised, and so was Chu Qing.

Previously, because Lin Qingyun had easily gotten in touch with Qian Shanmeng and had privately mentioned her temperament, combined with their first encounter where Qian Shanmeng’s attitude was indifferent, neither Chao nor Chu Qing had paid much attention to this professor.

But after spending more than a month at Haicheng University, they finally understood the true weight of Vice Dean Qian Shanmeng. She was not someone ordinary students could meet—nor even most faculty, or some of the experts in the Cloud Ascension Realm. Qian Shanmeng didn’t lecture; she only conducted research, handled finances, and refined pills.

Once their business had gotten on track, Chao had only dealt with an assistant appointed by Qian Shanmeng, along with the relevant school officials. Seeing Qian Shanmeng once again waiting at the door was naturally unexpected.

They both glanced at Lin Qingyun. Last time, Qian Shanmeng had come to greet him; this time…

“Dean Qian, you’re too kind. You have so much research to conduct, yet you still come to welcome us personally. I feel quite embarrassed,” Lin Qingyun said, smiling as he stepped forward and shook Qian Shanmeng’s hand with confidence.

“You’ve given me yet another pleasant surprise. I’ve already conducted preliminary trials over these past days, and the results are just as you said. So, what are your plans this time?” Qian Shanmeng’s smile was radiant; she treated Lin Qingyun not as a student, but as a golden goose that never failed to lay eggs.

Before Lin Qingyun went to inherit his fortune on Yantian Island, he had sent Qian Shanmeng a dossier, stating he’d found methods in his mother’s notes for improving the cultivation of spiritual herbs.

“Seven exclusive methods for cultivating spiritual herbs, each improving maturity time, yield, and potency by thirty to fifty percent. I believe Dean Qian and Haicheng University have already assessed the value. Here’s what I’m thinking.”

“These will still be injected into our joint company, but this time, unlike before, I need sixty percent of the profits before I grant authorization. As for how you and the university divide your share, that’s up to you.”

Lin Qingyun understood that Professor Qian would still have a share, but not as much as before. After all, large-scale improvement in spiritual herb cultivation—boosting yield, potency, and speeding maturity—was most important, followed by the need for spiritual fields and skilled cultivators, all of which Haicheng University could provide.

Luckily, Haicheng University lacked neither personnel nor spiritual fields.

Chao and Chu Qing hadn’t known about this beforehand, and now they understood, both drawing in sharp breaths. The profits and influence from the pill sales alone had stunned them, and now, little more than a month later, there were spiritual herbs as well.

“Excellent. President Hong is hosting a delegation of foreign visitors, but tonight I will speak with him about this. Our previous collaborations have gone so well, I’m sure he’ll agree.” The smile in Qian Shanmeng’s eyes nearly overflowed. These years she had been preparing for her final breakthrough, which required vast resources. With enough resources, she could attempt to become a Master Alchemist and break through the next realm.

Originally, her plan had been to dig more treasures out of Lin Qingyun, but now, Lin Qingyun kept bringing them himself. If this partnership went through, next year’s university profits would be significantly boosted.

Besides government funding, Haicheng University had many industries; even a one or two percent increase in profits would be considerable.

After a few words, Qian Shanmeng invited Lin Qingyun in for tea and conversation, but Lin Qingyun politely declined, saying he needed to prepare for the freshmen’s practical trial and only required a cultivation room at the institute.

Qian Shanmeng had plenty of business herself, and had only spoken so freely out of excitement. Since Lin Qingyun declined, she immediately arranged a cultivation room for him.

“Another collaboration project already? That’s fast. No wonder Qian Shanmeng greeted you herself. From what you just discussed, this time it’s spiritual herb cultivation, right? That’s the source industry. If we add artifact refining in the future, our partnership with Haicheng University would complement all industries, and we’d be close to forming a complete industrial chain.”

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Having managed the pill business for over twenty days, especially at Haicheng University, Chao had learned many new things.

“Chao, Qingyun is going into closed cultivation. Let’s avoid disturbing him…”

The cultivation room provided by Professor Qian was, of course, top-class—far better than what Chao and Chu Qing had used. As Chao spoke with Lin Qingyun, she looked around, clicking her tongue in admiration.

There was even space for rest and receiving guests. Seeing that Chao intended to stay, and remembering the conversation with Professor Qian, Chu Qing called her to leave.

“No rush. I only said that to Professor Qian in passing. He’s busy, and once I told him what I needed, there was nothing more to discuss. We haven’t seen each other in a while, and the environment here is nice.”

As Lin Qingyun spoke, he handed some drinks to Chao and Chu Qing.

Hearing this, Chu Qing also sat down with Chao.

Chao, eager, immediately inquired about the spiritual herb cultivation, and Lin Qingyun explained the situation, also revealing he was sorting through more documents left by his parents, related to alchemy and medicinal materials.

This was preparation for future endeavors; the coming decades would far outpace the first century of spiritual energy revival.

Now, Lin Qingyun was selectively developing from lesser-known items, and what he could offer exceeded imagination.

Even with only a hint of disclosure, Chao and Chu Qing were left wide-eyed, repeatedly praising Lin Qingyun’s parents as true geniuses—not only had they founded Lin Pharmaceutical Group, but they had also hidden so many secrets.

Taking the opportunity, Lin Qingyun also imparted some advice regarding collaboration with Haicheng University and future management. For now, Haicheng University was his best shield—he needed to transfer profits while preparing for humanity’s transformation.

With hindsight, leveraging Haicheng University was more suitable than using Lin Pharmaceutical Group. When his strength was sufficient, regaining full control of Lin Pharmaceutical Group to aid Haicheng University would be ideal.

Compared to them, Lin Qingyun had the experience and perspective of a previous life, and his guidance always left Chao and Chu Qing in awe.

They didn’t dwell on it, only marveling at Lin Qingyun’s skills in business and management. Given his parents’ abilities and his status as the group’s heir, growing up in such an environment truly set him apart from ordinary families.

“Buzz… buzz…”

Just then, Chu Qing’s communicator vibrated repeatedly. She glanced at it and immediately looked to Lin Qingyun.

“It’s… Zhang Baole. He’s asking me to keep him updated on your recent activities, and to stay near you during the practical trial, reporting everything in real-time.”

“That fat bastard again! Didn’t you make up some stories for him before? Why’s he suddenly so interested in the university’s freshmen trial?” Chao was annoyed at the mention of Zhang Baole; Chu Qing had shared all her contacts with him.

He was extremely lewd, now speaking to Chu Qing without restraint.

He even hinted that if he weren’t afraid of Lin Qingyun discovering, he’d have taken Chu Qing already. He’d repeatedly urged her to climb into Lin Qingyun’s bed, have a real relationship, and lock him down further.

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Chao and Chu Qing had no knowledge of Yantian Island or Lin Qingfeng, so they couldn’t guess Zhang Baole’s intentions.

But Lin Qingyun immediately suspected a connection to Lin Qingfeng. Of course, he saw no need to explain this to Chao and Chu Qing.

“Tell him I had a conflict with Mao Yiqiang and his group when I returned to school, and mention how they stirred up fans of Nangong Lingyue. You can exaggerate a bit to amuse them.”

After Chu Qing replied to Zhang Baole, Lin Qingyun tapped a few buttons, and a holographic map appeared, showing a city one-third covered in yellow sand.

From the architectural style, it was clear this wasn’t a Chinese city.

“Since we’re talking about the practical trial, let me explain. Chu Qing, if you can get in touch during the trial, report to them as I direct.”

“Pay attention—this year’s freshman trial is set in three regions. Haicheng University and over thirty percent of domestic universities are near Kistan. The surrounding small countries are now under the control of the Desert Wind King Nangong Aoshi, and part of our territory.”

“This area was once ravaged by expanding deserts, sandworms, sand beasts, and monsters. Over a dozen towns and two cities with populations above three hundred thousand were wiped out. Later, the Desert Wind King relocated the people and secured the region. But it’s still not safe. In the first few days of the trial, you can safely hunt sandworms, sand beasts, and monsters in the cities, but always watch for my messages—if anything changes, evacuate immediately in this direction.”

Lin Qingyun pointed deep into the desert.

At this point, he couldn’t reveal too much, or Chao and Chu Qing would sense something was wrong.

“This region has no powerful monsters and is my fallback route. When I discussed the trial with Ancestor Chifeng at the research institute, he said he’d visited and found it the safest.”

Without giving Chao and Chu Qing a chance to ask, Lin Qingyun attributed the reason to his master.

Indeed, having an exceptional father and mother, and a formidable master, meant that anything he couldn’t shoulder himself could be credited to them.

Such was the advantage of background and support.

Chao and Chu Qing were initially full of doubts, sensing from Lin Qingyun’s words that he seemed to anticipate trouble.

But when he finally mentioned that Master Chifeng, a ninth-grade Alchemist, had warned him, they immediately relaxed. Clearly, his master was concerned and had scouted the area ahead of time, finding safe escape routes in case of trouble.

They were grateful, and thankful to be on Lin Qingyun’s side.