Magnetic Pole True Lord: I heard your students did well in the military certificate exam this time.

Director Gao: You’ve heard about it too? Yes, they performed well. It’s a shame there’s only one certificate.

Magnetic Pole True Lord: Then you need to quickly take Zhang Yu on as a formal disciple. With so many people watching in the exam hall, if he performs well, many will likely try to recruit him. Be especially careful of the other two directors in your department; they might have already made an offer.

Seeing the reminder from Magnetic Pole True Lord, Director Gao felt a sense of care from him. He thought, “Although he seems a bit unreliable usually, we’ve been friends for hundreds of years. At critical moments, he still supports me.” Director Gao had, of course, already considered Magnetic Pole True Lord’s reminder. If it were an ordinary student, and he was willing to be their mentor, the student would probably be thrilled; the entire process would only require a word from him. Once he became a student’s mentor, he could assign courses, arrange internships, and choose directions for postgraduate or doctoral studies.

In short, as long as a student wishes to advance, their mentor holds significant sway over them.

Besides the influence inherent in the mentor-student relationship, many mentors and students also sign a contract.

This usually happens when a student is exceptionally talented.

Mentors invest in their students and also need to ensure future returns.

Director Gao replied, “I understand. I’m already drafting the contract.”

Seeing Director Gao’s reply, Magnetic Pole True Lord smiled faintly and turned to look at Zhang Yu, who was in his arms, seemingly awaiting Zhang Yu’s answer. Magnetic Pole True Lord’s visit to Zhang Yu today had two purposes: first, to further understand what happened during the military certificate exam, and second, to confirm Zhang Yu’s thoughts, or rather, his aspirations.

Hearing Magnetic Pole True Lord’s question, Zhang Yu was slightly taken aback and said, “Teacher Gao is a good person!”

Magnetic Pole True Lord calmly stated, “Yes, Old Gao is indeed good to his people. But Old Gao is too weak; he can’t protect you.”

Sensing Zhang Yu’s puzzled gaze, Magnetic Pole True Lord continued, “A genius like you needs enough freedom to exercise your talents. The less constrained you are, the greater your potential for growth. Conversely, the more constrained you are, the more your potential is wasted, potentially even leading to resentment and neglect of the immortal path.”

“It’s like a star salesperson in a company: the more authority and higher commission they are given, the more effort they will put in to generate maximum profit. Otherwise, both parties lose out.”

“But Old Gao… how much freedom can he give you?” Magnetic Pole True Lord calmly said to Zhang Yu, “This isn’t about what he wants or doesn’t want; it’s an objective fact that won’t change based on either of your wills. After all, the less he restricts you, the harder it will be for him to prevent others from poaching you. Don’t tell me you wouldn’t leave even if someone offered a high price. The ultimate path for the Civil Engineering Department is to leave the construction site!”

“Conversely, the more Old Gao restricts you, the more it will suppress your talent, ultimately hindering your immortal path and making you resentful! It will be very difficult for you two to find a balance.”

“Simply because Old Gao is from the Civil Engineering Department, and on the barren land of a construction site, beautiful flowers cannot bloom! The Civil Engineering Department is also destined to be unable to retain a student like you long-term!”

On the street, Zhang Yu was held in Magnetic Pole True Lord’s arms, listening quietly to what he said. He had to admit that Magnetic Pole True Lord made a lot of sense.

Zhang Yu: True Lord, do you want me to openly acknowledge our relationship and transfer departments sooner?

Magnetic Pole True Lord: This contract isn’t easy to draft, is it?

Director Gao: Ah, it’s a bit hard to get right! Others must have made offers to Zhang Yu too! I can’t offer anything too bad either, or even if he signs now, he’ll inevitably harbor resentment in the future, and his efficiency in work and cultivation will drastically decrease. Besides that, I’m just afraid people from other departments will poach him!

In Director Gao’s opinion, Zhang Yu’s future advancement to the Golden Core stage was a certainty, and there was a good chance he could even reach the Nascent Soul stage. Therefore, nurturing Zhang Yu to grow the “cake” and gain more returns was his true objective.

His goal was not to waste Zhang Yu’s potential or “consume” him at the Golden Core or even Foundation Establishment stage.

After all, to him, the value of a Nascent Soul cultivator far exceeded that of a Golden Core cultivator.

So, how to draft the contract to protect his own interests without suppressing Zhang Yu’s potential for development? This had made Director Gao ponder for a long time.

Magnetic Pole True Lord: I’ve dealt with the Artifact Forging Department for you; I guarantee no one will try to poach him from there! But I can’t say for sure about the Finance Department. Those bloodsucking vampires are terrible, and they’re used to throwing money around. I’m just worried your student won’t be able to resist.

Seeing Magnetic Pole True Lord’s message, Director Gao sighed inwardly. The thought of Zhang Yu potentially becoming Director Lin’s disciple, or even a disciple of the Finance Department, made his expression darken.

Magnetic Pole True Lord: I actually have an idea!

Director Gao: What is it?

Magnetic Pole True Lord: Never mind, pretend I didn’t say anything!

Director Gao: Don’t play these games. We’ve known each other for hundreds of years; what can’t you say?

Magnetic Pole True Lord: How about I cover you and your disciple? I’ll start a company with you, sign Zhang Yu, and then I’ll protect you all. Then, no one will dare to poach him indiscriminately! On second thought, never mind! At that point, everyone in your Civil Engineering Department will definitely say you’re sending talent my way! It’ll make it seem like I’m trying to steal your disciple!

Magnetic Pole True Lord saw that Director Gao hadn’t replied for a while, but he wasn’t anxious. He turned to Zhang Yu, who was in his arms, and said, “There’s no rush to transfer departments! Since you’ve already obtained the Military Civil Engineering Certificate, just stay in the Civil Engineering Department for now. Wait until you’ve mastered the ‘Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power’ before making any moves.”

“With this military-grade cultivation technique as your foundation, your physical body will become the best natural treasure. In the future, refining your own dharma skeleton will bring many benefits, putting you a big step ahead of others! If this technique is combined with artifact forging, it also has many marvelous uses. In the future, if you can combine both artifact forging and civil engineering technologies, that will be a huge advantage!”

Zhang Yu asked, “What about the Artifact Forging Department’s ‘Heaven and Earth Ring Calamity Invisible Heart Weapon’ and ‘Grand Void Divine Artifact Strategy,’ those two military-grade cultivation techniques? Didn’t you previously tell me to transfer to the Artifact Forging Department early to have a chance to learn these two military-grade techniques?”

Magnetic Pole True Lord replied, “If you miss the ‘Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power,’ you’ll miss it forever! As for the military-grade martial arts of the Artifact Forging Department, it won’t be too late to learn them when you pursue a master’s degree in Artifact Forging in the future!”

“It won’t take much more time. While you’re mastering the ‘Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power’ in these two years, you can also complete your Civil Engineering credits early, graduate ahead of time, and then take the entrance exam for a master’s in Artifact Forging! It’s just a two-year delay to join the Artifact Forging Department in exchange for a military-grade martial art. It’s very worthwhile!”

After a moment of thought, Zhang Yu asked, “If I do this… will I have a chance to enter a sect later? Hmm?”

Magnetic Pole True Lord looked at Zhang Yu with surprise and said, “You want to join a sect?”

Zhang Yu met Magnetic Pole True Lord’s gaze directly and candidly replied, “If I’m to ascend to the peak of the immortal path, how can I not join a sect?”

Magnetic Pole True Lord sighed, “Your ambition is commendable! I won’t hide it from you, so you won’t resent me later! In this era, it’s increasingly difficult to enter a sect. Besides requiring at least a doctoral degree and Nascent Soul cultivation, even awards earned during undergraduate studies must be from inter-school competitions, preferably from the top ten leagues.”

“But none of that matters for you right now. After all, an undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering is no different from a vocational college degree in the eyes of those haughty individuals in the sect; they’d just glance at it and dismiss it.”

Magnetic Pole True Lord continued, “If you want to enter a sect, you’ll need to transfer departments quickly in your junior year! But honestly, by the time you graduate with a doctorate, the sect’s requirements will likely have risen even higher. This path…” Magnetic Pole True Lord paused, considering his words, and finally said, “This path isn’t for ordinary people; it’s for reincarnated powerful beings! Don’t ask for specifics. My advice to you is, since you have the opportunity, stay in Civil Engineering for now, and first learn the ‘Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power’ to expand your breadth. If you achieve Nascent Soul cultivation in the future, you definitely won’t regret today’s choice!”

Magnetic Pole True Lord didn’t elaborate, but his meaning was clear: he evidently didn’t favor transferring to Artifact Forging in junior year to try for a sect.

Zhang Yu asked, “What if I master the ‘Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power’ in my junior year and then transfer to Artifact Forging?”

Magnetic Pole True Lord’s eyes flashed. “Impossible. Setting aside whether you can master it, just getting the ‘Seven Civil Engineering Arts’…” At this point, Magnetic Pole True Lord paused slightly, then said thoughtfully, “Well, it’s not entirely impossible!”

Magnetic Pole True Lord explained, “The university wars are intensifying, with more and more schools preparing. Various competitions are also gaining increasing importance due to students’ improved abilities, and even the competition formats have changed annually in recent years! Naturally, the Civil Engineering Department’s inter-university competition is also more highly regarded than before.”

“This time, Old Gao might arrange for you to join Mo Shangjin’s team to contend in the inter-university league! Under normal circumstances, to be taught the ‘Seven Civil Engineering Arts,’ even by passing the Seven Civil Engineering Trials, you cannot avoid various restrictions related to qualifications, years of experience, and overall scores.”

“However, by leveraging this inter-university league opportunity, it is indeed possible that the Civil Engineering professors might make an exception, lower their requirements, and allow you the chance to fully learn the ‘Seven Civil Engineering Arts’!”

Hearing Magnetic Pole True Lord’s words, a phrase also came to Zhang Yu’s mind: “Chaos is a ladder. This is indeed my opportunity!”

Seeing the eager expression on Zhang Yu’s face, Magnetic Pole True Lord calmly said, “Then give it a try! But if you don’t succeed, then simply stay in the Civil Engineering Department and focus on mastering the ‘Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power’ before anything else!”

Zhang Yu nodded firmly, then asked, “What about Director Gao?”

Just then, a message flashed before Zhang Yu’s eyes; it was from Director Gao.

Director Gao: Zhang Yu, what do you think of Magnetic Pole True Lord?

At this very moment, the spiritual realm around Zhang Yu had already been suppressed by Magnetic Pole True Lord using the Great Nine Heavens Primal Yang Pagoda. The circulating spiritual messages appeared with extreme clarity before his eyes.

Zhang Yu felt his body being tightly embraced by Magnetic Pole True Lord, restricting all his movements.

Then, Magnetic Pole True Lord reached out and grabbed the message from Director Gao that had appeared in Zhang Yu’s vision, then said with a smile, “Don’t move. Let me reply to him!”

Zhang Yu: Is Magnetic Pole True Lord being difficult?