Late October.

Zhang Yu once again rented Ye Xingli’s laboratory.

The reason Zhang Yu chose to rent here was partly because Ye Xingli offered him a discount, and naturally, the other reason was his coveting of the Dao Seed on Ye Xingli.

At this very moment, Zhang Yu was seen manipulating streams of True Fire, which soared out and enveloped the various metal materials before him.

As a military-grade puppet among magic artifacts, the Heaven-Sun Divine Emperor’s manufacturing process and structural composition were naturally incredibly complex compared to ordinary magic artifacts.

For example, the puppet’s bones, nervous system, control center, and mana core—each part, taken individually, was an extremely precise and profound magic artifact.

In the simplest terms, the process of refining the prototype machine involved refining each individual module before assembling and debugging them.

What Zhang Yu was currently doing was the creation of the prototype machine’s skeletal components.

As a puppet imbued with the power of ultimate rigidity and Yang energy, the Heaven-Sun Divine Emperor’s bones needed to meet requirements such as high strength, high temperature resistance, powerful mana conductivity, and the ability for fire evasion transformation, among others.

It could be said that every single bone of this prototype machine had a higher technical content than many magic artifacts owned by students in the university city.

However, for Zhang Yu, who had long mastered various artifact-refining techniques through his cultivation in the Grand Pure Realm, the process of refining the bones quickly progressed from unfamiliarity to proficiency, and then from proficiency to effortless ease.

Ye Xingli, who was beside him, watched Zhang Yu’s movements and couldn’t help but ask, “When did you get so good at refining bionic bones?”

Zhang Yu replied, “Wasn’t there an economic crisis a while ago? I happened to have nothing to do every day, so I thoroughly studied all the relevant technologies for the Heaven-Sun Divine Emperor, looking through data, watching online courses, and so on.”

“I didn’t expect practical operation to be so easy.”

“Of course, this should also be related to the artifact-refining cultivation techniques I practiced before; those techniques greatly enhanced my refining abilities.”

This was the explanation Zhang Yu had prepared in advance. He knew that by steadily and openly completing the refinement of the prototype machine, he would undeniably prove his capabilities.

As for why he learned so fast, one could only attribute it to his talent in artifact refining.

At this moment, Ye Xingli, watching Zhang Yu’s operations, immediately perceived his talent.

“Learned so fast?”

“This Zhang Yu fellow… he seems to possess a special keenness and intuition in the path of artifact refining. He learns everything exceptionally quickly.”

Recalling the first time she saw Zhang Yu refining artifacts and his subsequent speed of progress, Ye Xingli couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, “Although he has the assistance of a Soul Transformation Yin Artifact, Zhang Yu’s own talent in artifact refining should not be underestimated.”

“I regret that I initially thought Zhang Yu had no talent in this area. Now that I think about it, Master’s judgment was more accurate.”

Just as Ye Xingli was sighing inwardly, she heard Zhang Yu say, “Senior Sister, thank you again for letting me use your laboratory during this time.”

Ye Xingli waved her hand. “I’ll be attending school training for most of my time from now on, preparing for next year’s Top Ten League. It’s perfect that this laboratory can be rented to you.”

Zhang Yu looked at Ye Xingli. Ever since she returned with a ranking from the Top Ten League, the department ranking displayed above her head had changed to 3rd in the Artifact Refining Department.

In addition, if one looked at Ye Xingli’s head for a moment longer, the 3rd place ranking in the Artifact Refining Department would flash slightly, then switch to 10th place in the entire school.

Zhang Yu, looking at the rankings, thought with a hint of envy, “I heard that once you enter the top ten in the entire school, the school can approve loans of thousands of spirit coins. I wonder if Senior Sister has applied for it.”

He then asked a question he had long wanted to know, “Senior Sister, what’s the process if I want to participate in next year’s Top Ten League?”

In Zhang Yu’s view, this was something he needed to know early. Otherwise, if he worked hard for a long time only to miss the registration deadline, the participation process, or fail to meet the selection criteria, he would have no place for regrets.

Ye Xingli was slightly taken aback by his words and thought to herself, “Although Zhang Yu is very talented, he probably won’t have a chance to participate in next year’s competition.”

After all, in Ye Xingli’s opinion, next year’s Top Ten League would be unprecedentedly fierce. The school would also inevitably pour all its resources into high-achieving senior students, supporting them in contending for immortal sect cultivation techniques.

“Unless, in the short period of less than a year, Zhang Yu can surpass us.”

But after thinking about it, Ye Xingli knew this was impossible.

“If Zhang Yu can successfully refine the prototype machine by his senior year, that would already be quite remarkable.”

“In previous years, he might have been able to wander around the Top Ten League.”

“But next year… he probably won’t make the cut.”

If it were according to Ye Xingli’s own thoughts, she should disabuse Zhang Yu of his delusions right now and tell him not to make such impractical plans.

And in the future, he shouldn’t say such nonsensical things in front of her, as it would simply be a waste of everyone’s time.

But just then, lines of replies from the Poor Man’s Simulator appeared on her ocular bones.

Ye Xingli smiled slightly and said, “You want to participate in next year’s Top Ten League? Senior Sister supports you.”

“Generally, the school team’s instructors will actively seek out participants. If they don’t, you can also proactively apply to them before June next year.”

“Regarding the selection criteria, in previous years, it was at least mastering two military-grade powers. If you obtain the military certificate for the Heaven-Sun Divine Emperor, you can try approaching them.”

“However, next year’s competition will be exceptionally fierce, and the selection requirements might also be higher. Don’t be disheartened if you’re not selected…”

Zhang Yu listened and nodded slightly, memorizing all the information Ye Xingli had provided. He also felt an even greater sense of urgency.

“To participate in next year’s Top Ten League, truly not a single second can be wasted.”

After discussing the competition, Ye Xingli watched Zhang Yu’s movements and then reminded him, “Refining bones is troublesome; not only does it involve many steps, but the sheer number of bones required for the entire prototype machine is also immense, making it very time-consuming and labor-intensive.”

“However, the initial preparatory steps of the refining process, including material screening and impurity refinement, are relatively simple. You could consider hiring an assistant to help.”

Zhang Yu had naturally already considered the issues Ye Xingli mentioned.

As an incredibly complex and precise magic artifact, not every step in the Heaven-Sun Divine Emperor’s prototype machine was profound and unfathomable; there were still many repetitive, low-tech steps.

Zhang Yu only needed to fully refine it a few times himself to prove that the techniques and direction he had mastered were correct. After that, by delegating the simple, repetitive preparatory work to an assistant and focusing on the crucial parts himself, he could greatly accelerate his efficiency.

“The initial overall refinement is the most time-consuming.”

“If I refine it by myself, it would probably take three months to complete the full refinement of a Level 1 prototype machine. After that, I’d need to improve the prototype’s level through repeated refinement and improvements.”

“But if I hire someone to help, I should be able to increase efficiency to within two months or even one month.”

Thinking of Jin Jun, who had started several months before him, Zhang Yu understood that if he wanted to catch up to and surpass him, hiring an assistant was clearly a safer choice.

Realizing this, Zhang Yu asked Ye Xingli, who was beside him, “Senior Sister, do you have anyone to recommend?”

Ye Xingli said, “How about Zi Yunzhen? After my project here ends, she probably hasn’t joined any other laboratories yet.”

Zhang Yu recalled the busy figure in this laboratory a while ago and couldn’t help but nod slightly. “What’s her price?”

He thought to himself, “I wonder if Zi Yunzhen can handle the work here? I’ll have to interview her and test her relevant abilities then…”

Just as Zhang Yu was pondering, he heard Ye Xingli say, “The price I gave her was 2 spirit coins a month. She can work 14 hours a day and also offers 12 hours of free overtime per week, which can be allocated flexibly throughout the week.”

“Only 2 spirit coins for this?” Zhang Yu was shocked, thinking, “What kind of super workhorse is this? Is this really an artifact-refining student?”

Ye Xingli said, “Zi Yunzhen is quite talented when it comes to being an assistant.”

Zhang Yu thought to himself, “This is more than just talented! This price, plus free overtime… it sounds too good to be true. How many artifact-refining students would agree to such low pay?”

Zhang Yu immediately said, “She’s the one!”

Although Zhang Yu’s current funds seemed substantial, in Kunxu, no one dared to say they weren’t short on money. Hiring an assistant naturally also required considering cost-effectiveness.

And Zi Yunzhen’s extreme cost-effectiveness made Zhang Yu feel that she was worth hiring even if her artifact-refining skills were poor.

Ye Xingli said, “Although she’s affordable, she also has requirements for the project: she wants to learn something from it.”

Zi Yunzhen looked at the messages sent in the small group chat, and a hint of envy appeared in her eyes.

It was Su Yunni, the class’s top student, posting about her recent project experiences.

Ever since joining Jin Jun’s laboratory, she had frequently posted such things.

Su Yunni: Senior Jin Jun’s artifact-refining skills are so profound; just a few words from him give us great insights!

Su Yunni: The project’s funding is truly abundant; we get hands-on opportunities every day!

Su Yunni: We’re almost done manufacturing the mana core, and soon I’ll have familiarized myself with all the components of the Heaven-Sun Divine Emperor prototype.

Zi Yunzhen also hoped to participate in military-grade artifact projects like Su Yunni.

Especially since Jin Jun was very generous with salaries, the spirit coins he offered could satisfy many senior assistants.

But unfortunately, all the resumes Zi Yunzhen submitted to Jin Jun were like stones sinking into the sea, receiving no response whatsoever.

Just then, a message from Zhang Yu appeared in her ocular bones.

Zhang Yu: Student Zi Yunzhen, are you interested in joining my project?

Hearing this, Zi Yunzhen remembered that Zhang Yu also claimed he would complete the refinement of a prototype machine this academic year.

Zi Yunzhen, of course, didn’t believe it for a second.

Although she received few spirit coins, it was to increase her learning opportunities. Whether she submitted her resume to Ye Xingli or Jin Jun, her hope was to learn from such top students.

“Zhang Yu hasn’t even learned a single military-grade artifact-refining technique, hasn’t won any awards, and he’s about to start refining the Heaven-Sun Divine Emperor… this project is probably doomed to fail.”