Seized by the System Novel

Chapter 67: To You, Earning Money is Better Than Cultivation
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The people went quiet immediately after that. Aside from some of the second generations, these people went through things to get to where they are, and their wealth was a result of their experiences. They knew how far people would fall if they weren’t regulated by the law.

“Maybe some of you would still think that the Truth Department and the Special Affairs Department are still here to maintain law and order, and that they would be able to deter anyone from doing that. Let me tell you the truth.”

“Aside from extremely widespread and serious threats, their actual day-to-day functions are just like the authorities in movies, where they would arrive the latest in a crime scene if we’re willing to push it a little. Do you actually think that they would protect each and every one of you 24/7? Even if they could actually find who was the perpetrator and give them a harsh sentence, you would already be long dead then…”

“In the future, there’re only three options for you when you face these enemies. You learn how to live kneeling, die standing, and and course, the last alternative is what we provide – you could walk through the doors of cultivation yourself, and attain knowledge. Then, you’ll at least understand why they are as strong as they are. You can then use the one thing you have the most – money – to solicit powerful individuals that have abilities that target the weaknesses of your enemies so that these people would protect you. Else, you could also use that money to strengthen yourself.”

The lazy voice of Instructor Xu echoed in the classroom. Every face in the room was filled with tension, their initial travel joy dissipating without a trace.

Fang Ning’s face was dark, doused in seriousness. Even though he maintained his shut-in routine after work and played throughout the night, he took his classes and work very seriously. Else, there was no way he could survive by himself in the first place. Besides, he did have insights on more dangerous issues. Even if he still couldn’t curb his indolence due to his long history of being a hermit, he did improve greatly from his initial state. He would now spend at least 8 hours on cultivation. Well, he did slack off sometimes…

Since he spent so much on this already and Sir System was willing to give up its control over him, of course Fang Ning would want to learn more about the basics of cultivation. He wouldn’t need to go and search online every day then.

Inspector Xu’s eyes swept across the room, taking in all of his student’s expressions. All of them finally started to take this seriously. After all, it was the richest people who cared the most about their lives, no? Unfortunately, their shift in attitude would not cause any significant changes in the end. In this intake of the Bourgeois Class, there were only 3 out of 30 people who had awakened their superpowers. These people that had managed to squeeze themselves into the upper class with their superpowers still had a certain potential in cultivation, but they were too old to be great at anything.

The others? They were better off earning money first, then handing their wealth in as tuition fees or even protection fees…

He continued to dive deep in his thoughts, as he spoke uncaringly, “Okay, let’s do a short test after this. Some of you may think of this as a mini game, but through the test, we’ll be able to see if you’re taking Option 1 or Option 2.”

“No matter what, time is money to you, and cultivation is boring and time consuming. If you’re not suitable for cultivation in the first place, you might as well continue working at your present job. The most you can do is to buy more miracle medicine to increase your lifespan, and to hire some powerful people to protect you.”

“You’ve been doing that before this, no? Who else would protect themselves carrying a gun these days? Still, you’ll need to learn how to have a great pair of eyes to spot actually useful powerful individuals and invite them.”

“This is done in two phases. The first phase will test your potential in cultivating, while the second will gauge the mentality you have in cultivation. If you fail any of the tests, you could rest assuringly. If the System was learning how to learn cultivation without any proper and stimulating training, it would function no more than your way of making more money.

Suddenly, he clapped, successfully attracting everyone’s attention. He then stood alone on the wide lecture stage, and a few ripples were visible in the air. A metal box 2 or 3 meters high appeared out of thin air and landed on the stage, and looked as if they’ve always been there.

His audience was again taken by surprise. They tried to study in detail when they found out that there was another door from within the box that was pointed at them. On the box was a large digital screen, with green digits displayed on it.

Instructor Xu approached the box and tapped the digital screen.

“There are three numbers here. The first digit signifies the current vitality concentration, the second the body’s Vitality Sensitivity, and the third the person’s Passive Vitality Respiration Speed. The sum of the last two digit decides your cultivation potential. Hm, this might be too tactless for me to say this, but the safest way of cultivation that you could possibly reach is the vitality cultivation method.”

“Other methods like the superpower cultivation wouldn’t work on you as most of you don’t even have superpowers. Additionally, superpowers are very peculiar, and most of the time only the superpowered individuals know how to cultivate their powers. We can’t help them in that department.”

“There’s another slightly more ridiculous method – spiritual sense cultivation. Most of its scriptures are highly dangerous, and each of it has a sky-high requirement to learn. Don’t toy around with it without proper guidance, as you would probably go insane in the process. We usually wouldn’t teach that either; all of you come from a background so wealthy that we cannot afford to lose any of you. If you used the vitality cultivation method, we would still be able to undo the damage most of the time if you ever mess up. Besides, the vitality cultivation method does help you gradually strengthen your spiritual sense as it does with your body. It’s a relatively safer choice.”

After he finally finished explaining, Instructor Xu looked at his audience. He randomly picked one from the crowd and called, “Hey, you. Your name is Liu Shiliang, right? You’re the most outstanding one here, what with your fat and wide physique. Come, be the demonstrator for the rest of the class, you’ll probably leave them a lasting impression as well. Come up here.”

Fang Ning realized that the instructor was talking to Fatso Liu, Old Man Zhao’s good friend, who was sitting beside him.

Fatso Liu being called out by the instructor probably had nothing to do with his suitability as a demonstrator. He was probably remembered by the instructor the moment the man stepped through the door as Fatso Liu was the loudest among the group. Their names and appearances were already logged in the database when they first signed up as members, and it probably wasn’t too hard for this instructor to identify a person by their behavior and looks.

Liu Shiliang was dumbfounded. However, his mind helpfully supplied him with the display of the instructor’s ability just now. Additionally, the instructor’s request was entirely reasonable, and he did mention that he wouldn’t harm them in any way. As a person well versed in the business circuits, he shouldn’t be afraid of the situation, no?

Being the first came with its perks as well. More people would know him now, and there was a chance that he might gain a few clients after this! Fatso Liu hopped on stage delightfully as he thought this, entirely willing to be the demonstrator.

Instructor Xu mindlessly pulled open the door to the box and pointed inwards after he saw Fatso Liu stepping on stage. “Go on then.”

Fatso Liu with his generous tummy swung towards the door, but he stopped short. His face looked awkward, and the people behind him started to holler at the sight. The tension within the classroom dissipated slightly with the laughter.

Everyone could see how it was impossible for the man to walk past the door to the box. Hell, he would be lucky if he could get himself halfway in! It didn’t matter if he walked sideways; his stomach was so round that it developed holistically in all directions.

“Haha! Well, I definitely did not expect this to happen. I should’ve asked the support team to design a bigger door! What can we do?” Then, Instructor Xu reached out with his hands to grab at the frame of the steel door. With some force, he pulled at both sides of the door, and the steel frame crumpled in his grip, bending into arches. Thankfully, the digital screen was hung on the door; else it would’ve been broken after that ordeal.

Everyone inhaled sharply in surprise. Instructor Xu waved it off and said with his arms spread, “You can go in now, Student Liu.”

Fatso Liu looked at the door. With a height of 160cm, there was no need for him to bend down as he walked past the door. Still, the shock in his mind was imminent; Instructor Xu’s strength that could bend a steel box was already impressive in itself. The precision involved in controlling his strength was honestly chilling.

With a pounding heart, Fatso Liu walked into the box. After that, Instructor Xu once again reached to grab at the bent frame, and he simply pulled it close. The frame returned to its original form, as if it was never bent in the first place.

Then, the door swung shut. Instructor Xu went to fiddle with the electric screen for a moment before he turned to address the crowd, “Now, I’ll set the vitality concentration at level B. It’s also the highest concentration money can buy, and you can only get it any higher if you go outside of China, as you all would know. Right, we’ll check with Fatso, no, Mr Liu’s pointers after 2 minutes. We will be looking at two of his pointers, namely his Vitality Sensitivity and Passive Vitality Respiration Speed.”

The crowd’s attention was focused on the box. Their eyes stared unmoving, and since it was a small class of 30, the front seats were enough to fit everyone. Initially, some of the people still chose to sit at the back, but now most of them had moved in front to get a clearer view. After Fatso Liu stepped inside the box and shut the door, the green digits on the digital screen hadn’t stopped flashing.

At this moment, Instructor Xu spoke in a relaxed manner, “These two pointers range from F to S. If both of them end up above E, then you still have hope in cultivation, and you can move on to the second phase of the test. If one of them goes below E, then it’s almost impossible now. Just as what I’ve said earlier, you might as well spend your efforts earning more money than wasting years and years on cultivation.”

The second two minutes was up, Instructor Xu immediately checked the results. He started clapping, and his voice had the first tinge of surprise, “Congratulations! Congratulations to Mr Liu, there’s no need for him to go through the difficulties of cultivation, and he can maintain the body size that he is so proud of. See, both of his pointers didn’t even hit an F.”

The crowd had spotted this long ago. The digital screen displayed: Vitality Sensitivity: Below Grade F; Passive Vitality Respiration Speed: Below Grade F.”

Initially, some of them were confused as to why the instructor sounded so surprised. However, it only took them another few seconds to catch up and understand that it was just a new way for the instructor to express his disdain.

Why would he say so, you ask? Well, this result meant that it was now confirmed that one of them can only listen in after spending such a huge amount of money. There’s no need for them to worry if Fatso Liu would cause some trouble during cultivation, and thus they wouldn’t need to even think about saving him!

The instructor then went to bend the frame with his hands again, as he called Mr Liu with never-before-heard enthusiasm. Any trace of his laziness was now gone. Just as Fatso Liu stepped out of the box, he heard a voice.

“Congratulations, Mr Liu! You’re the first one who has qualified to listen in at our Bourgeois Class as a VIP!”