Chapter 444: The Winner Has Already Won, The Loser Is Not Defeated

As the power of his Twenty Instantaneous Strikes of the Nine Heavens Cloud Void was depleted, Ping Han roared, emerging from the ground, and clashed with Zhang Yu, swinging countless scythe-like shadows.

Explosions boomed, like thousands of thunderclaps, reverberating across the battlefield.

The saber aura in Ping Han's hand transformed into a sky full of emerald light, shimmering like a brilliant comet.

Zhang Yu's overwhelming palm prints, imbued with strong golden and white energies, like tearing-heaven-and-earth tornadoes, continuously engulfed Ping Han.

Two forces, one green and one golden, violently collided on the battlefield, as if hundreds of thousands of explosions erupted every single moment!

Ping Han felt that with every saber strike he unleashed, the power of his saber aura was twisted and displaced, ultimately transforming into palm forces that assailed him!

At the same time, they also contained Zhang Yu's own power: the strength of the Gold-Threaded Jade Wall, Earth Demon Bottle, and Earth-Suppressing Seal, all continuously transformed by Zhang Yu using the Nine Heavens Cloud Curtain Empty Force, pushing them into overwhelming palm prints that pounded towards Ping Han!

In this fierce struggle, Ping Han actually felt himself being utterly suppressed!

During the intense fight, Ping Han also tried to increase the special effects again, unleashing the Human Dao Torrent, but it no longer affected Zhang Yu!

Ping Han thought to himself, "Has he closed his Eye Bones?"

Zhang Yu had indeed closed his Eye Bones. After completing the appraisal using the Treasure Appraisal Art, and analyzing and memorizing Ping Han's weaknesses, he temporarily shut them off!

At this moment, he was no longer using any of the power of his Dharma Bones. He relied entirely on his physical body, magical energy, and aura to drive his attacks!

Every ounce of his strength, every flicker of his thought, was completely squeezed out at this moment, as he aimed to defeat Ping Han with all his might!

Palm strike, palm strike, another palm strike.

Ping Han felt as if he was being swallowed by a sky full of palm shadows!

Zhang Yu, before him, was like an overwhelming series of tsunamis; no matter how much saber aura he unleashed, it would only be returned to him with double the force!

Another palm strike brutally landed on Ping Han's back, but Ping Han remained upright, calmly continuing the fight!

Ping Han thought to himself, "Fighting with such intensity, how long can you sustain it?"

"Do you really think your martial arts can break through this armor of mine?"

"How can hard-trained martial arts compare to expensive armor?"

But then, Zhang Yu's offensive showed no signs of stopping, quickly causing a series of changes in Ping Han's mind, from surprise gradually to hesitation!

Just when Zhang Yu's offensive finally weakened, and Ping Han thought his opponent was about to collapse, a few seconds later, his opponent's attack surged back to its peak state!

Thus, Ping Han's hesitation gradually turned into incomprehension, and then incredulity!

Finally, as Ping Han felt another palm strike hit his leg, a crisp *crack* surprisingly echoed from his armor!

"What?"

The next moment, more and more crisp cracking sounds came from the armor, as aura surged in violently, beginning to pound Ping Han's body!

Amidst the pounding impacts, plumes of blood mist gradually burst forth from Ping Han's body!

He roared, wanting to retreat, but saw a bloody, mangled figure directly crash into him!

"Ping Han."

Zhang Yu, covered in crimson aura, grabbed Ping Han's arm!

Zhang Yu: "If the money you used for crypto trading was truly yours, why wouldn't you dare to fight with all your might?"

"What nonsense are you talking about?!" Ping Han roared, and with his other hand, he conjured a saber aura, slashing towards Zhang Yu!

Within inches, the two engaged in an ultra-close-range battle!

Ping Han's saber aura repeatedly caused crimson aura to erupt from Zhang Yu's body, while Zhang Yu's palm force repeatedly struck through the cracked seams of the armor, powerfully impacting Ping Han's body!

But the next moment, Ping Han felt a malfunction in his internal Dharma Bones; the hand that had just conjured the saber aura had gone limp!

"What?!"

Under Ping Han's shocked gaze, the blood-soaked Zhang Yu grabbed his head!

"Ping Han, the financial pressure from crypto trading makes you simply unable to, or unwilling to, fight all out! Because that money isn't truly yours!"

Zhang Yu's other hand, imbued with crimson aura, unleashed a flurry of consecutive strikes on Ping Han's limbs, instantly paralyzing the Dharma Bones in his hands and legs one by one!

Zhang Yu said calmly, "Just a tiny bit of risk can instantly wipe out your position! You simply don't dare to go all out, solely because you're afraid the crypto market might encounter risk, afraid your leverage might face volatility, afraid you won't have money to close your positions! So even fighting to the last moment, you still hold back, unwilling to risk everything!"

Zhang Yu, holding Ping Han's head, violently flung him forward!

Ping Han's body stretched into a black line; immediately, Zhang Yu caught up, and with another punch, slammed his opponent towards the ground!

"Ping Han, fight back."

"You still have strength left, and money, right? Why won't you fight back?"

"Are you afraid of running out of your balance and being unable to cope with the volatility of Qiongjiang Coin?"

Ping Han gritted his teeth, staring intently at Zhang Yu, who was punching him flying, appearing to want to retaliate, but suppressing his impulse again and again!

With a loud *bang*, Zhang Yu violently shattered Ping Han's chest armor, and, holding his opponent's head, said coldly, "Surrender!"

"That's what you're thinking right now, isn't it? Because if you keep fighting, you still can't beat me! And it will affect your crypto trading!"

Ping Han stared intently at Zhang Yu, as if his thoughts had been laid bare, a hint of shame and anger appeared on his face!

At the moment Ping Han was completely suppressed by Zhang Yu, countless spectators groaned in despair, and the sky above the arena was instantly filled with text projections of various colors!

"No, Zhang Yu, quickly let Ping Han go."

"What if you affect the coin price like this?"

"Please, Zhang Yu, stop now!"

"Useless Ping Han."

Zhang Yu, who had reactivated his Eye Bones, looked up at the sky, and roared, "Stop all this damn crypto trading! Do you really think lying down and making money is something for *you*?"

"Look at him." Zhang Yu shook Ping Han in his hand, and shouted, "After trading, will he still be my opponent?"

In an instant, the text in the sky seemed to fall silent!

But the next moment, a burst of loud laughter was heard!

Ping Han pointed to the coin price displayed on his chest and said, "It went up again!"

"It's 16.91."

"Everyone, it went up again."

Zhang Yu violently punched Ping Han's head again, and with a loud *thump*, countless plumes of blood mist exploded from inside the helmet!

But the next moment, Ping Han immediately chose to surrender!

"Zhang Yu, victory in this battle is yours."

"You're right, in my eyes, you're not as important as crypto trading!"

Ping Han took off his armor and helmet, looked up at the sky, pointed one finger to the sky and the other at the coin price on his chest, and shouted, "Everyone, look! The coin price has gone up again. Don't worry idly about the outcome of a small civil engineering competition. How could it possibly affect the rise and fall of Qiongjiang Coin? This is the big picture of the Soul Transformation stage; the more everyone buys now, the faster it rises, and the more you earn."

Zhang Yu looked at Ping Han, whose nasal bone was deformed, face covered in blood, and nose and eyes swollen. He saw his opponent, covered in injuries, yet speaking to the entire arena with an excited expression, as if he were the true victor!

At the same time, the text projections in the sky changed again, gradually unifying, transforming into vast swathes of... Buy, buy, buy. Rise. Rise. Rise.

Watching the continuously appearing flood of text, Zhang Yu seemed able to see, through the spiritual network, countless distorted, fanatical faces.

Ping Han, standing nearby, burst into laughter, saying, "Everyone buy Qiongjiang Coin together, let's sprint fiercely on the path to immortality together."

Charge, charge. Buy, rise, buy, charge.

Watching this scene, a hint of helplessness suddenly rose in Zhang Yu's heart: "These guys..."

Fu Ji said, "Don't overthink it. Isn't the meaning of the poor's existence to be harvested by the rich? Ping Han was right about one thing: the poor aren't even really people; at most, they're just ghosts! This Qiongjiang Coin is their tribulation. Only those who overcome this tribulation, these 'ghosts,' will have a chance to become human! Who knows how many people on even this single layer of opportunity are desperately trying to climb up and seize it!"

Zhang Yu said to Fu Ji in his mind, "I just feel that this task Director Gao gave me, I won't be able to complete it!"

Fu Ji said, "Director Gao couldn't possibly rely entirely on you alone! Besides, this is a clash of Soul Transformation stage cultivators; you're just caught in the crossfire!"

Zhang Yu's heart stirred upon hearing this: "A clash of Soul Transformation stage cultivators? Do you mean... Qiongjiang Coin has already affected the interests of other Soul Transformation cultivators, and some will act against Lord Qiongjiang?"

Fu Ji said, "That's inevitable. Whether it's universities or colleges, which one isn't under the influence of Soul Transformation cultivators? Being in this situation, merely holding your ground is fraught with immense difficulty, and trying to go against the current is even harder!"

Just as Fu Ji was speaking, Zhang Yu's gaze flickered slightly as he saw messages appearing before him.

Che Yufei: Senior, should we really sell?

Shi Huaiyu: Junior, you've dumped everything?

Su Yanyang: Bro, there really is a risk.

Fu Ji chuckled, "See, it's still having an effect. After all, some people will be influenced by what you did today!"

At the same time, the moment Ping Han surrendered, Ji Yuanxu and the other four teammates all chose to surrender as well!

They quickly joined Ping Han, and then left the arena. There was little sign of dejection from losing the competition on their faces; instead, they were all cheerfully discussing the increase in the coin price!

On the other hand, as Zhang Yu led his teammates away from the arena, he could sense that, except for Xiao Qingxuan, almost everyone's face was filled with entanglement, hesitation, and worry, with little sign of excitement from winning the competition!

Zhang Yu couldn't help but say to them, "If you've bought Qiongjiang Coin, quickly sell it! Selling now, you've already made a profit, right?"

Che Yufei nodded, saying, "Mm, I'll sell it now!"

Zhang Yu looked at Shi Huaiyu, who showed hesitation, and said, "Senior, sell it!"

Shi Huaiyu replied with difficulty, "But... it's still rising! How about... waiting a few more days!"

Zhang Yu shook his head and sighed, but had no intention of persuading her further!

Just then, Xiao Qingxuan, standing nearby, said, "Huaiyu, sell it. Do you want to lose terribly again like before? Do you want to go back to using your Ghost Kidney?"

Looking at Xiao Qingxuan's serious expression, Shi Huaiyu sighed, "Alright, alright, I'll sell it!"

At the same time, above the arena!

Jiu Tianliu from the Finance Department chuckled, saying, "Ah, it truly is what the people desire! Although Zhang Yu's strength is greater than Ping Han's, he cannot suppress what the people desire, nor can he suppress the students' determination to get rich!"

Yan Qianji, standing by, let out a snort of laughter, and said, "The will of the people? All I see is your Finance Department setting the pace, creating public opinion, and inciting the people's will!"

Jiu Tianliu said, "Brother Qianji, your misunderstanding of our Finance Department runs too deep! If you're willing, why not come and sit with me in our department? I'll explain it to you slowly! And while we're at it, I can help you find some funding. Your Artifact Forging Department's recent experimental budget isn't enough, is it?"

Yan Qianji tilted his head, and said, "Jiu Tianliu, your Finance Department will sooner or later face another round of liquidation! When you sell off your family assets, remember to save a few pieces of your flesh body and Dharma Bones for me; I'll buy them at a high price!"

Jiu Tianliu said with a smile, "The economy is bad, and many factories in the Artifact Forging Department are losing money, aren't they? When you go bankrupt, remember to message me; I'll certainly buy them at a fair price!"

Their gazes clashed in the spiritual realm; the next moment, both their figures vanished simultaneously!

In the time that followed, Zhang Yu no longer concerned himself with Qiongjiang Coin matters. He studied and cultivated daily, then participated in competitions on time, calmly spending his days at the university!