Chapter 550: The Five Taxes of Heaven and Man

“Once she fully becomes a Righteous God, Zhang Pianpian’s memories—those grains of sand in an ocean—will seem to her like fleeting fragments from a dream. Too small, too trivial to matter.”

“No matter to you or to Zhang Pianpian, by that time... she’ll only be a Righteous God who happens to possess Zhang Pianpian’s memories.”

“The real Zhang Pianpian is already dead.”

“Or rather... your sister as you knew her has long since died. The person she is now is no longer the sister you grew up with.”

Zhang Yu was slightly startled upon hearing that, but said nothing.

He understood. For him—a soul from Earth—the sister he knew was the one who went to high school with him, the Zhang Pianpian who exists now. What happened to the past Zhang Pianpian no longer mattered to him.

As for the Zhang Pianpian of the future... that was beyond his reach for now.

Only by becoming wealthier and stronger could he ever have the right to intervene.

Seeing Zhang Yu’s calm composure, Fu Ji nodded to herself. This kid had indeed matured.

After hearing Fu Ji’s explanation, another question arose in Zhang Yu’s heart. “Reincarnation... Gods can reincarnate and inherit their memories, authority, and resources—but what about everyone else?”

He recalled what the Evil Gods had told him. “When mortals reincarnate, they can’t inherit their cultivation, right? That’s why they need the help of the Divine Lord Nectar—to secretly transfer cultivation for those within the sect who are about to reincarnate?”

Fu Ji chuckled. “Reincarnation varies greatly, of course.”

“High-ranking Righteous Gods can inherit their power, memories, and resources after reincarnation because the Immortals need them to.”

“These Righteous Gods are tools used by the Heavenly Court and the Ten Major Sects to govern Kunxu. Each reincarnation is a process of self-renewal, a way to adapt to the current age of Kunxu.”

“Just like how a magic artifact undergoes upgrades, reincarnation for these Righteous Gods is a method of performance optimization—so that they can better serve the Immortals’ governance.”

“As for humans…”

Fu Ji paused for a moment before continuing slowly. “I’ve never witnessed it directly, but according to an Evil God King I once spoke with, human reincarnation today is an extremely complex system—a product of countless iterations and modifications made by Immortals while reshaping Kunxu and nature itself.”

“In that system, wealth plays an equally crucial role. The richer you are, the better your next life will be.”

Zhang Yu drew in a deep breath. “The richer, the better the reincarnation... Then doesn’t that mean the poor are doomed to remain poor, generation after generation?”

Fu Ji smirked. “Otherwise, why do you think neither the Heavenly Court nor the Ten Major Sects ever publicize the true nature of reincarnation?”

“In fact, all real information about reincarnation has always been classified. What I’m telling you today—if you dared to repeat it outside, a Righteous God would come knocking on your door.”

Zhang Yu then asked, “What about the Feathering Sect?”

Fu Ji let out a dry laugh. “The Feathering Sect preaches a false reincarnation.”

“Kunxu suppresses knowledge of the real cycle because the truth would destroy all hope.”

“The Demon Sect is allowed to preach a fake cycle only because even a false hope is still hope. As long as it serves certain interests, it won’t be stamped out completely.”

“In reality, even disciples of the sects need to have their cultivation secretly transferred before reincarnating.”

Zhang Yu frowned. “Even sect disciples? Don’t they have enough wealth for reincarnation?”

Fu Ji shook her head. “How much is enough? And even if they have enough, reincarnation is taxed.”

“The higher your cultivation, the heavier the tax. The so-called ‘Five Taxes of Heaven and Man’—each one corresponds to a heavenly layer.”

“That’s why they calculate so carefully.”

“They must decide what portion of their wealth to officially invest in reincarnation, and what portion to secretly stash away to evade the Five Taxes.”

“The right ratio, the risk level—these are deep sciences in themselves.”

“If it weren’t so harshly forbidden by the Heavenly Court, your universities would probably offer reincarnation economics as a major.”

Zhang Yu mused, “For Divine Lord Nectar to be involved in something like this... no wonder those Evil Gods are after her. There must be enormous stakes.”

Fu Ji’s expression grew solemn. “Enormous indeed. She was already Divine Lord Nectar long before Pleasure and Harmony University was founded.”

“Who knows how many sect disciples she helped smuggle their cultivation through reincarnation? How many dodged the Five Taxes of Heaven and Man because of her? The numbers must be staggering.”

“And as for the protection she has within the sects... who knows how deep that goes.”

The thought made Fu Ji uneasy. “Those Evil Gods... They wouldn’t dare such a dangerous move unless someone powerful was backing them.”

Zhang Yu asked, “Do you think they revealed this information to us because they want to drag us into it?”

Fu Ji replied, “Most likely. They probably think we have good access to intelligence within University City and want to rope us into their plan.”

“In any case, we must keep our distance. Continue probing, but don’t get involved in their actions.”

“This water runs too deep.”

…

While Fu Ji and Zhang Yu conversed mentally, Ziyun Zhen was busy recording the prototype machine before her.

It was a task Zhang Yu had assigned her—and one she genuinely enjoyed.

After all, while documenting the process, she could also gain valuable knowledge about the prototype machine. If she ever launched a similar project, these materials would be invaluable references.

Watching the humanoid puppet before her—radiant, its surface flickering with light—Ziyun Zhen couldn’t help but feel a thrill of excitement.

“So fast... The skeleton, neural system, spirit-realm module, mana core, transformation armor... all done in just over a month. Once we refine it further, we can raise the prototype’s level.”

“At Level 11, it’ll be eligible for official review.”

“At Level 15, we’ll have a guaranteed pass.”

Her eyes gleamed. “We might actually have a chance to beat Jin Jun’s team.”

Just then, Zhang Yu and Fu Ji concluded their mental conversation.

Fu Ji glanced at Ziyun Zhen. “You’re still paying her? Honestly, at this point, you could probably charge her tuition and she’d pay you just to keep working.”

Zhang Yu replied inwardly, “Forget it. The prototype machine is too important. I can’t risk a mistake just to save a bit of money—it could ruin my shot at next year’s Top Ten League.”

Then he turned to Ziyun Zhen and said, “That’s enough for today. Go back and prepare. Tomorrow we’ll start refining the prototype—make sure you arrive early and set up the lab.”

Ziyun Zhen froze. “We’re stopping now? How can we stop at such a critical moment?”

“Boss! We’re neck-deep in competition with Jin Jun’s team! Let’s keep going.”

Zhang Yu said casually, “I’ve got other projects and experiments to handle today. No time to stay.”

At the same time, he circled the prototype, recording a full video before posting it on his feed.

Since the beginning of the project, Zhang Yu had made a habit of documenting every step of the process—each stage of the prototype’s creation—without ever missing one.

Previously, his posts only showed small fragments, making it hard for outsiders to gauge progress.

But today’s footage revealed a fully assembled prototype—so complete that even the untrained could see it had reached a major milestone. Naturally, discussion exploded online.

…

Inside Jin Jun’s laboratory.

Su Yunni was performing repetitive groundwork when a new feed appeared on her EyeNet display.

It was the clip from Ziyun Zhen’s account showing the prototype machine.

Her hand froze. “They finished it?”

“That’s impossible.”

Their team had been working around the clock for months, and they were only just reaching the assembly phase.

“Zhang Yu only started his project a little over a month ago... In just one month—”

Su Yunni’s stomach tightened. She sent a message to Ziyun Zhen.

Su Yunni: Yunzhen, is that video real?

Su Yunni: Was that really Zhang Yu’s Heaven-Sun Radiance Divine Prototype?

Ziyun Zhen, of course, had no reason to deny it—this was her crucial work experience, her claim to fame in the Artifact Refinement Department.

Ziyun Zhen: As real as it gets.

Ziyun Zhen: I built it alongside Zhang Yu, step by step.

Ziyun Zhen: We just finished debugging today. All performance metrics meet Level 1 prototype standards.

Ziyun Zhen: Two modules of the Heaven-Sun Radiance’s loadout functions are complete, fully meeting the Level 1 criteria.

Reading that, Su Yunni’s heart sank.

All their manpower, their senior students, their funding—were they really going to lose to just two people? To a transfer student from the Civil Engineering Department?

The thought sent a chill through her body.

Without delay, she quietly reported it to Jin Jun—not publicly, but through a private message.

Su Yunni: Zhang Yu’s team has completed their Level 1 prototype.

At first, Jin Jun thought it was a joke.

But when he opened the attachments—videos, data, and photos—his face darkened to stone.