Your Talent is Mine Chapter 3: Medium Cultivation Talent Acquired!

The Fifth Academy, Training Ground No. 3.

"Talents are essential to turn into a martial artist. The majority here won't manage to reach that level, yet even achieving martial disciple status opens up far brighter futures compared to regular folks. Job opportunities surge ahead too, and mastering body refining techniques stands as the key step to becoming a martial disciple."

A middle-aged instructor delivered his lecture to the assembled students.

Those students paid rapt attention from below. As commoners all, the academy served as their sole avenue for picking up body refining techniques. Slacking off in listening might lead to errors during practice, stalled strength gains, or outright bodily harm.

Ye Tian sat in their midst. He'd joined the Fifth Academy already and spent the past ten days immersed in its lessons.

Over those ten days, the middle-aged teacher instructed on body refining techniques daily, showcasing the eighteen moves personally each time.

Maybe because he'd crossed through time, Ye Tian possessed a soul tougher than the average person's, paired with sharp recall. Thus, in merely ten days, he'd nailed all eighteen moves of the body refining techniques, guaranteeing no slip-ups.

For the rest of the students, fully comprehending the body refining techniques would demand at least a month or two.

Naturally, hiring private tutors changed the equation, though the fees for such lessons lay beyond what typical families could bear.

"Only after fully grasping body refining techniques can you start cultivating them properly. Here's the initial move..."

The middle-aged teacher showed off each motion of the body refining techniques in sequence.

After an hour, the session wrapped up, with students departing gradually.

"Ye Tian, how are you progressing? I've got thirteen moves down, and I'm about to dive into practicing body refining techniques!" A plump lad halted Ye Tian, sharing his thrill.

The plump boy went by Zhang Bao, a fellow student Ye Tian had befriended over his ten days at the academy. Their bond was solid.

"I've managed just eight moves!"

Ye Tian replied on purpose.

Telling the truth about conquering all eighteen moves risked drawing unwanted attention. Fresh in this new time, staying under the radar seemed wiser.

"Hang in there; I'm sure you'll pull it off. Someday, we'll both rise as mighty martial artists!"

Zhang Bao urged him on.

Still, Ye Tian caught a flicker of hopelessness, bordering on utter defeat, buried in Zhang Bao's gaze.

"Maybe so!"

Ye Tian grinned.

Via his talent-copying skill, he'd scanned Zhang Bao's aptitudes, finding them superior to his original ones yet merely low-tier. Such gifts offered a shot at becoming a martial artist, though the effort and resources needed remained unclear. Coming from a simple household, Zhang Bao couldn't dedicate himself undisturbed forever.

Zhang Bao's likely fate involved hitting martial disciple rank, securing steady work, aging steadily, or falling to some upcoming beast tide.

"Zhang Bao, who holds the top talent in our academy?"

Ye Tian inquired softly.

Having joined just ten days prior, while Zhang Bao had over a month under his belt, and given Zhang Bao's sociable nature and wide circle, he undoubtedly held more insights.

"The top talent?" Unsure why Ye Tian probed, Zhang Bao answered anyway, "Talent stays hidden usually; folks don't broadcast it, though cultivation advances reveal hints. The Fifth Academy isn't Linhai Base's elite school. Real prodigies head to the First Academy, yet ours boasts a standout."

"Who is it?"

Ye Tian pressed, intrigued.

"Chen Dong!" Zhang Bao whispered with intrigue, "Chen Dong hails from regular roots too, parents just everyday people. He arrived at our Fifth Academy a month back, hit martial disciple in half a month, then got accepted by the dean himself. These days, Chen Dong trains apart from us, under the dean's personal guidance."

Whoosh!

A burst of eager fire ignited in Ye Tian's eyes.

He felt sure Chen Dong's gift wasn't poor at all; else, the Fifth Academy's dean wouldn't claim him.

Remember, that dean ranked as a peak-realm elite martial artist, power dwarfing standard peak warriors, with basic martial artists seeming mere insects to him.

Within the coastal base, the Fifth Academy's dean ranked among the elite. Run-of-the-mill aptitudes wouldn't catch his eye, so anyone he favored needed medium-level talent minimum.

For medium-level talent guaranteed elite martial artist status, plus a real chance at great martial artist.

"How to approach Chen Dong?"

Ye Tian mulled over it.

Right then, uproar erupted.

"Chen Dong's arrived!"

"Wow, Chen Dong, personally mentored by the Dean, shows up in our Training Ground Number Three!"

"Didn't the dean handle his lessons privately? What brings him here?"

Student after student fixed gazes on Chen Dong, brimming with admiration or maybe resentment, since talent ruled this age, and Chen Dong stood as an unreachable peak for them.

In that instant, Ye Tian spotted Chen Dong too and edged closer gradually.

Once out of notice, he drew to within three meters of Chen Dong, triggering his talent duplication without delay.

Human: Chen Dong

Cultivation Talent: Medium

"Truly medium talent!"

Ye Tian quelled the thrill surging inside, eyes gleaming as he plotted in silence.

"Chen Dong, rumors say the dean took you on. What's your current rank?" One student queried, gazing admiringly at Chen Dong.

"I've hit 200 catties of power already!"

Chen Dong declared with swagger.

Sssss!

Sharp intakes of breath echoed everywhere!

To qualify as a martial disciple, 100 catties sufficed, and Chen Dong had achieved it recently. Now boasting 200 catties, at this rate, wouldn't he soon ascend to full martial artist?

Braggart.

Ye Tian grasped Chen Dong's purpose now; clearly, fresh cultivation breakthroughs had him itching to flaunt them.

Like the mindset of a freshly wealthy upstart!

"Chen Dong, could you sign for me?"

"Chen Dong, an autograph, please?"

Students lined up, pulling out paper and pens, eager for Chen Dong's signature. Snagging a mark from a budding martial artist meant prestige. Should Chen Dong mirror the dean as an elite someday, that scribble could fetch months of commoner wages.

"Sure, sure, I'll autograph them!"

Chen Dong beamed with delight, undaunted, inking signatures for each admirer.

Ye Tian pushed forward as well, not for a signature, but to copy the talent.

"Contact made!"

In the instant his hand brushed Chen Dong's left, Ye Tian copied the cultivation talent before yanking back swiftly.

No one noticed the exchange, since brushing against Chen Dong felt entirely commonplace here.

"Medium cultivation talent duplication successful; do you want to integrate?"