TL: Etude
The students from the five major academies had all arrived, converging at the entrance of the valley, waiting for the trial to begin.
Ye Tian was walking around, seemingly wandering, but was actually secretly using his duplication talent to observe other people's talents. His main target was the students of the first academy.
"Basic cultivation talent!"
"Basic cultivation talent!"
"Basic cultivation talent!"
Ye Tian had walked around and found that most students in the first academy had basic talents.
The first academy didn't have many students, only about thirty or so.
"Only five left!"
Ye Tian looked at those five and slowly walked over.
When Ye Tian got within three meters of them, he applied his talent to look at them one by one.
"Good fellows, they all have intermediate cultivation talents!"
Ye Tian was surprised.
Clearly, these five were the seed students of the first academy, perhaps having reached the peak of Martial Disciple, only one step away from being a Martial Warrior.
"Copying an intermediate cultivation talent doesn't help my current strength much; it would at most make my intermediate talents a little more superior. But this won't help me in the trial. If I could copy a talent that can aid in combat, that would be very useful." Ye Tian thought to himself.
Unfortunately, after walking around, he only found a few weak or substandard attribute talents, all in an unawakened state, so they couldn't be copied.
Suddenly,
A young man carrying a sword walked up to the five students of the first academy who had intermediate cultivation talents.
"Mo Shaobei, I challenge you!"
The young man, holding a sword, pointed it at Mo Shaobei.
"This young man..."
Ye Tian looked at this young man with some surprise.
This young man was a student of the second academy, daring to challenge the first academy's student with an intermediate cultivation talent; he had great courage!
"I wonder what his talent is?"
Ye Tian was somewhat curious.
He hadn't really examined the students of the second academy, thinking it unnecessary, but this young man dared to challenge the talented students with intermediate cultivation talent, so he must have some talent.
So, Ye Tian walked over.
The young man, paying no attention to Ye Tian's actions, just stared at Mo Shaobei.
"Li Yunxing, they say you're the top swordsmanship genius of the second academy, but no matter how strong your swordsmanship is, it can't make up for the gap in our strength. I now possess the strength of 990 jin, while you only have 200 jin. You lost last time, do you want to lose again?" Mo Shaobei mocked.
"Hmph, I'm now at 300 jin of strength!" Li Yunxing quickly replied.
"Heh heh, is there a difference between 200 jin and 300 jin in the face of 990 jin of strength?" Mo Shaobei scorned.
The other four students with intermediate cultivation talents looked at Li Yunxing with disdain. They knew his situation well; even if he practiced for a lifetime, he would at most be an early-stage Martial Warrior, having no qualifications to compare with them. How could such waste be considered by them?
"You..."
Li Yunxing was somewhat unconvinced, ready to take action.
"No fighting here, or you'll lose the qualification for the trial!"
The words came from a teacher's mouth.
Li Yunxing looked at the teacher with trepidation, put away his sword, and dared not provoke any further.
This trial was an opportunity for him, and he didn't want to lose it out of impulse, so he turned and left.
"My friend, I admire your swordsmanship very much. Can we be friends?"
Ye Tian walked over with a sincere face, extending his right hand in friendship.
"You are..."
Li Yunxing was somewhat stunned but still subconsciously shook hands with Ye Tian.
"My name is Ye Tian!"
Ye Tian said.
He then chattered on and on, and after saying a bunch, he turned and walked away, leaving behind a bewildered Li Yunxing.
As Ye Tian walked further away, the scene he had just witnessed appeared in his mind.
Human: Li Yunxing
Cultivation Talent: Low
Swordsmanship Talent: Intermediate
The swordsmanship talent, like the cultivation talent, was innate, so it could be copied.
So, Ye Tian copied Li Yunxing's swordsmanship talent. If he didn't copy it, and if Li Yunxing died in this trial, he would lose the chance to copy it.
Therefore, he didn't hesitate and copied the intermediate swordsmanship talent.
Walking behind a rock, and seeing no one paying attention to that spot, Ye Tian immediately began to integrate the intermediate swordsmanship talent.
Boom!
Intense pain came, and his body was being reshaped by a force.
Ten minutes later, the pain disappeared.
With a thought, Ye Tian checked his talents.
Human: Ye Tian
Cultivation Talent: Intermediate
Speed Talent: Basic
Swordsmanship Talent: Intermediate
"Swordsmanship!"
Ye Tian picked up his sword, and immediately it felt different.
In the past, the sword in his hand seemed dead, but now it felt like the sword had come to life.
With a gentle swing, an inexplicable realization surged in his mind, and he seemed to know how to strike with the sword to maximize its killing power.
"This is the terrifying power of intermediate swordsmanship talent. Even without my speed talent, with the amplification of intermediate swordsmanship talent, I can fight with a Martial Disciple with four to five hundred jin of force. It's a pity that I don't have time to learn sword arts!"
Ye Tian thought that if he learned sword arts, he could definitely increase his combat power substantially.
However, he was quite satisfied with the intermediate swordsmanship talent, feeling that this copy was very worthwhile.
Wiping his sweat, Ye Tian returned to the crowd.
Before long, the trial began.
Everyone took this trial very seriously, including Ye Tian.
The first prize was three portions of intermediate beast blood plus one hundred thousand dollars, the second prize was one portion of intermediate beast blood and one hundred thousand dollars, and the third prize was three portions of low-level beast blood plus fifty thousand dollars.
The reward for the fourth to tenth place was one portion of low-level beast blood.
The ranking was based on points, and every type of ferocious beast's designated part could be cut off and taken back to be exchanged for points. The trial time was three days, and during these three days, everyone had to stay in the small wilderness area.
For a group of Martial Warriors, this trial was undoubtedly a challenge.
"All Martial Warriors, enter the trial wilderness area in order!" A teacher said.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
The students of the first academy were the first to enter the valley, gradually disappearing into the trial. Next were the students of the second academy, then the third academy, and finally the students of the fifth academy.
"I can't see anyone anymore!"
Ye Tian had just entered the trial wilderness area, and through the trees and uneven terrain, he quickly lost sight of the other students.
Although the trial wilderness area was just a small open wilderness, it was still quite large, not smaller than Linhai Base.
And Ye Tian quickly encountered his first ferocious beast!