Chapter 41: Top of the Class

The people below the platform were discussing enthusiastically amongst themselves. The one-eyed instructor had a complicated look in his eyes when he glanced at Lin Yao. He hadn’t expected Lin Yao to possess such a rogue ability.

The students’ analysis seemed to make sense. However, when one listened more intently, one would realize that the victors mentioned by them were all geniuses. They were people who practiced a special pupil technique, people with high mental strength, people who could cast warcries, and monks who could resist all forms of attacks. None of these people was weak.

Even those who bought explosion-proof goggles could achieve victory because they were, in fact, a few notches stronger than the martial artist who used the Clear Mirror Sword-Drawing Technique. If their abilities had been on par, there would simply have been no chance of them winning.

“Given how rogue this move is, Lin Yao may not be able to deal with students from the top classes. However, he should be able to get a good ranking amongst the students from ordinary classes.”

Upon seeing that the students were almost done discussing this, the one-eyed instructor clapped his hands, making all the conversations stop. Zhou Yang and the martial artist classmate who had been defeated by Li Peng then battled once to determine who would get third place in the class.

At this juncture, the top three names in the class were out.

The champion, Lin Yao, the runner-up, Li Peng, and the second runner-up, Zhou Yang.

To be honest, Yang felt somewhat indignant at getting third place. He had thought of himself as the strongest person in the class.

Despite having such a thought, he only dared to stare furiously at Li Peng, not Lin Yao. He had a lingering fear about the blinding light that forbade everything from looking at it directly, and he didn’t know how to deal with it.

“Damn, this ability is too rogue.”

As he sighed, the one-eyed instructor said, “The battle is over, and the top three places have been determined. We’ll announce the rewards of the top three students now.”

“The winner, Lin Yao, won three bottles of nutrient drinks and a silver-level combat skill. He’ll receive three bottles of nutrient drinks every month if he remains in the first place. As for the second and third places, they will receive a bottle of nutrient drink each. Students…”

‘Sigh… I expected this.’

Lin Yao sighed when he found out that the first place would only be given three bottles of nutrient drink. To be honest, these nutrient drinks were not invaluable. An ordinary person would have earned 30,000 yuan for this.

However, Lin Yao was also receiving subsidies from both the state and the city. He got a total of 30 bottles of nutrient drink every month, and three bottles were merely one-tenth of that.

Nevertheless, this was normal. The first place of an ordinary class was simply incomparable to a talented student with diamond-level potential. Something would be wrong if the two were given the same treatment.

‘No matter how small a mosquito leg is, it has some flesh. Besides, the reward for the first place in the class may be small, but there will be a different reward for the first place in the cohort. If I enter the top class and eventually attain the first place, the rewards from the school may exceed the subsidies I receive from the state and the city.’

As Lin Yao pondered this, the one-eyed instructor had already dismissed the defeated students so that they could return to their respective training.

Then, his gaze turned to the Lin Yao trio.

“The three of you, please come with me.”

After arriving at a remote place, the one-eyed instructor said immediately, “The top three students in the class are eligible to participate in the school-wide martial arts competition. In three days, the third-year students’ martial arts competition will be held. Of course, this will be a fight between the ordinary classes, so the top classes will be excluded. The rewards of this competition will go to the top 10 places. Based on what I’ve heard, the rewards this time include a golden-level combat skill, the eligibility to forge weapons and armor, a large number of nutrient drinks, and an attributeless spirit crystal.”

Lin Yao didn’t care about the first few rewards mentioned. He had already guessed them. Both the school and the city liked to use techniques and nutrition drinks as a form of reward.

Of course, he could not criticize them for this. However, techniques could be copied, and the market price of the nutrition drinks was much higher than their cost. Therefore, Lin Yao felt somewhat speechless.

Nevertheless, just as he’d started feeling bored, he heard about the attributeless spirit crystal and his eyes lit up on the spot.

‘Spirit crystal… I remember that the spar of light that Chief Shi gave me is also a kind of spirit crystal.’

As this thought came to his mind, Lin Yao could not help but ask, “Teacher, are there only attributeless spirit crystals? Are there any light-attribute ones?”

The one-eyed instructor smiled upon hearing Lin Yao’s query.

“Anyone can use the attributeless ones, whereas those with attributes come with certain restrictions. Besides, spirit crystals are products with a high density of energy. As for the ordinary spirit crystals, the country has some ways to manufacture them. The spirit crystals with attributes can only be produced in special places, and those with light attributes are amongst the rarest ones.”

The words of the one-eyed instructor made Lin Yao sigh. What was rare was dear. It seemed impossible to obtain the spar of light at this competition then.

Just as this thought came to Lin Yao’s mind, the one-eyed instructor suddenly said something along different lines.

“Light-attribute spirit crystals are very precious. It is not possible for ordinary students to apply for one. But Student Lin, since you can use the Clear Mirror Sword-Drawing Technique, I suppose you have already awakened the power of light?”

Upon seeing Lin Yao nod, he smiled and said, “People with the power of light are geniuses that the country wants to focus on grooming. Others may not be successful in their application, but you are very likely to succeed if you do it.”

“Will they give me that much face?”

To be honest, Lin Yao hadn’t expected this.

In response, the instructor nodded.

“This damned world has never been fair. The chances of a genius becoming a powerhouse are much higher than the chances of us ordinary people. Certainly, some people will be willing to grant you this convenience. Plus, everyone is reluctant to offend people with the power of light. After all, who will not get injured or unwell at some point in time?”

“Uh…”

As he said this, Lin Yao recalled that the forte of people with the power of light was healing, and nobody would want to become enemies with this kind of people. After all, injuries and illnesses were inevitable in the life of a martial artist. Even if a martial artist did not fall ill, the same could not be said for their family members. Those with the power of light were considered one of the best healers, and since people might need their help one day, they would certainly receive various preferential treatments.

“If I clinch the top place, I’ll be able to ask the school for the spar of light instead of an ordinary spirit crystal. However, first, I have to top the cohort. People are willing to help those with the power of light on the pretext that they have the potential to become stronger. If they don’t become stronger and their power of light is not any better than that of ordinary doctors, people might as well fawn over ordinary doctors.”

One had to display the kind of talent that corresponded to the preferential treatment one wanted. For the sake of getting the spar of light, Lin Yao was already clenching his fist, feeling determined to succeed.

“I must strive to clinch the top place this time.”

Before the tree-planting system had been awakened, Lin Yao had thought that the hegemony in the class did not have anything to do with him. Now, he was aiming to top the cohort.

Such a change was also an indication of the growth of Lin Yao’s ability.

After telling the Lin Yao trio about the numerous rewards for attaining the top 10 places in the cohort, the one-eyed instructor managed to arouse the fighting spirit in the trio. When he saw this, he nodded with satisfaction and then reminded Lin Yao and the group not to idle or relax. They had to train hard during these three days so that they could attain a good ranking in the competition three days later.

At the same time, he also told Lin Yao and the trio that he would help them find out more about the geniuses from other classes.

In the school, the interests of the instructors and the students were aligned. If Lin Yao and the group were to clinch the top places, their instructor would also receive rewards and an excellent performance assessment from the school, which would in turn aid them in their career promotion.

After Lin Yao and the group entered the top class, the instructors would receive numerous rewards and wealthy people would also be willing to become friends with them.

The education of children had always been the top priority of families in China. If the instructors could groom students from ordinary classes into top students, they would be recognized for their teaching ability and wealthy people would not be too stingy to hire them.

Therefore, the one-eyed instructor was still very concerned about the progress of Lin Yao and the group.

Nevertheless, Lin Yao didn’t feel any repulsion for this attention, which was motivated by self-interest. He knew there would not be fish in crystal-clear water. Besides, if one was overly perceptive, one would have no friends.

After a few conversations, the group parted ways with the one-eyed instructor.

Before leaving, Lin Yao continued to ponder his chances of topping the cohort.

After pondering it carefully, Lin Yao realized that this was not entirely hopeless.

He had just advanced and he was not considered strong. In terms of actual strength, both Li Peng and Zhou Yang could make Lin Yao suffer a crushing defeat, let alone the powerhouses in the entire cohort.

Nevertheless, the Clear Mirror Sword-Drawing Technique was too rogue. It was as if they had gone blind when they’d fought with Lin Yao. Unless a person was specially trained, their combat power would be drastically reduced and there would be a sudden loss of vision.

‘I may not necessarily clinch the top place, but with the Clear Mirror Sword-Drawing Technique, I will certainly be in the top 10. This swordsmanship is really insidious.’