Translator: CinderTL
"A family income of less than 100,000 yuan?"
Zhao Qingli's delicate face showed surprise.
She had seen many so-called geniuses from the regular classes.
Even with just primitive innate talent, if enough resources were poured into them, they could barely keep up with the Elite Class.
But a family income of less than 100,000 yuan meant poverty.
A student from the regular classes, from a poor family, making it into the top hundred in the grade?
Extremely rare.
"What is it?" Wang Zi'ang asked, smiling. "Do you also think he's a hidden dragon?"
Zhao Qingli replied calmly, "Director Zhang's judgment is impeccable, of course."
"Making it into the top hundred already proves his potential. If I were in his circumstances, I might not have done as well."
Wang Zi'ang gave her a deep look.
What he admired most about her was that despite her immense wealth, she never flaunted it.
Of course, admiration was one thing.
For Wang Zi'ang, if you had the means to show off and didn't, what was the point of living?
"Don't underestimate yourself," Wang Zi'ang said with a faint smile. "Take me, for example. Despite my modest background, I still ranked third in the grade. That's the advantage of Nascent Aptitude."
The girl shot him a cold glance.
Compared to her, Wang Zi'ang's family background was indeed modest.
But compared to Jiang Ye? His family would definitely be considered wealthy.
Still, Zhao Qingli didn't bother arguing.
As Wang Zi'ang had said, no matter how outstanding students from ordinary classes might be, their achievements ultimately stemmed from their Primitive innate talent.
Primitive innate talent might allow one to catch up through hard work and various factors in the early stages of cultivation.
But by the cosmic tempering stage, their true limitations would be exposed.
A hidden dragon? It was merely a creature with a few dragon scales—initially appearing mystical, but utterly incomparable to a true dragon.
In the main hall, Jiang Ye awoke from the virtual cockpit. By now, all of Class Nine had completed their assessments.
When he saw his ranking, he let out a long sigh of relief.
Top hundred in the grade!
"I wonder how much the scholarship will be," Jiang Ye muttered to himself.
On his way back to the classroom, Jiang Ye suddenly spotted Li Zhichao, who looked as if he had lost his parents.
"Congratulations on first place," Li Zhichao said, his face paling as soon as he saw Jiang Ye.
Jiang Ye's lips twitched slightly.
Even if Jiang Ye had snatched first place from him, was there any need to be this devastated?
Anyone who didn't know better would think his wife had been stolen!
"Hey, man, you okay?" Jiang Ye couldn't help but offer a word of comfort.
"I'm fine," Li Zhichao replied, shaking his head and sighing. "I'm just disappointed in myself. I didn't manage to stick to my goal of injecting myself every day this summer."
"..."
Now Jiang Ye was at a loss for words.
Should he encourage Li Zhichao to try harder with the injections?
In the end, Jiang Ye simply patted Li Zhichao on the shoulder, implying that such things were only human.
Back in the martial dao classroom, the electronic blackboard at the back of the room already displayed the class rankings for this round.
Unsurprisingly, Jiang Ye firmly held first place.
However, his gaze drifted to the bottom of the list, where a grayed-out name stood out:
"Xia Qing."
More than a month had passed since the student's disappearance.
Yet, there was still not a single clue.
To prevent panic from spreading, the school explained the individual disappearances as transfers or withdrawals.
However, it didn't take long for people to suspect something was amiss.
Shortly after the start of the semester, the school organized a safety lecture, mentioning the "Hidden God Organization" and revealing its characteristics and dangers.
They repeatedly emphasized the importance of avoiding going out at night.
This inevitably led people to connect the sudden disappearances of their classmates to the Hidden God Organization.
"These Hidden God Organization scum are even more despicable than the Shadow Clan," many muttered, clenching their fists in anger after the lecture.
Jiang Ye, however, sighed inwardly.
He knew all too well that the Hidden God Organization possessed genuine methods for rapid advancement.
Such temptation was irresistible to most.
With his cheat-like advantage, he had no need to fear such allure. But what about the others?
Among the millions of students with Primitive innate talents, only a handful would ever rise above the ordinary through the conventional academic path.
Most of them would end up as beasts of burden, the dregs of society.
If there were a chance to rapidly grow stronger and become one of the elite, would you seize it?
"I can't control others, only myself," Jiang Ye thought, taking a deep breath.
"Being in the top hundred of my grade is just the beginning."
"I'll climb the Martial Dao Heavenly Ladder step by step, until I reach the very top, the pinnacle of strength!"
Jiang Ye's gaze was unwavering and pure.
Speaking of the Martial Dao Heavenly Ladder, his heart stirred slightly.
He had attempted to climb it again just a few days ago and discovered he could now reach halfway up the second level.
At this rate, Jiang Ye estimated that once he achieved Perfection in his cultivation method, he might be able to ascend to the second level.
"I wonder what rewards await on the second level of the Martial Dao Heavenly Ladder?" Jiang Ye mused, his anticipation growing.
When he had first climbed to the first level, he had received three substantial rewards. The second level's rewards should be even more generous.
However, all of this would have to wait until he achieved Perfection in his cultivation method.
In the martial arts classroom, Chen Zilu strode in, clad in a pristine white martial arts uniform and white lace-trimmed socks, ready to begin the first martial dao class of the new semester.
Jiang Ye listened attentively.
He was soon pleasantly surprised to discover that the class's benefits far exceeded his expectations.
Thanks to his earlier 50% boost in comprehension, combined with the "Patriarch's Friend" effect, his progress in the Star Martial Cultivation Method doubled within a single class.
Perhaps in less than a semester, my cultivation method will reach Perfection!
Jiang Ye felt immensely satisfied.
Three days later, Jiang Ye was summoned to Chen Zilu's office.
"Teacher," Jiang Ye said, looking at the coolly beautiful woman before him, his heart filled with anticipation. He had a vague idea of her purpose.
Chen Zilu wasted no time.
She pulled two stacks of money from a drawer.
"This is your poverty assistance grant for the semester, along with the reward for ranking in the top hundred of your grade," she explained.
Jiang Ye accepted the money pouch and opened it to check.
Having placed second in the final exams, his assistance grant amounted to ten thousand yuan.
As for the reward for ranking in the top hundred...
"Twenty thousand yuan?"
Jiang Ye was surprised. The reward for being in the top hundred of the grade was even more than his scholarship.
"You're already a student from a low-income family and in a regular class," Chen Zilu explained with a smile. "So the reward for being in the top hundred will be a bit higher."
"But this is a one-time thing," she added. "Normally, students ranked below fiftieth place in the grade only receive a scholarship of ten thousand yuan."
Hearing this, Jiang Ye's heart stirred.
Could his special treatment be due to a teacher's application?
"Thank you, Teacher," Jiang Ye said sincerely.
Chen Zilu chuckled. "This time it wasn't me. Director Zhang applied for it on your behalf."
"Director Zhang?" Jiang Ye asked, slightly surprised.
He couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder.
As his strength and talent improved, the number of influential figures around him seemed to increase as well.
Flowers attract butterflies.
This thirty thousand yuan would be a significant boost to his resources.
In the following days, Jiang Ye continued his focused cultivation, moving between two fixed points.
Time flew by.
Thanks to his 50% increase in comprehension, Jiang Ye's strength improved at an astonishing rate.
Star Martial Cultivation Method: Major Success (60%)
Major Success (70%)
Major Success (80%)
Major Success (90%)
Major Success (99%)
(End of the Chapter)
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