Ye Mo turned his head, looking at the entrance where the voice came from.
A teen with fire-like hair and a long staff hanging on his back approached.
His attire was unusual. It looked like the clothes from the Tiger Martial Institute, but half of his chest was uncovered, as if that part of the suit had been removed.
The boy directly sat next to Ye Mo and placed his arm on his shoulders, smiling from ear to ear.
"Such a coincidence, I have been looking for you all this time in vain, and just when I thought you were a ghost, you appear here of all places." Ma Shinfei laughed loudly, "Wait, you're already at the 3rd layer?"
Surprise ladened his face as he sensed Ye Mo's aura.
It wasn't uncommon to see a cultivator spend one or two years before reaching the third layer of the Qi Gathering Realm.
Ye Mo achieving this level in three months, it was understandable for Ma Shinfei to be startled.
"Why were you searching me?" Ye Mo emotionlessly removed Ma Shinfei's arm from his shoulders as he asked.
"Going straight to the point, huh? I like that. I wished to fight with you during the tournament, but unfortunately, you passed out and were disqualified. After I recovered from the tournament, I wanted to have a little spar with you, but it would be pointless now. You're only a rank 2 talent and my strength more than doubled since the recruitment competition, it wouldn't be fun anymore." A trace of disappointment laced his tone at the end of Ma Shinfei's explanation.
Ma Shinfei was someone who constantly pursued the heat of battle to better himself, improving in the middle of fire and blood. After the tournament, he learned a new battle skill and already sparred with both Jin Hao Tian and Gao Lixin.
When he noticed that Ye Mo was a body refining cultivator, his interest was immediately piqued. In the recruitment competition, Ye Mo kept displaying all the strengths and advantages of his powerful body, sparking Ma Shinfei's intense desire for battle.
However, there was a large gap in cultivation between the two from the start and after those last months, Ma Shinfei's abilities increased even more. He wouldn't get any enjoyment from fighting someone too weak, hence, he gradually lost interest in fighting Ye Mo.
"So it's a battle maniac..." Ye Mo thought as he finished his plate.
Ma Shinfei was very honest and although it was their first interaction, he spoke to Ye Mo as if they had known each other for a long time.
In cultivation, the further you go, the greater the gap in power between each breakthrough. Although Ye Mo's speed was impressive and his strength increased as well, this wouldn't make any difference for a powerful cultivator closely nearing the 8th layer like Ma Shinfei.
"So you heard about it. Then what's your talent?" Ye Mo asked after his rank 2 talent was mentioned, without expecting anything.
"Well, it's not really a secret. I'm a rank 4 fire talent." Ma Shinfei answered openly.
Ye Mo was taken aback.
A rank 4 was already unusual, but one with an elemental affinity!?
The world was filled with all kinds of qi depending on the environment. At the peak of mountains there is wind qi, near a river or the sea is water qi, in a cold land filled with frost there is ice qi and so on.
A cultivator with an affinity towards an element would make twice the results with half the effort cultivating in a place filled with the qi related.
For Ma Shinfei who had a fire affinity talent, he would need to cultivate near a volcano or in a desert.
Noted that such environments could also be artificially created, allowing some experts to cultivate without traveling far and wide for the suitable site.
If he used martial arts of this element as well, Ma Shinfei would have an easier time learning them, and their abilities would increase much.
A rank 4 talent with an affinity was as rare as a rank 5 talent, maybe even more!
"I can understand why the flame grandmaster took you as a disciple." Ye Mo sighed.
Ma Shinfei expected an exaggerated reaction or Ye Mo acting more respectful towards him as it was custom when he brought out his talent, but beside a sigh, there was no change in his interlocutor's behavior.
It was something that Ma Shinfei couldn't help but find refreshing.
He grinned as he refuted, "Not really. When he found me, I had only the typical rank 4 talent I was born with. Master used a very precious treasure he obtained during his travels in the past for me to gain a fire affinity."
Ma Shinfei's eyes brightened, it could be seen he had deep affection and gratitude towards this master of his.
"There are treasures that can give you a talent affinity? Something I didn't find in the books..." Ye Mo didn't react, but he kept this information in mind.
Beside him, Ma Shinfei's voice came, "Where have you been during those three months?"
"Cultivating, you?" Ye Mo answered flatly, quickly returning the question
"Training, of course. I learned a new technique, with this I'm sure I will be able to beat this bastard Shen Xue. Just wait till I break through the 8th layer..." Ma Shinfei's face gave a fierce expression, his voice full of competitiveness and indignant pride.
Obviously he didn't take his last defeat well.
"Talking about him, since you two fought, maybe you know what talent he has?" Ye Mo asked casually.
Ma Shinfei had a very outgoing temperament. Ye Mo could easily gather information from him, as he didn't bother to hide anything.
"This guy, he's a rank 5 talent..." Ma Shinfei said dispiritedly, gulping in a cup of wine the girl served him
He already saw Shen Xue as a rival, someone he had to surpass, but for him to have a rank 5 talent, even someone like Ma Shinfei would have to work extra hard to not be left behind.
While they talked, a group of young men entered the cafeteria and made their way towards their table.
"Junior Ma, if you're done eating, let's go on. Jin Hao Tian is already there hunting blood beasts." The group was composed of five men, all around eighteen years old and at minimum in the 7th layer of the Qi Gathering Realm.
Their gazes swept by Ye Mo, but with his plain looks and his cultivation of the 3rd layer, they quickly ignored him and focused on Ma Shinfei.
In the Tiger Martial Institute, even newcomers had at least a cultivation of the 4th layer when they arrived, so it was easy to understand what they would think of him.
Only one of them had his gaze lingering on Ye Mo a bit more, thinking "How come this trash chats with Ma Shinfei so casually? Are they friends?"
"My bad, we talked so much I forgot. I'm going to the Jade Forest, see you later Ye Mo." Ma Shinfei stood up and walked away, the group of boys in his wake.
"What an easygoing guy. Well, I would be as well if I had such a master covering me." Ye Mo left soon after, a playful smile on his face.
"They went to the Jade Forest, even Jin Hao Tian seems to be there. They are probably honing their skills while fighting blood beasts; afterwards, they can support their cultivation with the blood cores collected, killing two birds with one stone. I am not the only one progressing, everyone is improving bit by bit and growing stronger. This is a good reminder that I can't relax under any circumstances.
Ye Mo didn't go back home but instead left for a martial hall, where he rented a courtyard for fifty gold coins.
This was the training facility of the institute. From gardens to meditation rooms and fights against mechanical puppets, everything was at disposal if one could pay accordingly.
Ye Mo chose a vast rocky terrain filled with gravel, stones, and boulders that he could occupy at will for ten days.
"Ma Shinfei has a rank 4 fire talent, Shen Xue is rank 5 and the other heirs shouldn't be ridiculous either. They all have the backup of powerhouses as well." Ye Mo walked inside the courtyard where rocks and boulders covered his view.
"In front of these guys, the hard work of rank 2 talents means nothing. Without the right ressources, you can't keep the distance."
"Life is truly unfair." Ye Mo stopped as he stood in front of a stone more than half his size.
Clearing his mind of useless thoughts, he closed his eyes and moved his feet apart, taking position.
Taking a deep breath, he raised his right hand and channeled his qi in his arm, pulling into a bow shape.
After an instant his eyes opened and his hand flashed like lightning!
Bam!
After a loud crash, the stone shook, and small fragments flew about as his fist penetrated wrist-deep in the stone, leaving a spherical dent.
However, although the stone was filled with cracks, it didn't break.
"This is abnormal. It's not the biggest or thickest of the boulders present, but it was still my first time using the Stone Breaking Punch yet I almost shattered it. It must be due to my physical strength, which added to the battle skill, renders my punch even more powerful than usual."
"I will have to restrain my body cultivation the next time, or I won't be able to ascertain my progress in the Stone Breaking Punch."
With large strides, Ye Mo rushed to another boulder.
The whole day, dull thuds resounded in the courtyard, stones shook, and their fragments scattered in the air, but as time passed, the sounds grew louder until, from outside, it looked like a beast was wreaking havoc behind the walls.