Tutor

Over the next few days, Chu Kuang devoted most of his energy to cultivating the Iron Armor Technique and Body Forging.

With a sufficient supply of Nutrient Solution, Chu Kuang's Life Level progressed rapidly, and the Iron Armor Technique's advancement also began to soar.

It wasn't until the fifth day that he felt his Life Level's rapid growth taper off, seemingly approaching a temporary upper limit.

Name: Chu Kuang Race: Human Life Level: 5.6 Realm: Body Forging Perfection [Pebble Body] Bone: Medium [Fourth Grade] Comprehension: High [Seventh Grade] Physique: Mortal Body Cultivation Methods: Basic External Martial Arts [Perfection 0/3], Basic Internal Martial Arts [Major Accomplishment 95%], Iron Armor Technique [Minor Accomplishment 65%] Martial Skills: Basic Fist Technique [Major Accomplishment 98%], Basic Spear Technique [Major Accomplishment 99%], Basic Movement Technique [Major Accomplishment 97%], Mountain Suppressing Fist [Nascent Stage 42%], Gold-Splitting Spear [Nascent Stage 47%]

"Life Force 5.6. If the Iron Armor Technique can't reach Major Accomplishment, getting to 5.7 will probably take a long time. All the basic martial arts have improved, but the Iron Armor Technique still needs a few more days to hit the Minor Accomplishment limit."

"But the Basic Spear Technique has hit a bottleneck—it just needs a Source Energy Potion to break through."

After reviewing his panel, Chu Kuang couldn't help but let out a deep breath.

A First-Order Source Energy Potion costs one hundred thousand Federal Coins. Father Chu had saved for years to buy just one vial—getting that kind of money was no easy task.

Thinking about it, he once again felt the inadequacy of his talent.

If his Comprehension reached Ninth Grade or above, even with a weaker Bone, mastering the Basic Spear Technique to Perfection wouldn't be too difficult.

Unfortunately, Seventh Grade Comprehension was the lowest among the upper three grades, and Fourth Grade Bone was also at the bottom of the middle tier—both had a noticeable impact on his martial arts training.

"Legend says there are heavenly treasures in the Dark Domain that can enhance Comprehension and Bone."

Chu Kuang's thoughts drifted, but he quickly shook his head.

Heavenly treasures that boost Comprehension and Bone are the rarest of the rare, only nurtured in Dark Domains of the second level or higher.

Once such a treasure appears, it triggers a frenzy among Second-Order Transcendent Realm powerhouses—with his current ability, he had no chance of getting involved.

Beyond that, there are special cultivation methods that can improve Bone, but these top-tier techniques are tightly controlled. Only by entering a Martial University or obtaining special approval from high school leadership can one practice them.

"Special methods to improve Bone require the school leadership's consent."

"I'd need to at least rank in the top hundred of the school during the Year-End Competition to catch the school leaders' attention."

With that thought, Chu Kuang made a decisive resolution: "Then I'll first break into the top three thousand of the Tian Heng City Ranking Tournament and secure the Interest-Free Loan."

Carrying this mindset, time passed unnoticed until school let out. But just as he was about to leave, he was called to Xu Yue's office.

"I've already arranged the tutoring job. Head straight to the interview now."

Seeing Chu Kuang arrive, Xu Yue said directly, then sent an address to Chu Kuang.

Chu Kuang's face lit up with joy. His Iron Armor Technique was about to reach Major Accomplishment in a few days, and his need for cultivation resources would only grow—he was just short of a steady income.

With a stable part-time job, he could finally catch a much-needed breather.

Thinking this, he thanked him directly: "Thank you, Teacher Xu."

"Ah." Xu Yue sighed, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "There's only so much I can do for you. I hope you seize the opportunity and don't miss the Dark Domain's fortune in the Year-End Competition."

With that, Xu Yue waved his hand, signaling him to leave.

Chu Kuang thanked him again before leaving the office. Reflecting on Xu Yue's words, he couldn't help but ponder.

His situation was actually better than most in his class—many classmates were born only because their parents wanted the thirty-thousand Federal Coin bonus.

Those parents typically had seven or eight children, or even more than ten, and basically raised them in a semi-neglectful manner.

At most, during middle school, parents would invest some resources to see if their kids had talent. If they didn't show exceptional promise, they'd stop providing much cultivation support afterward.

Even if Xu Yue had the heart, he couldn't help everyone. It was only because Chu Kuang had mastered the Basic External Martial Arts to Perfection and displayed enough talent that Xu Yue offered his support.

Of course, the Federation also provided resources, but only to two types of people.

The first were those who enlisted in the Federation's military. As long as they signed a contract, they'd receive ample resources based on the contract's tier.

Humanity faced constant warfare. Without enough troops holding the front lines, the defenses could be breached at any moment. Over tens of thousands of years, scenes of entire star systems' human populations being wiped out by alien races were not uncommon.

Fortunately, because the resources offered were generous and there were enough people in need, the Federation never needed to enforce conscription—the pool of recruits had always been relatively sufficient.

The second type were those with high talent who demonstrated enough potential—they could receive full scholarships from the Federation.

For the first type, they were essentially locked into the military system. True autonomy could only be achieved by becoming the second type.

"Heaven helps those who help themselves."

"I need to seize every opportunity, grow stronger step by step, to obtain more fortune."

With this mindset, Chu Kuang took a flying vehicle to a villa district.

Anyone who could afford a tutor was clearly from a wealthy family. This villa district was in the heart of Tian Heng City, far more luxurious than the commoner district where Chu Kuang lived.

Following the information Xu Yue had provided, he arrived at a detached villa and sent his details over.

Soon the villa door opened, and a man and a girl walked out.

The man appeared to be a middle-aged man in his thirties, while the girl looked to be about eleven or twelve.

"You must be Student Chu, the one Teacher Xu recommended?"

"My name is Lin Xianghong, and this is my daughter, Lin Shuya."

After the introductions were made, he was about to lead them to the Martial Arts Room for the interview.

But then a flying vehicle descended from afar, and a familiar figure stepped out.

"What are you doing here?"

Lin Shuyao looked at Chu Kuang, a hint of surprise on her face.

Lin Xianghong asked with slight curiosity, "Student Chu is here to apply for a tutor position. Do you two know each other?"

"We're classmates," Lin Shuyao said.

Saying this, Lin Shuyao looked at Chu Kuang, a trace of sympathy rising in her heart. Is he stubbornly grinding on basic martial arts just to earn money as a tutor?

That makes sense. Both his parents are Apprentice Level martial artists; they probably don't have much money to spare, and they wouldn't be willing to invest heavily in his training.

Thinking this, Lin Shuyao sighed inwardly and fell silent.

With this connection, Lin Xianghong's expression softened slightly. "To have perfected Basic External Martial Arts by your first year of high school—it seems Student Chu has decent talent."

"I'm not worthy of comparison, Uncle Lin."

Facing Lin Xianghong, Chu Kuang dared not be careless in the slightest.

This Lin Xianghong had his aura restrained, but he was a Second-Order Transcendent Realm expert—someone who ranked among the high-level powerhouses of Tian Heng City.

"I don't have much time. Follow me."

Lin Xianghong had clearly come back from the Dark Domain specifically for his daughter's tutoring and didn't plan to stay outside for long.

He directly led the group into the Enlightenment Chamber, then turned his gaze to Chu Kuang.

Understanding this was a trial lesson, Chu Kuang immediately stepped to the center of the chamber and smoothly performed a set of Basic External Martial Arts.

"Flowing like water, without a hint of stiffness—truly perfected."

Lin Xianghong had been an elite in the Key Class during high school and had also perfected Basic External Martial Arts, so he could recognize Chu Kuang's level at a glance.

"Shuya, go learn martial arts from Student Chu."

The trial lesson went smoothly. Chu Kuang vaguely sensed that Lin Shuya's comprehension and bone structure were both high; she had only learned the first stance after seven or eight repetitions.

Back in his day, Chu Kuang had also taken seven or eight repetitions to master the first stance.

And Chu Kuang had been reborn with past-life memories; his learning ability back then was comparable to an adult's.

This Lin Shuya was likely still in the second semester of sixth grade, only starting Basic External Martial Arts early because her bones and muscles were developing faster.

"Not bad. Your teaching level is on par with some middle school teachers."

After the trial lesson, Lin Xianghong transferred a sum of Federal Coin to him and said, "I live in the Dark Domain most of the time and don't have time to teach Shuya. From now on, you'll come teach her one class period every day. How does three hundred per lesson sound?"

"Three hundred Federal Coin?"

Chu Kuang was taken aback. He had looked into the prices before coming.

One class period was an hour. The standard fee for basic martial arts tutoring was usually around one hundred per class period.

The other party was offering a high price of three hundred—whether because money was no object or because he truly valued Chu Kuang's teaching results.

"Of course, I'm not handing out money for nothing."

Lin Xianghong continued without a smile, "If Shuya's external martial arts don't show significant improvement within a month, I'll dismiss you."

"But if she does make a breakthrough, I'll give you a bonus based on how quickly she progresses. The faster her cultivation advances, the bigger the bonus."

Hearing this, Chu Kuang nodded and said, "Shuya's talent is excellent. Her martial arts progress definitely won't be slow."

Lin Xianghong rarely showed a hint of a smile. As a father, he naturally knew Lin Shuya's talent was no ordinary thing; otherwise, he wouldn't have found her a tutor so early.

Although Lin Shuya's bone structure hadn't fully matured yet, he estimated that his younger daughter most likely had an Upper Third Grade Bone, and very likely one above the eighth grade.

With such talent, starting Basic External Martial Arts early meant she would probably perfect it within three years of middle school.

That way, when she started advanced techniques in high school, Lin Shuya's cultivation speed would soar, making her a standout in the school's Key Class.

In comparison, his eldest daughter Lin Shuyao had decent internal martial arts talent, but her external martial arts talent was poor. If not for that, she wouldn't have needed to start with internal arts and choose the path from inside out.

"That's enough for today. From now on, I'll trouble you to teach her well. If she reaches minor success in external martial arts within two months, I'll give you a substantial bonus."

Lin Xianghong said finally, then saw him out of the villa.

After Chu Kuang left, Lin Xianghong turned to Lin Shuyao and asked, "Just because he's a classmate, you asked me to add two hundred to the lesson fee?"

"His family circumstances are ordinary. He's probably very tight on funds for training."

Lin Shuyao looked at Chu Kuang's retreating back, her gaze complicated.

She didn't want the person she had once had a crush on in her budding youth to completely fade into obscurity. She considered this money a way to close the chapter on her girlish feelings.

Lin Xianghong didn't dwell on it and said calmly, "A Fourth Grade Bone at best. He can only ever hope to form a Martial Body in this life. You're not on the same level as him."

"I know."

Lin Shuyao understood her father's meaning and said with a firm gaze, "I'm going to leave the Tian Yuan Galaxy, and I'll only marry a true young hero."