Everything Belongs to Me!

Yuan Long's thoughts were like a raging sea, surging and crashing without end; his lips felt dry, and his throat itched.

After a long while, he managed to steady his mind and spoke with feigned calm: "Hmm, not bad. You have the same level of comprehension I had back in my day."

Jiang Tian's mouth twitched slightly.

This old man really knew how to gild his own lily.

Once he reached the Transformation Energy realm, he would have to see exactly what color this old man's comprehension trait really was.

"Alright," Yuan Long waved his hand. "Go out and practice. From today on, you can come to me every day to collect one Blood Vitality Pill."

He paused, then added, "If there is anything you don't understand, come and ask me."

"Understood." Jiang Tian cupped his hands in farewell.

He pulled the door open, and the moment he turned around, the gazes of almost every disciple in the courtyard fell squarely upon him.

There were all sorts of expressions—envy, jealousy, scrutiny, sycophancy, resentment...

Jiang Tian's expression remained unchanged; his state of mind did not shift in the slightest because of these looks.

His gaze swept calmly over the heads of the crowd.

Almost every one of these Body Tempering Realm disciples had a green trait above their heads, with only a very rare few having none.

There was even one person carrying three white traits; it was the first time Jiang Tian had seen such a configuration.

Extract them all, one by one.

Then, he walked to a quiet corner, sank his hips, and assumed a boxing stance.

[Ding! You possess Innate Martial Bone and Superb Comprehension! Five Animals Creation Play +9!]

[Ding! You possess Innate Martial Bone and Superb Comprehension! Five Animals Creation Play +9!]

[Ding! You possess Innate Martial Bone and Superb Comprehension! Five Animals Creation Play +9!]

Although the proficiency gain had dropped from 11 points to 9 due to the martial art leveling up, perhaps because the lingering energy of those ten Blood Vitality Pills was still active, Jiang Tian felt no fatigue at all; he felt refreshed and full of vigor.

Before, he would have had to rest after practicing for a while, but now he felt no exhaustion whatsoever.

At this rate, within three days, he would be able to push the Five Animals Creation Play to Great Success and take the opportunity to break through to Hidden Energy.

After Hidden Energy came Manifest Energy, and after Manifest Energy came Transformation Energy.

It was getting close.

Before he knew it, it was lunchtime.

"Junior Brother Jiang!" Zhang Ergou called out to him. "Take a break, it's time to eat."

"Right." Jiang Tian retracted his stance and walked toward the area where meals were being distributed.

The line was very long.

But strangely, as he walked closer, the disciples in front parted like small fish in a pond encountering a large predator, automatically clearing a path for him.

Jiang Tian was slightly stunned, but then he walked forward with his usual expression.

Among these people, there were plenty of disciples at the Hidden Energy and Manifest Energy levels, many of whom were at a higher realm than him.

But they weren't making way for the current Jiang Tian.

They were making way for the future Jiang Tian.

The person in charge of distributing lunch was none other than Yuan Long's daughter, Yuan Manzhi.

Seeing Jiang Tian walk over, the icy face that Yuan Manzhi usually wore without expression quietly flushed with a hint of red.

The blush flashed and vanished, quickly returning to normal, but the look in her eyes as she gazed at Jiang Tian was clearly much softer, completely different from how she looked at others.

Jiang Tian took all of this in.

It seemed that the person eavesdropping outside the room earlier while he spoke with Yuan Long was indeed Yuan Manzhi.

"This is your lunch for today."

Yuan Manzhi handed him a porcelain bowl filled to the brim with rice, topped with a layer of greens and several pieces of braised pork; it was glistening with oil and looked appetizing.

"Thank you, Senior Sister." Jiang Tian took it, carried the bowl to the shade of an eave, and buried his head in his meal.

He had only taken a few bites when a shadow fell over him.

Jiang Tian looked up, and what met his eyes was Li Batian's face, plastered with a hypocritical smile.

Li Batian held an exquisite food box in his hand with the lid half-open, and a rich, meaty aroma wafted out, smelling at least a grade better than the food in Jiang Tian's bowl.

"Junior Brother Jiang," Li Batian said with a chuckle as he squatted down.

"Is the food at the Martial Arts Hall to your liking? Would you like to try what I brought? Chicken, duck, fish, meat—I have it all."

As he spoke, he opened the lid of the food box completely and presented it to Jiang Tian.

It was just as he said: chicken, duck, fish, and meat, packed full and arranged neatly, glistening with oil.

Jiang Tian's eyes flickered, a trace of imperceptible mockery flashing in their depths.

He looked up, a simple, honest smile appearing on his face: "Oh, then give them all to me. My portion isn't enough to eat anyway."

"Hmm?"

The corner of Li Batian's mouth twitched violently, and his eyelid jumped along with it.

That kid Zhou Mu was still being polite with him yesterday, but this Jiang Tian was something else—he opened his mouth and asked for everything?

If he gave it all to him, what would he eat himself?

This bumpkin from the countryside...

But on second thought, that was fine.

Someone with a craving for food would surely have greater desires in other areas as well.

Where there is desire, there is leverage.

"Fine! No problem!"

Li Batian readily placed the food box in front of Jiang Tian, turned his head to look at the lackey beside him, and instructed: "Go, get me another portion of food."

"You got it." The lackey scurried off eagerly.

Jiang Tian shoveled the food from the bowl into his mouth in a few bites, then picked up Li Batian's food box and began to eat heartily.

The chicken leg crunched with a "crack," his mouth glistening with oil.

Almost everyone in the courtyard witnessed this scene.

It wasn't just the disciples; even Yuan Long, sitting on the grand armchair in the distance, was silently watching. He frowned slightly, then his brow smoothed out again, lost in thought.

And the slight softness that had just emerged in Yuan Manzhi's eyes diminished instantly.

In the corner, Zhou Mu stared at Jiang Tian with bloodshot eyes, his teeth grinding with a "clack," as if he weren't chewing food, but Jiang Tian's bones.

"These were all supposed to be mine... all mine!"

He gripped his chopsticks tightly, his knuckles turning white.

This was the first time since Jiang Tian arrived that he had eaten such delicious food.

Usually, whether at home or at the Martial Arts Hall, the food was very bland with little oil or salt, leaving his mouth feeling completely tasteless.

This lunch today finally satisfied him.

After finishing the meal and taking a short break, he continued practicing his punches.

[Ding! You possess Innate Martial Bone and Superb Comprehension! Five Animals Creation Play +9!]

[Ding! You possess Innate Martial Bone and Superb Comprehension! Five Animals Creation Play +9!]

[Ding! You possess Innate Martial Bone and Superb Comprehension! Five Animals Creation Play +9!]

Just as he was practicing with vigor, a soft, delicate voice rang in his ear.

"Senior Brother Jiang, you've been practicing for so long, why not drink some water and take a rest?"

Jiang Tian swept a glance with his peripheral vision; it was none other than that green tea, Tan Hongyu.

This Tan Hongyu was also in the Body Tempering Realm, and he had already extracted her traits.

She had one green trait and one white trait, and that white trait seemed tailor-made for her.

[Affectation (White)]

Not far away, Zhou Mu's eyes turned even redder.

He had just grown tired from practicing and wanted to talk to Tan Hongyu, but who would have thought that as soon as Tan Hongyu saw him walking over, she turned and headed toward Jiang Tian.

"Isn't it just Body Tempering? I can do it too!" Zhou Mu gritted his teeth and punched a wooden stake, blood seeping from his knuckles.

"Senior Brother Jiang?" Tan Hongyu called out again, her voice even softer.

But Jiang Tian acted as if he hadn't heard her at all, continuing to practice his punches, his movements powerful and swift, not even lifting his eyelids.

The surrounding disciples saw it all, and snickers rose one after another, buzzing into Tan Hongyu's ears like mosquitoes.

"That Tan Hongyu finished hooking up with Zhou Mu and now she's going after Jiang Tian."

"Tsk tsk tsk, she really is a..."

Her face flushed "whoosh" red, turning a deep purple.

She bit her lip, about to speak again.

Jiang Tian suddenly retracted his fists and turned to look at her.

His gaze was icy, yet his tone carried a hint of mockery and amusement—a strange, hot-and-cold mix that was indescribably bizarre.

"Junior Sister Tan."

He tilted his head, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

"Aren't you going to watch the lanterns tonight? Why waste your energy on me?"