Talent Aura, Forty Percent

The first time Lin Yuan saw the words "Spirit Authority" was in his father's Beast Gear picture book.

After learning that the pictures weren't children's drawings but genuinely valuable information, he kept digging into them.

The official pet beast quality and rank classifications announced by the Chenlong Kingdom ran, in order, from Ordinary to Transcendent, Commander, Monarch, Overlord, and Totem.

Beyond that, nothing had been officially recognized.

There were only rumors among the public.

But Lin Yuan had seen a clear note in the picture book: possessing Trait Authority was the standard for pet beasts to rise one level above Overlord quality.

Over the past two years, as he consulted various sources, he had slowly pieced together a basic understanding of Spirit Authority.

It was a gift bestowed when a pet beast's Trait reached the very pinnacle and gained recognition from the rules of the world's spiritual energy.

It appeared occasionally among Overlord-quality pet beasts.

There was too little documented information, and that was all he knew.

What did Spirit Authority represent? What did it do? What changes would it bring to a Trait?

He didn't know.

He only knew it was exceedingly rare.

And now, he was about to receive the Enlightenment Blessing from the Puquan Enlightenment Turtle before him—a Blessing imbued with Spirit Authority.

Unfortunately, the panel offered no description whatsoever for its Spirit Authority.

He could only see the basic description of its Enlightenment Trait, not even its level.

Clearly, that was because his Eye of All Spirits had only awakened recently.

Lin Yuan was already satisfied that he could see so much.

His thoughts darted through his mind for only a moment before he came back to himself.

As Lin Yuan watched the Puquan Enlightenment Turtle, the turtle watched him too.

Ever since it had obtained Spirit Authority, it could see the "Talent Aura" around anyone. To its eyes, it looked like shimmering purple light circling them.

"Talent Aura" wasn't merely how much a person knew. It also encompassed their innate talent, their ability to grasp knowledge, their curiosity and hunger for new knowledge, and their reverence for the unknown.

Right then, the purple shimmer around Lin Yuan was brighter than Chen Xuanbai's beside him, and spread three times as far.

Chen Xuanbai was nearly twenty years older than Lin Yuan, a teacher specializing in general studies with a vast store of knowledge.

Yet despite this student's young age, the ring representing accumulated knowledge within those layers of purple light was not much smaller than Chen Xuanbai's.

How did a student know so much?

More importantly, his innate talent was even greater.

He was a genius.

The Puquan Enlightenment Turtle was delighted. After all these years, it had finally found a promising young talent.

Its Enlightenment could only be used on Beast Tamers under eighteen, and its minimum effect was a twenty-percent boost to comprehension.

Spirit Authority allowed it to amplify Enlightenment further according to the Talent Aura it saw.

How much could this student withstand?

A glimmer appeared in its dim eyes—it was interested.

"Senior Enlightenment Turtle, I've brought a promising second-year student today. Sorry for the trouble, but could you bestow Enlightenment Light on him and his pet beast?"

Chen Xuanbai spoke with great respect.

As he finished, ripples spread across the water, and a faint light shone on the Puquan Enlightenment Turtle's shell.

It had agreed.

Chen Xuanbai breathed a sigh of relief. In the three years he had been responsible for bringing promising students here, the Puquan Enlightenment Turtle had refused to grant its Blessing twice.

He knew those students had failed to meet its standards.

Rather than deal them such a blow, it would have been better if they had never known.

Lin Yuan was only in his second year, after all. Though Chen Xuanbai had faith in him, he couldn't help feeling nervous when the moment came.

Now he relaxed and said to Lin Yuan, "Summon your Still Spirit Cat. When you receive the Enlightenment Blessing, sit down and close your eyes. Just stay focused the whole time."

"I'll stand guard outside. Do your best, and take in that light."

As Chen Xuanbai spoke, he remembered standing here himself at seventeen.

How the years had flown...

Lin Yuan summoned Baishi.

Suddenly finding himself somewhere unfamiliar, Baishi instinctively kept quiet and still, carefully observing everything around him.

His eyes lit up when he saw such a huge turtle.

His first thought was: Even my mother isn't that big, is she?

In the world of pet beasts, size often meant strength.

So he only dared sneak a couple of glances before looking away.

The Puquan Enlightenment Turtle also gave Baishi a second look.

Its Enlightenment worked primarily on humans. Because of their mental connection, a Beast Tamer's contracted pet beasts also received a corresponding boost to comprehension.

Those pet beasts were usually young and inexperienced. Most had no thirst for knowledge, and never carried any Talent Aura.

Yet a faint purple shimmer surrounded this half-year-old kitten.

Since gaining Spirit Authority, the Puquan Enlightenment Turtle had never seen that in a pet beast so young.

It recalled what its Beast Tamer had once told it: "Some pet beasts are born intelligent, with a desire to learn more."

Perhaps this white cat liked listening to stories and learning, just as I did when I was young?

With that thought, its gaze toward Baishi grew even kinder.

Baishi had kept his head lowered for barely two seconds before he couldn't resist raising it to look at the Puquan Enlightenment Turtle again. He saw the kindness in its huge, watery eyes.

Suddenly, he wasn't so afraid.

So not every large pet beast looked at me with the same indifference as my mother?

Baishi had no idea what the Puquan Enlightenment Turtle was thinking.

If he had, he probably would have asked, What's listening to stories? Will it make me stronger?

Lin Yuan briefly told Baishi what would happen next, and Baishi immediately sat up straight.

Good things just kept coming when I followed my Beast Tamer!

This big turtle seemed so friendly, and it was going to give me a Blessing!

Baishi didn't know what a Blessing was, but it had to be something good.

"Sorry for the trouble, Senior Enlightenment Turtle," Lin Yuan said, following Chen Xuanbai's example.

Then he sat upright on the ground and slowly closed his eyes. Baishi pressed close to him, copied his posture, and closed his eyes too.

The water stirred more strongly this time. The Enlightenment Turtle seemed to shift slightly; then every rune on its shell lit up, especially the two characters for "Enlightenment."

A beam of pale yellow light shot from its shell and enveloped Lin Yuan and Baishi.

What was more, a white Scepter Light appeared in the Enlightenment Turtle's eyes and shone out, merging with the pale yellow glow.

Lin Yuan felt as though he were immersed in a warm current.

There was nothing around him, yet he could hear birdsong, smell flowers, and feel the brilliance of the sun.

Beside him, Baishi was so comfortable he couldn't help letting out soft, kittenish meows.

The comforting sensation lasted about ten minutes. Lin Yuan only opened his eyes when he heard a low call.

The Enlightenment Turtle was signaling that the Blessing was complete.

Lin Yuan stood, bowed, and said, "Thank you, Senior Enlightenment Turtle."

Baishi imitated his bow and nearly lost his balance.

Fortunately, the Enlightenment Turtle had already turned away, preparing to go underwater and rest. Using Enlightenment with the added power of Spirit Authority had left it a little tired.

It had been a long time since it had felt tired. The feeling wasn't bad.

Before it disappeared, Lin Yuan saw new information appear in the Status field on its panel:

Old friend, after all these years, I've finally been able to use my Spirit Authority. Our school has found a promising young talent...

Seeing that, Lin Yuan felt he understood something.

So Spirit Authority had conditions for its use?

He thought for a moment, then immediately checked his own panel.

Sure enough, a new line had appeared.

Blessing: Enlightenment (Spirit Authority boost)—comprehension increased by 40% for one year.

The same entry had appeared on Baishi's panel.

Forty percent!

After a moment's thought, he understood why: Spirit Authority.

He returned Baishi to the Pet Beast Space, silently bowed once more to the water, now smooth as a mirror, then bowed to the statue of the old principal reading a book before leaving.

After just a few steps, everything behind him returned to how it had looked before.

Two withered trees and a rock.

Chen Xuanbai greeted Lin Yuan with a broad smile. "Well? Feel like your head's gotten a good bit sharper?"

"With that twenty-percent boost, studying every subject will be much easier for you over the next year."

Lin Yuan nodded without answering directly.

I can't exactly tell him my boost is more than twenty percent.

After some thought, he said, "Thank you, sir. Seeing Senior Enlightenment Turtle made me realize just how long a road I still have ahead of me as a Beast Tamer."

"I won't let down the teachers who believe in me, or waste Senior Enlightenment Turtle's Blessing."

"That's the right attitude, kid." Chen Xuanbai looked pleased. "Oh, and don't spread this around. The Enlightenment Turtle's Blessing isn't exactly a secret."

"But the authorities have never made it public, so let it remain a rumor and a cherished tale."

"If your classmates ask what surprise reward you got for taking first place, tell them I took you on an in-depth tour of our school's culture and helped you discover the traces we usually overlook."

"Got it." Lin Yuan smiled.

Chen Xuanbai wasn't wrong.

Who would have guessed that the guardian of the school lived behind this desolate little corner?

"Oh, sir, how's Xiao Ying? Has she gotten more lech—uh, no, has the color change been going smoothly?" Lin Yuan asked.