Starting Unlimited Evolution from Grinding

Chapter 276: Gifts from the Element Instructors, 500 Credits!

"You little brats!"

Flora chased after them for a while, fuming mad.

She turned to Lin Mo, looking even more embarrassed.

"Um... sorry to have embarrassed you."

She stared at Lin Mo, and the figure before her gradually overlapped with the inexperienced youth from her memories. But times had changed; that boy who had not yet entered the gates of magic could now be a teacher in his own right.

Lin Mo shook his head, but a faint, uncontrollable smile tugged at his lips.

Flora rolled her eyes and thumped his chest with mock annoyance,

but how much strength does a mage really have? She didn't hit hard, so the pale little fist landed on Lin Mo like a coquettish poke.

What Flora could teach had already mostly been learned by Lin Mo.

However, after receiving instruction from the water and fire element instructors, Lin Mo realized there was still a lot of theoretical knowledge to learn at the academy.So he could not miss the remaining elements.

That afternoon Flora arranged for a teacher who had free time to come — this time it was a soil element instructor, conveniently during students' holiday break.

"So, Instructor Flora, you asked me to come here just to get one-on-one guidance?"

Standing before him was a hulking man who looked nothing like a typical mage; the mage robe on him hung like a small cloak.

"Not exactly guidance. More precisely, it's an exchange."

Flora didn't elaborate: "You'll understand soon."

The soil element instructor scratched his head, still skeptical, but out of respect for Flora he followed her to the practice room.

What followed could only be described as a disaster.

In short, when this soil element instructor finally walked out of the practice room, the nearly two-meter-tall man had a face full of aggrieved sulkiness.

He had never been scolded like that by an instructor when he was a student!

But he couldn't find any reason to retort. He couldn't win against the blows, he couldn't argue his point — it was simply too exasperating...

No way, he couldn't stand it!

He clenched his fist. How could he endure this grievance alone?

A day passed just like that.

Lin Mo gained a lot of skill proficiency. Although it still could not compare to going out and hunting monsters, it was quite good. After all, he learned much about water, fire, and earth elements, which made the theoretical foundation of his magic more solid.

That night was back to overtime training.

Fortunately it was the turn of the little maid today, which made things a bit easier for Lin Mo. When he was exhausted he could put Sherfilia to work and let her handle things.

Worth mentioning: now Ellie's base attribute had surpassed Sherfilia's in one key stat, so in theory she could assist in leveling up.

Perhaps because the difference in base aptitude was still small, the immediate boosts were modest,

but Lin Mo unexpectedly gained a new skill from Sherfilia — a pleasant surprise.

"Shared Cultivation learned skill Blade Dance, gained base attribute Agility +2!"

Blade Dance Lv1 (0/10): Wield a weapon, drive the body with qi and blood, attack surrounding enemies in succession

This is a green excellent-grade skill; its name and description are plain, but that doesn't matter. As long as it raises attributes and can be upgraded and evolved, it's a good skill.

Also, after learning this skill through Shared Cultivation, the Shared Cultivation skill itself gained a lot of proficiency.

It jumped directly to Lv4 (45/100), gaining about 20 points in one go!

So it seems triggering the Shared Cultivation effect is indeed key to the skill proficiency gain. The more one side gains, the more proficiency the Shared Cultivation skill receives. If it triggers a skill-learning effect, Shared Cultivation's proficiency can leap forward.

Not bad, not bad...

The fire element class had two days of lessons left.

Those two days would ideally be used to consult with other element instructors and exchange ideas.

But many instructors, even when not teaching, had their own affairs. Flora was a newly hired instructor and didn't have many social ties with the others, so she couldn't keep doing Lin Mo favors.

Lin Mo had already taken a relaxed attitude and wasn't planning to go to the practice ground, but yesterday the earth element instructor suddenly sent him a message asking him to come.

When Lin Mo arrived at the practice ground, he discovered that the guy had invited the wind element instructor, who usually had a good relationship with Lin Mo.

"Is this the kid you were talking about? Looks like a first-stage student, right?"

The wind element instructor looked skeptical: "What a joke!"

"Why would I lie?"

The earth element instructor had a guileless look: "He definitely has something. I saw it with my own eyes. But I still think you're better, so I brought you here to test him..."

The wind instructor still doubted, and stepped in front of Lin Mo: "I heard you said there's something wrong with how I use wind magic, and you wanted to talk it over?"

Lin Mo froze. When had he ever said that?

Then he noticed the earth instructor behind him frantically winking at him,

and he immediately understood the setup.

That outwardly honest-looking fellow had used his name to brag?

However...

Lin Mo's eyes darted — this wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

Anyone who became an academy instructor had been a prodigy; they were proud and never admitted defeat. They rarely got provoked like this, but when they did, the effect could be excellent.

So he didn't deny it and nodded: "That's right, it's me."

"Good, good... then shall we head to the practice room? I want to see if the kid really has something..."

Five minutes later.

"That's it? You don't even know this basic thing and you dare to talk big?"

Ten minutes later.

"This kid seems to learn fast, or was he just pretending before?"

Twenty minutes later.

"What the heck, you can use mana like this? How did you adjust it... his mana control is even better than our dean's!"

Thirty minutes later.

"Wait, wait... he's using other elements too, and now a sword? That's cheating!"

"Stop, stop, I concede, I really do..."

...

In less than two hours he was the same as yesterday's earth instructor.

At that point the other instructors explained the truth to him.

Out of breath and dog-tired, the wind instructor suddenly leapt up from the floor: "So it was you guys setting me up?!"

"Don't get worked up. Think about it — if it only happened to you, would you be satisfied?"

"True!"

The two of them conspired in front of Lin Mo, and soon their scheming was accompanied by sinister giggles.

Lin Mo scratched his head; this scene felt oddly familiar.

Whatever — it benefited him anyway.

Shortly after, the ice and lightning element instructors were also tricked into coming...

"Skill Frost Guard Lv3 (40/40) upgraded!"

"Current skill Frost Guard Lv4 (3/100)"

...

Lin Mo tried countless skill combinations and had an absolute blast. Several skill levels increased, and many other skills' proficiencies rose significantly. This speed rivaled hunting monsters in the wild.

Only a situation where instructors from every element were called in turn as sparring partners, combined with Lin Mo's extreme comprehension and talent, could produce such miraculous results.

It was another bountiful day.

Lin Mo was thrilled, but the instructors were somewhat miffed.

To be fair, they had learned things too and gained a lot, but being "put down" by a student stung these former prodigies.

They started investigating the root cause, and soon discovered the culprit was still frolicking about.

Although Flora was also struck by Lin Mo's talent, she differed from the others in that she hadn't formally sparred with him.

They had been in class, so it wasn't convenient.

That wouldn't do.

So at dusk, just after she finished class and planned to head home for a proper rest, she was suddenly blocked at her door by the element instructors.

Even Amy came along, forcing her to the practice ground to supervise a match between her and Lin Mo.

"Use some power! Why are you barely using any mana? You weren't like this when you sparred with us!"

"Hit her! Where's your sword? Why hide it now... cast a spell right in her face! Don't baby her!"

"Come on, little brother, smash her tablet!" Amy shouted the loudest in encouragement.

Lin Mo listened to the instructors' cheering and felt both amused and exasperated.

It seemed they wouldn't let him off unless he showed real skill, but his mana and qi and blood were already nearly depleted — he really couldn't hold out much longer...

As night fell, the others in the dorm grew anxious. Finally, Flora returned to the dorm with disheveled clothes, exhausted, and Lin Mo looked like a coalball with an exploded hairstyle and a face smeared with soot.

"What... happened?"

Finnie asked in bewilderment.

"Did you two go dig coal?" Ellie snarked without mercy.

"Please go wash first..."

Sherfilia fretted they might dirty the place that she had cleaned.

Lin Mo was completely burned out. After a day of exchanging ideas with so many academy instructors, even with breaks, he was worn out. He had no mana left even to use Cleansing Flow; Sherfilia had to wash him.

Flora looked haggard but not as bad — just tired.

When they sparred, Lin Mo had already been very weak, and even so, he hadn't gained too much advantage.

The two hurriedly ate and then went to rest.

Lin Mo lay on his bed and soon fell into a deep sleep. He was utterly exhausted — more tired than when on missions.

The next day Sherfilia and Lena resumed their studies at their respective academies. As for Finnie and Ellie, they had completed this phase of their courses and would have over ten days of free training ahead.

It just so happened that when everyone's classes ended tomorrow, they would be going on a mission, so Lin Mo could rest for a day and recover.

He could also spend more time with Finnie and Ellie to make up for what Finnie missed last night.

...

Shared Cultivation proficiency +44!

Why so much?

Lin Mo was stunned. Finnie was even more puzzled. The young girl lay splayed on the pillow, golden hair messy, and exclaimed: "Lin Mo, I seem to have learned a new skill?"

"Oh?"

Lin Mo understood immediately; Finnie had learned a skill through Shared Cultivation.

"What skill?"

"I'm not sure..."

Finnie, of course, had no system and couldn't see the skill's name, so she simply activated it.

A faint bluish barrier shimmered in front of her, and Lin Mo was astonished.

It was the blue exceptional-grade priest skill — Shield Against Demons!

Finnie was incredibly lucky to learn an exceptional-grade skill on her first try, no wonder the proficiency gain was so large.

With Shared Cultivation and the new skill, Finnie instantly became a Level 6 priest.

In the afternoon, Lin Mo also deepened his bond with Ellie.

The little wolf-girl was nearing Level 7 and already almost halfway there.

With her well-rounded attributes, she was already mid-to-upper-tier combat power in Eve's squad, and don't forget she also carried an epic-grade piece of equipment.

At dusk Flora returned to the dorm while Sherfilia cooked in the kitchen.

Lin Mo sat on the sofa, chatting with Ellie and Finnie — one on his left and the other sitting in his lap...

Finnie, being more reserved, wasn't as forward as Ellie.

Lin Mo casually rubbed Ellie's hair and greeted Flora when she came in.

"This stage of the graduating class' courses should be over... Tomorrow Milan and Eve will head out, and I still have to teach other grade students. Help watch over them while they're gone."

"Yeah, don't worry."

Lin Mo nodded.

"Also, this is a gift from the element class instructors."

Flora produced a black card from her palm: "It contains 500 credits."

"How much?!"

Lin Mo nearly choked.

"Five hundred credits."

"That generous?"

Lin Mo took the card. To put it in perspective, completing a D-rank mission only grants 15–30 credits, and a C-rank mission gives 50–100 credits. Five hundred credits was undeniably a fortune.

"Accept it. Your magic techniques have helped us a lot. These are skills even the Empire Academy can't teach. Compared to that, 500 credits is nothing."

Lin Mo accepted without hesitation and transferred the 500 credits to his student card.

He had planned to earn credits from missions to buy skills in the academy library, but now he could go tomorrow.

Also, for the new mithril gloves, most auxiliary materials can be bought with credits, saving gold coins.

So now he only needed to figure out how to obtain a Mountain Giant's Heart.