Gu Ming rushed to finish the draft of his paper on the Mastery of Wood Escape, submitting it to Teacher Zhang for a preliminary review just one day before the competition.

Teacher Zhang nodded after reviewing it. To be on the safe side, he called over Teacher Zhong, an expert in the cultivation of Grass Element Pet Beasts, to provide feedback on the paper.

Teacher Zhong had seen Cyan Treasure plant Grass Seeds and had witnessed its incredible vines fight the waves of the Wave-Swallowing Technique to a standstill, not to mention its victory over the Blast Flame Lizard from Yangyang High School.

There had to be a reason Cyan Treasure was able to win.

However, he didn’t understand the deeper principles behind it and had always been a little curious.

Reading Gu Ming’s paper gave Teacher Zhong a feeling of sudden enlightenment. Though he didn’t understand every detail, he could tell it was something incredible.

For a high school student to have this level of understanding was extremely rare.

The paper was truly extraordinary; every Cultivation Technique it used was an existing one.

Gu Ming had integrated them so organically that it created a perfect synergy, causing every part that circulated Life Energy to operate in unison. This made the execution of the Life Energy Daoist Skill incredibly efficient.

Based on the data from several battle case studies in the paper, when Cyan Treasure executed the Mastery of Wood Escape, it achieved an efficiency of thirty percent.

And though it only converted thirty percent of its potential, that was no small feat.

After all, no Ultimate Skill in this world had a one-hundred-percent energy conversion rate.

There was always some loss during the conversion process, and the proportion of that loss depended on the Ultimate Skill’s integrative power.

Gu Ming’s Ultimate Skill achieved a thirty-percent conversion rate, which, in the realm of Ultimate Skills, was considered a combat application with remarkably low energy loss.

Most importantly, using this Ultimate Skill on a One-star Pet Beast was practically a colossal waste.

The energy conversion loss rate for other Same-star Level Pet Beasts was almost ninety-nine percent. Even for a Pet Beast that had diligently learned Combat Techniques, the loss rate would only drop to the low nineties.

Some genius Pet Beasts, with dedicated cultivation from their masters, could manage an eighty-percent energy loss, achieving a twenty-percent energy conversion rate.

That in itself was the mark of a true genius; back in Teacher Zhong’s day, such a feat would have been something to be looked up to in awe.

’Then again,’ he thought, ’Gu Ming is eighteen. It’s only natural for him to be ranked among the top-tier geniuses.’

’So, it’s not so strange that he has such a high energy conversion rate.’

However, Teacher Zhong felt that the Ultimate Skill’s combat style was a bit too passive.

It wasn’t a simple, brute-force move like a Laser or Power enhancement; instead, it focused on being a Catalyst for Life Energy or on life reinforcement.

This didn’t provide much direct enhancement to the Pet Beast’s body, and the catalysis took time, meaning Cyan Treasure couldn’t instantly strike a distant opponent.

This gave the opponent time to react. In a battle between geniuses, giving an opponent even a moment to respond could introduce unforeseen variables; a desperate comeback was not impossible. Cyan Treasure’s Mastery of Wood Escape was, therefore, still imperfect.

But then, what move in this world was ever truly perfect?

The fact that Cyan Treasure could execute an Ultimate Skill with such a high conversion rate at the One-star stage was already a testament to its master’s prodigious talent.

"The paper needs some minor revisions, but it’s nothing major."

Teacher Zhong had initially wanted to find some faults, to temper the young genius’s smooth-sailing fortune, but after nitpicking, he couldn’t find any real points to criticize.

In the end, all he could do was point out a few unimportant, dry technical sections and ask Gu Ming to polish them for better readability. No other major changes were needed.

Now, only one task remained—for Cyan Treasure to legitimize the Cultivation Technique.

The night the paper was finalized.

Gu Ming prepared to give the Cultivation Technique its official name. The two teachers personally came to the Gu Family home to review the final draft.

After Gu Ming finished his revisions, he wrote down the three words, "Mastery of Wood Escape."

"Cyan Treasure, channel the Mastery of Wood Escape and speak the name of this Ultimate Skill in your own voice," Gu Ming said.

Cyan Treasure nodded, puffed out its chest, and began to circulate the Life Energy within its body.

In an instant, waves of green light surged through the room as red and green Grass Seeds sprouted from the floorboards.

The Pet Beast recited the name "Mastery of Wood Escape" in its own language.

HISSSSS—

The paper on the table instantly erupted in a flash of golden light.

It only seemed as if the paper was glowing; in reality, the Hall of the Great Dao had manifested in the sky, casting down a ray of Holy Light that shone upon Cyan Treasure.

The finalized first draft of the paper was intrinsically linked to Cyan Treasure, and it had been written on high-grade material.

Because of this, it resonated with Cyan Treasure’s Great Dao. The words on the page gradually became imbued with the aura of the Great Dao, to the point that one could perceive the Power of the Mastery of Wood Escape just by reading them.

Everyone looked up at the sky to see a dual-colored Holy Light shower down, enveloping the Ultimate Skill known as "Mastery of Wood Escape."

After watching for a long time, they all heaved a collective sigh.

"So, it’s just dual-colored."

But this was still enough to be considered genius-level.

"Seriously, what were you all expecting?

"A Tri-Colored or even a Four-Colored Holy Light?"

That night, it wasn’t only the two teachers who came to the Gu Family home to witness the spectacle of the Hall of the Great Dao.

Several other teachers from the school, drawn by the reputation of the event, had also arrived. They were stunned to hear the duo’s outrageous remark.

Gu Ming wasn’t secretive, allowing Cyan Treasure to bask in the Holy Light from the Hall of the Great Dao and soak in it to better comprehend the principles within.

The two teachers had seen their fair share of heaven-defying Cultivation Techniques, so they were more or less used to it.

But in the eyes of outsiders, it was still an utterly stunning moment.

After a brief appearance, the Hall of the Great Dao vanished from the sky, once again igniting discussions throughout the city and sparking a massive debate online.

Gu Ming paid it no mind, however. He was heading to Tian Nan City for the competition the next day, so no matter how intense the local discussions became, they wouldn’t affect him.

That night, the paper—now officially validated by the dual-colored Holy Light from the Hall of the Great Dao—was submitted to the *Flood Dragon Monthly Report*.

Gu Ming had been hoping his submission would earn a Tri-Colored or perhaps even a Four-Colored Holy Light certification. Unfortunately, it only ended up receiving a dual-colored one.