Gu Yue Fang Yuan

The morning sun rose, its rays brilliant with rosy hues.

The mountain mist wasn't very thick, easily pierced by the sword-like sunlight.

Over a hundred fifteen-year-old youths were gathered before the Patriarch's Pavilion.

The Patriarch's Pavilion was located at the very center of the village, five stories high with upturned eaves and corners, heavily guarded. In front of the pavilion was a plaza, and within it were enshrined the ancestral tablets of the Gu Yue ancestors. Each generation's patriarch also lived and resided there, and during major ceremonies or significant emergent events, they would convene the elders here to discuss matters. This was the power hub of the entire village.

"Very good, you've all arrived on time. Today is the Aperture Opening Ceremony, a major turning point in your lives. Without further ado, follow me." The elder in charge of this expedition was an academy elder. With white hair and beard, he spiritedly led the youths into the Patriarch's Pavilion.

However, they didn't go upstairs. Instead, they entered through the ground floor lobby and descended.

Following the constructed stone staircase, they entered an underground grotto.

The youths gasped in amazement. The underground grotto was magnificent, with stalactites emitting seven-colored light – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. This radiance reflected on the youths' faces, a dazzling spectacle like neon lights.

Fang Yuan, mixed in the center of the crowd, quietly observed everything, thinking to himself, "Hundreds of years ago, the Gu Yue clan migrated from the Central Plains to Southern Border and settled here on Qing Mao Mountain. They chose this location for the spiritual spring in the underground grotto. This spring produces a large amount of primeval stones, essentially the foundation of Gu Yue village."

After walking several hundred steps, it grew darker, and the sound of water could be faintly heard.

Turning a corner, a subterranean river more than three zhang wide appeared before them.

The colorful light from the stalactites in this area had completely vanished.

But in the darkness, the river water emitted a faint, ethereal blue glow, like a galaxy in the night sky.

The river flowed from the dark depths of the grotto, incredibly clear. One could even see fish swimming within, aquatic plants, and the sand and stones at the riverbed.

On the other side of the river lay a sea of flowers.

These were Moon Orchid flowers, deliberately cultivated by the Gu Yue clan. Their petals were crescent-shaped, displaying a delicate and elegant blue-pink color. Their stems were like jade, and their centers shone as if pearls refracting light, exuding a gentle radiance.

At first glance, against the dark background, the flower sea by the river looked like a vast blue-green carpet, adorned with countless pearls.

"Moon Orchid flowers are food for many Gu worms. This sea of flowers is arguably the family's largest cultivation base," Fang Yuan knew this clearly.

"How beautiful."

"Truly lovely."

The youths' eyes were opened to a new sight. Their eyes gleamed, filled with both excitement and nervousness.

"Alright, now I will call out names. Those called will cross this river and go to the other side. Go as far as you can, the farther the better. Did you all hear clearly?" the elder said.

"Clearly," the youths responded. In fact, before coming, they had all been told by their families or elders that the farther they went, the better their aptitude, and the greater their future achievements would be.

"Gu Yue Chen Bo," the elder called out the first name from the list.

Although the river was wide, it wasn't deep, only reaching the youths' knees. Chen Bo, with a solemn expression, stepped onto the flower sea by the riverbank.

Immediately, he felt an invisible pressure, as if an unseen wall stood before him, blocking his progress.

As he struggled to take another step, a cluster of light points emerged from the flower sea at his feet. The light points were sparse and pure white.

The radiance converged towards Chen Bo and entered his body.

Chen Bo instantly felt the pressure significantly decrease. The invisible wall suddenly became soft.

He gritted his teeth and pushed forward forcefully, managing to advance. After three steps, the pressure ahead increased greatly, just like the wall before, preventing him from moving any further.

Seeing this, the elder sighed and, while recording, said, "Gu Yue Chen Bo, three steps, no Gu Master aptitude. Next, Gu Yue Zao Xie."

Chen Bo's face immediately turned pale. Gritting his teeth, he crossed the river and returned to his original spot. Without aptitude, he could only live as a mortal from now on, holding the lowest status within the family.

His body swayed precariously; the blow was too great, effectively crushing his lifelong hopes.

Many cast sympathetic glances at him, while more focused on the second youth to reach the other shore.

Unfortunately, this youth also only managed to advance four steps and also had no aptitude.

Not everyone possessed the aptitude for cultivation. Generally speaking, it was considered good if five out of ten people could cultivate. Within the Gu Yue family, this ratio was even higher, reaching six out of ten.

This was because the Gu Yue ancestor, the first patriarch, was a renowned legendary expert. His cultivation had caused genes carrying power to be hidden within his bloodline. Because Gu Yue clansmen possessed his bloodline, their aptitude was generally higher.

The consecutive instances of no aptitude made the other elders watching from the shadows look grim. Even the seasoned Gu Yue patriarch frowned slightly.

Just then, the academy elder called out the third name: "Gu Yue Mo Bei."

"Here!" a horse-faced youth dressed in coarse linen clothes called out sharply, stepping out from the crowd.

He was tall and much sturdier than his peers, exuding a rugged aura.

He crossed the river in two or three strides and stepped onto the opposite bank.

Ten steps, twenty steps, thirty steps; gradually, faint lights entered his body.

He continued until he reached thirty-six steps, then could no longer move forward.

The youths on the other side watched, dumbfounded. The academy elder shouted with joy, "Good, Gu Yue Mo Bei, B-grade aptitude. Come here, let me examine your primeval sea."

Gu Yue Mo Bei returned to the academy elder's side. The latter extended his hand, placed it on the youth's shoulder, closed his eyes, and focused to investigate. After a moment, he withdrew his hand, nodded, and began recording on the paper: "Gu Yue Mo Bei, primeval sea at sixty-six percent, can be greatly cultivated."

This aptitude was divided into four grades from top to bottom: A, B, C, and D.

A youth with D-grade aptitude, after three years of training, could advance to a seasoned Rank 1 Gu Master, becoming a cornerstone of the family.

A youth with C-grade aptitude, after two years of training, could mostly become a Rank 2 Gu Master, becoming a key figure in the family.

A youth with B-grade aptitude needed to be nurtured. They were often groomed to become future elders, and within six to seven years, they could become Rank 3 Gu Masters.

For A-grade aptitude, even one instance is the luck of the entire family. They must be carefully looked after and resources tilted towards them; in about ten years, they can become Rank 4 Gu Masters and then compete for the position of clan leader!

This means that if Gu Yue Mo Bei grows up, he will be a future elder of the Gu Yue clan. No wonder the academy elder was so delighted he laughed heartily, while the elders watching in secret all breathed a collective sigh of relief, and then one by one cast envious glances at one of the elders.

This elder also had a horse-like face; he was Gu Yue Mo Bei's grandfather, Gu Yue Mo Chen. A smile was already rippling across his face, and he provocatively glanced at his old rival, "How about it, my grandson isn't bad, is he, Gu Yue Chi Lian?"

Elder Gu Yue Chi Lian, with his head of red hair, let out a cold snort at this moment and did not reply, his expression grim and very displeased.

Half an hour later, half of the youths had already stepped into the sea of flowers, and quite a few C-grade and D-grade aptitudes had appeared. Of course, those with no aptitude accounted for almost half.

"Alas, the bloodline is becoming increasingly diluted. Moreover, in recent years, the clan has not produced many Rank 4 experts to strengthen the bloodline. The fourth generation clan leader was the only Rank 5 expert, but he perished together with the Flower Wine Wanderer, leaving no descendants. The aptitude of the Gu Yue clan's juniors is getting weaker and weaker," the clan leader sighed deeply.

Just then, the academy elder shouted, "Gu Yue Chi Cheng."

Upon hearing this name, the elders all looked towards Gu Yue Chi Lian, as this was Gu Yue Chi Lian's grandson.

Gu Yue Chi Cheng was short in stature, his face covered in pockmarks. He clenched his fists, his face covered in sweat, appearing particularly nervous.

He stepped onto the other shore, and points of light poured into his body. He walked thirty-six steps before stopping.

"Another B-grade!" the academy elder shouted.

The youths stirred, casting envious glances at Gu Yue Chi Cheng.

"Hahaha, thirty-six steps, thirty-six steps!" Gu Yue Chi Lian shouted, glaring provocatively at Gu Yue Mo Chen.

This time, it was Gu Yue Mo Chen's turn to have a face ashen with anger.

"Gu Yue Chi Cheng..." Fang Yuan mused, stroking his chin within the crowd.

In his memory, he had received severe punishment from the clan for cheating during the Aperture Opening Ceremony.

In fact, his aptitude was only C-grade, but his grandfather, Gu Yue Chi Lian, had faked it for him, thus creating the illusion of B-grade aptitude.

Actually, if he wanted to cheat, Fang Yuan had dozens of plans in mind, some of which were more perfect than Gu Yue Chi Cheng's. If he had displayed B-grade, or even A-grade aptitude, he would undoubtedly have received strong cultivation from the family.

However, firstly, Fang Yuan had been reborn for too short a time, and it was difficult for him to prepare cheating methods in his current situation.

Secondly, even if the cheating was successful, his cultivation speed in the future could not be hidden and would still be exposed.

But this Gu Yue Chi Cheng was different. His grandfather was Gu Yue Chi Lian, one of the two most influential elders in the clan, who could cover for him.

"Gu Yue Chi Lian has always been at odds with Gu Yue Mo Chen; these two elders represent the two largest factions in the clan. To suppress his opponent, he needs his grandson to have outstanding aptitude. It is precisely because he covered for him from behind that Gu Yue Chi Cheng was able to conceal it for a time. In memory, it was not until that accident that he was exposed."

A sharp glint flashed in Fang Yuan's eyes as he pondered how to use this to seize the greatest benefit.

Exposing him on the spot, although it would earn him a small reward from the clan, would also offend the powerful Gu Yue Chi Lian, which was absolutely not advisable.

He also couldn't extort him in the short term. Because his strength was too low, it would instead bring disaster upon himself.

As he was contemplating, he suddenly heard the academy elder call out his name: "Gu Yue Fang Yuan!"