The hidden high-grade spiritual root

The three remaining youths were all ordinary mortals of thirteen or fourteen. They had never witnessed anything like this, and looked deeply uneasy as everyone's eyes turned toward them.

Fortunately, the short old man soon called out a name.

"Chen Yunyang!"

"Here, honored immortal master!"

Following that crisp reply, a youth in a tattered hemp robe stepped out from among the three. He looked so frail that a gust of wind might topple him. After bowing to the short old man, he walked over to the Spirit-Testing Stone and placed both hands on it.

Hum!

The instant the hemp-robed youth placed his hands on it, the Spirit-Testing Stone erupted with brilliant light. A golden pillar roughly ten feet high appeared before everyone.

At the sight, the chubby youth's face filled with disbelief. "A high-grade metal spiritual root!" he exclaimed. "No wonder two Foundation Establishment experts escorted him here. They probably knew the result already."

The chubby youth had barely finished speaking when Qi Yun, who sat behind the two old men, moved.

His expression was calm, as though he had known the result all along. He slowly approached the youth being tested and asked gently, "Would you be willing to take me as your master?"

Naturally, the hemp-robed youth was overjoyed. He immediately dropped to his knees before Qi Yun with a thump and kowtowed three times, his forehead striking the ground audibly each time.

Once the youth had finished paying his respects, Qi Yun laughed softly and pulled him to his feet.

Qi Yun then returned to his seat, while the hemp-robed youth stood beside him, his face brimming with joy as he looked around.

Only then did a clamor rise from the crowd. Everyone gazed at the hemp-robed youth with envy.

"With such outstanding Spiritual Root talent, and Senior Qi Yun's devoted guidance, this youth will probably become another Foundation Establishment expert in a few decades," someone in the crowd of onlookers exclaimed.

But the moment he finished speaking, another voice in the crowd challenged him.

"Fellow Daoist, do you know what a High-Grade Single-Element Spiritual Root means? It means he won't encounter any major bottlenecks before reaching Golden Core. Barring unforeseen mishaps, he'll surely become a Golden Core expert in around sixty years!"

"Exactly. Apart from the legendary Supreme-Grade Spiritual Root, a High-Grade Spiritual Root is the best there is. Only a handful have appeared in all of Fufeng Commandery over the past several centuries, and every one of them is now a Golden Core expert," someone else chimed in.

Hearing everyone speak in such extravagant terms, Xu Yan couldn't help marveling inwardly. After watching several dozen people have their Spiritual Roots tested, he had discerned a pattern. For those with Low-Grade Spiritual Roots, the pillars rising from the Spirit-Testing Stone were roughly a foot high. There were differences between individuals, but they weren't particularly large.

For those with High-Grade Spiritual Roots, however, the pillars rose roughly ten feet high, making quite a magnificent sight.

The Spiritual Root testing continued.

Over a hundred more cultivators were tested next. Three had Mid-Grade Spiritual Roots: one had an Earth Spiritual Root, while the other two had earth-wood and Water-Metal Dual Spiritual Roots, respectively. The rest all had Low-Grade Spiritual Roots. The short old man had those three cultivators stay behind, awaiting Qi Yun's selection once all the testing was complete.

Just then, a name called by the short old man caught Xu Yan's attention.

"Wu Cheng!"

"Here!"

At that booming response, Xu Yan turned to look. Sure enough, it was the arrogant young man.

The arrogant young man quickly approached the Spirit-Testing Stone and placed both hands on it.

A fiery-red pillar of light roughly three feet high rose from the Spirit-Testing Stone.

At the sight, the short old man chuckled. "Mid-Grade Fire Spiritual Root. You pass. Stay here and wait for my master to make his selection."

"Yes, Senior." The arrogant young man cupped his fists and bowed to the short old man, then stepped aside.

The short old man continued calling names.

"Wu Yun!"

"Here!"

After answering in a clear, sweet voice, the pretty young girl hurried toward the Spirit-Testing Stone.

Most of the cultivators present recognized the girl and knew these two siblings possessed exceptional talent, so they were curious about what Spiritual Root she had.

Wu Yun remained calm as everyone's eyes turned toward her. By now, she had reached the Spirit-Testing Stone and placed her slender, jade-like hands on it.

The moment Wu Yun set her hands down, an emerald-green pillar of light roughly five feet high appeared before everyone.

"A Mid-Grade Wood Spiritual Root. Judging by the height of that pillar, it's exceptional even among Mid-Grade Spiritual Roots. A pity it didn't reach the level of a High-Grade Spiritual Root."

"It seems the Wu Clan of Skycloud Valley is destined to flourish in this generation. Both Wu siblings have Mid-Grade Single-Element Spiritual Roots. If they develop smoothly, they might even have a chance of claiming the summit of Golden Core."

"Incredible. What a shame someone with such a fine Spiritual Root isn't a junior of my clan."

The crowd buzzed with discussion.

Many more cultivators were tested next, producing seven with Mid-Grade Spiritual Roots in total. Two had single-element Spiritual Roots, while the other five had multiple-element Spiritual Roots.

As time passed, fewer and fewer cultivators remained untested. Since Xu Yan and Du Fei had registered rather late, they were near the end of the line.

"Du Fei!"

Just then, the short old man called the chubby youth's name.

"Here!"

Du Fei immediately snapped to attention. After giving the short old man an honest, good-natured smile, he walked toward the Spirit-Testing Stone.

Upon reaching the Spirit-Testing Stone, Du Fei drew a deep breath before slowly extending his plump hands and placing them on it.

A few breaths later, two pillars of light, one red and one green, appeared above the Spirit-Testing Stone, each roughly a foot high.

At the sight, Du Fei's face filled with unwillingness to accept the result. He lifted his hands from the Spirit-Testing Stone, then placed them down again.

The result remained the same: two pillars, red and green, roughly a foot high.

Seeing what Du Fei was doing, the short old man beside him snorted coldly. "Get off there at once! Even if you kept testing for ten thousand years, the result wouldn't change! Useless fool!"

Du Fei's expression changed drastically at those words, and he hastily bowed to the old man. He had only wanted another try because he couldn't accept the result, never expecting to displease the old man.

He immediately hurried away from the Spirit-Testing Stone.

Once Du Fei left the Spirit-Testing Stone, the short old man's anger subsided. He glanced over the jade tablet in his hand and slowly spoke.

"Next, Xu Yan!"

Although Xu Yan had expected his turn to follow the chubby youth's, hearing his own name still made him nervous. Terrified that Qi Yun might notice something amiss, he answered, "Here," then approached the Spirit-Testing Stone with some apprehension.

Soon, Xu Yan reached the Spirit-Testing Stone.

Like the chubby youth, Du Fei, Xu Yan took a deep breath and slowly placed both hands on the Spirit-Testing Stone.

My Spiritual Root talent should be about the same as Du Fei's, Xu Yan thought to himself.

Just as that thought flashed through Xu Yan's mind, the Spirit-Testing Stone changed.

Colors shimmered across the transparent Spirit-Testing Stone, then five beams of light—scarlet, gold, yellow, blue-green, and green—shot upward, reaching a full ten feet high.

The crowd erupted in astonishment. Just as everyone thought another High-Grade Spiritual Root had appeared, the five-colored pillars suddenly dimmed and rapidly shrank to roughly a foot high.

Such a comical turn of events drew derisive laughter from everyone.

"I thought another High-Grade Spiritual Root had appeared. Who knew it was a Low-Grade Spiritual Root—and a five-element one at that!"

"Hahaha... A low-grade five-element spiritual root is also called a trash spiritual root. In all my decades of cultivation, I've only heard of one, never seen one. Today has certainly broadened my horizons."

"Hehe... Brother, you don't need to be dejected anymore. This fellow has secured the bottom spot for you." A cultivator in the crowd patted the youth who had previously tested as having a Low-Grade Four-Element Mixed Spiritual Root.

Xu Yan paid no heed whatsoever to their remarks. He wasn't particularly concerned about his own Spiritual Root talent. Besides, he was certain that he had a High-Grade Spiritual Root. This change had occurred entirely because the Mysterious Green Pearl between his brows had stirred.

Xu Yan had only felt the mysterious treasure between his brows tremble lightly and release a ray of light, after which the pillars above the Spirit-Testing Stone had dropped. Now, all he cared about was whether Qi Yun had discovered the Mysterious Green Pearl between his brows.

"Low-Grade Five-Element Mixed Spiritual Root. You fail. Step down." Just then, the short old man's voice reached him.

Hearing the old man's words, Xu Yan breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to leave the Spirit-Testing Stone.

But just as Xu Yan began to move, a voice rang out from behind the short old man.

"Wait!"