Several more years passed. In a Market District forcibly relocated to the foot of Spirit Peak beneath Divine Mist Mountain, Shao Li, an Inner Court disciple of the West River Gate, was setting up a recruitment station with several fellow disciples.
"Line up properly. One at a time."
"This testing magic artifact was refined from a Spirit-Sensing Stone. In a moment, come forward one by one, press your hand against it, and imagine an electric current or a flow of gas or liquid passing from it into your body..."
By now, Shao Li was a senior disciple in the West River Gate's Inner Court. Years of life-and-death trials had brought him to the fore, swiftly making him one of the outstanding figures of the younger generation. His achievements had also earned him several secret arts of the true disciples' lineage that would have been difficult to learn in peacetime, along with various spirit pills and secret treasures, giving him the profound cultivation of peak Qi Refining.
Naturally, he had no need to trouble himself with such minor tasks, so he sat calmly to one side, watching his junior brothers and sisters bustle about.
Before long, everything was finally ready, and the youths of suitable age, none of whom possessed any cultivation, came forward one after another to be tested.
"Low-grade spiritual root, fire alone among the five elements. Next."
"Mid-grade spiritual roots, water and fire complementing each other. Next."
"Mid-grade spiritual roots, earth, fire, and metal. Next."
"Low-grade spiritual root, metal alone among the five elements. Next."
The scribe swiftly recorded the results.
Shao Li sighed faintly. "This batch of youths from the common folk doesn't have very high Spiritual Root Aptitude. We've tested more than a dozen already, and haven't seen anyone with high-grade spiritual roots or all five