The vast plaza was dotted with crystalline gleams, and a stone stele towered above it. Many beings had gathered here, each valiant and extraordinary, graceful and striking.
Some Heavenly Talents and outstanding youths from various races stood brimming with vigor, eager to try. They all wanted to make the stele shine with its most brilliant radiance, proving that their talent surpassed the sages of old and leaving their names in history!
"I'll try first!"
A shy girl walked forward, her voice soft and sweet. She looked so delicate that others could not help wanting to protect her.
Yet the moment she stepped onto the platform, she underwent a tremendous change. Runes rose from her body one after another, glittering brightly, and her expression became utterly focused. She looked like a War Goddess.
She wanted to test her natural talent, hoping to join the Heaven Mending Sect, so she attacked the stele with all her might, exhausting every means and unleashing her potential.
The radiance of divine power spread like falling rain as she unleashed her strongest strike. With a thunderous crash, the stele, hundreds of zhang tall, shook, its rumbling deafening.
It has to shine red... The girl retreated, squeezing her eyes shut and praying inwardly.
Buzz!
The ancient stele suddenly shone with green radiance, threaded with wisps of red. It illuminated the entire plaza and washed over everyone's faces, evoking flourishing life and all things bursting into growth.
"What a pity. There are already traces of red in that light. One step further, and she could have entered the sect directly," sighed a Heaven Mending Sect elder stationed there.
Hearing him, the girl opened her misty eyes. Her nervous excitement sank into dejection, tinged with reluctance to accept the result.
"I was so close. If only I'd worked a little harder before."
"Don't lose heart, young lady. You're quite good already. Come back for the assessment when our sect recruits next year, and you're sure to pass!" the elder comforted her.
"Indeed. Anyone who meets this stele's requirements is considered a genius even within our Heaven Mending Sect. Such people are rare, so don't burden yourself," another white-haired elder said calmly.
Many people let out long breaths at those words. If every disciple of the Heaven Mending Sect met this stele's minimum requirement for direct admission, it would have been suffocating, making them feel utterly useless.
"Thank you, seniors!"
The girl slowly descended from the stone platform, and someone else stepped forward to be tested.
He was a blond youth of fifteen or sixteen, not of the human race. Dressed in golden feathered robes, with even his shoes and socks golden, he looked noble and handsome. A pair of wings grew from his back, and he brimmed with confidence.
He strode onto the stone platform, light glowing beneath his feet, his steps carrying the might of a tiger and the bearing of a dragon. He unleashed his strongest strike at the stele without hesitation, crisp and decisive.
Boom!
An immense aura surged outward, forcing many people back beneath its might. Everyone was astonished. They had not expected such an extraordinary young Heavenly Talent to appear, someone stronger than most of those present.
"Look, it's shining red!" someone cried.
Blood-red light blazed from the ancient stone stele, dazzling and magnificent. It stained the whole area crimson, as though a blood moon had descended upon the earth.
"That's not all. There's purple showing through the red. Is it rising to another level?" someone asked in stunned disbelief.
Once the stele's radiance advanced to another color, it signified that the being's talent was higher, with tremendous future potential. Sooner or later, they would become a renowned powerhouse.
At this moment, even the Heaven Mending Sect elders stationed there could not help turning to look, their eyes widening. They knew full well what this stele's test signified.
Red light meant that the person had the potential to become a god. Purple light meant they might one day reach the Cultivator Leader level. Gold indicated something even higher, beyond estimation.
However, the purple light stopped spreading. It did not turn entirely purple; instead, red and purple alternated, emitting two colors.
"Just a little short. If it had shone entirely purple, he could have become a true disciple of our Heaven Mending Sect!" one elder said.
Even so, this was already extraordinary. This golden youth was practically certain to become a god in the future. If he encountered other opportunities and underwent a transformation, he might go even further.
The stone stele's test offered only an estimate and could not fully determine a person's future. Some people accumulated strength quietly before suddenly soaring at a certain moment, surpassing those whose talent had once exceeded theirs.
"Are you willing to join the Heaven Mending Sect?" the elder asked.
He was a promising seedling. Although he could not become a true disciple, he would still receive attention and nurturing, and learn some of the sect's defining divine abilities.
"I am!" the blond youth answered without hesitation.
The Heaven Mending Sect was renowned throughout the Three Thousand Provinces, a famous great sect with countless powerhouses and world-shaking divine abilities. Naturally, many people hoped to join.
Then the Heaven Mending Sect elder handed him a token and told him to wait nearby. Someone would come specifically to escort him into the sect's inner core region.
This left everyone present deeply astonished. He had obtained admission so quickly, without having to undergo any other tedious assessments. Above all, though, they envied his natural talent.
"I want to test my talent too and join the Heaven Mending Sect!" said a young man in his twenties, his desire stirred by seeing someone before him pass.
Unfortunately, although he already had one foot in the Venerable Realm, he could not make the stele shine entirely red and meet the requirement for direct admission.
"This stele considers the candidate's age, cultivation realm, potential, and so forth. Only after weighing them all does it emit the corresponding radiance."
The elder reminded everyone that the runes within this ancient testing stele entered the body to examine bloodline, innate constitution, comprehension, and more. Greater strength alone did not guarantee meeting the requirements; age and other factors also had to be considered.
Even if someone was only in the lowest realm, the Blood Moving Realm, provided they were young enough, surpassed the sages of old within that realm, and possessed something exceptional, they could still make the stele shine red, purple, or gold.
Afterward, many more people stepped forward to be tested, only to suffer crushing disappointment. Some were even geniuses of their tribes or clans, yet their attempts here ended dismally.
Only now, after leaving the mountains, did they truly understand that beyond every heaven lay another heaven, and beyond every great person stood someone greater. Joining a great sect was not so simple. Without sufficient talent, it was impossible.
"Don't be discouraged. This test is for top Heavenly Talents who want to enter our Heaven Mending Sect directly. Failing to meet the standard for now doesn't mean you're incapable. You can return for next year's general recruitment. In fact, if you can produce green light, admission is essentially no problem," the elder said.
Only after hearing this did the people present feel a little better. They were all outstanding members of their respective clans; otherwise, this would have been far too crushing, their confidence shattered all over the ground.
"Does anyone else want to try?"
Several hundred people had gathered here to be tested. Most had already tried, yet only a handful had passed. Every one of those successful beings came from a great clan, possessed deep foundations, and had received all manner of baptisms since childhood.
"Little brother, are you here to be tested too?" Someone noticed Lin Fan, who did not even reach waist height.
"No, big brother. I'm just here to watch!" Lin Fan smiled innocently and shook his head. With so many people here, he did not want to attract too much attention.
He believed he could make the stele shine red or higher. As a First Generation, he still had the confidence he ought to possess. Joining the Heaven Mending Sect would not be difficult.
Everyone shook their heads and smiled self-mockingly. He was merely a child of five or six, after all, and they paid him no further attention.
Much later, the crowd dispersed, leaving the place quiet. No one else attempted the test. Only Lin Fan and a white-haired elder stationed there remained in the empty plaza. The other, younger elder had personally escorted the blond youth who had passed into the sect.
Lin Fan hurried toward the stone platform with his short little strides. Compared with the ancient stele, hundreds of zhang tall, he was as tiny as an ant.
"Little one, do you want to take the test?" the white-haired elder asked, watching him with some curiosity. Such a young child wanted to try. He was the youngest person the elder had ever seen come here, a year younger even than his sect's holy maiden.
"Yes, Grandpa!" Lin Fan said politely.
"Then give it a try, but be careful. Don't hurt yourself!" The elder did not give it much thought and resumed resting with his eyes closed. No restrictions had been placed on this ancient stele; anyone could try.
Lin Fan circled the stele, examining it carefully. It felt metallic to the touch, though he had no idea what material it was made of.
Then he stood before the stele, gathering strength in his legs and positioning himself to strike. At the same time, his body began to glow, and blood energy spread outward. A blood dragon soared above his head, releasing a thunderous roar.
"This blood energy..." The elder beside him startled, his eyes snapping open with an expression of disbelief.
"Ah..."
The next moment, Lin Fan let out a low roar, its sound deafening. He suddenly exerted himself, marshaling all his strength and swinging his arm. With a boom, his strike shook the divine stele!
Runes from within the ancient stele entered his body and resonated with him.
At that instant, golden divine radiance shot skyward from the stele, magnificent and brilliant. It spread like a blazing sun, illuminating heaven and earth so brightly that no one could keep their eyes open.
Golden light dazzled, blazing with incomparable intensity!
At the same time, golden lotuses of the Great Dao descended one after another from the void, accompanied by resplendent immortal light that engulfed the place!
"What happened?"
The entire city was shaken. Golden light blanketed the area, visible to everyone in the city, leaving them all astonished. The extraordinary visions appearing in the sky were unforgettable.
"Heavens, just who is that..."
"This defies the heavens! Has a peerless prodigy emerged?"
"Come on, let's go see!"
"This is the highest-grade golden light... It's even greater than the commotion the holy maiden caused before. Extraordinary visions have actually appeared, startling the world!"
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