The next morning, before the courtyard gate was even opened, people were already standing at the entrance.
Shitou and his mother rushed over from Willow Tree Village, thinking they had arrived early enough, only to find that there were already people at Old Ye's house when they got there.
A middle-aged man was holding the hand of a little girl who was half a head shorter than the Shitou, and he was squatting on the doorstep waiting. The little girl didn't make a fuss, and stood quietly, occasionally tiptoeing to peek into the yard.
Shitou's mother led Shitou forward, greeting him with a smile, "Brother... are you also here with your child to ask this Soul Master for help in awakening your child's Martial Soul?"
The man straightened up, grinned, and said, "Yes, I'm from this Clear Water Village. I live at the east end of the village, and my surname is Li."
I heard yesterday that Old Ye's son-in-law would be helping with the Martial Soul Awakening today. I figured my Xiao Man about the right age, so I decided to have her awaken today. That's why I came early to wait."
Shitou's mother then understood—they were from the same village, so naturally they had arrived earlier than them.
Just then, footsteps sounded from behind. A woman, leading a boy who was half a head taller than the Shitou, caught up, panting heavily.
Upon seeing the people, the woman quickly said, "I'm from Yang Family Village. I went to visit relatives in Willow Tree Village yesterday and heard that there are Soul Master here who can help children awaken their souls, so I rushed over... I'm not too late, am I?"
Just as Shitou's mother was about to reply, she noticed that the courtyard gate had already been opened from the inside. Mother Ye peeked out and was taken aback to see several families standing at the gate. "Wow, so many people?"
Su Ran followed them out of the courtyard, glanced at the three households at the gate, and then looked into the distance. "Let's wait a little longer and see if anyone else comes."
After waiting a short while and seeing no one else in the distance, Su Ran finally looked away. "Alright, let's begin then."
He first placed the array plate on the ground in the center of the courtyard, then looked up at the three children lined up at the door. "Who wants to go first?"
Xiao Man from Old Li's family was first in line. Her father gently nudged her back. "My daughter, Xiao Man, she goes first."
Xiao Man took a few steps into the courtyard and stood in front of the array plate. Su Ran squatted down to be at eye level with her. " Xiao Man, just stand in the middle of the array plate, don't be afraid."
Xiao Man obediently walked to the center of the array plate and stood there. Su Ran guided the array plate to activate, and a pale blue light rose from beneath her feet, circling around her once.
A slender water plant materialized in Xiao Man's left palm. Its leaves were translucent and had a pale blue sheen. It swayed gently in her hand.
Xiao Man looked down at her palm, somewhat at a loss, then looked up at Su Ran. Su Ran gently guided her, "Try to think about it in your mind, and let it go back."
Xiao Man paused for a moment, then closed her eyes and tried it—the water plant slowly faded away and was absorbed into her palm. She opened her eyes, her hand was empty, and she looked at her hand in surprise.
"From now on, when you want to release it, you'll just have to use your willpower to make it come out," Su Ran said. "You'll get used to it."
He took out the soul-testing ball and handed it over. "Now put your hand on it and try."
Xiao Man reached out and touched the surface of the sphere; a faint blue light emanated from inside, not bright, but stable.
" Your Innate Soul Power is level two, Martial Soul is waterweed," Su Ran said. "Waterweed belongs to the water-type plant Martial Soul category, so you can pursue Control System path. In the early stages, focus on training your Soul Power perception and stabilizing your Soul Power first."
Old Li nodded repeatedly from the side, "Okay, okay, level two is fine too, level two is fine too."
Xiao Man stepped out of the array plate, looked down at her palm, and then ran back to her father.
The second one was Shitou. He was more steady than Xiao Man when he entered the array, and he took a deep breath before standing still.
Su Ran activated the array plate, and a pale yellow light rose up. A short and sturdy plant appeared in his right palm, with thick roots and leaves, standing firmly in his palm as if it could grasp something.
"Try to take it back using your mind, just like Xiao Man did," Su Ran said.
Shitou tried, and the plant slowly came into his palm. He looked down at his hand, then looked up at Su Ran.
Su Ran took out the Soul Testing Ball and handed it over. Shi Shitou reached out and touched it, and a stable yellow light emanated from the surface of the ball.
"Level three Innate Soul Power, Martial Soul is an earth-type plant." Su Ran took another closer look at the direction of the Shitou's palm. "The characteristic of this Martial Soul is soil stabilization. If developed well, it will be helpful for farming."
Shitou's mother, who was standing nearby, brightened upon hearing this. Su Ran didn't continue, but simply looked away. "Wait here for a moment."
Shitou nodded, stepped out of the array, stood in the corner of the courtyard, and kept looking at his palm over and over.
The third one was A Yuan. He walked over by himself—after the first two children had finished their tests, his mother gently nudged him from behind, and he walked into the courtyard and stood in front of the array. Su Ran glanced at him. "What's your name?"
" A Yuan."
"Okay, A Yuan. Stand in the middle of the array plate, calm down, I'm about to begin."
A Yuan stood inside the array plate, his expression serious. Su Ran activated the array plate, and light shone from its edge, flowing along the array patterns and past A Yuan's feet.
The outline of a sickle appeared in front of A Yuan. It was faint and semi-transparent, as if viewed through a layer of mist, but it was definitely there.
Su Ran looked at the transparent scythe, paused for a moment, then took out the Soul Testing Ball and handed it over. "Put your hand on it and try."
A Yuan reached out and touched the surface of the sphere. The sphere remained still for a long time, without any reaction.
Su Ran paused for a moment, then said, " Innate Soul Power... Level zero."
A Yuan stood inside the array plate, looking down at his hands, saying nothing. His mother behind him opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Su Ran squatted down to be at eye level with A Yuan: "Your Martial Soul is a sickle, a farming tool. Even if you can't become Soul Master, it can still help you with your work."
"It'll come in handy for mowing the lawn and planting." He reached out and gently patted A Yuan's shoulder. "Don't be discouraged."
A Yuan lowered his head and after a long while, he softly hummed in agreement. His mother came over, squatted down, patted his shoulder, and then took his hand and left.
Old Li took Xiao Man and left. Before leaving, Xiao Man looked back into the yard, where Ye Qingyu was just coming out of the house. Xiao Man smiled at Ye Qingyu before turning around and walking away with her father.
Shitou's mother was also getting ready to leave with Shitou. She took Shitou's hand and thanked Mother Ye and Su Ran, "Thank you so much, thank you so much. We'll head back now..."
"Auntie, wait a minute."
Su Ran called out to her. Shitou's mother turned around and looked at him with some surprise.
Su Ran glanced at Shitou standing beside her, then looked at her again. "I've observed him for a while, Shitou's Martial Soul is quite interesting. If possible, I'd like to take him as my disciple and teach him cultivation."
Shitou's mother paused for a moment, as if she hadn't quite grasped the situation. "Taking... taking on a disciple?"
"Hmm," Su Ran said, "His Martial Soul is related to the land, which aligns with my current research direction. If he's willing, I can take him under my wing and let him study the land with me; it will also help his cultivation."
Shitou Mother looked down at Shitou, and Shitou was looking up at her with bright eyes.
She smiled, squatted down, and asked Shitou, "Are you willing?"
Shitou nodded vigorously.
Shitou's mother stood up, patted Shitou on the shoulder, and said to Su Ran, "Alright, the child will stay with you. Anyway, you live here, and our Willow Tree Village isn't far away. I can come see him every few days."
Su Ran nodded. "Don't worry, Auntie, I'll take good care of him."
Shitou's mother squatted down again and gave Shitou a few more instructions, then stood up and left. Shitou stood in the yard, watching his mother walk away, then turned to look at Su Ran.
Su Ran glanced at him. "Let's not do anything else today. Come with me to the fields and help Uncle Ye till the land."
Shitou said "Okay" and followed.
The courtyard quieted down. Ye Qingyu brought out a bowl of water from the house and stood at the door watching Su Ran and Shitou, one big and one small, walk towards the edge of the field. The sunlight was slanting down from the roof, making their shadows longer.