The two readily accepted Andrew's invitation; in fact, they had been thinking the same thing. With that, the atmosphere immediately grew much friendlier, and Andrew took the opportunity to briefly introduce his family.
On the way back, Bandeni joked, "Andrew, you have no idea what a taciturn fellow Polite is. He usually goes days without saying a word. Otherwise, I wouldn't have taken the liberty of disturbing you. I was simply too bored."
Andrew smiled. After their brief conversation, he had become much more familiar with the two. Bandeni liked joking and making friends, and he could strike up an instant rapport with strangers. He was witty and extremely knowledgeable. In fact, magi were generally seasoned scholars.
By comparison, Polite was much more serious. He usually maintained a stern expression and spoke very little, never opening his mouth unless necessary.
Moreover, as a warrior, Andrew saw more.
Every step looks as though it's been measured with a ruler-exceptionally precise. His movements flow like water, utterly natural. His posture looks loose, but beneath it, he's tightly braced. Clearly, he's highly alert. From that alone, this man is definitely a veteran of countless battles. Judging by his control over his own strength, he should be at least an eighth-level warrior. My understanding of strength falls short of his.
Over that short walk, Andrew saw right through Polite.
Back at the campfire, Andrew explained the earlier misunderstanding, and everyone soon grew acquainted. In particular, when Howard and Janice heard that the two were instructors at Divine Grace Academy, their attitude became even more respectful.
Bandeni still loved to joke. "You've gone from haughty to respectful. Do you want a favor from me? But let me make this clear first, Howard, Janice: if you want to enter Divine Grace Academy, even asking me to pull strings won't work. Divine Grace Academy only accepts geniuses under ten."
Howard and Janice blushed, embarrassed by his words.
Andrew thought nothing of it. He knew Bandeni was not being serious at all.
"All right, Bandeni, stop talking nonsense. But I really do have a favor to ask." Andrew looked at Ling'er in his arms as he spoke.
Bandeni took a bite of the roast leg of lamb in his hand and said loudly, "Whatever it is, as long as I can do it, just ask. Everyone at Divine Grace Academy knows that I, Bandeni, love helping friends more than anything."
Andrew said, "It's nothing that will put you in a difficult position. You're a magus, aren't you? I'd like you to help test Ling'er's magical affinity!"
"What, that's all?" Bandeni tossed the leg of lamb aside, looking somewhat excited. "What a coincidence. We went to the Far East Prairie this time to test the talents of nobles in the Moye Khanate. See, I still have the magic crystal with me."
As he spoke, Bandeni took a crystal ball from the bundle behind him. It was the size of a fist, and the nearby campfire was reflected in it, lighting it a bright red.
"Is this specifically used to test magical talent?" Andrew recalled the description in the original book.
"That's right. Just place your hand on it, and it can test the strength of your elemental affinity." Bandeni was thoroughly familiar with the procedure, and his explanation was very convincing.
"Then let's start the test." Andrew grew interested as well.
Bandeni said, "Wait a moment. I need to unseal the crystal ball first."
As it turned out, the crystal ball was normally sealed, and a magus would only remove the seal when it was needed.
Bandeni silently recited a magic incantation. In front of him, a patch of earth a foot square suddenly rose, reaching roughly two feet in height before solidifying into a stone pillar. At the top of the pillar was a shallow depression.
He's an earth magus, Andrew thought.
Bandeni carefully placed the crystal ball in the depression and rested his hand on it. After a few seconds, he withdrew his hand and smiled at Andrew. "All right, it's ready now."
Andrew led Ling'er over to the stone pillar. Her eyes were fixed on the crystal ball, and she was very curious about it.
"Come on, Ling'er. Put your hand on the crystal ball," Andrew said softly.
Ling'er nodded gently and obediently placed her hand on it. Watching from the side, Andrew noticed that her hand was trembling slightly. Perhaps she, too, realized what she was doing meant.
"Don't be nervous, Ling'er. Relax!" Andrew encouraged her.
The moment Ling'er's right hand touched the crystal ball, the entire ball glowed a fiery red. Andrew could clearly see that the red was extremely pure, without any other colors mixed in.
"Not bad. High-grade fire elemental affinity," Bandeni immediately announced the result.
"High-grade. Not bad." Andrew picked Ling'er back up, already quite satisfied with the result. With his support, as long as Ling'er cultivated diligently, becoming a Saint-level or even a Deity-level being in the future would be no problem.
"Unfortunately, there's no way to test her spiritual strength here," Bandeni said regretfully. "But that's all right. Once we reach the imperial capital, I can test her again. Divine Grace Academy will begin recruiting in another two months. As long as her spiritual strength meets the standard, she'll have no problem entering."
Andrew nodded. That was his plan as well. According to Bandeni, Divine Grace Academy was the best magic academy on the continent. If Ling'er could get in, it would take one worry off his mind.
"Bandeni, I'd like to try too," Andrew hurriedly said when he saw Bandeni about to put away the crystal ball.
"Aren't you a warrior?" Bandeni stopped what he was doing and asked curiously.
Andrew smiled. "Can't a warrior take the test?"
In fact, he mainly wanted to know whether he had an aptitude for any other elements. This was very important to him. If he truly had a soul mutation, then the more aptitudes he had, the greater his future achievements would be. After all, although people with two-element soul mutations were rare across the countless planes, there were still a few of them. But at present, there was only one person with a three-element soul mutation. As for four elements, there were none yet.
If I have other aptitudes, how powerful will my fused divine power be once I become a deity? Andrew could not help feeling some anticipation.
"All right." Bandeni shrugged. "Give it a try."
Andrew stepped forward and gently placed his hand on the crystal ball.
So cool and refreshing. That was his first sensation.
Then the crystal ball blazed with dazzling light. Within it, purple and red shone against each other, the two colors intertwining and shifting from time to time. The intense light dazzled the eyes of everyone nearby.
"A-amazing. Both his lightning and fire elemental affinities are exceptional-grade, and at the very top of that grade, too. In all my years as an instructor, I've never seen such powerful elemental affinity!"
Beside him, Bandeni stared at the crystal ball, muttering to himself.
Andrew removed his hand, and the crystal ball immediately returned to normal. To be honest, the result surprised him somewhat. Although he knew his fire elemental affinity was not weak, he had never expected it to be this strong. There was also his lightning elemental affinity. According to the test results, his affinity for the two elements was evenly matched.
"Andrew!" Bandeni suddenly shouted. "Your talent is unlike anything I've ever seen. Stop being a barbaric warrior. Come, study noble magic with me! With your talent, you'll definitely become a Saint-level magus within a hundred years!"
"A Saint-level magus?" Bandeni's words startled Howard and Janice. Although the two were not particularly knowledgeable, they had still heard of the legendary Saint-level magi.
"Bandeni, are you saying Andrew can become a Saint-level magus? The kind who can destroy a city, sever a mountain range, or dry up a great river with a wave of the hand?" Janice's voice trembled slightly, and her body shook uncontrollably as well.
Bandeni put aside his flippant manner and said with great seriousness and solemnity, "That's right, a Saint-level magus! With Andrew's elemental affinity, he can become a Level 9 Great Mage in no more than twenty years. After that, as soon as the right opportunity comes, he can immediately reach the Saint-level!"
Having received Bandeni's confirmation, Janice looked at Andrew with anticipation filling her heart. "Andrew, what do you think...?"
Andrew gave a wry smile. He understood Janice's hopes, but to him, taking a hundred years to reach the Saint-level was rather laughable. His goal was to reach the Saint-level in ten years!
Still, he did not want to disappoint Janice. Throughout his childhood, Janice had never asked anything of him. Faced with a mother like that, how could he refuse?
Andrew thought for a moment and could only say, "All right. I'll study magic, together with Ling'er." With that, he had decided to cultivate both magic and martial arts.
Janice beamed with joy. As she looked at her son, her eyes were filled with pride, as though he had already become a Saint-level magus.
Howard was also delighted to hear Andrew's decision. After all, throughout the countless years of the Yulan Continent's history, few had become Saint-level magi. Still, he felt a little gloomy as well. In his view, Andrew's talent as a warrior was also extremely high, and it would truly be a shame to abandon it just like that.
But looking at Janice, who had become lost in her fantasies, he very wisely raised no objections...