1 Aptitude Seeking Mirror
Gazing at his neighbors cultivating without any problems, Fu Yang couldn't help but sigh.
He felt jealous watching them cultivate with ease while he remained stuck at the First Nascent Realm.
Why did he have to inherit a cultivation method that required heaven-defying genius disciples?
"Sigh, if I hadn't stumbled upon 'that' cultivation book, I would already be at the 2nd Nascent Realm." Fu Yang looked up at the ceiling while sitting on his rocking chair.
It had been a year since Fu Yang stumbled upon an Unnamed Mystic Realm and became its inheritor. With that he received a Mirror that let him see other people's aptitude value and a cultivation book with the name: 'Be a Good Master and Cultivate!'.
He glanced at the Aptitude Seeking Mirror in his hands again.
Name: Fu Yang
Age: 31
Aptitude: 50
That was the only thing that appeared in the mirror. To an outsider, it might seem as if Fu Yang was engrossed in his own handsome face and silver hair, lost in self-admiration.
However, he had no pleasure in looking at his own handsome appearance. Each time he glanced at the mirror, his aptitude value would instantly materialize.
He had experimented to see if others could see the words as well by leaving the mirror in the library or dropping it as he walked around the sect. But when they returned the mirror to him, they thought nothing of it. After a few such experiments, Fu Yang gave up trying. Instead, he busied himself by looking at others' aptitude.
To see the aptitude of another person, he simply needed to hold the mirror in front of them, and their aptitude information would manifest immediately.
Lost in his thoughts, he heard a knock on his door.
"Come in!"
The door opened, and a young man with black hair, slightly younger than him, entered.
This young man was the current number one core disciple. In a few years, he would likely become a Nascent Realm cultivator and an outer Elder, just like Fu Yang.
It seemed like it was just yesterday that Fu Yang was in this young man's position. Now, three years had passed.
The young man bowed his head slightly before speaking.
"Elder Fu, the Sect Master wants you to host this year's Entrance Examination for New Disciples."
Fu Yang glanced at the young man before answering.
"Another New Disciple Entrance Examination... Sigh, tell the Sect Master that I agree to be the host. Hopefully, I can find a suitable disciple in this entrance examination."
After saying that, Fu Yang looked at the Aptitude Seeking Mirror again. He was curious about Xuan Lei's aptitude.
Name: Xuan Lei
Age: 27
Aptitude: 39
When the young man saw Fu Yang looking at the mirror, he couldn't help but comment to himself.
'So the rumors were true. Ever since he became an Elder, Elder Fu really likes to admire himself.'
Xuan Lei left, leaving Fu Yang alone in his courtyard.
"Let's not think about finding a disciple for now. Let's prepare for the entrance examination. This will be my first time hosting it, so nothing should go wrong."
***
A day before the New Disciples entrance examination.
Fu Yang decided to go to Havenshire City, the city right beside his sect, to search for a potential disciple. He was afraid that if a very talented examinee appeared in tomorrow's entrance examination, they would be snatched away by other elders as soon as the information was available.
Although he would be the only elder overseeing the Entrance Examination, it was better to be safe than sorry.
"Elder Fu, just call me with your Energy Phone when you want to return to the Sect," said the driver of the Sect Car, leaning out of the window.
"Okay. See you later, Wen Tao."
Wen Tao dropped him off at the entrance of the Sect's three-story Pharmacy Building, known as the Cosmic Pharmacy, which served as a gathering spot for both disciples and elders' chauffeurs.
Stepping out in front of the Pharmacy Building, Fu Yang immediately spotted some familiar faces. As they exchanged greetings, he reciprocated with equal warmth.
He surveyed the surroundings. The city bustled with energy-powered motors and cars, and flying bikes soared through the air. Unlike conventional vehicles, flying bikes were commonly used by cultivators. Each pedal done by a cultivator required their own energy to sustain the bike's flight. Typically, only cultivators of the Core Realm and beyond possessed enough strength to operate these flying bikes, while those below the Core Realm were too weak to even hover.
Although Fu Yang owned a flying bike himself, he chose not to use it due to the energy drain caused by the Aptitude Seeking Mirror. Moreover, the Sect provided cars and dedicated drivers to its disciples and elders, making them a more convenient mode of transportation.
After looking around, Fu Yang entered the food street of the city. Unlike the streets leading up to it, there were no vehicles around except for some flying bikes hovering above.
As he walked down the street, Fu Yang started looking around with the Aptitude Seeking Mirror in hand.
"19, 25, 30, 21, 17, 37, 15, 9... Sigh, even here there's no one with an aptitude value in the 40s. It seems cases like mine are very rare. Even the Sect Master's aptitude value was only around 45... Let's continue looking around."
After several hours of tireless exploration, fatigue began to take its toll on Fu Yang. The continuous use of the Aptitude Seeking Mirror had drained his energy. Had he relied on his flying bike, he might have succumbed to exhaustion by now.
To replenish his vitality, he ingested an Energy Replenishing Pill before heading towards a barbecue stall.
"Elder Fu! Come here, let me prepare your favorite foods." The one who called him was a middle-aged woman who, despite looking quite young, was actually 89 years old. Fu Yang looked at the mirror out of habit.
Name: Ma Ling
Age: 89
Aptitude: 11
'Aunt Ma really didn't lie about her age. To maintain the appearance of a middle-aged woman, she must be a cultivator in the early stages of the Foundation Realm.'
Over the past 15 years of his stay at the sect, whenever he ventured into the city, Fu Yang consistently sought out Aunt Ma's stall to savor her delectable barbecue.
"Aunt Ma! Perfect Timing! I'm hungry, I miss eating your barbecue." Fu Yang said, tapping his stomach.
In truth, a cultivator of the Nascent Realm could go without eating for an entire year. Expressing hunger was merely a gesture of politeness, although he genuinely enjoyed Aunt Ma's barbecue.
"Really?! Wait a few minutes, and your barbecue will be ready." Aunt Ma took some marinated pork, beef, and chicken and started grilling them. She no longer used cardboard to fan the grill like she did when he first bought from her. She had upgraded her methods by utilizing a small electric fan.
"How's your life in the sect now that you are an outer elder? You haven't been here for the past year, so we haven't heard any updates from you."
"Well, last year I went to a Mystic Realm. When I finished exploring it, I went into seclusion to refine the artifact I found." Although it was far from the truth, it was better to say less than the whole truth. What if Aunt Ma accidentally let slip that he conquered a Mystic Realm?
He would unknowingly make enemies. Even the Sect Master didn't know about his feat. He had told the Sect Master the same thing when he returned.
"That's good, that's good. As long as you're alive."
The two continued chatting, and when the barbecues were done, Fu Yang took the three sticks of barbecue and resumed his search.
"18, 24, nom, 28, 17, 13, nom, nom, 19, 58, nom—wait! 58! That's 8 aptitude values higher than mine. Unfortunately, it's still below 70. Let's check who it is."
Name: Shi Wen
Age: 9
Aptitude: 58 (note: currently his Azure Fire physique is dormant. If the physique is activated, the aptitude value will increase up to 88.)
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"What the heck! An aptitude of more than 80! Physique dormant? As long as the aptitude is more than 70, I will accept them as my disciple!"
Stunned by the shocking note from the Aptitude Seeking Mirror, Fu Yang looked around to see who this Shi Wen was. Earlier, he had neglected to pay attention to whom the mirror was pointing at, rendering him oblivious to the person in question.
He looked around and finally saw the child he was looking for—a small blue-haired child sleeping on cardboard, wearing tattered clothes.
"Poor child. If it weren't for this mirror, I wouldn't have seen his aptitude and would have just ignored him."
Fu Yang walked towards the child and wanted to wake him up. As soon as he arrived in front of him, he squatted down and poked his cheeks.
Poke, poke.
After a few more pokes, the child's eyes fluttered open, heavy with weariness, as he blinked away the remnants of sleep.
"W-who?" The child was dazed after being woken up. He looked at Fu Yang with confusion, which quickly turned to fear. "Sorry! Mister, I'm sorry. Don't worry, I'll go away now."
Shi Wen immediately stood up and grabbed the cardboard, ready to leave. However, as soon as he was about to go, Fu Yang held him in his arms. Uncertain of the stranger's intentions, Shi Wen mustered the courage to voice his thoughts.
"Please, don't put me in jail. I- I just fell asleep because of hunger. I didn't mean to sleep in front of your shop!"
Evidently, Shi Wen had mistaken Fu Yang for the shop owner whose premises he had sought to sleep on.
Due to the commotion, curious onlookers turned their heads to observe the unfolding scene. When they saw it was Elder Fu, they didn't question him. It was understood that no one should question an Elder from the Heavenly Cosmic Sect near the examination date. They might even think it was part of the examination.
"Calm down, calm down, young man. I'm not going to put you in jail," Fu Yang reassured the child, using his most soothing tone to alleviate the youngster's distress.
"Re-really? So where are you taking me?" The child stammered, his voice fragile yet filled with a glimmer of hope. Although fear still lingered in his heart, as long as he wasn't taken to jail, other things didn't matter.
"We are going to the Heavenly Cosmic Sect!"
