"Some may wonder why our clan mandates history classes, but as the Young Master once said: only by understanding history can we avoid repeating mistakes." An elderly woman with completely white hair spoke to a group of youths in a classroom.
Most of the students' eyes were drowsy—they clearly had little interest in her words. Only two of them, a girl and a boy, gazed at the elder with fervent attention.
Satisfied that this year she had at least two promising seedlings, the elder continued her lesson. "This is especially true for us—a familial clan with a millennium of history. To neglect the human and natural tribulations our ancestors endured would be a waste of the foundation they built for us."
One of the attentive students—the boy—raised his hand. The elder glanced at him. "Yes, Wentian? Do you have a question?"
The young man nodded, his expression serious. "Grandmother, although it's true that knowing the past can help us avoid repeating mistakes, I want to learn more about the current dangers facing our Qing Clan."
The other attentive student, the girl, chimed in. "Exactly. So far, our elders and senior brothers have been avoiding telling us about the threats our clan faces! Wentian and I are about to undergo the Spiritual Awakening Ceremony—we're practically adults now. It's time they told us certain things!"
The elder sighed wearily. "How many times must you insist on this, Xuanling?"
Qing Xuanling grinned mischievously. "Until you finally tell us, Grandmother."
"Sigh… One day you'll land me in a hospital bed from stress." The elder shook her head, but after a moment's consideration, she nodded. "Fine. I'll tell you. Indeed, tomorrow you'll undergo the Spiritual Awakening. Them can now be considered young adults."
Qing Xuanling and Qing Wentian exchanged glances and smiled. They had finally gotten what they wanted!
Seeing that, the elder could only roll her eyes. "Pay attention—this is important!"
She rapped the blackboard firmly, drawing not only Xuanling and Wentian's focus but that of the entire class. "The Qing Clan today may be considered a strong clan in Ziyun City with experts at the Foundation Establishment Realm, but on the grand scale of things, we are but a speck of dust compared to true powers."
The students were stunned. Many had personally witnessed Foundation Establishment experts displaying divine might. Beyond that lay only the mysterious and supreme Golden Core Realm.
And yet even those could only be called specks of dust.
The elder smiled—she herself had worn a similar expression when first hearing that. "Ziyun City is merely a third-level city on the outskirts of the Scarlet Forest, built by the Celestial Orchid Sect to exploit the forest's resources. The clan's main dangers come primarily from the Scarlet Forest itself."
Qing Xuanling frowned slightly. "I understand we're not truly powerful compared to the Celestial Orchid Sect… But shouldn't our clan's main threats come from the Mo Clan and the Ink Sword Sect?"
"I see you've done your research," the elder said, shaking her head. "But no, not at all. Those two, though strong, possess power levels similar to ours. The real problem comes from the Scarlet Forest…"
Her expression darkened. "Even now, after more than a thousand years, the Celestial Orchid Sect has still failed to fully explore the forest's depths. Worse yet, over the past decade, demonic beasts have begun appearing in ever greater numbers…"
The youths in the classroom swallowed hard. None had known such things were happening now. Each began to feel a subtle pressure settle on their shoulders—they too would soon have to face these threats.
Amused by their grim faces, the elder quickly dismissed the class—but not before calling aside the two most engaged students: Qing Xuanling and Qing Wentian.
"What is it, Grandmother?" Qing Xuanling asked, arms crossed. "You know we need to rest well for tomorrow's awakening."
Qing Wentian said nothing, but he too seemed impatient.
"Tsk, tsk—young people these days truly lack patience." The elder lightly tapped both their heads. "I only called you to remind you not to feel pressured! Though you've been hailed as the Qing Clan's twin pearls thus far, Heaven's will is unpredictable. Don't place too many expectations on what spiritual roots you'll awaken—or you might awaken inner demons instead!"
But neither youth seemed to truly hear her warning.
"Don't worry, Grandmother—Xuanling and I understand that!" Qing Wentian beamed brightly. "But still, we both believe we won't disappoint the clan's expectations tomorrow!"
Qing Xuanling thought exactly the same. Both were deeply confident about tomorrow's results. After chatting a bit more with the elder, they headed to their rooms.
The elder watched their retreating backs, a trace of bitterness in her heart.
"Sigh… I hope you two truly are as brilliant as the Young Master claims. Otherwise, the blow you'll suffer will be overwhelming…"
* * * *
Dozens of youths now gathered in a grand hall within the Qing Clan's territory.
Among them was Qing Xuanling—a girl with brown hair and rather ordinary features who would normally go unnoticed. Yet the youths around her kept glancing her way.
'Sigh… I truly appreciate Big Brother's support, but because of his words, I can never walk peacefully through the clan.'
The "Big Brother" Qing Xuanling referred to was the Qing Clan's Young Master—the heir who would assume leadership when the current clan chief stepped down. Qing Xuanling deeply admired him. The Young Master was possibly the youngest heir in the clan's entire history.
His vision and eye for talent were almost magical, accelerating the clan's development since becoming heir three years ago. He'd even earned the title "Young Master" due to his mere twenty years of age.
She had been one of the youths who caught his attention, receiving constant private lessons and medicinal baths despite belonging only to a servant branch of the family. Even she didn't know what he'd seen in her.
But she didn't care. From the beginning, she had resolved to become a great immortal. The Young Master's support had merely accelerated the process—though of course, she remained grateful.
Remembering kindness and enmity alike had been drilled into her throughout her fourteen years of life.
As she pondered these things, the hall began to fill. First came the parents of the awakening candidates, then hall masters, followed by the Eight Elders, and finally the clan chief and the Young Master himself.
The clan chief was a middle-aged man with a battle-worn face. He wore imposing black robes embroidered with fire dragons—a perfect match for his fiery red hair.
The Young Master, by contrast, appeared fresh and elegant in light green robes adorned with embroidered leaf. His black hair and eyes gave him a simple yet pleasant appearance.
The elders took seats around a circular platform engraved with intricate patterns and cryptic characters. The clan chief and Young Master sat side by side before the platform, while everyone else remained standing.
"Today, on the ninth day of the Dragon Month, I declare the Spiritual Awakening Ceremony begun!" the clan chief announced in a weighty voice that filled the hall with solemnity.
Soon, the youths began stepping onto the platform's center, where a stooped elder awaited. He would take each child's wrists and channel spiritual energy into the formation beneath their feet.
The lines and symbols on the platform glowed as the elder closed his eyes. Ten seconds later, he opened them and cried out:
"Triple spiritual root! Elements: Fire, Wood, and Metal. With purities of 34%, 21%, and 12% respectively… No special physique or talent."
The boy on the platform was slightly disappointed but quickly recovered. Though merely a low-grade triple root, it was average talent for the Qing Clan—not too bad.
"Yenglan," the clan chief suddenly leaned toward the Young Master, "what do you think of this year's awakening ceremony? Will we see some good seedlings?"
The Young Master smiled wryly. "Master, how many times must I say I cannot see the future? I've simply been fortunate these past years…"
The clan chief didn't believe him for a second. "Ungrateful brat—you still say that after early identifying seven high-grade triple-root youths?! Thanks to that, your faction, barely five years old, already has four mid-stage Qi Refinement cultivators!"
"They'll reach late-stage Qi Refinement within five years, and in another ten, some may even cross a great realm—advancing to the Foundation Establishment Realm!"
The clan chief felt both joy and frustration toward this disciple. He excelled in every aspect—talent, charisma, intelligence. If he had one flaw, it was his love of mystery and secrecy.
The clan chief sometimes felt that one day, his disciple would surprise him by bringing forth a legion of Foundation Establishment cultivators.
"I have a good feeling about this awakening ceremony," the Young Master said with ironic amusement, sensing his master's thoughts. "I believe the clan will receive one or two surprises this year."
The clan chief's eyes lit with delight, and he quickly returned his attention to the awakening platform.
The stooped elder continued announcing results—some children hearing divine hymns, others a death sentence:
"Mixed spiritual root! Elements: Fire, Wood, Water, and Earth! Purities of 12%, 23%…"
"No special physique or talent…"
"Complete root! Purities: 13%, 43%, 50%, 3%, and 10%!"
"No special physique or talent!"
Qing Xuanling watched the dejected children leave the platform with a cold expression—but inwardly, she couldn't help trembling. The last one had awakened a complete root—the worst possible outcome.
It was practically a death sentence. Though some complet roots showed decent purity, advance in the cultivation ment would be nearly impossible.
Just then, Qing Wentian stepped onto the awakening platform. Qing Xuanling—stared intently, silently praying for good news. Soon, the stooped elder took Qing Wentian's wrist and closed his eyes.
But unlike the other children, he remained motionless far longer.
Qing Xuanling grew worried at first—then smiled when she noticed the elders and clan chief wearing excited grins. That could only mean good news!
Confirming her thoughts, the elder opened his eyes and cried out, thrilled: "Dual spiritual root of Fire and Metal! Purities of 81% and 73% respectively! And… a Nine Refinements Body! Haha—our Qing Clan has another supreme genius! The heavens bless us!"
All eight elders and the clan chief rose from their seats, faces alight. A Nine Refinements Body—the legendary physique of the clan's founder! A body capable of aiding artifact forging while simultaneously enhancing the cultivator's strength!
The clan chief clenched his fists, murmuring excitedly: "Yes… yes… those old fools from the Mo Clan will surely grind their teeth when they hear of this…!"
The Young Master merely smiled faintly from his seat. This result had been expected. What intrigued him was a certain brown-haired girl. He glanced at her with anticipation.
The commotion over Qing Wentian's talent lasted several minutes before finally settling. The awakening of the remaining children continued.
It wasn't long before Qing Xuanling's turn arrived.
She felt quite nervous—but thinking of Qing Wentian's success and remembering she too had been favored by the Young Master since childhood, she regained her confidence and extended her wrist without fear.
The stooped elder glanced at her briefly. He'd seen many youths like this—filled with inexplicable confidence. Qing Wentian had been one, but few lived up to that confidence.
Qing Wentian was a unique case.
He would see whether this ordinary-looking girl before him was one of the rare exceptions.
The elder grasped her wrist and activated the spiritual awakening formation to inspect Qing Xuanling's talents.
Qing Xuanling stared back, believing he would spend a full minute examining her—as with Qing Wentian, or even longer. But to her shock, the elder closed his eyes for merely ten seconds before shouting:
"Complete spiritual root. Purities: 3%, 8%, 5%, 9%, and 7%!"
"No special physique or talent!"
Qing Xuanling felt as if struck by lightning. She stared at the stooped elder in disbelief, mouth opening and closing—but no words came out.
Others, however, had plenty to say.
"Eh… Isn't that Xuanling? Wasn't she supposed to be on par with Wentian…?"
"Whoa… I've never seen a complete root where not a single element exceeds ten percent purity! That's not even low-grade anymore—it's worse!"
"Tsk, how amusing! Wasn't she the one always strutting around after being praised by the Young Master? Turns out she was just a fraud!"
Qing Xuanling's world crumbled completely. The expectant gazes she'd received since the Young Master began supporting her at age eight now felt like mountains pressing down on her.
At least, she felt like her heart was being crushed.
Qing Wentian looked at her with concern and quickly helped her leave the hall. The Young Master watched their retreating backs, brow slightly furrowed—then shrugged.
'I suppose I was mistaken. I can't always be right…'
A faint smile touched his lips.
'Though… that girl carries a strong protagonist aura.'