The final demonstration ended just before sunset.
The Grand Martial Arena gradually emptied as applicants were escorted back to their temporary residences.
The Academy elders remained behind.
Their discussions had only just begun.
---
Within the Hall of Elders...
More than thirty instructors sat around a circular table.
In the center floated hundreds of jade slips.
Each represented an applicant.
Their performances.
Their evaluations.
Their potential.
One by one...
The elders voiced their opinions.
"This one possesses excellent fire affinity."
"Strong spear talent."
"Outstanding formation aptitude."
"Exceptional control."
The discussions continued late into the evening.
---
Eventually...
An elder picked up a single jade slip.
"Kieran."
The hall fell noticeably quieter.
The elder responsible for the Trial of Mind spoke first.
"He recognized illusion through observation rather than force."
The examiner from the Trial of Character nodded.
"He refused to judge before seeking the truth."
Another elder added,
"He awakened resonance with a monument untouched for nearly a century."
Finally...
The elderly sword instructor smiled.
"His sword fundamentals are the finest I have seen from someone his age."
---
One elder frowned.
"But..."
"He cannot cultivate."
Silence returned.
That single fact overshadowed everything else.
No matter how extraordinary his understanding...
Without cultivation...
Could he truly walk far?
---
At the head of the table...
The Headmaster finally spoke.
"Can he cultivate?"
The elders exchanged glances.
One answered honestly.
"We cannot tell."
Another shook his head.
"It appears as though something prevents his body from absorbing Magna."
The Headmaster closed his eyes.
He remembered the faint sensation he had noticed whenever Kieran was nearby.
Not Magna.
Not bloodline.
Something...
Hidden.
Something ancient.
Yet he had not attempted to investigate further.
Whatever it was...
It did not belong to him.
He simply said,
"Accept him."
No one objected.
---
That night...
Kieran stood alone on the balcony of the Guild residence.
The Sacred Peaks shimmered beneath the moonlight.
A cool breeze carried the scent of pine.
The examinations were over.
Now...
All that remained was the announcement of the results.
He reached into his robe and gently held the wooden pendant Crystal had carved years ago.
"I've done everything I could."
A smile appeared on his face.
"The rest..."
"...is up to fate."
---
At that exact moment...
Something changed.
Deep within his body...
The Ancient Foundation Seal trembled.
Not violently.
But unmistakably.
A faint crack echoed through the darkness of his spiritual sea.
Crack...
Kieran's eyes widened.
He instinctively closed them.
For the first time in his life...
He saw it.
An enormous seal, ancient beyond comprehension, suspended within an endless void.
Countless intricate patterns covered its surface.
Most remained intact.
But one...
A single tiny fragment...
Had broken away.
The fragment dissolved into countless motes of golden light.
Those motes drifted gently through his body.
They did not increase his strength.
They did not grant him cultivation.
Instead...
They quietly transformed him.
His bones.
His muscles.
His meridians.
Even his soul.
Every part of him became just a little more complete.
The process lasted only a few breaths.
Then...
The seal became silent once more.
---
Kieran slowly opened his eyes.
His breathing remained calm.
Nothing around him had changed.
Yet...
He felt lighter.
As though an invisible weight he had carried since birth had lessened.
He looked at his hands.
"They feel..."
"...different."
He couldn't explain how.
Only that they did.
---
Far away...
In the Hidden Valley...
Crystal suddenly stopped what she was doing.
A gentle smile spread across her face.
"It has begun."
Kael looked up immediately.
"The seal?"
Crystal nodded.
"The first lock has opened."
Kael released a slow breath.
"So..."
"He truly reached the Academy before it happened."
"As it was always meant to."
Crystal's eyes reflected both pride and relief.
"Now..."
"He'll begin changing faster."
"But he still won't realize why."
---
Back at the Academy...
The Headmaster, who had been meditating alone in his pavilion, slowly opened his eyes.
For the briefest instant...
He sensed an indescribably ancient fluctuation somewhere within Academy City.
It vanished before he could identify its source.
He frowned slightly.
Then smiled.
"So..."
"The wind has finally begun to move."
He did not know what had happened.
Nor did he intend to search for it.
Some mysteries...
Revealed themselves only when the time was right.
And the Headmaster had long ago learned the value of patience.
Far below...
Kieran looked toward the Academy shining beneath the moon.
Tomorrow...
The successful candidates would officially become students.
Unbeknownst to everyone...
A journey twelve years in the making had finally reached its true beginning.
End of Chapter 72