Chapter 14: Spiritual Roots

A total of thirty-five Qi Refining cultivators had passed Yonglu Mountain’s three-stage entrance examination.

This number was neither too large nor too small. According to the rules of Yonglu Mountain, no matter what kind of spiritual roots these thirty-five people tested for, they would all be accepted into the sect. Of course, those with outstanding spiritual roots could be promoted directly to inner sect disciples.

Since Wen Xu’s trio was the first team to reach the finish line, they were also at the very front of the line for the spiritual root testing.

“Ahhhh, I’m so nervous! What should I do? My hands are shaking.” Opening a blind box was the only legal form of gambling a college student could experience, and Bian Chunzhou simply couldn’t resist this kind of thrill. “Aren’t you two nervous at all?”

Wen Xu had his own philosophical mindset. “I’m nervous, but more than that, I’m looking forward to it.” He didn’t like this feeling of suspense, of leaving things to the whims of fate. If anything, he wanted to find out what his spiritual root was as soon as possible.

What a ruthless guy, Bian Chunzhou thought, turning to look at the other person beside him. “What about you?”

“What’s there to be nervous about? Even if I have five spiritual roots, I can still fight!” Chen Zui said nonchalantly. “My mother said Yonglu Mountain doesn’t care about spiritual roots, so don’t worry.”

Bian Chunzhou was speechless. Don’t worry? How the hell can I not worry?!

In this pleasant (?) atmosphere, Bian Chunzhou became the first cultivator to test his spiritual root for this intake at Yonglu Mountain. In his own words, it was better to get it over with quickly.

“Don’t be nervous. Are you ready?” the elder asked kindly.

Bian Chunzhou nodded very nervously. “Ready!” he shouted at the top of his lungs.

The testing elder couldn’t help but smile, thinking this new disciple was certainly energetic. “Since you are ready, inject your spiritual energy into the Spirit Testing Stone. You don’t need too much, just enough to light up the stone.”

“Yes, Elder!”

The elder thought, …There’s really no need to shout. I’m not deaf yet.

Oblivious to this, Bian Chunzhou nervously took two steps forward, took a deep breath, and placed his hand on the Spirit Testing Stone. Before long, the stone lit up with his spiritual energy.

“That’s enough, that’s enough. You can stop now.”

Only then did Bian Chunzhou obediently withdraw his spiritual energy. His eyes remained glued to the Spirit Testing Stone. When the light from the stone burst forth, he heard the elder gasp in astonishment, “Hiss-kid, you are exceptionally gifted!”

What? Exceptionally gifted? Please, do elaborate.

“Yonglu Mountain has thousands of years of history since its founding, yet cultivators with Water-Fire Dual Spiritual Roots like yours can be counted on one hand.” Water and fire were incompatible, yet they coexisted in a single body. While it was fine at lower cultivation levels, once one reached the Golden Core stage, without a special cultivation method, it would be difficult to progress further.

A look of regret couldn’t help but appear in the elder’s eyes.

Bian Chunzhou was devastated. How could this be!

The good news: dual spiritual roots.

The bad news: …they were freaking water and fire, completely incompatible.

Was this poop-flavored chocolate? Was fate playing with him? Bian Chunzhou thought, With such a bizarre spiritual root, I bet no master will even dare to take me in.

Seeing his thunderstruck expression, the elder offered some comfort. “However, the thickness of your Water-Fire Spiritual Root is almost identical, so your current cultivation shouldn’t face any blockages.” But as for the future, it was hard to say. It would depend on his own luck and destiny.

Bian Chunzhou thought, …Great comfort. Don’t do it again.

Bian Chunzhou slumped to the side like a wilted puppy to wait. But on second thought, he was a top college student who had survived the brutal competition of the Gaokao^[1]. Incompatible water and fire? In reality, they weren’t absolutely incompatible. As long as he could find the right balance-a point where the two could maintain a dynamic equilibrium-long-term cultivation was theoretically possible.

After thinking it over, since it wasn’t entirely impossible, he might as well try. After all, he had traveled all the way from the modern world to this cultivation world. Everyone was a first-timer at cultivation; there was no reason for him to chicken out now! He wasn’t afraid!

Besides, Foundation Establishment gave a lifespan of two hundred years, and Golden Core gave five hundred. By then, he might already be tired of living anyway.

That was life-just live it up day by day while it lasted.

“Chunzhou, are you alright?” Wen Xu felt his new friend’s mood was suddenly, inexplicably high. He was a bit worried; a Water-Fire Spiritual Root did sound rather troublesome.

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Chen Zui-Zui is almost done with his test. Don’t worry about me, get ready.”

“Are you really okay?”

“Of course, go on.” After all, as long as he kept an open mind, worries and unhappiness would never catch up to him!

Chen Zui was also a dual spiritual root, but he had Earth-Gold Spiritual Roots. Earth generates gold, meaning the two elements complemented each other. Furthermore, this was the most suitable spiritual root for weapon refining and martial cultivation, perfectly matching Chen Zui’s needs. Given Chen Zui’s passion for cultivation, his cultivation speed might not even be slower than that of a single spiritual root genius.

The elder’s face was already beaming with joy. After all, single spiritual roots were rare-sometimes not even one could be found among ten thousand people. Earth-Gold Spiritual Roots were already one of the best dual-element roots besides a single spiritual root.

“This one is not bad. He’s suitable for your Refining Peak.”

Little Martial Uncle Zheng, however, showed little interest. “Is having me at the Refining Peak not enough? Besides, does he look like someone who enjoys forging iron and stoking furnaces?”

Zhao Qi was speechless.

“If you ask me, he seems quite suited for your Discipline Hall.” They were both single-minded.

Fortunately, their bickering did not affect the testing process in the hall.

Ah, two dual spiritual roots in a row, the testing elder thought. Keep them coming, keep them coming.

The third person was Wen Xu.

“Young man, why are your eyes covered? Do you suffer from some eye ailment?”

Wen Xu bowed respectfully. “Yes, I have an eye condition, which is why I cover them.”

Oh, that was rare. But blindness was no major obstacle. Once he earned some Sect Contribution Points, he could just ask the apothecaries at the Alchemy Peak to brew a pill specifically for treating eyes.

“Well then, you may begin.”

Wen Xu reached out, channeling his spiritual energy into the Spirit Testing Stone. Although he hadn’t been cultivating for long, his control over his spiritual energy was quite proficient. Before the elder could even speak, he had already withdrawn any excess energy.

The elder couldn’t help but take a second look at the young man. But when he saw the light bursting from the stone, he was so shocked he nearly jumped out of his seat. In fact, the moment the Spirit Testing Stone lit up, even the people watching in front of the shadow wall could no longer sit still!

“It’s actually a single Mutated Wind Spiritual Root!”

“No! We must seal off this news immediately! We can’t let the people from the Hehe Sect find out. If that woman Jun Zhaoying hears about this, believe it or not, she’ll dare to come straight to our door to snatch him away!”

“She wouldn’t dare! He fell right into our Yonglu Mountain’s preliminary trial realm. This is a prime seed sent to us by the heavens themselves!”

“Where are the people from Alchemy Peak? Hurry up and treat this kid’s eyes first!”

…

A group of powerful cultivators whose cultivation bases started at the Nascent Soul realm were behaving no differently from elderly shoppers haggling at a vegetable market. This was a Mutated Spiritual Root, and a wind-attributed one at that. Its rarity was second only to lightning and ice spiritual roots.

In truth, while single spiritual roots were rare, major sects still had a few of them. Although Little Martial Uncle Zheng Jin was unreliable, he possessed a single metal spiritual root.

But Mutated Spiritual Roots were far too rare. If a sect had even one or two, they would guard them like precious treasures. One only had to look at the Suitian Sword Sect; ever since Sword Venerable Meixi grew to power, the Suitian Sword Sect leader’s spine had straightened considerably.

It could be said that every cultivator with a single-attribute Mutated Spiritual Root was favored by the Heavenly Dao, a true darling of the heavens. If they managed to grow to maturity, they would inevitably become a powerhouse of their generation.

“Good, good, good! I didn’t expect it would finally be our Yonglu Mountain’s turn this time!”

Zheng Jin, however, sighed with a hint of regret. “To think it’s a wind spiritual root. No wonder my fan took such a liking to him. But since wind spiritual roots mutate from wood and earth spiritual roots, it’s no surprise he was able to pick the King Danxiang Grass.”

Indeed, so-called Mutated Spiritual Roots were actually formed from the mutation of two or three elemental spiritual roots. As a cultivator grew, their spiritual roots underwent a mutation, or rather a fusion, to become an entirely new type of spiritual root. This was how the three known mutated spiritual roots in the cultivation world had come to be.

Furthermore, due to this fusion, a Mutated Spiritual Root was top-tier in both cultivation speed and spiritual energy absorption.

To put it in the simplest, most blunt terms, a Mutated Spiritual Root made someone a genius among geniuses.

Because the elder had been dazed for so long, Wen Xu was starting to feel anxious. “Elder?” Was his spiritual root too poor?

“Oh, oh, oh, your name is Wen Xu, right? Good child, your talent is exceptional.”

Wen Xu was puzzled. In his nearly twenty years of life, this was the first time anyone had called him a good child. It was rather creepy. Even Bian Chunzhou and Chen Zui, who were standing nearby, felt the elder’s smile was a bit… sleazy.

Was Wen Xuxu’s spiritual root really that good?

Bian Chunzhou thought, Could it be a single spiritual root? A single Mutated Spiritual Root? Don’t tell me it’s wind-attributed? Wen Xuxu did use that fan quite nimbly.

Then, in the next moment, he heard the words “Mutated Wind Spiritual Root” from the elder’s mouth.

Ahhh! His guess was way too accurate! No, wait, his new friend was actually a cultivation genius! He had picked up a cultivation genius for a friend! Shouldn’t Yonglu Mountain award him a giant banner of commendation?

“Wen Xuxu, when you strike it rich, don’t forget me^[2]!”

Even Chen Zui silently adjusted his mental ranking for Wen Xu: [A fine rival who will grow in the future +1].

Only Wen Xu, because the description of spiritual roots on the jade slip he had read was far too brief, had no idea how rare a wind spiritual root was. He even asked a rare, foolish question: “Does ‘mutated’ mean it’s not very good?”

Everyone: !!!! Can someone please drag this humblebragger out! We want to mutate too! If you don’t want it, give it to us!

However, by the time all thirty-five people had finished testing their spiritual roots, not a single other Mutated Spiritual Root appeared besides Wen Xu’s. There were, however, two geniuses with single spiritual roots.

Xia Ying, the niece of the city lord of Langyuan City, possessed a single fire spiritual root. The other was named Lin Congcong; although her name contained characters for water and wood, she possessed an earth spiritual root, which had absolutely nothing to do with water.

It was only when the testing ended, as Wen Xu felt the envious, sighing, and astonished gazes landing on him, that he finally felt a sense of reality: I have actually received a rare favor from the heavens.

But he quickly realized that if he was a cultivation genius, didn’t that mean there was hope for his revenge?!