As the Sect Selection Exams were about to begin, the atmosphere at the entrance of the Devil Sect was buzzing with excitement and anticipation.
The crowd of youngsters grew larger by the minute, each one eager to prove themselves worthy of becoming an Elder's disciple.
The red-haired boy, who had been dismissed and mocked by many, stood tall among the crowd, ignoring the taunts.
Occasionally, he could be heard talking to himself and looking blankly into the distance in front of him.
After another hour passed, the gates of the Devil Sect opened.
The candidates were led into a vast arena, surrounded by towering walls and adorned with intricate symbols of the Sect.
"Where are the Elders? Aren't they going to arrive to witness our performance?" One of the youngsters asked a Sect Disciple who had brought them here.
The young disciple scoffed. "You think you are worthy of an Elder's presence?"
The young boy's face turned red in embarrassment, hearing the words of the Sect Disciple.
Him, being worthy of an Elder's presence? How could that be possible? Even his father would have to wait in line if he wanted to meet an ordinary disciple of the Devil Sect, let alone an Elder.
Another young disciple smiled compassionately as he stepped forward.
"It's alright, Junior Brother. It's understandable that they are excited. We were the same when we had just arrived here."
He turned towards the youngsters who had gathered there, numbering in the thousands.
"The Elders would be in attendance later. But first, we have to make sure if you're even worthy of participating in the entrance exams."
He pointed towards a crystal sphere that was placed over a stone table in the distance.
"The Sphere will tell us your innate talent," he explained. "Only those who meet the minimum criteria will be able to pass and actually get the opportunity to take part in the Sect Entrance Exam."
"As many of you may already know, there are seven levels of talent. Each level is represented by a color. If the sphere shines red, it means you have level 1 talent."
"Level one talent? Does that mean it's good?" A young boy asked.
"It basically means you're worse than trash." The sect disciple laughed, causing murmurs of disbelief among the crowd.
"Only those who have a level three talent or higher will have an opportunity to go further. Everyone else will be sent back before they even see the shadow of an Elder."
Many young men gulped heavily. They had come all this way, and if they failed here, they couldn't even see the Elders, let alone take part in the exams?
When it came to fighting, they could at least put their lives on the line to win. They could control their fate. But what about the talent? They had no control over it!
Many youngsters who had never once tested their talents previously were nervous.
Meanwhile, the youngsters who had come from the Great Clans, were confident.
Their family had a lot of information about the demon sect entrance exams.
In fact, they had already tested their talents back home, thanks to their families spending an exorbitant amount of wealth to buy talent measuring stones.
Only when they at least reached three stars were they allowed to even attend the Sect Entrance Exams, in order to not embarrass their clans.
After some time, the testing finally began. One after another, youngsters stepped forward and placed their hands on the Crystal Sphere.
Most of them only made the Crystal shine in a red light, feeling dejected. They had the weakest talent that wasn't even enough to allow them to be a servant at the Great Demon Sect.
Within the first hour itself, thousands of youngsters were tested. And a vast majority of them were one star talents. A small number of them were two stars. And only a rare few were three stars or more.
After three hours passed, almost all youngsters were tested. And amongst the thousands, only around five hundred of them were selected for the next stage of the entrance exam.
There was only one person left to be tested now. A young red haired boy who carried a heavy sword on his back.
The red haired boy stepped forward, muttering to himself.
"The System did give me a three star talent as a reward last time, but will that really be reflected on the Crystal? Or will it see my real one star talent?"
Even he didn't appear to be confident. But still, he stepped forward.
Taking a deep breath, he placed his hand on the crystal sphere and eagerly waited for a response.
Only a few seconds had passed before the crystal even started reacting. A minor red shine enveloped the crystal.
"Another one star talent." The Sect Disciple rolled his eyes. "You can leave as well."
The red haired boy looked in disbelief. So it was true. The crystal only saw his real talent and not the one rewarded by his system?
He felt disappointed. He had failed the test. But still, he had the help of the system. He believed that even without the sect, he could become stronger!
As long as he was guided by the system, he had faith.
"What a pity that I can't finish the quest given by the system."
Letting out a sigh, he was about to take his hands off the crystal. But before he could take his hands off, he saw some movement in the crystal.
The red color in the crystal slowly turned into orange.
"A two star?" The Sect Disciple asked, slightly surprised. "What a pity, that it's still not eno-"
Before he could even finish his sentence, the color in the Crystal changed again, turning into yellow.
"A three star?" Even the disciples of the Sect were surprised.
Usually, Crystal showed talent right at the start. It was the first time they had seen the colors climbing slowly to real talent.
They waited for a few minutes to see if the color was going to change again. But it never did.
"A three star talent, barely enough I suppose." The Sect Disciple pulled out a participation token.
"What is your name?" He asked the red haired boy, prepared to carve the name in the token.
"Ye Liang." The red haired boy let out a smile. He had finally done it.
He could enter the sect and complete the quest given by the system not long ago!
He could finally kill the man known as Elder Ren, completing his Main Scenario Quest!