Chapter 2 - Aptitude

Li Lang couldn't help but well up with excitement as his curiosity about his new world was sparked. A world of cultivation, as told in the fictional stories he had previously read for inspiration in his research. These stories all depicted a world where humans could transcend their mortality and break free from the shackles of time, which was exactly what he had been seeking in his research. He had thought cultivation only existed in fiction, but that was no longer the case, given what he had learned from his hazy memories.How curious, a world where it's possible to live longer by simply cultivating these mysterious techniques… No, calm down. There's no definitive proof that is the case yet. It is unclear how attaining power that can let you fly and change the terrain correlates to prolonging the lifespan. I need to further research this immediately!Before Li Lang could lose himself to his curiosity, the commotion of hundreds and hundreds of children clamoring drew his attention. They had come from all the surrounding towns and villages and grew more boisterous by the second. If one looked down from above, it would almost seem like an invisible force took hold of the sea of people below and made them form neat lines in front of the disciples from the Clear Heart Sect.Li Lang was no exception as the momentum of the surrounding crowd swept him along. He was troubled by this new development, but he didn't know what to do. As a high-level researcher, he had spent the majority of his previous life indoors and had security guards accompany him in public venues where such large crowds gathered.The people behind him wanted to push forward while some of the people up front wanted to travel in the opposite direction to join the tail end of the line.Just as he was about to lose his balance from the shoving, a hand extended out of the crowd and suddenly grabbed onto his hand. The firm grip pulled him forward with surprising strength and the resistance of the people in his way weakened.By the time Li Lang caught his breath, he realized he was in the orderly part of the line, with the struggle to join it now behind him. He glanced down at his hand and then up toward the person who was still holding onto him. He found a young boy staring worriedly at him, along with a girl.They greatly resembled each other, and their clothes matched as well. They even wore matching jewelry, with the boy wearing a ring adorned with a red gemstone, while the girl wore a hair stick filled with smaller pieces of gemstones of the same color.Li Lang swiftly checked his own clothes and found that he was wearing clothing of a similar design, and was also wearing a necklace with a red gemstone the size of a coin.Upon making eye contact with them, some of his memories began to resurface.Twins…They are…the children of the man who took me in. My childhood friends, Zi Xi, and Zi Xiao Mei."Li Lang, are you okay?" the girl with long black hair, who he recalled to be Zi Xiao Mei, meekly asked."What were you doing spacing out? I had just told you to follow me closely!" the boy, named Zi Xi, admonished as he released Li Lang's hand.It only took an instant for Li Lang to remember his former self, who had come here along with these two siblings, to take part in the selection test of the Clear Heart Sect.He remembered when they had first entered into the sea of children, a terrible headache suddenly struck Li Lang as his memories began sorting themselves all at once. His brain had grown enough to accommodate his consciousness, but the bad timing had separated Li Lang from his friends.Not able to explain the truth, Li Lang could only scratch his cheeks as he came up with an excuse."Sorry, I got distracted.""Brother, it's your fault for not keeping a close eye on him!" The young girl pulled on her brother's sleeve. "You know Li Lang sometimes spaces out. It's not his fault!"Zi Xiao Mei then brushed past her brother and went to console Li Lang. Seeing how his sister doted on their friend, Zi Xi shook his head and gestured for them to move ahead of him so he could keep watch over them from behind.The trio completely ignored the commotion happening in the back, where the other children continued to shove their way into the line and merrily chatted amongst themselves, as if they were in their own little world. The line inched forward every few seconds, and they were soon able to make out the faces of the disciples from the Clear Heart Sect that were administering the tests."Look, Li Lang! The orb over there is glowing yellow!"Zi Xiao Mei excitedly pointed toward a young child who had placed his hands on the orb before him. The examiner, who appeared to be a teenager, carefully scrutinized the orb as they recorded the results.Li Lang watched on, completely unaware of what the yellow light signified, and Zi Xiao Mei perfectly saw through that."Don't you remember? Lord Father said that only one in a hundred people have grade three aptitude, and the yellow light represents exactly that!"Li Lang searched his memories, but it appeared he had been spacing out when he was being taught about the aptitude levels."Then what grade do those red lights signify?" Li Lang pointed toward the orbs where other children were being tested as his curiosity compelled him to ask.Xi Xiao Mei smiled patiently and explained."Red is grade one, and orange is grade two. Lord Father says the Clear Heart Sect, like the other righteous sects, only accepts disciples with at least a grade two aptitude."Hearing Xi Xiao Mei's explanation, Li Lang immediately came up with some theories. Some habits died hard, especially ones that were cultivated throughout a lifetime.The colors are based on the wavelengths of visible light…Before Xi Xiao Mei could continue, a commotion drew their attention to where one of the orbs was. Li Lang instantly spotted the orange glow of the orb, which only made him more curious as it drew even more attention than the previous instance with the yellow orb."Deacon Yu, please examine this child!" The examiner behind the orange orb yelled out toward the man who had floated in the air earlier. The man was now levitating only slightly off the ground with his legs crossed.He slowly opened his eyes, casually walked over, and pulled up the sleeves of the confused boy, who still had one hand on the orb. He placed a hand on his wrist for a short moment before turning back to the examiner."Twenty-three spiritual roots, grade two aptitude with the Serene Lotus physique. Carry on."The examiner's eyes widened at the news and immediately jotted something down on his notes with his brush while his superior simply walked away, as if it was nothing special and resumed his meditation. Li Lang found the contrast in their reaction made for an interesting scene.The tests continued, and Li Lang carefully observed the proceedings. He found that a majority of people had grade one talent, with less than ten percent of the people here managing to change the orb to the next color. The physiques were even more rare, and judging from the examiner's reaction, they were a big deal.As someone who has memories from another world, will I get anything special?"Stop looking so worried." Li Lang turned around to find Zi Xi placing a hand on his shoulder. "They say people with unique bodies have a higher chance of having a heavenly physique."Only with those words that Li Lang was reminded his body was currently deformed. He had an abnormally large head compared to his body, and this was one of the reasons why no one in the city treated him too badly since his childhood. People may have shunned him and ignored him, but none had dared to bully him in fear of him possessing a unique physique.Reminiscing through the scenes of the past, Li Lang found that only the Zi siblings and their father treated him with kindness.Before long, it was finally the trio's turn, with Li Lang up first."Next!"The young man in beige robes urged him forward, and he did as many before him had done, placing a hand on the transparent orb on the table.He instantly felt an invisible wave pass through his body before returning to the orb. The color of the orb began to change. The orb took on a light red hue, and everyone watched on, waiting in anticipation for the orb to change colors.But that never happened.The faded red color persisted, and everyone watching gasped. The examiner turned around and called out to the man hovering a short distance away."Deacon Yu, I need your attention here!"The deacon wordlessly approached. Seeing him up close, Li Lang could feel an aura around the man that was filled with power. When he swept his gaze over him, he couldn't help but shudder. The man then proceeded to place two fingers on his wrist and furrowed his brow. He shook his head at the examiner, who was eagerly waiting with his quill brush."Only five spiritual roots… Grade one aptitude, and does not possess any heavenly physique. How strange given his physical deformations…"He thought about it for a few more moments before he lost interest and moved away while Li Lang stood there, frozen stiff.Am I destined not to be able to research phenomena that open the door to immortality…?Li Lang dreaded the thought of losing access to the mysterious power of cultivation after just coming into contact with it. It was something he became more obsessed with every second, and something he wanted to research right away. However, he knew it wouldn't be easy to do so if he didn't become a cultivator himself.Just as he was feeling dejected, he suddenly remembered his mother's valuable teachings."No, I won't give up. Failure is when you become too afraid to even try," Li Lang muttered."Next!"The examiner's words reminded Li Lang he had to move. However, before he could turn around, a familiar sensation landed on his shoulder and it spread a warm, reassuring feeling through his body."Don't worry, I'll definitely become a great cultivator in your place and get you an Ascension Pill, too."Li Lang turned around and found Zi Xi standing behind him with flaming eyes of determination.