"I'll see to it that she gets a copy of the Strokes of Grim Fate," Florist Dongtian said once it seemed that Wu Ling's words had pulled the younger girl back from the edge. Already, Wu Ling was showing herself to be a capable senior sister in Florist Dongtian's eyes. She had a growing apprehension, however, that the Outer Sect wouldn't benefit from her presence for very long.
"As a manual for bestowing curses with Calligraphy, the Strokes of Grim Fate is among the best," the Florist said, agreeing with the path Wu Ling's mother had set out. "Does your mother intend that she be given the identity of a direct disciple now?"
"No," Wu Ling said, stepping away from Su Yao after giving her a last reassuring squeeze. "She has to prove that she can awaken as a Mystic by twenty. If she can't do that, my mother may still tutor her when she does awaken as a Mystic but it won't be the same as being a direct disciple."
"Good, that's how it should be," the older woman said with a smile. "You have a great opportunity ahead of you, young lady. Elder Phantom is one of the most powerful Sorceresses in the Outer Sect. Don't miss your chance to earn her favor," she said, further stoking the eager flame Wu Ling had built within the young woman. Once she was certain that Su Yao had processed the revelation enough that she wouldn't make any rash moves when they moved to the Hidden Library to claim her cultivation manual, she turned her attention back to Wu Ling.
"Now, Young Lady Wu, the Hall Master is waiting so it's your turn to step up and take the last test. I'll also need your identity plate to add your contribution points for bringing us such amazing young geniuses. It's just a bit over fifteen thousand points, that should buy you more than a few brushes and paints," she added with a smile.
"Thank you Florist Dongtian," Wu Ling said, passing over his jade identity plate before placing his hands on the Pathfinder Tree Formation. When he did, however, the entire room became still. On the entire board, only one crystal, representing the ability to become a Martial Hero, had failed to light up.
"No wonder you're already a middle-stage Aesthete so soon after awakening," Novice Dongtian whispered. "This tool can't measure your limits, it's only capable of assessing barriers that occur beneath the fifth stage. For every path other than the martial path, your potential is greater than what the Pathfinder Tree Formation can measure. You might be able to reach the sixth stage like the Sect Master, or perhaps further. Young Lady Wu," she breathed, staring at him in shock. "Talent like this could get you into the first-rank sects."
In Silver Sword City, third-ranked sects rarely had any cultivators above the third stage. If they did, it might be a single Ancestor or Sect Master who had reached the end of their cultivation journey in the fourth stage, or else the sect was too young to have produced multiple cultivators with the qualifications to enter the Inner City.
Second-rank sects were those who not only had numerous cultivators at the fourth stage but cultivators at the fifth and even sixth stage as well. The Hall Master of this branch of the Bamboo Silk House had been a fifth-stage cultivator for more than a hundred years and still hadn't reached her peak. Of course, not all second-ranked sects were equal. While the Bamboo Silk House and the Sanguine Saber Sect were both counted as 'second-rank' sects, the latter had several times as many powerful cultivators as the former. If the two were to truly crash, the Bamboo Silk House wouldn't survive as more than broken remnants and refugees.
First-rank sects, however, were as rare as the tail feathers of a phoenix. The Paragon Sword Sect that loomed over all of Silver Sword City was one such sect, with cultivators that reached the seventh stage and beyond. The standards to enter such a sect were remarkably high and the hundreds of pilgrims they rejected every year demonstrated just how hard it was to reach the heights of such a sect.
Were it not for the fact that the Paragon Sword Sect was a martial sect, aligned with Wu Ling's least favored path, his talents would surely find him a home on their lofty mountain tops. Florist Dongtian had known for a long time that Young Lady Wu was a treasure of the back of the sect, but only now did she realize how much of a treasure this young lady truly was!
"Whether I could join a first-rank sect or not, it doesn't matter," Wu Ling said with an ironic smile. "I've already been claimed by the Bamboo Silk House. This is my mother's sect, and my sect too. If the day comes that I outgrow it, perhaps I'll leave then," he said. "But for now, I'm just a little Aesthete with a bit of potential. It remains to be seen if I can make anything of it."
Inwardly, he wondered how much of the result had to do with him and how much of it had to do with his unique awakening and the inheritance of the Illusory Butterfly Immortal Empress he'd received. He knew that both his parents were talented but neither of them was as exaggerated as this.
"Well, now I know why the Hall Master has been so intent on meeting with you as soon as you complete your tests," the older woman finally said after making several notations. "You should go now, it's not good to keep the Hall Master waiting."
"As for you two," the Novice Scholar said to Su Yao and Yao Meifeng. "There's one more tool you'll need to use to bind your identity plates. As new disciples with extraordinary talent, you'll start with a gift of fifty contribution points for each of the large crystals you managed to light up. Before you rush off to the Onyx Treasure Tower, consider that you'll need to select a place to live within the sect, and you may need some resources to attune yourselves to your new cultivation manuals once you've received them."
"These points are intended to ensure that you can transition smoothly to life in the sect so don't squander them on a few moments of indulgence," she cautioned, having seen several young women do exactly that. "You have until the new moon to resolve any business you have outside of the sect and then you're expected to live here for at least your first year of life as a disciple."
"Florist Dongtian, thank you for taking care of them," Wu Ling said, bowing slightly with cupped hands. "Su Yao, Yao Meifeng, welcome to the sect," he said with a smile, stepping over to each of the young women to give them a warm hug.
"When I'm done meeting with the Hall Master, I'll come find you at the Jade Lantana Hall. One tip from your Senior Sister," he said with a smile now that he could reverse the title he addressed Yao Meifeng with. "There are suites in the Jade Lantana Hall that are designed for sisters who choose to be roommates. I know you two don't know each other well, but I think I know you both well enough to say that I think you could become good friends. Consider that it might be nice while you adjust to life in the sect to have the company of a classmate from the Pure Virtue Musician's Hall."
"Sis-senior Sister Wu Ling," Su Yao said, catching his hand as he turned to leave. "Will you be moving into the sect as well?"
"No," he said simply. "I need to continue to live with my mother outside the sect for a time. The Hall Master has her reasons for our arrangement and they're a little unique, but you can always visit. Junior Sister Yao," he added with a teasing smile. "My room is still always open to you, anytime you need company, day or night."