Chapter 527 - 525: Running in Place

Fifth Layer Celestial Peak. Each of the Celestial Peaks had its own significance. Everyone had to use this Testing Stele to determine which Celestial Peak was most suitable for them.

This applied to absolutely everyone—members of the Bu Family and outsiders who had joined alike. All of them needed to be tested.

They exchanged glances, and soon, someone stepped forward to the Testing Stele, wanting to be the first to test. Lin Xuan noted that this person’s Cultivation was not weak, but since he hadn’t been paying much attention, he didn’t know their name or rank.

Although they were all from Alliance Countries, it didn’t mean their relationships were particularly good. If they were assigned to the same Celestial Peak, they would likely have to interact.

"Place your hand on it and pour your body’s Elemental Power inside. No complex actions are necessary. It’s the same principle as the Talent Steles you’ve used before," Bu Feiyun explained from the side.

The disciple nodded, placed his hand on the Testing Stele, and channeled his Elemental Power into it. The next moment, the entire Stone Stele erupted in a dazzling, golden light. At the same time, the words "Eighth-class Talent" appeared!

Eighth-class Talent. The very first person to be tested had an Eighth-class Talent, yet everyone’s expressions were relatively calm, showing no particular surprise. The reason was simple: they had seen it too many times. While Eighth-class Talents weren’t numerous, they were still quite common in the Bu Family.

When the numbers were large enough, the appearance of an Eighth-class Talent was normal. This was especially true for those who had distinguished themselves in the Empire’s great war, who all had at least a Seventh-class Talent. Thus, an Eighth-class was not particularly rare. It was still very good, but to truly shock them, it would take at least a Ninth-class Talent, or even a Great Perfection Talent.

A Tenth-class Talent was known as a Great Perfection Talent. It was something that existed only in legends; no one had ever seen someone with a Great Perfection Talent. The highest ever seen was a Ninth-class Talent, which was already terrifyingly high.

If this disciple had a Ninth-class Talent, it would have undoubtedly stunned everyone present. If an Eighth-class Talent appeared once in tens of millions of people, then a Ninth-class Talent would only appear once in hundreds of millions!

To put it this way, among everyone in the Bu Family, only the Patriarch possessed a Ninth-class Talent. The other Elders, at best, had an Eighth-class Talent. Therefore, a Ninth-class Talent was exceedingly rare, and a Great Perfection Talent was even more so—truly the stuff of legends.

"Mm, Eighth-class Talent, Gold Attribute Physique. You can go to the second Celestial Peak. It specializes in Golden Elemental Power Martial Arts and is the most suitable place for you," Bu Feiyun said with a satisfied nod. "Next."

The next person stepped up, also placing their hand on the Testing Stele. The result came out quickly: another Eighth-class Talent, this time with an Earth Elemental Power Attribute physique. He was assigned to the third Celestial Peak, which specialized in Earth Elemental Power Martial Arts and even had training grounds tailored to his physique.

Now Lin Xuan roughly understood. The five peaks of the Fifth Layer Celestial Peak corresponded to the five Attributes: Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. Everyone’s physique was different; some even possessed two Elemental Power physiques. The main thing was to see which Attribute they were primarily inclined toward.

Different Attributes meant joining different Celestial Peaks. This kind of targeted Cultivation, when paired with one’s physique, would accelerate their progress. It was like Lin Xue’s Ice Yin Body, which was essentially a Water Elemental Power physique—or more precisely, an Ice Elemental Power physique—but she would still be assigned to the Celestial Peak exclusive to Water Elemental Power.

With specialized training, one would cultivate better. There was no doubt about that.

After several more people were tested in succession, all of them had an Eighth-class Talent. Not a single one was below Eighth-class, which was truly astonishing. Back in the Soaring Dragon Empire, so many Eighth-class Talents would have made them ecstatic, but things were different here.

It wasn’t that the Bu Family had an abundance of Eighth-class Talents—they were still relatively rare. It was just that they weren’t overly prized, rather than not being valued at all.

’An Attribute? I don’t even know what my own Attribute is anymore...’

Lin Xuan mocked himself inwardly. He had no idea what kind of physique he belonged to, as he had never paid attention to it. As long as he wanted, he could use Soul Possession with a corresponding soul to transform into a different physique. Because of this, he didn’t care about such things, unlike others who were quite concerned.

Finally, it was Lin Xuan’s turn. He was the center of everyone’s attention, the one who had led the Bu Family to first place. What kind of talent would he have? Would it be Eighth-class, or Ninth-class?

After all, his achievements were so Heaven-Defying that everyone imagined the best-case scenario, not the worst.

There were many people in the palace, all of them top-level experts; no one else was allowed to enter and disturb them. Some in the crowd were expectant, while others were jealous. To achieve so much at such a young age was, of course, a reason for envy. It meant that a significant portion of resources would be diverted to him.

"I wonder what kind of talent this Mu Shuang will have? Eighth-class, or Ninth-class?"

"I think it must be Ninth-class! He was first place in the Empire’s great war, after all!"

"Whether it’s Eighth-class or Ninth-class, the Elders will certainly treat him well. I just wonder how far he’ll be able to go in the future..."

...

The surrounding Stewards discussed animatedly, all of them eager to see what level of talent Lin Xuan would reach. In any case, it definitely wouldn’t be low.

’My talent level? It’s been so long, I should be able to reach Eighth-class Talent by now, right?’ Lin Xuan thought. The last time he tested his talent level, long ago, it was Seventh-class. It should be Eighth-class now. He could even feel that his affinity for the surrounding Elemental Power had grown stronger.

An increase in talent was an increase in one’s affinity for the surrounding Elemental Power, a fact that could be judged by feeling alone.

He then walked forward and, under everyone’s watchful gaze, placed his hand on the Testing Stele. In an instant, the entire Stone Stele emitted a dazzling light, but it was slightly dimmer than the previous tests. Moreover, it didn’t display any Attribute color.

Ultimately, the words that appeared on the Stone Stele were: Seventh-class!

Seventh-class Talent?

Everyone was stunned. They had run through countless scenarios in their minds, all of them hovering between Eighth-class and Ninth-class. No one had ever expected it to be Seventh-class Talent! After all that anticipation, it was only Seventh-class Talent!

"Seventh-class Talent?" Lin Xuan froze. He hadn’t expected that after so long, he was still at the Seventh-class Talent level. This was rather strange.

Based on his affinity, he should have reached Eighth-class Talent. But reality was so cruel; it was only Seventh-class. However, he didn’t feel particularly dejected. Perhaps his progress was just slower in the Late Stages.

The reason the Lin Family was so powerful was their ability to slowly climb higher. In the end, the Lin Family members with the purest bloodline would all reach Ninth-class Talent. One Ninth-class Talent was terrifying, but what if there were several?

"What? Only Seventh-class Talent?" Bu Feiyun’s brow furrowed. He hadn’t expected this result.

The other participants exchanged glances, a hint of schadenfreude visible in their eyes. To have low talent but high comprehensive strength could only mean one thing: either he had been showered with resources, or he had received some kind of inheritance. In the end, it just meant his luck was off the charts. The day his luck ran out, it would be difficult for him to advance any further!

When it came down to it, Lin Xuan had only achieved what he had through sheer luck.