The two docked on the floor among the many other ships.

Xia Zhilan led Kit through the thousands of people before the palace, pushing their way through to appear in front of the entry gates.

At those gates were people behind tables checking entrants in.

Xia Zhilan directly bypassed the huge line of people, appearing before the gatekeepers and speaking with imposition.

“Xia Zhilan.”

She simply spoke her name, causing the man behind the table to glance at her before sifting through a jade tablet.

The tablet flashed with words, quickly displaying her name.

“Kit?”

“Correct.”

“Very well. Here are the tokens. Enter and await the start of the exam at the two pillars.”

“Thank you.”

Just like that, the two entered, skipping hours of waiting. That was the privilege of an Outer Court Elder.

Upon entering, Kit glanced around.

There were already thousands of people waiting, though many of them were the guardians of the entrants. The plaza was more than big enough to hold everyone.

And because of the screening process that directly rejected anyone without status, everyone looked like a noble. There were countless kids from big families, and all of them came to one of these division 1 palaces.

Kit was no doubt the lowest status out of everyone. And while his clothes were clean and nice, he looked like nothing more than a commoner in front of everyone who wore luxurious robes embroidered with golden designs or flowing silk.

Eventually, they made it to the two pillars the previous man spoke of.

They were merely the beacons of another entrance. Between them was a staircase that rose high into the distance.

And along the staircase were three different zones. They looked no different from each other, but Kit knew that they held significance.

It was only at the top of those stairs did one enter the palace proper.

“Kit, come here.”

As he dozed off, Xia Zhilan called out. Kit trotted over to where she was standing.

There was another large plaza, but this one had a purpose.

Within the plaza were eight large monoliths. On them were nine stars that rose from its bottom to top.

Kit quickly guessed what it was.

“These monoliths verify that you not only have a dantian, but what level your dantian is. You just have to infuse Qi from your dantian, and it’ll do the rest. Go on while I check you in.”

She pat his back before walking over to another man with a jade tablet. Kit levelled his gaze on an empty monolith before walking over.

As he did so, he watched the rest of the monoliths.

“Oh! 7 stars! Amazing!”

“I only got 5…”

“6 stars! Not bad!”

Many cheered and many were disappointed. Everyone here had completed immersion and created their dantian, but there were still differences in the quality of the dantian.

Kit could see the stars of each monolith rise before stopping at whatever star the entrant had.

He didn’t see anybody at 8 stars, let alone 9.

Then again, they might have just tested earlier. Who knew.

Kit stepped before a monolith, his large sword and common clothes attracting attention. Everyone here had some status, so someone like Kit attracted more eyes than not. Plus, everyone was watching the monoliths as a show since they were all waiting around and bored.

Before infusing his Qi, Kit checked back and found his aunt. She was pointing at him, the man she was talking to following her direction and observing Kit.

When she nodded, Kit nodded back.

Infuse your Qi…

Kit concentrated. He knew how to control Qi and get it to absorb into his body, but he had never actually brought it out of his dantian and let it flow.

A first time for everything.

Thinking that, Kit felt his dantian, felt the Qi within, and directed the feeling.

And shockingly, the Qi moved with but a thought. It was even easier than breathing as he let it move along his arm and into his hand.

Pouring it into the monolith was far simpler than he expected.

The monolith instantly lit up.

3 stars, 5 stars, 7 stars.

It had been a while since anybody saw anything above 7 stars, so everyone quickly focused on Kit who jumped straight to 8 stars.

Then, before anybody could react.

“9 stars!”

The final star lit up, making the entire monolith glow.

But that wasn’t it.

Suddenly, the top star flashed, and a line dropped from it to the 8th star.

And down it went, drawing a single line all the way back down to the first star.

With that, the monolith flashed once more, releasing a small beacon of light before dimming and fading away.

Kit backed away from the rock. It didn’t take much out of him at all, so he wasn’t tired.

He turned to his aunt, seeing her surprised face. She walked over.

“I didn’t think it would actually know about that net over your dantian. Oh well. Good job! How was controlling your Qi?”

“Easy, actually…”

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Even Kit was shocked by how easy it was to wield his Qi. It was no different from a limb, though, he was pretty sure he could control Qi easier than some of his clumsy limbs.

“Alright, come with me before people start approaching. I’ll explain the exam.”

Saying that, the two walked over to the pillars at the bottom of the staircase, taking a seat at one of the many tables placed for relaxation and conversation.

Kit gazed at the tall set of stairs while listening to his aunt explain.

“The exam is rather simple. You just need to walk up the first zone of stairs, getting to the second set of pillars. Getting there means you’ve passed and will be accepted into the palace. However, it doesn’t end there. For those who want to continue, they will be assigned a person to battle. Only the winners get to continue up the second zone of stairs, which is significantly more difficult to climb than the first set.

As for the third zone, there’s no need to battle. Everyone who makes it to the top of the second zone can directly continue, but the third zone isn’t so easy to even take a step onto. I haven’t been up it myself, but I hear that in order to climb it, one needs to be able to sense the turbulent elemental Qi present atop it. Without that sense, you’ll just get tossed around and hurt.”

“...”

Kit silently lifted his gaze to the third zone of stairs. His aunt’s words naturally piqued his interest.

And she knew what he was thinking about.

“You can definitely make it up the second flight of stairs. As for the third, I’m sure you’ll find that you can at least step onto it. As for climbing it… I can only tell you to be careful. Don’t go getting hurt on your first day, okay?”

“Mm.”

Kit nodded before bringing his gaze back down.

“Oh, one more thing.”

Xia Zhilan suddenly remembered something.

“Please don’t arrive at the top of the first zone last. Try to be near the top, or at worst the middle. They arrange the fights based on who arrives when, so if you don’t want to fight one of the strongest kids who have definitely learned more martial arts than you, perform well.”

“Oh.”

Kit nodded again.

With that, the two waited. Kit continued to watch everyone around him, just observing how everyone talked and laughed with each other.

He saw their smiles and competitive glares, along with the nervous faces that sweat when they glanced at the stairs that would determine their fate.

He thought about how all of it was foreign to him. Ever since that day 6 years ago, he had been constantly shrouded in darkness. Nothing was vibrant, not as it was when he was still a child.

Only the elements in the air were colorful, and only chasing those sprytes gave him enjoyment. Besides that, he only trained himself, indulging in the pain of pushing his body to the limits.

All of it was a distraction.

He wondered as he looked around at all the faces full of emotion.

Would he get to be that competitive and happy? Maybe it would happen when he got into the palace.

He hoped.

“Woah!”

“Look at that!”

“Another beacon!”

Suddenly, everyone's attention was pulled by the monoliths.

Kit and Xia Zhilan were shocked.

That beacon of light.

“Another person managed to form that net on top of 9 stars?”

She muttered. She expected to see several others with 9 stars, but not that net.

But there was actually someone else. Someone who completed the Immersion Stage just as thoroughly as Kit did.

Or, at least she thought there was only one.

“Another!”

“Another beacon! No way!”

Just as the first beacon faded, another rose up and took its place.

Two beacons.

“Kit, come with me.”

Xia Zhilan suddenly grabbed Kit’s hand, and the two flew over the crowd and landed near the monoliths.

That’s when they saw it.

“A third beacon!”

By now, everyone had jaws agape, Xia Zhilan included.

Just who the hell was doing this?

She and Kit scanned around, and soon enough, they saw the culprits.

There were three teens who lined themselves up on three adjacent monoliths. They were the ones who created the beacons back to back.

Two girls and one boy.

The boy looked to be a rather refined young man, more of a scholar than a warrior with one saber at his hip.

As for the first girl, she was similarly refined, with sharp eyes and a cold disposition. She had two swords, one on each hip.

And as for the second girl…

“Eh?! Teacher! I-I did it?!”

With short and unkempt shaggy grey hair and a clumsy disposition, she scrambled around for whoever her guardian was, shocked to see the beacon. She seemed more scared of the attention that she was going to get than surprised that she did it though.

Was this girl supposed to be part of a large family? She sure didn’t look the part.

However, these three kids weren’t the only stars of the show.

Kit was baffled when he looked at all the other monoliths, seeing 9 stars rising like it was common.

There were at least four others who achieved a 9 star dantian.

And the ones who stepped up after them achieved 8 stars, of which there were at least a dozen.

This large group that seemed to be together was the highest gathering of talent in this place.

“So that’s his group…”

Kit heard his aunt mumble, seemingly knowing what was going on.

Then, both of them suddenly heard a voice.

“What do you think? I did a good job, if I do say so myself.”

Both of them turned to see an older gentleman.

Xia Zhilan bowed a bit.

“Elder Han. I suppose I should offer my congratulations. I knew that your group would be talented, but this much is unbelievable.”

“Haha, I must say, it’s hard to remain humble. So many of those parents in the Great Family Clans doubted my methods, drowning me with absurd accusations such as me holding their children back from their potential. But now, nobody can doubt my teachings. I tell you, my program will become the new standard! Light’s Glory will be entering a new era because of me! Hahaha!”

Elder Han couldn’t contain his joy. He was proud that he not only raised a batch of extreme talents, but was able to prove a bunch of high and mighty nobles wrong. And with his tried and true teachings, it would no doubt be spread among the clans and the sect palaces. Kids in the future would all be required to use this method, and the average talent would definitely rise.

A strong foundation led to a strong sect.

Xia Zhilan smiled in joy as well.

After a few moments, Elder Han calmed. Then, he noticed the child by Xia Zhilan’s side.

“Oh, who’s this child? Elder Xia, did you perhaps get married without me noticing?”

“N-No, I didn’t. Elder Han, this is Kit.”

After blushing for a moment, Xia Zhilan presented Kit, who silently bowed with some manners.

Elder Han eyes him curiously, especially the blindfold.

“Interesting. Who’s child is this then?”

“Uh… I suppose I will tell you about that later. Nevertheless, he is very talented.”

“I see. Did he evaluate himself at the monolith? How many stars did he get?”

Elder Han asked curiously, causing Xia Zhilan to beam with pride.

“Just like your three little stars over there, he got nine stars and released a beacon of light.”

“He released a beacon? Are you sure?”

“Have I ever lied to you? Actually, don’t answer that…”

She turned her head just as Elder Han narrowed his eyes at her.

“Rascal, I couldn’t count how many little secrets you kept from me. But… if what you say is true, then this child must be the reason you were at the library the other day.”

“Mm, that’s correct. Believe it or not, Kit discovered the ability to naturally form a dantian all by himself.”

“Oh! That’s amazing!”

Elder Han’s eyes sparkled as he looked at Kit. However, Xia Zhilan wasn’t done.

“Not only that! But Kit completed Immersion in only 2 years.”

“2… 2 years?”

Elder Han’s eyes bulged before he narrowed his eyes at her.

She flinched at his sharp gaze, but with a red face, she stood her ground with a strained smile.

“I-I’m not lying! I’d bet my Dove’s Dew Liquor on this!”

“Hmm… I suppose you’re telling the truth then.”

“...”

Kit was silent as he glanced at his aunt with a strange gaze. This was definitely a new side of her, acting so meek in front of this man.

His head spun back around though when he noticed Elder Han’s face get close to him. He backed away one step as his sparkling eyes evaluated him.

“Truly, truly a talent. You qualify to stand with those little monsters of the family clans. I already know that you’ll be butting heads against them during competitions. But you’ll also be working together! Kit… I’ll be watching you as you go through the palace. Don’t let those arrogant young masters deter you from anything. Just shoot for the top. Give those little monsters a run for their money! I’d be more than happy to see them come to me crying! Hahaha!”

Elder Han laughed once more.

Just then, there was an announcement.

“All entrants, to the pillars! The exam is about to begin!”