“Gold 2, Wood 5, Water 3, Fire 1, Earth 4.”

In the Qing Shi Plaza, a young man dressed in black looked coldly at the boy in plain cloth before him, retracting his hand from the boy’s forehead.

“No remarkable spiritual roots in the five elements.”

The boy in plain cloth was frail, with an average appearance, the only striking feature being his clear, bright eyes. However, upon hearing the verdict, the light in his eyes dimmed instantly.

He didn’t fully understand what “spiritual roots” and the “five elements” meant, but he could understand the implication in the black-clad young man’s tone.

Ordinary talent!

The young man in black didn’t notice the change in the boy’s eyes. Given the disparity in their statuses, even if he did notice, he wouldn’t have cared. He casually handed the boy a wooden token engraved with the words “Lower Grade” before waving his hand dismissively, as if to shoo him away.

“Next.”

There’s nothing more hurtful than being ignored.

The boy in plain cloth tightly clenched the wooden token, his fingers gripping it so hard that his knuckles turned white. He walked past the other young people who were yet to be tested, their curious gazes falling on the “Lower Grade” token in his hand, accompanied by mocking stares and whispers.

He lowered his head and hurried toward the designated area, filled with resentment.

This area was divided into three sections—upper, middle, and lower—according to talent, with the lower grade area the most crowded, nearly full. The middle grade area was sparsely populated, while the upper grade area, in stark contrast, had only a few people.

The vastness of that section made it look deserted.

The testers seemed to want to convey that fairness still existed—after all, the three sections were the same size, with no difference in the area allocated for each. Or perhaps, they simply wanted to remind them that the better one’s talent, the more resources they’d have access to.

Regardless of the reasoning, once the tests were over and everyone had been assigned to different areas, the path ahead was already decided.

Just before he entered the lower grade area, a round-faced, chubby boy tiptoed excitedly and waved at the boy in plain cloth.

“Chen Ze! Chen Ze! Over here!”

The boy in plain cloth was named Chen Ze, twelve years old. The chubby boy was named Li Dahu, nicknamed Hu Zi, and was the only friend Chen Ze had made along his journey.

Hu Zi’s action drew angry glares from the others. They had just been classified as lower grade, their spirits crushed. The last thing they wanted was anyone’s cheerfulness, even loud calls were unwelcome.

A tall youth nearby couldn’t hold back and snapped, “Shut up! What are you shouting for? Is it not embarrassing enough?”

Hu Zi scratched his head and grinned foolishly, unfazed by the reprimand. He tugged Chen Ze over to the back and took half a steamed bun from his pocket. He broke it in half and handed one piece to Chen Ze.

“I saved this from yesterday. Here, eat it.”

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Chen Ze had just been judged as having lower-grade talent and didn’t feel like talking. But, seeing the sincere expression on Hu Zi’s face, he forced a smile and pushed the bun back.

“I’m not hungry. You eat it.”

Hu Zi muttered a soft “Oh” and dug in, his face as silly as ever. He and Chen Ze were about the same age, but Hu Zi’s intellect was far below that of his peers, which was why his parents had sold him off.

In fact, most of the boys in their group hadn’t come here willingly. Some were kidnapped, others bought with money.

Chen Ze had been sold by his gambling father for two taels of silver to a casino.

The casino then sold him to another person for ten taels. The one who bought him was named Li Changqing, a figure who appeared to be an immortal in Chen Ze’s eyes.

Li Changqing could fly and wielded strange abilities that seemed to come from stories about immortal beings.

Along the journey, Li Changqing had bought many other boys, and it was then that Chen Ze and Hu Zi became acquainted. Later, Li Changqing had taken them both to this faraway and unfamiliar place, where they saw many other boys like them, brought by other immortals.

After delivering them here, Li Changqing left, but not before telling them that this place was called Moji Sect, and if their talents were sufficient, they could become disciples of Moji Sect, just like him.

Upon their arrival, they were subjected to a talent assessment.

No one really understood what the so-called talent test meant, but they could still tell the difference between the high and low grades.

The Moji Sect disciples who conducted the tests looked at the lower-grade boys with an unmistakable sense of superiority, clearly treating them differently from those with better talents.

As Chen Ze pondered aimlessly, a shout suddenly rang out from a distance.

“Perfect Gold and Fire spiritual roots! What terrifying talent!”

Everyone turned toward the voice, and their gazes all landed on a young boy with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes.

At this, the other Moji Sect disciples conducting the tests also turned to look at the boy, murmuring in awe.

“Impressive, really impressive. Two perfect spiritual roots, such terrifying talent. This is the first time I’ve seen something like this.”

“Tsk, with his talent, he’ll probably surpass us in no time.”

“Who’s to say? A person like him is bound to become a powerhouse of Moji Sect. We should make sure to befriend him.”

Chen Ze looked at the boy, a pang of envy in his heart. The boy was named Ye Yuan, and like him, he had been brought here by Li Changqing.

Despite the praise and admiration from the crowd, Ye Yuan remained calm, his expression steady. He was the kind of person who stood out no matter where he went. While others felt sorrow at being separated from their parents, he seemed unaffected, even indifferent.

On their journey, Li Changqing had praised Ye Yuan endlessly, certain that Ye Yuan was the kind of once-in-a-lifetime genius destined for cultivation.

And now, that prophecy seemed to be coming true.

Amidst envious and jealous gazes, Ye Yuan was taken to the upper-grade area, standing at the very front, head held high, eyes fixed ahead, never once glancing at the other boys.

From the scorching sun to the setting dusk, thousands of boys had their talents tested. The lower-grade area was already overcrowded, with no space left. The middle-grade area was nearly full, while the upper-grade area remained as empty as ever.

No more than twenty boys were deemed to have upper-grade talent, with Ye Yuan standing at the front, unquestionably the most talented among them.

After the assessments, the boys were taken to different places according to their grades. A cold, stern man led the lower-grade boys, his mere gaze enough to make them shudder with fear.

Without even looking at them, the stern man turned and walked away, the boys had no choice but to follow quickly.

When a dilapidated building appeared before them, the expressions of the boys changed. They had known that as lower-grade talents, their living conditions wouldn’t be great, but they hadn’t expected it to be like this.

The cold man stood before them and pointed to a red line on the ground.

“My name is Qin Shan. Without my order, do not step beyond this line. Anyone who disobeys will be put to death.

Find your rooms. We gather tomorrow at the fourth hour of the morning. Do not be late.”

“No dinner?” Hu Zi asked suddenly.

Qin Shan frowned and coldly replied, “Eat, eat, eat. All you think about is food. No wonder you have only lower-grade talent. Useless trash. Why don’t you just go die?”

A tense silence followed, the others glaring at Hu Zi with increasing hostility.

Chen Ze quickly tugged at Hu Zi’s sleeve, signaling him to stop talking. He then forced himself to approach Qin Shan and cupped his hands in a bow.

“Senior brother, forgive us. We didn’t know the rules when we arrived. If we have offended you, please have mercy.”

“Senior brother?” Qin Shan sneered when he heard the term, his eyes filled with disdain.

“You’re nothing more than a disciple, barely a servant. You think you’re worthy of calling me ‘senior brother’?”