“Since this spiritual beast is to seek apprenticeship in the Celestial Sword Sect, after he wakes up, let him go to the side hall next to the Heaven-Piercing Grand Hall, where the Spirit Root Testing Pavilion is located.” Sage North Thunder said to Flint.

He made sure a disciple found a vacant guest room for Flint and Spark to rest in, gave some directions to Flint, and then left. Before he departed, he instructed Flint to wait until Spark was awake and then bring him to take the sect admission test, which included a spirit root evaluation.

Flint nodded in agreement before North Thunder departed. Flint was too tired to lift the large wolf onto the bed, so Spark remained lying on the floor, completely still as if he were lifeless. But when she placed her fingers on his nose, she could still feel him breathing.

Flint sat with knees pulled up to the chest beside Spark, reaching out to stroke the fluffy wolf's head. Now that Spark wouldn't resist, it was good.

As she stroked Spark’s head, she felt the intangible power flowing into her body seemed to be getting stronger. She noticed that there was a small spirit-gathering formation here, seemingly specifically prepared for cultivators.

After stroking Spark's head to her heart's content, Flint stood up and walked to the window. The view from their room on the third floor was not bad. She could see the Heaven-Piercing Grand Hall in the distance, a magnificent sight to behold.

The grand hall lived up to its name, its soaring spires seeming to pierce through the morning clouds. The building was an architectural marvel, with sweeping eaves adorned with celestial motifs that caught the early sunlight. Multiple tiers of white jade stairs led up to its entrance, and pillars carved with intricate sword formations supported its magnificent roof. Crystal windows lined its walls, occasionally reflecting brilliant flashes of natural aura from within.

The courtyard below was already bustling with disciples heading to breakfast. Watching them, Flint realized she should probably get some food for Spark when he woke up. As she made her way down, she spotted a striking figure that stood out even among the crowd.

It was Seedling Zephyr, dressed in hunting attire that marked her noble Wind-Charm Fox heritage. Her fitted cropped top was made of cloud brocade, a lightweight fabric in pale purple embroidered with silver wind runes. The garment's cut was both elegant and practical, allowing for freedom of movement. Her fitted pants were crafted from a lustrous, supple leather - specially treated rabbit hide that combined durability with lightness. The same wind runes decorated the sides of the pants, which tapered into knee-high soft leather boots. The deep brown boots were adorned with subtle silver patterns.

Her white fox ears stood tall above her long, flowing white hair. The hair was pulled up into a high ponytail, and her naturally wavy tail cascaded down her back, giving her a spirited and cool appearance. Her outfit was tailored to accommodate her fluffy fox tail, making no attempt to hide her spiritual beast identity.

Her purple eyes with their distinctive vertical fox pupils drew attention from passing disciples, but Seedling paid them no mind. She walked with confident grace directly toward the side hall of the Heaven-Piercing Grand Hall - the Spirit Root Testing Pavilion. It seemed Spark wasn't the only spiritual beast seeking to join the Celestial Sword Sect today.

Flint’s gaze was also somewhat drawn in. She looked at Seedling's fluffy tail, feeling an urge to touch it. But she resisted the urge and turned away, heading into the canteen with a hint of regret.

When Flint walked into the canteen, she was met with an unusual sight. The kitchen was staffed not by humans, but by wooden puppets. These weren't anthropomorphized automata trying to pass as human - they were unmistakably wooden constructs, their natural grain visible across their bodies, joints connected by intricate strings. Each puppet had cultivation runes carefully inscribed across their surfaces, glowing faintly as they went about their tasks with mechanical precision.

Approaching the counter, Flint's heart sank as she realized meals needed to be paid for. She patted her empty pockets, wondering what to do, when a familiar voice called out behind her.

"Ah, Miss Winter!" The disciple waved cheerfully. "I'm Asher Sterling, by the way. I should have introduced myself earlier when showing you to your room."

He glanced at her empty pockets and smiled knowingly. "Did that powerful figure take everything you had? Don't worry about it - the food here is quite affordable. Let me treat you."

At the counter, Asher gestured toward the variety of steamed buns filled with vegetables and meat. "How many would you like?"

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Flint hesitated, brows furrowed in thought. "Well... how much would a wolf eat after going hungry for a day?"

Asher burst into hearty laughter, the sound echoing through the canteen. "A whole pig, probably!" He turned to the wooden puppet server, still chuckling. "Ten meat buns for her companion, please." Then he looked back at Flint. "And what would you like?"

"Oh, I don't need—" Flint started to decline.

"Now, now, don't be modest," Asher insisted warmly. He ordered her a meat dish and a vegetable dish before she could protest further.

"The sect's puppet canteen is quite something, isn't it?" he chatted enthusiastically as they waited for their order. "And a chef puppet is programmed with over three hundred cooking formations! They are fine products from the Mystic Enigma Chamber."

Flint agreed, "It's quite impressive." Once the buns were removed from the oven, Flint directed the wooden puppet server to pack ten meat buns. The puppet efficiently placed ten meat buns into two bamboo food containers.

As they sat down at one of the tables, Asher's eyes sparkled with excitement. "You know, this is actually the first time our sect is accepting spiritual beasts as formal disciples. It's quite revolutionary!"

He leaned forward, lowering his voice conspiratorially. "Some of the conservative elders were against it at first - they kept going on about 'maintaining pure bloodlines' and 'upholding human cultivation traditions.' But Sage North Thunder argued that natural aura awareness and cultivation talent aren't limited to human form. Allowing a talented spiritual beast to join can enhance the strength of the Celestial Sword Sect."

"In the end, Sect Leader East Cloud agreed," Asher said, nodding sagely. "Actually, today was my first time seeing a spiritual beast in human form. Did you see that girl with the fox ears and tail earlier?" His eyes lit up with barely contained excitement.

Flint nodded, remembering the confident way Seedling had walked through the crowd. "Yes, I saw her heading to the Spirit Root Testing Pavilion."

"She didn't even try to hide her spiritual beast features," Asher marveled, still clearly impressed. "Most stories I've heard say spiritual beasts prefer to fully transform into human form when they're among humans. But she just walked right through with those ears and tail visible, like it was the most natural thing in the world!" He shook his head in admiration. "Times really are changing in the cultivation world."

He spoke while eating buns. Flint also symbolically took a few bites of the vegetable bun and stuffed the meat buns into one of the bamboo food containers, planning to give them all to Spark to eat.

After the meal, he glanced at the bamboo containers holding the meat buns. "We should probably get these back to your friend before they get cold. I hope ten, oh eleven, is enough - I've never actually had to feed a wolf before!" He chuckled at his own joke.

On their way back to the guest room, Asher turned to Flint curiously. "Is that wolf your spiritual pet?"

"No," Flint replied, adjusting her grip on the bamboo containers. "Actually, he's a prince from a spiritual beast clan. He's here to join the Celestial Sword Sect too."

Asher nearly stumbled in surprise. "A prince?" His eyes widened. "I didn't expect... wow, no wonder Sage North Thunder personally arranged your accommodation!"

Perhaps we were just coincidentally saved by him. Flint thought to herself, but did not say it out.

Upon entering the guest room, they discovered that Spark was still unconscious, his powerful wolf body sound asleep just as Flint had left him. With a shrug of her shoulders, Flint placed the bamboo food containers on the desk for later.

However, through the window, Flint and Asher noticed an increasing flow of people heading toward the Spirit Root Testing Pavilion. Since morning classes hadn't begun yet, disciples were free to wander, and something seemed to be drawing their attention.

"That's strange," Asher murmured, watching the growing crowd. "Usually the testing pavilion isn't this busy." He glanced at Flint, then at the still-sleeping Spark, before suggesting, "Since your friend is still resting, why don't we go see what's happening? We can come right back if he wakes up."

Flint hesitated for a moment, looking between Spark and the window. After ensuring the meat buns were placed within easy reach of where Spark lay, she nodded in agreement. They left the room quietly, joining the stream of curious onlookers heading toward the pavilion.

Asher and Flint pushed their way through the crowd, but they could only manage to get to the middle section of the gathered onlookers. The crowd was thick with disciples of all ages, their necks craned and bodies pressed forward trying to get a better view. Excited whispers and gasps rippled through the assembly.

Through the gaps between heads and shoulders, they caught glimpses of the interior. A crystal sphere at the center of the pavilion was radiating an intense light that seemed to pulse with otherworldly energy, casting dancing shadows on the carved pillars and walls.

"It's a First Tier spirit root affinity!" someone near the front shouted, their voice carrying over the murmuring crowd. The announcement sent a fresh wave of excitement through the gathered disciples, with some of the younger ones standing on tiptoes to see better.

"What element?" called out a voice from somewhere in the crowd, echoing the curiosity of many others.

Inside the pavilion, Seedling stood before the glowing crystal, her white fox ears perked high with pride, her tail swaying gently behind her. The light from the crystal sphere caught her purple eyes, making them seem to glow. Her hunting attire's silver wind runes sparkled in response to the crystal's radiance as she lifted her chin confidently.

"The Flux Element," she announced, her clear voice carrying through the hall. "We Wind-Charm Foxes are born with the ability to control the wind." Her declaration held no trace of hesitation or false modesty, just the natural confidence of someone stating an obvious truth.

The murmurs from the crowd grew louder, and Flint and Asher could see several disciples exchanging knowing glances. It was a rare occurrence to find someone with First Tier talent. While many had heard of several elders possessing this gift, it was unheard of for any new members to have such an affinity.

"I've heard that spiritual beasts naturally possess higher spirit root talent than humans - so it's actually true!" Asher exclaimed, his voice tinged with excitement.

The comment made Flint recall how Spark had mentioned his own First Tier spirit root. She had seriously underestimated him at the time. "Yes, indeed," she agreed quietly.

Watching Flint's thoughtful expression, Asher's mind began to work. She had arrived with the wolf prince, after all - perhaps she too was a wolf, just hiding her spiritual beast traits? He turned to her amid the noisy crowd. "Are you also here to join the Celestial Sword Sect with the wolf prince?"

In the chaos of voices and bodies, Flint only caught the latter part of his question. Distracted by her own thoughts, she absently hummed in agreement.

Before she could process what was happening, Asher grabbed her wrist and began enthusiastically pushing through the crowd. They broke through to the front, where the elder conducting the spirit root tests sat.

"Honorable Elder!" Asher called out loudly, "We have another spiritual beast here who wishes to test their spirit root!"

The bustling pavilion fell suddenly silent. The crowd's attention shifted from Seedling to Flint, and she felt countless pairs of eyes fixing upon her. Even Seedling turned to look, her fox ears twitching with interest. The elder raised an eyebrow, examining Flint with newfound curiosity.

Flint stood frozen, feeling the weight of everyone's expectant stares. This was definitely not how she had planned to spend her morning.