Despair and cold shock made Verus feel hollow as he walked past the youngest elder and off the stage.

The tired-looking man with messy black hair gave Verus a gloomy look, appraising him, but acting as if he was barely paying attention to his surroundings. Verus met his gaze and thought he saw a hint of empathy flash there in his dark eyes.

“It’s not so bad as all that, young one,” the man remarked with sad awkward smile. He didn’t seem able to be able to muster the effort to do it right. “The Way of Imperial Might really is the best technique for you, and you could do far worse. It is a powerful cultivator technique, one of the pillars that support the empire, and it has produced quite a few exalted masters and generals who have earned great honors.”

“But I’ve only average aptitude for even basic human ki. I want to be more than just average,” Verus found himself telling the man. The emotionally charged words simply poured out of him. “Please, wise elder, is there any way that the test could be… mistaken?”

The man frowned and reached down to a flask hanging from his hip. He took a quick drink from it and seemed to hesitate. The scent of strong alcohol washed over Verus. If he hadn’t already been shocked to his core, seeing an elder drink in public would have done it. What kind of enlightened ascetic was this man?

The elder’s frown became bitter, but then he sighed and nodded. “You shouldn’t get your hopes up, but nothing under the heavens is truly perfect, including a test such as this one. The Ten-Point Attunement Array is simply the easiest way by far to examine so many young disciples within a reasonable time. Its biggest flaw is that it can’t possibly measure every single attunement that exists, so it simply looks for the most common ones.”

A spark of life returned to Verus’s eyes as hope stirred within him. “What should I do?”

“Bah, it seems I’ve become soft and foolish. How far I’ve fallen. If you’re so dead set against advancing along the Way of Imperial Might, I would suggest going to the library as soon as possible and looking up how to test yourself for rare attunements. You will find everything you need there, and if you do somehow attain a rare attunement, I will aid you in acquiring a suitable cultivation technique. I am known as Elder Caligo. Now, you should get off the stage before you draw the other elders’ ire. That would be foolish.”

After hurriedly bowing thrice in gratitude, Verus rushed off the stage as he had been instructed. There was still a chance! Maybe he could avoid the horrible fate of being sent to the army. He couldn’t imagine anything worse than that.

Throwing a glance back over his shoulder, Verus saw that Elder Caligo was taking another swig from his flask. He hoped the man didn’t get so drunk that he completely forgot about his promise.

After stepping down to the ground, Verus found himself not far from where the crowd of other tested disciples were standing. Most of them ignored him, but one began walking over to him. It was Warin.

His chubby friend was smiling happily as he approached. “Verus, what cultivation technique did they recommend for you? I got the Way of Conquering Faith. Apparently, I have some talent with projecting Devotion ki! If I practice it, I’m practically guaranteed a place with the Lightbringers!”

“And that’s what you want?” Verus asked in surprise. He was glad his friend had already rushed past enquiring about his own cultivation technique, but Warin had never struck him as particularly devoted to anything, except maybe snacks.

Warin shrugged. “It seems like an easy path to a good life. I can help people and serve the Archon’s will without worrying too much about fighting. That’s never been my thing. I don’t mind it, but it’s not what I want out of life. It’s not like I stand much chance of getting into the inner sect anyway, and being a Lightbringer sure beats joining the army! What was your cultivation technique again?”

Verus winced. “Um, it doesn’t matter… I’m still choosing which one to use.”

Thankfully, Warin didn’t press the issue, and immediately went back to talking about himself and how easy he thought life as a Lightbringer would be. Verus thought he was seriously underestimating the difficulties a novice Lightbringer would face. They probably went through rather harsh training and had to travel a lot, but he didn’t contradict his cheerful friend. He’d find out eventually, and it was entirely possible he’d change his mind tomorrow.

Eventually, the last disciple was tested, although it took another hour. The white bearded elder then gave a brief speech congratulating everyone, before dismissing the disciples and disappearing alongside the other elders. One second, they were standing on the stage. The next, they were just gone.

Verus blinked and stared at the stage, but that was when several servants began calling to get the disciples attention. In loud voices, they made it clear that it was time for a tour of the disciple section of the temple. The servants were to divide up the disciples into smaller groups and show them the areas of the sect temple that were open to them.

As the other disciples began splitting up to join the tour groups, Verus and Warin did likewise and walked over to the closest servant. Seeing that he’d gathered quite a few followers, that servant began leading them across the plaza and toward a tall building. The other servants led their groups in different directions, which made sense. Having over a hundred disciples in one big mob would making taking a tour difficult.

“Oh, a tour!” Warin exclaimed excitedly as he walked next to Verus. “I can’t wait to see all the wonders of the sect!”

Verus frowned. “Those probably won’t be included in a tour for newly arrived outer disciples.”

“It’s the main temple of one of the most powerful sects on our world! Of course, there will be something grand to see.”

The first place the servant took their group was the outer disciples’ cafeteria. It was a rather plain building and Verus found it utterly lacking in wonder of any kind. Warin disagreed vehemently. Apparently, they could go there at any time and order as much food as they wanted. This was a rather large change from the carefully regimented diets they’d had growing up, and Verus had needed to pull Warin away lest the tour leave them behind.

His friend's gluttony was embarrassing. In the Heavenly Empire, everyone was supposed to value discipline and sacrifice in the name of the Archon and in service to all of humanity. Stuffing your face full of pie in no way reflected theses ideals.

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The next building was huge and far fancier looking than the cafeteria. Several stories tall, it was made from solid looking stone and its large entrance was flanked by a pair of tall ornate pillars. However, regardless of its decorations, it looked heavy and fortified. There were only a few tiny slit windows that were way too thin for someone to slip through. It seemed designed to hold off a siege, or at least a band of robbers.

“This is the disciple library. It contains all the gathered knowledge and techniques available to disciples of the Great Wind Sect. However, most of it requires special permission to access. There is also an even larger library that only the elders have access to, but that won’t concern you for years yet,” the servant explained proudly.

Verus was tempted to leave the tour and enter the library right away to look up how to test for rare attunements, but that would be folly. He might miss important information and he could come back when the tour was over.

The servant then pointed toward a wall behind the library. “That’s the edge of the outer disciple area. You are forbidden to venture beyond it unless accompanied by an elder or given special permission.”

“What’s over there?” one of the other disciples asked.

“Many things. That’s where the elders’ residences are and where several special training facilities are located. Do not go exploring. The punishment for trespassing is quite severe, and in some cases, disciples have ended up being executed. The sect guards its secrets closely.”

Curious, Verus took a second to relax and try to sense what lay beyond the wall with his ki, but he wasn’t able to find out anything. Powerful ki radiated out from several different directions, overwhelming his meager Foundation Realm senses.

After that, they briefly visited several other nearby buildings, passing by other tour groups as they walked. They were shown various offices, some shops operated by the sect, and a few training facilities. Of particular interest to the gathered disciples was the dueling ground, although it looked like nothing special to Verus. It seemed many of his fellows were eager to begin fighting.

The servant ended the tour by bringing the gathered disciples over to a long rectangular building that was quite long and two stories high. It was right beside another identical building, and there were some other tour groups already there.

“This is the housing hall for this year’s outer disciples. Fighting inside is not allowed,” the guide explained to the nearby disciples. “You get to choose your own rooms, but they are all basically the same. Now, please listen carefully as I explain the rules for disciple housing and stipends.”

The entire tour group fell silent as they began listening intently. None of them wanted to miss this.

“Three red ki shards have been set aside at the requisition office for each of you. Every outer disciple will also receive one shard every week, and another two as long as they’ve fought at least one challenge the week before. These official duels will only count if they are supervised and at least one ki shard or something of equivalent value is wagered. This is to discourage throwing fights and make sure everyone is fighting their hardest. You also won’t be able to challenge the same person twice in the same year.”

Verus’s eyes went wide in surprise and several disciples near him murmured excitedly. He’d heard of ki shards. They contained crystallized ki that could be absorbed by a cultivator to boost their cultivation speed and help them reach a higher Realm faster. The red ones were the weakest variant, and were considered a basic cultivation aid, but such things had limited worth for someone in the Origin Realm, so he’d never seen any before.

Apparently, not every person was so excited by the stipend. There was a disdainful huff from one woman with long black hair. “Three red shards or thirty is still petty change.”

Ignoring the comment, the guide went on. “Shards can be absorbed or traded for other items at the shop, and duels aren’t the only way you can earn more. All of your ki levels were measured during the initiation ceremony, and special medallions will be given out to the ten disciples with the highest ki levels. The holders of these medallions will get an extra two shards at the beginning of each week. However, should they lose a challenge, their medallion will go to the winner.”

All these incentives for the disciples to duel were more than a little concerning to Verus considering his tough competition, but there had to be some people here he could beat. They couldn’t all be unparalleled geniuses from incredibly rich families. He may only be a temple ward, but he’d still been raised to be a cultivator his entire life.

After the explanation was done, the disciples split up and entered the hall through different doors. Verus and Warin stuck together, and they chose to avoid the crowds and walk around to the far side of the building. There, they found a pair of empty rooms next to each other.

“It will be interesting to see who gets the medallions,” Warin remarked as they stood outside Varus’s new room.

Verus nodded in agreement. “I wouldn’t mind watching those fights. If I can find the time. I’m sure I could learn a lot.”

Neither of them had any illusions about their ability to claim any of the medallions. Many of the disciples obviously came from powerful families. A lot of them also looked like they had a lot of combat experience, with their scars and weapons. They’d probably rip Verus apart in a fight.

After parting with Warin, Verus stepped into his new room and studied its interior. As he looked around, a felt a weird mix of nostalgia and novelty. Although the style and layout reminded him of his old room, it was much larger and clearly for a single person. That was expected given his new station. He was a real disciple of the Great Wind Sect now.

Square in shape, the room held a large bookcase and sturdy chest. There were also a table and two chairs, while at the far side of the room there was a slim bed big enough for one person. It wasn’t much too look at, but it was surprisingly soft and comfortable. Almost too soft; Verus was used to much harder.

After his examination of his new home was complete, Verus sighed and sat down on his bed and faced his present circumstances. Despite what he’d accomplished simply by getting here, his position in the sect wasn’t good. On top of his obvious lack of attunements, he had no real resources. Other disciples would undoubtedly have resources given to them by their families, while he had nothing.

Actually, he did have the Way of Imperial Might cultivation technique, even if he had no intention of using it unless forced to. Frowning, Verus took the scroll out and glanced over the diagrams and script on it. Understanding most of it was beyond him, but he knew quite a lot about this technique already.

The Way of Imperial Might was the Imperial army’s most commonly used cultivation technique. It was designed for a single purpose, to take mediocre cultivators to the tempered realm and beyond. All it required was the ability to use human ki, which meant basically anyone could use it. Despite that, it was not a simple technique. The Heavenly Empire had spent centuries developing and perfecting it. The massed Tempered Realm cultivators it produced formed the Imperial Army’s backbone as they conquered world after world, and it had other strengths. Humans naturally produced human ki, especially if they were cultivators and in large groups. That made army divisions great places for users of this technique to cultivate, and the technique itself was designed to take advantage of this. Practicing it made cultivators resonate with each other, allowing them to cultivate easier and making up for its user’s lack of talent.

However, the techniques strengths were balanced by its weaknesses. The technique couldn’t be used to develop other attunements except for human and devotion. It also focused the user’s power inward, making outward manifestations of power less efficient even as it reinforced the body. Thus, no one who had any other options used this cultivation technique. It simply had too many costs.

Verus needed to find a better cultivation technique, or he’d never have a chance at becoming an inner disciple. Elder Caligo from the stage had recommended that he head to the library right away and find out if he had some rare attunements, so that’s what he’d do.