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While undergoing their tests, a majority of the youths present fell victim to the plague of society—to be average. At this sight, Nivel shook his head. It was wrong of him to retain any hopes of seeing something surprising.
Over 95% of the youths present only achieved grey to green Natural Roots. In other words, most of them were unable to reach the Zul Emperor Realm, unless they encountered some fortuitous events. However, how could that happen if the academies would instead focus on those capable of achieving far more?
Hence, Nivel shook his head, 'A predominant number of these youths will be doomed to fall into nihility. Most of them will end up in the grunt division of the World Reclamation Task Force. It's a shame to see, but this is how life advances.'
Fortunately, his doubts weren't exacerbated. The other 5% had pulled through, obtaining the minimum to clutch a more adequate fate. Around two-thirds of the remaining 5% achieved the violet Emperor Root.
A faint few achieved above the 5th-degree root of this particular grade. This meant their root had at least 5 branches on it. However, the rare few like Nadida achieved an even more illustrious feat; a 9th degree Saint Root. While falling short of the Empyrean Root, it was still a sight to behold.
One had to know, obtaining this meant if they didn't suffer catastrophic means, they retained the prerequisite potential to achieve the Zul Sovereign level. This was equivalent to the Grand Masters of the Supreme Families.
Of course, the ones to achieve this was few and far between. Besides Nadida, only 2 other people attained this feat. Additionally, theirs weren't as complete as hers, insinuating they hovered between the 8th and 9th. Nevertheless, with the appearance of this commendable talent, Nivel bestowed praise.
"Very good! It seems there will be an additional Scion in the future, but to be entirely sure, we'll have to examine your other abilities. After all, a true Scion isn't just well versed in one category. Moving alon- hmm? Wait… you over there, what is wrong with your orb?" Nivel questioned, his sights landing on the bewildered Apollo.
"Uhh…" Apollo blinked, unable to answer the question. He, too, was uncertain as to what took place. At first, his test was going fine but then it went haywire, changing colors in a rapid frenzy. The end result was what he held in his hands—a pitch-black colored orb resembling a crystal.
Upon closer inspection, Nivel scrutinized the state of the orb, "You… THIS IS A VARIANT EMPYREAN ROOT!" Unlike his proper character, Nivel lost his wits, such a thing was only seen within Paragons and even then it was a rarity.
Amongst the two current Paragons, neither of them possessed a Variant Empyrean Root. This meant one of a few things. The examinee was blessed with a Heavenly Body; the examinee's body was an anomaly or the potential it possessed was even greater than what could be tested.
However, for the latter to be true, it would require someone of great origin! Nivel was unable to believe that a youth from a small family could possess such prestigious potential. Usually, this once in an eon talent was found amidst the ranks of Supreme Children, but an appearance of one of those hadn't happened since the initial invasion of Terrors.
While this looked to be a great sign, Nivel frowned as he dissected the situation, 'Is this boy an omen of the past legends—a Supreme Child? If so, then that would mark the occurrence of a catastrophic event!'
As his thoughts traveled afar, Nivel looked at Apollo with an expression of horror. The more he examined the crystal-like appearance, the more he felt this was true. For one, the color was too dark, surpassing the level of the previous Supreme Child.
'I must beseech an audience with the Sage of the Fleeting Divination Academy. I must ascertain whether or not a catastrophe is truly upon us, if so, we must make adequate preparations. I alone can't make this assumption, according to what is known, a Supreme Child should have shattered the orb. Let's now dwell on this matter, I must continue with this exam,' Nivel thought.
Once he determined his course of action, Nivel cleared his throat, regaining everyone's attention. "Alright, so there is indeed hidden talent amongst you, but I can't allow that to disrupt our progress; we are on a timeline. Next, we'll test your Soul State Aptitude or Spirit Aptitude for short. For this, you don't need any prior cultivation in the mind.
"This time, you'll see a crystal prism located next to the position of the orb's prior placement. To undergo this test, you'll need to utilize this Soul Bar. Once again, based on the color, it'll determine your born mental potential. However, unlike the prior test, this one doesn't have sub differentiations."
In comparison to the Natural Root, the Spirit Aptitude was far easier to test. All the prism did was invade the mind with a gentle yet propagating energy. Depending on how long it took for the energy to cause you to faint, it determined your aptitude.
"When I administer this test, depending on how long you withstand the torment of the Soul Bar, your potential will be determined. Before I begin, I need to make you aware of a few things. One, if you last less than 10 seconds your test ends here.
"If you're unable to withstand this pain, you'll never open your Soul Temple without dying and that is where you'll be determined a waste. We, the Academy's, train you with the purpose of cultivating you into beings capable of slaying the Terrors. If you can't wield a Spirit, you won't last against them unless your Body Cultivation eclipses them. If you ever come face to face with one, then you'll understand the connotations behind my words.
"Nevertheless, back to the task at hand. Here is the breakdown of the chart," Nivel uttered, waving his arm. Before everyone's eyes, a list comprised of his sword energy appeared. With his grasp of the sword, the words were easy to see.
[Soul Aptitude Breakdown]
Withstand the allotted time:
White - 15 to 20 seconds. (Ranking: F)
Red - 21 to 30 seconds. (Ranking: E)
Yellow - 31 to 45 seconds. (Ranking: D)
Orange - 46 to 70 seconds. (Ranking: C)
Azure - 71 to 100 seconds. (Ranking: B)
Cyan - 3 to 5 minutes. (Ranking: A)
Silver - 15 - 30 minutes. (Ranking: S)
Gold - At least 1 hour. (Ranking: SS)
Black - At least 3 hours. (Ranking: SSS)
"Something I must tell you all, to achieve beyond the A-Rank, after achieving the duration, you must retain clarity of thought. If you faint, your ranking will drop to the preceding rank. However, this won't happen with Rank F to A. This restriction due to the special circumstances surrounding those rankings. Now, begin!" Nivel exclaimed.
With a snap, the Soul Bars emitted low vibrations, sending a small fluctuation into the mind of the others. When he saw this, Apollo closed his eyes in preparation for an assault.
Like the others, he, too, was subject to a gentle touch. At first, during the first 10 seconds, it felt as if a fly was buzzing around his mind—equating to nothing more than an annoyance, but that couldn't be said for others.
At 3 seconds, 2% of the examinees tapped out, fainting where they sat. This meant they didn't even possess a modicum of the will required to open the Soul Temple. When the 5-second mark approached, over 10% of the examinees fainted.
By the time 10 seconds elapsed, nearly 50% of the examinees collapsed. Be that as it may, a few like Nadida, Apollo, and a couple of others looked completely unaffected by the Soul Bar. Naturally, this was because they didn't experience the pain the others did, or rather it wasn't substantial enough to warrant a change in expression.
Their lax expressions continued well into the 100-second mark. It was at that time changes in countenances began. Some wanted to tap out but they understood they needed to achieve at least an A rank Aptitude. If not, they'd be limited to the Elites at max.
Meanwhile, unlike those struggling to achieve this standard, Apollo even retained the ability to think, 'Should I end my test early? My prior results were already stunning enough. Even though the pressure continues to multiply, it has yet to approach even a fraction of the pain I felt when opening the Tainted Temple.'
As he contemplated the route to take, time continued to lapse quickly. Unbeknownst to him, the exam had distorted his concept of time. A thought taking an instant before was now taking upwards of 3 seconds to complete.
Soon enough, Nadida's eyebrows trembled, opening for a moment but when she saw Apollo's lax expression, a competitive spirit rose from within the depths of her. This forced her to continue the exam as good enough wouldn't suffice for her.
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