"Hehe, what do you think we want? Naturally, we want you to join us!"
The Human Origin Peak First Seat laughed heartily and stepped forward. "Li Yun, you and Zhu Xin seem quite close. Since you are friends, why not enter Human Origin Peak together? If you join us, you may freely comprehend any martial art within our collection. I will personally guide your cultivation, and the resources allocated to you will be twenty tis that of an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple."
Before his words had fully settled, the Profound Mystery Peak Lord gave a light snort and cast him a disdainful glance. "Only twenty tis? That is hardly worthy of soone like Li Yun. I will offer forty tis the resources. Every martial art within Profound Mystery Peak will be open to you, and I too will personally oversee your cultivation."
A wave of astonished murmurs swept through the hall.
"My heavens..."
"The First Seats are truly generous!"
"With Li Yun’s displayed aptitude, perhaps he truly deserves such treatnt!"
Envy filled the eyes of the surrounding Martial Ascension Gate disciples. Still, their shock did not last long. Li Yun bore the title of New Talent King, and the strength he had revealed justified such fierce competition.
Off to the side, Ye Beichen’s expression darkened.
When the First Seats had recruited him, the highest offer had been twenty tis the resources. Yet Li Yun’s starting offer was already twenty tis, and it had instantly been raised to forty. The implication was obvious. In the eyes of these First Seats, Li Yun’s value surpassed his own.
For soone as proud as Ye Beichen, that realization stung deeply.
But pride could not change reality. The resources belonged to the First Seats, and they were free to grant them as they wished. Whether he accepted it or not, he had no say in the matter.
At that mont, the Heaven Mandate Peak Head finally spoke.
His gaze flickered with determination as he clenched his jaw and said, "Li Yun, if you choose Heaven Mandate Peak, you may freely comprehend any martial art within our collection. I will personally guide your cultivation. As for resources, you will receive fifty tis the allocation of an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple."
He had truly gone all in.
In recent years, Heaven Mandate Peak had declined sharply. The cultivation resources distributed by the main peak of Martial Ascension Gate had been reduced again and again, barely enough to sustain daily operations. To promise fifty tis the resources for Li Yun likely ant exhausting reserves that had been preserved for years.
Before the weight of those words could settle, the Earth Pillar Peak First Seat let out a mocking laugh.
"Fifty tis? And you dare call that generous?"
With an air of wealth and confidence, he turned to Li Yun and declared, "You may comprehend any martial art within Earth Pillar Peak. I will personally instruct you. As for resources, you will receive one hundred tis the allocation of an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple."
A ripple of astonishnt swept through the hall.
The Heaven Mandate Peak Head’s expression darkened at once. He let out a cold snort and said, "A mont ago you were belittling others, and now you suddenly display such generosity. Earth Pillar Peak First Seat, you truly have no sha."
The Earth Pillar Peak First Seat replied calmly, "If I am willing, what concern is it of yours?"
Sensing that the two were on the verge of escalating further, the Profound Mystery Peak Lord and the Human Origin Peak First Seat quickly intervened.
"Enough," one of them said firmly. "Let Li Yun decide for himself which of the Four Peaks he wishes to join."
Silence fell.
All four First Seats turned their gazes toward Li Yun, waiting.
Li Yun hesitated.
Each Peak had offered extraordinary treatnt, far beyond what any ordinary disciple could ever hope to receive. For a mont, even he found it difficult to decide.
In truth, his heart leaned slightly toward Earth Pillar Peak.
Their offer was the most generous, and with his Supre Foundation, his cultivation consud vast amounts of resources. If he wished to advance rapidly, he would need imnse support. From a purely practical standpoint, Earth Pillar Peak seed the most advantageous choice.
Just as Li Yun was still weighing his options and silently debating which Peak to choose, the Profound Mystery Peak Lord noticed the hesitation on his face.
"It seems Li Yun needs more ti to consider," he said calmly. "Since that is the case, we will allow you to think carefully."
He paused briefly before continuing, "For now, we will proceed with the Aptitude test."
The Aptitude test was a mandatory examination for every new disciple who entered the Martial Ascension Gate. Through a special thod, it could assess the innate potential of a disciple. Those with exceptional Aptitude would receive focused cultivation and abundant resources, while those with diocre results would receive only the most basic support.
"Aptitude test?" Li Yun frowned slightly.
He clearly rembered what had happened during his coming-of-age ceremony in his clan. The treasure used to examine elental physiques had completely failed to detect the true nature of his Primal Chaos Body. No ordinary instrunt had been capable of asuring its depth.
A trace of concern surfaced in his heart.
If the sa thing happened here, it could attract unnecessary attention or create complications. He silently hoped that whatever treasure the Sect used would at least be able to detect part of his potential.
At that mont, Steward Liu stepped forward from the side, holding a transparent crystal sphere in both hands.
"This is the Aptitude asuring Orb," he announced. "Simply place your palm upon it, and it will automatically assess your Aptitude. After the test, the orb will emit light that condenses into star phantoms in the air. The greater the number of stars, the higher the Aptitude. There are twelve levels in total. One star is the lowest. Twelve stars is the highest."
He lifted the crystal sphere slightly and added, "Line up and begin the testing."
As soon as his voice fell, the disciples quickly ford a line. One after another, they stepped forward and placed their palms against the cool surface of the crystal sphere.
Whoosh.
When a gray-robed youth pressed his hand onto it, the orb trembled faintly. A hazy radiance seeped from within the crystal and rose into the air. Monts later, the light condensed into four star phantoms, hovering clearly above the sphere.
"Wang Long, four-star Aptitude! Not bad at all. That already counts as high-tier within the ordinary grade."
The Aptitude scale consisted of twelve stars.
One star represented the lowest level of Aptitude. Those at that level could barely step onto the path of cultivation and were almost incapable of becoming true Martial Artists.
Two to four stars fell within the ordinary grade. Two stars were considered low-tier ordinary, three stars mid-tier ordinary, and four stars high-tier ordinary.
Five to seven stars belonged to the excellent grade. Five stars were low-tier excellent, six stars mid-tier excellent, and seven stars high-tier excellent.
Eight to ten stars were classified as Genius grade. Eight stars represented mid-tier Genius, nine stars high-tier Genius, and ten stars peak Genius.
Beyond that were the rarest categories. Eleven stars signified a Super Genius. Twelve stars signified a Peerless Genius.
However, in the thousand-year history of the Martial Ascension Gate, not a single disciple had ever reached eleven or twelve stars. Even the founding ancestor, Martial Gate Immortal Master, had possessed only ten-star Aptitude.
One by one, the ordinary disciples completed their tests. The lowest result was three stars. The highest reached seven stars.
"Han Lingxue, your turn," Steward Liu called.
Han Lingxue inhaled softly to steady herself before stepping forward. She placed her slender hand upon the crystal sphere.
The orb trembled faintly, then released a radiant glow. The light rose into the air above the hall and condensed into eight clear star phantoms.
"Eight-star Aptitude. Mid-tier Genius. Excellent!" The Profound Mystery Peak Lord nodded with obvious satisfaction.
"Lu Changsan."
Lu Changsan stepped forward next. When his test concluded, eight stars also ford above the orb. However, the brilliance of his stars was noticeably stronger than Han Lingxue’s. Though both were eight-star talents, his foundation was clearly more solid.
"Very good," the Human Origin Peak First Seat said with approval. Since Lu Changsan pursued a fierce and unyielding martial path similar to Zhu Xin’s, he too had chosen Human Origin Peak.
Steward Liu then swept his gaze toward the three remaining figures.
"Next, the top three of this year’s New Disciples Ranking will be tested."
His eyes settled on them as he said, "Zhu Xin, you first."
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