"Yes, Aunt Li Mei!" the children chorused, their voices a blend of excitement and nervousness. They fell into line behind her, a small, quiet regiment awaiting their fate.
Though it was still early, the street outside Red Mountain Academy was a bustling river of parents and children. All the six-year-olds, the minimum age for the awakening, were shepherded by hopeful families. In the Sun Moon Federation, this ceremony was both a right and a duty; even the lowest-level Soul Master was a valuable resource for the state.
A steady stream of parents and children exited the academy gates. Most wore faces etched with disappointment and resignation—their child's innate soul power was zero, the door to a extraordinary life closed before it could even open.
Occasionally, however, a family would emerge beaming with joy. Their child, having awakened with soul power, was now destined for a Soul Master school, a tuition-free education, and a future worlds apart from the ordinary. The envy from other parents was a palpable force. A Soul Master, even a novice one, received a federal stipend and privileges that could lift an entire family.
Two hours slipped by. The sun grew warmer, and the children's initial fervor waned into a fidgety anticipation, their eyes glued to the academy gate.
"Tang Ning, Lin Jian, Zheng Hang."
A male teacher in his mid-twenties emerged, a roster in hand. He read out the names of several of Yao Xuan's companions.
"Go on, children. Auntie wishes you all the best of luck," Li Mei said, her smile gentle but unable to fully mask her own anxiety for them.
"Thank you, Auntie!"
The called children jumped up and scurried after the teacher. About ten minutes later, they returned, their shoulders slumped, their earlier energy gone.
"Now, now, don't be discouraged. It's perfectly normal not to have innate soul power," Li Mei comforted them, her voice soft. "Come, tell me, what are your martial souls?"
"A shovel! My martial soul is a shovel!"
"Mine is scissors!"
"Oh, mine is a wheelbarrow!"
The children listed their common tool martial souls, the ordinary nature of them underscoring their lack of spirit power.
Just then, the teacher appeared again. "Yang Ya, Yao Xuan, Huang Yu."
Yao Xuan stood up with the others, the familiar flutter of nerves in his stomach. He followed the teacher into the academy grounds.
As they walked, Yao Xuan observed his surroundings. The campus was tidy and quiet, with red-walled buildings and white roofs, not so different from a school on Earth.
"Alright, everyone, proceed to your assigned awakening rooms in order," the teacher instructed, stopping before a domed teaching building.
"Yes, teacher!"
The children hurried inside. The building was far more spacious and imposing than the orphanage, with seven floors, each housing an awakening chamber. Yao Xuan was directed to the one on the second floor.
The inside was breathtaking. The floor, walls, and ceiling were all engraved with intricate, shimmering patterns that seemed to pulse with a faint light.
'Soul guidance arrays...' Yao Xuan thought, feeling the soul power within him stir in response, flowing slightly faster. 'How amazing.'
"Child, don't just stand there. Come here."
In the center of the room stood a middle-aged man in a simple orange robe embroidered with soul beast patterns—the Spirit Master from the Spirit Pagoda. His tone was surprisingly patient. Usually, he would be irritated by dallying, but something about this boy inspired a strange sense of calm warmth.
"I'm sorry, Uncle. These patterns are so magical, I got a little lost in them," Yao Xuan said, offering a small, apologetic bow as he approached. The Enhanced Charm was working its subtle influence.
"Those are soul guidance arrays, indeed magical things. If you become a Soul Master, you'll learn all about them. Now, come, stand in the center," the Spirit Master explained, his smile genuine.
"Okay, Uncle."
Yao Xuan stepped into the red circle marked on the floor. This was it. Despite knowing the outcome, his heart beat a little faster. This was the official, public step onto the path he would walk.
"Concentrate. I'm about to begin."
The Spirit Master closed his eyes. A ball of soft white light bloomed in his palm, pulsing with gentle energy.
'Is this soul power? How wondrous,' Yao Xuan mused, a true sense of awe filling him.
Then, the Spirit Master raised his hand, directing the ball of light toward the ceiling. It surged into the complex array above. Instantly, the patterns throughout the room began to glow, starting from the ceiling and flowing down the walls like liquid light, finally converging in the circle beneath Yao Xuan's feet.
A warm, comforting energy flooded into him from the soles of his feet, causing a slight tremor to run through his small frame. His vision blurred for a second as a heat blossomed within him. It was a familiar warmth—the dormant energy of the Ancestral Dragon, stirred but not unleashed. He consciously suppressed it, allowing only a trickle of the power he had already fused with to surface. A faint, almost imperceptible shimmer of light, the color of old gold, flickered around him for a moment before solidifying into a simple, unadorned longsword held in his right hand. It was a mundane manifestation, a deliberate disguise for the cosmic power sleeping within.
The Spirit Master's eyes widened slightly. "A weapon martial soul! Excellent! Now, place your hand on the soul testing crystal. Let us see if you have been blessed with soul power."
Yao Xuan nodded, reaching out and placing his palm on the cool, transparent crystal sphere. He focused, not on drawing power, but on limiting it. He let a carefully measured stream of energy flow from his core—just enough, no more.
The crystal, which had remained dark for so many children today, glowed to life with a soft, steady blue light. It was not blinding, not overwhelming, but it was clear and undeniable.
"Innate Soul Power... level 5!" the Spirit Master announced, a note of genuine approval in his voice. "A solid talent, child. You have a future ahead of you. You may go."
"Thank you, Uncle."
Yao Xuan bowed again, a calm smile on his face as he turned to leave. Outwardly, he was just a lucky orphan with a decent starting point. Inwardly, his mind was already racing ahead, calculating his next steps on the long, secret road that would one day lead him to Gu Yuena. The first act of his performance was complete.