It didn't take long for five of the six participants to regain their senses as they hurriedly cupped their fists at Yang Qing.
"We greet the examiner..."
"Thank you for healing me.."
Since it was sudden, there were mixed replies from all five which made them pale before they all unanimously decided to settle on the two statements with fidgety expressions afraid that their earlier discordant greeting may cost them a place in the Order.
"First, I would like to sincerely congratulate you all for your display and for making it to the finish. You have all shown qualities deserving of the Order.." Yang Qing said as he offered them Daoist salutes.
Kang Huilang, Xia Boqin, and Dai Chen did the same too as they offered their congratulations, which drew gleaming eyes from the five participants, more so Yan Qiu who somewhat knew about them and their abilities.
"Meng Jia, Yan Qiu please have these, they're your rewards. You can redeem them after this at the external logistics division or you can wait till your orientation is over then you can do it at the Institute.
If you decide on the former, Yan Qiu can you please show her the way?" said Yang Qing as he produced two blue jade talismans.
"I will!!" Yan Qiu solemnly answered as he thumped his chest with one fist like he was undertaking a grand mission.
"Now let's move to the next matter. Other than Yan Qiu, and Liao Jiayi, there is something I'd like you all to consider, especially you, elder Bu Fui..."
The atmosphere became heavy from Yang Qing's austere words.
"I'd like to make something clear, you're free to refuse it if you don't want to, and your entry to the Order will not change no matter the decision, and will still do our very best to nurture you all.
You should all have an inkling of what I'm driving at.." said Yang Qing as he eyed the five of them with his gaze concentrated on Bu Fui, Tang Su, Tang Di, and Meng Jia.
"Your foundations in the body refining realm and the qi refinement realm will limit your progress ahead. While the Order has vast resources, that help can only reach so far.
For some of you, you will be halted at areas beneath what your potential could reach because of your earlier foundations.
Forgive my crass tone, but they're too brittle to meet the standards required of you and the work the Order will give you. They will affect how far you reach.
The minimum threshold is a gold body which none of you has reached, and the qi refinement can only be polished with a good base body to work from.
Some of you may have had good cultivation art, but without a good solid foundation, you can't bring out the best of its abilities.."
Tang Su and Tang Di lowered their heads when they heard this. Yang Qing could tell at the body-refining realm they had only reached the bronze stage, the same as Meng Jia which was why her body couldn't handle her powerful soul.
Bu Fui had the worst since he had an iron body and the cultivation art he practiced for qi refinement was massively flawed that it left his qi erratic, and with a lot of hidden injuries. It was only when he started cultivating the 108 steps of the Autumn leaf did his qi flow appear to be smooth.
However, his meridians had developed sequelae which if left unattended would hinder or risk his progress to the foundation establishment realm.
"My solution to you all is this, to abolish all your cultivations and help you start from scratch. I know it's not an easy thing, so you have a month to decide. You can inform your instructors then.
If you have any questions or fears, your assigned instructors will help dispel them, so don't shy away.
Like I said earlier, whatever you decide, your entry to the Order will not be affected in any way nor will your treatment..."
All four participants had complicated expressions on their faces since they were already in the qi refinement realm, more so Bu Fui who was in the seventh stage and was far along in his years.
"Your lives won't be at risk, neither will your potential.." Yang Qing added when he saw the fear in their eyes, especially Bu Fui.
"Once again, congratulations and welcome to the Order. I wish you all the best in your future ahead.." Yang Qing warmly said as he waved his sleeves activating the teleportation array below them.
Only the unconscious Liao Jiayi was left behind while the five were transported to the administrative building of the Institute to start their enrollment procedures along with meeting up with their parents and or guardians who had also been sent along.
The four judges moved their focus back to the other participants. Other than the six who made it to the peak, there were still a few others not far away from reaching them.
There were two of them to be exact.
One of them was the remaining legacy after one of them got eliminated by the seven-colored doe. Even though that particular was less talented than the six, he had sturdy foundations and a steady personality hence his slow and measured rise to the top.
As for the remaining one he was a gifted alchemist who would have arrived earlier had he not spent a long time using up all the materials in the special zone he stumbled onto. With a qi refinement cultivation base, he could already make earth-rank pills and potions that were suitable to those in the foundation establishment and were of decent quality.
Potions and pills were given grades in terms of quality and the grade run from I-XII.. Based on Yang Qing's judgment the pills and potion he brewed were grade XII and his success rate of reproducing such a quality was 70%.
The alchemist was only 11 years old and had already shown such skills.
When he thought of the alchemist his gaze couldn't help but fall on, He Shan, who fit the model of what an Order based alchemist should have.
When the order trained alchemy they not only focused on recipes and how to correctly brew potions and pills, but they also focused on the ecology of the herbs and supplemented it with spirit beast zoology. They needed to know which herbs grew where, and which animals were drawn to them, which would help them in their adaptability when sourcing for new ingredients.
The test had a lot of participants who showed a lot of promise in alchemy, but they were eliminated because of carelessness that shouldn't be in one aspiring to be a complete alchemist. They fell to the allure of precious spirit herbs and got attacked by spirit beasts that were co-existing with those spirit herbs.
Some were big and some were the size of a melon seed, regardless the result was the same, which was the elimination of the careless participant who didn't know to look out for those spirit beasts.
Yang Qing felt He Shan showed a lot of promise. Even if he failed to make it to the peak, he had a feeling his odds of getting a special recommendation from the Alchemy faculty department were very high.
The person in question was currently working with Zou Yi and the rest making steady gains as they scaled up the mountain. They had already covered about three kilometers of it in that short time and still had enough energy to maintain the momentum.
Their cooperation was seamless with each sticking to their own strengths. They had all made significant improvements when it came to the execution of their respective arts which was a huge boost to their strengths, but their biggest attribute was Yu Mei.
While physically in terms of battle technique, she would lose out to the three despite being a first-stage qi refinement cultivator, she had unlocked an attribute of her physique when she broke through to the qi refinement realm.
That attribute was called the 'heart mirror'.
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