8 Boundary
"Xian Xia, D-grade aptitude, not bad! If you're lucky, you can become a Rank 2 Gu Master," Hei Jiao commented with an amused look. "And that marks the last person! Hmm, good! Better than last time's batch."
Xian Xia walked out of the Spring Spring excitedly and joined the twenty or so people standing separately.
Twenty D-grades, three C-grades, and the rest are unqualified to cultivate.
Out of fifty or so people, only less than half have the talent to awaken, and the rest will become mortal servants in this Fiery Pit. This is by picking the best of the best among the villages. Even so, this result is outstanding and the first time for Hei Jiao.
'Hmm, I didn't check the potential of those two.' Suddenly he remembered hearing from Hei Po of the two from the group that had already awakened during their journey.
"You two, come here!"
Fang Huo and Qi Dian, standing in a corner, walked up to him at the call.
Fang Huo double-checked his Aperture to make sure the Immortal Gu was hidden. He calmed his heart and readied for the revelation of Extreme Talent. Unlike him, Qi Dian stood next to him proudly, and he realized the reason the next moment.
"Hmm, B-Grade talent! Incredible, incredible! Young man, you have the potential to become a Rank 4 Gu Master," Hei Jiao's eyes burned with excitement and happiness. If his subordinates have high potential, the one profiteering from this will be him.
"Many thanks, Lord Hei Jiao. It is all your blessings that this little one has given this chance," he said so sincerely that Fang Huo even thought; Brother Qi Dian's foundation must be deep in the path of bootlicking.
Hei Jiao nodded his head with a gentle smile and turned to Fang Huo.
"Put down your guard and let my primeval essence into your Aperture, young man!"
When Hei Jiao tried to insert his White Silver primeval essence into Fang Huo's Aperture, he was met with resistance. He didn't think more about it as it's instinct for everyone to reject unknown things, but Fang Huo frowned;
'I didn't reject it! It unconsciously got blocked by something. Hmm, Is it the Immortal Gu?' His mind went to alarm for the fear of getting exposed but calmed down quickly. He tried to test it by sending his thoughts into the Immortal Gu.
Soon, the White Silver essence entered his body smoothly and inspected his Aperture, affirming his conjecture. But Hei Jiao's body froze in shock with mouth agape. His body trembled as he retracted his arms and looked at Fang Huo with immense shock.
"Extreme Talent! One of the Ten Extreme Physiques!"
"This, this, this!" The newly awakened Gu Masters were tongue-tied. Qi Dian's expression turned ugly. He was still basking in praises from his peers, but will anyone even look at him after this?
Hei Jiao's face soon turned complicated as he said with a serious voice, "I need to report this to our Tribe Leader immediately. Boy, what is your name?"
Fang Huo let out an inaudible sigh and said, "I'm Fang Huo."
Hei Jiao nodded his head and brought everyone awakened to register inside the Spring Pavilion.
They are in a middle-scale Spirit Spring Hei Tribe controls to awaken their servants and troops, the Spring Pavilion. It is located between the Fiery Lava Pit and Base of Hei Tribe.
As the person in charge of the Mining Branch, Hei Jiao is responsible for the Aperture awakening process. And he has to register all the details of the process in an Information Gu present in the Spring Pavilion.
"Hehe, it seems Brother Hei Jiao hit the jackpot this time!" A middle-aged man of burly stature commented, sitting behind the table where an Orb-shaped Information Gu could be seen placed. He looked at Fang Huo standing behind Hei Jiao for a moment and nodded.
"Sigh! Don't joke, Brother Hei Mo. It is tiring to often visit this place. Fiery Lava Pit is one of the dangerous and important resource points of our Hei Tribe. Because of this, we always attract the greed of beasts and men alike," Hei Jiao sighed and said with a tired look, but anyone can see the smugness in his eyes.
Hei Mo snorted inwardly and asked with concern, "I heard a beast tide of Fire Pellet Cranes attacked two days ago."
Hei Jiao's eyes sharpened at that: "Yes, it's true. Thank the Longevity Heavens, Elder Hei Qi Sheng took action early and prevented any losses to the resources. But, our surroundings have been wrecked havoc by the beasts that escaped."
Hei Mo nodded and passed the Information Gu, not wishing to waste any more time. A person with Extreme Talent has been discovered, and their heads will roll if they delayed the information from passing it to the Tribe.
Hei Jiao also didn't waste any time and used his primeval essence and registered the information in the Gu.
Soon, a Rank 4 Letter Gu came and fell on Hei Jiao's hand. Written on it were,
"Bring Him to the Base."
Hei Jiao kept the Letter Gu inside his Aperture and nodded at Hei Mo.
Without a delay, he made arrangements for the rest of the newly awakened Gu Masters to be brought back to the Fiery Lava Pit and departed along with Fang Huo to the Tribe.
Hei Jiao rode the Lava Crocodile King, a Thousand Beast King, equivalent in strength to a Rank 3 Gu Master. Hei Jiao is a famous Rank 3 Peak stage Gu Master with little reputation in the Northern Plains. He is expected to become a new Elder of the Hei Tribe. He is also related to the Young Tribe leader.
The struggle for the Imperial Court Contest isn't small, and even if one made little contribution, in the grand scheme of things, it will become a key factor that will turn the entire situation around. The excitement and happiness of Hei Jiao are also because of this.
'Hehehe, I was always dissatisfied because of my task in the Fiery Lava Pit, but with this contribution, I can ride the dragon and reach the Longevity Heavens in one step… Perhaps becoming a rank 5 Gu Master might be possible in my lifetime." Hei Jiao drooled as he thought of his upcoming rewards and future possibilities.
While Hei Jiao wildly fantasized, Fang Huo, sitting atop another Lava Crocodile, kept his eyes closed to hide his exhaustion and shock at discovering another aspect of his Vital Gu.
"So, this Gu's ability is to create a barrier? No, that's not quite right!" During his inspection, he realized his body had formed a barrier unconsciously against Hei Jiao's White Silver primeval essence. His heart still pounded at the thought, but fortunately, he managed to deactivate it.
'Now that I think about it, ever since the activation of that barrier, my mind or senses have been very strained and tired.' Fang Huo's closed eyes opened, and energy returned to them. After an hour of rest, his mind fully recovered, shocking him, as he felt the tiredness wasn't something an hour of rest could resolve.
'Other than primeval essence or immortal essence, this Gu also works with mental energy?' Fang Huo's eyes gleamed with this realization, and his mind felt like seeing light at the tunnel's end.
'So, the other side I failed to perceive from the Gu is related to the mind?' Instead of wasting time thinking, he decided to test it, and riding a separate steed ended up favoring him more than he thought.
Fang Huo willed his Vital Gu to appear from hiding first and then activated it, focusing all his attention unlike the last time when it activated unconsciously.
Soon, the noises dimmed, and the brushing winds stopped entirely. He couldn't exactly tell how, but his body seemed levitated from the Crocodile, as if an invisible wall or 'Boundary' had been built between him and everything.
"What the hell is this?" Fang Huo exclaimed inaudibly, noticing his Primeval Essence dwindling slowly when he looked into his Aperture. After about an hour, 10% of his Primeval Essence had dwindled.
Suddenly, noticing movements from Hei Jiao at the front, he deactivated the Gu immediately, grumbling; ´Why did this bastard wake up from sleeping?'
"Get ready kid, we are at the Boundary of Hei Tribe base!"
Fang Huo let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes again, this time to conceal his happiness. He reopened them sharply while muttering,
"Alright, You shall be called Boundary Gu!"
