The Aperture Awakens

After the ceremony ended, they proceeded on with the awakening process. The beastmen rised up from their kneeling positions, waiting for further instructions.

Some of them were still thinking about the scene earlier. It was their first time conducting prayers in front of the mural.

"Listen attentively, I will be calling out your names and you'll come forward. Once you step up here, you will enter the river and walk across it to the opposite bank. The rest, I think you all should be familiar with. The more steps you can walk, the better your aptitude will be. Am I understood?" Lao Qiu said. His expression was calm as he looked at the crowd before him.

"Yes!" The beastmen all shouted in unison. Their eyes holding in excitement and anticipation, with a hint of anxiety. It was natural for them to be this way.

Who wouldn't be anxious about something like this? This very well might determine the fates of some of the beastmen here, whether you become influential or a dreg. Either you become a dragon who soars to the sky, or stay a snake on the ground.

After confirming everything was prepared, the elders nodded to Lao Qiu.

"Good. Wu Qing Bei Wen, come on up." Lao Qiu called out the first person.

This beastman, Bei Wen, had quite the intimidating presence. His body was bulky, his head that of a bear. He stepped into the river.

The river itself was not that deep, and would barely reach to someone's kneecap, but due to Bei Wen's impressive physique, it barely reached up to his calves.

At first, he did not feel much different upon entering the river, but a change was made in his facial expression after he took a few steps. Almost instantly, Bei Wen felt an invisible pressure tower over him, preventing him from moving forward an inch. He gritted his teeth and tried to do his best to move forward. The next moment, the aquatic plants that were floating across the water, started giving out light. The light gathered around Bei Wen's body. The immense pressure he felt before was no more, and he started walking down the river bank. Without the intense pressure assaulting him, Bei Wen continued moving forward without much difficulties.

Every step he took attracted more and more lights from the plants in the river, each one attaching itself to his body. He walked 10 steps, 20 steps, 30 steps, before finally stopping at his 34th step. He could no longer continue moving forward.

Every spectator was awestruck, their mouths were wide agape. But, that did not compare to the shock that the leader and the elders have been given.

One of the elders with the lower body of a llama, exclaimed with a trembling and excited voice.

"Wu Qing Bei Wen, B grade aptitude! Good, good, come over here and let me check your newly formed aperture."

Bei Wen puffed his chest as he walked back towards the elder. Pride and arrogance gleaming off his eyes.

Xie Huang, the elder, placed his hand onto Bei Wen's shoulder. During the inspection, he closed his eyes to maintain full focus.

Opening his eyes with satisfaction, he retracted his hand and recorded his founding: 'Wu Qing Bei Wen, primeval sea measuring at 68%, will be nurtured heavily.'

The other elders looked at each other with gazes of excitement and most importantly, hope!

The awakening process had only just begun, yet there was already an outstanding talent, one with a B Grade aptitude at that!

There was four grades of aptitude. Ranking from the lowest, was D Grade. Even if they cultivated their whole life, most would only be able to reach Rank 1. But, because of ther status as a Gu Master, they would be higher than ordinary citizens. There would almost be no hope for one to reach Rank 2.

The second lowest was C Grade aptitude. Usually, they would be able to reach Rank 2. They are not limited to only Rank 2, with effort and luck, they might reach Rank 3.

The following was B Grade aptitude. If one had this kind of aptitude, reaching Rank 3 would not be a problem. They would gain a higher status and gain more influence. Of course, because of the difference in aptitude, most B Grade aptitudes can reach Rank 4, though not all.

Ranking at the top of the aptitudes, was A Grade. People who posses an A grade aptitude, are geniuses that rarely come by once in a while. If given ample time and resources, one could definitely reach Rank 4, and might even surpass that and reach Rank 5.

All in all, a B Grade prospect may become a pillar of the tribe if heavily nurtured. It is not something to scoff at.

Lao Qiu tightened his fists. Finally, he thought.

'Our Great God has not forsaken us! We, the Wu Qing tribe, will rise up from the ashes and take revenge against those other tribes that have bullied us!" He has shouting inwardly with vigor.

One had to know, out of ten people, only five of them would be able to awaken their aperture on average. For the Wu Qing tribe, this ratio was much lower, usually being a three or four out of ten ratio. But, now was completely different from before.

Wu Qing tribe had sacrificed their time and resources for an outcome like this, waiting patiently while taking beatings from other tribes.

Almost all of the elders thought of the same question: Has our hard work finally paid off?

But, they also had their own secret thoughts hidden within their minds. This Bei Wen was not a relative to any of the elders, not even the leader. If any of them were to rope him in, then they would surely gain more power.

Though, these thoughts did not linger much in their minds. Their tribe is nearly on the verge of collapsing, do they have the liberties to fight over benefits amongst each other? That would only be quickening their demise. The first thing they needed to do was bring their glory back to the tribe. After that, then they could be able to worry about benefits. For now, the development of their tribe comes first.

Bei Wen walked back to the group of beastmen, looks of jealousy fell upon him. Truth be told, nobody wanted to be stuck as an ordinary mortal their whole life, they wanted to be extraordinary. Now that the first person to awaken their aperture had a B Grade aptitude, the rest felt more anxious and nervous than ever.

Xie Huang collected his thoughts and composed himself, he then called out the next name. Now, the elders were visibly excited waiting for the next person. It would be the tribe's greatest luck if they obtained more B Grade aptitudes, maybe even an A Grade might show up, who knows?

"Next, Wu Qing Siu Chen" Xie Huang shouted.

The person in question was not as overbearing as Bei Wen, he looked reserved with a slight hint of worry.

Following the same process as before, he stepped into the river. But, it was not the same as Bei Wen's performance.

He was only able to walk 6 steps before he fell down to his knees, gasping for breath.

Seeing this, the elders couldn't help but frown. Was the previous performance just out of pure luck?

Perhaps, it might have been just a lucky draw that the first beastman to awaken their aperture, Bei Wen, had talent. Just because it happened to him, does not mean that it would apply to others.

They thought to themselves, this outcome was logical. It would be unrealistic if they thought all of their tribe members could have outstanding aptitudes. But, it was still greatly disappointing to them, their mood went from high to low in an instant.

They were greatly dispirited, even Lao Qiu. He was bursting with a surge of emotions, but now they had been flushed away by indignation.

Like the proverb said: Don't count your chickens before they hatch!

This simply meant that it was best to not be sure of something before it was actually done. You are basically bringing yourself misfortune at that point.

But, they all reserved themselves before thinking the worst. The awakening process had only begun, with Siu Chen being the second one out of hundreds of others, they mustn't think negatively.

"Wu Qing Siu Chen, 6 steps, not apt to be a Gu Master. Next, Wu Qing Duo Fong!" The elder Xie Huang shouted. Because of Siu Chen's performance, his mood was now sour.

He walked back to the crowd with long, depressing strides. Before, he was actually happy and excited for what the future held, but his dreams were broken by the reality in front of him.

No aptitude to be a Gu Master! These are the words that nobody wanted to hear. Pitiful gazes were shot towards him, but these people also thought to themselves. What if they ended up like him? They would be overly expectant, only to find themselves disappointed and depressed. The idea itself made them shudder in fear.

Like most of the beastmen present, Duo Fong also had an impressive physique. He had the snout of a deer with two large antlers on his head. But, there was fear on his face.

In the crowd of beastmen, Yi Shen had been keenly observing the events befolding in front of him.

He had been living amongst these beastmen for fifteen years now, he had gained a few insights about the beastmen race itself.

In his previous life, records stated that the beastmen race were vicious, ferocious variant humans who were bloodthirsty by nature and enjoyed eating humans. There were a few sections that mentioned beastmen to be hot-headed which eventually led to their demise, but after witnessing it himself, Yi Shen did not find that last part to be quite true.

From what he knew, the beastmen in this Blessed Land did not know of the existence of any other race, only theirs. This might have influenced their own traits given that since there were no humans to feast on, their ruthless nature was almost nearly gone by now.

But, like any other variant human race, the beastmen's intelligence was naturally lower than that of a human. There were some instances in history of there being variant humans that possessed wisdom comparable to humans, but those were rare. Yi Shen was a special case because he used to be a human, his thinking processes were different from the rest.

The beastmen that he's interacted with in this life, including his family relatives, were not brutish or cruel. But, these might just be a different species of beastmen, it's too early to be making assumptions.

He put his thoughts back to the scene in front of him.

Duo Fong walked up the river with an anxious expression. He stepped into the river, and almost instantly felt an invisible pressure tower over him, preventing him from moving forward an inch. The next moment, the plants that were floating across the water, started giving out a weak light. The light gathered around Duo Fong and circled around his body. The immense pressure he felt before was lessened, and he started walking down the river. But, after twelve steps, he could not walk and the pressure had appeared once more. Finally, he wasn't able to endure it any longer and couldn't continue further.

Xie Huang and the rest of the elders were not particularly impressed, but it was better than nothing.

"Wu Qing Duo Fong, D Grade aptitude. Come over so I can check your aperture."

As Duo Fong walked over to Xie Huang, he smiled like there was no tomorrow. Although he had the lowest aptitude one could get, it was better than staying stuck with no aptitude!

It just so happens to be that Duo Fong comes from a commoner family. Being able to awaken his aperture and walk down the path of a Gu Master is his life's greatest blessing.

Elder Xie Huang checked his aperture, 'Hm, 24% primeval sea. Will not be as nurtured as much as others.'

A D Grade was better than having none, but it wasn't worth nurturing them over C or B Grade aptitudes.

Lao Qiu and the elders looked at each other with slight worry. There are still a lot more left to awaken their aperture, hopefully they do not get the end of the shortstick.

From then on, the awakening ceremony continued.