Noboru being interested in what would happen, immediately bent down to touch the ground before doing anything else.
The texture of the ground was perfectly smooth without a single imperfection. There was nothing special about it aside from its spectralon color and the smooth texture.
He had secretly hoped that the spectralon coloured ground would be a primary element in itself but it wasn't.
As he stood up straight again, his focus shifted onto the primary elements at hand. There were many different ones to choose from.
Some were more simple such as water and fire but others more complex.
He saw a small piglet walking around showing that he could choose beast as his primary element.
There was merely one piglet and a small one at that. He didn't settle for the beast primary element for the same reason. His body was clearly only compatible with it to a small extent.
Another uncommon element was a pile of a reddish and very unstable substance. It was lying there quietly on the ground and randomly exploded every once in a while before collecting itself into one pile again.
Only one pile of this element was present, showing the incompatibility with Noboru.
Merely one element could truly catch Noboru's attention.
It was a sort of dark mist. It formed a massive cloud and floated around the white landscape aimlessly. Not only was it everywhere but it was quite the interesting substance as well.
This dark mist seemed to be, just like the exploding substance, extremely unstable.
It didn't explode but it constantly changed its state of matter. Without a break, it switched from solid to liquid to air time and time again in an unpredictable and rapid manner.
Clearly, this would be a difficult primary element to master but also an extremely versatile one.
A truly powerful primary element that could be used in any situation while also being hard to predict and being highly compatible with Noboru's body sounded perfect to him.
Noboru took his time looking around the place further and further, discovering many interesting and unique primary elements. In total he found more than 100.
They were not even remotely compatible enough for Noboru to consider taking them as his primary element. Most weren't even compatible enough for him to think about choosing them as his secondary element either.
Being compatible with such an amount of elements is, like so many things, a testimony to Noboru's indubitable talent when it came to cultivation. Despite the small compatibility, it was still a feat to behold.
He had finally made his choice now.
He was going to choose dark mist as his primary element.
Stepping up to the constantly changing mist, he held out his hand and focused a decent amount of his essence into his hand.
For an Enlightened who had never controlled their essence before, even this was a difficult task.
Adapting and learning quickly, he succeeded in focusing all of his essence into the stretched out palm of his hand.
The dark mist had an extremely faint amount of essence itself just like every other element did.
Within just a few seconds, the mist was slowly starting to engulf Noboru fully, their essence mixing and combining permanently, forming the essence that would now be Noboru's.
The mist started engulfing him from his ankles and moved all the way up to his face.
As it encircled Noboru, it became stable and stopped changing its state of matter. It was purely a dark mist now. Not a dark liquid nor a dark solid substance.
It was still unclear to Noboru what this element was, however, it wasn't a pressing matter and his curiosity could be satisfied later. He had different matters to focus on for the time being.
The longer Noboru was encircled, the more he felt himself being consumed by the element. It felt like it invaded his every cell.
Suddenly, after a long time, the mist dissipated around him. Previously, he wasn't able to see past the cloud of mist that had formed around him. That issue was resolved now.
The spectralon landscape alongside the elements had all disappeared. He was lying in his bed now, completely conscious once again.
He looked around disoriented for a short while. Despite the explanation Yori gave him back when he explained how one can ascend, the change of scenery was still very sudden to Noboru.
After his disorientation wore off, he slowly but surely erupted in a joyful and slightly wicked laughter.
He had done it. After all these years, he was finally an Enlightened.
His importance and social influence rose drastically because of it. He was no longer just a disposable mortal apprentice. He was an Enlightened. A person to be feared by mortals and respected by other Enlightened.
There was no chance of getting evicted by Yori anymore if he were to deem him too untalented for cultivation. Even if that would happen, Noboru would be fine now that he was an Enlightened.
He could cultivate anywhere without needing the help of anyone now.
A content smile remained on his face as he stood up from his bed, his muscles aching slightly from not moving for too long.
He felt extreme thirst and hunger, which he quickly eliminated by hydrating and eating a small meal, meaning that he had been unconscious for an extended period of time.
He wasn't able to know how many hours, or maybe even days, it had been. It gave him a feeling of worry.
He got out of his apartment and rushed downstairs, searching for other Enlightened and especially seeking out Yori.
As he arrived in the lower Half of the central building, he saw everyone in an uproar, rushing around frantically. Some seemingly even had a mental breakdown.
It was clear as day. The entire first stronghold has been notified of the upcoming war. The Enlightened would all be mobilised, explaining their panic and fear.
Noboru passed through the mass of panicked Enlightened with great difficulty due to their chaotic behaviour. He did manage to eventually make out and find his way to Yori.
"Master! I've ascended successfully. We do not have time to waste I believe, correct? Please teach me the basic knowledge."
Yori's voice was excited yet also showed traces of stress and tiredness.
"Ah! Noboru, you're finally awake! I'm relieved it went so well. You've barely been unconscious for 16 hours. There is still plenty of time to train. But you're right. We shouldn't waste any time. I can't have you die in this war."
Noboru felt content, knowing that he only chose his primary element for 16 hours. It was not too long in his opinion.
"Yes, master. Dying now would certainly be a tragedy."
"I will teach you basic control over your primary element today, Noboru. Meet me in the training room."
With a quick nod confirming that he would meet Yori there, both of them began their short way to the training room.