The two remaining days quickly passed, and today was the day the sect exams were being held. Kael woke up early and in anticipation of the day. After a quick meal, he left for the exams. He wasn't the only one who was restless, as the roads were filled with test takers. He didn't interact with them and went on his way. The exams were being held at the edge of the city to avoid overcrowding in the already busy city.
It took him about two hours to get there as he wasn't in a rush. It was a vast, open field with makeshift tents scattered throughout. There was a stage where the meridian opening would be happening. Some elders sat there, all exuding an indomitable aura. The time for the exam was almost upon them, and the venue was now already full of eager boys and girls.
Excited murmurs could be heard all over the place. An elder stood up on the stage and swept his gaze across the whole crowd. Everybody quickly quieted down and looked at the lofty elder. "I believe you all know what brought you here, so I won't waste my words on that. I'll instead tell you what will be happening during the test." He paused for a moment before continuing, "As you can see on the stage, there are a total of seven elders including myself. You will form a queue in front of each elder and wait for your turn. They will inject their essence into your body to stimulate your meridians. The more meridians you open, the more potential you have and the more resources you can get from the sect." Surprised gasps could be heard from within the crowd.
From the middle of the crowd, a hand shot up. "Yes, what is it that you want to ask?" The elder asked with a frown, clearly not pleased by the interruption. "Will the meridian opening be painful?" The elders' frown deepened and with a scoff answered," The world of cultivators is a dangerous one, if you can't pain then it's not for you. But to answer your question, no it will not be painful." The elder said as he met the young boy's eyes. The boy shrank back, avoiding the gaze of the elder.
"He seems scary." Kael heard a voice next to him. He turned to look and found it was a boy roughly his age, with an uncharacteristically long nose. He just nodded and turned his attention back to the elder. "Does anyone else have a question?" The elder asked, but nobody dared to speak up. "Good, then let us begin." He said as he went back to his seat. The crowd divided itself into seven lines each before the respective elder. The first one to go up was a girl, she seemed nervous and almost tripped over herself as she approached the elder. The elder just smiled and gestured at her to come closer. "Now I need you to relax yourself and don't resist, this won't harm you in any way so there is no need to be afraid." The elder said as he put his hands on her back, then slowly started to inject his essence into her body, directing it towards her meridians.
He found the first meridian located in the middle of the eyes. With a gentle push the first meridian was opened, and a pop sound was heard. The girl was startled but regained her composure and waited for the elder to finish. The elder then went to open the next meridian, which was also a success. After almost twenty minutes, the elder let go of the girl." Congratulations, you managed to open six meridians. This is something you should be proud of." The girl was elated and could barely hold her excitement.
There are a total of twelve meridians in the human body. The number of meridians one opens indicates how far one will go down the cultivation path. The more meridians one opens, the faster one ascends. They usually have a faster cultivation speed and face fewer bottlenecks when trying to break through.
"Welcome to the Emberwatch Sect. Head over to tent three, you can rest there and wait for the rest. The girl gave a polite bow and went. The next one was a boy, younger than Kael, who went to and stood before an elder with a monocle on his right eye. The elder did the same, but to his disappointment, the boy only managed to open only three meridians." It's not bad, with hard work and good fortune, you can reach the core formation realm. "The elder consoled him as he gestured for him to go to one of the tents.
The event proceeded smoothly, with most of the participants opening four to five meridians. Two more had managed to open six meridians, which garnered praise from the elders. But some didn't manage to open any meridians and were sent back to their homes. Suddenly, an elder shot up and shouted," Ha, ha, the heavens have blessed our sect." The elder laughed as he held the boy before him, looking at him like he had seen a heaven-defying treasure. The lofty elder asked, " Elder Grant, what is it? How many meridians did he manage to open?" "Elder Mason, this boy is a genius. Eight meridians, he opened eight meridians." Elder Grant said as he continued to laugh. Elder Mason, the lofty elder opened his mouth wide after hearing that, and he also burst into laughter. "Good child, good child. With your talents, reaching the astral dominion realm will be easy. Welcome to the Emberwatch sect. If you train hard and advance, the sect won't mistreat you." He said, regaining his lofty demeanor.
Those still in the crowd couldn't believe it. "Eight meridians, did you hear that?" " Who is he?" The crowd once again became lively. " That's Iven, I hear that he is the son of the city lord, but his mother was a concubine and died shortly after giving birth to him." The boy with the long nose whispered to Kael. Throughout the exam, Kael came to know that his name was Draven. He was quite the chatterbox but also quite knowledgeable, so Keal didn't doubt him. Though he was curious about how he knew all of this.
Next, it was Draven's turn. He managed to open Five Meridians, which was also good. Next to him, Kael went up to the elder. "Relax your body and don't resist." Kael just nodded and did as he was told. The elder put his hands on his back and started to inject his essence into him. Kael felt a rush of warm energy coursing through his body. It didn't wander through his body but followed a path to his first meridian and with a pop, the first meridian was opened. Kael felt his whole body being rejuvenated. It was like he had just stepped into a hot bath. The elder continued to direct his essence towards his meridians, and after the fifth pop, he let go of Kael.
"Congratulations, you opened five meridians, go and join the others." The elder said without much emotion. Kael simply bowed and went to the tent. " Hey Kael, over here," Draven called out to him. " So, how many did you open?" Draven asked. "Five, same as you." Kael said as they walked into the tent.
Exams proceeded for a while longer until all the participants were either in the tents or sent back home." The test is over and to all of you who passed, congratulations. But his is just the beginning of you journey." The lofty elder said. "We will be leaving early tomorrow, so be here before we go, go say goodbye to your families and settle what business you have. If you're not here by the time we leave, don't blame us." He said. And with that, the test was finally over. The crowd dispersed, all eager to go and tell their families the good news. Kael had no family here in this city. His parents were back at the countryside. Even though they weren't his real parents, after going through the memories he inherited, he had somewhat of a connection to them. I should write to them and tell them that I was accepted." Kael said as he sat on his bed.