On October 1st, Li Shiming left his home quietly before dawn, no longer wanting to see Si Qin''s tears, who had cried last night until late before drifting off to sleep.

    He activated the "Light Body Skill" on himself, first withdrawing the four surveillance probes.

    If all went smoothly, he would not return for some time.

    After deploying the "Invisibility Technique," he sped through Central Capital and then scaled the city wall to leave the city.

    When he arrived at the base of Heavenly Altar Mountain, numerous carriages were already making their way towards the Heavenly Altar at the summit.

    This Ascension Conference was to be held at the Heavenly Altar, where all the young individuals ready to have their talents tested, as well as Loose Cultivators aspiring to join sects, would gather today.

    Li Shiming slowed his pace, observing the youngsters who curiously peered out of the carriages.

    These youths all shared a distinguishing feature: their eyes were exceptionally spirited, yet their bodies were frail.

    Generally speaking, at the age of twelve, those with talent would develop spirit root seeds, a process that requires a substantial amount of energy.

    This leads to a significant energy deficit in the growing youths'' bodies, generally resulting in their thin and frail appearance.

    Furthermore, the fewer the spirit root seeds, the stronger the talent of the youth, and the greater the energy demanded by the spirit root seeds in their body.

    Such talents, if born into affluent households, would generally fare well, but if born into impoverished ones, they might perish prematurely.

    After countless years of holding the Ascension Conference, society had developed a basic screening process for these youths with spirit root seeds.

    Youths with spirit root seeds are especially intelligent, their eyes full of Spiritual Energy, apart from being physically weak.

    Of course, the people involved in the screening from Great Xia do not know the specific reasons behind it, only that it is led by the Imperial Family as an essential task.

    Even at this moment, a large portion of the youths arriving and their escorts are equally unaware of the reasons.

    Given the rarity of spirit root seeds, the majority of these youths are just ordinary people, and this trip is merely a form of tourism for them.

    When Li Shiming reached the summit, he saw Gu Jia standing in front of the Praying Hall, with the Guard Army maintaining order on the square below.

    Gu Jia saw Li Shiming and smiled, waving his hand.

    The soldiers of the Guard Army opened a passage, allowing Li Shiming to approach Gu Jia.

    As they were speaking, two more figures appeared on either side of Junior Master Zhao.

    Through the Spiritual Power Pattern fluctuations, although Li Shiming couldn''t determine the exact capabilities of the two Cultivators who appeared later, he was certain they were not Foundation Establishment Cultivators; only Junior Master Zhao had an extremely hidden aura that he couldn''t decipher.

    However, he did not need to make that judgment; since Gu Jia had already addressed him as Junior Master, Junior Master Zhao was indeed the Foundation Establishment Cultivator sent by the sect this time.

    "Nephew Gu, dispense with formalities, let''s get started!" Junior Master Zhao nodded and gestured Gu Jia to proceed.

    He walked into the Praying Hall, the two accompanying Cultivators nodded to Gu Jia, gestured briefly, and then entered the door with Gu Jia.

    As he entered, Gu Jia beckoned to Li Shiming, who then followed inside.

    Junior Master Zhao sat cross-legged in the center, took out a jade wall engraved with a dragon from his storage bag, and placed it on the wooden table in front of him.

    "Junior Master Zhao, this is Li Shiming, born and raised in Great Xia. His background is clear, he has an immortal fate and received heritage, and he has no connections with other sects or forces!" Gu Jia stepped forward and introduced Li Shiming.

    "It''s rare, being able to cultivate to Qi Refining Third Level just from a single heritage, and he looks quite young too. Come over!" Junior Master Zhao said with a smile.

    He was not much surprised by Gu Jia''s introduction.

    As long as a talented individual appeared within their stationed area, these stationed Cultivators would do their utmost to assist.

    The reason was that if any of these talents grew up, it would bring rewards to the stationed Cultivator.

    This was encouraged by the sect, and with such benefits, stationed Cultivators would put their full effort into scouting talents for the sect.

    Li Shiming approached the Spirit Testing Wall somewhat nervously; Junior Master Zhao cast a spell, and Spiritual Power Pattern surged on the jade wall.

    "Place your hands on the Spirit Testing Wall!" Junior Master Zhao said sternly.

    Li Shiming extended his hands and placed them on the Spirit Testing Wall.

    He felt a stream of Spiritual Energy entering his body, circulating once before returning to the Spirit Testing Wall.

    Three beams of light emerged from the Spirit Testing Wall, one gold, one red, and one green.

    "Age sixteen years and seven months, possessing gold, fire, and wood spirit roots, meeting the recruitment criteria of the Heavenly Sea Sect. Would you like to join the Heavenly Sea Sect?" Junior Master Zhao asked Li Shiming with a smiling face. Find exclusive stories on empire

    "I would!" With his worries alleviated, Li Shiming replied solemnly.

    The presence of three spirit root seeds did not surprise him; he had suspected as much ever since he sensed three types of Spiritual Energy while practicing the "Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique."