Chapter 10: First Test and Prize
"...Very good, it seems this generation is truly cultivating diligently," the elder says with a slight smile, his hands clasped behind his back. "Since it's late afternoon, you can go home to rest and come back to attend the clan academy tomorrow."
Hei Tu, who had been expecting these words after having his aperture inspected by the elder, bows slightly, placing his right fist in his open left palm, making a respectful salute common in the clan, before straightening his back and hurrying out of the clan academy pavilion.
"Oh! My old mind nearly forgot to mention it, but you were the fourth to successfully refine your Gu," the elder says as he waves his hand, signaling for a few guards to follow him as he leaves. "So make sure to keep up these excellent results."
Hei Tu bows to the elder once again, offering polite words of thanks before quickly leaving the academy pavilion while the mortal guards escorting him offer him various polite compliments, as if trying to win his favor.
But he isn't surprised by this, as he already understands the social position mortals hold in this world—nothing more than servants to Gu Masters. Even these academy guards, who might appear more important and influential among other mortals, are merely higher-status servants in the eyes of Gu Masters, so it's natural they'd try to stay on his good side.
Moreover, this kindness isn't just coming from them, but as he saw from the academy's elder courteous words, even though he arrived here late in the day, he easily deduces that this is the start of the preferential treatment his father mentioned those with high talent receive.
He continues with these thoughts until he leaves the academy, passing a young man whom is now striding eagerly towards the clan academy, likely because he managed to refine his first Gu.
Seeing this, Hei Tu thinks about the light brown beetle swimming happily in his sea of light green primeval essence. This is the Hound Strength Gu, which he has spent the past few days diligently refining, using up seven of the primeval stones he had, leaving him now with only one of the original nine.
And that's because he had to use one primeval stone in advance to buy dog meat as food for the Gu for an entire month, which makes him sigh helplessly at how quickly his primeval stones seem to be dwindling.
But there's not much he can do, as he had anticipated not being the first to refine his first Gu and earn the 20 primeval stones, with that prize going to Su Ah, the clan leader's daughter, who he imagines hardly needs the stones, likely making many young cultivators feel wronged. He only sighs slightly, as this kind of unfairness is the most normal thing in the world, and complaining won't change much.
Moreover, if anyone truly has the right to complain about unfairness in his eyes, it's the mortals who he discovered don't even make a single primeval stone a month from their hard labor, while a young Gu Master like him, who only just awakened his aperture, has spent eight times that amount in about two weeks.
'Thankfully, not everything is bad since Yang Gu feeds on…' he thinks of his vital Gu, which he left in the hidden compartment of his wardrobe so the elder wouldn't discover it during his inspection. 'I'll call it "Yang Qi" as a less obscene term, but either way, it's something I can supply without any cost, just by using my own body and thoughts about pretty girls.'
Hei Tu shakes his head slightly, pushing these thoughts aside, and looks ahead as he continues to walk briskly, clenching his fist from time to time, feeling a grip that's now a bit stronger than before he refined this Gu.
'Still, there's something I need to test when I get home…' he thinks lightly as he walks silently through the clan streets, which are fairly empty at this hour, though they're illuminated by trees with glowing leaves like the one on the nightstand beside his bed.
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Hei Tu finally arrives home just as the sun is almost fully set, so he doesn't waste any time, quickly opening the front door and stepping inside.
As soon as he enters, he comes face-to-face with a cute little girl with long black hair, around ten years old, who really resembles their mother with her sweet face and pale skin as she paces back and forth, holding a small gray kitten in her hands.
"Ah, Tu'er, you're finally back! Why did you take so long? What place did you get?" Hei Yan asks with a sparkle in her eyes as she turns to look at him after hearing the door open. "If you got first place, you can give me half of it like you promised!"
Seeing her adorable, demanding expression at the end, he just lets a gentle smile spread across his face, shaking his head slightly, as this was a promise he had made two days ago to cheer her up. He had already known Su Ah had taken first place in the competition at that time, but his little sister didn't need to know that.
"Ahhh, unfortunately, I got fourth place, so I didn't get the primeval stone reward," he says, putting on a false look of sadness while patting her head. "Maybe next time."
Hearing his words, Hei Yan looks a bit disappointed, but after hearing his last comment, she breaks into a wide smile again before giving him a tight hug and then running around the house with the kitten she named Xiao Hui clinging to her, eyes wide with worry looking at him.
Not that he minds much; if his sister hadn't seen him carrying the kitten when he was taking it outside after obtaining the Yang Gu, he wouldn't have had any problem leaving it on the street, but since she found the kitten cute, he gave it to her.
Besides, he understands that she's so excited to run and play because she spent the whole last month bedridden due to an illness that, he now knows, affected many of the weaker clan members, especially children. It was caused by a demonic Gu Master who had attempted to infiltrate the clan, and used the sickness as a diversion to help him barely escape capture.
He shakes off these not-so-important thoughts for now and heads straight to his room since his father isn't home, being away on a clan mission he mentioned would take a few more days, and his mother is probably still tidying up the family store before coming home.
Immediately upon entering, he notices his room is impeccably clean and organized by Grandma Li. However, he doesn't pay much attention to this as he immediately goes to his wardrobe, retrieves the Yang Gu he had hidden in a false compartment, and leaves his last remaining primeval stone stored there.
"Well, I need to keep testing if it was just my imagination or not…" he mutters as he places the Yang Gu into his aperture and begins using it instantly.
What he wants to continue testing is something simple: whether the Yang Gu truly amplifies the effect of the Hound Strength Gu, or if it's just a placebo effect his mind has created to give the Yang Gu an ability.
The reason for his doubt is that, even after spending a lot of time testing it multiple times this morning before going to see the elder at the academy, the strength he gained from the Hound Strength Gu is still minimal, making it hard to confirm anything for certain.
Of course, this doesn't mean he hasn't used the Hound Strength Gu as diligently as possible to try embedding the maximum strength from the Gu into himself. However, there's a strict limit to how much he can carve into himself daily before his muscles begin to ache as though they're tearing apart.
Even if this wasn't an issue, embedding strength from Strength path Gu into the body of a Gu Master takes time. Then he wouldn't have the time to greatly increase the carved strength in his body, as shown by the hours he spent today doing so, which caused him to visit the elder at the academy only late in the afternoon. This resulted in him placing fourth in the refining of his first Gu, although he believes he could have taken third place if he had gone earlier.
Not that he minds this too much, as some youths might, since the difference between third and fourth isn't significant. And only the first place received primeval stones from the academy elder, so he prioritized testing the Yang Gu.
So with Yang Gu activated again, he feels his muscles warm up while the exhaustion and mild pain from using the Hound Strength Gu greatly diminish, an effect he's certain isn't just his imagination.
But it doesn't stop there. As his spirits rise, he clenches his fist tightly, feeling a slight but almost imperceptible increase in strength, noticeable only because he's paying close attention.
Without wasting more time, he begins throwing strong punches into the air while standing in the center of his room, his fists and kicks slicing through the air with power as he tries to become accustomed to this combat style, which he intends to make his primary fighting method in the future.
He applies what he learned from the clan academy instructor during their few hand-to-hand combat lessons. Most young people, who chose the Bamboo Shoot Gu, a long-range attack Gu, as their first Gu, found the lessons boring. But to him, they were invaluable.
Unfortunately, in less than half an hour, he finds himself exhausted from all the physical exertion of punches and kicks that seem to have drained his vitality, which is not very high due to the original Hei Tu not being one to practice martial skills often.
'Ahhh, it really doesn't seem like it's just my imagination—the Yang Gu truly enhances strength…' he thinks, wiping the sweat from his forehead. 'Besides, the consumption of primeval essence isn't excessive.'
As he reflects on this, he hears his door suddenly slam open, followed by quick, loud footsteps entering his room.
"Brother, Mom just got home! I told her you successfully refined your Gu, so she sent me to call you for you to go to the living room for her congratulate you!" Hei Yan says, her adorable voice brimming with a happiness so contagious it could cheer even the most melancholic soul.
Hearing this, he turns to look at the little girl who still has the kitten in her arms but now wears a scrunched-up expression while covering her nose.
"And go take a bath first; you stink so much!" she says in an exaggerated tone before turning around, taking large strides with her short legs, and practically running down the hallway.
Hei Tu just shakes his head, sniffing himself a bit before deciding that he indeed needs a bath.
"I wonder if she'll make Chicken Cooked in Tea today too, to celebrate?" He wonders, as it's the original Hei Tu's favorite dish, which his mother made to celebrate him awakening his aperture.
He has to admit, the original Hei Tu at least had good taste in food.
Of course, his mother's culinary skills also deserve high praise.
But this isn't the most important thing on his mind. What truly holds his focus are the ten primeval stones his father promised him if he managed to place among the first five in refining his Gu. Since his father isn't home, his mother will likely be the one to give him the stones, which will be incredibly helpful for his cultivation.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone