Blood Rain Continent, 7917.
Crimson Fang Kingdom, Blue Mountain City, City Lord Manor.
A group of thirty teenagers aged 13-16 are seated around a pool of crimson water, while listening attentively to the chants of an aged shaman. They are all mentally preparing for their awakening ceremony which will start at the midnight.
In Blood Rain Continent, it is considered a critical rite of passage that all men and women have to partake during the teenage years. Every year millions of young men and women undergo the awakening ceremony in order to unveil their Divine Ability. This, is all in the hopes of becoming Spirit Awakeners, warriors with supreme Divine Abilities that allow them to show disdain on all mortal martial artists.
Each Lifeform is born with a Divine Ability lying deep within their Spirit. This ability allow awakeners to perform amazing feats such as telekinesis, illusions, elemental manipulation, divination, teleportation and flight.
However, most of this Divine Abilities lie dormant and need to be awakened. Generally, the ideal time to awaken is during the teenage years, while the body is still growing and can be moulded. This is because the ability stem from the Spirit and thus needs time in order for the body to transform to perfectly integrate and display the ability.
Yao Yuan was seated among these talented youth, listening attentively. Many youths had longed for this day and only hoped they awoke a good Divine Ability. Among the more favoured Divine Abilities were Thunder, Ice and Fire Manipulation. Any Spirit Awakeners who got these Abilities would be admitted to all the top sects and nurtured attentively.
While other abilities such as Time Travel and Teleportation seemed marvellous and powerful, there were just too few masters capable of instructing such a talent. Reaching a high-level of mastery in them was also very difficult.
Yao Yuan was turning sixteen this year and this would be his last chance at the awakening ceremony. As the oldest member of the group he was admittedly embarrassed at not succeeding in awakening an ability despite three attempts. His family had already given up on any hopes of him awakening an ability and only hoped he would focus on his studies and become an Imperial scholar or a businessman.
Generally, those who weren't capable of awakening abilities or awakened unproductive abilities would engage in mortal affairs such as business and governance. His father, Yao Sheng was one such man. He had risen from the gutters to become the City Lord of the Blue Mountain City due to his sharp wit and unrelenting hard work.
Despite this, in the eyes of Spirit Awakeners businessmen and even Kings were nothing but mere mortals. Each could be killed with a flip of the palm.
As the full moon rises in the west, a cool breeze blows into the courtyard and the shaman stops his chants instructing the group to step into the pool.
The pool is made of a special elixir that gathers moonlight and starlight and allows the awakeners to enter a profound spiritual state. Incense sticks from a local mountain shrub burns at the four corners of the pool. Each of the awakeners begin to recite the mantra along with the shaman, as they slowly enter a higher state of consciousness and self-awareness.
Ten metres behind one of the teenagers a flash of wind is seen as a small tornado darts back and forth. As he awakens from the altered state, Feng Xing suddenly feels lighter and darts out of the pool and looks at the other for awakening phenomena.
Behind a girl clothed in red, Huang Mei, the daughter of the City Lord's guard captain, a red pillar of flames rises as she awakens as well. The onlookers are shocked.
''Congratulations Captain Huang!!'' Everybody understands that he has lucked out.
"Thank you!!"Captain Huang cannot hide the delight in his face and smiles foolishly.
Some youths awaken more bizarre Abilities such as an extra pair of arms, night vision, animalistic transformations.
One youth awakens and finds he has a tough layer of skin on his body, he looks almost like an armoured beast.
''This is the Rhino Transformation. He is very likely to accepted in the military academy.'' the shaman explains to the on looking parents.
Yao Yuan's Spirit slowly departs from his body as he enters a high state.
When he comes to, he is not in his body and is floating 20metres above the pool. He watches the others as they awaken but in Spiritual Form. Slowly as the crimson pool becomes clear, his Spirit descends and returns back into his physical body. He exits this state only to find everyone else has already awoken.
"Its okay Yuan'er." says Yao Sheng. "I still love you even if you can't cultivate. Afterall, its much safer for us regular than those awakeners who live on the edge of life and death each day. Now, you can accompany me and I can share with you all my knowledge." As he reaches out to hold Yao Yuan's hand, "Aaaii!! why are you so cold?" he asks, suprised.
Yao Yuan looks at his father and as he is about to explain, he collapses...
Probably will undergo some edits later on but hey its out there and its a start. Comments and criticisms and welcome. Whether they are positive or just plain bull all feedback is good feedback.