"We plan to heavily invest in this industry as you can imagine, but the great earth sect controls all the market right now. Maybe with the nine heavens ambrosia we could trade in this resource for some of the market share, including blueprints" elder Ming said. He looked off into the distance and thought for a moment before getting back on topic. "Anyway before we start discussing that, let's discuss what happened after you got into love city".
Gu Zhi then described how he had received a prophetic dream to elder Ming.
"Wow... a prophetic dream... those are quite rare, your very lucky you received one when you did".
"Yes I am, anyway due to the problem that came from that end... we had to source some resources through some means" Gu Zhi said.
It was quite awkward explaining how he got the resources for their disguises but he quickly changed the topic to how they did in the palace. "And so I sacrificed myself for the final trial and lost my sight" he said with a smile.
Elder Ming just stared at him. Unsure whether he should be angry, sad, or happy. On one hand he had mated with lots of women for the purpose of having children with others that were not his wife. On the other hand, he remained fiercely loyal and only did it with his wife's permission and then sacrificed his sight for her with no hesitation. But at the end of the day, he made it back to the sect in one piece, with his daughter and a new grandchild and even brought back rewards.
"Well, anyway... what rewards did you get from the palace I'm sure you didn't just get nine heavens ambrosia if both of you cleared all the trials".
"I got a wood familiar, a fruit from the tree of youth, and a flower of life.... Speaking of the flower of life" she then got up and went to plant it in her garden. As she had been carrying it with her on her person the entire time. She came back a little while later after successfully planting the flower of life.
"Those, are quite the rewards" elder Ming said with a thoughtful expression.
"What about you son?" he asked.
"I got a ring of heroes, a new technique and something, I can't talk about".
"..." an awkward silence appeared as elder Ming was just strangely quiet.
"I'm sorry I must have misheard... what was the ring called".
Gu Zhi held up his hand to show his ring and said "they called it a ring of heroes, it actually already got me out of a sticky situation" Gu Zhi commented.
Elder Ming just looked at it for a moment before changing the topic.
"So what technique did you get from the palace".
"Father! what was that, surely you know what that ring is".
"Xiao'er, sometimes somethings just can't be said" he said as he moved on from the topic.
"It's called the blood transformation art" Gu Zhi said as he handed him the technique.
Elder Ming looked at it for a moment and then said "it's a good technique I think it suits you well" he said. "Blood techniques are very rare, and this is a really good one on top of that, I think you'll go far with this technique. Now try on the grading band, I can't wait to see the results" he said with a smile on his face.
Gu Zhi didn't know what made elder Ming so excited about this tool, but he was willing to find out. He took the band into his hands as he could feel faint and intricate groves on it. If he still had his sight he imagined that it would have many numerous and complicated formations weaved into its design. He slipped on the band expecting nothing to happen but it suddenly revealed information directly into his mind.
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Body: A-
Mind: C-
Soul: C
Lifespan: 23/230
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"Currently the tool is in its experimental stage but it has been proven to have a high degree of success. If you get an A- grade or higher, its means you can already enter core formation. Though an A grade is recommended if you want to go into core formation. If you have 2 B grades or higher, you can also enter core formation. Finally if you have 3 B-'s then you can also enter core formation.
After the A grade, it moves on to S then SS and finally SSS with -, and +. The lifespan is also there as rough estimation giving you an idea of how long you can spend in foundation establishment" elder Ming said. "So tell me" he said with a smile on his face "What grades did the grading band give you?" he asked.
"I got an A- of body, a C- on mind, and a C on soul, and a lifespan of 230" Gu Zhi replied.
He thought about lying about his soul grade, but there was no point. It was unlikely that they thought he had made his own soul technique just because he had a C in his soul grade.
"A soul grade of C, wow I didn't expect that. That's already quite good, as you know how hard it is to increase soul strength. A naturally strong soul is a very rare and enviable trait. As for your mind on C- although its passable for your age, I highly recommend you at least get that to B if not at least B-. Qi is one of the core foundations of cultivation, anyone who overlooks it is a moron. As for your body at A-, I think with some nine heavens ambrosia that can go straight to an A, and then I wouldn't worry to much on your bodies foundation. My advice is to solely focus on the mind category after that and to not reach core formation until you think you've done all you can for your foundation. As for soul... I wouldn't worry much about it, although I will lookout for any treasures that can help, so will the rest of the cultivation world. Soul strength is very highly valued so there is not much I can do. That being said if you make it to A in body an A- in mind and a C in soul, I think you can advance to core formation at that time. I wouldn't get fixated on the S grades as they are pretty extreme" he said.