Ryan stared in shock. "Dad, what did you say, you are awakened?"
What? His father was actually an Awakener too?!
Mr. Hartwell looked surprised. "The Soul of Ink and Brush. Son, you did not know?"
Ryan realized he had said something wrong. "No, Dad, it is just been so long that I almost forgot."
Mr. Hartwell laughed heartily. "How could you possibly forget? When you were little, you could only fall asleep listening to me those manuscripts."
Ryan thought silently: Who uses that stuff as a lullaby?!
"Alright, you two. Eat while it is hot."
"This Fresh Ice Fish Orb Soup will not taste as good once it cools down." Mrs. Hartwell looked at the two of them and reminded them with a gentle smile.
"Fresh Ice Fish Orb Soup?" Ryan stared at the fragrant "soup" in front of him, looking somewhat dazed.
But it is strange to day despite being named like that there is no fish, no orbs and of course no ice.
"That is right. Your mother went specially to the seafood market to buy this. I heard an adventure team just brought it out of a Spirit Realm today."
"You are lucky, son. Ice Fish Orbs are boneless and weak, with flesh nearly transparent. They have always been difficult to catch. Someone at the Bronze Rank must have made the capture."
"Plus, your mother possesses the Soul of Culinary. This fresh soup is truly unforgettable." Mr. Hartwell commented while savoring the soup.
Hearing her husband's praise, Mrs. Hartwell simply smiled gently without saying much.
"So basically, you and Mom both have abilities, but I do not?"
Ryan was completely stunned. What even was the Soul of Culinary by the way?
"It is alright, Ryan. Even if you cannot awaken an ability the day after tomorrow, whether you study History with your father or become an ability scientist, you will still have good job opportunities." Mrs. Hartwell comforted him gently.
"Dad, what rank are you and Mom?"
Ryan shook his head. After accepting this reality, he actually became excited.
Although I am useless, my parents are strong. Being a second-generation Awakener does not sound too bad.
Mr. Hartwell replied. "I am Ability Rank Nine. Your mother is Ability Rank Three."
"Unfortunately, my Soul of Ink and Brush is only F-rank talent. Otherwise, I might have had a chance to break through to Bronze Rank."
F-rank? What does that mean?
Ryan could not understand. The Soul of Ink and Brush sounded so impressive how could it only be F-rank?
"Dad, Mom, I am finished eating. Going to my room now."
With numerous questions swirling in his mind, Ryan wolfed down his food and rushed back to his room.
Mr. and Mrs. Hartwell exchanged glances, then laughed and continued eating.
After returning to his room, Ryan immediately opened his one and only gateway to this new world.
That is right; the internet!
Seeing the computer beside his bed, Ryan could not help but sigh with emotion.
No matter which world you were in, the internet was the fastest way to obtain information!
News Headlines:
"East Market Bronze-Rank Spirit Realm experiences frequent anomaly outbreaks. A Beast King suspected to have emerged."
"Southern Province awakens Space-Type ability user, but talent is only F-rank?"
"Goose Corporation bankrupt. All games sold at low prices."
"..."
After browsing through massive amounts of information, Ryan took a long breath and roughly summarized this world's situation.
-----
Current Year: New Era 322
Three hundred and twenty-two years ago, the first Spirit Realm appeared globally Codename 001, also known as the Dragon Abyss Spirit Realm. Various terrifying anomalies emerged from it, posing a tremendous threat to the country.
That same year, the country awakened its first ability user. He turned the tide, sealed the anomalies with his ability, and was granted the title of Azure Dragon War God.
Later, three more super-large Spirit Realms descended.
These were: Realm 002 Blue Dragon Spirit Realm, Realm 003 Blazing Heaven Spirit Realm, and Realm 004 Rock Demon Spirit Realm.
As if by destiny, this country awakened three more supremely powerful ability users who sealed these three Spirit Realms. They were granted the titles White Tiger War God, Vermillion Bird War God, and Black Tortoise War God respectively.
Other countries called them the Four Guardian Gods!
After that, Spirit Realms began appearing worldwide like grasses after rain. They continued appearing to this day, though the frequency had decreased significantly.
Everything has two sides. The emergence of Spirit Realms not only alleviated land pressure for various countries but also caused changes to Earth's environment. A substance called Spirit Energy appeared in the air.
This substance could effectively help humans awaken abilities and assist with cultivation.
However, generally speaking, using Spirit Pearls from Spirit Beasts found inside Spirit Realms made cultivation much faster.
In this world, ability users were classified by talent: S, A, B, C, D, E, F.
Rank levels were divided into: King, Star, Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze.
The stronger one's talent, the faster their rank progression and the higher their potential ceiling.
Ryan also figured out what his parents' Soul of Ink and Brush and Soul of Culinary actually were.
Generally speaking, their type of abilities were called practical abilities, with talent ratings typically ranging from F to E.
People with F-rank talent basically had no possibility of breaking through to Bronze Rank.
Speaking of which, Ryan could not help but pay attention to one piece of news he had just seen. With uncertain tone, he muttered to himself. "Space-type ability, but only F-rank? Why does this feel like a protagonist template?"
An explosive ability with the most garbage talent was this not the standard setup for power fantasy novels?
"Well, hopefully I am overthinking it." Ryan shook his head, casting aside his strange thoughts. At worst, he would just stay far away from that person in the future and try not to be an enemy of him.
He then turned his attention to researching the ability awakening ceremony the day after tomorrow.
This world's education system was also different from his previous world.
The Country had established three ability awakening assessments one each at the transitions from elementary to middle school, middle to high school, and high school to university.
Generally speaking, those with stronger talents and abilities could be discovered as early as the elementary to middle school transition.
The pattern continued progressively. By the high school to university ability assessment, the vast majority were unable to awaken any ability and remained ordinary people.
Even if they did awaken something, it was basically a useless ability with talent capped at E-rank at best.
This created a clear social hierarchy: ordinary people and ability users.
Ability users received more benefits and better treatment.
As for people like Ryan and Danny, they were clearly at the very bottom of this hierarchy.
Those who discovered abilities early could attend specialized schools for ability users and receive preferential treatment for university admissions.
Those without abilities, like Ryan, attended comprehensive schools. Some areas focused on practical ability training, while others taught only theoretical courses.
The curriculum still centered on abilities, but the difference was that without an ability, you could only attend ordinary universities focused on things like ability research.
"This road ahead is long and difficult!" Ryan could not help but sigh.
Why did he still have to endure exam pressure even after crossing to another world?
Now not only was there the university entrance exam, but there was also an ability awakening assessment.
Ryan called out. "System, I do not have an ability. How does my cultivation work?"
[Respected host, your cultivation can be divided into: Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, God Slaying, Lesser Ascension, Greater Ascension, Immortal.]
Ryan asked. "What realm am I at now?"
He finally understood cultivation systems were the same everywhere.
[Qi Condensation First Layer.]
"Oh!" Ryan raised an eyebrow, surprised to discover he had already started cultivating.
It must have been from practicing Supreme Heaven and Earth Nine Revolutions he had automatically risen to Qi Condensation First Layer.
"Wait, System, did you not say I was a Waste Spirit Root?" Ryan suddenly remembered this.
[Respected host, because you cultivated Supreme Heaven and Earth Nine Revolutions, your spirit root is now Low-Grade Spirit Root.]
[Each time the technique upgrades, your spirit root quality will correspondingly improve.]
Ryan asked. "So how do I normally cultivate?"
[Please mentally visualize cultivation. The system will automatically cultivate on your behalf.]
[Of course, the host can also cultivate personally. However, the system's cultivation efficiency ratio is 10:1.]
Ryan frowned. "Let me think about this."
After a brief moment, Ryan flopped onto his bed and went to sleep.
Are you kidding? Did you think I was actually considering whether to cultivate myself? Why would I need a system if I did not use cheats?
Hahahaha! The system cultivates for me automatically while I sleep this is exactly what a cheat-ability protagonist should be doing!
[System cultivation in progress~]