Chapter 1: Awakening (Part 2)

Guo Shier was fascinated by the patterns on the object on his forehead—they were extremely beautiful and gave him a sense of comfort. After a while, he suddenly realized that it was the power of his soul that allowed him to see clearly what was on his forehead.
“Alright, child, open your eyes.”
The object on his forehead vanished suddenly. Guo Shier opened his eyes and noticed that the old man in green was looking at him with even more kindness. He asked, “Grandpa, is the test over?”
The old man in green replied gently, “Shier, call me Grandpa Hong. There’s no need to rush out yet. Stay by my side first.” He turned to a talisman warrior beside him and asked, “Has Old Chen arrived?”
The talisman warrior replied respectfully, “A message token has been sent; he should be here soon.”
The old man nodded and asked the next child, “What’s your name?”
“Guo Shi!”
The old man placed the object from earlier on Guo Shi’s forehead and repeated his request. This time, the object did not emit a red glow but instead showed a faint yellow light. The old man showed a hint of disappointment and said, “You have potential as a warrior, well, average potential.” The talisman warrior took out a small plaque and handed it to Guo Shi, saying, “Hold on tight. Don’t lose it. Give it to your family members.”
Next was Guo Dan, who also had potential as a warrior. Guo Shisan had no such potential and received nothing.
Guo Shier stood quietly aside. He noticed that most of the children had potential as warriors, with only a few having potential as spellcasters or talisman warriors. So far, he was the only one with potential in talismans.
Although he didn’t understand what talisman potential meant, the fact that the old man had kept him alone showed that this kind of potential was by no means ordinary.
The test continued until noon, with half of the children remaining. Someone led the remaining children to eat, while the old man in green took Guo Shier to a restaurant outside the ancestral hall. There, Guo Shier met the head of the Guo family—a plump old man with a smiling face and a very amiable appearance.
As the head of the Guo family, this plump old man held great power. The main branch and branches of the Guo family numbered over 200,000 people, plus affiliated families and individuals, bringing the total population to over a million. It was recognized as a second-tier noble family, so the head’s authority was extraordinary. Given that the old man in green was willing to accompany him personally, his status could be imagined.

Head clan member Guo Daguan was overjoyed—his Guo family had produced a child with potential for magic spells, which was truly a great fortune. Smiling, he said, “This time, we owe a debt to Mr. Hong Changfeng. If our Guo family can produce a spellcaster, it will all be thanks to Mr. Hong Changfeng.”

The old man in green, Hong Changfeng, laughed and said, “This isn’t my merit. If the kid didn’t have potential, I couldn’t have helped either.”

Guo Shieru kept his head down while eating. Though he said nothing, his mind was racing: “A spellcaster? What kind of profession is that? Is it for exorcising demons? Probably not… then what is it?” The more he thought about it, the more confused he became—this world was too unfamiliar.

The food was very simple: a large bowl of stewed meat, though he didn’t know what animal it was from, it was delicious; another large bowl of braised meat, colored brownish-red and cut into big pieces; and a bamboo basket filled with steamed buns—seventy or eighty of them. There were no fresh stir-fried vegetables, only a little unknown wild vegetable added to the stewed meat.

Guo Shieru found himself to be very hungry. He ate ten big buns in one go, and even after eating the braised meat and broth, he was only half full. He was surprised to realize that even at his peak appetite in his past life, it couldn’t compare to this eight-year-old child’s hunger.

The old man in green ate even more—he swallowed a large piece of meat in just a few bites, as if swallowing it whole. When eating buns, he was even more unique: he would grab a soft bun, squeeze it into a small ball, and eat it one by one, as if he weren’t eating buns but peanuts.

After eating about seventeen or eighteen buns, along with the meat and broth, Guo Shieru finally felt full. He stopped and listened quietly as the head clan member and Hong Changfeng talked. The two ate while talking, devouring all the food until nothing was left before stopping satisfactorily. A servant brought a copper basin for them to wash their faces and hands, and Guo Shieru washed his hands as well.

The afternoon tests didn’t end until evening. Guo Shieru discovered that he was the only one with potential for magic spells. Out of over a hundred children, 60% had potential to become warriors, 8% had potential to become spellcasters, and 3% had potential to become spellmasters. The rest were ordinary people. Since a child with spellcasting potential had been found, Hong Changfeng was very satisfied with the results of these tests.

At that moment, Chen Lao, who had brought the message in the morning, also arrived and retested Guo Shieru’s potential. He was equally satisfied. Guo Shieru noticed that Chen Lao seemed to have great authority, with many spell warriors around him—over a dozen—whose murderous aura was even stronger than that of the Guo family’s spell warriors.

After Old Chen arrived, Hong Changfeng asked Guo Shier to follow him. There were also four children with potential as talisman warriors and nine with potential as spellcasters, plus Guo Shier, making a total of fourteen people. Each child had a talisman warrior standing by them, except for Guo Shier, who was taken directly under Old Chen’s care. Old Chen’s name was Chen Chunzhai, and he was in his eighties. At the age of forty-seven, he had progressed from a spellcaster to a master spellcaster, and his skills continued to grow more profound. Master spellcasters held a very high status in this world—they were elite figures. Not only were they strong in combat, but their creativity was even more crucial; they were the engines driving this world. In Guo Shier’s eyes, Old Chen seemed to be in his fifties at most, appearing much younger than Hong Changfeng. Yet, from the way they spoke to each other, it was clear that Old Chen was the one in charge. Hong Changfeng addressed him as “Old Chen” with great respect, showing no signs of treating him as an equal. Chen Chunzhai had a stern appearance, rarely smiling, with a broad face, a high nose bridge, eyes deeply set in his sockets, and thick black eyebrows. He spoke in a loud voice, stood upright, exuding a military-like demeanor. Guo Shier’s silence and composure greatly pleased Chen Chunzhai. An eight-year-old child who could remain quiet and calm in front of strangers was not something most children could do. Moreover, Chen Chunzhai could see that there was no trace of fear in the child’s eyes—only calmness, a quality essential for a master spellcaster. “Shier, the clan leader has already sent someone to inform your parents. They will be hosted at the Guest Hall tonight. You just follow me,” he said. Guo Shier replied, “Yes, thank you, Grandpa Chen. Thank you, Grandpa Hong.” Hong Changfeng laughed and said, “It’s rare to see such courtesy in this child.” Chen Chunzhai said, “It’s good to be polite, but Shier, you don’t need to be so formal when meeting others in the future. You have potential as a spellcaster. If you study hard and succeed in becoming a master spellcaster, your status will change. Then… only others will need to be polite to you.” Hong Changfeng shook his head and said, “Old Chen, he’s still a child. Let’s not talk about this yet…” Chen Chunzhai glared and asked, “Have I said something wrong?” Hong Changfeng replied helplessly, “Yes, you’re right, my master spellcaster!” This showed how domineering Chen Chunzhai could be. He said, “Alright, let’s go to the Guest Hall. Fengdao, take the others and the children with you as well.” A talisman warrior as fierce as a sharp knife replied and immediately gathered his companions, each leading the children outside.

Guikefang was specifically designed to entertain distinguished guests from other places. Guo Shier thought it would be a very luxurious place, but upon arriving there, he realized that aside from being slightly more spacious, there was nothing luxurious about it. There were heavy wooden tables, original wooden floors, torches stuck in the walls, food consisting of large pieces of meat, bread cakes as big as pot lids, hearty meat soups, and large bowls of rice wine.

At Guikefang, for the first time since his soul awakened, Guo Shier saw his parents in this life—to be precise, one father and six mothers. His father’s name was Guo Liang, and his birth mother’s name was Guo Lishi. Women here had very low status; unless they could become spellcasters, martial spellcasters, or martial warriors, they had no status at all. Their purpose was to bear children, as only by having children could they gain some status within the family.

Since Guo Shier was a reincarnated soul and this was his second reincarnation, he didn’t feel much toward his parents in this life. Before his soul awakened, he had started living independently at the age of five, making it difficult even to get close to his parents.

Guo Liang was extremely excited—his son actually had potential for spellcasting and had caught the eye of spellcaster Chen Chunzhai. This meant he could receive rewards from the family and a promotion in status. Although he still couldn’t remember what Guo Shier looked like, that didn’t dampen his excitement.

Guo Shier sat next to Chen Chunzhai, looking at the large pieces of meat and bread cakes on the table. He couldn’t help but sigh, but his body showed no aversion to these foods. As the scent of meat filled the air, saliva in his mouth gradually increased.

Chen Chunzhai asked, “Shier, are you hungry?”

Guo Shier nodded. “Yes, Grandpa Chen.”

Chen Chunzhai said, “Eat then. Ignore them. The food here is rather simple. Once you start learning, you’ll have spell-related food to eat—that’s the real delicacy, and it will fill you up better than this food.”

Guo Shier was also puzzled. He felt it hadn’t been long since he last ate, yet he was already hungry again.

In this world, nothing was more important than eating and defecating. There was no time to worry about other things—eat first. At this age, it was crucial to grow strong, and he definitely couldn’t go hungry.

Eagerly, Guo Shier didn’t even bother using chopsticks. He grabbed a piece of meat and stuffed it into his mouth. Suddenly, a loud crash sounded in his ears, causing the piece of meat in his hand to fall. He was annoyed—who was making such a racket?

A martial spellcaster rushed in, knelt before the clan leader, and shouted loudly, “Wah-ya-ya! Clan leader, something terrible has happened!”

Guo Shier was so shaken by that “Waaah!” that his hands trembled and his muscles spasmed. That guy’s voice was like thunderclaps, incredibly loud.
Guo Daguan said in a deep voice, “Stop making such a racket! What’s the meaning of this? Speak! What’s the matter?”
It was only then that Guo Shier realized the clan leader couldn’t be underestimated. The authority he exuded was truly imposing. The noisy chaos in the guest hall vanished instantly, leaving complete silence, with only the faint crackling sound of torches stuck in the walls.