Chapter 95

Knock, knock, knock!

From behind the tightly closed courtyard gate came the sound of footsteps. A pair of wooden doors opened inward, revealing a young man dressed in a dark blue short robe.

He noticed that the visitors were a pair of twin sisters who looked almost identical, one wearing a gemstone blue samurai outfit and the other a coral red one. Their striking and unique aura momentarily left him spellbound, but he quickly regained his composure and politely asked, "May I ask what brings you here?"

"Is the Mage Andul living here?"

The twin sister in the coral red samurai outfit, Li Mubing, saluted in the manner of the Slan Empire's military and sized up the young mage apprentice who might one day become a noble without a title.

Usually, formally ranked mages would wear specially made magic robes, while only mage apprentices, who had to serve their masters in addition to their studies, would wear simplified versions for convenience.

To quickly adapt to this completely unfamiliar world, the sisters recorded every unfamiliar thing they saw each day and would seek answers from Lin Mo when they had the chance. Through this method, they gradually accumulated and perfected their general knowledge of the world.

"Mage Andul lives here, and I am his disciple, Xidati!"

The young mage apprentice seemed to have guessed the purpose of the sisters' visit.

"This is a letter from the commander of the 'Reversal Scale' Legion, And. We are here to take a test. I am Bing, and the one next to me is my sister, Xin!"

Li Mubing handed over a sealed parchment letter, with a special wax seal on the closure.

Hearing her sister introduce her, Li Muxin smiled and nodded in acknowledgment, bowing and saying, "Hello! Mr. Xidati!"

"Please come in!"

After taking the letter, the mage apprentice Xidati courteously invited the two sisters into the courtyard.

Invited by the Duke of Seron, the highest-ranking officer in the Eastern Military District, he and his teacher, the Archmage Andul, had arrived at Jingyi Town, located northwest of Lian City, three days ago. This town was almost turning into a military camp.

Upon arrival, the Archmage Andul and his apprentice Xidati were assigned to this small, secluded courtyard to await orders. It wasn't until yesterday morning that the town's garrison suddenly sent someone to inform them that two young girls would come to test their magical aptitude today.

And now, without a doubt, the guests the military had notified in advance were the twin sisters standing before him.

To have a second-rank Water Mage Archmage as the tester of magical aptitude, the visitors must have a significant background. However, if they had such a status, they should have been tested for casting and combat talents in their childhood. It was indeed strange that they had waited until now.

This aptitude test was arranged through the recommendation of the 'Reversal Scale' Legion. Without the military's connections, they would have had to spend a large amount of gold to hire high-ranking mages and sorcerers with aptitude testing devices to conduct the test.

Inside the house, Li Muxin and Li Mubing saw an elderly man with white hair, wearing a dark blue robe embroidered with strange runes and patterns in silver thread. He held a light yellow magic staff, the head of which was encircled by gnarled branches, with a crystal the size of an adult's fist nestled in the center. Perhaps due to years of handling, the staff had a smooth, jade-like texture.

This elderly mage must be the person they were looking for. The twin sisters exchanged a glance and bowed in unison, saying, "Hello! Archmage Andul!"

The old mage smiled kindly and nodded, saying, "Welcome, young ladies. Please, have a seat."

"Teacher, this is the letter from Commander And."

The mage apprentice Xidati handed the letter to his teacher.

Andul took the letter, broke the wax seal, and quickly read the contents.

In fact, the content of the letter was not much different from the notification from the military yesterday. It was just a formal way of showing respect to Andul.

After finishing the letter, Andul refocused his attention on the twin sisters and said, "Yes, your purpose is explained in the letter. I have no issues here. Are you ready?" He had a special device for testing aptitude.

"No problem!"

Li Muxin, the older sister, nodded. She had already learned about the process of testing aptitude, which mainly relied on specialized spells, magic devices, or sorcery devices, and was not more complicated than a blood test.

"Then let's begin!"

Archmage Andul got straight to the point. He took out a flat, oval-shaped device from his pocket, about the size of a palm.

In the center was a transparent spherical crystal the size of a ping-pong ball, surrounded by 11 magic crystals of various colors, each about the size of a finger. The main body of the device, in a purple-gold color, was engraved with intricate silver runes.

The red Fire, light blue Wind, brown Earth, dark green Wood, dark blue Water, dark purple Lightning, golden Metal, milky white Light, black Dark, silver Space, and transparent Spirit elements represented the 11 major elemental categories in the world.

A strand of powerful Archmage-level mental energy began to flow into the largest transparent crystal in the center of the device, gradually activating its functions. It took only a moment to complete the activation.

After the apprentice Xidati closed the door, Archmage Andul, holding the device called "Origin," said, "Hold it in your hand, either hand will do. Focus all your attention on it, clear your mind of distractions. The test will be over in just a few breaths."

Whether it was an infant or a young child, they were still in a stage of pure and unblemished minds. Using this device, it was easy to test for aptitude. For adults with complex thoughts, it would be much more difficult.

The first to be tested was Li Muxin, whose personality was much more stable than her sister Li Mubing. Testing her first could also serve as a reference for her sister.

She lowered her eyelids, slowed her breathing, and began to focus her attention, clearing her mind.

Seeing the girl in the gemstone blue samurai outfit enter the state so easily, Archmage Andul's gaze flickered. Entering a meditative state so quickly was something even some newly ranked mages might not achieve so effortlessly. Whether this girl had practiced meditation techniques or not, it was clear that she was skilled at controlling her emotions.

In fact, there were various mental training techniques in Earth's civilization, such as Buddhist meditation and Daoist visualization. However, Li Muxin used a hypnotic technique from a special operations unit to reduce pain during captivity, which had a similar effect to meditation, Zen, and visualization.

Although this special mental technique was relatively new, the state had poured experts and a large amount of money into its research, which, after strong catalysis, quickly became complete and reliable. The twin sisters had not expected it to be useful in this situation.

The young mage apprentice Xidati curiously observed the solemn and quiet black-haired, black-eyed girl. Her speed in entering meditation was astonishing, far surpassing those with combat talents. He genuinely envied her, knowing that such meditation efficiency meant her future achievements would far exceed his own, perhaps even becoming a great Archmage like his teacher.

"Alright, time's up! That's it! You did very well!"

Andul suddenly interrupted Li Muxin's meditative state, pulling her out of her tranquil mind.

"Thank you, Archmage Andul!"

Li Muxin returned the device, not eager to know the result, as the other had guessed.

"Yes, you did very well!"

The white-haired Archmage Andul nodded in satisfaction, examined the device for a moment, and then looked at Li Mubing, beckoning her, "It's your turn. Do the same! Don't be nervous!"

"Yes, Archmage!"

Li Mubing took the device, held it in her palm, and began to focus her mind.

She was initially a bit nervous, but although it took her two to three times longer than her sister, Andul and the others were not in a hurry. She eventually managed to enter the state.

"Hey, Lieutenant Li Muxin, Lieutenant Li Mubing, are you done with the test? What were the results?"

"Hey! Please respond! Wishing you success in the test!"

The communication device in their ears transmitted Lin Mo's voice.

"Major Lin Mo, we have completed the test!"

"Hmph! I won't tell you!"

Riding their warhorses and returning to the First Cavalry Division's base, the twin sisters, who rarely disagreed, responded inconsistently, making it impossible to hear clearly what they said.

"What happened? Did something go wrong? Did the Archmage refuse to test you?"

As soon as the twin sisters' communication devices entered the effective communication range, Lin Mo immediately connected the call through "Dragon General."

"No—"

Li Mubing was about to continue being coy but was glared at by her sister, and her defiance immediately subsided.

"Sorry, the test results are out. Neither my sister nor I have the aptitude for casting or combat talents."

This result was very disappointing for Li Muxin. She clearly remembered the old Archmage's regretful expression. Despite her excellent meditation skills, she lacked the affinity for elemental magic.

Surprisingly, both sisters had some affinity for all eleven main elements, but none of them reached the one-star level.

Even if just one of the main elements had reached the one-star level, they would have been eligible to practice magic and might have achieved the third rank in their lifetime.

Among the eleven main elements, even the most advantageous Spirit element was just a hair's breadth away from the one-star level. This small gap was as vast as the distance between the sky and the ground, and the Spirit element was not suitable for combat talents. (To be continued. Please search for Piaotian Literature for better and faster updates!)

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