Chapter 10: Opportunity

"Brother Lu, have you opened your spirit aperture?" Yu Xiaodie asked.

"Why do you ask?" Lu Ye countered, not answering directly.

Yu Xiaodie pointed to the storage pouch at Lu Ye's waist.

Lu Ye understood and nodded. "That's right," he said, then asked in return, "What about you?"

Yu Xiaodie raised a hand, and a faint glow radiated from her palm.

She had clearly opened her spirit aperture as well, though Lu Ye didn't know how many apertures she had opened. It wasn't appropriate to ask, as they weren't very familiar with each other.

As cultivators who had both opened their spirit apertures, they found many common topics. Although nearly a thousand people were gathered there, probably only a few had opened their apertures, and all of them had very low cultivation levels.

Those with true cultivation had already been absorbed by Evil Moon Valley and became its disciples; their fate at this moment was easily imagined.

Yu Xiaodie lowered her voice and said, "Tomorrow's opportunity is extremely important; you absolutely mustn't miss it. Brother Lu, if you have any special talents, feel free to display them. This concerns your future."

She seemed to know something.

Lu Ye replied, "I understand."

Truth be told, he didn't have any special talents, except for a talent tree that others couldn't see. But he certainly couldn't reveal that.

It wasn't ideal to remain surrounded by a group of women, so after exchanging a few more words with Yu Xiaodie, Lu Ye excused himself and left.

Many enslaved people were gathered here, with limited space to move. Lu Ye looked around and walked straight toward a corner.

Over there, the Liu brothers were hiding behind the crowd, trembling. Seeing Lu Ye approach, their faces turned pale.

When Lu Ye stood before them, their expressions became even more terrified.

"Y-you... what do you want?" the elder Liu brother stammered, trying to sound tough but clearly fearful. As he spoke, he kept glancing toward the plump cultivator, seemingly hoping for help.

His answer was a fist that rapidly grew larger in his vision. With just one punch, the elder Liu brother's nose bridge was broken, and he collapsed. Lu Ye then kicked the younger Liu brother in the stomach. Before he could even fall, Lu Ye grabbed him by the hair. "You seem to have forgotten me?"

The younger Liu brother was writhing in pain, seeing stars; how could he possibly answer?

Lu Ye snorted, then powerfully swung his large hand, tossing the younger Liu brother behind him, sending him face-first into the dirt and knocking out two of his teeth.

He took the spot where the Liu brothers had been, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes to rest.

He had already filled one aperture, but he couldn't find the location for the second, so he refrained from continuing his cultivation to avoid wasting his Vitality Pills.

In the evening, people from the Vast Sky Alliance came to distribute food and bedding. Everyone received some, but Lu Ye wasn't full. Fortunately, Zhou Cheng's storage pouch also contained food, so he took it out and ate heartily.

Others nearby watched, salivating, but no one dared to approach him.

After Lu Ye taught the Liu brothers a lesson, he had a large area to himself, which saved him a lot of trouble.

After refining his essence into Qi, his appetite grew day by day. He even found the dried beast meat delicious as he gnawed on it.

The night passed quietly. The next day, Lu Ye was refreshed and full of energy, awaiting the so-called opportunity.

It wasn't until after breakfast that more than ten cultivators, dressed in varying attire, appeared before everyone. The leader was a middle-aged man who stood at the front with his hands behind his back, scanning the crowd. He smiled faintly and said, "You young people come from different sects and families, brought here as slaves, and have endured many hardships. However, those days are over. The various sects of the Vast Sky Alliance are widely recruiting talented individuals. If any of you have opened your apertures or possess cultivation talent, you all have a chance to join a sect. I urge you to seize this opportunity, for in the future, you might fight alongside us, slaying demons and eradicating evil."

After speaking, he gently waved his hand.

The more than ten cultivators in varying attire behind him stepped forward. The first person gestured with an outstretched hand, saying, "Those of you, come with me."

With that gesture, a surge of spiritual power enveloped roughly a hundred people.

Once those people stepped out, the cultivator led them to one side.

The second person did the same...

There were around a thousand enslaved people, just enough for these ten cultivators to divide.

Since Lu Ye was in the innermost part of the group, he ended up with the last cultivator.

He didn't walk far before arriving at a spot where cultivators dressed similarly to the one who led them were maintaining order, instructing everyone to form a line.

Lu Ye was in the middle of the line. He looked around and saw that the enslaved people led out before him were in similar situations.

He understood immediately that this was likely a test to see if any of the enslaved people had opened their apertures or were suitable for cultivation.

From the words of the middle-aged cultivator earlier, it seemed that those who had opened their spirit apertures would have a greater advantage.

As for those who hadn't opened their apertures and had no cultivation talent, they probably wouldn't be given much attention.

Once the line was formed, the cultivator who had led them took a table from his storage pouch, then sat behind it and looked up, saying, "Let's begin."

The first enslaved person approached him at his signal.

The cultivator asked, "Have you opened your aperture?"

The enslaved person shook his head. "No!"

"Hmm," the questioning cultivator said, pushing the crystal ball he had taken out earlier towards him. "Place both hands on it."

The enslaved person did as instructed, but the crystal ball showed no reaction.

The cultivator behind the table shook his head. "No cultivation aptitude. Next!"

The enslaved person immediately looked distraught and quickly said, "I wasn't ready! Let me try again."

"Next!" The cultivator waved his sleeve, and the babbling enslaved person was swept aside, falling to the ground.

This scene filled all the enslaved people still in line with apprehension. They knew whether their fate could change depended on that crystal ball, and they immediately braced themselves.

One by one, enslaved people stepped forward, all lacking cultivation aptitude.

It wasn't until the thirteenth person placed their hands on the crystal ball that the previously unresponsive crystal ball suddenly lit up with a pale blue glow.

"Finally, there's one!" The cultivator behind the table smiled and looked up at the enslaved person. "Name."

The enslaved person's face was flushed with excitement as he answered truthfully.

The cultivator behind the table took out a jade-like token, activated spiritual power in his hand, and soon, the person's name appeared on one side of the token.

He handed the token to him and instructed, "Keep this carefully; you'll need it later. Now go to that tent over there and find my third senior brother to have your talent assessed."

"Yes, yes, thank you, sir," the enslaved person said, holding the token as if it were the most precious treasure, and scurried towards the back, where a simple tent stood.