Part 2
Shen Bingsi placed his hand on the table and tapped his finger twice. The water mist vanished instantly, and the figures of the three small ones became clear again.
Shen Yan and Long Shaoye were both stunned, seemingly not expecting their magic to be cleared so quickly. They wondered if the Grand Villa Master had seen it clearly.
Fang Renji stood there dumbly with his mouth half-open, holding a lump of mud he had pulled from who-knows-where.
When the tide goes out, it becomes clear who has been swimming naked.
Fang Renji’s action caused the whole room to burst into laughter. The children pointed at him, laughing until they swayed. Fang Renji wanted to explain, but remembering the Grand Villa Master’s ban on “reciting the menu,” his mouth moved, but he said nothing in the end.
Amidst the crowd’s laughter, he stared at the lump of earth in his hand. Suddenly, a small green sprout broke through the soil, poking out just a tiny bit.
No magic could create life out of thin air. The sprout in the soil was merely Fang Renji’s Wood spirit, and the soil itself was his Earth spirit. Although the spell was simple, he had used it to demonstrate his two types of spiritual roots, completing the task.
Seeing this, Rong Xie gave Fang Renji an encouraging look.
After the three finished performing, they waited for Shen Bingsi’s judgment.
Head Steward Shen was gloating on the side. The talents he selected were indeed not bad. Shen Yan and Long Shaoye were the best of this batch of children, and although that Fang Renji was a bit dull, his memory was strong, so clerical work would be no problem.
Shen Bingsi looked at the three of them but didn’t express his opinion for a while.
The study fell silent. The children all craned their necks to look at the desk. Nanny Wang also stopped swatting Wang Mu’s hand.
Perhaps because Shen Bingsi remained silent for too long, everyone sensed something was wrong.
Rong Xie lowered his head, curiously examining Shen Bingsi’s profile. Usually, from this angle, if Shen Bingsi moved an eyebrow, Rong Xie knew what he was going to say.
But this time, he couldn’t guess what dissatisfaction Shen Bingsi could possibly have with these three children.
That’s right, Shen Bingsi was dissatisfied.
Rong Xie could feel a sense of resistance slowly rising from his best friend.
To prevent Shen Bingsi from blurting out harsh words and making the children cry directly, Rong Xie smoothed things over first: “The Villa Master considers magic aspects very deeply. Please accept his criticism and guidance; it will also improve your own levels.”
Hearing this, Head Steward Shen cast another dissatisfied look at Rong Xie.
“Fang Renji, your spiritual roots are clearly Earth, Wood, and Metal. Where is your Metal?” Shen Bingsi finally spoke. “And Long Shaoye, Water and Wind dual roots. Water is fine, but did you blow that Wind with your mouth? It had no force at all.”
“…”
Sure enough, what Shen Bingsi had been brewing was definitely not kind words. His sharp comments went straight for their weaknesses. Fang Renji was fine, still looking dull, but Long Shaoye’s face flushed red.
There was one left, Shen Yan, who hadn’t been critiqued yet. Perhaps he had enough confidence that even hearing Shen Bingsi criticize the other two didn’t scare him; instead, he straightened his back, as if Shen Bingsi would praise him third.
“And this one…” Shen Bingsi looked down at the name on the paper. “Shen Yan.”
Shen Yan’s shoulders slumped a little. Did he not remember my name?
“Your spiritual roots seem useless.”
“…”
Dead silence.
Lightning and Fire roots, the most domineering of the domineering, the toughest of the tough… and Shen Bingsi actually said they were useless…
Rong Xie couldn’t help coughing lightly.
Shen Bingsi, you yourself have Water and Fire dual roots, okay?
Before Shen Yan could speak, Long Shaoye protested with a flushed face.
“Villa Master Shen, the most domineering spiritual roots in the world are Lightning and Fire. In any major sect, if they encountered a seedling with such roots, they would fight to have him!”
“Long Shaoye!” Head Steward Shen shouted. “Is this a place for you to spout nonsense?”
Shen Bingsi waved his hand. “No matter, let him speak. Long Shaoye, is it? The name is quite wild; I like it. However, since you asked, I will be blunt. We are not recruiting good seedlings for cultivation, but servant boys to handle daily affairs of the villa. In layman’s terms, people to do chores. He has Lightning and Fire dual roots—what chores can he do? Strike lightning or set fires?”
Shen Bingsi’s words made sense. Lightning roots were indeed useless in daily life. Fire roots could be used for cooking and heating water, but controlling them to such a precise and sustained level required extremely specialized training. Someone with that level of skill would be enough to join a small sect as a disciple, not reduced to being a servant in someone else’s home.
However, while Shen Bingsi’s words made sense, he was nitpicking. He criticized those with weak spiritual power, and he criticized those with strong spiritual power. Shen Bingsi had said it all. In the end, he just didn’t want servant boys.
Rong Xie took a deep breath, about to argue a couple of points, but Shen Yan spoke first.
“Villa Master Shen, I awakened my Lightning and Fire dual roots at the age of three and followed a master to study magic at five. Although I cannot compare to the Villa Master’s heavenly talent, I ask myself and believe my control over Lightning and Fire magic exceeds that of ordinary peers. Cooking and heating water in the villa is well within my ability. Moreover, I heard that compared to people with suitable spiritual roots, Villa Master Shen prefers those proficient in talismans. Just now, while doing the paper, I realized there were many questions about talismans. I happen to have memorized three thousand talismans, which will surely be useful in the villa’s daily affairs.”
Shen Yan’s speech was neither humble nor arrogant, well-reasoned and grounded, making one secretly admire him. No wonder Long Shaoye was willing to play support for him.
“Well said. Your name is Shen Yan, right?” Shen Bingsi pushed the table away, stood up, clasped his hands behind his back, walked around the table, and arrived in front of Shen Yan.
This was the first time Shen Yan had been in such close contact with a Nascent Soul cultivator. He felt Shen Bingsi’s vast spiritual consciousness quickly engulf him. Every pore felt a stinging pain like needle pricks, but he felt no fear, only excitement. He stared excitedly at Shen Bingsi—Shen Bingsi remembered him! Remembered his name! “Exactly!”
“You said you studied magic with a master at age five. Your background isn’t ordinary, is it?” Shen Bingsi asked.
“Yes…” Shen Yan’s eyes dimmed slightly. “My family was once a reputable clan in the East Continent. Later, the family fell into decline and drifted to Heyang. Fortunately, the Shen family took me in. The Patriarch showed me the grace of rebirth, so I changed my surname to Shen and stayed.”
Head Steward Shen hurriedly interjected, “I brought his deed of sale too. If the Villa Master thinks well of him, I will present all three of their deeds together.”
Shen Bingsi smiled faintly and clapped his hands. “Good. I don’t want the others, I just want Shen Yan’s deed.”
Shen Yan was stunned.
“Shen Yan, with your talent, it’s a pity not to cultivate properly. I see your future is limitless. I plan to recommend you to the Inner Sect of the Lingjing Sect. What do you say? Just say the word, and I’ll send a message to Elder Yun Feng right now.”
“This…” Shen Yan was bewildered. Wasn’t he here to apply for a servant boy position? How did he suddenly… end up entering the Inner Sect of the Lingjing Sect?
Long Shaoye looked at him with glowing eyes, shoving his shoulder. “Yanzi, you’ve hit the jackpot! Hurry up and accept!”
Rong Xie was also confused by Shen Bingsi. Pulling a stunt like this during a servant boy exam—what was this about? Although Shen Yan’s talent was good, it wasn’t astounding. Even someone with Shen Bingsi’s aptitude had to honestly go through the three major trials to enter the Inner Sect back then. Why could Shen Yan get shoved into Cloud Peak with just one sentence?
Could it be… Shen Bingsi was actually lying?
Shen Yan’s lips moved slightly. He seemed to want to agree immediately, but held back due to some concerns.
Under Long Shaoye’s urging and Shen Bingsi’s gaze, he looked up. “Villa Master Shen’s great kindness, Shen Yan will never forget. But… can Villa Master Shen also recommend Long Shaoye? He is also very amazing…”
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