Astral Pet Store (WN)

"It seems that the special black nails can measure your divine quality."

Su Ping, Joanna and Tang Ruyan waited quietly in the crowd. Their turn would come later, since the princes and princesses with recommendations would take the test first.

This was fine. The order to take the test didn't matter anyway.

Not everyone thought the same, though; some were clearly unhappy with the arrangement. They had passed multiple tests to make it up to that point, and yet they had to wait for ten days until they could be measured. This made them feel frustrated; some were even angry at the Heaven Path Institute.

In the high sky—the privileged ones took the test in turns. If a few of them moved at the same time, the crowned middle-aged man would make the call, naming one of them to take the measurement first.

Ling Ying, the first princess finished her test, and then a second and third measurement were conducted, but the results were merely three illuminated nails, while the other only lit one. Such results made everyone feel surprised and anxious. They didn't realize that the divine quality difference between them would have such a stark difference. Judging from the results, the second and third test-takers would very likely fail.

The two participants realized this too; they had contorted expressions.

Soon after, the others stepped up and took turns to be measured.

There were altogether twelve black nails on the Golden Stone, which seemed to represent the maximum divine quality. Still, they didn't know what the entry standard was for the Heaven Path Institute. Even Ling Yin—who had illuminated seven of the black nails—was feeling nervous.

She had always been the best in every test she had ever taken.

If the full score was a hundred points, she would definitely score a hundred points.

However, she had only illuminated a bit over half the twelve black nails. She would fail if the institute's standard was ten nails.

She began to relax upon seeing that the people who came after illuminated fewer nails.

Exclamations came from the crowd some time after, as a handsome red-haired young man illuminated eleven nails!

He was only one nail away from perfection!

This would be the candidate with the best divine quality thus far.

Everybody fixed their eyes upon him. They were astonished to find that he didn't belong to a high-ranked clan. It seemed that divine quality truly didn't depend on bloodline.

The red-haired young man was surprised and delighted by the result. He believed that he would surely pass the test; after all, he had the best qualification among all the princes and princesses!

Nearby, the three old men of the Heaven Path Institute glanced at the red-haired young man with gentle eyes and nodded with satisfaction.

"That guy's turn is almost up," said Tang Ruyan in a low voice.

The candidates had been lined up. The Rain Clan's prince was almost there.

The Rain Clan had sent five princes, and the young prince they knew was at the end of the line. The other princes kept a distance from him.

The news of the Rain Clan's Chaos Bell being struck reached the ears of many high-ranked clans. However, the Rain Clan considered the fact as a source of humiliation, so they didn't offer any clarification about the matter. The other clans thought that a prince of the Rain Clan had done it… But the Rain Clan knew they had pushed away a genius who could make the Chaos Bell resound.

In an ideal scenario, the human genius would have definitely been grateful toward the Rain Clan, had they acted courteously.

The Rain Emperor didn't punish the prince, but the other candidates had formed an alliance and were giving him the cold shoulder, all to have one fewer competitor.

"He definitely has poor divine quality!" said Tang Ruyan, seeing the prince of the Rain Clan at the end of the line. She didn't participate in the battle against the people of the Rain Clan, but she had been accidentally killed several times. The disrespectful prince had left a deep impression on her.

"It's hard to say."

Su Ping slightly shook his head. He didn't consider it a big deal.

Whether he could enter the institute remained to be seen. He didn't care if that prince could make it in.

He would not mind dealing with the prince, if both of them were admitted and the latter looked for trouble. He would be capable of slaying the prince, even after becoming a disciple of the Heaven Path Institute.

Joanna had indeed mentioned that the institute was outstanding, but that was completely unrelated to that prince.

"Humph!" Tang Ruyan snorted, not agreeing with Su Ping's dismissive attitude.

The Rain Clan's turn came soon after.

The first prince of the Rain Clan was gentle and handsome. There was a lightning mark in his left eye, which gave him a most unusual look. Someone whispered, "Lightning Eye. The Rain Clan's prince is truly terrifying."

"He was born with the Lightning Eye. He mastered the path of lightning when he was very little, and the Lightning Eye contains a destructive power. I'm sure he will ascend to higher levels!"

The others continued discussing in low voices, envy seeping through.

Soon, the prince with the Lightning Eye laid his hand on the black ball.

The sphere soon turned golden. Then, the golden color was spread out, illuminating six of the black nails.

The seventh black nail turned golden halfway and then stopped.

The middle-aged man wearing a starry crown nodded and gestured for the next one to step up.

The prince with the Lightning Eye was unhappy, seeing the mild response from the senior. He had always been an astonishing genius; still the elder seemed to be unimpressed. Not even his Lightning Eye drew any attention, which made him feel uncomfortable.

However, he kept all his discomfort concealed. He nodded with a smile and left.

Behind him was a princess of the Rain Clan.

She stepped up and managed to light up nine black nails!

Then, the third clan member only illuminated one.

The fourth one lit three of them.

Soon it was the turn for the last one: the young prince who had forced Su Ping to strike the bell.

"Mo Feng, of the Rain Clan!"

The young man stepped up and reported his name and clan. Then, he laid his hand on the black ball.

A moment later, the black ball turned golden, and then the golden color was slowly spread out… But only one of the black nails was dyed golden.

Mo Feng was stunned. He didn't expect to see that his divine quality only amounted to that much.

His heart became heavy. The final result hadn't been released yet, but he knew that he would probably not qualify.

"Damn it!"

He grimly clenched his other fist. He would get less resources if he was unable to enter the institute, and was fully aware that one of his companions had illuminated nine of the black nails!

"Go back. Next."

The crowned middle-aged man could easily notice the frustration and fury in the young prince's eyes. He was also aware of the cruel competition which took place within each clan. Still, that was just how survival worked. There were winners, and there were losers.

He didn't sympathize with those without enough divine quality. He knew what it meant.

Mo Feng turned around and walked away with a glooy expression, not even bothering to say goodbye.

The princess of the Rain Clan who had illuminated nine nails had a wide and brilliant smile on her face. There was a good chance that she would be admitted by the Heaven Path Institute. If so, she would obtain much more resources, and later become a lot stronger!

All the other princes and princesses lowered their heads in silence.

All the candidates of the high-ranked clans were measured as time went by. The best had illuminated eleven black nails, and the worst didn't even change the black ball, which made the onlookers think that the golden stone was malfunctioning, until another did the test again.

"That one doesn't have any divine quality at all, right? And her… To think she's the princess of a high-ranked clan. How terrifying."

"Tsk, tsk. The competitors in her clan must be trembling with fear after seeing such a result."

"She's definitely a bada**!"

Everybody whispered in low voices and made sure to remember her name.

The girl was slightly surprised by the result. There was coldness in her eyes when she returned to her previous position, as she had noticed the round of whispering she had caused.

The privileged group finished. It was then Su Ping and the others' turn.

Once again, everybody was soon lined up according to the crowned senior's indications.

"Huh?"

Mo Feng—as he made plans with a gloomy expression—saw a familiar person in the crowd. Slightly dazed, he squinted and realized that his eyes weren't deceiving him.

The guy is still alive!

He even came to the Heaven Path Institute?

Mo Feng was even gloomier. If Su Ping joined the institute, his astonishing talent would definitely be revealed, and he would receive a lot of resources.

"Damn it!"

His mood was even fouler. He thought it was the worst day of his life.

He's a mere human being. How much divine quality can he have? he thought.

Soon, the tests were conducted.

Besides gods, their vassal species were taking the tests too; many different races could be seen due to this reason. Some of them had bull heads and human bodies, while others had human bodies and snake nails. There were also spirits with colorful hair.

To everyone's surprise, several candidates from the vassal species illuminated eight black nails. One of them even illuminated ten black nails!

Such results left a lot of gods with unnatural expressions and strange feelings.

The more Mo Feng looked, the angrier he became. He clenched his fists tightly.

It was finally the turn for Su Ping's team.

"You go first," Su Ping said to Tang Ruyan.

Tang Ruyan was rather nervous. She nodded and then flew towards the golden stone.

"Just lay your hand on it." The middle-aged man gave her a weird look; he had obviously realized that she couldn't have passed the previous tests without external help.

She was a human being… Was she a slave to one of the gods?

The middle-aged man raised his eyebrows, not considering it a big deal. Even though Tang Ruyan was really weak, the Heaven Path Institute was a place where students became stronger, no matter how weak their starting point!

That is, on the premise that they had enough divine quality to pass the test.

Tang Ruyan laid her hand on the black ball. Soon, the black ball turned golden. One black nail, two nails, three… It didn't stop until it reached the seventh one.

Tang Ruyan was slightly relieved to see the result, but she was a bit regretful too. Seven nails was a fairly good result, but she didn't know if she could pass. She would have been more confident had she illuminated eight or nine nails.

However, she was still surprised to have lit seven black nails.

Did she have that much divine quality in her body?

"Am I such a good person?" Tang Ruyan mumbled, feeling good for herself. She even held her head high as she looked at the gods present. She finally felt that she wasn't the weakest one around.

"Huh?"

Joanna was astonished by Tang Ruyan's results. The girl was above average, considering the readings of the previous candidates.

Su Ping was slightly surprised. Tang Ruyan didn't have much divine power, yet her divine quality was high. It was beyond his expectation.

No wonder the divine quality didn't depend on bloodline. Maybe it was just a special feature related to the soul.

I wonder what my soul is like, Su Ping thought.

He stepped up to the golden stone.

Su Ping as if the stone were staring down at him like a gigantic eyeball. None of his thoughts and secrets could be hidden any longer.

God's Tear… Is it really that marvelous? Su Ping thought. He laid his hand on the black ball as per the middle-aged man's instructions.

The sphere felt cold to the touch. Su Ping waited hopefully, but the black ball didn't give the slightest response after a long time passed.

Su Ping was stunned and speechless. He then remembered the princess who had even failed to illuminate the black ball.

Had he lost all of his divine quality because he killed too many people?

But he always considered himself a good guy!

He had always been observant of laws, and he was an excellent figure from every perspective!

While Su Ping felt like crying, the black ball showed brilliant gold colors, which then spread out and illuminated the first black nail. Then, the second, the third…

The golden light suddenly stopped when it came to the ninth nail. Su Ping illuminated nine and a half of them.

"Phew."

Su Ping was relieved. That was close. It was a terrifying moment.

Did the Golden Stone hear his inward cry?

The nearby senior with a starry crown was also surprised, wondering why the Golden Stone had been unresponsive a moment earlier.

He looked at the three old men, then dropped the matter since none of them said a thing.

Su Ping moved back and gave Joanna an encouraging look. "Go for it!"

Joanna was acting solemn and anxious. She even seemed to be breathing at a slower rate. She looked back at Su Ping, nodded and then flew to where the golden Stone was.