4.Talent Testing and History of the world

It's been almost 2 years since Long Yin started cultivating. While her initial speed would allow her to complete Body Tampering before her 3rd birthday she ran into a bottleneck in Marrow Refining stage. Apparently it was meant to be done with help of spirit medicine or medical bath and doing it without them was taking a lot of time. Since she couldn't advance her cultivation she decided to advance her knowledge and quietly "borrowed" a history book from library. It was interesting to say the least.

Apparently there was only one faction of Humanity in this world. It was the Huaxia Galactic Empire, which was headed by the Emperor and council of 10 families with peak cultivation legacy. During World War 3 other countries managed to reduce their population to the point where after few hundred years of marriages there were no other nationalities than Chinese. There were still some groups to be claiming of "pure" birth but they were all declared as radical extremists. Thus when the Galactic Exploration Era arrived and humans discovered that not only they weren't the only ones in Cosmos, but also they weren't even considered more than annoying flies by most alien races a united human nation called Huaxia Empire was formed.

After years of struggle with danger of extinction hanging above humanity every day, after a successful defense against one of the alien races traces of cultivation techniques were discovered and humanity discovered its hope. After reinventing those techniques for use of humans Humanity finallu became a voice in the gallaxy and was currently occupying over half of the Milky Way Galaxy. Now instead of fighting against invaders the Empire keeps fighting for resources, wanting to conquer the whole galaxy.

Yin's musings about history were interrupted by loud knocking on her room's door.

- Yes? - She asked.

- Get moving little sister, your talent examination will be starting soon and mother wants to see you before you go - Answered her brother.

- Sure, tell mom I'll come downstairs in 2 minutes.

She quickly gathered her thoughts and put on her shoes then left her room.

- Hello sweetie, are you ready for your big day? Listen, mother saved a medicine for you, we still have a few hours, you can take it, it will improve your score.

Yin thought about it for a moment. The medicine her mother saved was a Body Refining serum. It was a medicine meant to strengthen one's constitution. It should be enough for her to break through into Marrow Purifying peak stage with both cultivation methods. She decided to take it.

- Sure mom, let me take it.

Her mother took the serum and injected it into her veins. This is how most medicines were delivered nowadays.

She instantly felt the speed of refining increase by over 10 times. She quickly started running her cultivation art to digest the medicine's power. An hour before the talent measuring the medicine's power ran out.

'Not good, the power contained within was too strong I'm about to open my first meridian and break through to the next Realm. My body refining art already broke through and started strengthening 1st meridian. If I come in contact with Qi during the evaluation I might breakthrough on the spot'.

- What are you thinking so hard about sweetie, come on, you will get wrinkles if you frown so much. Come before we're late.

Talent evaluation was done by local military outposts, so that talented kids could be monitored and recruited when they grew up. After taking a hover car they stopped before the medical branch. The clerk at reception was taking attendance list, since people who were absent would get fined and then, upon further absence, imprisoned if they ignored the mandatory evaluation.

- Yin Long, right? So sad, what happened to general Long, my condolences. Please go in.

Inside the room there was a Crystal of a weird transparent ore as well as an elder officer of the military.

- Right, place your hand on the crystal and don't move no matter what happens.

Yin went up the ramp for kids that enabled them to reach the crystal and touched it. Suddenly she felt a stirring in her dantian that gradually started speeding towards her 1st meridian.

'Crap it was a Qi evaluation method, I'm going to break through! '

Then she felt it coming, the thing she dreaded the most because of reactions of her family - The 1st Perfect Foundation Tribulation. The crystal she was touching shone brighter and brighter altering between multiple colors before she felt a "crack" go off in her body and opening of her 1st meridian. Then immediately heaven rumbled and, only a second later, she was hit by thunder that tore through the military base's roof. The hit pushed everyone backwards. When they finally got up the crystal was shattered and shining green while Liu looked like a freshly burnt sausage.

- Dammit I told them the crystal was faulty and could explode. Thank god the kid is alright. Alright young lady, looking at the crystal you're a B-rank. Give me a hand, I'm going to check your affinities myself.

Yin hesistantly gave him her wrist. He held it for a minute then started noting while muttering.

- Alright, Long Yin, B-rank, no affinities. Done.

Please head to medical department for a checkup while I go order a new crystal.

After a quick checkup at medbay they were given a compensation in form of S-rank serum. Her mother, while still super pissed about "damn lazy asses nearly killing her daughter" was extatic because that serum should immediately boost her to 3rd or even fourth tier of body refining when consumed. Unfortunately it would have to wait since kids only started cultivation once they were 11, since before that age they could harm their foundation and her mother didn't know she had an art that could avoid that.

After coming home Yin decided to stabilise her breakthrough and digest gains from tribulation thunder. She quickly discovered she had enough energy banked to clear 1st and 2nd meridian and strengthen them. In the meridian opening stage Qi Art focuses on opening and clearing meridians and strengthening them to withstand Qi flow, while Tyrranical Dragon Body Tampering strenthened their outer shell making it much harder to injure or cripple one's meridians from outside. After taking a few hours to finish work on her second meridian she went to bed.