Rise of the Demon God

Ruan Yi looked towards the disciples.

"Alright guys, the class told you the importance of close combat and the importance of not depending on your Martial Skills mostly, but this time, we'll have something different,"

"Other than battle prowess, there are many other factors that affect a Cultivator's life. Two of those things are talent and potential. Most of you don't understand the difference between the two things so let me make it clear,"

"Imagine a beast that wants to run to the ends of the planet. Now, he can do that if certain factors are met. All he needs to do is constantly keep running until he reaches the destination. His running speed and stamina affected how long he takes to the end of the planet, but there is another thing that he needs to complete this journey. It is the availability of the ground. If there is no ground, then no matter how fast he is, he can't run," Ruan Yi said 

"Cultivators are similar. They want to reach the peak of Cultivation, which is the end of the road for them. The talent is their ability to run and their running speed. It's the speed and the talent they possess for cultivation. The ones with more talent achieve breakthroughs faster." She added.

The disciples nodded their heads as if they understood her words.

"Another thing that affects the Cultivators is potential, which is literally the potential of the human body. Some people have high potential, while some have a low potential for cultivation. If someone doesn't have a high talent, then it doesn't matter if he has a high potential since it would just be a waste on the other hand, if someone has a higher talent and low potential, then it's a waste as well since they can't pass their potential limitation. It's like the end of the land for them. Even if they have stamina and strength, they can't run forward."

"That is why we say that the Talent and potential of a Cultivator is one of the most important factors when it comes to their Cultivation journey.  Today, I brought you here so you can test your potential and know your limitations and strengths so that you can better understand about yourself," She declared.

"That Formation is something that was established in the Hall of Potential by our previous Temple Master. It is the thing that will measure your Cultivation. One by one, you will go and stand on the center of it and get your potential measured," Ruan Yi said as she pointed towards the giant formation in the center of the hall.

"We will go by the previous order. You all know the slips that you had received. We will start with the loser of the first battle, then the winner and then the loser of the second battle. You all know your order. Keep moving," She said.

She didn't outright call Long Chen ahead since she wanted to be careful. If she called him first, and he still had that trash potential, then it would not only be embarrassing for her but difficult in the future as well since Long Chen would definitely tell Mu Yun what happened today. 

The battle that she forced Long Chen to participate in was already enough to offend Mu Yun, and Ruan Yi believed that she would hear about that from Mu Yun, but that was still fine. On the other hand, if she called Long Chen first and he failed, then Mu Yun would think that she did this intentionally to mock her son. 

Ruan Yi was trying to make it look like it had nothing to do with Long Chen, so she wouldn't annoy her too much when Long Chen told her.

The first person walked forth and stood at the center of the formation.

The formation started shining, and the whole room was filled with light. After a few seconds, the light disappeared, and the formation stopped shining.

It was a girl who was standing in the formation. She looked towards Ruan Yi and noticed that she was looking up. The other disciples were looking up as well. Except for the old man that had his eyes closed, everyone was looking towards upwards.

The girl also started looking up and noticed that the roof that was previously white had changed color. It was now looking Blue.

"Average potential, not bad. Go back," Ruan Yi told the girl.

The girl walked back.

"There are seven grades of potential. Grade one is the weakest, whereas the grade 7 is the strongest here."

"When you stand in the formation, the roof of this place will change color to reflect the grade of your potential."

"The Grade one is Violet; Grade two is Indigo, Grade three is Blue, Grade Four is Green, Grade five is Yellow. Grade six is Orange; Grade Seven is Red.  That's how you can guess your potential. Blue is a Grade 3 talent which is on an average side, so not bad." Ruan Yi explained to the others.

"Anyway, the next person, come forward," She said.

Another girl came forward. She was the winner of the first fight. As she stood in the formation, most of the disciples thought that she was going to have a better potential than the last girl, but the color she got was also blue. It was the same Grade three. The girl couldn't help but be disappointed as she walked back.

One after another, the disciples kept walking inside the formation and kept having their potential checked.

The one that was most shocking was Ru Shen, who had a Grade Six potential. The color of the roof was bright orange when he was standing in the formation. 

The other disciples gasped in amazement as they saw his potential, which was the highest so far.  Most of the people before Ru Shen were Grade Three or Grade Four potential. There was only one grade five potential before him. So far, he was at the top, and most people had expected that since he was the best disciple of the class.

Ru Shen walked back silently and didn't show off even a little. 

People kept entering the formation and leaving. Soon, forty-eight disciples had their Cultivation checked. Amongst the forty-eight, only Ru Shen was level six potential. There were five grade Five potentials, 17 Grade four potential, and the rest had grade three potential. There was not a single disciple so far that had a grade two or a grade one talent.

"Mi Lao, come forward," Ruan Yi reminded Mi Lao. She was the loser of the last fight. It was her turn.

Mi Lao stepped ahead and entered the formation. The formation started shining, and after a few seconds, it stopped. Everyone started looking towards the sky and saw a bright yellow color on the roof.

"A grade five talent," Mi Lao let out as she smiled proudly. She walked back with her head held high.

"You might've defeated me by luck, but we all know that you will fail badly here. Go ahead and embarrass yourself," She muttered as she walked past Long Chen.

Long Chen didn't reply and just stayed silent.

"Mu Lin, you're the last person. Enter the formation," Ruan Yi told Long Chen. The old man finally opened his eyes as if he was interested in seeing Long Chen's potential.

Long Chen was also curious about his potential, but he was hesitant as well. Still, he knew that he had no choice here. He might as well know his potential.

He stepped forth with slow steps and entered the center of the giant formation.

As soon as Long Chen stood in the center of the formation, it started shining.

This time, something was different, though. Something was very different.