Phoenix Rise: XieRong

"Now?"

The duchess nodded her head.

"How?"

XieRong tilted her head slightly. Everyone knew that commoners could only check their roots in the capital while the nobles had their roots checked at the spirit tower, one of which was present in each province. Even if the spirit tower was present in Qianhe, it would require a written permission from the emperor, empress or one of the prime minister’s to do the test in secret.

"Why don’t I show you?"

"HuiLiang you can’t be taking them to that room?"

"I am."

"But father isn’t here!"

"Father won’t mind and I know how to access it, big brother."

The duchess got up and went to the painting behind the old general Guo’s chair.

XieRong saw her lift the painting and place her hand on the wall.

After a short while, a door in the wall pushed open with a creak. There were cobwebs and dust clouds on the entrance.

"Let us go."

"No, I should stay," Aunt Biyu said, "if someone comes I will give them an excuse."

Leaving Aunt Biyu behind, XieRong and the rest made their way to the room.

The room smelled old and dusty just like staircase leading to it, but it was a huge dome shaped structure unlike the narrow staircase through which XieRong’s uncle had struggled struggled through because of his broad and tall built.

The room was circular with two stands placed side by side at it’s center.

In one were kept eight floating white jade pieces, and in the other was a floating black boulder.

"The stand to the right with the floating white jade pieces is where you will check which and what kind of spirit roots you have. Under each jade piece is the colour and symbol of the element it represents. I think you know this but I’ll tell you anyways, there are five basic elements: Fire, Water, Wood, Wind and Earth, and two rare elements: Ice and Lighting. The colours for them are red, blue, green, brown, indigo and black, respectively.

"As soon as you place our hand on the jade globe in the middle, some of the eight pieces will rise. Those are the elements you possess. The jade pieces will also change colour if your spirit root can be cultivated. There are eight colours; red, yellow, orange, green, blue, indigo, violet and transparent, with red being the weakest and transparent being the strongest.

"The second stand is for checking the strength of the mind. If your mind strength is powerful then you have can check presences for long distances, find hidden presences easily, and exert more pressure on people using qi. When you touch the black stone you must concentrate and exert your presence on it which will cause it to change into the seven colours, again, red being the weakest and violet the strongest," her aunt explained, motioning each of them to a stand.

"Jie, you go first. I’ll check my mind strength after you have checked your spirit roots."

XieRong went to the first stand and placed her hand on the globe. She closed her eyes and hoped for the best. She knew that she would try and become stronger no matter what kind of spirit root the heavens gave her, after all, strength was not limited to talent, just influenced by it. If there was no will to become stronger, or no determination to put in hard work then even the best of talents could be considered to be waste.

The five jade pieces of the basic elements quickly rose and started to change colour, red, blue, violet. Then they finally turned transparent.

Chin HuiLiang and Guo ZiHao watched in wonderment as the remaining two jade pieces also rose and slowly turned transparent.

"Jie! Open your eyes, look!"

XieRong opened her eyes and looked up in amazement. All eight jade pieces had turned transparent and were hovering over the stand.

She let out a small squeal of happiness.

"FeiHong, your Jie isn’t a waste! I’m not trash!"

Waste? Trash? If this girl was trash then were the rest of them to be considered pig manure?

XieRong moved her hand away, still feeling giddy from happiness. The heavens had not failed her.

"Now it’s your turn FeiHong. Make your Jie proud."

XieRong saw her sister close her eyes and place her hand on the stone. The colour rose slowly.

HuiLiang and ZiHao watched in horror as the black stone turned purple then black again, cracked in half and fell to the ground.

XieRong patted her sister on the head, giving her a big kiss on the forehead.

"FeiHong was amazing!"

"But Jie I only put half of my mind strength!" FeiHong complained.

"The stone must have been weak," XieRong said.

"It’s okay though, Jie is still proud that you broke it!"

HuiLiang and ZiHao looked at each other and then at two halves of the stone.

The stone was weak? It was the best black stone in the northern continent gifted to their father by the emperor!

"But now, how will I check my mind strength?"

"Sorry, Jie."

"Don’t be sorry, it’s the stone’s fault for being weak. Come check your spirit roots."

FeiHong put her hand on the jade globe. Five of the basic elements rose and slowly turned transparent. She waited to see if the other two would rise but they didn’t.

She took her hand away disappointed that she was not as capable as her sister.

"Jie, I only got five transparent ones."

"Only five? FeiHong you broke the stone and got five transparent spirit roots, you are a genius!"

XieRong ruffled her sister’s head proudly.

"XieRong, uncle has something that works just like the stone. Why don’t you try it?" ZiHao said, trying to keep a calm expression on his face as he handed XieRong the jade strength testing bead his father had given him

XieRong concentrated on the bead until she felt it crack into two in the palm of her hand.

"It took me a little bit more than what my sister told to crack the stone."

Monsters! Their sister had given birth to two little monsters.

"XieRong, FeiHong, you mustn’t let this information go out. If it does, you’ll be chased by the various sects to go join them and be the target of many people."

"The sects don’t accept disciples under 13. It’s the law."

"The laws won’t matter if both your existences get out," her uncle said, grasping FeiHong’s shoulders.

"Aunt, Uncle, I don’t want anyone besides us to know, including first aunt and grandfather. I would have preferred if you didn’t know either, as I know this will put you in grave danger."

"It’s good you understand. Aunt will say that FeiHong has a green water spirit root and you have a green wind spirit root and that both of your mind strengths only reached the yellow level. Understand?"

"Yes, Aunt," the both of them replied as they all left the room.

As XieRong climbed up the staircase her happiness slowly subsided, leading to doubts. She felt that no one in the world could be born this strong without having drawbacks of some sort, otherwise it would upset the balance. She pushed her doubts away for later.

Aunt Biyu hugged them with happiness when she heard both of them possessed good spirit roots.

XieRong felt a stab of guilt as she hugged her Aunt Biyu back.

She gave a pitiful look to her uncle who changed came to her rescue by changing the subject.

"Ah, yes. XieRong, I’ve been meaning to ask you a favour," Aunt Biyu said, pulling her niece away for a walk in the garden.

XieRong looked at her aunt with questioning eyes.

"I know you already have a lot on your plate, but I would like you to have a talk with RuiLing."

XieRong remembered the arrogant girl who fought with her sister.

"I know she didn’t make a good impression on you and I know she is spoilt and arrogant. That’s why I would like you to spend some time with her and tell her a little about the troubles you’ve gone through. If there is one thing I know about my daughter, it is that she will never betray family, no matter how much she doesn’t like them and if she learns I can promise you that she will be a strong ally to you in the future."