Valerian shuddered for a few seconds before he adjusted to the sensation created by the arrays. All eyes were now truly focused on the event taking place eagerly awaiting what came next. They were not disappointed. A large glyph, about a foot in size rose from the inner circle. Everyone looked at it, knowing that it represented the first batch of results.

Jonas looked at the results, dismissed them and announced. "Your body is very fit. The bones are regular and well formed. They are no deformities that might hamper your cultivation".

By this time the outer circle had also begun to dim. The glyph had already risen so Jonas announced that as well. "Your meridians are also in perfect condition. There are no obstructions, leakages or recognised abnormalities".

The results were expected but that didn't stop some of the onlookers from sighing in relief. The magistrate in particular was relieved and despite his usual stoicism, it nearly showed on his face. Whilst this was certainly the easiest part of the tests it was not a guaranteed pass. A healthy, strong body was a necessity no matter the cultivation path. Physical deformities could just as easily destroy one's hopes or limit a person's progress.

Jonas made that grasping motion again. The arrays burst into motes of light which quickly formed themselves into circles and glyphs again. The circles formed first, then the glyphs. It was a skill he was very proud of. Rather than erase an array and start over he could take control of the energies and reform them into a completely different array. This form of recycling saved time and energy but required intense focus and control.

"For the second part of the test, the inner circle will measure your essence and check its level to see if you can cultivate. The outer circle will extract a little of your essence and check the type of force you have. This will tell us if you can cultivate and what direction you would pursue".

This was the most important part and so everyone watched with bated breaths. They gazed intently as the bright array dimmed and pushed out three glyphs. Under their watchful eyes Jonas leaned forward to announce the results only to nearly choke on his own tongue. His coughing and spluttering caused the tension building in the hall to be resolved in sad disappointed whispers. Valerian had definitely failed and now Jonas was unable to proceed.

The words out of Jonas' mouth quickly disproved those views. "E...E...ESS...NCE LEVEL FORTY-ONE TIMES NORMAL!"

The hall was plunged into sudden silence. No one could believe the words the array master had spoken. In fact not even he could which was why he had choked the first time. After checking the results again he was remained so unbalanced he yelled it out. So he composed himself and announced the results again.

"The essence level is measured at forty-one times the norm".

The magistrate's wife stepped forward. "Jonas... Are you sure?"

She couldn't be blamed for asking. All the guards and servants watching had the same thought running through their minds. No doubt anyone who heard the results would question them as well. The reason was simple. Essence was the most important thing for cultivating. A person required an essence level at least five times that of a normal person in order to cultivate. More was obviously better but forty-one was just excessive. It had to be a record.

As a second-tier array master Jonas' essence level was hundreds of times that of a normal person. However he was pushing forty, had been cultivating from the age of ten and had achieved not only the second tier in array mastery but also as an Arcanist. All this had increased his strength and essence. For an eight year old boy who had yet to start true cultivation to have such a high level of essence was unimaginable.

"Auntie Clara, I couldn't believe it too at first but I've checked three times. Plus there is more", Jonas answered.

"More?"

"Yes!" he answered solemnly then indicating the two remaining glyphs he added. "Valerian possesses dual force. He has both qi and arcane energy".

This was an even greater shock than the first bit of news. Dual force was so rare it was considered a legend to most. Ordinary cultivators would have either arcane energy or qi, never both. For instance, Richard had qi whilst Jonas had arcane energy. The probability of awakening one or the other depended partly on lineage but also on chance. Arcane energy was rare in the Steelborn family and thus most cultivators possessed qi. Jonas as an arcanist was in the minority.

Each force had its own properties, abilities and cultivation path. For a person to possess dual force meant that at the very least he could simultaneously travel both paths and gain all the benefits therein including twice the power. This information combined with his high essence level meant there was absolutely no doubt that Valerian would go far.

Right now Valerian had a happy smile on his face. He stretched his body slightly to rid himself of the uncomfortable tingling sensation that the arrays had given him. It wasn't painful, just strange. By this point, the number of servants and guards watching the tests had doubled and even more were rushing in. He was glad that he hadn't humiliated himself in front of them. He made a move to get out of the array.

"Wait!" Jonas exclaimed.

Valerian nearly cursed. 'I thought the array was harmless. Don't tell me it will explode if I disrupt it', he muttered mentally. He was trying to get to his grandparents now that the tests were done but hearing Jonas' yell reminded him of all the stories he had heard at Fang's about the destructive powers of array masters. He really should have asked for permission.

"We aren't done yet", Jonas explained but seeing the look of confusion on Valerian's face he elaborated. "The tests are usually a series of five first-circle arrays. Even performing them two at a time we should still have one left. However, we will have to create two now."

"Why?" Valerian couldn't help but ask unknowingly voicing the thoughts of many of the watchers.

"The final test is done to sample the examinee's force and determine if he or she possesses any innate attributes. Normally it requires only one array since there'd only be one force but you have both so we'd need both".

Understanding dawned on everyone and Jonas wasted no time shattering and reconfiguring the array. This time when it dimmed it gave rise to no less than four large glyphs. Jonas left out a huge rush of air and everyone knew that the results were once again astounding. They were just waiting for Jonas to read them out.

"Innate dual attributes of metal and wind for both forces!"