Chapter 108: That Glimmer of Orange Light

Rando accepted the square crystal. Although from Maier’s tone it seemed the crystal had other uses, this was clearly not the right moment to ask questions. He decided to wait until he returned to consult Master Aldo.

“This little fellow… shall I take care of it?” Rando asked, holding up the companion crystal.

“Of course it’s you. Haven’t you already accepted the gift? Though we have grasped all the keys to creating crystal life, as the first specimen, it holds extraordinary significance. Its gestation might take a few days, at most one or two years. You’ll need to be attentive,” Lex said with a hint of stubbornness.

“…”

Well then, since neither the crystal life nor the Empire objected, Rando naturally agreed.

Maier said, “From here on, you’re no longer involved. You just take that…” He suddenly paused, turning his head toward the throne, then corrected himself, “Well, you’re not involved in what comes next. I’ll escort you back.”

Without waiting for Rando’s reply, he pushed him into a suddenly appearing portal.

After Rando vanished, Maier turned toward the shadow on the throne and asked with curiosity, “Teacher, won’t you recall that special soul? You invested so much effort in it, even more than the crystal life.”

Lex’s little head floated question marks, not understanding what Maier meant.

After a while, the figure on the throne gave no reply. Maier, accustomed to this, shrugged helplessly, taking Lex and the crystal life away; he still had many tasks to attend to.

Only the shadow on the throne remained within the entire dimension. After a long pause, a murmured voice echoed:

“Soul… hehe, fascinating…”

……

After a dizzying whirl, Rando found himself on the void platform. Around him, the arcanists were still discussing the sudden departure from the crystal world.

“Rando!” Two voices called out — Alice and Leia.

The teammates who had explored the Abyss of Nothingness gathered around.

“Didn’t expect you to get the final reward. You hid it well!”

“Yeah, Rando, impressive!”

“Were you called up to receive an award? What kind of treasure was it? Let us have a look!”

Facing the crowd’s clamorous questions, Rando could only shrug helplessly, signaling no comment.

“Tch~”

They knew they wouldn’t get any answers and could only look at Rando’s smirk with disdain.

“Hmph! Rando, you owe me a big favor this time!” Stran muttered to himself before turning and leaving.

Rando: …

In the distance, the mothership had dispatched ships to pick everyone up. After bidding farewell to his comrades, Rando, Alice, and Leia boarded one of the vessels. Only then could he finally take a breath.

He began to examine the other great gain besides the companion crystal life and the sealed crystal world: the soul extracted by the system when he hurriedly intercepted Stran’s teleportation beside the crystal colossus. At a glance, he clearly saw a streak of orange light!

[Crystal Colossus Soul (Orange): Sin Domain (Orange)]

[Sin Domain (Orange): All sins shall be controlled!]

This was Rando’s first orange soul, and it possessed only one orange talent. The system’s description of this talent was vague, leaving Rando uncertain of its exact function. Yet he felt an immense thrill, recalling a conversation with Master Aldo about talents.

……

At the end of a lesson, just as he was about to leave, Rando asked, “Master Aldo, how exactly are talents classified? Is there a higher level above purple?”

Aldo paused his actions and smiled, “Talent actually represents the innate aptitude of an intelligent being.”

“For the vast majority of intelligent creatures in this world, the natural aptitude is white.”

“Green aptitude is one in a hundred—a rare few who naturally excel in some aspect. With the right direction, standing out is not difficult.”

“Blue aptitude is even rarer. Their advantages are striking, and even among millions, they shine—this is the minimum requirement to become an arcanist.”

“Purple aptitude is beyond rare. Those with it often possess extraordinary purple talents. Unlike blue and green talents, purple talents usually carry divine qualities. Even without professional cultivation, they can wield extraordinary powers.”

“Above that lies the legendary orange aptitude, known as the pinnacle of the mundane! Unlike purple talents, which vary in strength, the gap between the strongest and weakest orange talents is like an abyss. Every orange talent born of orange aptitude is the ultimate expression of the mundane. Each touches upon some fundamental law of heaven and earth. They differ only in nature and type, with no hierarchy of strength.”

“Orange? The pinnacle of the mundane?!” Rando’s eyes shone brightly.

Aldo said, “It’s undeniable that arcanists with great talents have smoother career paths, but talent isn’t everything. In the past, the threshold to become an arcanist was exceedingly high. Those with poor aptitude first had to become magicians or sorcerers, enduring arduous training to elevate their spirit and soul before transitioning to arcanists.”

“Thanks to generations of effort in the Empire, the arcanist threshold has been lowered to blue aptitude. Among the core grand arcanists of the Empire, there are even those born with only white aptitude. They nurture their minds with knowledge, fill their spirits, and ultimately achieve incredible transcendence, radiating dazzling brilliance!”

“That is what truly matters for an arcanist!”

These words deeply shook Rando.

Seeing Rando’s astonishment, Aldo nodded to himself with quiet satisfaction.

……

Recalling Master Aldo’s teaching, Rando’s excitement gradually settled. He believed that even if Aldo knew he possessed an orange talent, he would take it calmly (Aldo: ???!!!).

Glancing at the remaining soul essence in the system, Rando smiled with satisfaction. Once back, he planned to fully charge his purple soul to 100% and see the conditions for the next level.

When the three returned to the mothership, guided by its intelligent core, they found Aldo drinking and chatting.

“Master, you’re still here?”

Rando had thought Aldo had already left but found he had been waiting all along.

Alice smiled, “This must be a clone of the Master, right? But Master, even your clone should be busy. Is it really okay to waste time waiting for us here?”

“Busy? This is rare leisure time for me. I’ll be busy later!”