Chapter 248: Delayed Vibration

"This belongs to a type of physical enhancement, I suppose."

The bespectacled man nodded slightly, then said with a serious expression: "Before the formal assessment, I must give you a warning. If you are a Martial Artist trying to pass yourself off as an Awakened using a Martial Skill, I advise you to leave now; there is still time."

"Otherwise, although we won't do anything to you, making you suffer a bit is still an easy matter."

Lu Yu's heart tightened; it was just as he had expected. There must have been Martial Artists who tried to do this before him, only for most of them to be See Through.

However, having already come this far, how could he easily retreat?

If he were truly See Through, it wouldn't be too late to slip away then.

With his current strength, if he were to Explode with full force, he estimated that no one in this Yanshi City could catch up to him.

"I really have awakened an ability," Lu Yu said with a sincere face.

Seeing his firm attitude, the bespectacled man nodded, stood up from behind his desk, and said: "Then come with me."

The two walked through a corridor and arrived in front of a spacious hall, where there were only a few figures.

At the entrance, a white square stone over a meter high was placed, with a clear handprint on the very top of the stone.

"Put your right hand on it," the bespectacled man said, looking at Lu Yu.

Although he had already mentally prepared himself countless times in his heart, Lu Yu still couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

He walked slowly to the Awakening Stone, slowly raised his right hand, spread his five fingers, and pressed them precisely onto the handprint.

At this moment, time seemed to freeze, and every second was infinitely elongated.

"Whether I can pass or not depends on this one moment." Lu Yu's heart instantly jumped into his throat.

One second passed, and the Awakening Stone remained motionless.

Two seconds passed, and there was still no reaction at all.

"?" The bespectacled man's complexion instantly turned gloomy, and the look he gave Lu Yu seemed to be questioning: Are you playing me for a fool?

Lu Yu sighed inwardly, thinking that man proposes but God disposes; it couldn't be forced, so it seemed he could only slip away first.

But just at this moment, the Awakening Stone, which had been completely unresponsive, suddenly began to vibrate violently.

"???" The bespectacled man's eyes widened all at once, filled with an expression of disbelief.

Because according to common sense, if one were a true Awakened, the moment the palm touched the Awakening Stone, it would immediately vibrate; if one were not an Awakened, no matter how long one pressed, the Awakening Stone would not have the slightest movement.

But what was the situation now? It vibrated only after a delay of one or two seconds; in his impression, such a situation had never occurred before.

Could it be that the Awakening Stone had malfunctioned?

"Phew..." Lu Yu felt a sense of relief in his heart; he had thought his plan was going to fall through, but he hadn't expected the result to be quite good.

It seemed that he really counted as an Awakened?

"Take your hand off and try again," the bespectacled man said.

"Oh." Lu Yu responded, and after letting go, he placed his hand on it again.

The Awakening Stone remained motionless as before. It was only after two seconds that it began to vibrate.

"Hiss." The bespectacled man gasped.

He had Lu Yu take his hand off again, then placed his own hand on it. Almost in an instant, the Awakening Stone vibrated.

"You try again?" The bespectacled man looked at Lu Yu, thinking to himself that this Awakening Stone didn't look broken, did it?

The third time, just like the previous two, the Awakening Stone only began to vibrate after a two-second delay.

"What on earth is going on here?" The bespectacled man racked his brains, but he couldn't figure it out no matter what.

Could it be that the person in front of him was in a semi-awakened state, which was why the Awakening Stone's judgment required a certain amount of time?

Lu Yu pretended to be completely bewildered on the surface, but thought to himself: Never mind how it vibrates, just tell me if it vibrated or not?

Since it vibrated, then he must certainly be an Awakened.

Seeming unable to detect any clues from Lu Yu's face, the bespectacled man, after having Lu Yu place his hand on it once more, helplessly accepted reality and said: "You said before that your ability is Speed Enhancement, right?"

"Yes," Lu Yu replied.

"Hmm, next, show me." As he spoke, the bespectacled man led Lu Yu forward, looking back at the Awakening Stone from time to time.

The subsequent events proceeded very smoothly.

When he saw that Lu Yu's speed was more than twice as fast as an ordinary person's, the bespectacled man, despite still having doubts in his heart, revealed a smile on his face and said: "Congratulations, you have passed the assessment. Now, you are a member of our Association."

"Thank you," Lu Yu responded hurriedly, his heart finally settling down.

Although there were some small twists and turns in the process, fortunately, it was safe and sound.

Next, he would be able to exchange for resources that the Martial Arts Association did not have.

"You're welcome. Let me introduce myself; my name is Chen Yan, and I am the Branch head of the Yanshi City Awakened Association. What is your name?"

"Su Luo," Lu Yu casually made up an extremely ordinary name.

"Su Luo." Chen Yan nodded and said again: "Judging by your performance, you must have just awakened not long ago, right?"

"Yes, yes." Lu Yu scratched his head, pretending to be a bit shy as he said, "I also only recently discovered that I seemed to have awakened an ability, so I wanted to come and try."

"I see," Chen Yan responded.

Regardless, the Awakening Stone had indeed vibrated, and the Association was not short of one E-rank Awakened.

As for the Speed Enhancement ability, it could be said to be strong or not strong; ultimately, it still depended on individual talent.

Just like the Ice ability; there were many people who awakened this ability, but there was currently only one person who could reach the level of the Ice Emperor.

It took about ten minutes to complete the relevant procedures.

Chen Yan handed some items to Lu Yu and said: "According to custom, there are some things I must make clear to you."

"Please go ahead, Branch head," Lu Yu said.

It had to be said that the attitude of this Branch head Chen toward him was a world of difference compared to that of Branch head Song of the Martial Arts Association.

However, he had never intended to stay here anyway, so he could accept it.

"First, all resources within the Association must be purchased with points; the purchasing power of one point is equivalent to ten thousand yuan in the outside world."

However, points cannot be obtained through top-ups; they can only be acquired by completing missions.

Missions are divided into Association missions, personal missions, and special missions. You will be able to see the specific details later by logging into the Association platform on your phone, or you can go to the mission hall to check them.

"Understood." Lu Yu nodded, thinking that this was about the same as what he had learned in He City before.

"The good news is that after you log into your account, the headquarters will deposit 100 points into your account.

Because you currently only have 100 points, you can only see items priced at 100 points or less.

In other words, if an item costs 101 points, you will neither be able to see it nor have the right to purchase it; the same applies to items with higher point requirements."

Lu Yu nodded again; this was not much of a problem for him.

Moreover, he was also very curious about what 100 points, which were equivalent to 1 million yuan in the outside world, could buy in the Awakened Association.

"The third point, and also the most important one, is that the Association will not restrict your freedom, nor will it make any demands of you.

Whether you want to slack off and wait for death or be proactive and enterprising is entirely up to you, but I must remind you that the Awakened Association speaks through strength, and the competition is quite cruel.

Points can be traded freely, which makes the competition even more intense. Other Awakened might try every possible means to obtain the points in your hands.

In short, be mentally prepared. Alright, that's all for now.

If you encounter any problems later, you can flip through the Awakened Manual, or you can come and ask me, provided I have the time."

After Chen Yan finished speaking, he glanced at Lu Yu and then turned and left.

"Other Awakened will try every possible means to obtain the points in others' hands. It seems the atmosphere of the Awakened Association is indeed not as harmonious as the Martial Arts Association, right?"

Lu Yu watched Chen Yan's departing back and pondered to himself; this might be intentional by the upper echelons of the Awakened Association, like raising Gu, wanting to cultivate the strongest Awakened.

Additionally, this might also be related to the cultivation methods of the two.

Martial Artists improve their strength by practicing Cultivation Methods to change the manifestation of energy within their bodies; they can refer to the experience of predecessors regarding Realms, Cultivation Methods, and other aspects, so naturally, they must maintain good relationships with other Martial Artists.

As for Awakened, because the supernatural abilities they awaken are strange and varied, they are basically all exploring and moving forward on their own.

Even if some Awakened have similar abilities, who among those walking in front would dare to tell their insights and trump cards to those coming after?

After all, one should not have the heart to harm others, but one must have the heart to guard against others.

"However, these have nothing to do with me." Lu Yu shook his head and took a look at the room card in his hand.

Just like the Martial Arts Association, as long as one passes the assessment, one can be assigned a room at the local Association, and one will also have a house in the city.

At this moment, he intended to return to his room first to see what he, possessing 100 points, could currently buy at the Association.

Buying a True Qi Pill Prescription is probably unlikely, but as for a Cultivation Method, one could look forward to it.