The testing materials he had procured with Shu's assistance were the same things that Elder Gang had used to test him for everything, and they were just about the most precise stuff available for this purpose, but they did not provide anything too clear, there was no pop-up notification that would say the name of whatever was discovered or give an explanation to what it was about, but it did allow to get a feel of things.
Which was mostly useful when, for example, parents wanted to check if their child had inherited a familial physique or bloodline, if the 'feel' was the same as whatever they knew they were checking for, then there would be no need for further investigation as they would already know what it was.
But surprisingly, it came in handy there as well.
Jingyi was positive in everything, the categories that the grand majority of people would have nothing in and would have to actively seek or work for- The things that the lucky would have one of innately at best, she had something in every single category, and they all possessed the exact same feel to them, indicating that it wasn't a grand coincidence, but that she was totally and completely attuned to whatever this was, which explained why his maid could not cultivate any technique, she needed something very precise, and it probably was also the reason she wasn't gaining any weight too.
'It's a shame that Luxuli can't really appraise living things too deeply…' his demon wife was much more accurate with items and resources, plants were basically the only living organisms that could be appraised, and even then, if it was something like a monstrous plant, it probably wouldn't work either as she supposed that it had to do with how sentient something was, or perhaps it was just a limitation this trait of hers possessed for now.
In any case, Anoteros had no means to decipher what was special about Jingyi.
Still…
"Congrats, check this out for yourself, you have a bright future" he was still very pleased with the results, she might just become a great asset and have a greater purpose than just being a maid for him.
He simply needed to figure out how to nurture her, the first step was already done with, this girl was plenty loyal and subservient, once he was done with her script, he and this residence would be all that she had.
'If I could activate Five-Legged Devil Goat Physique's effect by repeatedly sleeping with her, maybe that would help me better guess what she is all about?' whilst he was thinking about how to go about things, Jingyi was immobile with shock with what she was seeing, a mix of contradictory emotions swirling within.
What she was seeing was clearly a good thing, wasn't it? Someone with a physique, bloodline or anything of the sort was considered a genius based solely on that fact, even if they weren't actually that great at cultivation, possessing an innate trait of this kind was considered a blessing of the heavens, and some people would basically worship the ground you walked upon.
And she didn't possess a single of these, she had all of them, every empty spot that could be filled was occupied, her body with a physique, her blood with a bloodline, even her soul, mind and such were blessed.
Then, why? Why in damnation had she lived such a miserable life until just recently? She should have been considered a peerless genius, she should have been an elite the very moment she set foot inside of the Myriad-Arm Sect, but instead, she had ended up having to do menial work to stay in the outer ring of the sect, living inside a dormitory that allowed stray gusts of wind through the walls.
Jingyi felt so overwhelmed by the realisation that she just bursted into tears.
"Jingyi…" Edrick brought his hand against her face, making the maid look at him "...I permit you to do something you shouldn't for this one time"
Her eyes opened wide for a second, and she just lunged against his chest, hugging Edrick and crying into his bathrobe.
"M-Master… Thank you"
"It's nothing worth mentioning, I am certain you would have realised your potential eventually" he provided sweet words, caressing the top of her head as he glanced at what was an empty spot to everyone but Anoteros.
'Is something the matter?'
Nothing that important, I am simply surprised at the results, my knowledge of the script makes no mention of her possessing any such things, only that she is frail and unable to cultivate
Edrick raised an eyebrow.
'You had no idea?'
Zero
'Mmh… The story does not make mention of everything, that much is to be expected, a narrative can not be nearly as detailed as real life, certain details have to be sacrificed and some are simply too inconsequential to be included'
'But these scripts have to be put down into the real world, so those gaps have to be filled somehow, if they go against the plot, they are probably suppressed, and if not, they are just there without anyone's knowledge… So maybe during the transition from simple story to reality, the reason that was of no importance as to why she is frail and can't cultivate, was filled in by this?'
Sounds plausible
'No matter the reason, this benefits me, and somehow, it made her feel even more infatuated with me, she must think that without me, she never would have known about her hidden talent' Jingyi was indeed easy for him to read.
He grabbed her shoulders and slowly pulled her away from him, lifting her chin up.
"You're beautiful when you cry"
"Master…"
"Jingyi, knowing is only half of the battle, figuring out what your traits do and finding a cultivation technique that fits will probably take a while" he marked a pause to let her think about it and get nervous.
"But don't you worry, I'll do my best so that it won't take too long until then" only to swiftly sweep in to provide reassurance, the girl's eyes brightening up, both due to the tears and her admiration.
It was honestly hard not to pin Jingyi against the table and ravage her insides when she was giving him such a look.
But Edrick just petted her head.
"If you have nothing else to do, you can go to sleep, it wouldn't do for you to be tired during Linmin's lessons, yes?"
"Of course, Master, you are absolutely right!"
"Goodnight, Master" she bowed and went toward her room, although it had not been phrased like one, she treated his words as an order.
Anoteros watched her go away, and then opened the list of quests he had available.
'No one has stepped into the woods yet… I stopped making sasquatch noises for a while now, and not a single person is willing to even stay on the outskirt of the forest? I wasn't expecting this to go on for so long, the rewards are probably piling up'
Edrick shrugged, and soon headed off to sleep as well, his four wives soundly asleep in bed, he spent a few minutes just looking at them before laying down, and instantly, like a well-oiled mechanism, they just latched onto him.
He felt that even if knocked unconscious, they would somehow find a way to cuddle up to him.
Closing his eyes, he thought about his various plans and objectives currently in motion, and rapidly began to dream.