When the sand in the hourglass was mostly gone, with only about ten percent remaining, Yin Wenzhou was the first to stop writing. He rolled up his paper, handed the sheet inscribed with his number to a proctor, and sat cross-legged in his square to rest with his eyes closed, looking thoroughly relaxed.
On the shadow-recording stone mirror, the projection instantly focused on him.
Yin Wenzhou was forty years old—exceptionally young among cultivators—and possessed handsome features alongside his pre-existing fame. Seeing him hand in his paper first with such a calm, composure-filled demeanor immediately captivated many female cultivators in the audience.
Conversations broke out in waves across the stands.
“Fellow Cultivator Yin’s talent is extraordinary, and he’s so handsome as well. I wonder which female cultivator will win his favor and become his Dao companion.”
“In my eyes, only the young lady of the City Lord’s Mansion is worthy of him.”
“Hmph! Miss Qin possesses noble status and peerless beauty, and her talent is a full cut above Yin Wenzhou’s. As for Yin Wenzhou, whether he’s worthy of her is another matter entirely!”
...
On the other side, President Song and Master Ji exchanged glances, letting out sighs as they shook their heads.
Although Yin Wenzhou was arrogant and self-absorbed, he truly possessed real skill.
As the central prefecture city of Changyuan Prefecture, Hengze Prefecture boasted spiritual energy density, deep heritage, and legacies superior to all other prefecture cities. With Yin Wenzhou’s remarkable talent and the association’s full support, showering endless resources upon him, how could he not be formidable?
At this thought, President Song felt an increasing pang of discomfort in his chest.
Looking back at their own Lingtai Prefecture, they had a precious, unpolished gem like girl Yu, yet they were unable to provide her with much.
President Song could not help but wonder: had keeping Shi Yu in Lingtai Prefecture held her back? And what if she had been born in Hengze Prefecture, receiving the same intensive nurturing as Yin Wenzhou? Would she have already made a name for herself across the entire Changyuan Prefecture by now?
The deeper he pondered, the more stifled he felt.
Shortly after Yin Wenzhou finished, the beautiful woman clad in a purple dress also rose, handing her paper to the proctor.
Once they submitted their papers, the array surrounding their squares was temporarily lowered.
Qin Qingmu slightly knitted her willow brows, glancing toward Yin Wenzhou and teasing, “Senior Brother Yin is fast indeed.”
Yin Wenzhou burst into laughter. “What use is speed? Scoring depends on accuracy, not speed. Besides, Miss Qin, you weren’t slow either.”
Pausing briefly, he asked as if offhandedly, “I wonder how many spiritual plants Miss Qin wrote down?”
Qin Qingmu merely smiled without answering, twirling the tip of her hair around her finger as she countered, “What about you, Senior Brother Yin?”
Yin Wenzhou shook his head with a chuckle. “We will know in a moment.”
The test was reaching its end. Shortly after their conversation concluded, the more than one thousand alchemists on the elevated stage began handing in their papers one after another.
By now, only a trickle of sand remained in the hourglass. Regardless of how many spiritual plants they had managed to deduce, they had no choice but to submit their answers.
Some faces wore excitement while others looked crestfallen; from their expressions alone, one could roughly gauge their performance.
Naturally, there were also those who misjudged their own answers. They would have to wait until the recipe was revealed and the answers announced to know for certain.
Watching from afar, President Song and Master Ji saw Shi Yu still sitting there with lowered eyes, deep in thought, with no intention of getting up to submit her paper. Anxiety gripped them. “What’s going on with Little Yu’er? Did she forget the time?”
Even the other alchemists from their association had submitted their papers one by one. Why hadn’t Shi Yu finished yet?
Even if it was her first time participating in such a grand gathering and she felt nervous, her performance shouldn’t be this poor.
They had both seen Shi Yu refine pills before and had a general idea of her capability.
President Song clasped his hands together, his knuckles turning white from sheer force. Beside him, Master Ji and the other elders fared no better, all brimming with anxiety.
Yin Wenzhou, who was the first to submit his answer and drew the gazes of most people around, wore an elegantly faint smile on his face. Glancing around, his smile turned into a sneer filled with mockery when he noticed the nervous expressions of the Lingtai Prefecture alchemists who had just finished.
When his gaze fell on Shi Yu and saw that she had not even submitted her paper yet, his ridicule grew even stronger. “I wondered what gave her the confidence to claim ‘you’re nothing more than a Tier-3 alchemist.’ It turns out it was merely the ignorant boasting of a child.”
Qin Qingmu followed his gaze, taking a look before turning away indifferently.
Seventeen years old—to stand on the grand competition stage at such an age, she assumed Shi Yu was merely driven by young vanity.
When she was at that age, she had also enjoyed having everyone’s eyes focused on her. Whether it was due to beauty, status, or talent, that feeling was captivating—and it remained so even now.
However, not everyone was qualified to possess such special distinction. Perhaps she, Qin Qingmu, was not considered top-tier at Shiyan Academy, but back in Changyuan Prefecture, she did not believe any female cultivator among her peers could compete with her.
Within the hourglass, the remaining grains of sand scrambled to fall.
Finally, just as the last grain was about to fall, Shi Yu lowered her eyes and made the final stroke on her paper. She then stood up and handed the paper to the proctor.
Seeing her hand it in at the very last moment, President Song’s clenched hands finally loosened. He let out a long breath and smiled wryly. “This girl...”
Master Ji shared a wry smile, watching Shi Yu’s unhurried manner, and pretended to complain, “Look at how calm and composed she is, as if nothing happened, while making us break out in a cold sweat.”
“As long as she turned it in, as long as she turned it in.”
On stage, Qin Qingmu watched Shi Yu hand in her paper right as the sand reached the bottom, covering her mouth with a soft chuckle. “Could she have just blindly guessed some answers and filled them in?”
“That would be a foolish decision. Points are deducted for wrong guesses.” Seeing her smile like a dew-kissed flower, striking and lovely, Yin Wenzhou felt his heart flutter. “Perhaps she could have barely scraped together eighteen points to pass, but guessing wrong and losing points might get her eliminated instead.”
“Then again,” Yin Wenzhou sneered, “eighteen points might even be overestimating her.”
By now, the proctors had collected all the answer sheets.
Association President Yin Shixiu and City Lord Qin Yu stood up together, flying onto the high stage to strike the chime bell that signaled the end of the test.
“The first round of testing is complete,” a Golden Core expert announced via sound transmission, his voice echoing across the entire square.
“Next, we will begin revealing the pill recipe. Proctors, you may begin verifying the answer sheets.”
Yin Shixiu’s lips curled into a smile as he surveyed the crowd. “This pill is named the Mind-Soothing Pill. The first spiritual plant is Wood Dragon Vine.”
He paused after announcing Wood Dragon Vine, waiting for the proctors to finish checking the answer sheets under their responsibility.
Each proctor was responsible for about thirty answer sheets, so the checking went very quickly. They flipped through the sheets while operating a palm-sized, box-like artifact in their hands.
Shi Yu noticed the number token hanging at her waist vibrate slightly. Picking it up, she saw the words “+3 points, Total: 3 points” appear on it.
She blinked, thinking it was quite intelligent. “It seems the Refinement Association of Hengze Prefecture isn’t as useless as I thought. This little device they created is rather convenient.”
Because of the previous incident involving the Flying Cart at the restaurant, her impression of the local Refinement Association had not been particularly good.
Once the proctors finished recording the scores, they raised their hands one after another to signal completion.
The alchemists who had not received points instantly looked crestfallen, secretly lamenting their bad luck at missing even the very first spiritual plant.
Yin Shixiu cleared his throat and announced the second plant: “The second spiritual plant is Clear Wind Leaf.”
Shi Yu’s number token vibrated again, displaying “+3 points, Total: 6 points.”
“The third spiritual plant is Purple Monkey Flower.”
...
With each plant announced, a portion of the alchemist crowd showed expressions of regret and frustration.
After the seventh spiritual plant was announced, Yin Shixiu looked around, his voice indifferent: “There are twelve spiritual plants in total, and seven have been announced so far. Those who failed to identify all seven may leave on their own.”
A total score of eighteen points was required to pass. Failing to identify all seven meant it was impossible to reach that score.
As Yin Shixiu’s voice fell, around a hundred alchemists looked disheartened. Handing back their assigned number tokens, they walked down from the elevated stage.
Yin Wenzhou had expected Shi Yu to be among them, but he discovered she showed not the slightest intention of moving. Somewhat surprised, he thought to himself, “Her luck is surprisingly good to have guessed a few right.”
Qin Qingmu frowned slightly, casting a glance at Shi Yu before looking at Yin Wenzhou. She asked, “I wonder how many Senior Brother Yin has gotten right so far?”
Before Yin Wenzhou could speak, her eyes sparkled as she blinked and guessed, “Seeing as your expression hasn’t changed at all, you must have answered all seven correctly, haven’t you?”
Yin Wenzhou did not deny it. “Judging by Miss Qin’s composure, I imagine you answered all of them correctly as well?”
...
With over a hundred people having left, the remaining competitors who had only gotten one or two right felt their hearts hanging in suspense, knowing full well that they might be the next ones walking down the stage.
The audience below, on the other hand, cheered in delight at the spectacle, eagerly guessing who would be forced to leave next.
Under numerous expectant or anxious gazes, President Yin Shixiu spoke once more: “From this point on, as each plant is announced, anyone who accumulates seven incorrect answers must leave on their own.”
With that, he began announcing the eighth spiritual plant.
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