The pills were round, smooth, and flawless, emitting a rich fragrance accompanied by distinct pill halos.
Every single pill in this batch was high-grade!
Even the president of the association in the main city of Lingtai Prefecture—a Tier-4 alchemist—rarely produced more than a few high-grade pills in a single furnace when refining Tier-1 pills, let alone an entire batch of them.
“A genius sent from heaven, a genius sent from heaven...” Master Ji murmured in excitement, momentarily at a loss for what to do.
Wen Wen had never witnessed such a sight either. It took her a long moment to recover before she asked hesitantly, “Master Ji, shall I go prepare the certification jade token?”
Master Ji nodded repeatedly, but then, remembering something, he hurriedly stopped her. “Report this to the president. Have him find that old fellow at the Refinement Association to custom-craft a special jade token!”
Wen Wen froze for a second, then nodded solemnly. “Understood.”
Although the people outside still didn't know the exact quality of Shi Yu's pills, seeing Master Ji so agitated—and even hearing him mention a “special jade token”—they exchanged stunned glances.
A custom certification jade token... The Alchemist Association hadn't issued one in nearly twenty years. It represented the holder's extraordinary talent and potential.
Unlike standard jade tokens, besides proving identity, it was itself a formidable artifact.
Immediately after, Master Ji drew out a jade bottle and carefully swept the pills from the furnace into it. Only then did the crowd finally catch a clear view of the pills.
As expected, an uproar erupted.
“T-This... how is this possible?!”
“Are those... pill halos?!”
“How can that be? How can every single pill have a pill halo?!”
Someone stared wide-eyed, unable to accept the scene before them, and shouted in disbelief, “Did she cheat?! Did she prepare high-grade pills in advance?!”
Someone immediately refuted, “What are you thinking?!”
“Master Ji is a Tier-3 alchemist and possesses a cultivation base at the mid stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm. How could anyone pull a trick right under his nose without being noticed?”
“Truly mind-boggling...”
“Though I failed my assessment today, I was fortunate enough to broaden my horizons and witness such a marvelous sight! How can I not train twice as hard once I return, so I can try to catch up with the younger generation?”
“Once news of today's event spreads, who knows how much attention and how many recruitment offers she will attract? How envy-inducing...”
The three Zhou siblings had long been standing frozen in place.
Remembering how she had sneered at Shi Yu earlier with, “What the hell do you know about alchemy?”, Zhou Yue wished she could dig a hole and crawl inside.
Zhou Shuo was shaken even harder. His face flushed between red and pale, filled with a miserable, dazed confusion.
“Eldest Brother, didn't she say she couldn't even afford spiritual grain...? How could she... how could her very first attempt yield an entire furnace of high-grade pills?”
Zhou Shuo recalled his condescending, charitable tone in the cave when offering her food, as well as how he had overtly and covertly flaunted his alchemist status along the way. He couldn't begin to imagine what Shi Yu must have thought of him back then...
Zhou Shuo wished he could erase these embarrassing memories of his youthful arrogance and didn't dare dwell on them any longer.
Zhou Yang felt equally conflicted. He had assumed that while traveling, they were lending a helping hand to a solitary young girl, but who could have guessed they were merely being self-righteous?
He knew that after today, Shi Yu would undoubtedly become a prominent figure in the main city.
As three siblings from a minor family, how could they shamelessly continue socializing with her without others accusing them of groveling for connections?
Knowing how much Shi Yu meant to the Alchemist Association, Wen Wen shot a look at the guards in the hall before addressing the onlookers, “Now that the assessment is complete, please take your leave, everyone.”
The crowd still wanted to watch and dawdled, reluctant to leave. Only when they saw the guards closing in did they begrudgingly turn around and depart.
Zhou Yang sighed and said to his younger brother and sister, “Let's go as well.”
Aware of the gap in their statuses now, Zhou Yue and Zhou Shuo remained silent, following their eldest brother with dejected expressions.
Shi Yu was currently being held in conversation by Master Ji. Catching sight of the Zhou siblings turning to leave from the corner of her eye, she called out in surprise, “Hey, Brother Zhou, Sister Zhou, why aren't you waiting for me?”
The three trembled and turned around, flattered and overwhelmed.
Shi Yu asked, “Didn't we agree to look for an inn together after the assessment?”
Zhou Yang clenched his fists. After a long moment, he said in a raspy voice, “Y-Yes, that's right.”
Tears welled in Zhou Yue's eyes as she nodded frantically along.
Seeing how everyone else was being “escorted” out by the association's guards while the three of them stood gathered together, exchanging looks, they felt as if they were living through a surreal dream.
Shi Yu pursed her lips in a smile and looked toward Master Ji and Wen Wen. “Um... what about the certification jade token?”
She still needed that thing to attend the Xie Clan's auction.
The two blinked in surprise. Seeing that Shi Yu seemed utterly clueless, they explained, “Miss Shi, your talent is extraordinary, so logically, we must issue you a custom jade token.”
“Crafting a custom jade token takes time. The president needs to personally reach out to the Refinement Association to have them forge it specifically for you.”
They had thought this news would bring a look of pleasant surprise to Shi Yu's face.
Instead, her brows knitted slightly as she asked, “How long will that take? If it takes too long, a standard certification jade token is fine as well.”
“...”
Noticing the indescribable expressions on Master Ji and Wen Wen's faces, Shi Yu added, “I need it urgently.”
Master Ji couldn't help asking, “Urgently... for what?”
Shi Yu nodded. “Mm, I need it to gain entry to the Xie Clan's auction.”
“...” So you condescended to get certified just for that?!
Speaking of the auction, something crossed Shi Yu's mind. She glanced at the Zhou siblings and asked, “Oh right, I heard a Tier-1 alchemist can only enter alone, while a Tier-2 alchemist can bring along friends and family?”
“I'd like to take the Tier-2 alchemist assessment while I'm at it.”
Dammit, once you have a custom identity jade token, who gives a damn about the rule that Tier-1 alchemists can't bring guests?!
You can bring whoever you want, and the auction house will make sure to accommodate you perfectly! Where on earth wouldn't a genius alchemist with such infinite potential and bright future be lavished with favors and flatteries?
Wait... what did you say?!
Tier-2 alchemist certification assessment?!
Master Ji spoke in a trembling voice, trembling all over. “What? I didn't hear clearly. Say that again.”
Shi Yu repeated, “My three friends here also want to attend the Xie Clan's auction—”
Master Ji interrupted her rudely, raising his eyebrows angrily. “Forget that damn auction! What did you say after that?!”
Shi Yu blinked. “...So I want to take the certification assessment for a Tier-2 alchemist as well. Earlier, I asked you if I could skip levels, and you said no.”
“...” That was because I didn't expect someone could actually jump straight to taking the Tier-2 assessment!
Who on earth taught this girl alchemy? Her skills are thoroughly masterly, yet she knows absolutely nothing about basic association common sense!
Master Ji felt that the situation had completely spun out of his control, leaving him at a loss for how to handle it.
Only after a long pause did he manage to say, “Your name is... Shi Yu, right? Little Yu, the Tier-2 alchemist assessment requires at least three association elders present to oversee it together.”
“A few days ago, the president, vice president, and several elders traveled to the main city of Hengze Prefecture for an alchemy exchange. It's a long journey, so they won't be back anytime soon. Right now, only another elder and I are present in the association.”
Hengze Prefecture was the central prefecture of Changyuan Prefecture, and its main city was naturally far more prosperous than that of Lingtai Prefecture.
Shi Yu understood what Master Ji meant: she would have to wait until those people returned before she could take the Tier-2 alchemist assessment.
She couldn't help but say hesitatingly, “But the auction...”
Master Ji's brow twitched wildly. Seeing her mind so completely consumed by this auction made him both amused and annoyed. He gave a half-smile and said, “Stop obsessing over it. Isn't it just some lousy auction? When the time comes, I'll personally take you inside—”
Pausing, he swept a glance over the three Zhou siblings. “Along with these three friends of yours.”
Only then did Shi Yu nod, beaming with a bright smile. “Then I'll trouble Master Ji.”
As for the three Zhou siblings, seeing things take a sudden turn for the better and realizing they could attend the auction after all, they were overjoyed, looking at Shi Yu with faces full of gratitude.
Rate on N.U.
