The Invincible Supreme Medical God-Chapter 877 - 486: The World Within the Heart (Part 2)
"You?" she asked in shock, her reaction surprising everyone. The clerks handling the exams are often indifferent and proud. Her job is not only to register people for various exams, but she is also the judge of the exams, requiring a master’s power to conduct the final exams. She usually doesn’t care about those signing up for the Level 1 Alchemist exam. This time, she seemed different.
"I thought you would take the exam. I didn’t expect you so soon," she said with a smile, but she didn’t try to dissuade him. Instead, she handed him a number and accepted his coin. "Good luck," she told him as he left the stand.
Behind Yan Xiaobao, a large group of experts appeared. Now, in total, it seemed like there were 200 experts. It didn’t align with the information Yan Xiaobao had heard about the rarity of Alchemists.
"It’s because of the medicine pill auction. Although there are auction items, Alchemists sell their pills and ointments, and mercenaries sell rare herbal medicine, the medicine pill auction is the biggest of its kind. It’s very tempting, especially for young Alchemists like us."
"But during the medicine pill auction, there’s an event, and that’s why these young experts flock to become Alchemists, not because of the auction, but because of the annual Alchemist competition."
"The Alchemist competition is a tournament where any new Alchemist from this year can join and create a medicine pill to showcase their skills. The winner will be the one who makes the best pill. The winner not only gains fame and money but also rare materials and recipes from the Alchemy Association."
Yan Xiaobao looked at the young man who had been talking for some time. Clearly, Yan Xiaobao had never seen him before, but this young man just smiled lightly at Yan Xiaobao. "If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate. I’ll try my best to answer all questions," he said seriously, his sincerity worrying Yan Xiaobao.
"I owe you a lot, Great Marshal," the man said with his head lowered. His words were low, but everyone noticed his behavior. However, these words made Yan Xiaobao even more worried.
"Why would you thank me thinking you have a Dantian instead of a beast core. You are clearly not a beast, how can you owe me anything?" Yan Xiaobao’s voice was low, only the chatty expert heard his question.
"I might not be a complete beast, but I’m only half. I happened to get my mother’s genes, but everyone hated me for being different. They would bully me to the extreme, and eventually, I ran away from home. I ended up in the Divine Domain, where everyone treated me as one of their own. You made the dreams of all beasts come true, including mine."
"To be able to live with humans with our heads held high, knowing you won’t be captured and sold as slaves, or looked down upon as the most disgusting creatures in the world, all of this is because of you. Even in the Sun Kingdom and Moon Province, the nobles are changing their views on mixed-race people, not to mention beasts who live like humans."
"I live in the Divine Domain, but I followed the first batch of immigrants to the Siban Empire. When I was there, I lived a good life. It was a peaceful life, but I realized if I couldn’t prove to you just how grateful I am, this life would mean nothing." The young man continued.
"I am fortunate to have Wood and fire elemental affinity, and decided to become an Alchemist. I thought you could use an Alchemist as a supporter, but it turned out I was wrong, you don’t need anyone, you can rely on yourself."
’It’s a very touching story, but be careful. We don’t know him; although he claims to be our ally, he could easily have other motives. Keep an eye on him.’ Lan Feng warned, but Yan Xiaobao snorted, "Do you think I’m an idiot? He is very dangerous, but even so, he seems very eager to impress me. We can use him, as long as we’re careful, he will be useful to us."
Hearing Yan Xiaobao’s words, Lan Feng nodded. "I’ll leave it to you." He agreed, and Xu Ye once again focused on the young man.
"What’s your name?" Yan Xiaobao suddenly asked, and the young man seemed taken aback. "My name is Zhong Xi." The young man said.
Yan Xiaobao looked at the man in front of him. His hair was as golden as Wan Qiao’s, his skin as pale as ice, his body seemed cold rather than warm.
"What kind of technique do you train that gives you such a cold aura around you?" Yan Xiaobao asked suddenly, frowning. The aura reminded him of someone he had met before, but at that moment, he couldn’t recall his feelings.
"It’s a secret of my school," he said with a mysterious smile on his lips, and Yan Xiaobao just shrugged, not paying it any more attention. Instead, he once again began surveying the many experts in the front hall, waiting for the exam to begin.
"Are you nervous?" Zhong Xi asked curiously, but Yan Xiaobao just smiled, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.
"Everyone, follow me to the examination room!" A loud voice rang out in the hall. The woman who had taken the registrations was now standing in the center of the room, her voice echoing in every corner of the hall.
The many experts’ gifts said their farewells to their masters after they lined up behind the woman. Yan Xiaobao and Zhong Xi didn’t say goodbye to anyone, they simply found a spot in the line of experts forming behind the woman.
"Follow me," she ordered before leaving the hall. She walked straight to a door leading to a large room with workstations. It was enough for all the apprentice Alchemists behind her.
"Find a table!" the woman said, and everyone randomly moved to their positions. Zhong Xi chose the table next to Yan Xiaobao’s and gave his newfound friend a friendly smile before turning his attention back to the woman standing in front of everyone.
"Bring out your Crucible. If you don’t have your own Crucible, you will immediately fail." Her voice was stern and authoritative. Everyone looked around to see if anyone forgot their Crucible, with many eventually observing Yan Xiaobao and his Crucible.
Although Yan Xiaobao’s Crucible looked different from the others, no one considered it a treasure. Instead, they thought he simply wanted to decorate it with beautiful runes and inscriptions. These had never been seen in this world, so no one knew they were actually responsible for Yan Xiaobao’s astonishing one hundred percent success rate.
"Good, now find the ingredients needed for the red orchid Devouring Paste. We don’t provide these items; you need to bring your own." She said, her voice as stern as before, and several more apprentices had to leave the room. Yan Xiaobao was extremely shocked. If they didn’t have these simple materials, how could they expect to become Alchemists? He could understand not having a Crucible, as they might have to borrow it from their masters, but even then, he believed any Alchemist should have their own set of items.
"Now, you have two hours to make the red orchid’s Devouring Paste. The higher the grade of the paste, the more benefits you gain, and the higher your rating will be. If you manage to create a perfect red Devouring Paste Orchid, then it will allow you to go straight to the second-ranking Alchemist exam." The woman explained before sitting at the front watching everyone.
Seeing the woman sitting down and uncertain if the exam had started, only Yan Xiaobao and Zhong Xi began refining the materials. Only after seeing them start did the others begin creating their paste frantically.
Yan Xiaobao put a red orchid into his furnace at a time. He had long since learned how to refine multiple at once, but he also knew if he finished the paste within five minutes, then there would be some questions regarding whether he cheated.
Yan Xiaobao decided to slow down the details, able to observe everything happening around him. Many apprentices were dripping with sweat, and everyone, even Zhong Xi, was focusing on their Crucible with concentrated gazes. However, Yan Xiaobao remained calm and collected. When he looked into the eyes of the woman overseeing the exam, he smiled at her before continuing to survey his surroundings.
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