Teacher Liu's Shock

Lu Chuan had not revealed his alchemical skill primarily because he wanted to hide his true abilities.

After all, displaying a little talent would earn attention, but displaying too much would only invite disaster.

But hiding one's true abilities was not so easy.

It was like an exam—only true top students, even academic gods, could precisely control their scores and get exactly as many points as they wanted.

Likewise, only after Lu Chuan had ground the proficiency of the Spirit Replenishing Potion to a certain level could he freely control the success rate of his alchemy.

Even the quality of the finished potion would be entirely within his grasp.

By then, Lu Chuan could reveal his alchemical talent bit by bit.

Before he knew it, only one night remained until the one-week deadline Teacher Liu had set.

At that moment, Lu Chuan was bent over his desk, neatly writing the two characters for "Spirit Replenishing."

"Nine hundred ninety-eight, nine hundred ninety-nine, one thousand!"

"Finally, it's complete."

Host: Lu Chuan

Technique: Oceanic Embrace (Great Perfection)

Realm: Second-Rank Martial Artist (2/1000)

Alchemy: Spirit Replenishing Potion 1/(Perfect)

Simplification Points: 15

That was right. After a long period of practice, Lu Chuan had finally met the system's requirements and subsequently ground the Spirit Replenishing Potion to the perfect level.

A perfect-grade Spirit Replenishing Potion was already enough to support Lu Chuan's plan of hiding his true abilities.

The only regrettable thing was that his realm had risen by only one point over the past week.

There was nothing to be done about that. Oceanic Embrace was difficult to maintain at a rapid cultivation pace, and Lu Chuan had been distracted, so his cultivation had been put on hold.

But this situation would not last much longer, as long as Lu Chuan could simplify the Evergreen Art.

With the power of a Mid-grade Technique, combined with Lu Chuan's fourth-grade Martial Arts Talent, his cultivation speed would surely soar upward like a rocket.

"Time to sleep. Tomorrow, I'll go find Teacher Liu and see whether he has any connections that can help me sell potions for money."

The next day, early morning.

Lu Chuan arrived at school early and headed straight for Teacher Liu's office.

Teacher Liu lived near the school and had always been one of the earliest teachers to arrive.

Sure enough, when Lu Chuan entered, Teacher Liu was sitting in his office chair, leisurely sipping tea.

"Lu Chuan, you're here." Seeing Lu Chuan, Teacher Liu set down his teacup and said with a smile.

"Teacher Liu, here's your formula."

After placing the booklet on the desk, Lu Chuan continued, "By the way, Teacher Liu, I tried refining a Spirit Replenishing Potion yesterday and succeeded by luck."

"You succeeded?"

Teacher Liu looked at Lu Chuan with a face full of suspicion. He simply did not believe him.

What a joke. How long had it been? How could Lu Chuan possibly have refined a Spirit Replenishing Potion already?

Did he think he was some once-in-ten-thousand alchemical prodigy?

"That's not a funny joke."

"Also, alchemy is a path that forbids impatience. If you want to achieve anything in alchemy, you cannot have this kind of rashness."

Teacher Liu's smile vanished, and he spoke with a stern expression.

In Teacher Liu's eyes, Lu Chuan, who was so eager for quick success, was simply unfit to become an Alchemist.

"Teacher Liu, there's no reason for me to lie to you about something like this."

"Besides, whether I succeeded or not, won't we know once we try?" Lu Chuan said with utter sincerity.

Seeing the sincerity on Lu Chuan's face, Teacher Liu wavered.

Could it be that Lu Chuan had really learned it?

"Fine. Give it a try."

"As for the spirit herbs needed to refine the potion, I'll cover them for you. You can pay me back later." In the end, Teacher Liu decided to let Lu Chuan try.

"Thank you, Teacher Liu." Lu Chuan's face lit up with joy.

"Come with me."

Teacher Liu immediately led Lu Chuan to the laboratory Third Middle School had specially prepared for him.

Looking at the various instruments arranged in the laboratory, Lu Chuan was practically drooling with envy.

These instruments were not cheap. Putting together a full set would cost at least a million.

Seeing Lu Chuan's envious expression, Teacher Liu smiled. "Once you become an Alchemist, you'll be able to own a set like this too."

"And you won't need to spend a cent. Almost every force in Third Middle School will be falling over themselves to give you instruments."

Teacher Liu was not wrong.

There were only a little over twenty Alchemists in all of Lin City.

If Lu Chuan truly became an Alchemist, then in order to win him over, those major powers would not hesitate to give him not just a set of instruments, but even their own daughters.

"Alright, begin."

At Teacher Liu's command, Lu Chuan stepped up to the instruments and carefully began his preparations.

Seeing Lu Chuan's clumsy, unfamiliar movements, Teacher Liu frowned.

Did this look like someone who had refined potions before?

He was not even as skilled as an apprentice.

For a moment, Teacher Liu regretted it. Why was he wasting his time indulging Lu Chuan's nonsense?

Yet in the next instant, Teacher Liu changed his mind.

Once the actual refinement began, Lu Chuan seemed like a completely different person. Every movement flowed as smoothly as drifting clouds and running water, carrying a certain beauty.

As one spirit herb after another was refined into medicinal liquid, Lu Chuan's grand plan of hiding his true abilities officially began.

Perfect-level proficiency allowed Lu Chuan to freely control the potion's quality. He could even deliberately display a few mistakes during the refining process.

Those mistakes were exquisitely calculated. They would only affect the potion's quality without causing the refinement to fail.

And amid this "stumbling" process, the potion in Lu Chuan's hands had already begun to emit a faint medicinal fragrance.

Success was not far away.

"How is this possible?!"

Looking at the nearly completed Spirit Replenishing Potion in Lu Chuan's hands, Teacher Liu's face was filled with overwhelming shock.

Yes, there were many problems with Lu Chuan's refining methods, but one had to remember that he had only been learning alchemy for a week!

In just one week, he could refine a Spirit Replenishing Potion.

This could no longer be described as mere genius.

A monster!

A monster Lin City saw only once in a century!

"Whew!"

As Lu Chuan let out a long breath, the potion in his hands turned pale blue.

A rich medicinal fragrance drifted throughout the entire laboratory.

"Teacher, I have not failed your expectations!"

Lu Chuan smiled as he handed the potion to Teacher Liu, while inwardly grumbling without end.

He had not expected deliberately hiding his skills to be this exhausting.

If he was not careful, the potion's quality would rise again.

Teacher Liu took the potion instinctively. At that moment, he was too shocked to say a word.

"He really refined it..."

Teacher Liu looked somewhat dazed as he sank into his memories.

How long had it taken him to learn the Spirit Replenishing Potion back then?

It seemed like... a year...

Damn!

Was Lu Chuan even human?

Sure enough, the gap between people was greater than the gap between people and dogs!

"Teacher Liu?"

"What's wrong?"

"Huh?" Teacher Liu came back to his senses and looked at Lu Chuan with delight.

He had never expected such a monstrous talent to emerge from Third Middle School.

If they did not properly nurture him, it would be like throwing away a priceless treasure!

With that thought, Teacher Liu grabbed Lu Chuan by the wrist and said urgently, "Little monster, come with me. I'll take you to get certified as an Alchemist!"

Having said that, Teacher Liu dragged Lu Chuan out of the laboratory in a rush.

"Teacher Liu, slow down, slow down..."

Lu Chuan felt helpless. He only wanted to make some money; he had not planned on getting certified as an Alchemist.

And what kind of nickname was "little monster"?