Jing Tian and Snow See Are Medicines!

The Hall of Medicine Assessment Office was where Yang Chan had taken the Formal Disciple assessment last time. All assessments within the Medicine Hall were held there, including the Pharmacist assessment.

The Pharmacist assessment was something Yang Chan still needed to put some effort into. Once he spent some Potential Points and raised himself to the second rank, he should be about ready.

His grasp of medicinal qi and medicinal theory combinations had not yet reached a Pharmacist's level, but that was only a matter of time. What he had now was time in abundance.

By first becoming an Alchemist Assistant, he could take on tasks within the sect. Otherwise, other disciples were assigned to go out on missions several times each year. Though the difficulty was not great, accidents always happened, and some people would die.

During this time, Yang Chan had heard that forces protected by the Qingyuan Sect had pledged allegiance to powers such as Lingyu Palace, Taiyu Valley, and the Nanhua Sword Sect. It seemed those forces had joined hands to deal with the Qingyuan Sect.

Most cultivation resources in Qingzhou lay within the Qingyuan Sect. Those forces had coveted them for a long time, so naturally they wanted to fight over them.

Especially in a year of severe drought and famine like this, the impact was even greater. There had already been no shortage of internal conflicts, so they chose to strike outward, borrowing external forces to eliminate those contradictions.

When such a great war broke out, sect disciples became expendable goods within it. Yang Chan could not change the overall tide, nor did he want to become expendable, so he could only take the path of a Pharmacist.

After all, Alchemist Assistants and Pharmacists were generally not assigned to battle, because neither was easy to train.

Pharmacists in particular were even harder to cultivate than Elite Disciples, and required far more time.

Yang Chan and Du Xiaolin arrived at the Hall of Medicine Assessment Office. After explaining their purpose to the Assessment Office disciple, they were arranged to take the Alchemist Assistant assessment.

The two were separated and sent to different rooms.

Yang Chan had not waited long before a Pharmacist came over to assess him.

Yang Chan had seen this man before. He was called Pharmacist Xu. There were more than sixty Pharmacists in the Medicine Hall, and some of them voluntarily went to remote, uninhabited places to search for herbs and study medicinal formulas, because certain medicinal materials had to be used as soon as they were picked.

Therefore, if one wished to formulate such medicine, one could only go to where the herbs grew and prepare it there.

Other Pharmacists were interested in researching medicines, traveling abroad to test all manner of herbs before creating better medicines.

More than forty Pharmacists remained within the Qingyuan Sect, though as chaos approached, quite a few Pharmacists had returned to the sect.

As for the Pharmacist Xu before Yang Chan, he had remained in the Qingyuan Sect for many years and spent most of his time in the Medicine Hall. Yang Chan knew of him because he had appeared in the Medicine Hall's Library Pavilion and borrowed a medical text.

At that time, someone had mentioned that Pharmacist Xu was Xu Gaocen.

Since this man was assessing him now, there was an eighty or ninety percent chance that he was recruiting an Alchemist Assistant. Usually, Pharmacists personally assessed candidates for themselves, and only let those they found suitable pass.

If the assessment result was good but they felt the candidate's temperament was unsuitable, they would arrange for another Pharmacist to conduct a second assessment, which was equivalent to getting a second chance.

Yang Chan knew that this man had not left the Qingyuan Sect for many years and spent most of his time in the Medicine Hall. He felt Xu Gaocen was a good choice. If he was to become a Pharmacist's assistant, then having that Pharmacist remain in the Qingyuan Sect was naturally best.

Otherwise, if the Pharmacist got the urge and simply left the sect, that would be no good thing.

"You're Yang Chan, correct?"

Pharmacist Xu Gaocen looked at Yang Chan and spoke in an unhurried voice.

"Yes. This disciple is Yang Chan. Greetings, Pharmacist Xu."

Yang Chan replied.

"How long have you been studying the Medicine Scripture?"

"One month. This disciple was previously an Herb Gathering Boy and learned about common medicines and their properties, so I memorized these common herbs a little faster."

"You were an Herb Gathering Boy? That is not bad. Then I'll begin by asking you about these common herbs. Explain in detail the functions, effects, and related knowledge of Dragon Gall Grass."

"Dragon Gall Grass has many aliases, including Lingyou, Grass Dragon Gall, Dragon Gall, and so on. It belongs to the category of herbs that clear heat and dry dampness. Its nature and flavor are primarily bitter and cold, and it chiefly enters the liver and gallbladder meridians. Its main effects are clearing heat and drying dampness, draining liver fire..."

"What about Burdock Seed?"

"Burdock Seed is a traditional medicine that enters the lung and liver meridians. Its main effects are dispersing wind-cold, opening the nasal passages, dispelling wind-dampness, and relieving pain. It also..."

"Peony Bark."

"Peony Bark is also called dangen bark, danpi, and dangen. It can clear heat and cool the blood, promote blood circulation and disperse blood stasis. It can be used for warm toxin rashes, vomiting and nosebleeds caused by blood heat, yin injury from febrile disease, yin-deficiency fever, nighttime heat that cools by morning..."

"Forsythia, Honeysuckle Flower, Scutellaria, Zi Xuan, Chong Lou..."

"Forsythia is..."

"Tell me the names of each of these medicinal materials I brought, then explain their medicinal properties."

"These are Jing Tian, Fei Peng, Xu Changqing... Their respective effects include Xu Changqing's ability to dispel wind and remove dampness, move qi and invigorate blood, relieve pain and itching, detoxify and reduce swelling..."

Throughout the exchange, Pharmacist Xu Gaocen questioned him with great care. After seeing Yang Chan answer, his questions grew faster and faster, and he began asking about several herbs at once.

Of the 1,253 commonly used medicinal materials, Pharmacist Xu Gaocen selected 378 to ask about.

For some, he presented the actual herbs for identification; for others, he only stated the names.

After Yang Chan finished answering, Xu Gaocen did not say whether he was right or wrong, but immediately moved on to the next question.

By the end of the process, sweat had emerged on Yang Chan's forehead. It was not from nervousness, but from excessively dredging through the memories in his mind.

It was not just Yang Chan. Pharmacist Xu Gaocen, who was doing the questioning, was the same. Yang Chan was not the only one recalling things—Xu Gaocen was as well, except he was sorting through a great many mixed memories.

"May I ask why you wish to become an Alchemist Assistant?"

This time, Xu Gaocen no longer asked about the common medicinal materials in the Medicine Scripture, but began asking other questions.

"This disciple's Martial Talent is ordinary, and I may not necessarily achieve anything on the martial path. Yet the path of a Pharmacist has allowed this disciple to see hope."

"Furthermore, this disciple has handled medicinal materials since childhood and feels a natural closeness toward Pharmacists. Upon learning that one could become an Alchemist Assistant in the Medicine Hall, I studied the Medicine Scripture and took the Alchemist Assistant assessment."

Hearing this, Yang Chan knew that he had already passed Pharmacist Xu Gaocen's assessment on common medicinal materials. Now, Xu Gaocen was asking about other matters.

It was similar to job interviews in his previous life. Once one had passed the interview itself, they would discuss matters such as the commute from home, overtime, compensation, and so on, before making a final, comprehensive choice.

"I also need an Alchemist Assistant. You would need to help me sort out all kinds of medicinal materials and classify them by age, medicinal effect, and so forth. Of course, when there is time, I will also teach you how to specifically analyze medicinal effects."

Xu Gaocen also explained his own circumstances. Though the Pharmacist held the dominant position between a Pharmacist and an Alchemist Assistant, the choice still depended on the wishes of both sides.

Xu Gaocen was now laying out his own advantages, because this also demonstrated his ability and was a display of confidence.