Alchemist Certification

Behind the counter stood a woman in charge, a little over thirty. She wore a pale green dress and had bright eyes, pearly teeth, and a rather lovely face. The moment she saw Ye Xiu enter, her eyes swept over him, and she hurried over to greet him.

"Sir, you look unfamiliar. Is this your first time at the Alchemist Guild in Heiyan City?" she asked with a warm smile.

Ye Xiu nodded. "I'm here to get certified as an Alchemist."

The woman in green paused slightly and looked him over again. It was rare to see someone so young coming for certification.

She smiled and asked, "What rank would you like to certify for, sir?"

Ye Xiu said, "What's the highest rank you can certify here?"

The woman in green looked puzzled, but answered honestly. "The highest rank this Heiyan City branch can certify is a fourth-tier Alchemist. For anything higher, you'll have to go to the headquarters in Jia Ma Holy City."

Ye Xiu nodded. "Then I'll go for fourth-tier first."

The woman in green: "..."

The smile on her face immediately froze.

Fourth-tier?

The kid looked only fifteen or sixteen, yet he was asking to certify as a fourth-tier Alchemist?

She cleared her throat and said, "Sir, fourth-tier Alchemist certification is no joke. You'll have to refine a fourth-tier pill on the spot, and there are requirements for both the success rate and the quality. You..."

Ye Xiu cut her off. "I know. Show me the way."

The woman in green opened her mouth, as if she wanted to say something, but seeing how calm Ye Xiu looked, she swallowed her words. She turned and hurried toward the stairs, apparently to inform someone.

After all, getting certified as a fourth-tier Alchemist wasn't something you could simply decide to do.

Footsteps soon sounded upstairs, and two old men came down the stairs.

The man in front was in his sixties, dressed in a gray-white Alchemist robe with four silver waves embroidered on the cuffs. He was none other than the guild president, Frank. Otto followed behind him; he was also a fourth-tier Alchemist.

The two walked up to Ye Xiu and looked him over.

A flicker of surprise crossed Frank's eyes. With his strength, he couldn't even see through the boy in front of him.

"Young friend, you want to certify as a fourth-tier Alchemist?"

Ye Xiu nodded. "That's right."

Frank studied him for a while, then suddenly smiled. "Interesting. All right, come with me."

He turned and headed upstairs.

Ye Xiu followed, and Xiao Yi Xian hurried after him.

The second floor was a hall. Deeper inside was the Alchemy Hall, where a Medicine Cauldron stood in the center. It was half a person tall, with five fire openings.

Several people stood around it. They were all Alchemists from the guild, and when they heard someone was going to certify as a fourth-tier Alchemist, they had all come to watch.

Two slightly smaller Medicine Cauldrons stood on either side of the central one. Two young women stood in front of them, each focused on controlling the flames.

The one on the left wore silver robes and had silver hair. With her cool demeanor and simple dress outlining her graceful figure, she was Xue Mei, a disciple of guild president Frank. In the Medicine Cauldron before her, pale yellow flames enveloped several medicinal ingredients as she carefully refined them.

The one on the right wore a purple dress and was bright and lovely. She was Lin Fei, Otto's disciple. She was refining a pill as well. Her movements were a little less practiced than Xue Mei's, but she was doing a decent job.

When Frank brought Ye Xiu in, the two women had just finished one round of refining and were adjusting their flames, preparing for the next step: fusion.

"Teacher?" Xue Mei looked up, saw the boy behind Frank, and paused slightly.

Lin Fei also stopped what she was doing and curiously sized Ye Xiu up.

Frank waved a hand. "Carry on. Don't mind us. This young friend is here to certify as a fourth-tier Alchemist, so I'm showing him the place."

"Fourth-tier?" Lin Fei stared, looked Ye Xiu up and down, then couldn't help laughing. "Hey, you! How old are you? Do you even know what it means to be a fourth-tier Alchemist?"

Ye Xiu glanced at her but said nothing.

Lin Fei didn't take offense. Instead, she grew more interested, stepped away from her Medicine Cauldron, and folded her arms as she studied him. "You look younger than me. Have you even gotten certified as a first-tier Alchemist? And now you're here to take the fourth-tier test?"

Xue Mei said nothing, but there was a hint of scrutiny in her eyes too. She was steadier than Lin Fei and simply stood quietly to one side, watching the boy who had suddenly shown up.

Ye Xiu said coolly, "Whether the guild lets me take the test is its business. Whether I pass is mine. Neither has anything to do with you."

Lin Fei raised an eyebrow. "Ooh, you've got a temper. Let me tell you, a fourth-tier Alchemist doesn't just have to refine a fourth-tier pill. They also need to reach the Dou Ling level. You know what a Dou Ling is, right? Don't tell me you're one."

At her words, several Alchemists nearby laughed. A Dou Ling? A fifteen- or sixteen-year-old Dou Ling? No one in the entire Jia Ma Empire had ever heard of one.

Ye Xiu ignored her and walked straight to the Medicine Cauldron.

Lin Fei was annoyed at being ignored. She was about to say more when Otto gave a light cough. "Lin Fei, don't make trouble."

Lin Fei pursed her lips and stepped aside, but she kept her eyes on Ye Xiu, looking as if to say, "Let's see how you embarrass yourself."

Xue Mei watched quietly. Her gaze lingered on Ye Xiu for a moment before she looked away and returned her attention to her own Medicine Cauldron. She wasn't as fond of meddling as Lin Fei, but she was curious too: what made this boy think he could certify as a fourth-tier Alchemist?

Ye Xiu took a pile of medicinal ingredients from his Storage Ring and set them on the table beside him.

At the sight of the ingredients, everyone around them brightened.

Purple Leaf Gold Vein Grass, Green Spirit Fruit, Angelica Flower, Earth Dragon Root...

They were all fourth-tier medicinal ingredients, and all in excellent condition.

Lin Fei's mouth fell slightly open. The words at the tip of her tongue died before she could say them. Any one of those ingredients was worth a fortune. If he could take out so many so casually, his background was probably no ordinary one.

Xue Mei's hands paused, and a flicker of surprise crossed her bright eyes.

Ye Xiu paid no attention to the murmurs. He walked up to the Medicine Cauldron and placed a hand against its side. Closing his eyes, he probed inside with his soul force.

A moment later, he opened his eyes and turned his palm over.

Poof!

A cluster of purplish-gold flames sprang from his palm and shot into the Medicine Cauldron.

The temperature in the entire hall rose several degrees at once.

Frank's pupils contracted.

"This flame..." he murmured.

Otto, standing beside him, was stunned too. "That color... It isn't ordinary Dou Qi flame, is it?"

"Certainly not." Frank lowered his voice. "There's more to this kid than meets the eye."

Xue Mei and Lin Fei both stopped what they were doing.

The purplish-gold flames surged inside the Medicine Cauldron, purple with hints of gold. They were fierce yet gentle, entirely under Ye Xiu's control.

Neither woman had ever seen flames of that color, much less such a method of controlling fire. The flames seemed almost alive, dancing with Ye Xiu's every thought.

Lin Fei's mouth twitched. She had just wanted to see him embarrass himself, but now her face felt as if it were burning.

At the very least, the fire-control technique Ye Xiu had shown so far was far beyond anything she could hope to match!

Xue Mei watched silently, her gaze shifting from the flames to Ye Xiu's profile. The purplish-gold fire made his face flicker between light and shadow, but his calm, unflustered bearing reminded her of the way her teacher looked when refining pills.

No, he seemed even more composed than her teacher!