Distinguished Guest

If it hadn't been for the damn business of dodging debts, Lu Li might have still been studying for the exams at this hour. In truth, he had been quite confident from the start. He already knew the questions for the human-grade fitter examination by heart.

As for the examinations for heaven-, earth-, and human-grade welders, he had the foundations from his previous life to fall back on. While studying Hundred Explanations of Array Studies, he had drawn inferences from one instance to another, so merely passing would not be difficult.

What gave Lu Li the greatest headache were the earth-grade and heaven-grade fitter examinations, because those involved the middle and lower volumes of the Stamping Art.

Lu Li had studied those two volumes back at the stamping workshop, but he had rarely had the chance to handle actual stamping mechanisms. Lacking practical experience, much of the knowledge, though thoroughly memorized, remained only on paper.

Thus, Lu Li had no choice but to be careful when selecting his materials.

But the problem was that the Wood Crows beside him were so noisy that he simply could not settle down. They spent the entire time making him anxious, their beaks full of auspicious words:

"Don't force yourself! There are only three days left until the examination! Have you truly mastered the Stamping Art for earth-grade fitting? Have you practiced heaven-grade spirit-pivot calibration? You won't pass! You might as well go home, get a good night's sleep, and become cannon fodder next month!"

"I've decided. I'm enrolling in your academy."

The moment those words left his mouth, the Wood Crow's attitude changed instantly, a sharp gleam flashing in its eyes.

"Caw—You have a good eye, honored customer. You've chosen the right path! Enroll now and enjoy a ten-percent discount, plus a chance to win a spot at a live lecture by a dual-seal master! Discuss stamping face-to-face with a famous teacher, talk welding patterns—passing all three grades will be no trouble at all! May I ask, honored customer, are you taking the fitter examination or the welder examination? Earth-grade or human-grade?"

"I'm not planning to enroll after all."

The moment he said that, the Wood Crow's bird face fell. Its attitude changed again, and its voice became sharper than its beak.

"Caw, you're finished. Your whole life is finished. You're worthless mud that can't be plastered onto a wall. You'll never pass! Do you think becoming a fitter is as easy as picking cabbages by the roadside?

"Think of your family! Think of your father and mother! They rise early and work late every day just to scrape out a living, hoping you can rise above the rest and step onto the immortal path of a mechanist! And what about you? You've wasted all your effort on blind fumbling! By the time your parents grow old, you'll still be doing odd jobs beside a furnace! Can you face them then?"

"Father and mother... heh."

Lu Li rolled his eyes. He had figured out the pattern: whenever he said he did not want to enroll, this fellow would manufacture anxiety and play the emotional card. Whenever he said he was willing to enroll in their private academy, the Wood Crow would fawn over him and become exceedingly obedient.

"I'm going to enroll. Go wait over there first. I'm buying two sets of materials and will be right over."

"Caw, certainly, honored customer. May fortune favor you."

The Wood Crow switched back into its sycophantic mode. It no longer disturbed him, flapped away with a wiggle of its rear, yet its bird eyes remained fixed on this spot as though afraid Lu Li might run off.

"Whew—"

Having sent the Wood Crow away, Lu Li finally let out a long breath. He knew perfectly well that behind every Wood Crow was a living soul. Perhaps this was the ultimate fate of salespeople?

Discarding their flesh and memories, with nothing left in their minds but work, their sales pitches all coming in polished sets.

No sooner had the Wood Crow left than Elder Duan spoke again.

"Disciple, if it says you can't pass, then pass and show it."

"You shut up too. Annoying!"

Afterward, Lu Li browsed through the bookstore, picking and choosing, until he finally spent two taels of silver on four jade slips.

Then, while the Wood Crow was not paying attention, he took off running. He easily left both the Wood Crow and the clamor of the night market behind, fleeing back to the inn.

Lu Li spent two hours reading the materials and roughly familiarized himself with the examination content before going to bed.

In his dream, time flew like an arrow, and he was a frail little girl, quiet and pretty.

The next morning, Lu Li rose early to read through the materials and practice with some supplies. The earth-grade and heaven-grade examinations tested both theory and practical work. The earth-grade test used examination-specific mechanisms that were especially durable and cheap to produce, though their functions were limited.

So that afternoon, Lu Li went to the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion and rented several examination stamping mechanisms to practice on. The feel was decent enough, and that night he returned to continue studying the materials.

In this cycle, three days passed in the blink of an eye.

On the day of the human-grade examination, Lu Li arrived outside the testing grounds early to wait. A Wood Crow flew before him and blocked his path, a sign clenched in its beak. Two lines had been painted onto it in vermilion lacquer—

[Take a breath and claim your examination insurance immediately].

"What the hell does 'take a breath' mean?"

The instant Lu Li said that, the Wood Crow let out a strange cry.

"Caw, congratulations, esteemed customer! We are proud to present our sect's examination insurance service!"

"Dual-seal examinations have insurance too? So if I fail, you'll refund my money?"

"No. You need only pay three spirit stones now. If you fail the examination, then after it ends, enrollment fees at every academy in the city will be reduced by thirty percent. Buying now means profiting now."

"Get lost. Not buying."

Lu Li's head was starting to ache. Elder Duan told him that "take a breath" meant breathing; as long as one breathed, it would trigger an ad.

As for why these Wood Crows kept targeting him with ads, the reason was simple.

These Wood Crows belonged to White Moon Palace and were connected to White Moon Palace's intelligence network. He had only registered for the examination three days ago, had never enrolled in an academy within Maple Fragrance City, and his only purchases directly related to the examination were a few jade slips and the rental of several mechanisms.

In the Wood Crows' eyes, he was the very model of someone overestimating himself and cramming at the last minute. At the same time, he was also the highest-quality customer—a newly rich man waiting to be slaughtered.

It had to be said that this targeted advertising model was extremely effective. If it had been someone else, they might well have fallen for it.

Unfortunately, they had encountered Lu Li.

Because of the examination, the plaza was packed so tightly by the crowd that not even water could pass through. There were three hundred people taking the human-grade fitter examination alone, and quite a few among them had fought repeatedly, failed repeatedly, and fought again.

Since he had arrived fairly early, Lu Li wanted to find a place outside the grounds to quietly read some earth-grade fitter materials. After all, for him, the true difficulty did not lie in the human-grade examination.

He threaded through the crowded throng, only to have someone suddenly block his way. Lu Li stepped right to make room, and the man stepped left to block him again. Lu Li stepped left, and the man shifted right in front of him.

Lu Li was not very tall. When he looked up, he saw a face steeped in carefree arrogance.

It was a man dressed in luxurious robes, his collar half-open and his gaze frivolous.

"Yo, this little lady from the lower reaches isn't bad-looking. After the exam, interested in coming to Drunken Fragrance Tower with this young master for a couple of drinks?"

Hearing the words "little lady," Lu Li instinctively wanted to refute him. But then he remembered that the gender field on his assessment registration was most likely marked female, so at this critical juncture, he did not wish to argue.

"Who are you?"

"Me? This young master is Zou Bufan of the Zou Family from the middle reaches..."

Before the other man could finish, Lu Li suddenly stepped forward and knocked aside his shoulder. Without the slightest concern for what the man had to say, he walked straight past him.

"Hey? Didn't you hear me clearly? I'm from the middle reaches, you bastard from the lower reaches."

Lu Li hurried away. As for the foul words the man shouted after him, he heard none of them. Instead, Elder Duan asked with considerable interest:

"He said he was from the middle reaches. Aren't you afraid of him?"

"Why should I be... No, why would a young master from the middle reaches come all the way here?"