Three-Rank Alchemist Examination

Black Rock City.

The city lay near the heart of the Jia Ma Empire, not far from the Imperial City. It dwarfed Wutan City; the two Fourth-Rank Alchemists at its Alchemist Association branch were proof enough of that.

Xiao Yan remained calm, but instead of heading straight to the Alchemist Association branch for his examination, he wandered through the market to see whether his heaven-blessed luck would turn up a treasure.

He searched all morning and found nothing.

"Hungry..." Xiao Yi Xian tugged at Xiao Yan's sleeve and looked up at him with pitiful eyes.

"Didn't you eat this morning?" Xiao Yan asked, at a loss.

"I'm still growing, Brother Xiao Yan. But if you'd rather not bother, I can put up with it. Sorry for the trouble." Xiao Yi Xian propped her cheek in one hand, looking delicate and forlorn.

"Pretty girl, looks like your sweetheart can't keep you fed! Come over here—there's plenty of food and wine!" At a nearby stall, a burly, thickset middle-aged man flashed his white teeth and leered at Xiao Yi Xian.

"..." Xiao Yi Xian kept smiling, but a chill entered her pale violet eyes. Her palm shifted, and a silver needle flew out almost of its own accord.

Seeing no response from either of them, the man took a step forward, ready to push his luck. His expression changed abruptly. Dizzy, he toppled over and hit the ground like a sack of mud.

"Let's go." Xiao Yan glanced at the half-dead stall owner, speechless. Of all people, why provoke a Heavenly Poison Woman? Luckily, this was not the Black-Corner Region. Otherwise, "a sack of mud" might not have been a figure of speech.

The people nearby turned pale and hurriedly made way. Who would have thought such a beautiful, innocent-looking girl had such terrifying methods?

"You've become a Dou Zhe?"

Xiao Yan studied her.

"Mm-hmm!" Xiao Yi Xian stood beside him with her hands behind her back, bending forward slightly and widening her eyes in a show of cuteness.

Xiao Yan's eye twitched. The Woeful Poison Body truly lived up to its name. With the Netherworld Poison Flame he had been feeding her, her cultivation had grown fast enough to astonish even him. He explained, almost casually, "I'm looking for medicinal materials to suppress your Woeful Poison Body. If we don't start searching now, I'm afraid it'll become impossible to control within five years."

"..."

Xiao Yi Xian froze for a moment, her red lips parting.

Then she hurried after Xiao Yan, smiling brightly. "Thanks."

"We're friends." Xiao Yan waved it off.

But the light in her eyes dimmed, and she bit her lip. "Just... friends?"

"..."

"I'll take this thousand-year white lotus." Xiao Yan tossed over a bag of gold coins. The delighted stall owner wrapped the flower and handed it to him.

"Let's go to the Alchemist Association."

He had found no Cultivation Method hidden in an iron fragment, nor any shabby bronze vessel that was secretly an ancient treasure. He had only bought a few materials for refining Qi-Raising Powder. His earlier refining spree had left him with nothing.

I should've visited Ya Fei before leaving...

Black Rock City.

The Alchemist Association.

A pale silver Furnace emblem was set into the weathered entrance. Simple though it looked, it lent the towering building an air of distinction.

"This should be the place."

Xiao Yan rubbed his chin and stepped inside. Perhaps because he was well dressed, the two guards at the entrance did not stop him.

"Sir, are you here to register for the Alchemist examination?" a receptionist asked with a smile.

"Yes." Xiao Yan nodded.

"Of course. You aren't wearing a One-Rank Alchemist badge, and I haven't seen you before. Is this your first time taking the examination in Black Rock City?" Smiling, she handed him a registration form. "Please fill this out."

"...It is my first time in Black Rock City, but I'm not here for the One-Rank Alchemist examination." Xiao Yan shook his head. "I'm here for the three-rank examination."

The receptionist covered her mouth, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"But..."

"I know that isn't your decision to make. Please ask Master Otto to come out," Xiao Yan said calmly, waving a hand.

"No need. I'm here."

A round-bodied old man emerged, followed by a pretty young woman of about twenty. She held her head high and gave Xiao Yan a disdainful glance.

Showing off in front of my teacher, are you?

Three-Rank Alchemists were pillars of the Jia Ma Empire. Even she did not expect to reach that rank until her forties at the earliest. Yet this fellow had the nerve to make such a claim.

"Very well!"

To her greater astonishment, Otto nodded with a smile.

Xiao Yan returned a calm nod, cupped his fists, and entered the examination hall.

Lin Fei and the receptionists stood rooted to the spot, staring after him.

"Teacher, have you gone senile?" Lin Fei asked anxiously. "Why let a boy who's still wet behind the ears take the three-rank examination? What can he do besides waste materials?"

Losing several sets of medicinal materials for three-rank Pills would sting even a master like Otto.

But...

"A few days ago, Ya Fei of the Mittel Family's branch wrote to recommend someone to me. She said he could refine three-rank Pills despite his young age, and enclosed materials for three batches." Otto stroked his beard with an unhurried smile.

"And Ya Fei wasn't the only one who signed the letter. That old fellow Teng Shan signed it too."

"Given how shrewd the Mittel Family is, do you think they'd make a losing investment? Heh. Someone worth that much of Teng Shan's money must be a genius even I've never seen before."

A fervent light flashed in Otto's eyes.

He had devoted his life and everything he possessed to refining Pills. It was what he loved. So when he had a chance to see a monstrous talent in Pill refinement, his first reaction was not envy, but...

My life has been worth it!

"A Three-Rank Alchemist? How is that possible..." Lin Fei alone kept muttering, stunned and doubtful. What kind of monster would he have to be?

Inside the hall.

Alchemists had gathered in a noisy crowd.

Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow and chose a Stone Platform at random.

He glanced at the Pill Formula on it. "Three-rank Pill: Spirit Link Meridian-Penetrating Pill. Required materials: Netherwater Algae, Qi-Concentrating Branch, a Third-Rank Wind-Attribute Magic Core, and stoneheart marrow. Effects: heals hidden injuries and opens the meridians of anyone at the Da Dou Shi level or below, aiding a breakthrough."

It was an improved version of Qi-Raising Powder, and quite useful to him.

After all, the Pill Formulas he knew were geared toward combat rather than breakthroughs. Qi-Raising Powder, the sole exception, was only useful for becoming a Dou Zhe. Later, he could gather materials for this Pill and prepare some for his father, Eldest Brother, Second Brother, and the family elders.

And...

Xiao Yan smiled.

No wonder the Mittel Family was the angel investor of the original story. From Hai Bodong and Teng Shan to Ya Fei, they really knew how to spot potential.