Chapter 42: Chapter 42: Passing One After Another

The attic was silent, save for the soft rustling of ingredients being processed.

The stern old man quite enjoyed this kind of atmosphere.

He recalled his younger days as a garden boy, how countless days had passed just like this in the medicinal fields.

Back then, the only sound was the rustle of insects and silkworms nibbling away.

"Master Yin, one of the apprentices has already finished."

"Which one?"

The assisting Cultivator beside him pointed in Bai Mo’s direction.

The stern old man turned his head and saw Bai Mo glancing around, watching the apprentice next to him process ingredients with great interest.

"This one... isn’t he from Group B, the ones who just arrived?"

A little surprised, he quickly glanced at the three long incense sticks burning in the corner of the hall.

The incense sticks had burned down significantly.

’Only two incense sticks’ worth of time!?’

He had personally replaced the incense just a moment ago. It wasn’t just for keeping time; the medicinal properties within the incense also served to neutralize the toxicity of some of the ingredients in the hall.

Bai Mo’s gaze soon drew the attention of the fellow next to him.

This fellow instinctively turned his head, his eyes meeting Bai Mo’s, and was taken aback.

’He’s got that much free time!? Is he a fraud, just like me?’

His gaze shifted to the ingredients on Bai Mo’s table, and his surprise grew. He couldn’t help but give him a thumbs-up.

He remembered that the person next to him seemed to have arrived only a short while ago.

As the stern old man approached, the fellow jolted, immediately straightening up and focusing on the ingredients before him.

Bai Mo also quickly looked away.

"This is Master Yin," the Cultivator beside the stern old man said.

"Master Yin," Bai Mo repeated.

Then he added, "How are my ingredients?"

The old man, Master Yin, grunted noncommittally and began to examine the ingredients on the table.

"Your processing technique is top-notch. I certainly didn’t have this level of skill when I was your age."

He commented with surprising frankness, then had the assistant Cultivator collect the ingredients.

"Take these to the warehouse and store them properly."

Master Yin sighed. "Look at this round... so many ingredients are going to be wasted. These Cultivators have no idea how precious they are."

Bai Mo said with a serious expression,

"Indeed. This set of ingredients would go for at least fifteen Spirit Stones on the market, and that’s if you’re a good haggler!"

Master Yin froze, a muscle in his cheek twitching.

"They really are expensive, aren’t they?"

"You’ve passed this stage. Go back to your group’s leader and show him this."

Master Yin took Bai Mo’s wooden tablet and drew a red line across the black section in the middle.

Bai Mo took back the tablet and departed swiftly.

The fellow next to him was rather envious. However, Master Yin’s gaze immediately fell upon his workstation.

"If you use any more force, that Pig-Eating Grass in your hand will really only be fit for feeding pigs!"

Master Yin glared at the fellow, then turned to his assistant Cultivator and instructed,

"Later, send these ingredients to the Alchemy Room for the apprentices to practice with!"

When Bai Mo found his group leader, the man was laughing and chatting with a female Cultivator.

Upon seeing Bai Mo approach, the female Cultivator said something and departed.

"Done so soon?"

The group leader took Bai Mo’s wooden tablet and immediately saw the red line on it.

"Mm, you passed. Not bad. Take a break and wait here. The next two stages are quite mentally taxing."

Bai Mo hadn’t actually exerted much effort, but he didn’t say anything.

About an hour later, the rest of the members from Group B returned.

Out of thirteen people, nine had wooden tablets with a red line.

The remaining four looked ashamed. They returned, handed over their wooden tablets, and quickly departed under the group leader’s direction.

The remaining members followed the group leader up a wooden staircase to the second floor.

Here too, were numerous workstations set up with small tools like knives and tweezers, as well as Spiritual Water and sieves.

There was even a cage on each workstation, containing a Grey Wood Badger.

The Grey Wood Badger was a rat-sized Demon Beast. It was said to be delicious, so some sects specialized in raising them for sale.

They didn’t have much essence in their flesh and blood; most who bought them were simply after the flavor.

The presence of these Grey Wood Badgers here was clearly not for filling stomachs.

The group leader smiled faintly and gestured ahead.

"Only after you pass all three floors can you be called a Pill Master. I’ll be right here. Come find me when you’re finished."

The difficulty on the second floor was a clear step up.

On the workstations were not failed Pills, but half-finished ones that had failed to form properly.

"The path of the Alchemy Dao is not so simple. Identifying the cause of failure and discovering a Pill’s effects and ingredients are essential skills for any Pill Master."

"Find six points of analysis, then come and see me."

The ancient-looking Pill Master sitting in the center barely lifted his eyelids as he gave the instructions in a low voice, then fell silent.

As Bai Mo walked by, he saw many Cultivators scratching their heads in frustration. Even more Grey Wood Badgers had been knocked out by various concoctions, their feet pointing to the sky.

Finding an empty workstation, Bai Mo sat down with a calm demeanor.

This second-floor test placed great emphasis on a Cultivator’s eye and experience. Without years of dedicated practice in Alchemy, it would be difficult to pass.

Before Bai Mo was a Pill that had collapsed on one side, failing to form completely.

A single glance was enough to tell that the ingredients in this Pill had not fully dissolved.

Bai Mo had made his living in Immortal Arrival City, and most of the Pill Formulas he’d acquired came from the art of Pill Dissolving.

This art was the foundation of his livelihood, so he was naturally an expert at it.

Bamboo slivers were his preferred tools. They felt comfortable in his hand, and after sitting down, he began to work on the spot without a second thought.

The soft SCRAPE SCRAPE of his tools filled the air, and before long, Bai Mo had completely disassembled the Pill.

He sorted the components and placed them in separate piles, then immersed a portion in Spiritual Water. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Under Bai Mo’s skilled hands, the ingredients used in the Pill were soon mostly identified.

Wiping the sweat from his brow, Bai Mo let out a soft breath. Just as he was about to get up, he noticed the Grey Wood Badger in the cage, its front paws clinging to the bars.

It was staring at him without moving.

’These little things eat anything,’ he thought. ’They’re the easiest to keep alive.’

Bai Mo smiled, took a pinch of green medicinal powder, and placed it inside the cage.

The Grey Wood Badger immediately lowered its head and began to lick up the green powder with its tongue.

It had detected a very pleasant aroma from the powders.

"You’ve passed my test. I hope you survive the others," Bai Mo murmured.

Bai Mo picked up his wooden tray and walked slowly to the Pill Master in the center of the hall.

"Senior, I have finished."

The Pill Master opened his eyes. Seeing the separated powders on the wooden tray, he immediately nodded.

"Good technique. Can you identify them all?"

Bai Mo listed them off: "Wisteria Flower, Withered Heart Grass, Stone Milk..."

Bai Mo easily named all eight ingredients. The elderly Pill Master then pressed,

"And can you tell why the Pill failed to form?"

Bai Mo stated bluntly, "It was due to shoddy technique. The heat control was an absolute mess."

Bai Mo had only disassembled half of the Pill; the other half sat on the tray. One glance was all the old Pill Master needed to understand.

He took Bai Mo’s wooden tablet and used a cinnabar brush to add another red line to it.

"I wonder which little brat concocted this mess," he muttered.

"You’re very good. Go on. I hope you can make it past the Third Layer."

Bai Mo thanked the senior and withdrew respectfully, tray in hand.

Seeing Bai Mo return first once again, the group leader’s spirits lifted.

When he saw the two lines on Bai Mo’s tablet, he clicked his tongue in amazement.

"Looks like Group B might actually produce a Pill Master after all!"

"Come, I’ll take you to the third floor."

Bai Mo asked, surprised, "We don’t have to wait?"

The group leader waved his hand dismissively.

"Don’t underestimate this stage. The others won’t be nearly this fast."

"Based on my experience, the number of people from your group who pass the second floor won’t be more than this!"

He held up three fingers, speaking with absolute certainty.

Bai Mo nodded and followed the man up to the third floor.

The moment he stepped off the staircase, a wave of heat and rich Pill Qi washed over him, almost intoxicating.

Bai Mo looked on in amazement. Twenty Pill Furnaces were arranged across the floor, their pill fires blazing and sending out rolling waves of heat.

’What a magnificent sight,’ Bai Mo thought. ’Where would you ever see something like this? I bet only a major Pill Shop could boast such a setup!’