After dodging Ye Qingchen’s question, Elder Yang quickly changed the subject. "I heard you had a run-in with the Demon Clan in Eternal City?"

Ye Qingchen nodded helplessly. He knew pressing the issue would be fruitless, so he simply brought over a stool and sat down beside Elder Yang.

"I never expected a lad with your meager strength could actually survive an encounter with the Demon Clan. It’s quite surprising," Elder Yang continued.

Ye Qingchen pouted and retorted in annoyance, "That’s no way to talk about your own apprentice. Besides, I only fought low-level demons."

"The Demon Clan is far more terrifying than you can imagine," Elder Yang said, waving his hand. "You must be extremely cautious the next time you encounter them. The plan for this Inner Sect Disciple test was my proposal, by the way. In that Secret Realm, you can not only earn points by hunting Spirit Beasts, but you can also capture some of their young and tame them as pets."

"Pets? What use are they?" Ye Qingchen asked, puzzled.

Elder Yang chuckled and shook his head. "You’ve seen far too little of this continent. Once tamed, a pet can grow alongside its master. Some people may appear weak, but because they have powerful pets fighting for them, they still hold a place among the continent’s experts."

Ye Qingchen nodded. Such matters are best left to fate; I won’t force it. My primary goal is still to accumulate enough points to become an Inner Sect Disciple. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

At that moment, Elder Yang’s gaze shifted to the distance, and he muttered to himself, "What’s such a beautiful young lady doing at our Divine Wood Academy? Is she here for you?"

Ye Qingchen shook his head in confusion. He hadn’t sensed anyone’s arrival, let alone known their purpose.

A short while later, Zi Xing indeed appeared atop the low hill, calling out excitedly, "Junior Brother Ye, I’ve exchanged for all the Spirit Grass you wanted!"

She trotted over to Ye Qingchen, but upon seeing Elder Yang lounging there, she quickly bowed in respect. "Elder Yang, I didn’t realize you had returned."

Elder Yang waved his hand. "It’s nothing. Are you here for this good-for-nothing disciple of mine?"

Zi Xing nodded. She handed a storage ring to Ye Qingchen, then hastily excused herself and trotted away. In her mind, the impression of Elder Yang’s overwhelming power from that day was still vivid, and she couldn’t help but feel uneasy in his presence.

Watching her retreating figure, Elder Yang shook his head helplessly. "Why does that little girl seem so afraid of me? It’s not like I eat people."

Ye Qingchen pursed his lips and said cheekily, "Could it be that she isn’t accustomed to your... particular scent, Elder?"

"You cheeky brat! You dare to mock me!" As Elder Yang feigned a slap, Ye Qingchen laughed and dodged away.

Ye Qingchen took the Spirit Grass out of the storage ring. He had used up his Spirit Pills last time and hadn’t had a chance to restock. Spirit Pills were an absolute necessity for the upcoming Inner Sect Disciple assessment. The Divine Wood Academy didn’t have any dedicated Alchemists, so he had no choice but to take out an Alchemy Furnace and begin refining in the courtyard.

When Elder Yang saw Ye Qingchen begin his Alchemy, he ambled over curiously.

"Having Earth Fire certainly speeds up Alchemy," Elder Yang remarked sourly before turning around and heading back to his room.

Ye Qingchen had used his Fen Tian Earth Fire to speed up the process. It was only natural for Elder Yang to recognize it, so he offered no explanation and simply focused on his task.

Time passed quickly. Soon, it was Sunday morning. Ye Qingchen left the Divine Wood Academy early and headed to the Secret Realm for the Inner Sect Disciple Assessment, waiting for it to begin. He had just arrived when Zi Xing spotted him from a distance and waved.

Ye Qingchen walked over and gave her half of the Spirit Pills he had refined. "Thank you for the Spirit Grass, Senior Sister Zi Xing."

"We’re teaming up for the trial, so there’s no need to be so formal, Junior Brother Ye," Zi Xing said as she accepted the Spirit Pills. When she sensed their grade, her eyes widened in shock. "These are all sixth-grade Elixirs! Junior Brother Ye, did you refine all of these?"

I originally thought that even if he was an Alchemist, he couldn’t be that remarkable. But he can actually refine sixth-grade Elixirs! Doesn’t that mean he’s a sixth-grade Pill King?

She studied Ye Qingchen again. His unbelievably youthful face made it hard to believe he could have achieved such heights in Alchemy. Thinking of his martial strength on top of that left her even more astonished.

Feeling a bit embarrassed under her stare, Ye Qingchen smiled. "Senior Sister Zi Xing, once we enter the Secret Realm, let’s focus on getting enough points first. After we meet the requirement, we can find some powerful Spirit Beasts to hone our combat skills."

His words pulled Zi Xing back from her thoughts. She nodded in agreement. "I agree with your plan. The map marks the general activity ranges of the Spirit Beasts. Let’s follow the map and start by hunting high-level Martial King Realm Spirit Beasts."

"Map?" Ye Qingchen asked, looking at her with confusion.

Zi Xing looked back, equally puzzled. "The academy elders always distribute maps of the Secret Realm to disciples participating in the assessment. Didn’t you get one?"

Hearing this, Ye Qingchen glanced around and noticed that all the other participating disciples indeed had a map in hand; many were huddled in groups, whispering and pointing at them.

He shook his head helplessly, already complaining about Elder Yang in his mind. That old coot is getting more and more unreliable. He didn’t give me a map even though everyone else got one.

In truth, Elder Yang had prepared a map for Ye Qingchen. However, since Ye Qingchen had been engrossed in Alchemy for the past few days, the elder figured it wouldn’t be too late to give it to him on the day of the test. He simply hadn’t expected Ye Qingchen to arrive so early, while he himself was still asleep, and thus had no opportunity to give it to him.

Seeing Ye Qingchen’s helpless expression, Zi Xing couldn’t help but chuckle. She produced her map and handed it to him. "Luckily, I have a spare. Here, take a look."

"Thank you so much, Senior Sister!" Ye Qingchen said gratefully as he took the map and began to study it.

A moment later, a melodious bell chimed. The Teleportation Array leading to the Secret Realm was activated by the academy’s instructors. The Inner Sect Disciple assessment had officially begun.

Full of anticipation and excitement, the participating disciples surged into the Teleportation Array one after another.