บท 285: Chapter 284: Seventh-Tier Alchemist Certification

'Seventh-Tier? Did I hear it correctly?'

'This kid looks only seventeen or eighteen years old, and he doesn't even have the attire of an alchemist. How could he pass the seventh-tier assessment?'

'Could it be that this is his first time and he was too nervous that he misspoke?'

The Alchemists in front of Xiao Ming had different thoughts, but none of them spoke up.

Most of them thought that Xiao Ming was too nervous and misspoke, not because they looked down on him, but because he was too young.

Even for the direct disciples of Pill Tower's Five Great Clans, becoming a seventh-tier alchemist at such a young age was a feat that was nearly impossible to achieve. It was no surprise that they all had doubts.

Facing the strange gazes of others, Xiao Ming's face remained calm, and he had not the slightest intention of changing his words.

This caused the elder in charge of the assessment to look a bit strange. He also thought that Xiao Ming misspoke and couldn't help but ask, "Young man, do you really want to take the seventh-tier alchemist assessment?"

"Yes." Xiao Ming nodded slightly.

This immediately caused a stir, and those alchemists couldn't help but whisper to each other.

The room suddenly became a bit noisy, but it seemed that the elder didn't like the noise. His eyes became sharp as he shouted, "Quiet!"

Everyone closed their mouths, and it was apparent that the elder in charge of the assessment held great authority.

Then, the elder turned his head again to look at Xiao Ming.

"I am Elder Zhao, the assessment elder of this Pill Tower Branch. Young man, let me ask you again, do you really want to take the seventh-tier assessment?" Elder Zhao introduced himself, looking intently at Xiao Ming.

No wonder Elder Zhao asked several times, for him, this matter was too shocking. It should be noted that he himself was only a sixth-tier alchemist.

"Elder Zhao, I did not say anything wrong. I do want to take the seventh-tier assessment, to be precise, the intermediate-grade one. Is it not possible to take it here?" Xiao Ming said, looking at Elder Zhao and others' reactions and understanding what they were thinking.

After hearing this, Elder Zhao finally confirmed that Xiao Ming wanted to take the seventh-tier assessment and, more specifically, the intermediate grade. He couldn't help but mutter to himself.

'An intermediate-grade seventh-tier Alchemist at such a young age. If he really succeeds, I'm afraid that even the talented ones from the five great clans in the Pill Region can't compare.'

After coughing lightly, Elder Zhao replied to Xiao Ming's question, "It is indeed possible to take the seventh-tier assessment here, but only the low-grade one can be taken. After all, I am only a high-grade sixth-tier alchemist. In the Pill Tower, we can only assess a difference of one small grade."

'Can only assess the low-grade seventh-tier?' Xiao Ming narrowed his eyes, then nodded.

"I understand. Then I will take the low-grade seventh-tier assessment, I will have to bother Elder Zhao."

"It's just my duty," Elder Zhao said with a chuckle while stroking his beard. "Before we proceed, may I know if you have been certified as a sixth-tier alchemist in the Pill Tower before? If you have, we can start the assessment for the seventh-tier alchemist immediately. Or if you have a badge as a sixth-tier alchemist from other places, that's also acceptable. If you don't have any of these, then you'll have to do the assessment for low-tier alchemists first."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ming took out a badge from his storage ring and handed it over to Elder Zhao. It bore an image of a medicinal cauldron and six silver waves.

"Do you think this badge will suffice?" Xiao Ming naturally brought out the badge of the Alchemist Association of the Jia Ma Empire.

'The cauldron and silver waves represent the Alchemists from the North-Western Region.' Every major Region has its own unique Alchemist badge, such as those from Central Plains and North-Western Region.

The North-Western Region commonly uses the cauldron and silver waves, so Elder Zhao, who had lived for quite some time, easily recognized the badge as belonging to an alchemist from the North-Western Region.

However, he was uncertain which Empire Alchemist Association had issued the badge.

Nevertheless, it was not important, as the fact that Xiao Ming was able to possess an alchemist badge demonstrated his strength.

With this realization, Elder Zhao handed back the badge to Xiao Ming, and his tone became more courteous.

"I didn't expect that the little friend was from the North-Western Region. Since the little friend possesses a sixth-tier badge, you can directly take the assessment for a low-grade seventh-tier alchemist."

Having said that, Elder Zhao stood up and walked towards the Tian Gate in the distance.

"Please follow me, and I will personally assess you."

The other alchemists were a bit helpless as Elder Zhao abandoned them and allowed Xiao Ming to take the assessment first. However, they dared not say anything since the tiers of alchemists were strictly hierarchical, and low-tier alchemists generally had no right to speak up to higher-tier ones.

Furthermore, they were also curious to see if Xiao Ming could truly pass the assessment.

...

Xiao Ming followed Elder Zhao into the Tian-level Room, taking note of its simplicity compared to the grandeur of the outside. The room was relatively small, with a small table on the right side covered in scattered papers. In the center of the room, a crystal the size of a human head floated mid-air, catching Xiao Ming's attention.

"Elder Zhao, how will the assessment be conducted?" Xiao Ming asked after taking in his surroundings.

"The assessment method of the Pill Tower is divided into three steps," explained Elder Zhao.

"The first step is to certify your knowledge. There are twenty profound questions related to alchemy, and you must answer them all. While there are no standard answers, right and wrong can be easily distinguished."

"The second step is to certify the size of your soul power. The crystal in the middle is currently dark. Later, when your soul power surges into it and meets the standard, it will light up."

"After it lights up, it's time to start the third step. The crystal will simulate a scene of you refining pills, like an illusion. You need to follow its requirements, such as controlling the flame and refining medicinal materials, etc. During this process, the crystal will gradually consume your soul power. This step actually tests your control over soul power and flames."

"Quite a few steps, indeed," Xiao Ming commented. "But it's still much faster than an ordinary alchemy assessment."

This assessment method can also test the comprehensive ability of a good alchemist, which is much harder than the ordinary alchemy assessment.

Elder Zhao nodded in agreement. "The Pill Tower's assessment is rigorous, and many alchemists who can refine a seventh-tier pill have not passed. You should be cautious during the assessment."

"Thank you for the reminder, Elder Zhao. My name is Xiao Ming, you can just call me by my name."

"Let's proceed with the assessment first, little friend Xiao Ming." Elder Zhao skipped over the topic.

If Xiao Ming passed the assessment, he would be addressed as Master Xiao Ming. They were not familiar with each other, and it would be disrespectful to call each other by their names directly. After all, respect for those who are accomplished is also a form of self-respect.

Xiao Ming walked to the small table and saw some questions written on the papers. The questions were indeed quite difficult, but after some thought, Xiao Ming had the answers.

"Elder Zhao, should I write my answers on the paper or just tell you?" Xiao Ming asked, noticing there was no pen on the table.

Surprised that Xiao Ming had come up with answers so quickly, Elder Zhao replied, "Just tell me."

"Okay, the first question is about various fire attribute medicinal materials..."

...

"How was it?" Xiao Ming quickly answered all the questions.

"Your answers are perfect." Elder Zhao exclaimed in amazement. Xiao Ming's understanding of alchemy was beyond his expectation. If there were any doubts about Xiao Ming becoming a seventh-tier alchemist before, there were none now.

'He'll definitely pass the next two stages.'

As expected, Xiao Ming easily passed the next two stages, showing an abundance of skill.

...

Outside the Tian-level Room, a dozen alchemists were initially able to wait quietly, but as time went by, noisy voices gradually arose.

"Ahem, do you think that young man can pass the assessment?"

"This old man thinks it's difficult. After all, he is too young. Even if there are a few such young seventh-tier alchemists in the entire Central Plains, as stated by Elder Zhao, this person is from the North-Western Region. That borderland, hehe..." An old man laughed and shook his head, apparently looking down on the North-Western Region.

Most people nodded in agreement, but there were still others who had different opinions.

"I think that young man has the potential to become a seven-tier Alchemist. Haven't you also seen his sixth-tier badge?"

"That young man is indeed impressive for being able to obtain a sixth-tier badge at his age. However, the sixth-tier and seventh-tier are completely different levels. Besides, the certification process of the Alchemist Associations in those small Empires is not as strict as the Pill Tower. The sixth tier is not even subdivided. With just that sixth-tier badge, it is a pipe dream to want to pass the seventh-tier alchemist assessment in the Pill Tower. Even if he tries to pass the sixth-tier assessment, it may still be very difficult."

"..."

Creak!

The discussion continued until the sound of the Tian-level Room creaking open interrupted them.

Everyone turned their attention towards the door, watching as an elderly man with a white beard walked out.

Elder Zhao's brows furrowed as he shook his head and let out a soft sigh. Some onlookers couldn't help but smirk at his apparent disappointment, reveling in the misfortunes of others. However, there were also those who knew that his expression alone was not enough to determine the outcome of the assessment.

All eyes turned to the figure behind Elder Zhao, where the tall and straight silhouette of Xiao Ming emerged. Almost immediately, the attention of everyone in the room was drawn to the badge on his chest.

There, just like Elder Zhao's, was a badge that shone with dim energy. The badge was adorned with swirling flames and a towering pagoda, on which seven dazzling purple-golden stars twinkled. The only difference was that the seventh star was a bit dimmer than the others.

"A low-grade seventh-tier Alchemist!"

The room fell silent as everyone gazed in awe at the badge on Xiao Ming's chest. A low-grade seventh-tier alchemist was a figure that everyone in the room needed to look up to, yet now this symbol of glory had fallen into the hands of such a young man.

Looking at this surreal scene, the few alchemists with a smug expression on their faces suddenly felt uncomfortable, like they had swallowed a fly. Of course, no one cared about their thoughts at this point.

Elder Zhao glanced at the waiting alchemists and said to Xiao Ming, "Master Xiao is exceptionally talented. If my tier were high enough, you might have passed the intermediate-grade assessment today. Alas, if you have the time, I advise you to go to the Pill Tower Headquarters for your assessment. I believe you have the ability, and maybe you can even pass the high-grade one."

Xiao Ming nodded, a smile spreading across his face. "Headquarters? I'll go there." he said, before bidding farewell to Elder Zhao and pushing open the door to leave.

When he went out, the seventh-tier alchemist badge on Xiao Ming's chest caught the attention of passing alchemists.

After seeing the seven stars on the alchemist badge on Xiao Ming's chest, these people's pupils contracted, unable to help but swallow their saliva and frantically search for the names of alchemy geniuses in Central Plains, hoping to match them with Xiao Ming.

Unfortunately, after thinking for a long time, they still couldn't think of any suitable candidates.

By the time they came back to their senses, Xiao Ming had already disappeared from view.

Walking out of the Pill Tower Branch. Xiao Ming looked down at the badge on his chest, let out a sigh, and directly took it off and put it into his storage ring.

'It's too attention-grabbing to wear this.'

Muttering to himself, Xiao Ming walked along the way he came from to find Xiao Yi Xian and his companions.

After about forty minutes of walking, Xiao Ming finally found them in an inn during mealtime. However, at this moment, Xiao Yi Xian and his companions were surrounded by a group of men wearing long robes with female figures embroidered on them, along with the three large characters "Harmonious Bond Sect" above their left chest.

On the floor of the inn, there were already several members of the Harmonious Bond Sect lying down.

"L-look, I'm warning you, don't try anything stupid. My grandfather is a four-star Dou Ancestor, and I've already notified him! If you touch me, you won't be able to escape!" Yin Ze blabbered with a trembling voice.

"If you know what's good for you, let me go, and I can pretend this never happened."

Xiao Yi Xian glanced at Yin Ze coldly. Just ten minutes ago, they were resting in the inn, waiting for Xiao Ming. That's when this riffraff surrounded them with ill intentions, insulting them and even trying to lay hands on them.

Let them go just like that? How could that be possible?

Thinking this way, Xiao Yi Xian waved her sleeve, and a gray mist gushed out, completely enveloping all members of the Harmonious Bond Sect.

In an instant, screams filled the air.

"Your Harmonious Bond Sect likes to force others to join in your vile sexual activities, don't you? Then let me make sure you won't be able to do anything like that to anyone anymore!"

With a flick of her wrist, she injected poison Qi into their bodies, causing them to writhe in agony. Then she waved her sleeve, sweeping those people out of the door.

It was at this moment that she happened to see Xiao Ming standing at the door.