Chapter 195 - Bullshit!
"It sounds so powerful..."
Chen Chen did not resist and let the middle-aged alchemist drag him out. The other alchemist took over the main hall.
As soon as they went outside, the two were stopped by Yuan Qingtian.
"This is my distant cousin who has been following me since he was a child," Chen Chen hurriedly explained.
The middle-aged alchemist nodded at his words and said, "Then come with me. Alchemists do need to have such followers."
Seeing this, Yuan Qingtian was speechless.
'We've only gone in for a while and now I'm out again? What's going on?'
Before he could get a clear understanding of the situation, Chen Chen dragged him away.
"No... Senior Brother, you can join the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan just like that?" Yuan Qingtian muttered along the way.
The Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan was one of the four major clans of the human race, and the standard requirements for entry should be very high. However, Chen Chen spent less than two hours. That was quite exaggerated.
'Is Senior Brother invincible?
'He can do Qi training, body refinement, and now alchemy too?'
"What do you know? If you work as hard as I do, you can do it too. Usually, while you are spacing out and letting your imagination run wild, I'm focusing on brainstorming and studying, "Chen Chen casually lectured him. Although it was nonsense, it was only a white lie.
'Those who are mediocre have to work hard to make a name for themselves.'
Hearing this, Yuan Qingtian patted his head in anger and regret. "I think that I used to know a lot, but for some reason, I can't remember it now."
Hearing this, Chen Chen's expression changed, and he hurriedly dashed forward to stop him from continuing to pat his head.
"It's all your fault for hitting your head on the stone when you were walking. If you pat your head again, you probably won't even know me anymore!"
Yuan Qingtian hurriedly put his hand down.
However, deep down, he was full of respect and admiration for Chen Chen, as he trusted that the latter was invincible and omniscient.
He wouldn't be surprised if Chen Chen suddenly had a child one day.
...
The three of them soon left the city and arrived at the foot of a big mountain behind the city.
The mountain towered high amidst the clouds. It was majestic and spectacular. The entire mountain was dazzling, and there was plenty of spiritual energy surrounding it, making it seem ethereal.
The mountain gate was nearly 100 meters high and made entirely out of emerald Spirit Stones. There was a golden lion that was dozens of meters in length napping in front of the gate.
However, that was not the most striking thing.
The most striking thing was that there were rows of mats beside the demonic beast. There were nearly a hundred people kneeling down!
"Are the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan disciplinary rules so harsh? They're actually being made to kneel as a punishment!"
Yuan Qingtian was a little angry.
As the saying goes, a man can be killed, but not humiliated. Being made to kneel as a punishment was much harsher than taking a beating!
Hearing this, the middle-aged alchemist said slowly, "These are people who are asking for elixirs, all of them above the Nascent Soul realm. The other low-level cultivators are not qualified to kneel here."
Hearing this, Yuan Qingtian's jaw dropped in shock.
Chen Chen was speechless and silent too, as there was only one word in his mind.
'Impressive!'
...
As he made his way up the Spirit Stone stairs, the spiritual energy got increasingly denser.
Chen Chen had been to the Haoran Sword Clan and sensed the spiritual energy there before. However, compared to the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan, the Haoran Sword Clan was still a notch inferior.
The Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan was obviously an ultimate blessed land that managed to end up in its current state after some transformation.
"There are nearly a hundred clans under the command of the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan, and thousands of affiliated clans all over the entire Eastern Border. Even the number of cultivators in the imperial dynasty of the Eastern Border is fewer than those in the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan," the middle-aged alchemist bragged as he walked.
Chen Chen gasped in amazement along the way, making the middle-aged grin widely in joy.
...
"The other three major clans also have to consider the opinion of the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan before making any decisions because our alchemists are in many of their clans. Once we take them back, they... Hah!"
As he bragged, the middle-aged alchemist led Chen Chen to a giant square among the mountainside.
There was also some kind of assessment going on in the square, but the quality of the spirit herbs used by the cultivators there were far beyond the standard of Jade Tripod City.
"Uncle-Master, I found this young man in Jade Tripod City and he seems to be extremely sensitive to the medicinal properties of medicinal herbs. Can you make an exception and let him join the examination here?"
The middle-aged alchemist walked to the edge of the square and bowed to an old man.
The old man smiled and glanced at Chen Chen.
With a look of innocence, Chen Chen looked around from time to time as if he wasn't involved at all.
Seeing this scene, the old man nodded and did not speak again.
The middle-aged alchemist was overjoyed after hearing his words and immediately walked towards Chen Chen.
"These are all the disciples of the clans that are fated with the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan. They have laid their foundation early on! There were initially 100 of them.
"However, after three rounds of screening and elimination, only ten people are left. These ten people will eventually join the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan. However, alchemy is like a competition that will divide them. You'll be joining them in the last round later."
Chen Chen spread his hands and said innocently, "Senior, I can't refine pills..."
The middle-aged alchemist sniffed and patted Chen Chen's shoulder with a faint smile.
"Don't worry. How can it be that easy to refine pills? They don't know how to refine pills either. This last round of the competition is a test of their knowledge of medicinal properties. If you managed to perform that well in the Jade Tripod City because you memorized everything, I advise you to come clean with me now.
"Don't say silly things like the outstanding ones will be killed first. Otherwise, others are going to laugh at you."
Chen Chen did not say anything, but there was a stubborn look on his young face.
Yuan Qingtian, who was at the side, was confused. For some reason, Chen Chen's expression seemed to be different from before. He felt that Chen Chen was suddenly much more youthful.
...
An hour passed.
Five of the ten teenagers left the field in disgrace while the remaining five were all dressed in luxurious clothes. They seemed untamed and arrogant.
The old man came over and said calmly, "You guys did well but talent is still very important when it comes to alchemy. Otherwise, there wouldn't be so few alchemists in this world.
"So, there are a total of ten questions in the last round, and it's a test of your talent!"
After saying that, the old man called the five people and Chen Chen all to the front. With a wave of his hand, a long table appeared among them.
On the table, there were six Clear Spirit Herbs that were commonly found. They looked identical and were probably less than three years old.
"Choose the one that you think has the strongest medicinal properties," the old man said calmly.
Apart from Chen Chen, the other five people's expressions also became grave.
It was indeed a test of talent, and the age of the herb was not the only way to test the properties of medicinal herbs. It also depended on the means of preservation...
They grew up specializing in alchemy and had read all sorts of books. They could also classify the herbs by their properties very quickly and do it well.
However, the question really depended on their individual ability.
"System, where is the strongest medicinal herb in the vicinity, Clear Spirit Grass?" Chen Chen repeated the old man's question in his mind.
"Half a meter to your left."
Hearing this answer, Chen Chen directly took the third Clear Spirit Grass guided by the system in his hand.
The other five people were stunned too.
'Why did he pick it without tasting it? Medicinal properties are not something that can be seen by the naked eye.'
'Is this person a fool?'
Without thinking further, the others pinched a little bit from the remaining five Clear Spirit Grass and began to taste carefully. Soon, another person picked a Clear Spirit Grass too.
The remaining people were getting more and more nervous... Six of them chose six herbs, and it was not only about the ability to identify but also the speed!
A few moments later, Chen Chen came to the palace hall.
The last person picked up the last Clear Spirit Herb with a pale face. At this point, he no longer had a choice.
Seeing this, the old man said, "The order of selection is the order of the ranking of the candidates who have answered this question. Okay, next question."
After hearing these words, the five people looked at Chen Chen at the same time, shock and doubt in their eyes. They also kept their guards up.
Chen Chen's face turned slightly red and he rubbed his hands together a little, seemingly excited.
Before they could continue to look, the old man placed seven more Spirit Herbs on the long table.
One of them was a fire attribute Spirit Herb while the other six were all wood attribute Spirit Herbs. They were at different ages.
"Which wood attribute Spirit Herb can promote the medicinal properties of fire-attribute herbs the most?"
Soon after the old man finished speaking, Chen Chen chose one Spirit Herb.
The others watched in shock. They didn't know if he was bluffing.
After a few minutes, the results spoke for itself.
...
Another half an hour passed.
They were all flabbergasted, and they stopped tasting the medicine while turning pale.
They watched as Chen Chen performed.
One had to have a stable state of mind, and after Chen Chen clinched victory five times in a row at the speed of lightning, all the herbs began to taste the same.
They were bitter...
Even the old man, who had been indifferent, began to doubt life. He even started trembling as he spoke.
"The ten questions are over! Chen Chen is in first place!"
Chen Chen smiled coyly at his words and said respectfully, "Everyone, sorry!"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How can someone see the medicinal properties of herbs with just one glance?!" someone yelled, eyes full of disbelief.
He was a famous alchemy genius of his family who was second to none in terms of understanding medicinal properties. Now that he had been beaten by someone, it was too much for his fragile heart!
He turned around and made everyone yell!
"There is no such person! Even an official alchemist can't do it!"
"Something must have gone wrong somewhere!
...
"He cheated!"
The last person pointed at Chen Chen, his eyes full of doubts.
Chen Chen was guilty and ashamed, but he didn't expect to have others see through him...
However, he had a look of shock, anger, and aggravation on his face, as if he had been mistreated.
He then looked at the middle-aged alchemist who brought him there, as if to ask for help.
'Where's the casual display of skills you promised?'
'Why am I being suspected of cheating?
'This is destroying my innocence.
The middle-aged alchemist finally snapped back to his senses. To be honest, he had been caught by surprise just now too.
Looking at Chen Chen's innocent eyes, which were full of feelings of grief, he felt ashamed, his cheeks becoming red hot.
However, in a moment, his shame turned into anger that was directed at those people!
"Bullshit!"