Chapter 385 - The First Round of the Examination
Qin Nan knew that Tie Mu was concerned about him, but little did he know that he was not being smug—he was only speaking the truth.
It was reasonable that Zheng Kun was planning to beat him by abusing his ‘advantage’ in Pill Alchemy, but this Chen Ying literally appeared out of nowhere and planned to do the same thing as well.
Did these idiots really think he didn’t have a trump card?
If that’s the case, I shall act scornfully instead and show these guys how I am capable of pursuing the path of Pill Alchemy and Martial Arts at the same time!
Leng Jianxiong and Lin Xiaoyu completely lost their ground.
They had never expected the situation to develop to this stage.
The examination is about to begin. If Qin Nan lost, how would he deal with it?
As for the disciples who were here after hearing the news, they were immersed in great excitement as their blood started flowing at a greater speed.
Although Zheng Kun having a Pill Alchemy duel with Qin Nan was shocking enough, Chen Ying’s partic.i.p.ation had no doubt raised the whole incident to a new level!
“HAHA, Qin Nan is so full of himself. I cannot wait to see his defeat!”
“Tsk tsk, he even said he will show mercy. Let’s see how Junior Sister Chen Ying teaches him a lesson!”
“Well you can’t say that for sure. Qin Nan is being so scornful, doesn’t that mean he is confident in his skill?”
“Hehe, so what? Do you think he stands a chance against Senior Sister Chen Ying?”
“……”
The crowd was immersed in a chatter. Most of them did not have high expectations of Qin Nan.
Only the minority were suspicious, as Qin Nan was acting too smug, hinting that he might possess some sort of trump card.
“Junior Brother Qin Nan, forget about the bet of our duel, since we are still considered brothers of the same sect. Don’t worry, I’ll apologize to Lin Xiaoyu and help with the compensation later too.” Zheng Kun suddenly spoke at that instant.
This Zheng Kun was devious indeed.
Only the one coming first in the examination could rank up successfully. Due to Chen Ying’s partic.i.p.ation, his odds of winning had definitely lowered. Therefore, he decided to back off before the examination took place. In this case, if he failed to rank up to the fourth-grade Xing rank, he would not be able to do anything to Lin Xiaoyu either by abusing the rules.
Under such circ.u.mstances, even if he beat Qin Nan in the duel, causing Qin Nan to give him kowtows, he would be hated by Qin Nan as well. Hence, he decided to compromise so Qin Nan would not feel cornered.
“Hehe.” Qin Nan let out a hollow laugh and said, “Do you think you can call it off now? It’s not impossible; as long as you give me a kowtow right here, then I’ll let you go!”
Zheng Kun’s expression changed tremendously.
This Qin Nan is way too proud of himself, he dares to threaten me when I decided to compromise.
Such a waste of my kindness!
“I guess the bet still exists then.”
Zheng Kun wore a cold expression.
This was you trying to embarra.s.s yourself. Don’t blame me when it happens.
The other partic.i.p.ants at the venue exchanged glances with one another. Although they were disdainful toward Qin Nan, they did not dare to offend him, thus they chose to remain silent.
Tie Mu was even more furious after seeing this, This Qin Nan was too full of himself, placing no one in his eyes. It’s time to teach him a lesson and let him know that there was always someone better than him in this world.
Tie Mu wore a stern look as he uttered a roar, “The fourth-grade Xing ranked Pill Alchemist examination begins now. The examination is split into two parts. Firstly, identifying the herbs. You are not required to identify the names of the herbs, just their effects are enough. The one who manages to describe all of their effects will be given full marks, which is thirty. The second part will be pill-refining, with a top mark of seventy marks. The first part of the examination starts now!”
He was not feeling pleasant, thus he did not encourage the partic.i.p.ants as he normally would do. He then flung his hand, causing twenty-one sets of herbs to land before the crowd.
Qin Nan frowned slightly.
There was only a herb stalk. However, the herb was very strange-looking. On its left blossomed three flowers with different colors, while its right bore five various-colored fruits. Its stem was also brilliantly colorful, as if it consisted of over ten different herbs being merged together.
“Interesting.”
Qin Nan mumbled to himself while glancing at the others. He realized that the partic.i.p.ants had begun to use various methods to inspect the effects of the herb. The most eye-catching was Zheng Kun igniting the herb with an orange flame summoned using his hands. Instead of being combusted, the herb continuously emitted a unique scent, allowing him to deduce its effects from it.
On the other hand, Chen Ying displayed her talent as a genius. It appeared that she had practiced some kind of eye-technique, allowing her to peek through the herb.
“These two are truly talented!”
Qin Nan nodded his head, before a smile appeared on his face as a flash was emitted from his eye. His left eye of the Divine G.o.d of Battle was unleashed, instantly exposing the effects of the herb.
After half the period it took an incense to burn, the time was up. Everyone stopped with the inspection and wrote their answers on a paper before handing it in. Many were wearing troubled looks on their faces, hinting that they were not satisfied with their performances.
“The first part of the examination has come to an end!”
“HAHA, what mark do you think Qin Nan will achieve?”
“I bet that he will score eight!”
“c.r.a.p, eight marks, that high? I’ll bet three then!”
“……”
The venue was immersed in a chatter once again, causing Leng Jianxiong and Lin Xiaoyu’s hearts to be hanging high in their throats.
If the difference between the marks was too huge in the first round, Qin Nan’s defeat would be guaranteed!
Tie Mu scanned the crowd with an expressionless face, “This herb was nurtured with a unique method, allowing it to contain sixty-three effects! Those who were able to write down forty of the effects will be awarded with fifteen to twenty marks. Those who are able to deduce fifty of the effects will be granted twenty marks and above, while sixty effects will grant you a full score! I will now announce the results!”
Tie Mu was utterly familiar with the answers, thus he was able to mark each submission with a glance and announce the result immediately.
“Yue He, thirty-nine effects deduced correctly, fourteen marks.”
“Lin Shan, twenty effects deduced correctly, ten marks.”
“……”
Following Tie Mu’s declaration, the atmosphere of the entire venue gradually intensified.
“Zheng Kun, fifty-six effects, twenty-six marks.”
Many among the crowd took a deep breath after hearing this.
This Zheng Kun was indeed a formidable talent, able to deduce fifty-six of the effects, placing him in the leading spot.
Zheng Kun let out a sigh of relief before his lips curled upward while he glanced vaguely in Qin Nan’s direction. Everyone could see the mocking look in his eyes.
“Chen Ying, sixty-one effects, thirty marks!”
Even Tie Mu’s voice trembled slightly when declaring this.
As expected, the surrounding disciples were utterly stunned after hearing this!
Full marks!
A score that rarely appeared in the fourth-grade Xing ranked Pill Alchemist examination in the past.
Such a result was comparable to the talented geniuses of Caomu Peak!
The smile on Zheng Kun’s face stiffened at that instant. He had been utterly confident in his result, but he had not expected Chen Ying to be this powerful.
At that instant, Tie Mu declared in a loud tone, “Now declaring Qin Nan’s result…”
While saying this, he scanned Qin Nan’s answer sheet with his Divine Sense. Following this, his pupils contracted tremendously.