Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 256 - 169: Consecutive Evaluations

The stronger your Magical Power, the more times you can sustain it, naturally.

And moreover, if you want to refine higher-grade Pills, your own cultivation level is definitely required.

A cultivator at the early stage of Qi Cultivation will never be able to refine a second-grade Pill.

This is the limitation of cultivation realm.

As for Master Lu——

Lu Chang’sheng sneered; the other’s concerns seemed reasonable, but that didn’t mean they were true. She could freely retain people for Master Lu—so why couldn’t she let them go?

"At the end of the day, it’s about status. If I were a second-grade Alchemist, maybe not even a full second-grade, they’d have to reconsider very carefully."

······

A few days later, Lu Chang’sheng returned to the White Cloud Pharmacy to take Lin Yan’s second assessment.

Just as before, it started with a written exam.

However, this time, something unexpected happened: Zheng Yuan and Wu Feng, who last time had treated him with a fair bit of respect, were now cold toward him. Besides a brief greeting, they said nothing else.

Lu Chang’sheng frowned, then quickly let it go.

The human heart is fickle.

With the second round of examination arriving, there wasn’t much time left until the final round; it was normal for their mindset to change.

Yet just then, some subtle gestures and glances from Wu Feng and Zheng Yuan made Lu Chang’sheng realize his guess was a bit off.

Their positioning and gazes were similar to that of Senior Brother Huo Ming—so perhaps he was involved too.

Jealousy!

He took a deep breath, not bothering to engage.

If he wanted to stand out, conflict with the Senior Brother was inevitable.

"Huo Ming is our teacher’s favorite disciple, but over the past year or two, our teacher has grown increasingly appreciative of me. As my star rises, his falls; naturally, attention to others will wane. If they’re narrow-minded, they’ll be dissatisfied with me."

Lu Chang’sheng’s gaze grew sharp.

This is competition.

Without fighting, how can one carve out a vast future?

He closed his eyes; when he reopened them, he was fully calm.

Teacher Lin Yan entered from outside the institute, lectured for a while, then began the assessment.

Again, it was a written exam.

Zheng Yuan and Wu Feng sat down, pulled out paper and pen. Compared to last time, they looked much more confident—it seemed they’d done their homework.

This greatly pleased Lin Yan.

The people he chose always had good talent. If their latent qualities could be developed, they wouldn’t be lacking.

He naturally began to feel anticipation.

Sixty-nine questions, starting with ’How does one reverse-engineer pill ingredients?’

Hearing this, Huo Ming and the others watching from the sidelines were all shocked.

Reverse-engineering pill ingredients is a highly demanding skill, evidence of deep mastery in pharmaceutics—worthy of being called a master.

This kind of question, even if given to them, would require serious thought and deliberation.

"The teacher’s questions are actually this difficult this time. We’ve never seen anything like it before."

Huo Ming turned to the others and commented.

Three rounds of assessment, each getting harder.

But even the third round never starts out with something this advanced.

By Lin Yan’s usual routine, the first questions were always the easiest.

"This is going to be tough."

The crowd glanced at the three candidates, a playful look appearing in their eyes.

At the same time, there was some puzzlement.

Why was Lin Yan setting such a difficult problem? Did he have another motive?

As they wondered, one person in the exam hall was already writing—the pen swung across the paper, swift and elegant, like a startled swan.

Lin Yan’s eyes brimmed with curiosity.

Unlike the others, lately he’d been paying close attention to Lu Chang’sheng and was satisfied with him in every regard.

For this round, his thoughts were centered mostly on Lu Chang’sheng.

"So quick—could it be reckless?"

Lin Yan mused inwardly.

His creed was steadiness.

To him, Lu Chang’sheng’s speed seemed a bit unstable; if not for the calm air about him, Lin Yan would likely be dissatisfied.

"Let’s see the answer, first."

In a short while, Lin Yan had Lu Chang’sheng’s sheet. At a glance, his expression changed.

"This approach is unconventional—sound and rational. Is this your own unique method?"

Lin Yan smiled.

On the page, Lu Chang’sheng had reverse-engineered the pill in an entirely new way, which Lin Yan found deeply satisfying.

He wasn’t opposed to new methods—as long as they were justified.

Clearly, Lu Chang’sheng accomplished this.

"Disciple is not sure it’s unique—but it truly was devised by me."

The Spirit Realm is vast; no one knows if someone else may use this method too.

After all, there’s always someone better, somewhere.

Sometimes inspiration and creativity overlap—let alone when it comes to knowledge-based approaches in pharmacology.

Lin Yan was highly satisfied with Lu Chang’sheng’s response.

"To be neither arrogant nor impatient is truly admirable."

Lu Chang’sheng returned to his seat.

Beside him, Zheng Yuan and Wu Feng were breaking out in a cold sweat, looking flustered. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

It wasn’t that they couldn’t reverse-engineer a pill—but after Lu Chang’sheng showed such a novel way, if they used only conventional methods, they’d look mediocre.

Torn between hesitation and anxiety, they couldn’t even properly organize the standard approach.

"Such disposition will never reach great heights."

Lin Yan watched all three disciples intently, noting their conduct.

Without Lu Chang’sheng as a comparison, the other two wouldn’t seem so inadequate—but unfortunately, everything is relative.

Compared to Lu Chang’sheng’s unruffled demeanor, the other two were utterly overshadowed.

"Enough—a single worthy disciple is sufficient."

Lin Yan thought privately, turning his attention away from Zheng Yuan and Wu Feng, and continued administering questions.

After an hour, all 69 questions were completed.

To everyone’s shock, Lu Chang’sheng answered them all; a few even made Lin Yan ponder anew.

"Comprehension is malleable; Spirit Pen blossoms!"

After finishing all of Lu Chang’sheng’s answers, Lin Yan abruptly stood from his seat in amazement.

"Your grasp of alchemy fundamentals surpasses my imagination." When he said this, his face darkened and a seventh-layer Qi Cultivation aura emanated from him.

He looked at Lu Chang’sheng seriously, "Tell me truthfully—do you have a mentor? If you do, I can still give you a chance; your past will be forgiven. But if you keep hiding it and I find out one day, I won’t tolerate you."

In all his years at White Cloud Pharmacy, Lin Yan had never seen anyone master the basics of alchemy so thoroughly, so quickly.

If someone with a mentor tried to enter under his tutelage, it would be tantamount to deception.

Although Lin Yan liked him, faced with this kind of issue, he’d show no mercy—execution on the spot.

Unexpectedly, Lu Chang’sheng met his eyes and replied directly, "I won’t hide it, Teacher. Not long ago, I came to the Spirit Realm from the Mayfly World. In that mortal world, I once had a teacher who helped me on my cultivation path. But as for alchemy, everything was earned by my own effort."

Only then did Lin Yan’s expression soften, looking at Lu Chang’sheng with ever greater approval.

A mundane teacher didn’t concern him—especially one from the Mayfly World.

Still, he wouldn’t simply trust Lu Chang’sheng’s word—he would certainly investigate later.

For now, though, he wouldn’t dwell on it.

"In that case, let’s move to the next part of the assessment."

The next part?

Everyone was instantly stunned.

Even Huo Ming and the other four disciples hadn’t expected there would be another round.

But Lin Yan ignored them and said, "This next assessment is alchemy."

Lu Chang’sheng’s heart skipped a beat.

Alchemy is supposed to appear in the third round—not the second. Why was the teacher advancing it?

"Teacher, isn’t this a bit unfair?" As everyone began preparing alchemy materials, Zheng Yuan and Wu Feng hurriedly stepped forward in protest.

"Yes, teacher, you promised three years of assessment, but we’ve only had a bit over one year. Senior Brother Lu has had almost half a year more than us; such quick assessment isn’t fair to us!"

Huo Ming’s face twitched; he opened his mouth to speak, but after seeing Lin Yan’s unpleasant expression, decided to keep silent.

"Are you trying to teach me how to do my job?"

"If you feel it’s unfair, then go. Huo Ming, escort them out of Guilan Institute."

"Yes, Master."

replied Huo Ming hurriedly.

Zheng Yuan and Wu Feng were dumbfounded.

We just wanted a little more time—how could you cast us aside so quickly?

"Teacher—I—" The two tried to plead, but Huo Ming grabbed them, one by each shoulder, and led them away.

Seeing this, Lu Chang’sheng could only mourn for them silently.

Such youth, daring to speak so with an Alchemist whom they had no real connection with.

"Enough, go get yourself ready," Lin Yan said to Lu Chang’sheng.

"If the result doesn’t satisfy me, I won’t keep you—understood?"

"Disciple understands," Lu Chang’sheng replied, bowing slightly.