Pill King Han only glanced at them before quickly withdrawing his gaze.
Following Xu Lingxiu, there were still a few pharmacists and martial artist powerhouses who delivered their congratulatory gifts one after another. Once these gifts were announced, it wasn’t known how many more top-notch medicinal ingredients were in Pill King Han’s possession.
Shortly thereafter, the main event arrived.
Pill King Han smiled: “According to the conventional practices of numerous Pill King Conferences, before lecturing about my methods, I would like to ask everyone for their cooperation.”
Speaking up to here, his tone of voice became even gentler: “However, because this Han intends to accept a disciple, this can also be considered the first round of selection.”
The meaning of these words was obvious. For the Pill King Conferences of the past, the screening checkpoints that pill kings presided over were counted in the preliminary evaluations of the apprenticeship process. If anyone was interested, then they could show off!
What else did Pill King Han have to say?
As a result, everyone could only answer with phrases like: “We’ll show you what we can do,” “Pill King, bring it on!” and so on.
At this time, a martial artist opened his mouth: “Will we be lucky enough to observe?”
At the beginning of each Pill King Conference, martial artists would accompany and protect their pharmacists. However, once the conference reached the later stages, they would be driven away. It was just that the periods of being kicked out were different for each conference.
Who knew when they would be kicked out this time?
The martial artists all wanted to ask this question.
Pill King Han smiled and said: “Naturally. If everyone simply waited outside until after the final lecture, it wouldn’t be very beneficial. I only ask that everyone leaves in advance at that time.”
The martial artists felt their heartstrings relax: “Many thanks, Pill King Han.”
Sure enough, this pill king’s temperament was pretty good. His intentions suited them very well.
Gu Zuo smiled at Gongyi Tianheng: “This time around, big brother and Senior Sect Brother He can stay for a while longer. This way, I won’t feel so flustered.”
That being said, there wasn’t a hint of agitation in his expression.
On one side, He Zizhang gave a modest smile: “This He will also take this opportunity to broaden his horizons.”
Meanwhile, Tianheng ruffled Gu Zuo’s hair with an intimate look in his eyes.
On the other side, Prince Zhou pushed a cup of wine in front of Xu Lingxiu: “To calm the nerves.”
Xu Lingxiu lifted the cup of wine, and drank it down in one gulp: “I’m not nervous.”
Afterwards, many desks of the same size were set up between the surrounding long tables of the pavilion. Numerous pharmacists each occupied their own desk, and sat cross-legged behind them.
And on top of every desk, there was a thick stack of papers.
Gu Zuo: “&#k2026;”
What the heck! Could it be that they were going to take an exam?!
…Well, it was just an exam, so he would just take it.
On the contrary, he wanted to see what questions this Pill King Han would ask.
Pill King Han quickly came up with the topics, and the method of presenting these topics was really similar to that of modern examinations. However, because this world probably didn’t pay much attention to printing technology, whenever a topic was presented, a maidservant on the side would announce the problem and the crowd of pharmacists would write down their answers.
However, there wasn’t much time to answer it.
For instance, that maidservant said: “A foot-long yellow stem, slender white leaves, and a frail root-system. It tastes slightly sweet, and its effects can promote blood circulation, ventilation, detoxification, and so on. Please give at least five examples of this category of medicinal herb. Among these five examples, one must be a spirit medicine. The more examples you present, the better the grade. You have a ten-breaths time limit before the next question.”
Okay. In any case, one could either write the answer or copy down the question. It depended on the person’s choice. Of course, if a pharmacist could tell the answer directly, it would prove that their foundations were sturdy. And if a pharmacist answered several questions incompletely, but could copy down the questions in time, it would be considered fast reaction speeds and a quick-witted mind.
In short, this could test the standards of the exam taker.
As Gu Zuo listened to this topic, between ten to twenty corresponding medicinal herbs immediately appeared in his mind.
Such a question might’ve posed a certain amount of difficulty to other pharmacists, but for him, who had memorized the names of all kinds of medicinal ingredients countless times, this question really couldn’t have been simpler.
Therefore, what was being tested for him?
Ah, this was all about hand speed!
Gu Zuo felt sure in his heart. His brush moved like the clouds in the sky. It swished across the white paper as he began writing. His fingers moved so fast that they almost turned into after-images, which was enough to prove his determination.
With his pride as a pharmacist who had already risen to this point, he didn’t allow himself to write only five examples!
In the blink of an eye, twelve types appeared on the white paper. Among them, three were spirit medicines and nine were different herbs. Their medicinal effects shared several similarities, but they couldn’t simply act as substitutes for each other. If a certain auxiliary ingredient had a positive reaction and combined with another type, the solution would turn into medicinal poison…
However, no matter how fast Gu Zuo wrote, he still couldn’t finish writing all of the medicinal herbs that he could think of within ten breaths. Thus, he changed his mind, and continued answering the next question.
Whatever. In any case, he really tried his best. Though he didn’t finish writing, it wasn’t done deliberately. There wasn’t any need to force it.
The maidservant still recited the next question very quickly. The topic’s category was based on the characteristics of certain medicinal herbs that she described. With numerous requirements, the pharmacists wrote out several corresponding possibilities.
With regards to pharmacists, recognizing and distinguishing medicinal ingredients were important basic skills that had to be mastered. As a result, during this first screening, they put all their energy into this performance, and didn’t think that there was anything unreasonable.
Gu Zuo answered the questions extremely quickly, and he exceeded the topic’s requirements every time. Gradually, this put pressure on several people.
And who were these people?
— It naturally wasn’t Xu Lingxiu, who answered his questions seriously. As a driven younger generation, he basically didn’t pay any attention to his surroundings. Instead, it was those older people who had almost no possibility of formally apprenticing themselves. Because of their abundant experiences, they were relatively familiar with the basics. As a result, their answers quickly satisfied the requirements of the initial topics.
For example, that fellow with the goatee.
Just a while ago, he had been so angered by Gu Zuo that one Buddha was born and two Buddhas ascended to heaven. Now that he encountered something he was good at, he could carefully look at the youngsters who were having a hard time and retrieve a bit of face. After all, good talent didn’t necessarily mean good foundations. Moreover, due to the limits of age, the juniors were most likely inferior to their seniors!
Hence, it could be said that the goateed man was staring at Gu Zuo. However, while he stared and thought he could mock Gu Zuo after the examinations, he discovered that Gu Zuo was answering questions faster than him. In addition, it was clear that Gu Zuo wasn’t barely writing five or six types like him — Just by looking at the strokes of the brush, there were definitely more than just this amount!
This stifling feeling…
The goateed man didn’t believe that he was inferior to Gu Zuo. Right away, he retracted his gaze, and tried to pay more attention.
In addition, there were others who were equally as narrow-minded. They might’ve not been staring at Gu Zuo, but they also held no fondness for these young pharmacists whose strengths weren’t low. At one moment, they would look around in secretive ways, wanting to see these youngsters making fools of themselves. And at the next moment, they quickly answered their own questions, intending to show off their skills.
However, no matter how many times the goateed pharmacist looked at Gu Zuo, he would always see that Gu Zuo was answering questions without the slightest delay. The speed of that brush’s movements far outpaced his own. Unless that kid was writing utter nonsense, the completeness of those answers definitely surpassed what he could write — During this kind of situation, being unable to answer a question was a small matter. However, who would dare to write nonsense?
In the end, the man with the goatee became envious and hateful.
Sometimes, the heavens were so unfair. How could someone with so much talent be given such sturdy foundations? Obviously, he could crush any youngsters in this field, but as it happened, he ran into this unbeatable person… His heart was upset, and his mind was distracted. With his distracted thoughts, how could he clearly listen to each topic? Even if he heard everything, how could he be as clear-headed as before when answering?
The final outcome was that the more he wrote, the more he couldn’t remember. The more he couldn’t remember, the more agitated he became. Gradually, his features flushed red with anger. Whenever the brush came down, there would either be a messy scrawl of ink or a completely blank space.
After that, a crisp sound echoed out. Unexpectedly, even the shaft of his brush was snapped by his grip.
The goateed pharmacist was anxious and angry. Wasn’t he making a fool of himself in front of the pill king? Where was he supposed to put his old face?!
Without realizing it, he felt a choking sensation in his chest. Then, his qi and blood boiled. It seemed that another moment of carelessness would cause him to vomit a mouthful of blood—
However, while the goateed man had reached this point, he never received a single look from Gu Zuo.
Gu Zuo had long forgotten about this old fellow who taunted him in the beginning. As for the man’s previous complaints, he didn’t take them seriously at all. The current Gu Zuo was wholeheartedly answering the questions as completely as possible. The longer the exam went, the faster his hand speed. At the same time, it seemed as if he was able to answer the questions as soon as he heard them. There was no need to ponder whatsoever. All of the answers poured out from his brush like flowing water. It was incredibly natural for him.
After two hours and some minutes passed, that maidservant had announced approximately one thousand questions. Finally, she closed her speech: “At this time, anyone who has finished answering can turn in their answer sheets. If they aren’t turned in within a joss of incense, it will be counted as a failure.”
Many pharmacists were anxious — They wouldn’t be able to finish answering in the time that a joss of incense burned!
But everyone was held to the same standard, and no one dared to say anything. Thus, they quickly checked their work and filled in what they could.
Gu Zuo also had an extra incense stick’s worth of time, and calmly swept a glance over his exam papers. After that, he rolled his neck to stretch his muscles, and started to supplement his answers starting from the first question.
That’s right. As he reached the second half of the exam, his hand speed continued to accelerate. All of those questions were answered completely. However, his answers were a little weaker in the first half, so he just took this opportunity to get it done…
A joss of incense passed by.
Gu Zuo handed in his papers, and so did everyone else.
Pill King Han opened his eyes. He looked at the thick stacks of papers, and gestured to the maidservants on the left and right.
The next moment, ten maidservants walked over. Each of them compiled those answer sheets, paid their respects before Pill King Han, bowed, and excused themselves.
Soon after, many pharmacists witnessed an amazing sight—
They only saw a flash of radiance between Pill King Han’s brows. It seemed that several invisible streaks descended upon those answer sheets.
Among those piles of answer sheets, ten stacks suddenly floated up. In the air, there were rustling sounds like a book’s pages being flipped through. Once they were all flipped through, the answer sheets fluttered down, and were categorized and sorted.
Immediately following which, another ten answer sheets floated up, and were quickly flipped through.
This happened again and again…
Those piles of answer sheets were differentiated at speeds visible to the naked eye. For this entire process, no more than a single joss of incense passed before everything was resolved.
Afterwards, Pill King Han revealed a smiling expression: “This time, four people answered all of the questions correctly. Among them…” He suddenly revealed a set of examination papers, “Pharmacist Gu Zuo performed the best.”
At this very instant, the man with the goatee couldn’t control himself anymore, and a mouthful of blood abruptly spurted out.
Gu Zuo blinked his eyes.
This kind of congratulations was a little too excessive.
T/N: Thanks for the correction, Charysa.
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