Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 146 A Pill Emperor in the Family Has Grown Up

“Your Majesty, the method of marrow replacement should be useful in treating blood disorders… Hmm, what Lu Xingzhou and his disciples said about blood ulcers is more accurate. We had only put forward this idea before, but had not yet actually tested it. Lu Xingzhou may have other inheritances, and since it is in line with our thoughts, it must not be just empty talk.”

In the examination room, Qin Zhiyu was discussing this matter with Gu Zhanting, including taking out Lu Xingzhou's exam paper for study: "Lu Xingzhou's paper is written more clearly, and I think it's 80-90% feasible."

Gu Zhanting said, "It's effective for blood ulcers, but what about for me?"

"It's hard to say... Your Majesty's illness is caused by demonic power, and its root may not be in the marrow. It looks similar to a blood ulcer on the surface, but it is actually different. This method may not be the right treatment. It is only worth trying, at least as an auxiliary measure."

Gu Zhanting gently tapped the armrest of his chair and shook his head, saying, "Lu Xingzhou's words were pointed... he must have meant them for me. In fact, it's like saying outright that the marrow replacement method is effective for blood ulcers, but ineffective for me."

Qin Zhiyu also felt that Lu Xingzhou's words were clearly meant to be heard by others, at least proving that he had seen through the hidden meaning in the exam paper.

He knew it was useless, yet he still proposed the method of marrow replacement, not for the emperor, but for the common people who were truly suffering from blood ulcers.

This assessment greatly impressed Qin Zhiyu with Lu Xingzhou, but he dared not say it outright. Instead, he offered a compliment from a different angle: "Even we are only at the stage of proposing the method of marrow replacement, yet Lu Xingzhou has already put it forward with such certainty. This shows that he has unique insights in this field. With further studies at the Dan Academy, his future is promising. Who knows, His Majesty's illness might really depend on these young people."

Gu Zhanting said in a low voice, "He is demonstrating his value to me. What is he after... He has no difficulty passing this assessment, and it would probably not be difficult for him to become the top scholar based on his own strength."

Qin Zhiyu laughed and said, "Your Majesty's words are... What young person wouldn't want to prove their worth to Your Majesty? There's nothing shameful about it."

“He doesn’t seem like someone who pursues fame and fortune…” Gu Zhanting said, then shook his head with a smile: “That’s right. He looks calm and composed, but how many people don’t really want to climb the ladder? Besides, he wants to take revenge on the Huo family.”

Gu Zhanting felt much more at ease after realizing he had found the meaning behind Lu Xingzhou's actions.

Whether the marrow-changing method could cure him was something he already knew from what Lu Xingzhou had said, and he didn't have high hopes. Any progress in this matter was good; super-grade experts had long lifespans, so it was still a long way off. Even if it really came down to waiting for the younger generation to grow up, as Qin Zhiyu said, they could afford to wait.

What's important is that talented young people like Lu Xingzhou have something to ask for... As long as they have something to ask for, they can be used.

…………

Gu Zhanting racked his brains but could never have imagined that Lu Xingzhou's real intention was to prepare for Lao Deng's daughter's future marriage, thus demonstrating his value.

If it weren't for his wife, he wouldn't have shown Gu Zhanting anything.

To put it bluntly, even his enrolling in the Pill Academy for prestige was all for Shen Tang.

Regardless, providing insights into the treatment of leukemia in this world is a meritorious deed; let's do it first and see what happens later. As for Gu Zhanting's illness, this method is simply not effective for him; at most, it can be considered a reference.

If this were effective, then many other elixirs would also be effective. Since even the Huo family's previous elixirs couldn't cure it, it's clearly not something that can be achieved through conventional methods.

The Demon Emperor is a top-grade being; the hidden wounds it left behind would probably require top-grade pills to heal.

Lu Xingzhou was too lazy to care. He was exhausted after treating the illness all day, and fell into a deep sleep as soon as it got dark. When he opened his eyes, it was already the last day of the alchemy assessment.

The alchemy assessment was no longer conducted alone in a room, but was moved to the large square of the Alchemy Academy, where all candidates could see the results of others' alchemy, ensuring fairness for all.

If it's about the classification and grading of medicinal pills, then yesterday's treatment of the patient, the creation of a targeted prescription, and today's refining of the specific medicinal pill needed by the patient constitute the standard process for classification and grading.

The patients recruited by the Dan Academy are all very representative, and each candidate must ultimately refine a pill of grade six.

In other words, as long as the pills needed for yesterday's diagnosis are refined and of acceptable quality, one can obtain a sixth-grade alchemist certification.

Chen Jinnian had only reached the upper sixth rank after serving as the head of the Xia Prefecture Pill Refining Department for so many years; he had only recently broken through to the fifth rank. When he was younger and participated in the assessment, he was at most a lower-middle seventh rank, so failing the assessment was perfectly normal…

But for Lu Xingzhou at this moment, refining a sixth-grade pill was, as Anuo had said, "too easy."

In the grand square, flames surged as numerous alchemical furnaces simultaneously refined pills. The emperor watched from a high platform, and everyone gave it their all.

With a loud bang, someone was startled by the stove, bursting into tears, and was then escorted out by the guards.

What Lu Xingzhou considered an "too easy" test was not so easy for most people. Just the task of refining these sixth-grade pills alone had already eliminated half the candidates.

People are generally not paying attention to others. If someone were to observe, they would notice that a little child is also independently refining elixirs, not helping the adults control the fire...

Ah Nuo quietly asked, "Master, why do I have to refine pills myself? I see all the other disciples helping you."

Lu Xingzhou found it really funny: "Because Anuo is cuter than their servants."

"But I need to help my master."

"Don't worry, it's just a mere sixth-grade pill... You'll have your help later."

As they spoke, several furnace lids jumped up almost simultaneously. Lu Xingzhou glanced over and saw two young Taoists, a young master-like figure, himself, and A'nuo... these five who were the fastest to refine a sixth-grade pill were probably the top five in this competition.

For such an important assessment, no one tried any fancy tricks like refining multiple pieces in one batch; everyone honestly only refined one piece.

Five pills emerged from the alchemy furnace simultaneously, and people from the alchemy academy stepped forward to examine them: "Xuanqing Daoist, top-grade." "Hehui Daoist, top-grade."

"Chen Yu, top-notch."

“Lu Xingzhou...Lu Nuonuo, top-notch.”

"???" This time, many examinees turned to look and saw a round-faced little girl with delicate features sitting in front of the alchemy furnace. Her face was covered in black ash, and she blinked her eyes in confusion.

"Don't tell me this child is also one of the examinees this time?" A Taoist priest stared in disbelief. "This is the Imperial Academy of Alchemy, not a primary school!"

"Silence!" Meng Li surveyed the room, observing that yesterday's patients had recovered completely after taking the newly refined pills: "The pills were all effective; the test is passed."

"???" This kid passed?
Those who hadn't passed were stunned; they simply couldn't accept that they were inferior to children.

The group that passed by exchanged glances, their eyes filled with wariness.

Passing the exam isn't what the best people are pursuing... what everyone is aiming for is ranking, being the top scorer.

The final ranking is determined by combining the scores from the test two days ago and the results of today's pill competition.

There's no comparison between sixth-grade elixirs; to determine the winner, a tiebreaker is necessary. Since the emperor is present, he will set the questions, similar to a palace examination.

Gu Zhanting looked at the examinees quietly for a while, then said calmly, "You have all been taking the exam for three days and are quite tired, so I won't use any fancy tricks. To put it simply, I will select a fourth-grade pill formula from the royal collection that none of you have ever seen before. Each of you will begin refining, and the ranking will be determined by the quantity and quality of the pills."

The gamblers had told Sheng Yuanyao that Xuanqing Daoist and his ilk had reached the fifth rank and had a chance of successfully refining a fourth-rank pill.

People assumed Lu Xingzhou was far from this level, but in reality, this was Lu Xingzhou's skill level before he went to the capital—the Dragon Elephant Pill he refined for Shen Tang was a fourth-grade pill, which he failed to refine once before succeeding during his period of enlightenment. In comparison, their abilities are basically on par.

The problem was that Lu Xingzhou's cultivation level was only at the sixth rank back then, which led to insufficient control and a scattered mind. But now, Lu Xingzhou's cultivation level had broken through to the fifth rank, and things were different... A'nuo knew very well that her master had been practicing in the secret room these past few days, and his success rate in refining fourth-rank pills was already 100%. He would only occasionally make a mistake if he tried to refine multiple pills in one batch.

If Anuo were to assist, it wouldn't be called a success rate, it would be called an exceptional success rate.

But this time, Ah Nuo has to refine it herself and can't be distracted to help her master.

In that moment of distraction, with a "boom," the fire in the furnace surged wildly, and Ah Nuo's face was instantly covered in soot. She blinked, bewildered.

"Pfft..." Many teachers from the Pill Academy chuckled quietly. This little kid, trying to refine a fourth-grade pill... Is he just trying to be cute? Look, the furnace is about to explode!

The flames flickered for a while, then gradually stabilized, and the furnace didn't explode.

"Huh..." Xuanqing and the others glanced at it distractedly, and were shocked.

The elixir formula His Majesty gave us is the kind with very potent medicinal properties, making it extremely easy for the furnace to explode during refining. This child's elixir fire is already in disarray; how can the medicinal properties be kept stable and prevented from exploding?

"Bang bang bang!" One after another, the sound of furnaces exploding erupted on the scene. The candidates who had just passed the sixth-grade pill test could no longer hold on and were almost all wiped out.

The refining of fourth-grade pills is truly beyond the scope of what young alchemists can achieve at this stage.

As a result, everyone else had almost finished blowing up their toys, but the child's toys were left unexploded.

Not only the alchemists, but even the guards on the sidelines craned their necks to watch; everyone's attention was completely drawn to this little girl. She wasn't even as tall as the alchemy furnace! When she sat there cross-legged with her toes spread, she seemed to be shorter than the furnace's legs…

Ah Nuo scratched his head. As long as the fire didn't mess with him, refining a fourth-grade pill seemed quite simple... Why were they looking at him like that?

I felt like I could refine nine at once, but that was too conservative. I thought the emperor's pill formulas were incredibly difficult, so I only refined six... The medicinal properties are quite similar to the Imperial Supreme Scripture, long-lasting and domineering. So even the royal family's pills have these properties...

But the pills are too powerful, that's not good. As expected, Sister Qingli was right, the Huangji Jingshi Jing is indeed not a good cultivation method.

"Whoosh!" The furnace lid spun rapidly, filling the air with the fragrance of elixir.

Six pills spun and flew up.

"I'm all set, Grandpa, come and see the pill." A'nuo didn't even bother to look at it herself, and ran straight to Lu Xingzhou's side: "Master, Master, let me help you control the fire."

Lu Xingzhou, both amused and exasperated, pressed her down: "You're a test-taker today too. If you come to help me, it'll be considered cheating. Sit aside and play, okay? Be good."

Ah Nuo was completely bewildered, still not understanding why she had become a test taker. She didn't even have a recommendation letter... Did those who came in with their master count?
Qin Zhiyu, Meng Li, and the others surrounded A Nuo's alchemy furnace, trembling as they took down the pills to examine them. Their voices trembled as they said, "Fourth-grade Eight Meridians Breaking Sea Pills, six pills in one furnace, quality... top-grade!"

The entire plaza erupted in a roar. Xuan Qing and the others stood up in shock, exclaiming in disbelief, "This is impossible!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: Tomorrow is the last day of double rewards, so I'm asking for monthly votes one more time!
(End of this chapter)