Becoming a god starts with one certificate becoming eternal.

After leaving the pharmacy, Xue Chan did not stay with them any longer.

Ye Xiao walked alone to the end of the corridor. As soon as he turned a corner, the lights and panting sounds from the outer training ground came back down to him.

The assessment is still ongoing.

First stage.

Those who could hold on remained standing; those who couldn't have been carried away.

Less than 10% of the people remaining in the arena were left.

Those who hadn't collapsed were all desperately holding on, sweat dripping down their chins... Whoever gave up first would be eliminated.

The sound of bamboo sticks hitting the ground rang out.

"Stay calm."

Huang Yu's voice wasn't loud, but it felt like a stone pressing down on everyone's spine, making them afraid to be distracted.

The outer disciple, leaning against the wall at the side of the field, was pale and his legs were still twitching.

They were all eliminated.

Someone muttered a few curses under their breath, then immediately shut up, seemingly afraid of disturbing the people in the room.

"Is that the guy from Mute Alley?"

"Don't say things like that again. Three bone sounds represent the early stage of bone forging, which is the mark of a true inner sect senior brother."

"Bone forging... We might practice standing meditation until we die, and we might not even have the chance to achieve it."

"Damn it... my leg is about to break from standing, how did I get eliminated?"

The voices of the few losers who recognized Ye Xiao suddenly disappeared as they spoke.

It's not about accepting it.

It's pain and discomfort, it's the frustration of being unable to reach something no matter how hard you try.

Ye Xiao walked along the edge of the field.

He walked at a moderate pace.

But just as he passed by, a subtle change occurred in the students who were still holding on in the training ground.

It's not a disturbance.

Instead... it's tighter.

Someone recognized the face.

Some people also remember the three cracking sounds.

But they dared not look, dared not move, and dared not even think about it.

This round doesn't consider status; it only considers who can stay standing the longest. Nobody wants to be eliminated.

Tang Qi is still alive.

He stood up, not falling, but his breathing was erratic.

It wasn't the anger of being outdone, but something far more unbearable.

I was still diligently practicing the standing meditation when I suddenly realized...

What I'm fighting for is whether I'm qualified to make it to the top.

The person I looked down on is no longer on this floor.

Ye Xiao did not turn around.

As he stepped out of the illuminated training ground, his silhouette was gradually swallowed up by the light and shadow.

And they could only continue standing there.

Stand until someone else falls down.

Only those who stand until only ten remain are eligible to proceed to the next stage of the assessment.

Not far from the martial arts school gate, I suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind me.

"Senior Brother Ye."

Ye Xiao stopped.

The one who caught up was a burly outer disciple. He hadn't changed his clothes yet, and his cuffs were soaked with sweat, as if he had just been eliminated not long ago and hadn't caught his breath.

He stopped, clasped his hands in a fist salute, took a breath, and then finished speaking:

"I couldn't handle the assessment."

"My family asked me to deliver a message."

He pulled a neatly folded note from his pocket, but didn't dare hand it directly to Ye Xiao. Instead, he held it with both hands, waiting for Ye Xiao's reaction.

Ye Xiao nodded, signaling him to continue.

"My family runs a medicinal herb business in the inner city," the burly outer disciple said in a low voice. "I'd like to ask you, senior brother... to lend your name to me."

He paused for a moment, as if considering his words:

"It's not that I need you to step in right now, nor am I asking you to risk your life, and you basically don't need to do anything."

"Let's just leave our friendship here for now. If we run into trouble while our medicine cart is traveling down the city or along the Beilu route, we'd like to use your name as a shield."

"The monthly salary that is due will be paid on a monthly basis, and the rules that should be followed will be followed openly."

His words weren't fancy, and he spoke slowly, but they were very sincere.

Ye Xiao's gaze lingered on the post for a moment.

The paper was neither new nor old, but the creases were very neat, as if it had been prepared long ago, just waiting for the right person to hand it over.

It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision.

It's more like they're waiting for the outer sect assessment, the one who should have stood out.

Ye Xiao didn't accept the invitation, but only asked one question:

"How much is the monthly salary? What responsibilities do I have?"

The robust outer disciple immediately replied, "The monthly salary is five taels. Normally, I don't need to trouble you, senior brother. If something really happens, I only ask that you show your face and say a word... You don't need to risk your life, just show your name."

Ye Xiao looked at him, his tone as calm as if he were settling accounts:

"I don't plan to just hang around the name for now. We'll talk about it after I become a quasi-martial artist."

"At that time, we will still not use seals or keep accounts, but operate openly. What you want is a shield, what I want is leverage to go further."

The outer disciples were taken aback.

A quasi-martial artist... those are among the very few in the entire martial arts school. He hadn't expected Ye Xiao to have such high aspirations.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and he finally clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Understood. Then I congratulate you on your early success, Senior Brother."

He turned and left, leaving very cleanly.

If Ye Xiao really becomes a quasi-martial artist, then it's not something their family is qualified to compete for or cultivate.

Although he didn't believe Ye Xiao truly had a chance to reach that level, he didn't dare say anything more, given Ye Xiao's status as an inner disciple.

Ye Xiao hadn't gone far when another figure approached.

Although they were both outer disciples, their clothes were unusually clean, and their faces were full of smiles, as if they had been waiting there for a long time.

"Senior Brother Ye."

"I also offer nominal positions here; the pay is faster and higher, and there's less work involved."

He took two steps closer, lowering his voice even further:

"All you have to do is put your stamp and your name on it. If something really goes wrong, you don't need to be the one to rush to the front lines. Someone else will have to take responsibility, and having a name on your head is enough to get by."

Ye Xiao's gaze lingered on his face for a moment: "Press your seal?"

The man smiled even more ingratiatingly: "Yes, just put your stamp on it. If anything goes wrong, we'll put it in your name first. Once we have someone to explain, someone will naturally settle the score."

Ye Xiao cut to the chase:

"You're not here just to hang around."

"You're here to find a name to shield you from trouble and take the blame."

The man's expression changed, and he tried to smooth things over.

Ye Xiao had already pushed the contract back, his voice as cold as the back of a knife:

"Don't take this kind of paper out next time."

"If you want a coffin lid, go find a dead person."

He turned and left, his steps neither fast nor slow.

The road has barely been lit up, and already some people want to use it as a knife, a shield, or a coffin lid.

After taking a few steps, he clearly sensed that more than one pair of eyes were watching him from the shadows.

Someone whispered something to their companion, their tone suggesting they were discussing or negotiating a price.

The next moment, footsteps approached, lighter and more urgent.

"Ye Xiao".

The voice was excessively clean, coming from the shadows at the alley entrance, ending softly, like a laugh, or perhaps just a habit of speaking in a pleasant tone.

Ye Xiao didn't stop walking: "Who?"

A woman emerged from the shadows. She was in her thirties, her cotton coat neatly tucked in, the waistline perfectly cinched, her figure graceful, and the cuffs so clean they seemed out of place.

Her makeup was very light, yet it made her eyebrows and eyes stand out. Not a single strand of her hair was out of place, and an inconspicuous hairpin was pinned to her temple. Only when the lamp flickered could a glimmer of its gentle light be seen.

She stood neither too close nor too far... two steps away.

It was just the right distance—just out of her reach, yet close enough for her to hear her words.

The sliver of moonlight at the alley entrance fell on the delicate hairpin at her temple, its gentle glow fading in an instant.

She raised her hand and brushed away non-existent dust from her sleeve, her movements as composed as if she were waiting for someone at her own doorstep.

"My surname is Qin." She tilted her head slightly, her tone low but not clingy: "I'm going to do something for someone."

Ye Xiao didn't speak.

Qin Niangzi's gaze fell on him, sweeping over him like water, gentle yet revealing clearly the parts of him that he least wanted to be seen.

"That contract with the fingerprint on it just now was made of rope," she said bluntly, but a faint smile played on her lips. "You were right to refuse."

Ye Xiao finally spoke: "So, you came here to give me another rope?"

"No."

Madam Qin gently shook her head, her smile just the right amount: "I'm here to bet on you."

"He came from the Silent Alley and worked incredibly hard in the Northern Furnace, yet he still managed to get this far."

Others think you won't live long, but I'm curious to see how long you can live.

Before Ye Xiao could speak, she took out a palm-sized lacquer box from her inner pocket.

Pushing open the box lid, ten pills were neatly arranged inside, like pre-prepared chips.

The lacquer box landed almost silently on the stone edge, yet it was as if the price and the rules had been placed on the table together.

"They're all third-rate drugs."

Madam Qin smiled faintly, and even the wind at the alley entrance seemed to slow down, making people subconsciously take another look at her: "I don't care for them, but they're clean and useful. All at 30% off... I'm putting my chips here; whether you dare to take them or not is up to you."

Ye Xiao stared intently at the lacquer box: "Conditions?"

The medicine in front of him was different from the third-rate medicine he had bought, but it was unlikely that the other party would try to fool him with fake medicine.

If the medicine is genuine, it will allow him to push the road forward further.

He didn't care about the drug's efficacy; all he cared about was its potency.

Qin Niangzi answered clearly:

"No contracts, no seals, no debts."

"I won't borrow your name either."

"As long as you guarantee that, under the same conditions, you will choose us first for your name-listing."

She looked at him with an almost gentle calmness in her eyes, as if she were discussing an ordinary business transaction:

"If you can afford it, then take it."

If you can't produce it, I'll pretend I never called you tonight.

The wind blew in from the alley entrance, as cold as the back of a knife.

Ye Xiao remained silent for a moment, then took out the ten taels of silver he had just received, along with a few strings of copper coins... This was all his savings, and once he had gathered them, it would be just enough.

Only a few copper coins remained.

"I'll buy the medicine."

"I agree to your terms."

Ye Xiao placed the money on the stone edge without making any further moves.

Madam Qin glanced at the money, as if confirming that the accounts were correct, before saying calmly, "Alright, the medicine is yours."

Ye Xiao tucked the lacquer box into his bosom, close to his ribs.

He turned and left, his steps neither fast nor slow.

Madam Qin did not chase after her, but stood in the shadows for a long time before softly laughing:

"The name of the inner sect is a price tag."

"Even if you don't sell it, it will still be hanging on you... If you want its price to go up, you'd better be able to hold out until someone tears it off. Don't let me down."

Ye Xiao did not turn around.

He only remembers one thing.

That red slip already belongs to him.

Tomorrow at Mao hour.

Get the job done and get the money back while you're still alive... that's the most urgent thing right now.