I rely on learning to achieve immortality.

"Do I mention him often?" Ke Yanfeng asked, puzzled.

Ke Qiaoshu chuckled, completely unlike her composed demeanor in front of strangers: "Brother, you almost never talk about other people, so mentioning Xu Zhou even a few times is considered 'frequent'."

Ke Yanfeng gave a muffled "hmm": "However, this kid does have some ability, much like I used to be."

Ke Qiaoshu blinked repeatedly, never expecting her older brother to have such a high opinion of others.

Just as he was about to make a joke, Ke Yanfeng suddenly asked, "Little sister, do you have any female disciples in your inner sect who don't have much of a future?"

"Yes, we do have that..."

Ke Qiaoshu was taken aback, then asked in confusion, "Why are you asking this?"

"It's nothing."

Ke Yanfeng remained silent for a while, then smiled strangely and said, "I was thinking, if there are any junior sisters in the inner sect with slightly lower aptitude, we might as well introduce them to Xu Zhou, which would be a good way to build a good relationship."

Ke Qiaoshu couldn't help but laugh and said, "He looks quite young, is there any need to be in such a hurry?"

"Hehe, they're very mature and prepared long ago."

Ke Yanfeng recounted the rumor about Xu Zhou exchanging for the anti-aging technique, which amused Ke Qiaoshu for a long time.

Ke Yanfeng, on the other hand, was very serious. He shook his head and sighed, "If I had recognized reality like him back then, I wouldn't have had to take so many detours and suffer so much."

Ke Qiaoshu said helplessly, "Alright, since my junior brother is so kind, I'll take a look for him in my spare time."

But she added seriously, "However, Junior Brother Xu's current status is still too low. Even disregarding his cultivation level, he can't be considered a true alchemist. I can only help him after he has achieved some success in his studies. Otherwise, I can't bring myself to introduce him to someone now."

Ke Yanfeng pondered for a while, then nodded and said, "That's true, then let's wait a few more years and see."

...

Six months later.

In the Hundred Herbs Hall, the stewards gathered again for their usual meeting.

"Speaking of which, the previous batch of apprentices are almost old enough to assist in alchemy. Shouldn't we discuss their future plans?"

"Deacon Zhang, you're in charge of teaching. How have these students been performing lately?"

Deacon Zhang took out the recent test records and passed them to the others to see, saying, "This batch of apprentices has all performed adequately and are now capable of assisting in alchemy at any time. Once they get the hang of it, they should be able to truly participate in alchemy after just one or two years of practice."

"Good job, Steward Zhang." The other stewards nodded and glanced at the test records.

"The skill level of this group of apprentices is indeed acceptable."

"One of them seems to be related to Xiao Tianming, who is from the inner sect, as uncle and nephew. This is worth paying attention to."

"Everyone, take your pick. If you find an apprentice you like, then each of you can take them on and assign them to the alchemists under your management."

Someone flipped through the records a couple of times, pointed to one of them, and said, "This guy named Xu Zhou has really good grades."

Upon hearing this, the others also examined the medicine and nodded in agreement: "Indeed, the understanding of the medicine is extremely thorough and comprehensive; it seems that he has put in a lot of hard work."

"Whose nephew or niece is he? Are there any people with the surname Xu in the inner sect?"

A short deacon curled his lip: "Isn't this the outer disciple we recruited before? He's still here?"

Upon hearing this, the other interested butlers immediately fell silent.

Deacon Zhang frowned slightly and said in a cold voice, "Deacon Zhuang, Xu Zhou's entry into the hall was discussed back then, so why bring up his background now?"

"When he first entered the school, this child was not familiar with the medical classics. In just two years, his grades were among the best, which is enough to prove that he has extraordinary perseverance and is no less than others."

The steward shook his head: "Steward Zhang, I have no doubt about his perseverance. It's just that outer disciples will ultimately find it difficult to attain the Great Dao of Alchemy."

"Given his background, it's already quite an achievement that he's progressed this far. Further studies require specific cultivation resources. Do you expect a mere outer disciple to manage on his own?"

He looked over with a smile: "How about you take him as your disciple, Deacon Zhang, and personally teach him?"

Deacon Zhang frowned slightly, and after a long while said, "He does lack resources, but his foundation is solid. He can still manage to help with alchemy."

"Fine," Deacon Zhuang said dismissively, "then everyone can decide for themselves."

None of the deacons spoke, but they all thought the same thing as Deacon Zhuang.

Alchemy is a profound art that requires not only a great deal of time and energy to study, but also considerable financial resources.

Without a powerful background, no matter how hard an outer disciple tries, it will be difficult to reach the pinnacle of alchemy.

Xu Zhou does indeed have a solid foundation, but that's at the cost of almost completely abandoning cultivation. While he may appear outstanding now, his future cultivation will inevitably be limited. High-level alchemists require considerable cultivation; without it, how can he withstand the long hours of alchemy work?

The butlers who had initially admired Xu Zhou now abandoned any such thoughts.

After all, the resources in the hall are not plentiful, and training an alchemist from the bottom up is too costly and not worth the effort.

Even Steward Zhang could only sigh inwardly at this moment, realizing that Steward Zhuang's words were true.

Afterwards, the other deacons smoothed things over and let the matter drop.

However, no one inquired about Xu Zhou's whereabouts afterward.

...

It has been almost two years since Xu Zhou entered the monastery.

Over two years, through his almost tireless study, his understanding of the Materia Medica improved dramatically, gradually surpassing others and making him the undisputed number one among the apprentices.

Everyone else was aware of this, but no one felt any jealousy.

Xu Zhou's expenditure was indeed considerable.

For two whole years, his cultivation hadn't improved at all, leaving him virtually no different from an ordinary person. Such negligence had practically ruined his future path to immortality.

The rest of the apprentices, even the weakest among them, were at the second level of Qi Refining. The best, Xiao Bing, was not far from the middle stage of Qi Refining.

They're only here to learn alchemy; they won't neglect their cultivation for it. Xu Zhou even gave up cultivation, so it's no wonder he learns so quickly.

Now that the two-year period is almost over, this batch of apprentices will soon be divided and assigned to the alchemists in the hall to assist in alchemy work.

If you can be assigned to work under a responsible alchemist, your alchemy skills will improve by leaps and bounds. In addition, your rewards will increase accordingly, and you may even receive half a share of the pills you produce.

The apprentices were all hoping to be assigned to work under one of the more reputable alchemists at Baicaotang.

As time went by, these people all found their own places to go, a situation that was both joyful and sorrowful.

Xu Zhou was the only exception; his name was not on Steward Zhang's list.

He scanned the list several times, confirming that his name was not on it, and sighed inwardly.

He had long realized that his cultivation level and background were too poor, and he estimated that no alchemist would be willing to take him in.

Fortunately, he wasn't kicked out of the Hundred Herbs Hall. Steward Zhang said frankly that he could continue studying in the library, and perhaps some alchemist would need him in the future.

To put it bluntly, it means waiting for the right opportunity.

Xu Zhou was already quite satisfied. As long as he could continue studying those classic medical texts, even if the pay and benefits didn't improve, he wouldn't feel like he had wasted his time.

Not assisting in alchemy means he can continue to spend a lot of time studying classical texts.

The others looked at him with some pity, but he didn't seem to care.

After that, he continued to sit idly in the library.

With the others gone, it was much quieter. Normally, they found the noise bothersome, but now, with no one talking, it felt rather desolate.

He was prepared for years, even a decade, to pass by without anyone paying attention. In any case, as long as he thoroughly understood the medical classics, he could at least be considered to have entered the realm of alchemy, which would already be a worthwhile investment.

But the change came faster than expected.

After studying on his own for two months, he went to the pharmacy to identify medicines as usual.

The medicinal herbs Ke Yanfeng provided this time were quite tricky, more than twice as difficult as usual. However, having already studied most of the medicinal classics in the library, he finally managed to identify these herbs through some clues.

After the identification of the herbs was completed that day, Ke Yanfeng did not let him leave immediately.

This usually aloof senior brother, unusually, looked him directly in the eye and asked, "Xu Zhou, what have you been doing these days?"

Xu Zhou answered frankly, "I have been staying in the library these past few days, studying classic medical texts."

"How much of the basic pharmacopoeia do you feel you have mastered?"

"About half of it has been thoroughly read."

"Only half?"

Ke Yanfeng said coldly, "You can probably remember seven or eight tenths of those rudimentary medical texts in the library, so why waste your time there?"

"I need to focus on alchemy in a few days, and the pharmacy needs someone to look after it. You can come here after that."

Xu Zhou was slightly taken aback, then realized that Senior Brother Ke was looking out for him, and immediately cupped his hands in thanks.

Ke Yanfeng waved his hand: "I'll be very busy for a while, and there's no one else to help out at this pharmacy. Since you're free, I thought I'd let you come. It's nothing."

"After you arrive, you must take all matters in the pharmacy seriously and not be negligent. If anything goes wrong, you will be the first person I hold accountable."

He paused for a moment, then handed over a wooden plaque:

"This item is a token of Baicaotang. You can borrow medicine books from the library by presenting this item. When the pharmacy is not busy, you can borrow books from the library yourself."

Xu Zhou was overjoyed, and this time he spoke with much more sincerity: "Thank you, Senior Brother!"