I rely on learning to achieve immortality.

The next day, the two apprentices cautiously knocked on the cave door.

The two individuals, a boy and a girl, were both around seventeen or eighteen years old. The boy was naturally Zhang Yuan, the grandson of Steward Zhang. The girl was named Zhou Sijin, whose family had some connections within the inner sect, and she herself possessed a good grasp of the medicinal classics.

Xu Zhou let the two into the alchemy room, then told them to wait a moment while he went and would be right back.

His departure left the two apprentices somewhat bewildered.

Zhou Sijin nudged Zhang Yuan's arm: "Why does this alchemy room still look brand new? Is the teacher your grandfather introduced really reliable?"

Zhang Yuan wasn't sure either, but he still subconsciously replied, "My grandfather said that this teacher is the most outstanding student he has ever taught, and he is definitely the most suitable teacher for us."

Zhou Sijin pursed her lips: "That's not necessarily true. Could he possibly be better than Senior Sister Song Rou?"

Zhang Yuan was speechless for a moment before muttering, "Senior Sister Song's alchemy room never accepts apprentices, only skilled alchemists. We can't get in anyway."

"That's true," Zhou Sijin sighed, "I hope this teacher is alright."

Both of them were a little uneasy, after all, Xu Zhou's actual skill level would determine their future for the next few years.

After waiting for a while, Xu Zhou returned.

His expression was slightly indifferent. He glanced at the two of them casually and said, "Let me make this clear first: I like to read books and often look at classic texts, so I may not have much time to take care of you."

The alchemy room is yours to learn from. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me.

Zhang Yuan and Zhou Sijin exchanged a quick glance, each seeing the helplessness in the other's eyes.

It seems this teacher is really unreliable.

But now that Xu Zhou had spoken, the two could only honestly reply, "Yes."

"That's good."

Xu Zhou nodded in satisfaction, then patted the storage bag.

Suddenly, a small mountain of medicinal herbs appeared before the two of them.

"There's not much to do today. Once you've finished processing all these medicinal herbs, you can leave."

After saying that, he pulled up a chair, sat down in the corner of the alchemy room, took out a classic book, and began to read it by himself.

Zhang Yuan was stunned for a moment before saying, "Teacher, isn't this a bit too much?"

"Is it a lot?"

Xu Zhou glanced at it and casually replied, "If the two of you can't finish it in a day, it means you don't have a good grasp of alchemy."

After saying that, he walked to the side, sat down, opened a book, and ignored the two of them.

Silence fell over the alchemy room.

Zhang Yuan and Zhou Sijin exchanged a glance, both seeing the helplessness in each other's eyes.

But since we're already here, we might as well give it a try.

...

Initially, things went relatively smoothly.

The two remained relatively calm at first, each processing the medicinal materials according to the records in the pharmacopoeia.

But within half an hour, problems began to arise one after another.

Some of the medicinal herbs they recognized by name, yet they didn't know how to handle them. Others seemed simple, but they kept making mistakes once they started.

Waste materials gradually piled up.

Looking at the small mountain of medicinal herbs again, it seemed that it hadn't decreased at all.

Sweat beaded on Zhang Yuan's forehead, and his heart grew heavier with each passing moment.

"If this continues, I'm afraid we're in trouble."

He spoke in a low voice, his tone no longer as confident as before.

Zhou Sijin also fell silent.

She had initially been quite confident, but now she was feeling overwhelmed by a series of mistakes.

Seeing that she couldn't handle it, she became anxious and muttered to herself, "How am I supposed to deal with this pearl-eating scorpion's tail?"

Just then, a voice came from the corner:

"Check the scorpion's tail for roundness; crush the round ones and remove the shell from the rough ones."

The two were taken aback.

Looking back, Xu Zhou was still sitting in the same spot, without even changing his posture.

It was as if what he just said had nothing to do with him.

Zhou Sijin hesitated for a moment, but still asked again.

Xu Zhou's answer remained unchanged, word for word.

This time, the two did not hesitate and did as instructed.

The final result was completely consistent with the records in the pharmacopoeia.

The two exchanged a glance and both saw the change in each other's eyes.

They started trying to ask questions.

At first it was just a trial, but as time went on, their questions became more and more frequent.

Xu Zhou answered every question without hesitation, as if he were a puppet who had recorded all the answers.

Before they knew it, their movements became increasingly fluid and coordinated.

Although the amount of waste was still increasing, the pile of medicinal herbs was finally decreasing little by little.

until a certain moment.

Zhang Yuan finished processing the last batch of medicinal herbs, and then suddenly stopped.

He looked down and saw that the medicinal herbs that had been piled up like a mountain were now completely gone.

Only then did he realize that his arm was sore, his brain was throbbing, and he felt slightly dizzy.

Before we knew it, more than half a day had passed.

At this moment, Xu Zhou stood up from his chair and walked over expressionlessly.

As soon as he stood up, Zhang and Zhou became somewhat nervous.

Xu Zhou approached the two of them and glanced at the medicinal herbs that had been processed.

He casually picked out a portion and tossed it aside. Soon, it piled up into a small heap again.

"Of these medicinal herbs, 60% are substandard, 20% are of poor quality, and the remaining 20% ​​are usable," Xu Zhou stated their results, his tone remaining calm.

With a casual sweep, he knocked 80% of the medicinal herbs in front of him into the waste bin.

Zhang and Zhou were somewhat uneasy; an 80% elimination rate sounded really bad.

They thought Xu Zhou would scold them for this.

But Xu Zhou simply said, "Not bad."

Go back and rest, we'll continue tomorrow.

After saying that, he handed two more sheets of paper to the two of them: "Take these back and look at them again."

The two looked down and saw that the text contained chapters from the classics of medicine.

Upon seeing the entry for "Chapter 34, Section 7 of the Insect Medicine Classic," Zhang Yuan's face flushed red. This chapter contained the information about the pearl-eating scorpion tail, the very herb he had almost failed to process.

There are many more such records, densely packed and almost filling the entire slip of paper; if counted carefully, there are at least a hundred.

Both of them were startled.

They thought Xu Zhou didn't care about them at all, but they never expected that everything they did that day had been seen by the other party.

An invisible sense of oppression quietly arose in my heart.

...

After seeing them off, Xu Zhou rubbed his cheeks, feeling a bit sore in his facial muscles.

This was his first time teaching someone, and he was a little unsure of how to teach. His way of speaking just now was somewhat imitative of Ke Yanfeng.

As for the effect, he didn't know.

He had lived and studied for decades, but this was his first time teaching someone.

He wasn't sure how to teach him.

He knew firsthand how troublesome teaching apprentices was when he was an apprentice himself. If he had done everything himself like Ke Yanfeng once did, his learning time would probably have been halved.

After careful consideration, he decided to change his approach.

He did not use the teaching methods that Ke Yanfeng used back then.

In his view, the path of alchemy still requires practice to quickly improve one's level.

No matter how clearly it's written in a book, you'll always miss the point if you don't try it yourself.

Don't be fooled by the fact that he spends so much time reading; it's because he comes from an outsider background and lacks the resources to practice. He also has the ability to extend his lifespan through deep learning, which allows him to focus on reading without worry.

Otherwise, he would prefer to try it himself, and his alchemy skills could improve even faster.

That's why he would hand over a large quantity of medicinal herbs to his apprentices so they could start using them directly.

If someone is truly dedicated to the study of Daoist alchemy, they will diligently learn on their own. Those whose minds are not on it will not learn no matter how much you teach them.

All you need to do is answer the questions.

The only drawback of this teaching method is perhaps that the medicinal herbs are relatively expensive.

Although they were just basic medicinal herbs, the quantity was too large, and the value exceeded expectations. They were all used up in just half a day, and Xu Zhou couldn't help but feel a little distressed.

But there's no other way; if we want to save time and train good apprentices, we can only spend more resources.

As long as you get through the initial startup phase, you can gradually get on the right track, so the initial investment is worthwhile.

Xu Zhou sighed inwardly as he recalled how the two apprentices had fled as if they were running away.

I just hope they can pull through.