Survival at Sea: I Became Number One by Growing Mushrooms

With half an hour to go, Xu Jiawei was planning to find a secluded corner to wait for the exam to begin.

As a result, the staff respectfully invited me to a private lounge, which was very comfortable and had tea and refreshments.

Xu Jiawei sighed, "My treatment has improved a lot. Now I can be considered a local bigwig."

There aren't many level nine pharmacists. Reaching level seven means you can become a manager in the association. A level seven pharmacist is considered a master not only outside the association but also within it.

If you become a level nine pharmacist, you can become an elder or even a vice president in the association.

What Xu Jiawei didn't know was that it was currently the off-season for assessments, so the waiting time was short. In the past, the wait could have been more than ten hours. Therefore, the association arranged a rest room, but only pharmacists of level seven or above could have access to it.

When the assessment was first reformed, there was a surge in bookings for the Level 9 assessment. Many Level 8 pharmacists who had already used up their three attempts came back to take the Level 9 pharmacist assessment, keeping the association busy for a long time.

However, the reformed assessment is even more difficult than the previous assessment, which was based on luck.

The requirements for apothecaries' alchemy skills are now much stricter. Those apothecaries who failed the exam before because they were not good enough will still fail now. The pass rate for the reformed exam is less than 10%.

Fortunately, Xu Jiawei missed the peak season; otherwise, it would have been impossible to book an appointment, and she might have had to wait for several days.

Sitting in the private lounge drinking tea, half an hour quickly passed. A staff member led Xu Jiawei over and took her to the far end of the second floor, to a very enclosed room.

Xu Jiawei saw the president again in the room, but they were separated by a glass partition.

She couldn't hear what they were saying at all; the glass was soundproof.

The room was small, just big enough to fit a crucible. The layout of the room resembled a prison, and Xu Jiawei felt like a prisoner being monitored through glass.

At this moment, the president took out a microphone-like device from the side, cleared his throat, and said, "Now I will announce the exam rules. Candidates are required to independently refine a medicine of level eight difficulty. The time limit is one hour. After one hour, the examiners will judge."

The guild leader then produced a long list, stating that anyone wishing to refine the potions or pills on the list was welcome.

Xu Jiawei thought to herself: Sure enough, the exam content has changed. Before, it required us to refine a certain number of types of potions.

Previously, the competition focused on the pharmacist's experience and the number of recipes they could obtain, not their refining skills.

But for those who have the money to buy the formula, how can money not be considered a skill?

The current assessment focuses on the refining techniques and skill level, which is much more reasonable than the previous assessment method.

Xu Jiawei glanced at the list of medicines.

The president's voice came through the microphone again: "The association can also provide the recipe; it just needs to be refined within an hour."

After all, many players came from the mainland. These players are still relatively new to the game and don't have many potion recipes. There are even cases where they haven't seen any of the recipes on the list before. Therefore, the association also provides recipes for the assessment.

Xu Jiawei saw the familiar pills and said, "No need." These were the Ice Pills that Grace had given her before, which she had learned how to use a long time ago.

This isn't difficult; in fact, it's considered simple among level eight recipes.

However, choosing a simple formula means that the quality requirements for the finished product are higher. Soon, the examiner came in with a crucible and the necessary herbs.

The crucible was of decent quality; although it couldn't compare to the nameless crucible, Xu Jiawei couldn't find any fault with it.

Xu Jiawei skillfully refined the Frost Pill that she had made countless times, but she couldn't rely on external forces, so she could only make the pill by hand.

She practiced for a while, and the pills she made were quite round; after all, appearance is also part of the quality of a pill.

Soon, Xu Jiawei placed over a hundred Ice Pills on the tray.

The president, who was outside, couldn't help but nod in approval upon seeing Xu Jiawei's smooth movements.

She then pressed the button to finish the exam, which took 20 minutes. The time was also part of the exam's scoring criteria.

20 minutes is a pretty fast time.

Xu Jiawei received a perfect score in the time category.

Next came the quality inspection of the finished product. A vice president took out one and examined it carefully. He then took out a pill cutter, cut the pill open, and exclaimed, "Not bad, very high quality, qualified."

The chairman smiled and said, "128 finished products, excellent retention rate, qualified."

"Congratulations, you passed the exam." The examiners were very efficient, announcing the results in less than five minutes.

The glass door opened, and Xu Jiawei walked out. Only then did the president catch up with Xu Jiawei.

"Master Xu, it's been a long time. I didn't expect you to give me such a big surprise after such a long time," the president said with a smile.

Xu Jiawei greeted them with a smile, "President, Vice President, it's been a long time."

"I heard you're going to take the Level 9 exam, so hurry up and register. We all have time today," the president urged.

Xu Jiawei understood what the president meant: once she registered, she could continue the exam today.

"President, I'm going to register now. Let's talk later."

"Okay, slow down, no rush."

Xu Jiawei returned to the front desk and paid the registration fee.

At this moment, the receptionist's admiration for Xu Jiawei had reached its peak. She said with some envy, "Master Xu, at your speed, you'll probably become a level ten pharmacist very soon."

Xu Jiawei was stunned. What? Isn't the highest level only nine? Where did this level ten pharmacist come from?

"What is a Level 10 Pharmacist? Is it a newly released level?"

The clerk at the counter explained with a smile, "Yes, it's a new level that was created after the last pharmacist assessment reform. Your teacher, Master Grace, was rated as a level ten pharmacist half a month ago."

Xu Jiawei asked with some curiosity, "Do level 10 pharmacists also need to take an exam?"

"I don't know about that. I'm just a regular receptionist. But once you pass the Level 9 exam, the president should tell you." The receptionist handed Xu Jiawei her exam admission ticket.

Xu Jiawei took it; it showed that there were still ten minutes left in the exam. So fast! Even the exam room hadn't changed.

It seemed there was no need to rest. Xu Jiawei took her exam admission ticket and went straight to the small room at the end of the second floor.

At this moment, the president and the others were already sitting upright, waiting for Xu Jiawei to arrive.

Their expressions were very serious, completely unlike their previous friendly and enthusiastic demeanor.

Upon seeing Xu Jiawei enter the examination room, the president immediately took out the microphone and said, "The 1243rd Level 9 Pharmacist Examination is about to begin. Now, I will announce the examination rules: 1. Candidates are not allowed to use any items that can increase the success rate of closing a sale. They are only allowed to use the crucibles provided by the association and the flames that come with the crucibles."

2. Only herbs provided by the association are allowed for crafting; herbs brought by the examinee are not permitted.

3. The association will provide 20 level 9 potion recipes. Candidates can choose 5 of them. Successfully refining 4 of them will be considered a successful test.

4. The exam lasts for 5 hours. Players need to successfully refine 4 types of potions within the specified time. If the time runs out and the potions are not completed, it will be considered a failure.

The exam rules have been announced. Do any candidates have any questions?