The Two Alchemist Tests

"The Alchemist Hall is recruiting Outer sect disciples! The Alchemist Hall is recruiting Outer sect disciples!", jesters walked on the streets of Ifre, loudly banging their drums and shouting for all to hear.

People and cultivators alike stopped to listen to the jester. Alchemy hall recruitment was here. Every year, Alchemy hall opens its doors to all the prospective Alchemy masters and tests them for their aptitude in alchemy. Anyone lucky enough to get selected is given the honor to be an Outer sect Descipel of Alchemist Hall.

'Among forces in the continent, Alchemist Hall is unique. To be a member of most sects, a person should not be associated with other forces or sects but Alchemist Hall had no such restrictions. Anyone can enter the Alchemist Hall, irrespective of their past and present associations as long they have an aptitude for alchemy. This unique model of operation only works because Alchemist Hall has a near-complete monopoly of Alchemy-related cultivation resources in the entire continent. Every power on the continent requires these pills so everyone remains cordial to Alchemist Hall, giving the Alchemist hall the enormous status it currently enjoys.'

Sheng Zhen closed Skyword and again focused on the jesters, who had started to perform acrobatic tricks, entertaining the audiences while attracting people to them. Sheng Zhen was at the back of the crowd, sitting on the Horsecart while petting the horse. It has been a week since his Uncle left for the village. Sheng Zhen came back that every evening and secured his horsecart.

The rest of the time here he spent while reading Skyword and searching for Five Elements pills. But despite searching for the entire week, he could not get the pills he wanted. Despite being among the most common third-grade pills, it was still a third-grade pill, a pill only a Grade three alchemist can refine. A Grade three alchemist was too rare and no one of them will give him, a no-name twelve-year-old a moment of their time.

So here he was, wasting his time roaming the streets of Ifre when he came across the jester.

"Alchemist Hall definitely has Grade Three alchemists", Sheng Zhen mused, "I could try to enter, maybe I would be accepted. My alchemy is decent enough."

Jesters seeing they had gathered enough people, stop their performances, and with a bang of drums, shouted "The Alchemist Hall testing for Outer sect disciples! Come see if you can become an alchemist. Come to Alchemist Hall in the evening and test your aptitude for the noble art of alchemy!"

Sheng Zhen almost laughed at the jester's words, he was shouting as if it was not an alchemy test but a call to the arena to test their mettle.

Sitting back, Sheng Zhen lightly pulled on the reins, and the steed understanding him, turned and started to make its way towards the Alchemist Hall.

Only to stop, remembering he has no idea where the Alchemist Hall is. After all, even after roaming for an entire week, he was able only able to cover a small portion of the city. Ifre was just that large. Sighing, he called his trusted Skyword

"Skyword, be a dear and open Ifre's map."

The golden book materialized, and with a shudder, turned into a detailed map of the entire Ifre. The map had everything marked on it, from the largest buildings down to every building in the slum. Everyplace was marked in very fine print, given that map marked every building in the entire city, the print was fine enough to not be spotted by regular people. Even the location of the core of the formation protecting the city was also marked, along with secret tunnels leading in and out beneath the city walls.

At the very bottom, Sheng Zhen was able to make out a stamp of City lord. This map was definitely not something that should be available to anyone besides the city lord. Especially the location of formation core, if city lord somehow came to know Sheng Zhen knowledge of its location, he will kill him first and ask questions later.

Sheng Zhen shuddered at the thought, 'Good thing Skyword is only visible to me.'

Slowly his horsecart made its way to Alchemist Hall, the tests were beginning in the evening. He had more than enough time.

____________________________

Jin Cuifen was irritated, annoyed, and bored.

After the little scuffle at the Peach Blossom Fairy, the city lord had directly complained to his master, causing him of harming Mu Liqin.

Usually, his master sweeps such incidents under the rug, but this time Gentle Snow Sect's Holy Daughter and City lord were present, not to mention Peach Blossom Fairy, which is backed by the Wen family. His master was not able to wiggle him out of this. And no matter how many times he told everyone he did not do it, no one believed him, not even his own master.

So here he was, sitting at reception, pointing everyone who came to take the Alchemy Test towards their destination when he could be in his room, practicing his alchemy or drinking away at some inn. But No..., his master forbid him from practicing alchemy for a month and forced him to sit at the reception for an entire month and politely greet everyone entering. It was supposed to make him humble of something.

At least he was not assigned to outer disciples examination, mixing with peasants and lowlifes, yuck. Not to mention there he will have to their elemental aptitude and spiritual power, one by one. There people did not even know to read and write, as if they could ever pursue something as noble as alchemy.

Here the inner disciple's test where children of nobles and cultivators give the test, at least he was in the right company. They had at least a decent chance to become master alchemists, unlike those peasants.

But still, Jin Cuifen was irritated, annoyed, and bored.

Just then a boy about the age of twelve entered, carrying a low-grade cauldron filled with evergreen sickle grass. Jin Cuifen looked at his clothes, while neat and clean, were made of rough fabric unlike the smoothest silk robes everyone else that came for the inner sect test wore.

Alchemy was science as much as an art, and no illiterate peasant was worthy enough to pursue such a noble profession.

So when the peasant boy came and asked him with wide azure eyes, "Where can I take the outer disciple test?", Jin Cuifen, irritated and bored as he was, sought to humiliate the peasant boy and put him on the place.

"That way", Jin Cuifen said, pointing towards the hall where the Inner sect test was taking place. It would be entertaining to watch him try to read and write, much less refine a pill, "But before that, tell me your name."

The azure-eyed boy replied, "Zhen, Sheng Zhen."