Elder Tao kept directing one candidate after another to place their pills inside the Pill Efficacy Tester as the number of candidates present in the room continued to get lower and lower.

Many who had been on the borderline and were uncertain whether they would pass the test managed to clear it, while others in similar situations, confident that they would pass, fell short by just a percentage point.

As a result, when all the pills had been tested, the number of candidates still present in the room had fallen all the way from fifty-four to thirty-nine, which was a considerable drop.

However, instead of nervousness, delight and anticipation filled everyone’s faces as they waited for Elder Tao’s final address, having successfully cleared the Pill Apprentice Test.

Elder Tao’s figure soon arrived in front of them as he observed the excitement exuding from all of them with an expressionless face.

Clearing his throat, he said the next moment, “Congratulations to the thirty-nine of you on clearing the second test. With this, you’ve come another step closer to becoming a Pill Apprentice…”

“This…”

“What? Didn’t we already become one?”

“Did he make a mistake?”

The candidates couldn’t help but whisper among themselves, with a frown evident on their faces, when they heard those words.

Elder Tao, who had deliberately taken a pause to let his words sink in, nodded the very next moment and continued, “Like some of you might have already guessed, your Pill Apprentice Test hasn’t come to an end yet. To increase the quality of the Pill Apprentices we’ve been accepting over the years, the guild has decided to add a third test to the Pill Apprentice Test, which previously consisted of only two tests.”

“Is this for real…?”

“Oh no…”

“We weren’t informed about it at all?!”

“Isn’t this unfair?”

Hearing their doubts and worries, Elder Tao nodded and said, “I understand that you may find it a little unfair, but the guild had collectively decided to go forward with this proposal for certain reasons.

You’re not the only one, as the batches taking the Pill Apprentice Test in all our branches spread across the Light Continent today will be undergoing the third test as well, and this will become the new norm from now on.

However, it’s also true that since you had no idea about it and still have no idea what the next test is going to be, you would have no way to prepare for it. Therefore, we’ll be more lenient towards this batch while evaluating, which won’t be the case next time.

‘At least that’s some good news…’ Yi Chen thought while letting out a sigh the next moment.

He was greatly annoyed by the fact that just when he had thought that the test was over, he was slapped with another one right at the end, but he also knew that there was nothing he could do about this situation.

‘I can only hope that this next test won’t be too difficult…’ Yi Chen thought to himself.

He wasn’t the only one, as several others were also wishing the same at the moment, and as if sensing all their sentiments, Elder Tao began explaining the next test to them.

“In the third test, we’ll be testing your proficiency when it comes to identifying various mortal herbs by their looks and noting down their specific properties on a sheet of paper. You’ll be given two hours for this test, and in order to pass the test, you’ll be required to write the correct details of at least 15 out of the 60 herbs that will be shown to you.”

“Sixty herbs?!”

“In only two hours?”

.

.

The candidates muttered, with worry evident on their faces.

While it may appear as if sixty herbs weren’t a great deal, that wasn’t really the case. There were thousands of mortal herbs out there, so being able to identify a random pick of sixty among the pile was a herculean task for anyone whose spiritual sea hadn’t expanded enough.

Therefore, the candidates couldn’t help looking worried when they heard the test format. However, there was one exception.

Yi Chen.

‘An identification test?! That’s great!’ Yi Chen exclaimed inwardly, barely resisting his urge to shout out loud.

Meanwhile, instead of addressing the candidates’ concerns, Elder Tao simply gestured towards the four invigilators, who immediately got to work. The Testing Hall, previously lined with cauldrons, was now furnished with just enough seats for the thirty-nine remaining candidates.

On top of each candidate’s table sat a closed wooden box and a booklet, which made all the candidates curious.

“Take your seats, and I’ll give you the final briefing before starting the test.” Elder Tao instantly directed them to their seats and, after confirming that they were all seated, said, “In the wooden boxes in front of you are the sixty herbs which you need to identify. Each herb is wrapped with a cloth containing a token number. You’ll use these numbers in the answer booklet to record each herb’s name and properties as instructed. As I’ve already stated, you’ll only need to identify fifteen out of these sixty herbs correctly and write about them in order to pass the test. Therefore, don’t overthink too much and focus on answering as accurately as possible. If you have any other questions, you can ask me now.”

After taking care of a few questions, Elder Tao finally started the final test of the day.

“Begin!”

The moment the test began, Yi Chen immediately reached into the box and took out the first herb, which looked like a violet stem with a green leaf at its end.

“This…”

Yi Chen clearly wasn’t able to simply recall what herb that was, but unlike the other candidates, he didn’t rack his brain over it for long and instead instantly opened his status panel the very next moment and started scribbling the answer on the paper.

‘Cheating in exams… It’s been ages since I’ve done it,’ Yi Chen thought with relish as he continued the same for all the remaining herbs one after the other.

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