Chapter 194 - The Outstanding Ones Are Prone To Danger
In fact, Chen Chen was not one that was easily shaken.
However, after queuing up, he discovered that if he became just a foreign aid cultivator, he wouldn't have the opportunity to enter the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan. He would only get some concessions in the elixir stores of the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan, let alone gain access to the alchemists.
That wouldn't satisfy his needs at all.
What did he come to the Eastern Border for?
First, of course, he wanted to perfectly maximize the effects of the tracking system to track for greater resources.
Secondly, he wanted to find some talents.
Talents who were good at alchemy were too scarce in number. Elixirs were necessary for the rapid development of a force.
In order to ensure a long-term, stable supply of elixirs, a clan must have its own alchemists.
'I am doing this for the development of the two countries. It is not the same as a traitor who defects to a villain for his own benefits. I am doing this for the greater good!'
After Chen Chen comforted himself, he began to be influenced by the people around him and started to seem innocent.
"Chen Chen, wait here for a while."
The little girl in green pointed behind her and continued to work.
When Yuan Qingtian saw that Chen Chen had suddenly changed his mind, he immediately became anxious and hurriedly asked, "Little Sister, can I join the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan too?"
If Chen Chen wanted to join another clan, he couldn't fall far behind!
"What kind of spiritual medicine is this?"
"Viridis?" Yuan Qingtian asked.
"Get lost!"
The little girl in green pointed to the main road next to him and ordered coldly.
Seeing this, Chen Chen quickly stood up and said, "This is my younger brother. He's not going to join the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan, but can you let him follow me?"
"He's your brother?" The little girl in green was skeptical because the difference in their aura was drastic.
"Yes..."
"Not your biological one, huh?"
Chen Chen answered casually, "He's actually my cousin."
"I knew it. He looks so mediocre… How can he be your biological brother? Forget it, just let him tag along if he wants." The little girl in green clothes waved her tiny hand, as if she was in control of the authority.
Hearing this, Yuan Qingtian stood behind Chen Chen, lowering his head and beginning to draw circles in the air.
It was repeatedly proven that Chen Chen was not someone he could be on par with.
...
About another hour passed.
The team that was recruiting disciples probably recruited 40 or 50 people.
They used the same method as the young girl in green did, and that was to make the applicants identify the medicinal herbs that they showed them. As for Yuan Qingtian, who was entirely clueless, he was chased away right on the spot.
Seeing that the number of people recruited had more or less reached the quota, the young girl in green handed over the work to others. She then led a group of people towards a huge building next to the huge tripod.
There were 50 neatly arranged tables in the large building, on which there were plenty of medicinal herbs. There were at least 200 types of herbs!
Seeing this large room that looked like an examination hall, Chen Chen sighed with relief.
He was definitely a connoisseur in identifying spiritual medicine.
As the saying went, practice makes perfect. He dealt with treasures everyday, and in order to make sure that he didn't miss a good one, he had already read and memorized the contents of the thick book given to him by his master Xiao Wuyou.
Hence, he could recognize most of the medicinal herbs on the table at a glance.
That gave him more confidence.
The others also had different expressions when they saw the table of herbs. Some looked nervous, some looked horrified, and there were a few who were full of confidence.
A few moments later, Chen Chen came to the palace hall.
As soon as they sat down, all of them began to carefully examine the herbs on the table.
Regardless of the requirements of the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan, he just had to identify all the herbs for now.
Just as the crowd started to get busy, a green-robed middle-aged man walked in, a rather gentle smile on his face.
"Haha! Everyone, don't be impatient. The test is not just as simple as identifying medicinal materials.
"As you all know, alchemy is all about maximizing the medicinal properties of various spiritual medicines and mixing them together to make sure they complement each other.
"So, the most important thing when it comes to testing a person for alchemy is to see if they are sensitive to the medicinal properties of spiritual medicine. Everyone, there are more than 200 types of medicinal herbs in front of you, all of which contain different attributes. Please classify them according to their respective attributes, namely gold, wood, water, fire and earth. You have a time limit of one hour, and there are no restrictions on the methods used."
Hearing these words, all fifty people present had a drastic change in expression.
Being able to identify the herbs didn't mean that one knew of its attributes. There were thousands of herbs in this world, and it would be good enough to know most of them. How could they possibly study all of them in depth and memorize the properties of each herb?
The middle-aged man ignored the group's horror and lit an incense stick at the entrance.
When they saw the incense stick, the crowd couldn't care less and started to pick and choose among the 200 kinds of medicinal herbs while sweating profusely. Some even tried to taste them.
However, in half a minute, someone was carried out because he had taken the medicine indiscriminately and ended up foaming at the mouth while collapsing onto the ground.
However, there were a few who were doing well, although they seemed grim. At least they weren't completely clueless.
The way they tasted the herbs was very professional too, as they merely nibbled on it to get a quick taste.
Looking at the few of them, the middle-aged alchemist nodded slightly with a heartened smile.
Chen Chen looked at the pile of medicinal herbs in front of him and frowned. Of course, he wouldn't taste them because they were too poor in quality. There were too many impurities that could affect his health.
"System, where are the metallic medicinal herbs within a two-meter radius?"
"There's a Golden Sword Herb half a meter to the left, and an Iron Heart Chrysanthemum one meter to the right..."
"System, where are the metallic medicinal herbs within a two-meter radius?"
"The Wooden Spirit Mushroom at the right..."
...
"System, where are the metallic medicinal herbs within a two-meter radius?"
...
"Okay, it's done."
Chen Chen classified the medical herbs in satisfaction, only to realize that there were a few herbs that didn't have any metallic attributes.
He couldn't be bothered anymore. The first thing one would do after finishing an exam was of course see how others did.
However, he was horrified when he looked up!
The reason being only 1/5 of the burning incense stick outside was left, yet the others were still busy. Even the fastest few had classified less than 30 types of medicinal herbs.
They probably wouldn't be able to complete the task even after the time was up.
'His behavior seems a bit exaggerated. Even if I don't cheat, I can make it to the top three.'
Chen Chen was a little embarrassed and anxious, subconsciously wanting to mess up the position of a few medicinal herbs to create some errors.
He could come in first place, but he couldn't be too terrifying. He still had to return to the two nations in the future. What if the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan refused to let him go?
However, before he could even touch a medicinal herb, someone grabbed his wrist.
He looked up to see that it was the middle-aged alchemist.
The middle-aged alchemist looked at the neatly sorted herbs on the table with a smile on his face, his eyes glistening.
'This kid seems to be sorting medicinal herbs very quickly, and to be precise, it's quite scary. As an Essence Soul realm powerhouse, how could I have not noticed it?'
"Are you… An alchemist?"
"No..." Chen Chen answered truthfully.
"How did you classify these medicinal herbs so quickly?" the middle-aged alchemist asked.
Chen Chen listened in silence.
'How can he say that? He even talked about cheating.'
Who would have thought that this would be a difficult problem? He was so immersed in it that he accidentally went a little overboard with the acting.
Chen Chen secretly cursed everyone else for being incompetent and accentuating his outstanding brilliance.
"I... I can just sense it."
After thinking for a long time, Chen Chen finally gave a somewhat plausible, but untrue answer.
The middle-aged alchemist's eyes lit up even more as he continued to ask, "Did you just try to deliberately disrupt the classification and create a mistake? Why did you do that?"
Chen Chen's Adam's apple moved a little and he looked extremely nervous.
"My father… Once told me a piece of wisdom. The brilliant ones tend to be killed first. It's better to keep a low profile. Otherwise… Others will get jealous of me."
Hearing this, the middle-aged man could not help but laugh out loud, causing the people around him to give him the side-eye.
"The outstanding ones tend to be destroyed first. Haha! You're really interesting, kid! Unfortunately, the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan has countless outstanding figures, so you won't be destroyed!"
"Is that so... I've made a fool of myself then..."
Chen Chen's face turned red and he felt a little embarrassed as the middle-aged alchemist hurriedly pulled him over.
"You'll find out once you come with me. Hehe! When you reach the Jade Tripod Alchemy Clan, feel free to show off all the skills you have. If anyone gets jealous and tries to kill you, I'll take it that I've lost!"