Chapter 131 Assessment Rules, Assessment Begins
Under the guidance of the young man, Arius was led to an assessment chamber where the
Earth Vein Spirit Fire was relatively stable.
Watching Arius step into the chamber, the young man reminded him of a few crucial details
regarding the assessment.
Having received benefits, he would naturally do his job well—this had always been his way of
handling things.
The young man’s potential was limited. In this lifetime, the best he could hope for was breaking
through to the Early Stage of Level 2. As for his alchemy skills, reaching the seventh rank was
practically impossible.
Even if he did manage to step into Level 2, refining a Level 4 pill would still be a monumental
challenge. At best, he might be able to succeed, but only after exhausting hundreds of sets of
ingredients just to produce a single furnace of seventh-rank Level 4 pills.
With such a pill completion rate, no high-level cultivator would dare entrust him with pill
refinement.
After all, consuming hundreds of sets of ingredients just to refine a single batch was an absurd
level of waste. Not even a Level 4 cultivator could afford such a loss.
According to the Pill Alliance’s standards, a pill master had to successfully refine at least three
furnaces of pills from ten sets of ingredients in order to advance in rank.
Of course, certain special pills were exceptions.
For instance, Level 1 Pills, Level 2 Pills, and Level 3 Pills—all of which assisted cultivators in
breaking through major realms. Even if refining them consumed hundreds of sets of ingredients,
producing a single successful furnace still qualified one as a master alchemist.
The sheer potency of these pills made them exceptionally difficult to refine. Even a seventh-rank
alchemist refining a ninth-rank Level 1 Pill could, at best, achieve a one-in-ten or one-in-five
success rate.
It was precisely because these pills were so difficult to produce, coupled with the rarity of the
required treasured ingredients, that they remained nearly impossible to obtain.
If Level 1 Pills and Level 2 Pills could be consistently refined and supplied, then at the very
least, the number of cultivators in Aragon Country at those stages would multiply several times
over.
As the stone door of the assessment chamber slowly closed, Arius seated himself cross-legged
before the pill furnace, preparing to begin his refinement.
Inside the chamber, a Mid-Stage Level 1 cultivator was stationed as an overseer.
His role was to monitor Arius throughout the assessment.
During the test, he was forbidden from opening his storage bag or using his own pill
furnace—everything required for the refinement was provided by the Pill Alliance.
If he succeeded, he wouldn’t have to pay the assessment fee.
But if he failed, he would have to compensate for the consumed treasured ingredients and the
Earth Vein Spirit Fire.
Aside from the Mid-Stage Level 1 overseer, a Late-Stage Level 1 cultivator watched over the
process without blinking.
Every corner of the assessment chamber was lined with magical artifacts—Recording Stones.
These stones would document Arius’s entire refinement process, transmitting the footage
directly to the Pill Alliance’s Hall of Administrators.
In other words, even if Arius had spirit stones to bribe the overseer, there was no way he could
bypass the surveillance of the Recording Stones.
“Alchemist, please take note.”
“You have three days to refine your pill. During the process, you must adhere to the following
rules. Failure to do so will result in immediate disqualification, and you will be barred from
reattempting the assessment for ten years.”
“Rule one: During the refinement, you are not permitted to open your personal storage bag.
Violators will be deemed to have cheated.”
“Rule two: Once the assessment begins, you may not leave the chamber unless you voluntarily
forfeit.”
“Rule three: Do not attempt to refine any pills with explosive, corrosive, or toxic properties. Any
consequences resulting from a violation will be borne by the alchemist.”
“Rule four: You are not allowed to consult any alchemy texts during the refinement. Doing so will
be considered cheating.”
“Rule five: Once the assessment officially begins, communication with the overseeing personnel
is strictly prohibited. Any attempt will be seen as an intentional disruption of the process.”
Just as Arius settled in front of the pill furnace, a magical artifact resembling a human face mask
suddenly spoke.
It was likely some kind of Sound Recording Artifact, its message pre-recorded in advance.
Gazing at the pill furnace and the Level 1 cultivator tasked with overseeing him, Arius found
himself filled with complex emotions.
The Pill Alliance’s alchemy assessment was astonishingly similar to the exams from his past life!
The order and level of civilization in the cultivation world were by no means inferior to those of
his past life. In many ways, it even far surpassed them.
However, this civilization and order belonged solely to the strong.
Here, mortals who lived in the deep valleys and towering mountains had no access to the
mighty forces of cultivation. They could not enjoy the benefits of spiritual pills, mystical artifacts,
or the conveniences of the cultivation world.
Meanwhile, those standing at the pinnacle of power wielded not only limitless wealth and the
strength to move mountains and overturn seas but also the hope of attaining eternal life,
roaming freely beyond the bounds of mortality.
With a complicated state of mind, Arius began adjusting the Earth Vein Spirit Fire within the
assessment chamber.
For his first furnace of pills, he held no expectations of success.
After all, this was his first time refining pills with Earth Vein Spirit Fire.
Failure wouldn’t be an issue. The assessment chamber had prepared ten pill furnaces and ten
sets of ingredients.
As long as he could successfully refine three furnaces of ninth-rank pills, he would pass the
assessment.
“Alchemist, are you ready to begin the assessment?”
“You need only respond with ‘Yes’ or ‘No.'”
The human-faced mask artifact hanging in the chamber once again spoke.
Hearing this, Arius calmly responded, “Yes.”
The moment his voice fell, the pupils of the mask suddenly emitted a golden glow.
The golden light shot into the air, eventually coalescing into a projected timer that hovered in the
chamber.
The timer displayed time with extreme precision—down to 0.00001 seconds.
Once thirty-six hours had elapsed, Arius would have to stop refining.
(Note: One day equaled twelve hours in this world, and one hour was equivalent to two modern
hours.)
In terms of time, three days was more than sufficient.
However, most alchemists taking the assessment would not rush into the process.
After each furnace was completed—whether it was a success or failure—they would take time
to meditate, ensuring they remained in peak condition.
Clearing his mind of all distractions, Arius methodically placed one treasured herb after another
into the pill furnace.
Refining a single batch of ordinary ninth-rank pills could take as little as half an hour or as long
as two hours.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Earth Vein Spirit Fire roared, its orange-red flames radiating an intense heat.
If left unchecked, the fire could either burn away all the medicinal essence or cause the furnace
to explode outright.
For this reason, Arius had to focus his full attention, using both his spiritual sense and mana to
suppress and guide the flames.
The fire blazed fiercely.
Before long, the entire chamber was filled with a rich medicinal fragrance.
Catching the scent in the air, Arius’s expression shifted slightly.
The dispersing medicinal essence was a sign of an imminent furnace explosion.
Fortunately, he had already mastered advanced alchemy techniques within his clan, so he did
not panic in the face of this crisis.
At this moment, there was still a chance to salvage the batch.
While Arius didn’t expect to perfectly control the power of the Earth Vein Spirit Fire on his first
attempt at pill refinement, he still wanted to do his best to turn the situation around.
With a surge of boundless mana, he forcibly stabilized the violently trembling pill furnace.
Immediately after, he began suppressing the raging Earth Vein Spirit Fire while carefully
releasing pressure from the furnace.