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Qin Shu remained silent. Could she explain that she wore men's clothing simply because it was cheaper? She had no idea how this seemingly all-powerful He Xianzi managed to find a set of men's clothes overnight.

Seeing Qin Shu's complicated expression, He Xin frowned and stood still. "What? Doesn't it look good?"

Qin Shu quickly shook her head, adjusted her expression, and praised with a serious tone, "It looks amazing!"

Only then did He Xin look satisfied. A faint smile curved her lips as she declared, "Sister, I finished reading that book Records of Herbal Medicine in the Cultivation World in the past few days, and this morning, I accepted a task from the Mission Hall! You were right—I need to work harder from now on! I'll ascend to immortality on my own!"

Qin Shu clasped her hands in a gesture of respect and said, "If you prosper, don't forget me!"

He Xin responded with a laugh. The two of them entered the herb room together, staying there for a full two and a half months.

During this time, Qin Shu self-studied books like Multi-Tasking for Cultivators, One Hundred Lessons from Exploding Furnaces, and How to Perfectly Fuse Opposing Elemental Herbs.

Though she was still an inexperienced novice in alchemy, she had certainly become a master of theoretical knowledge!

The herbs Qin Shu received during this period weren't handed over to her senior brother. Instead, she kept them for herself, planning to start refining pills once her cultivation level advanced further. For now, she turned in low-grade Spirit Boost Pills that she purchased herself.

One afternoon, Qin Shu and He Xin went to the western mountain and caught a wild rabbit. Using spiritual energy, they started a fire to roast it, sprinkling it with medicinal herbs for seasoning. The long-missed satisfaction of delicious food warmed their hearts.

He Xin grabbed the rabbit leg Qin Shu handed her, ignoring the scorching heat, and took a big bite.

Her eyes lit up after just one taste, and she exclaimed through a full mouth, "Sister! When did you learn such a skill?!"

Qin Shu laughed. She had many hidden talents! If only the cultivation world had more seasonings, the barbecue could have been even more authentic.

"Next time, if you want to eat again, just come and call me."

The two chatted for a while before Qin Shu sighed and asked He Xin, "Sister, what will you do if you're not chosen by Lingxu Zhenren?"

He Xin froze, staring at Qin Shu with wide eyes while holding the rabbit leg. "Sister, have you grown bold?"

Confused, Qin Shu stared back as He Xin elaborated, "You shouldn't be asking what I'll do if I'm not chosen. You should be asking what I'll do if I am chosen."

After all, for them, not being chosen was the norm. Being chosen? Now that would be a miraculous stroke of fortune!

It took Qin Shu a moment to process this realization. Then, she burst out laughing, "We'll do our best and leave the rest to fate! No matter where we are, we must cultivate diligently!"

The next day was the highly anticipated selection day for Lingxu Zhenren's disciples. Rumor had it that Xingchen Zhenren of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion had performed a divination for Lingxu Zhenren, revealing that he must select his final disciple on this specific day. Missing this day would mean all future disciples would bring misfortune.

Qin Shu got up early to wash her hair in the cold pool, a small ritual she observed to show respect for significant exams.

After tying her high ponytail, she met up with He Xin, who wore a neatly styled bun. Sharing a smile, the two headed off to sign up.

The selection consisted of two stages: a written test and a practical alchemy test.

Since Qin Shu had never refined pills before, her written test performance was especially crucial.

The sect's plaza was packed with desks and meditation cushions, and a dense crowd of candidates—at least four to five hundred disciples—filled the space.

After all, the recruiting master was none other than Lingxu Zhenren, an eighth-grade alchemist. Who wouldn't be tempted?

Among all these candidates, only Qin Shu and He Xin were new disciples. Oh, and there was also Chi Yu from the Sword Sect, the one with a fire affinity of ninety-nine. She didn't even have a wood attribute, so why was she here?

To the onlookers, these three new disciples seemed like audacious children. The way they looked at them was as if watching elementary school students attempt a college entrance exam.

Feeling the weight of the stares, He Xin nervously tugged at Qin Shu's sleeve and whispered, "Sister, do you think we can do this? The sheer scale of this is shaking my confidence."

Qin Shu, on the other hand, appeared completely self-assured. "What's there to fear? We're already here..."

He Xin considered this and realized she had a point. Since they were already here, they might as well try their best. What's the worst that could happen?

A series of drumbeats rang out, followed by a stern voice echoing through the examination area.

"All disciples, please take your seats according to your registration numbers."

The voice sounded familiar to Qin Shu. She glanced up and discovered that the proctor was none other than Senior Brother Cheng Yan?!

"You're number 374, and I'm 396, so we're not far apart," He Xin said as she led Qin Shu toward their respective seats.

The venue was divided into nine sections, each with fifty numbers.

Qin Shu found her spot and sat down, watching as the other disciples gradually took their places. Senior Brother Cheng Yan's voice boomed again from the stage.

"No talking, no wandering eyes..."

After an extensive list of rules, the senior disciples distributed the test scrolls.

In the cultivation world, even test scrolls were low-level artifacts. Illusions of various herbs appeared on the scrolls, invisible to others.

The task was to identify these herbs, classify them, and annotate their properties and restrictions.

Staring at the densely packed illusions and the enormous incense stick serving as a timer, Qin Shu took a deep breath and began writing furiously.

The Scarlet Lotus can't melt on its own; it needs a catalyst like Snakewort... The White Fire Stalk and Nether Frost Soul repel each other and can't be grouped together...

Qin Shu tackled the questions with enthusiasm, though her handwriting left much to be desired.

By the time she finished the written section, most of the incense had burned away. Then she looked down and saw the herb illusions vanish, replaced by one final question:

How to combine Fire Lotus, Heaven Flame Ghost Palm, and Stone Mirror Milk?

Qin Shu had a gut feeling this question would determine Lingxu Zhenren's disciple. Carefully organizing her thoughts, she drew a Taiji Eight Trigrams diagram, marked the attributes of the three components, and calculated the balance points based on their interactions...

She finished the final stroke, feeling a sense of accomplishment. Nothing could stump a science student!

Just as she signed her name on the scroll, Cheng Yan's voice rang out again.

"Time's up."

With a wave of his hand, the scrolls floated into the air, accompanied by groans from the crowd.

Qin Shu, however, felt relieved. That was a tight schedule.

She headed toward He Xin, their badges in hand. Once reunited, the two immediately asked each other, "How did it go?"

After a moment of silence, He Xin sighed. "I wrote down everything I knew, and for the parts I didn't, I just made things up. Whether it's right or wrong... well..."

Qin Shu understood.

"It's all up to fate, no need to dwell on it."

The scrolls were delivered to Cheng Yan, who could evaluate three of them in a single breath.

But when he opened one particular scroll, he froze.

The answers were thorough and insightful, though the handwriting left something to be desired.

As he read the final question, his eyes widened, and a flash of realization struck him.

The Five Elements and Eight Trigrams? They could be used like this?

This method... It was beyond his understanding.

Who could have written this? What kind of genius existed among the outer disciples?

Cheng Yan quickly flipped to the name.