Divine Level Witch Doctor

Many Cultivators only clicked on the thread after it was pinned and highlighted, seeing its content and the moderator’s reply for the first time.

Most of them were not followers of the Elixir School and knew little about Alchemy and Medicine Making. To them, Zhao Yuan’s highly technical post was like an advanced calculus problem to an elementary school student. Only one thought ran through their minds: ’What the hell is this?!’

Although they couldn’t understand the content of Zhao Yuan’s post, they could understand the moderator’s reply. And as for the names the moderator mentioned, like Elder Weng and Cold Mountain Elder—those were legendary!

These individuals were not only High Level members of the Cultivator Forum, but were also well-known for frequently answering bounty questions about the Elixir School and listing their homemade Elixirs for sale on the black market.

Some enthusiasts on the forum had even selected four top-tier Great Gods for each of the Cultivation Schools. Elder Weng and Cold Mountain Elder were two of the ”Four Absolutes” of the Elixir School! In the eyes of these Cultivators, they were the authorities of the Elixir School. Since the exam was created after careful deliberation by them, how could it possibly be wrong?

And so, the Cultivators on the forum all concluded that Zhao Yuan was just grandstanding, trying to use this incident to build up his own hype. They flocked to the thread, posting replies that criticized and mocked him.

Among them were also some people from the Elixir School.

Perhaps because their own skills were lacking, they were unable to see the brilliance and correctness of Zhao Yuan’s analysis. Instead, they believed he was just spouting nonsense!

In an instant, Zhao Yuan’s thread became the target of a verbal crusade from the entire forum.

Of course, Zhao Yuan, the man at the center of it all, was completely unaware.

Ever since making the post, he hadn’t had time to log back onto the Cultivator Forum.

Although he had brought his laptop home this time, the signal in the mountain village was terrible. The portable WiFi hotspot he had bought was completely useless. So, even though he had his computer, he couldn’t get online. He ended up giving it to his younger sister, Zhao Ling, so she could watch the movies he had downloaded before returning home.

At the crack of dawn, Cai De arrived at the Zhao Family home with a team of workers and began repairing the courtyard walls and the main hall.

Zhao Yuan was woken by the noise. He got dressed and stepped out of his room. Although he had only slept for two hours, thanks to the Soul-Stabilizing Incense, he had slept so soundly that he felt completely refreshed.

Seeing Zhao Yuan, Cai De said apologetically, ”Boss Zhao, you’re awake. Sorry to disturb you. I just wanted to get an early start on repairing the courtyard and main hall to prevent any further mishaps.”

Zhao Yuan waved a hand. ”It’s fine. Carry on.”

After washing up, Zhao Yuan chatted with Cai De for a few more moments. He was just about to head to the kitchen to cook some noodles when his phone rang. He picked it up and saw it was a call from Hao Li.

”Old Hao, what’s up?” Zhao Yuan asked after answering the call.

Hao Li didn’t answer, asking instead, ”Little Brother Zhao, have you been on the forum in the last couple of days?”

”No,” Zhao Yuan said. ”The signal’s terrible out here, I can’t get online. What’s wrong?”

”Your thread has blown up!” Hao Li said with a wry laugh.

Judging by his tone, Zhao Yuan knew this wasn’t good news. He frowned slightly and said nothing, waiting for Hao Li to continue.

”I just logged onto the forum and saw your thread was pinned and highlighted. At first, I thought the forum realized its mistake and was rewarding you. But then I looked at the replies and found out that wasn’t it at all! Some moderator thinks you’re just spouting nonsense to grab attention and make a name for yourself, and everyone else agrees with him. They’re all flaming you in the thread...”

”I see,” Zhao Yuan said flatly.

On the other end of the line, Hao Li was baffled. He had expected Zhao Yuan to be furious at the news, but his reaction was incredibly calm. He couldn’t help but ask, ”You’re not angry?”

Zhao Yuan answered, ”I wouldn’t say angry. Just... a little disappointed.”

Hao Li was confused. ”Disappointed? Why?”

Zhao Yuan explained, ”I had hoped I could exchange knowledge and learn something from this forum. But now, it seems the skill level of the Cultivators there is nothing special. Getting the exam wrong is one thing, but for them to not even understand my corrections after I pointed out the mistakes... and to insist *I’m* the one who’s wrong... With such a pathetic level of competence, I see no reason to engage with them.”

Hao Li was speechless.

He had originally called to ask if Zhao Yuan was sure about his answers—after all, people were saying the Elixir School exam had been created by the likes of Elder Weng and Cold Mountain Elder. He never expected Zhao Yuan’s reply to be so damn domineering!

It wasn’t that he was wrong, but that the people on the forum were on such a low level that they couldn’t even understand his post...

Hao Li was stunned for a good while before sighing with admiration. ”Little Brother Zhao, that was some world-class flexing. I’d give you a hundred and three points.”

Before he could even finish, Zhao Yuan shot back, ”Get lost. I don’t need your tolerance, understanding, and love.”

”Why can’t you just follow the script?” Zhao Yuan had stolen his punchline, leaving Hao Li frustrated. He quickly changed the subject. ”So, are you going to post again to explain things?”

”No need,” Zhao Yuan refused flatly.

”Uh... why not?” Hao Li was confused all over again.

Zhao Yuan answered, ”Their skill is too pathetic. Even if I made another post, they wouldn’t understand it.”

Hao Li was completely at a loss for words. So he did the only sensible thing he could think of—he hung up!

”Hanging up just like that? Without even a goodbye? How rude,” Zhao Yuan muttered to himself. He stuffed the phone in his pocket, put the whole affair out of his mind, and started boiling water for noodles.

Since Zhao Yuan himself didn’t seem to care, Hao Li decided he wouldn’t worry about it anymore either.

But after hanging up, he couldn’t help but wonder, ’Is the skill of the people on the forum really that bad?’

Suddenly, a thought struck him, and he practically jumped. ”Damn it,” he cursed, ”I’m on that forum too! That bastard’s comments were an insult to me as well!”

While Hao Li was on the phone with Zhao Yuan, Cold Mountain Elder, one of the exam’s creators, also logged onto the forum. She saw Zhao Yuan’s post and the moderator’s reply.

She skimmed Zhao Yuan’s analysis and answers, but saw nothing brilliant in them. Nor did she believe there was anything wrong with the questions and answers she and her friends had come up with.

”Just grandstanding!” she said coldly, posting the two words as a reply in the thread.

Don’t be fooled by the word ”Elder” in her ID; she wasn’t some old man. She was a beautiful woman in her twenties with a powerfully dominant aura.

Cold Mountain Elder’s real name was Shan Han. Her ID, Han Shan, was her name in reverse. As for the ”Elder” part (叟, sǒu), that came from her queen-like demeanor; her friends always called her Master Shan, so she had adopted the character.