Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

Meridian Refining Master Guild!

Outside the examination room of a Mortal Rank Advanced Meridian Master, several figures stood, each wearing different expressions, especially one young man in brocade, his eyes filled with resentment.

”Your Highness, that guy has been inside for so long, why hasn’t he come out yet?”

Mu Yun shifted her gaze away from the room’s door, finally unable to resist asking, though her words were clearly just making conversation, simply wanting to talk more with the Crown Prince.

”In my opinion, he must have failed and is too ashamed to show his face!”

The middle-aged man who failed at the first room seemed to realize that Nie Qianqiu bore some animosity towards the young man. Although he loaned him money to attend the exam, it was really just to save face.

”That’s not right, if Yun Xiao had indeed failed, he would have come out by now!”

Xiao Qiu naturally supported Yun Xiao, and she vividly remembered the situations of his previous two exams. She couldn’t believe that the young man, who always surprised everyone, would fail so easily.

Crown Prince Nie Qianqiu’s expression was indecisive, uncertain why, but in the mighty Lingtian Empire where he usually succeeded without fail, he felt a hint of threat from that young man in plain clothes.

Listening to the conversations around him, Nie Qianqiu remained silent, and just at that moment, the door of the examination room, which had been quiet for over a time, was finally flung open from inside.

”Yun Xiao!”

Xiao Qiu, quick-eyed, saw it was Yun Xiao in plain clothes at first glance. Immediately, her face brightened as she called out, drawing everyone’s attention.

”Could it be... he really failed?”

Seeing this, Nie Qianqiu’s face brightened, knowing that compared to Mu Yun and Xiao Qiu, he had experienced the Mortal Rank Advanced Meridian Master exam and knew exactly what this test entailed.

In the path of Alchemy, one must not be impatient. A single misstep could ruin the Elixir, and for Nie Qianqiu himself, refining a Mortal Rank Advanced Elixir would take a good half day and must be successful on the first try.

Mu Yun and Xiao Qiu thought Yun Xiao stayed inside for too long, but Nie Qianqiu was very familiar with the timing of the Mortal Rank Advanced Meridian Master exam.

How long had it been since Yun Xiao entered the room? Definitely less than two times. With such little time, to refine a Mortal Rank Advanced Elixir would only be possible for those Meridian Masters who reached at least Low Level Spiritual Rank, or even Middle Level Spiritual Rank.

Thinking of this possibility, Nie Qianqiu’s uncertain face finally showed a smile. Although he didn’t know Yun Xiao, he had an undue dislike, even animosity toward this young man who appeared out of nowhere.

”Let’s go!”

Yun Xiao didn’t elaborate further, nodded at Xiao Qiu, and stepped toward the interior, seeming to have mastered the examination locations for Low Level Spiritual Rank Meridian Master over time.

”Hey, did you actually pass the Mortal Rank Advanced Meridian Master exam?”

As if aware of Nie Qianqiu’s thoughts, Mu Yun’s voice timely rang out, causing Yun Xiao, who had just stepped forward, to pause and ultimately turn back.

Seeing the peculiar gazes from several people, Yun Xiao felt somewhat helpless, revealing the Medical Pulse Master badge in his right hand, then wearing it on his right chest.

”This... this is...”

Observing the three shiny stars on the black badge, and the small yet exceptionally clear ”Yun Xiao” inscribed on it, everyone in the scene took a sharp intake of breath.

Especially Crown Prince Nie Qianqiu of the Lingtian Empire, who knew exactly what this test entailed. What could be the reason that allowed Yun Xiao to pass the Alchemy exam in such a short time?

In Alchemy, steps like blending, merging, and forming the Elixir are not accomplished overnight. This requires extremely precise control, and any mistake in any step could ruin the entire Alchemy effort.

Nie Qianqiu had always prided himself on being the top young generation talent in Meridian Refining in the Lingtian Empire, but how could he feel balanced seeing this unknown young man surpass him step by step?

Ignoring the expressions of others, Yun Xiao wore his badge and walked inside. Xiao Qiu quickly followed, yet her gaze curiously lingered on his left hand.

”Yun Xiao, what are you holding in your hand?”

Although the young man in front of her had some peculiar actions, he seemed to have a good disposition, so Xiao Qiu didn’t feel as restrained as she did around Nie Qianqiu and instinctively asked.

”Oh, are you asking about this?”

Yun Xiao did not hold back; upon hearing the query from Xiao Qiu, he promptly raised his right hand, revealing a green badge. The characters ”Yun Xiao”, along with three glowing green stars on it, appeared exceedingly dazzling.

”Huh?”

Glancing at the somewhat familiar badge, Xiao Qiu, who had not been at the Meridian Refining Master Guild for very long, failed to recognize it, though he felt he had seen it somewhere before.

However, what Xiao Qiu and Yun Xiao did not notice was that the moment the green badge appeared, the three people behind them staggered, nearly falling to the ground, their eyes bulging with astonishment.

”Is that... the badge of an Advanced Mortal Rank Poison Vein Master?!”

Whether it was the middle-aged man who had failed the assessment, Mu Yun, an experienced receptionist at the guild, or Nie Qianqiu, the Crown Prince of the Royal Family, all of them stared fixedly at that green badge, their minds filled with a shock so immense they nearly fainted.

These three understood clearly what the badge, engraved with three green stars and a name, represented — it signified an Advanced Mortal Rank Poison Vein Master.

Across the Continent, there are two divisions of Meridian Masters: medical and poison, and it’s no secret that a Poison Vein Master of the same rank invokes much greater intimidation to a Cultivator compared to a Medical Pulse Master.

Of course, that’s not the main point. The most shocking fact was that on the Hidden Dragon Continent, a Meridian Master dual-skilled in Medical and Poison Cultivation is as rare as a phoenix feather or a unicorn horn.

At least within the Lingtian Empire Meridian Refining Master Guild, only their exceptionally talented Chairman barely qualifies as having dual skills in Medical and Poison Cultivation.

Watching the youth seemingly nonchalantly placing the green badge back in his hand, Nie Qianqiu felt a breath caught in his chest, unable to be released.

Since childhood, Nie Qianqiu had always been the most brilliant one, but suddenly, when someone else outshone his brilliance, his feelings were understandably complex.

If the one who had surpassed Nie Qianqiu’s brilliance had been another Crown Prince from a great empire or a young genius from a prestigious Sect, perhaps he wouldn’t feel so resentful. Yet here stood a youth he had never even heard of before, possessing talent that even overshadowed his own. How could he swallow such pride?

Furthermore, thinking that the examination fee Yun Xiao passed all three times was even sponsored by himself, Nie Qianqiu felt as though an old blockage was forming in his chest, almost spurting it out, wanting to inundate the shabbily dressed youth.

”Could it be that what this fellow refined in that room just now... wasn’t one elixir but... two?”

Nie Qianqiu, despite his complicated feelings, hadn’t lost his reason. Suddenly recalling something, his expression turned somewhat terrifying, and this conjecture likely held much truth.

Nie Qianqiu, having previously assessed for the Advanced Mortal Rank Meridian Master, naturally knew that there was a Poison Vein assessment in this room; back then, he didn’t even have the courage to touch the Poison Vein examination Medicine Tripod.

But Nie Qianqiu was quite familiar with these procedures. To obtain the badge of an Advanced Mortal Rank Poison Vein Master wasn’t something achievable just by passing the Medical Pulse assessment.

In less than two time units, Yun Xiao had managed to refine two Advanced Mortal Rank elixirs in such a short duration; perhaps even the Elders of the Meridian Refining Master Guild couldn’t achieve that, could they?

”No, this prince must not lose to him!”

These thoughts flashed through his mind and with the pride of the Lingtian Empire Crown Prince surging in his chest, Nie Qianqiu took a deep breath and then strode forward boldly. In just a moment, he had overtaken Yun Xiao and pushed open the door labeled ”Spiritual One.”

”Uh...”

Just as Yun Xiao was about to push open the door, he suddenly felt a gust of wind beside him, followed swiftly by a figure disappearing behind the door, leaving him somewhat stunned.

”Was that the Crown Prince who just went in?”

Yun Xiao was somewhat unsure; he certainly hadn’t gotten a clear look at Nie Qianqiu’s face, but the silhouette was somewhat familiar, so he turned his head and asked.

”Hmph, His Highness, the Crown Prince, was indeed here today to take the assessment for the Low-Level Spiritual Rank Meridian Master, and he will surely pass on the first try!”

The one who replied was not Xiao Qiu, but rather Mu Yun, whose expression looked somewhat unpleasant, with a hint of coldness in her words.

Mu Yun had always been an admirer of Crown Prince Nie Qianqiu and had always believed that Nie Qianqiu’s Meridian Refining Talent was unmatched among his peers. However, today seemed to continually prove her wrong.

Moreover, since Mu Yun had never been particularly fond of Yun Xiao from the start, she was naturally not inclined to be overly civil. She knew exactly what Nie Qianqiu’s rushing ahead meant — he wanted to take and pass the Low-Level Spiritual Rank Meridian Master assessment before Yun Xiao.

Nie Qianqiu was indeed thinking this way. Extremely confident in his Meridian Refining Technique, he thought that if he could successfully pass the Low-Level Spiritual Rank Meridian Master assessment at once, it would certainly place him above Yun Xiao.

In the realm of Meridian Refining, Spiritual and Mortal ranks are two entirely different levels where the techniques inherently embody a form of spirituality.

Whether it’s Alchemy and Medicine Refining or treating patients, a Spiritual Rank Meridian Master performs incomparably better than anyone at Mortal rank, and so even if Yun Xiao effortlessly and swiftly cleared the first three assessments, Nie Qianqiu did not consider himself inferior.