CHAPTER 6: A Dragon Among Men

Outside the stone chambers, the atmosphere was equally heavy.

Since Qu Qingmiao, Pill Cauldron Sect had not seen a top-tier disciple for many years.

Not only were the elders of the sect’s outer division closely monitoring the assessment, but even a few members of the Yunhua Sword Sect were watching from afar.

Of course, they were only here for that Grade One Silvertrace Herb.

Yu Nianrou cast a doubtful glance at Jiang Yuan. “Senior Brother, are you sure that boy from the Su family can take first place?”

Jiang Yuan’s usually cold and sharp face softened with a gentle smile as he lowered his head to explain patiently, “Su Yizhi is indeed the most outstanding disciple of the Su family in the Northern Region’s current generation. However, because he was born of a concubine, he has been constantly suppressed by the main branch, which is why he ended up in Pill Cauldron Sect. So, rest assured, first place is surely his.”

“Even if he doesn’t get it, we can always ask Father to help—”

Yu Changan’s words were abruptly cut off as Yu Nianrou interjected, “Absolutely not. Before we left, we already agreed that we would handle any trouble ourselves and shut those gossiping mouths!”

She lifted her delicate chin slightly, her eyes sharp.

From birth, Yu Nianrou had been pampered and adored, never suffering the slightest grievance.

She dined on spirit food worth tens of thousands of gold, wore robes forged from rare heavenly treasures, and wielded the finest spiritual weapons and swords. Yet, precisely because of this, others believed her cultivation was entirely built upon her father’s resources. They showed her respect on the surface, but in private, they always spoke with disdain.

At just twelve years old, she had already reached the peak of the Qi Refining realm. If it were anyone else, they would be hailed as a genius.

But in her case, all she ever got was a dismissive—

“Yu Junior Sister is fortunate to have such a good father.”

Her journey outside the sect this time was meant to prove her strength to those skeptics. Unfortunately, she had carelessly encountered a spirit beast in heat in Tonghua County, resulting in an injury to her face.

If she returned to the sect now, seeking her father’s help while bearing this wound, wouldn’t she become a laughingstock?

If Su Yizhi couldn’t obtain that Grade One Silvertrace Herb, she would simply spend spirit stones to hire someone else to get it for her. If they refused… well, her sword would do the convincing.

Her father had always told her that the cultivation world was one where the strong preyed on the weak—only the strong survived, and the weak perished. So, her actions were not wrong.

Yu Nianrou gripped her sword tightly, the silver-furred ornament hanging from its sheath swaying gently in the wind.

That Grade One Silvertrace Herb—she would have it, no matter what!

….

Inside the assessment chambers.

Elder Wan had gone from jasmine tea to Da Hong Pao tea as the base for his milk tea, his tone growing slightly anxious. “This is strange. Su Yizhi found nine of the medicinal ingredients on the first day, but it’s already the sixth day—why hasn’t he found the last one yet?”

Qu Qingmiao countered, “Didn’t you suspect he might be a spy?”

Then why were you so eager for him to finish?

Elder Wan chuckled sheepishly. “Even if he is a spy, we can still win him over with kindness and nurture him. I’m sure we can turn him to our side—he could even become a pillar of Pill Cauldron Sect’s future!”

Qu Qingmiao’s gaze swept over the closed stone chambers.

More and more people were cracking the pill formula, yet Su Yizhi still held first place. The nine glowing marks on his chamber’s door stood out distinctly.

Only two doors remained completely silent from start to finish, showing not a single sign of movement.

Suddenly, Qu Qingmiao lifted his head, his thin lips parting slightly. “Someone is coming out.”

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, the tenth light on Su Yizhi’s chamber door flared to life—he was the first to complete the assessment!

But in an unexpected twist, the previously inactive chamber next to his also lit up in rapid succession, flashing ten times in a row. The two doors opened simultaneously, making it impossible to tell who had finished first.

The crowd’s expressions changed drastically. Could it be that some hidden genius had solved the entire formula in one go?

The atmosphere grew tense, the only exception being Elder Wan, whose face was beaming with delight.

Excellent! There was no way this second genius could also be a spy, right?

Moreover, this person had remained silent until the very last moment, revealing their brilliance only now. Such composure and patience—both were traits Elder Wan highly valued.

“Good, good, good!” He praised three times in a row, eyes locked onto the door, eager to see who it was.

Under everyone’s expectant gaze…

Qi Nanfeng stepped out, his stride light and casual.

Elder Wan scrutinized him from head to toe before nodding in satisfaction. “This boy is handsome, upright, and carries himself with an exceptional demeanor. No way he’s a spy. Truly, a future pillar of Pill Cauldron Sect—if we nurture him well, he won’t be any less talented than Su Yizhi.”

Qu Qingmiao cast him a silent glance. “We certainly have a lot of ‘future pillars’ in our sect.”

Stepping out at the same time was a short young boy, his cheeks still carrying traces of baby fat. His skin was pale as snow, and the corners of his eyes were slightly red, making him look innocent and adorable.

So Su Yizhi was just a young boy.

His face was dazed, lost in thought. As he walked out, he suddenly tripped and fell. But instead of getting up, he remained sprawled on the ground, vomiting first.

Qi Nanfeng was startled and hurried over to help him up.

“Little brother, did you eat a Fasting Pill? Ah, I tried one too—man, the taste is really something else. Luckily, I had some meat buns in my storage pouch, so I didn’t have to keep eating that stuff.”

Su Yizhi: “…Oh.”

Upon seeing Su Yizhi exit, Yu Nianrou—who had been waiting in the distance—could no longer sit still. She swiftly flew forward, intending to enter the chamber area.

However, a Pill Cauldron Sect disciple blocked her path. “The assessment is not yet over. Fellow Daoist, you are not of our sect and may not enter.”

Yu Nianrou held her sword and let out a cold hum. “The first person has already finished. Surely, you can at least let Su Yizhi collect his first-place reward?”

Hearing his name, Su Yizhi sluggishly lifted his head and gave her a lazy glance before dropping his gaze again, still lost in thought, making no effort to rise.

Elder Wan explained kindly, “We must wait until the assessment concludes tomorrow before verifying everyone’s submitted answers. At this moment, we still do not know who has taken first place.”

Qi Nanfeng patted his chest confidently. “Right! Even though I came out a step later than him, what if I got everything right and he got everything wrong?”

Such confidence and arrogance—he was indeed the disciple Elder Wan had set his sights on.

Elder Wan gazed at Qi Nanfeng with gratification.

Yu Nianrou, however, gripped her sword tightly, eyes flickering with a hint of killing intent as she stared at Qi Nanfeng. In the end, she restrained herself, knowing better than to start a fight inside Pill Cauldron Sect.

She said coldly, “Fine, then I’ll wait one more day.”

The stars scattered as dawn gradually brightened the sky—another night had passed.

It was now the seventh day of the examination.

On this day, the youths within the stone chambers began to emerge one after another, their faces reflecting both joy and sorrow. They all gathered at the testing grounds, waiting for the results to be announced when the bell tolled.

As the sky darkened toward evening, Yu Nianrou, who had been waiting here all day, finally lost her patience. For some reason, she felt the wound on her cheek growing more painful and was now anxious to obtain the Silver Traced Herb.

She raised her voice and asked, “Everyone’s already out, and yet it’s still not over?”

Elder Wan frowned, already beyond weary of this girl. Unfortunately, the person backing her was a Nascent Soul stage powerhouse—someone he couldn’t afford to offend.

He pointed and said, “There’s still one person who hasn’t come out.”

Following the direction of his finger, Yu Nianrou finally noticed that indeed, there was still one stone door left closed. Perhaps because it had remained utterly silent from beginning to end, everyone had completely overlooked it.

“If they haven’t come out by now, they must be some useless fool who couldn’t pass the test,” Yu Nianrou declared with certainty, as if it were a matter of course. “Why waste time on just one person?”

This was a principle she had learned from Yu Bumie since childhood—there was no need to sympathize with the incompetent.

“Oh, look at you, acting all high and mighty, meddling in everything. If someone didn’t know better, they’d think you were the Sect Master of the Pill Cauldron Sect.”

Qi Nanfeng couldn’t hold back and retorted immediately. The moment he stepped out and didn’t see Yu Youyou, he had already guessed that the person in that unopened stone chamber was her.

Elder Wan secretly rejoiced—this kid was good. He hadn’t even officially joined the sect yet, and he was already standing up for the Pill Cauldron Sect’s dignity!

Yu Nianrou cast a sideways glance at him and finally recognized Qi Nanfeng. “Oh, so it’s you. That means the one inside… is that little beggar you carried up the mountain?”

She tilted her head slightly, her sweet smile carrying a hint of mockery. If one only looked at her face, they would think she was just a delicate and innocent young girl.

But the words that came out of her mouth were—

“It’s been seven days with no movement. Could she already be dead?”

A nameless fury surged up in Qi Nanfeng’s mind.

He abruptly stood up, ready to argue, but Jiang Yuan, who stood protectively beside Yu Nianrou, merely cast him a cold glance. Under the pressure of a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s spiritual power, Qi Nanfeng groaned, his body slamming heavily back onto the ground.

This was the difference between a cultivator and a mortal.

Lying on the ground, Qi Nanfeng took a deep breath and forced out a smile.

With a sarcastic drawl, he said, “Calling someone else a beggar—if you ask me, your whole group of sickly ghosts look more like ‘baopilong.’”

He spoke in the dialect of Tonghua County, which none of the Yunhua Sword Sect disciples from out of town could understand.

However, Jiang Yuan had a nagging feeling that this was not something flattering. He turned to Elder Wan and asked, “What did he just say?”

Cold sweat formed on Elder Wan’s forehead. He was just an outer sect elder—he couldn’t afford to offend the Yunhua Sword Sect. But at the same time, the boy in front of him was a rare talent he had taken a liking to. He couldn’t just let him get cut down by these sword cultivators!

The old man had no choice but to bite the bullet and make something up. “Ah… he said that you all are true dragons among men, worthy of admiration. He realizes his mistake and won’t offend you again.”

Baopilong = True Dragons Among Men?

That… didn’t sound entirely wrong.

Jiang Yuan was about to ask what “sickly ghosts” meant, but before he could, Yu Nianrou had already drawn her sword.

“The test ends when the bell tolls, right?” She tossed her sword into the air and, under Elder Wan’s furious glare, gracefully cast a sword control technique.

“In that case, I’ll make it ring now!”

The flying sword, dazzling with brilliant radiance, shot straight toward the ancient bell with immense force.

A deep, resonant chime echoed across the entire examination peak.

Yu Nianrou’s lips curved into a smirk.

But at that very moment, just as the bell rang out, the previously sealed stone door suddenly shone with an intense, blinding light—

No, not just one light, but ten lights converging as one!

Before the sound of the bell fully faded, the stone door, which had been closed for seven whole days, finally opened.

A small figure slowly stepped out.

The first thing that caught everyone’s attention was a pair of bare feet covered in frostbite and scars. Moving upward, they saw a tattered, oversized robe that nearly dragged on the ground. The ill-fitting garment made the figure appear even smaller, and her pale face was devoid of any color. The only striking feature was her large, cat-like eyes—deep, dark pools, as tranquil as still water in the winter.

A typical orphan’s appearance.

Yu Nianrou looked down at her condescendingly. As she had guessed, it was that annoying little beggar.

“So you actually made it out before the bell finished ringing.” She sheathed her sword and let out a scornful laugh. “But I bet you couldn’t figure out the pill formula, so you just threw ten random herbs into the box, didn’t you?”

At these words, Qi Nanfeng immediately felt as though he had been shot in the knee. He quickly looked around, pretending not to have heard anything.

Yu Youyou simply found her voice grating. She had been locked up for seven days, and now she was in a terrible mood.

She lazily lifted her eyelids and said, “You sword cultivators should stop trying to tell us alchemists how to do our jobs.”

Before Yu Nianrou could speak, Jiang Yuan’s expression darkened as he drew his sword, preparing to teach this impudent girl a lesson.

He had done this countless times before—whenever Yu Bumie was absent, he had always been the one protecting his junior disciples.

But before he could make a move, Qu Qingmiao, who had been silently observing, suddenly flew forward, grabbed Yu Youyou, and tossed her into the crowd. Then, standing at the very front of the group of disciples, she coldly warned—

“Fellow Daoist, even if our two sects are allied, that does not give you the right to interfere with our sect’s examination!”

“Very well.” Jiang Yuan withdrew his sword and looked at Yu Youyou expressionlessly. “Then I’ll wait until the test is over.”

Qu Qingmiao’s heart sank slightly.

The entire cultivation world knew how fiercely protective Yu Bumie’s lineage was. Right now, while Yu Youyou was still within the Pill Cauldron Sect, the Yunhua Sword Sect naturally wouldn’t touch her. But if she failed the test, she would have to leave.

Jiang Yuan might hesitate to offend the Pill Cauldron Sect, but he certainly wouldn’t hesitate to kill a mere mortal.

The life and death of a mortal were nothing more than a whim to a cultivator.

But there was nothing Qu Qingmiao could do.

She could only hope that child would be able to pass the examination—though…

The odds were close to none.