What followed was a question-and-answer session during which I recited the contents of the books I had read in Chu Zhu Zhu’s laboratory. With my perfect memory, answering most of the questions was effortless. The judges raised topics I was unfamiliar with, and I either admitted my ignorance or made educated guesses based on the data I already knew. When I didn’t have enough knowledge to speculate, I simply stated that I didn’t understand the question.
“Excellent! Simply marvelous!” - exclaimed one of our judges at last. - “This is more than sufficient to qualify for the master alchemist rank. Does anyone have objections?”
The three judges, who had suffered utter moral defeat, no longer had the strength to protest. For the last ten minutes, they had simply been sitting with their mouths agape, resembling lifeless statues.
“Wonderful! By the authority vested in me as a third-rank Grandmaster Alchemist, I confer the title of Master Alchemist upon Tan Ji Tao and induct him into the Alchemist Guild of the Sect of Heavenly Blades.”
“Thank you, masters” - I said respectfully, bowing.
“Today, you have become the youngest Master Alchemist in the sect’s history” - the head alchemist said with a smile. - “We expect great achievements from you in the future.”
“I will do everything in my power to live up to your trust” - I replied, continuing to weave a web of polite words.
“Ha-ha! Well then, I declare the alchemist competition officially concluded” - announced Cheon Chu Han. Though he seemed slightly bored by the exam, he hadn’t interrupted it because the spectacle enhanced the sect’s image. - “Now, according to tradition, we should have an exhibition match between the finalists. What do you think, if we hang your students from meat hooks, will they be able to simulate combat?” - he asked Kre Ka Tui with a smirk.
“Enough!” - Kre Ka Tui roared, slamming his fist on the table in front of him and splitting it in two.
Without another word, he ascended into the sky and flew away, transforming into a rainbow of light. Even with my psionic-enhanced perception, I couldn’t track his speed. If Kre Ka Tui had decided to kill me, I wouldn’t even have noticed his attack. But apparently, I was too insignificant a target for him to risk conflict with our sect leader over me.
“Ho-ho, Master Kre Ka Tui seems upset” - Cheon Chu Han chuckled as he watched him leave. - “In that case, let’s move on to the second part of today’s gathering.”
With those words, the sect leader stood and walked deeper into the building.
I quickly donned my jewelry, threw on my robe, and followed the servants who were already hurrying us to keep up. Narrow servant corridors led us through the palace, where my face and ragged attire were assessed once again. It was decided that even such tatters suited a lowly servant, and I was ushered into a room where other students who had passed the trials were already seated.
I was immediately bombarded with congratulations for attaining the rank of Master Alchemist. Some offered sincere congratulations, while others fawned and tried to ingratiate themselves. I remained distant yet civil with both groups, not acting overly aloof. However, our interaction didn’t last long before we were summoned to meet the sect leadership. The youthful faces surrounding me were so familiar by now that I barely registered that these thirty students were all that remained from the initial group of a thousand.
Looking around, I realized that Liu Qiang was not among us. The girl had not survived the trials. I couldn’t even remember whether she had perished during the seal ritual or in the tomb. Among the remaining students, there was no one I knew well. While I recognized many of their faces and some names, I hadn’t built any significant relationship with them. Half of these thirty survivors were ruthless maniacs, consumed by fantasies of dominating others.
While reflecting on the transience of existence, we were led into a lavishly decorated hall where the upper echelon of local society had gathered. At the center of attention, of course, was the sect leader. Cheon Chu Han sat on a golden throne, looking down at the surrounding commoners with a self-satisfied grin. Seated on either side of him were a middle-aged man and Cheon Wan Yu — the very elder who had placed the slave seal on me. Their familial resemblance was evident, and an ordinary person might assume they were the father and grandfather of the current leader. In reality, they were his son and grandson.
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Qi bestowed eternal youth on the talented, so such scenes were not uncommon among cultivator families. Among the other attendees, it was the relatively young cultivators who occupied the most prominent positions, while the elderly usually stood silently in the background. Of the elders, the familiar Sun Wei Bonk appeared to be the oldest, which was likely a result of his great age rather than insufficient cultivation level.
We were brought here to boast about the “treasures” we had obtained in the tomb. Out of the thirty survivors, eight had managed to collect valuable items. Most of them were allowed to keep their spoils, but the sect leader “persuaded” a couple of students to present their most intriguing finds as “gifts for the benefit of the sect.” Naturally, those two fully understood the consequences of refusal, so no incidents occurred.
I was the last to be called upon to "entertain the crowd." I intended to put on a performance that these smug faces wouldn’t soon forget. No, I wasn’t planning to shock them with defiance; rather, I aimed to play on their weakness — greed.
“And so, what treasures has our champion brought back from the Forbidden Tomb?” - Cheon Chu Han asked cheerfully as I stepped forward.
“Master, I would like to offer gifts to the sect and personally to some of those present.”
“Gifts? Well, let’s see what you have to offer.”
“All of these, I present to you as the leader of the sect that enabled me to become a cultivator.”
With those words, I dramatically extended my left hand and emptied an entire hoard of priceless treasures from my rings. When I had dealt with the Radiant Fingers Sect students, I discovered that each of them carried one of the tomb’s “treasures.” As far as I could understand, these treasures were distributed to trial participants to weed out those tempted by the power of the Gods and Demons while simultaneously limiting their development.
Yes, these weapons and artifacts could provide a sharp increase in strength at the initial stages, but in the end, each one harbored a flaw. Now, using the Malicious Gaze technique, I could see the Heavenly Laws and Demonic Curses embedded within these items, designed to restrict those who used them for cultivation.
Seeing the pile of over fifty treasures glowing with heavenly and demonic Qi, the crowd fell silent, ceasing their murmurs about the latest gossip. Even two “rare” items were considered valuable acquisitions for the sect. Here, I had just laid out fifty high-quality artifacts. Most likely, the three inner-circle students I encountered in the tomb had spent several days there, discovering the library’s entrance and the locations of its most valuable treasures.
After each trial, the labyrinths would rearrange themselves, so knowing where to go and what to do in advance allowed these students to amass a remarkable collection of artifacts. Chi Hua Hua had explained that after the teleportation, students were left with at most one valuable item. My “haul” was gathered later by blatantly robbing our so-called allied sect.
After relishing the "moment of silence" and the twisted faces of those present, I pulled out a special item from my ring. It was the very sword with the Thousand Ruthless Strikes technique that the first opponent had used against me. The primary merit of this sword, however, was its appearance — a short, one-handed blade adorned with gold and a guard studded with precious gems. Even if it were an ordinary, useless piece of metal, no one would allow a mere student to possess such a treasure.
As soon as I drew the sword, I felt the greedy gazes directed at it. The eyes of the person for whom this gift was intended burned the brightest. It seemed I hadn’t misjudged his character.
“This sword, containing the Thousand Ruthless Strikes technique, I would like to gift to Master Cheon Wan Yu. I hope it proves useful in his difficult work.”
The old man grinned, extended his hand, and drew the sword to himself, immediately examining the patterns and inscriptions on the blade.
“Heh-heh, this blade is undoubtedly worthy of being gifted to me” - declared its new owner. - “But how can it help me in my work?”
“I’ve heard you’re a Master of Torture. This sword’s technique, Thousand Ruthless Strikes, is described as inflicting severe injuries — not killing the target but merely wounding them. In combat, such a blade is entirely useless. However, for conducting interrogations, the ability to deliver a thousand wounds while ensuring the target’s survival might come in handy. I hope this sword proves valuable to you.”
“A thousand ruthless strikes? I like how that sounds. I’ll be sure to test it in my work” - Cheon Wan Yu smiled.
That smile sent shivers down the spines of many present. Seeing the maniacal grin now spreading across my face as well, they concluded that provoking me was also unwise. Today, I had ingrained the desired conditioned reflex in their minds, and in the future, I would reinforce it with corresponding actions. For now, it was time for another gift with a hidden trap.
“This jade containing an incomprehensible mystical technique, I wish to present to Master Sun Wei Bonk for his kind attitude toward me” - I announced, producing the next treasure.