Chapter 50: Signing up for the Apprentice Exam
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Ethan initially didn't expect to gain much from selling at the market, but he wanted to try anyway.
If it didn't work out, he would head to the pavilion and sell there, even though it meant losing some money.
His priority right now was not to make as much money as possible but to successfully register for next week's exam.
Failing that would cause him much bigger problems in selling his pills down the road.
Becoming an apprentice wouldn't drastically improve his situation, but it would be enough to sell his level-one pills without too much trouble.
Ethan had time to consider the benefits the system gave him and realized the great opportunity they presented.
For example, after creating his batch of mid-grade pills, he had ascended to the third level of body refining.
Not only that, but he noticed that the system's shop no longer offered the recipe for mid-grade pills but instead moved to a high-grade recipe.
If that wasn't enough, he saw that the recipe could be acquired for only 100 points, which made him a bit excited.
If he didn't immediately need a high-level recipe, he would have used all the materials in his storage to produce enough mid-grade pills and earn enough points to upgrade his pill recipe.
At his current level, having the knowledge and skills to produce mid-grade pills was more than sufficient.
This meant that in just a few days, he had made huge strides.
The thought of continuing to progress at this speed thrilled Ethan, but at the same time, it gave him a sense of unease.
Natural questions like why the previous owner of such an artifact perished in the upper realm despite having it for so long crossed his mind.
'Maybe at higher stages of cultivation, it's harder to advance, even with this artifact,' he pondered.
Given his current cultivation speed, Ethan was confident he would reach the peak of body refining by the end of the year.
Considering this cultivation speed, Ethan could only assume the requirements for later stages would be more challenging.
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After Ethan agreed to sell his pills to Da Shu, they both agreed to formalize things once Da Shu successfully sold the pills.
Although Da Shu had some authority in his family, it was very low compared to other high-ranking members.
If he wanted to start a business relationship between his family and Ethan, he first needed to bring some results to show them.
So, he and Ethan decided to wait a bit and continue selling his pills to see how it went.
If it went well, Da Shu would have something to support his request to his family.
If not, he would only lose a few low-level spirit stones, a cost he could ignore.
Ethan, after gaining a total of 12 low-grade spirit stones, headed to the medicine pavilion to register for the apprentice exam next week.
Usually, to register for a higher-grade exam, one needed to reach a certain level in the preceding grade.
In Ethan's case, already having two stars as an adept alchemist qualified him to register for the apprentice exam.
Sure, the pavilion recommended waiting until having at least three stars and preparing thoroughly before registering for the next grade exam, but they didn't stop anyone who wanted to try earlier.
For them, it was enough that they had set a limitation on who could participate.
If these people wanted to try the exam even if they were still a bit behind, the medicine pavilion didn't mind.
And why should they? After all, they would profit regardless of whether the person was prepared or not.
Ethan didn't take long to reach the pavilion.
The distance between the city market and the pavilion wasn't large, so he didn't have to walk much to get there.
Arriving at the entrance of the pavilion, Ethan entered without hesitation.
Crossing the entrance, he found himself in the reception hall, where he saw a small line of people of various ages.
Ethan silently joined the line and waited.
While waiting, he couldn't help but overhear some conversations from people ahead of him.
"Wang Jiao, are you also here to register for next week's exam?" asked a boy about the same age as Ethan.
The boy named Wang Jiao calmly nodded and said,
"Yes, I didn't do well last month, but rest assured, this time I'll pass.
I've been studying under an Expert Alchemist from my family for the last month.
There's no way I can fail this time," he said proudly.
"Tch, lucky you. My family doesn't have high-level alchemists, so I had to learn what I could, but it should be enough.
After all, I managed to create several low-grade level 1 pills recently," said the boy who spoke first.
The two continued to converse in low voices while Ethan, standing behind, listened casually.
'Seems like I'm not the only one here to register,' he thought, then nodded to himself.
It was normal for many to register at the last moment. After all, no matter how confident one is in their abilities, they always have some doubts and tend to delay registration.
It's not strange that in such cases, many decide to register at the last moment, spurred by a sudden surge of confidence and courage.
Ethan shook his head to clear these thoughts and continued to wait in line. After about ten minutes, it was finally his turn.
Ethan, arriving at the reception, saw that the person behind the counter was the same woman from last time.
The woman, having just put away what seemed to be some paperwork, turned her attention to the next customer.
Seeing who it was, she couldn't help but say in surprise,
"Ah, it's you."
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FRANK_LEE_JUNIOR:
Here's today's chapter. I hope you enjoy it.
In a few days, I will decide from which chapter i will go premium.
I will inform you of my decision in advance.
As usual, if you have any comments, suggestions, or errors to report, do so below.
See you tomorrow with a new chapter.