70: Chapter 70 is even more of a rip-off than the simulator.

Since childhood, his Family had discovered that his Mental Energy was quite strong, so he was cultivated with priority; they even gave him a copy of the Mental Energy cultivation method that the Family had spent a huge fortune to obtain—the 'Spirit Treasure Gathering Spirit Technique'.

Over these years, he had not disappointed expectations. At only twenty years old, he had already cultivated the 'Spirit Treasure Gathering Spirit Technique' to the third level and could already draw a Five-Stroke Talisman.

The Family had long treated him as a future Great Master of talisman making.

The so-called Great Master of talisman making referred to an expert who could draw a Ten-Stroke Talisman.

This was the very source of his confidence, allowing him, a collateral descendant, to be impolite to Wen Shuyu, a direct descendant of the Wen Family, while she could do nothing about it.

Even a Genius like him had never created a Perfect Talisman, and according to accounts he had read in some unofficial histories, every Great Master of talisman making had successfully drawn a Perfect Talisman in the past.

And now, Su Jiuchuan had successfully drawn a Perfect Talisman. Even if it was based on luck, it showed the possibility of becoming a Great Master of talisman making. For the first time, Wen Qiye included Su Jiuchuan as a person who could be mentioned in the same breath as himself.

Wen Shuyu's gaze toward Su Jiuchuan also flickered at this moment; she was clearly evaluating his value in her mind.

If she had previously only thought of Su Jiuchuan as a tool to disgust the Lin Family, then now, he possessed value in the true sense.

On the other hand, Li De, who had been watching this side, had a gloomy expression. With this Perfect Talisman, Su Jiuchuan's admission into the Talisman Department was beyond doubt.

When that time came, it would be too easy for a formal student of the Talisman Department to deal with a servant like him.

Moreover, it looked like Su Jiuchuan had the potential to become a core student; killing him then would be no more than a mere trifle.

Regardless of what others thought, the old man in black put the piece of cowhide back and returned to his seat in front of the great hall.

"Clang, clang, clang!"

The sound of the ancient bronze bell continued to ring, which meant that the assessment had ended.

"Those who have finished drawing, stay; everyone else, leave!" the old man in black said indifferently.

The others stood up one after another. Many, unwilling to give up, took another look at the three cowhide sheets on their tables that were covered in stains, but they could only shake their heads helplessly and leave.

In the end, only twenty-three people remained in the great hall.

The old man in black did not speak; he had the servants collect all the talismans that everyone had drawn, then turned and left.

He passed through two courtyards and arrived at a pavilion, where five other people were chatting.

"Master Chen, it seems the students admitted for this year have been determined. How was it?" a beautiful woman said with a smile.

The old man in black nodded and said, "Not bad. This time, someone actually succeeded in drawing a Perfect Talisman."

"Oh!" The others, who had been chatting amongst themselves, stood up together upon hearing this and said in unison, "Take it out and let us see."

Master Chen placed the cowhide that Su Jiuchuan had drawn on the stone table in the pavilion; the faint blue glow on the talisman characters had not yet completely extinguished.

"Not bad, it really is a Perfect Talisman."

"Such a Genius is truly a blessing for the Academy!"

Seeing everyone exclaiming in wonder, Master Chen said indifferently, "However, he only obtained this after failing to draw it twice in a row, and the assessment was about to end at that time."

At this, the others fell silent. Although drawing a Perfect Talisman indicated perfect control of Mental Energy, the failure to draw it twice in a row could not be explained; it could only be attributed to good luck.

"Should we give him an A-Rank?" asked the beautiful woman, Master Han.

Master Chen said, "If he hadn't failed, he could have been rated as A-Rank. But since it took three attempts to succeed, according to custom, he can only be rated as C-Rank. Since it turned out to be a Perfect Talisman in the end, let's compromise and give him a B-Rank!"

Hearing this, the others nodded one after another. Only the eldest, Master He, did not speak and was quietly examining Su Jiuchuan's cowhide.

"Since everyone agrees, then let it be so!" Master Han then said.

"No!" Master He said indifferently. "Customs cannot be changed at will. Since it was drawn on the third attempt and took so long, it can only be rated as C-Rank."

"But..." Master Han still wanted to argue, but she realized Master He was ignoring her and had no choice but to drop it. After all, in this Talisman Department, Master He was the most senior teacher, and under normal circumstances, no one wanted to go against his wishes.

The matter was thus settled, and then the ratings for the others were determined.

Soon, Master Chen recorded everyone's ratings and then slowly walked back to the great hall.

At this time, everyone was still sitting upright; no one dared to speak. Everyone knew that the ratings in the Academy were very important, as they determined one's welfare and benefits in the Academy.

Master Chen scanned the crowd and then said, "Now, I will begin to announce your admission ratings."

Following that, he began to read.

Wen Qiye was not surprised to hear that he had obtained an A-Rank; the Family had already evaluated him long ago.

Wen Shuyu obtained a B-Rank. Even so, she was not in high spirits. Having cultivated the Family's 'Spirit Treasure Gathering Spirit Technique' for many years and still failing once, there was really nothing to be happy about. What she wanted to see most was Su Jiuchuan's rating.

At this moment, the list had reached the end, and Master Chen finally read that Su Jiuchuan was C-Rank.

Hearing this, Wen Qiye froze for a moment, then was overjoyed. As expected, only the Great Masters of talisman making in the Academy could give a fair evaluation; this Su Jiuchuan was merely lucky for a moment.

Wen Shuyu was also somewhat disappointed; she hadn't expected Su Jiuchuan's rating to be even worse than hers in the end. She had originally been thinking about what price to pay to win him over.

Su Jiuchuan, on the other hand, did not care, because he had no idea what the significance of this Rank was. In the schools of his past life, no matter what his grades were, as long as he could enter the Academy to study, that was fine.

Master Chen continued, "For A-Rank students, the annual tuition is fifty catties of Black Iron or equivalent Artifact Refining Materials. For B-Rank students, the tuition is eighty catties of Black Iron or equivalent Artifact Refining Materials, while C-Rank requires one hundred catties of Black Iron or equivalent Artifact Refining Materials."

What on earth is Black Iron? Su Jiuchuan was stunned; no one had told him about this.

"The first level of the 'Taiqing One Thought Method' of the Talisman Department is provided for free, but it is forbidden to spread it externally; violators will be killed. The subsequent levels need to be exchanged for at the Scripture Pavilion. In addition, the Academy has a lecture on the Dao once a month. A-Rank students can ask questions twice for free, B-Rank students can ask once for free, and for C-Rank students, asking once requires payment of ten catties of Black Iron."

Upon hearing this, Su Jiuchuan began to curse inwardly. It was too unscrupulous; this was a scam, even more of a pit than the simulator. This Black Iron was likely not cheap, and he suddenly felt tremendous pressure.