73: Chapter 73 Becoming an Apprentice

However, Master He did not fully believe the description in the report. He still carefully asked about where the Medicinal Plants were found, their growth conditions, and so on. This did not stump Su Jiuchuan, as all the Medicinal Plants were indeed found by him personally.

After some questioning, Master He was convinced that Su Jiuchuan truly knew where every Medicinal Plant came from, and he could not help but nod repeatedly.

Seeing this, Su Jiuchuan quickly said, "Student has a few questions for Master to instruct." After saying this, he handed over the prepared note.

"This is..." Master He took the note, then was startled, and said, "Jingu Script, where did you get this?"

Naturally, he could not tell the truth. He smiled and said, "Student discovered it several years ago on a stone tablet in the wilderness. I felt it contained some mysteries, so I copied it down. I wonder if Master can identify it?"

"That is not right!" Master He frowned and said, "This text is completely chaotic and does not make sense at all! Did you copy it wrong?"

Su Jiuchuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that it being chaotic was exactly right. He continued, "Perhaps some characters in the middle were worn away and could not be seen clearly, so they were not recorded."

"Perhaps!" Master He did not dwell on it. He thought for a moment, took out a brush, wrote a character under each Jingu Script, and finally handed it back, saying, "I have translated it for you."

Su Jiuchuan was overjoyed. The secret of that treasure map was finally about to be solved, so he quickly put it away.

"Can I ask the other two questions later?"

Master He stroked his long beard, nodded at him, but did not speak, seemingly lost in thought.

For a moment, there was silence; neither of them spoke.

Su Jiuchuan was just wondering if he should take his leave.

Master He suddenly spoke, saying, "Su Jiuchuan, do you know why your rating was still a C-grade even though you completed a Perfect Talisman during your assessment?"

"Ah?" Su Jiuchuan was stunned for a moment and answered honestly, "I heard it was because I failed twice in a row."

"Failing twice is certainly correct, but you did complete a Perfect Talisman after all; getting a B-grade would not have been a problem." Master He shook his head and said, "It was I who requested that you be given a C-grade."

"Ah!" Su Jiuchuan was somewhat dumbfounded. So, he had been tricked by this old guy.

"I could tell from the parchment you used to draw the talisman that someone had intentionally stained it with water beforehand. Yet, you still completed a Perfect Talisman. What is even more rare is that I could not sense any traces of Mental Energy in those strokes. In other words, you are someone who completed a Perfect Talisman without practicing any Mental Energy at all."

"This is very rare, so I intended to test your Heart-Nature and gave you a C-grade. I had planned to find something else to test you with after some time. I did not expect you to take on this task and complete it so perfectly." After speaking, the gaze with which he looked at Su Jiuchuan was very satisfied.

At this, Su Jiuchuan blushed slightly. Although he did indeed do everything, he knew in his heart whether he had cheated or not.

"Are you willing to become my Personal Disciple?"

Su Jiuchuan was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed. He knew there was a difference between ordinary students and Personal Disciples in the Academy. For ordinary students, according to the Academy's rules, one had to pay Black Iron to ask questions; after all, the Masters' time was limited.

But Personal Disciples were different; it was a deeply bound relationship. It could be said that from then on, the two shared honor and disgrace. Of course, for Su Jiuchuan, he also did not have to worry about where to collect Black Iron to pay tuition, and he could get answers to his questions for free.

"Master is above." Su Jiuchuan did not hesitate and immediately wanted to bow down, but he was held up by a force and could not go down.

Master He continued, "Don't be in a hurry. Let me tell you about my situation first."

"The Academy was established ten thousand years ago, at the same time as the Great Zhou dynasty. At that time, it was divided into the Alchemy Department, which taught Alchemy; the Talisman Department, which taught the inscription of Talismans; and the Ren Department, which focused on educating the world. Among them, the Alchemy Department was the most respected, as Medicinal Pills, although external objects, could ultimately act upon oneself. The Talisman Department was second; although it could provide assistance, it was merely an external object. The Ren Department was where the Masters' ideals of educating the world lay."

"Later, the Great Zhou collapsed, Spiritual Qi vanished, and Spiritual Plants between Heaven and Earth gradually disappeared. Except for a few Secret Realms that remained due to special reasons, they basically vanished, which led to the gradual decline of the Alchemy Department. Even if the Masters tried every possible method, it was of no use. Over ten thousand years, the Masters of the Alchemy Department gradually disappeared, and I am probably the last Master of the Alchemy Department." Master He gave a bitter smile as he said this.

"However, because there were no Materials for Alchemy, the Alchemy Department could not recruit any students at all. Fortunately, I also practiced Talisman making, so I came to the Talisman Department to serve as a Master. Today, I accept you as a Personal Disciple on behalf of the Alchemy Department. Of course, I will also teach you the art of Talisman making without reservation."

Su Jiuchuan did not expect such a thing. No wonder Master He made him find one thousand and eighty types of Medicinal Plants; this was actually a way to let him understand the habits and characteristics of the Medicinal Plants. His intentions were truly profound.

This time, Su Jiuchuan bowed to become his Disciple again, and Master He did not refuse. When the ceremony was over, he took out a jade pendant, handed it over, and said, "Let this be the gift for accepting you as a Disciple!"

Su Jiuchuan quickly took it and checked it simply, but could not see any special features. Seeing that Master He did not explain, he put it away.

"Master, Disciple is currently at Half-Step Innate, but suffers from having no Xiantian Technique. I wonder..." Su Jiuchuan thought that since he had already bowed to his Master, asking for a Xiantian Technique was naturally justified.

Master He smiled and said, "Since I have become your Master, I naturally cannot lack a Cultivation Technique for you. This is the 'Xuandan Technique' of the Alchemy Department, a Cultivation Technique that leads directly to the Dao of Ascension." After speaking, he handed over a small booklet, which was exactly the Cultivation Technique of the 'Xuandan Technique'.

Su Jiuchuan was overjoyed. The problem of the Cultivation Technique was finally solved. He quickly thanked him and then asked, "Master, I see that the aristocratic families also have many Cultivation Techniques. How does one distinguish the superiority or inferiority of these Cultivation Techniques?"

Master He twisted his beard and said, "Cultivation Techniques after entering the Innate stage are indeed extremely important because they relate to the Foundation of achieving the Dao, so one must be very cautious. Many Cultivation Techniques were created in the last ten thousand years, and due to the reason of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, they can at most reach the Destiny Realm. Therefore, the Cultivation Techniques that truly lead directly to the Dao must come from more than ten thousand years ago."