Eternal Life by Daily Divination

"As for Golden Core Stage Alchemy Grandmasters, the Cyan Dragon Sect has them too. A few have already passed the test. However, their assessment ratings weren’t high enough to qualify them to pick the Meng Luo Leaf."

"Even Tier Four Alchemy Grandmasters aren’t enough?" Li Chang’an frowned deeply. He had only just stepped into the Tier Four Alchemy Dao. If the Tier Four Pill Masters of the Cyan Dragon Sect were unqualified, then he was likely unqualified as well.

Zhuo Wanshuang explained, "That puppet once stated that one’s Alchemy Tier is only a part of the assessment. It also values talent and potential. Daoist Li, you are quite young, after all—only a little over a hundred years old."

She pointed out that the previous Alchemy Grandmasters were all over four hundred years old, with one even nearing five hundred. They had slowly ground their way up to Tier Four over time, and were therefore deemed to lack potential.

In her eyes, although Li Chang’an’s alchemy skills couldn’t compare to theirs, he was significantly younger. Furthermore, he was a loose cultivator who had reached Quasi-Tier Four purely through his own exploration without the guidance of any seniors. This alone was enough to prove his talent and potential.

"Daoist Li, there’s no need to put too much pressure on yourself," Zhuo Wanshuang said softly. "You’re just going to give it a try."

"Does the Cyan Dragon Sect really have no young Alchemy Grandmasters?" Li Chang’an asked, finding this strange. For a sect as massive as the Cyan Dragon Sect with countless disciples, it was impossible that they wouldn’t have a single young grandmaster.

"We do." Zhuo Wanshuang told Li Chang’an about two cultivators. Both were under three hundred years old, Tier Four Alchemists with immense talent and potential, and had yet to undergo the Pill Cauldron Sect’s disciple assessment. "They will be heading to the Cyan Dragon Secret Realm tomorrow to take the test. Would you like to go with them, Daoist Li?"

"I’m just an outsider. Are there any conditions for entering the Cyan Dragon Secret Realm?" Li Chang’an asked, inevitably thinking of the Vermilion Bird Secret Realm. Back then, it had taken him quite a bit of effort just to gain entry.

Hearing this, both Zhuo Wanshuang and Chi Qingxuan smiled.

"Rest assured, Daoist Li. Our Cyan Dragon Sect is not as stingy as the Vermilion Bird Sect. There are no prerequisites; you just need to follow us in."

"That’s good." Li Chang’an breathed a sigh of relief. He didn’t want to go through the grueling process of gathering treasures again.

Speaking of which, the news of the Vermilion Bird Sect giving him a hard time seemed to have already spread. All of the Eight Great Nascent Soul Forces were aware of it. So much so that whenever people brought up the Vermilion Bird Sect with him, they would often mock the sect’s stinginess.

The next day.

Li Chang’an, Zhuo Wanshuang, and Chi Qingxuan left the Cyan Dragon Sect. Not long after, they arrived at the entrance to the Cyan Dragon Secret Realm. Two people were already waiting there. These two were exactly the young Tier Four Alchemy Grandmasters that Zhuo Wanshuang had mentioned to Li Chang’an the day before. One was named Chai Rui, and the other was Zhai Yu.

Zhuo Wanshuang made the introductions. "Daoist Chai, Daoist Zhai, this is Daoist Li Chang’an."

"Haha, we’ve known about him for a while. He’s the Daoist whom the Vermilion Bird Sect gave such a hard time," both men said with a smile, appearing incredibly friendly.

"Daoist Li has an impressive talent for the Alchemy Dao," Chai Rui chuckled. "To possess Quasi-Tier Four alchemy skills at such a young age is no small feat. If you could receive guidance from a renowned master, you might just become a true Tier Four Alchemy Grandmaster like us."

"Indeed," Zhai Yu chimed in. "It is truly not easy for a loose cultivator to make it this far."

Both of them acknowledged Li Chang’an’s talent. However, in their eyes, he was still not a true Tier Four Grandmaster. They couldn’t pin their hopes on him; they still had to rely on themselves.

"We must give it our all this time. Whether True Monarch Fusheng can awaken depends entirely on our assessment results."

"If neither of us passes, it simply means that puppet is deliberately making things difficult. It has no intention of letting us harvest high-tier spirit medicine at all!"

The two discussed the assessment via sound transmission.

A moment later, the group passed through the Tier Four illusion-breaking treasure at the entrance one by one. After confirming there were no disguised outsiders, they smoothly entered the secret realm.

The environment of the Cyan Dragon Secret Realm was vastly different from that of the Vermilion Bird Secret Realm. As far as the eye could see, emerald mountains overlapped one another, and the clear waters were like mirrors. Throughout the entire secret realm, the mountains and waters were harmoniously intertwined. There was no sense of oppression whatsoever, nor any other bizarre auras.

"The reason this secret realm is called the ’Cyan Dragon Secret Realm’ isn’t because of our Cyan Dragon Sect, but rather because there is a vast Cyan Dragon Lake deep within it," Chi Qingxuan explained in a crisp voice, introducing the origin of the realm’s name to Li Chang’an. "Beneath the Cyan Dragon Lake is a dragon palace known as the ’Cyan Dragon Palace,’ much like the ’Vermilion Bird’s Nest’..."

Their destination was not in the depths of the secret realm, but rather in its central region.

Several days later.

The massive ruins of a sect appeared before Li Chang’an’s eyes. At the center of these ruins lay the objective of their journey—the Ancient Spirit Medicine Garden.

From a distance, a staggering array enveloped the entire spirit medicine garden, isolating it from the outside world. Through the array, one could see spiritual mist permeating the area. Countless radiant spirit medicines swayed gently in the breeze, their treasure light so intense that it was nearly blinding. There was no telling just how many high-tier spirit medicines were growing inside.

"Truly worthy of being a Divinity Transformation Immortal Sect’s spirit medicine garden."

With a single glance, Li Chang’an recognized dozens of Tier Four Spirit Medicines, almost every one of which offered tremendous benefits for cultivation. It was a pity he couldn’t harvest them and could only admire them through the array.

Outside the array stood a pitch-black Tier Four Top Grade Puppet. Zhuo Wanshuang stepped forward and bowed with cupped hands.

"Greetings, Senior."

"People of the Cyan Dragon Sect, you have returned." The puppet slowly opened its eyes. Its voice was flat and devoid of any emotion as its indifferent gaze swept over the group. "How many of you are here to take the Pill Cauldron Sect’s disciple assessment this time?"

"Senior, there are three this time," Zhuo Wanshuang said softly, introducing Li Chang’an and the other two to the puppet.

Upon hearing that two of them were Tier Four Alchemy Grandmasters under three hundred years old, a subtle shift occurred in the puppet’s eyes.