“Of course it is difficult…”

Wang Qing was upset. He said in a low voice, “The melting points of the Masculine Sun Grass and the Purification White Lotus are 971 degrees and 1,432 degrees respectively. There’s a gap of 461 degrees in between. The effect of the former will decline if the temperature is too high, and the latter will not melt if the temperature is too low… It’s impossible to integrate them without herbal catalysts!”

“I tested eight herbs just now. The Green Wood Grass can raise the melting point of the Masculine Sun Grass, but only by 76 degrees, so there’s still a long way to go. A flower can lower the melting point of the Purification White Lotus by 87 degrees. However, there’s still a gap of 298 degrees…”

“If the temperature of the fire can be raised within five breaths, the problem can also be resolved, but our standard furnaces can’t bear drastic increases. Look… According to my calculations, they would explode in 4.75 seconds. They cannot endure five breaths at all…”

“Also… the place where the herbs are positioned also matters. The top of the furnace is the part with the least heat, while the bottom is the hottest. The year when the herbs were collected is another factor. The water percentage of the herbs would depend on this…”

Wang Qing’s words and the dense formulas on his paper were dazzling.

“Is it that complicated?”

Shen Zhe was stunned.

The previous day, he had succeeded by simply adding oil and pepper powder…

He didn’t consider the harvesting year or the melting points of the herbs…

“Aren’t you overthinking?” Shen Zhe couldn’t help but ask.

“How could I be? To be honest, I am under-thinking. Look at Cui Xiao and Ling Xueru. They’re considering even more factors!” said Wang Qing as he secretly pointed at them.

Shen Zhe looked at them. Their papers were even denser; they had even used up a couple of sheets.

Their notes were too far away for Shen Zhe to read, but he could tell that the paper was full of functions, theorems and calculus.

“Well…”

With eyes back on his own paper, Shen Zhe hesitated as he read his answer.

“Is ‘appropriate amount’ not accurate enough? I don’t remember how many ounces of oil I used… Besides, I think it has something to do with the pot. Large pots need more oil…”

“Time is up!”

While he was wondering if he should change the term “appropriate amount,” Mr. Xin Qi’s sniff dragged everybody back to reality.

“This is too hard…”

…

The students whispered to each other in frustration.

Cui Xiao collected everyone’s answers and delivered them to the rostrum.

“The guidance book for teachers doesn’t have a conclusion about how to melt the herbs without a catalyst, which means that there’s no standard answer. This test is only meant to measure your analysis and calculation abilities. Mistakes are inevitable in drug making. What matters is how you correct them, and the direction you’re working on. If your direction is wrong, you will achieve nothing, no matter how many times you try!”

Checking a few random answers, Xin Qi explained.

He had calculated 129 times, to no avail. Therefore, there was no specific answer. All the students who could provide correct procedures would be given points.

Nobody could have a full score, but as long as their methodology was correct, it was easy to score eighty to ninety points.

“That explains a lot…”

Everybody was enlightened and relieved.

“Cui Xiao, randomly distribute the answers, and write my procedures on the blackboard. Every procedure will mean a specific number of points. You will grade each other. The result will be announced later!”

Such class quizzes were generally not checked by the teacher but by the students.

The answers were soon distributed.

The one Shen Zhe received was actually Ling Xueru’s.

Her handwriting was as beautiful and as elegant as her looks.

Her answer was on five sheets of paper, written without any modifications.

It was obvious that she had taken everything into consideration before she wrote the answer.

Shen Zhe was surprised as he read the answer.

It was just like Wang Qing had said. In fact, it was even more detailed.

Various formulas, theorems, even the quality of the furnace, the temperature of the fire, and the volume of the air had been taken into account.

He looked at the answer on the blackboard. It was identical to Ling Xueru’s.

“Well…”

Shen Zhe’s eyes widened.

No wonder Ling Xueru was proud. She certainly had every reason to be.

The calculations were too complicated for him to understand.

“Ninety-eight points!”

Soon, he determined her result.

Her answer was absolutely the same as the teacher’s, except for the speculation at the end.

She deserved to be the student with the best grades in her class.

Coincidentally, Shen Zhe’s paper had been given to Ling Xueru.

Ling Xueru was satisfied and comforted to see that Shen Zhe wrote confidently just then, but the moment she read his answer, she knew that she shouldn’t have felt happy that soon!

“What did he write?”

“Cooking tips?”

“The question was about refining, yet you’re adding oil and pepper powder…”

She thought that Shen Zhe was making progress, but he had betrayed himself in the test, showing that he was even worse than before!

While his grades were bad in the past, he was able to get some points, but he had apparently given up on himself.

Shaking her head, she looked at the correct answer on the blackboard and wrote a score after hesitating for a moment.

“Submit the answers now!” said Xin Qi, seeing that everyone had stopped writing.

Soon, all the papers were piled on the rostrum.

“I’ll announce your grades now!”

Sorting the answers according to their grades, Xin Qi said, “Ling Xueru, 98! Cui Xiao, 95…”

Although the quiz was difficult and there was no definitive answer, more than half of the students had scored higher than ninety points, while the rest were all above eighty points.

Shen Zhe noticed that even Wang Qing had gotten 86 points.

“This doesn’t make sense. My answer is different from the one on the blackboard, but it has been verified in practice… Why has my name not been announced yet?”

Shen Zhe frowned.

He was very confident about his answer.

After all, the herb liquid had been produced; it improved his body to the seventh stage.

Such a correct answer should score at least ninety points, if not a full score… Why was his name not mentioned?

“The last one… Shen Zhe!”

While he was puzzled about this, Xin Qi read his name aloud.

Everybody looked at him, as if wondering how many points the last place of their class could get.

“Three points!” said Xin Qi with determination.

“Three points?”

Shen Zhe was stunned.

Such a perfect answer had produced so few points?

“I thought that you could get at least sixty points, but I didn’t know that you could be so bad!”

His face grim, Xin Qi was about to explode.

He had never seen a lower score in all his years of teaching.

It certainly had created a new record.

You could get points by writing a few random formulas on the paper. Three points meant that Shen Zhe had gotten everything wrong!

“It’s almost impossible to become a Druggist, even for those with more than 95 points. Three points…”

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Xin Qi raised his eyebrow and slapped the desk furiously, “Shen Zhe, tell me, what can you do with three points?”

“Well…”

Sheepishly standing up, Shen Zhe scratched his head and said innocently, “Avoid getting a zero?”