"Everyone, quiet down," the 1-star alchemist orders with a firm tone, sending the whole room silent.
"Good. Now make sure that all your asses are glued to your seats while I go around and check your forms," he says and begins with Kuri, the young master of the Wright clan.
"Ah, young master Kuri, I wish you the best of luck," the alchemist puts on a smile as he greets the young man.
'Looks like the kid's family name means a lot in this city,' Brax thinks as he takes his time studying the alchemist.
'A failed cultivator who got lucky becoming an alchemist,' Brax thinks as he observes the state of Qi in the alchemist's body. The Qi has gone stagnant, meaning he won't be able to advance any further. In fact, he doesn't have much of a future in alchemy, either.
This alchemist is just an 8th-stage Qi condensation realm cultivator with no chance of cultivating further. With limited Qi in his body, he won't be able to make higher-level pills, meaning he won't ever become a famous alchemist.
If he tries his best and gives it his all, he might become a 2-star alchemist, but he will be a very bad one, only able to conjure low-grade intermediate-level pills and elixirs at best.
The alchemist moves on from the young master and the smile on his face immediately disappears. He then goes on to check everyone's form until he arrives in front of Brax.
He stops in his tracks as he looks at the uniform Brax is wearing. Their eyes meet. He approaches Brax's table and takes his form. He reads the information written on it. He is shocked.
"I didn't expect an honored disciple of the Eleven Mountain Sect to be here. Greetings," the alchemist greets Brax with respect.
Not every outer-sect disciple gets this kind of respect from him, but he made an exception for Brax because he couldn't see through Brax's cultivation, and when he checked Brax's age on his form, he realized that Brax is someone special.
An 18-year-old who already has a higher cultivation level than him. He is knowledgeable enough to know that someone of Brax's caliber is bound to be an inner sect disciple very soon.
An inner-sect disciple of the Eleven Mountain sect is a big deal because they have a direct connection to the elders of the sect.
So showing respect to Brax was a very wise call from the alchemist.
Brax just smiles and nods at the alchemist.
Hearing the alchemist's words, the rest of the class turned their head to look at Brax. All of them were so worried about the exam that none of them bothered to take notice of their surrounding. Amongst them is a disciple of the Eleven Mountain Sect.
The most shocked of the bunch is the man sitting next to Brax. He didn't even notice the uniform Brax was wearing. This shows just how unaware people are of their surroundings.
The class starts to whisper again, all their focus on Brax. Even the young master who didn't bother giving two fucks about the alchemist turns around to look at him.
"Well, here is your form. I hope you do well, honored disciple," the alchemist wishes Brax and moves on.
The alchemist then proceeds to pass the question sheets to everyone.
With the questions in hand, Brax starts skimming through them. All the questions are basic and easy for him. With his ability to never forget, even the hardest theories are etched into his mind.
"You may begin," the alchemist gives the bell.
Everyone gets busy answering the questions, same with Brax. His hands move swiftly as he notes down all the answers.
The question sheet is filled with a lot of questions. It would usually take someone at least three hours to answer them all, but Brax finishes it much earlier.
He puts his pen to the side and looks around. Many are still scratching their heads trying to answer the questions.
'Looks like I will have to wait for a while,' Brax thinks and puts his hands down, throwing his mind into chaos which it's quite familiar with.
Ideas, theories, questions, possible answers, all jumbled up in there, but it all makes sense to him.
"Time's up!" the alchemist calls at the end of the exam making everyone stop. He begins collecting everyone's question/answer sheets along with their form, attaching them together to identify the papers to the applicants.
"The results will be out in an hour. You can leave or stay," the alchemist says and leaves the room.
As soon as he steps out, the whole room begins to chatter again. The noise is loud and nothing makes sense, but Brax can easily distinguish between each and every voice in the room.
And most of them are talking about him.
"I am so sorry, honored disciple. I didn't know. I had no idea..." Brax hears the man next to him suddenly start speaking in a panic.
He looks and sees him as a nervous wreck. Gone is that friendly, nonchalant expression replaced with uncertainty and fear.
"Don't bust your balls over it. I won't even remember you by tomorrow," Brax says. He is lying though, as he never forgets a face, no matter how brief the interaction is.
"Oh, I-" he suddenly cuts himself off and looks up front as someone else approaches Brax.
Brax looks up front and sees Young Master Kuri standing with a smile on his face. "Honored Disciple, my name is Kuri Wright. I am the eldest son of the Wright clan head. It's an honor to meet you,"