Brax studies Kuri as he stands there waiting for him to say a word.
"Nice to meet you too, Mr. Kuri," Brax nods his head at the young man and that's it. He doesn't need to acknowledge this kid any further.
Seeing Brax go silent, Kuri starts feeling awkward. He needs to restart the conversation, which will stick, and force Brax to engage with him.
"Honored Disciple, how did your exam go?" Kuri asks.
"It went well," Brax answers.
"Then you must be confident in becoming an apprentice?" Kuri asks.
"No doubt about it," Brax says.
"Honored disciple, are you aware that my master is a 3-star alchemist?" Kuri asks.
"Well, good for you," Brax says with a smile.
Kuri didn't expect this reaction, he thought Brax would be shocked or at least try to change his attitude a little, knowing his teacher is a 3-star alchemist.
But no, Brax is still not giving him any face.
"If you want, I can ask my master to teach you alchemy. It will surely help you become a 1-star alchemist sooner," Kuri suggests.
Brax finds Kuri's desperation annoying. It is very clear that Kuri wants to build a relationship with him, but Brax isn't sure about this.
He isn't going to just become buddies with every person that comes to him. First, he needs to know everything about them and what they can provide to him.
From what he knows of the Wright clan, they are not that important. Sure, they have money and influence, but when it comes to power, they lack it.
When it comes to Kuri, his cultivation talent is average, but he has a great mind for alchemy, so he will go on to become an alchemist. Makes a name for himself, have great influence in the city but when it comes to true power, he will never have it.
Looks like the fate of the Wright has been sealed for its upcoming generation.
No matter how much influence and money one has when compared to overwhelming power, it amounts to nothing.
"No need. I am fine when it comes to alchemy." Brax says with confidence.
Again, Kuri is stumped, Brax didn't take his bait. Now he stands there, not knowing what to say. So before it gets awkward, he decides to ditch.
"Well, once again, nice to meet you, honored disciple. If you have the time to spare, please visit our clan," Kuri says and walks away.
As soon as Kuri steps out of the room, he grits his teeth and clenches his fists in anger.
'Who the fuck does he think he is? He is just a lowly other sect disciple while I am a student of a 3-star alchemist. I am going to make him pay for embarrassing me in front of everyone,' Kuri thinks.
____________________
Brax has no idea what Kuri is thinking and he wouldn't have given a damn, even if he knew about it.
For now, his only concern is the results.
Since he has some time to himself, he closes his eyes and begins observing the changes occurring in his body.
He is one step away from stepping into the next realm, and this step can be taken in many ways. Through sheer force. With the assistance of cultivation pills. Through proper guidance or sticking to the books.
But what Brax wants to understand is what leads to this next step. Change doesn't take place out of nowhere. There is always something in between.
Brax wonders what's in between the Qi condensation realm and the Foundation-establishing realm.
After reaching the tenth stage of the Qi condensation realm, Brax continued building up his Qi so that his breakthrough into the Foundation-establishment realm would be a smooth sailing one, but he noticed something strange.
His Qi continues to build up with no end. It's as if there is more to Qi condensation realm.
'How much more can I store?' Brax questions himself, as he feels himself growing a little bit stronger every day. He is still not anywhere close to his limit.
With all the books and manuals he has read about cultivation, there was no mention of what Brax is experiencing.
'Maybe I can find out more about it once I become an inner sect disciple,' Brax thinks, as inner sect disciples have access to more knowledge. For now, he will continue building up his Qi.
_____________________
An hour instantly goes by and the 1-star alchemist invigilator comes back.
His eyes immediately fall on Brax as if he couldn't believe what he was looking at. Brax notices this and wonders what triggered such a reaction.
"Quiet down!" he orders, being annoyed by the constant chattering of the applicants.
His stern warning shuts everyone up, so he begins speaking again.
"I would like to say that I feel honored to have been your invigilator today because something incredible has happened, something that has never happened before," the 1-star alchemist says causing the applicants to once again murmur amongst each other, trying to guess what happened that's so special.
"For the first time ever in the history of this alchemy guild, someone has procured a perfect score in this entrance exam." As soon as these words are uttered, the room becomes uncontrollably loud.
They can't believe what they just heard. A perfect score on the entrance exam? That's completely unheard of. As they process this piece of information, only one name comes to their mind who can achieve this. They all turn their head to look at Young Master Kuri, the alchemy prodigy of the Wright clan.
As Kuri finds all the attention on himself, he can't help but put on a proud smile and puff his chest. Who else but him, an alchemy prodigy, can achieve such a feat?
Unlucky for Kury, the 1-star alchemist immediately pours cold water on his burning pride with his next sentence.
"Honored Disciple Brax, you are a shining example of brilliance. I didn't doubt for a second your greatness. Nobody but you can achieve such a feat but you," the alchemist says, and approaches Brax and hands him a green-colored card.
"This is your alchemy apprentice identity card, and also your proof of passing the exam"
On it is inscribed his name, age, cultivation level, and his score. A perfect hundred.
This card acts as an identity card for an alchemy apprentice and also shows how well-versed they are in their alchemy theory by displaying their exam score.
Brax's perfect score makes him the perfect apprentice.