Mo Lanyi was stunned for a moment before quickly asking, "Immortal Grandfather, is there something special about that Fire Spirit Stone?"
The ghostly elder furrowed his brow, replying, "If my senses are correct, it contains a unique flame aura, which might even be a seed of the legendary Heavenly Flame."
Mo Lanyi gasped, drawing in a sharp breath. "If I'd known it was a Heavenly Flame seed, you should've given me the answers to the other two bonus questions as well!"
The ghostly elder: "???"
He nearly lost his temper and cursed outright.
Good heavens, it was her foolishness that lost her the prize, and she dared to blame him?
If she hadn't gone out of her way to provoke Ji Wushuang, none of this would've happened.
If she hadn't provoked her, Ji Wushuang wouldn't have shown up for the class.
If Ji Wushuang hadn't shown up, she wouldn't have taken first place.
And if that were the case, the Fire Spirit Stone would have belonged to Mo Lanyi by default!
It was her own incompetence and desire to stir up trouble, yet she dared shift the blame onto him?
Suppressing his fury with great effort, the ghostly elder responded, "It's not that I didn't tell you. No one could have known the answers to those other two questions—those plants only exist in the upper realm. That little beggar couldn't have known either."
Mo Lanyi's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Yes."
"Then someone must have fed Ji Wushuang the answers! She cheated!"
Ah, she knew it! There was no way Ji Wushuang, someone who hadn't even attended class, could have gotten a perfect score!
Mo Lanyi immediately stood up and directed her words at the Nascent Soul elder, looking hesitant but resolute.
The Nascent Soul elder looked up and asked, "What's the matter? Speak if you have something to say."
Mo Lanyi bowed her head slightly and said, "Elder, my junior sister hasn't attended any classes. How could she possibly score full marks? And those bonus questions about spiritual plants—I've never even heard of them…"
The Nascent Soul elder's expression darkened. What was wrong with this disciple from Zilin Peak?
She seemed intelligent, but why were her words so insufferable?
Was she insinuating that he, the instructor, leaked the answers to Ji Wushuang?
The elder responded coldly, "These questions were my original creation. There's no such thing as leaked answers. As for the last two plants, Ji Wushuang, kindly tell her where they're documented."
Ji Wushuang smiled slyly. "Page 368 of *Zilin Spirit Plant Compendium, Volume II*, under the chapter on ancient remnant flora."
The Nascent Soul elder had no desire to embarrass a junior disciple and lower himself, but Mo Lanyi's accusation was an affront to his integrity.
"Mo Lanyi, as a disciple of Zilin Peak, you should at least familiarize yourself with the texts authored by your predecessors to avoid becoming a laughingstock."
Mo Lanyi's face turned a deep shade of green.
She never imagined it would turn out this way!
But admitting fault so easily would ruin her reputation forever.
"B-but… it's not unreasonable for me to have doubts. After all, Ji Wushuang hasn't even attended a single class…"
The Nascent Soul elder, despite his usually good temper, couldn't resist rolling his eyes. His round, chubby face only made the expression more amusing.
"This is just an introductory class. Not attending doesn't mean she doesn't understand the material, Mo Lanyi."
Mo Lanyi's face flushed with embarrassment, and she lowered her head, looking pitiful.
Admittedly, her pure light spiritual root and gentle demeanor often earned her the goodwill of others.
The Nascent Soul elder sighed and decided not to pursue the matter further. Instead, he turned his attention to Ji Wushuang and sternly remarked, "And you, your handwriting is atrocious. So terrible, I can't believe it came from a cultivator. Even mortal children write better than you!"
Ji Wushuang, thick-skinned as ever, responded nonchalantly, "Thank you for the compliment, Elder."
The Nascent Soul elder: "???"
Is this what you call a compliment?
He harrumphed. "That's enough. This concludes the introductory lessons. You've all passed and may now choose your next classes. Just don't pick mine. Dismissed!"
With that, he vanished in a flash, as if fleeing from something.
The moment he left, the disciples broke into murmurs, most of which revolved around Mo Lanyi.
In this world, everything had two sides. While Mo Lanyi's pure spiritual root garnered admiration, it also attracted its share of disdain.
"Ha! And here I thought she was kind and soft-hearted. Turns out she's all honeyed words and sharp claws. Anyone smarter than her is automatically a cheater, huh?"
"Exactly. It's hilarious."
Mo Lanyi's eyes turned red with anger, but she bit her lip and approached Ji Wushuang.
"Junior Sister, I wasn't trying to accuse you on purpose. I was just worried you might stray from the right path… As cultivators, we must act with a clear conscience. Otherwise, we risk falling prey to inner demons in the future."
Ji Wushuang let out a casual "oh" and quickly noticed Mo Lanyi's gaze darting to the Fire Spirit Stone in her hand.
She wanted it?
By now, Ji Wushuang was certain—Mo Lanyi was the so-called "child of destiny" favored by the heavens.
Anything she desired was guaranteed to be valuable.
Without hesitation, Ji Wushuang stored the Fire Spirit Stone in her dimensional space and said cheerfully, "Thank you, Senior Sister! I didn't even realize the first-place reward was so significant. With my flawed spiritual root, earning resources is tough, so this reward is crucial for me. By the way, what's the next class?"
"Huh?"
"Are we only having one class today?"
"No, there are still the other five arts to cover later."
"Great! Thanks for the reminder, Senior Sister. I'll make sure to claim all the rewards."
Mo Lanyi was so furious she nearly laughed.
How could anyone be so shamelessly confident?
Ji Wushuang's improbable victories continued across the remaining subjects, leaving everyone utterly stunned.
Initially, her peers were skeptical, but by the end, they were practically bowing down to her.
During the formation arts exam, she identified the formation's core with a single glance and calmly resolved it.
In the talisman arts, she memorized over a hundred types of talismans, even offering her own improvements that earned her lavish praise from the Nascent Soul elder teaching the subject.
For artifact refinement, her precise identification of materials and their respective properties and methods of extraction left no room for doubt.
As for the beast taming test, the notoriously temperamental spirit kittens rolled over and presented their bellies to her, purring affectionately.
And in spiritual cultivation, she flawlessly determined the type, attributes, age, and medicinal properties of every single plant.
Was she even human?
The answer seemed to be a resounding no.
Her fellow disciples were left questioning their very existence. Compared to her, their brains might as well be decorative accessories.
Ji Wushuang, entirely unrepentant about crushing their confidence, collected her prizes one by one. She arched an eyebrow and offered Mo Lanyi a playful smirk.
"Senior Sister, you're so kind. Thank you!"
Mo Lanyi: "…"
Damn it.