Chapter 32: HOW SHALLOW(6)

Elder Shen’s gaze became colder. "Your innate qualifications do not correspond with your performance."

There it was.

Li Yan finally understood. It had never been about the examination.

They did not believe someone like him could answer those questions.

His yellow spirit root had already placed him in their minds as an ordinary cultivator, while his lack of a prestigious family background had only reinforced that judgment.

Li Yan let out a quiet breath. "So that is what this is about."

His voice became colder. "You looked at my spirit root, checked my background, and decided that I could not possibly be intelligent enough to earn this score."

None of the disciples spoke.

Li Yan’s anger rose further when their silence failed to deny it. "How shallow."

His words were directed at the situation as a whole rather than any one person.

"You call yourselves teachers, yet you have decided that intelligence belongs to people with better spirit roots and wealthier families. If someone does not have either, you would rather accuse them of cheating than consider that they might be capable."

Elder Shen’s expression changed.

Li Yan did not stop there. "I studied for this examination. I spent countless nights reviewing the material. My teacher practically had to force me to sleep because I kept studying, and even yesterday, after reaching the inn, I went through the material again before the examination."

His hand tightened at his side.

"All of that effort, and you conclude that I cheated because you cannot accept that I knew the answers?"

The hall became completely silent.

Li Yan took a slow breath and forced himself to calm down.

Arguing would not prove anything.

He needed to give them a way to prove themselves wrong.

"If you do not believe my paper, then let me take the examination again."

Elder Shen’s brows lifted. "Again?"

"Yes."

Li Yan’s gaze remained steady. "Give me another examination with completely different questions. Let every invigilator in this hall watch me while I answer it. If you are still concerned, invite people from outside the Nine Jade Sect to supervise me."

The more he spoke, the calmer his voice became.

"I will answer everything in front of you."

Elder Shen studied him, so Li Yan continued before the elder could respond.

"If I fail to achieve the same result, I will accept whatever punishment the Nine Jade Sect considers appropriate. But if I answer the questions correctly and prove that I did not cheat, then I want compensation."

The disciples exchanged surprised looks. Elder Shen’s expression became serious as well.

"You are asking the Nine Jade Sect for compensation?"

"No, I am asking you and the other invigilators who wrongfully accused me and wasted my precious time. I should have left this hall hours ago."

Li Yan did not retreat. "You detained me for two hours after the examination, accused me of cheating without evidence, and judged my intelligence according to my spirit root and family background. If I prove that your accusation was wrong, then I deserve an apology and compensation for the treatment I received."

He had already tolerated enough. He would not allow them to decide that he was stupid simply because he did not fit the image of a talented cultivator.

Elder Shen remained silent for several moments. Then he nodded. "Very well."

Li Yan’s expression eased slightly.

"If you are willing to prove yourself, the Nine Jade Sect will give you that opportunity."

Elder Shen turned toward the disciples standing nearby. "Go and invite Elder Mo."

The disciples immediately bowed. "Yes, Elder Shen." and hurried out of the examination hall.

Li Yan remained where he was, his anger slowly settling now that he had finally been given a chance to prove himself.

He glanced toward Elder Shen. "Who is Elder Mo?"

"Elder Mo is the head of the Alchemy Department," Elder Shen replied. "He is responsible for evaluating the theoretical knowledge of our alchemy disciples. He is also notoriously difficult to deceive."

Li Yan nodded. Let him come; he had nothing to fear.

The questions might be different, but he was confident he would answer them the same way.

This time, however, he wanted them to watch every stroke of his brush.

Several minutes later, footsteps sounded from the corridor.

The disciples returned first, followed by an older man in simple grey robes.

His silver hair was neatly tied behind his head, and there was nothing extravagant about his appearance. Yet the moment he entered the hall, the disciples instinctively straightened.

The man’s expression was stoic, and his eyes were so calm that Li Yan immediately understood why Elder Shen had chosen him.

This was not someone who would accuse him based on assumptions.

At least, Li Yan hoped not.

Elder Mo stopped several steps into the hall and looked toward Elder Shen.

"You summoned me?"

Elder Shen nodded toward Li Yan. "This is the examinee I told you about."

Elder Mo’s gaze shifted to Li Yan. The man’s eyes lingered on him for a moment before he calmly asked, "He is the one who supposedly cheated?"

Li Yan’s lips twitched.

Supposedly.

At least someone was using the correct word.

Elder Shen nodded. Elder Mo looked at the examination paper on the table before returning his attention to Li Yan.

"Then let us see whether he actually cheated."

Elder Mo did not think another four-hour examination was necessary. After examining Li Yan’s paper, he selected three questions from the middle section and placed his finger beside the first one.

"There is no need to waste another four hours," he said. "If you truly answered these questions yourself, you should be able to explain them without seeing the answers you wrote."

Li Yan found the method reasonable. Anyone could memorize an answer if they had obtained it beforehand, but explaining the principles behind several unrelated questions would be much harder.

Elder Mo pointed toward the first question. "Explain this one."

Li Yan glanced at the paper and answered without hesitation. "It concerns the interaction between two spiritual herbs during pill refinement. The first herb can enhance the medicinal properties of the second, but only when the temperature remains within a specific range. If the temperature rises too quickly, the medicinal essence becomes unstable, which will greatly reduce the effectiveness of the resulting pill."