SSS-Rank: I Create My Own Quest

"How is this possible?!"

"He's cheating somehow, he has to be!"

"No one gets perfect scores on Grade Two theoretical exams, even people who've been Geneticists for years struggle with some of those questions!"

But Ryan raised his hand again, his voice cutting through the noise. "I monitored the examination personally. There was no cheating, no outside assistance. Those are his results, achieved fairly. Which means we now proceed to the practical portion."

The practical examination for Grade Two certification required the candidate to successfully concoct one Grade Two pill or serum from a randomly selected list. The ingredients would be provided and demonstrate mastery of the entire refinement process from start to finish.

Ryan gestured to a refinement station that had been set up at the front of the hall. It included a high-quality pill furnace, various measuring instruments, and processing tools. "Please choose your position at the refinement station. Apprentice Corvin will activate the random selection to determine which Grade Two pill you'll be required to concoct."

Theon walked calmly to the station, his movements neither fast nor slow. Corvin, the apprentice, activated a holographic wheel that began spinning through dozens of different Grade Two pill and serum names. The wheel spun faster and faster until it became a blur of text, then gradually slowed, clicking past one option after another before finally coming to rest.

'Nightingale Pill'

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. The Nightingale Pill was not the most difficult Grade Two pill, but it wasn't among the easier ones either. It was a pill that permanently gives grants a cultivator night-vision.

"The Nightingale Pill," Ryan announced formally. "A Grade Two pill requiring Advanced refinement technique and precise energy control. The ingredients have beenprovided. You may begin when ready."

Assistants hurried forward, placing carefully labeled containers of ingredients on the work surface beside the furnace. Theon took a moment to examine each one, opening containers to check the quality and freshness of the materials. His enhanced God's Eye allowed him to perceive subtle details that others would miss such as the exact concentration of spiritual energy in the Moonshade Lotus petals, or the slight variation in density between different pieces of what should have been uniform Starfire Root.

Satisfied with his initial assessment, Theon closed his eyes.

Immediately, memories flooded his consciousness. They were incredibly detailed, it was as if he had personally refined the Nightingale Pill hundreds of times before. He could feel the weight of each ingredient in his hands, remember the exact texture and smell, recall the precise moment during refinement when the mixture would shift from one phase to another.

The refinement process for the Nightingale Pill followed seven distinct stages, each building upon the previous one in a carefully orchestrated sequence that would ultimately transform seven separate ingredients into a single harmonious pill.

Theon began with the foundation, the Earthshade Moss. This particular ingredient needed to be processed first because it would form the structural base that held all the other components together. Using a mortar and pestle made from jade, he ground the dried moss into a fine powder.

As he ground the moss, Theon's enhanced perception allowed him to actually see the primal energy being released, subtle green wisps that rose from the mortar like steam.

The trick was to grind just enough to free the energy but not so much that it dissipated into the air.

He transferred the powder to a ceramic bowl and set it aside, then turned his attention to the furnace itself.

This was a genuine alchemical furnace, inscribed with formation arrays that allowed for precise temperature control.

Theon placed his hands on the furnace's surface and channeled a carefully measured flow of primal energy into it. The formation arrays lit up one by one, accepting his energy and using it to activate the furnace's various functions.

But he didn't simply dump energy in and wait for it to heat up. That crude approach worked for basic refinement, but Grade Two pills required finesse. Theon modulated his energy flow, creating a specific rhythm that caused the temperature to rise in stages rather than a straight linear increase.

First to two hundred degrees, where it stabilized for thirty seconds. Then jumping to four hundred degrees for another brief seconds. Then finally climbing to six hundred degrees, where it would remain for the initial phase of refinement.

While the furnace heated, Theon prepared the second ingredient: Silverleaf Stems.

Using a knife, he cut the stems into segments, each exactly three centimeters long.

Each cut released a small puff of silver dust.

When all the stems were cut, Theon arranged them in a specific geometric pattern on a preparation plate, a seven-pointed star with one stem at each point and seven more in the center.

Satisfied, he added the Earthshade Moss powder first.

The powder went directly into the central chamber of the furnace, where it immediately began to react to the heat. Then the powder started to melt and liquify, transforming from a solid green powder into a an emerald fluid.

He adjusted the temperature down by thirty degrees, using minute fluctuations in his primal energy flow to fine-tune the furnace's output.

The powder's melting slowed and within two minutes it had transformed completely into a smooth, glowing liquid that pooled at the bottom of the furnace chamber.

Now came the first critical moment. Theon added the Silverleaf Stems, dropping them one by one into the emerald liquid in the exact sequence of the seven-pointed star pattern he'd arranged them in.

As each stem touched the liquid, there was a small flash of light, silver meeting emerald, and a new color began to emerge. By the time all fourteen stems had been added, the liquid had transformed into a shimmering green color with patterns on them.

Theon increased the temperature again, this time to seven hundred fifty degrees.

The dissolution took exactly seven minutes,

Time for the third ingredient: Moonshade Lotus petals.

Theon lifted them from their container softy cause they could easily be destroyed.

He lowered three petals into the furnace, placing them so they floated on the surface of the liquid rather than sinking immediately.

Then Theon did something that made several of the watching Geneticists gasp. He reached into the furnace with his bare hand.