After studying the final herb and solving the most difficult issue, Bai Xiaochun paid no attention to the surrounding cheers. From the moment he first picked up the jade slip, he had become completely immersed in the Dao of herbs and medicine. His entire being was in a state of total absorption.
Unless thunder roared from the heavens, nothing from the outside world could distract him—not even the fact that everyone else had already finished refining.
The moment he moved, everyone turned to look. Even **Xu Baocai** had a strange expression, as did many others. They all felt that Bai Xiaochun operated on a completely different **sense of time** than the rest of them.
> "He's way too slow! Everyone else is done, and *he's* just starting. Isn't the test over already?"
> "Wait… I don't think the alchemy apprentice promotion exam has a time limit, right?"
As soon as someone said that last part, everyone froze and turned to look at Elder Xu.
Elder Xu hesitated. Indeed, there **was no time limit** on the test. So, he simply stood there… watching Bai Xiaochun continue refining.
**Han Jianye** felt no pressure at all. He gave a calm smile, his eyes flashing with contempt. He had once viewed Bai Xiaochun as a rival, but after this test, he no longer believed Bai could surpass him.
**Du Lingfei** frowned deeply. The more she looked at Bai Xiaochun, the more irritated she felt.
Meanwhile, Bai Xiaochun's hands moved quickly, his eyes gleaming with intense focus. In his world, nothing existed but the cauldron before him. The herbs flew into his hands, swiftly transformed—some into juice, others into powder—and dropped into the furnace. He formed a hand seal and pointed toward the cauldron. Instantly, the flame below ignited.
An hour passed in a flash.
A strong medicinal fragrance burst out from the cauldron. Bai Xiaochun reached out and caught a **four-inch** block of **Mo Ling Incense**, examining it closely. His brow furrowed.
Everyone around watched intently. Elder Xu's eyes lit up. But just as they expected Bai Xiaochun to begin his second batch, they were shocked to see him holding the incense block and… studying it again.
> "What's he doing now??"
> "He succeeded already—why isn't he starting the second batch?"
Bai Xiaochun wasn't satisfied. Though it was a success, he had **expected a seven-inch** result.
> "Where did I go wrong?" he wondered.
This **thinking phase** lasted three entire hours.
Just when everyone grew completely impatient, Bai Xiaochun's eyes lit up. He pulled out another set of herbs and began his second batch. Everyone perked up and turned to watch.
An hour later, a **richer and stronger** fragrance burst out. From the cauldron emerged a **five-inch** Mo Ling Incense.
Du Lingfei's face changed. Chen Zi'ang and Zhao Yiduo were both shocked. Even Han Jianye's eyes twitched—he looked calm, but inside, tension rose.
What unnerved them wasn't that Bai Xiaochun had succeeded **twice**, but that he had done so **consecutively**!
As everyone looked on in astonishment, Bai Xiaochun flicked his sleeve, drew out a third batch of herbs, and launched into his third attempt.
After another silent hour…
**BOOM!** The cauldron shook violently. An even more powerful fragrance exploded outward, and from the cauldron emerged a **six-inch** Mo Ling Incense!
> "Three in a row! How is that even possible?!"
> "Did he practice Mo Ling Incense before?!"
The crowd erupted. Consecutive successes like this were **unheard of**.
Du Lingfei's breathing grew labored as she stared at Bai Xiaochun, waves of emotion surging in her chest. Chen Zi'ang and Zhao Yiduo were stunned speechless.
> "Three in a row… He must be very familiar with the recipe and incredibly lucky! He'll definitely fail the next one!" Han Jianye muttered to himself, fists clenched, blood vessels showing in his eyes.
But instead of preparing the fourth batch, Bai Xiaochun once again picked up the six-inch incense and began… thinking.
Five whole hours passed.
At the beginning, the crowd would've left by now. But after seeing Bai Xiaochun succeed **three times**, they couldn't help but stay to see whether he could match or surpass Han Jianye.
> "He's *so* slow. It's just a Tier One spirit medicine! How much thinking can it take?"
Du Lingfei and Han Jianye, exhausted but unwilling to miss anything, stared intensely at him.
Finally, Bai Xiaochun's eyes lit up, brows lifting in delight. He waved his hands, herbs flew out, and he began his **fourth batch**. Instantly, everyone focused.
An hour later, a **booming sound** rang out—not from failure, but from the overwhelming **volume** of fragrance that burst from the cauldron, filling the air.
A **seven-inch** Mo Ling Incense appeared!
**Success again—four in a row!**
The square erupted.
> "Four in a row!!"
> "He actually did it again! How many times *can* he succeed?!"
> "Two is passing, four is considered a genius… I remember Senior Sister Zhou Xinqi made seven back then!"
Du Lingfei's expression turned ugly. Though she knew Bai Xiaochun's herb mastery far exceeded hers, seeing the same gap in alchemy struck her hard.
Han Jianye was now grinding his teeth, body trembling. He refused to believe it, but he couldn't deny what was happening.
> "Four! That has to be his limit! He *has* to fail the rest!"
While the crowd buzzed with excitement and anticipation, Bai Xiaochun once again picked up the incense block and started… thinking.
> "What's with this guy?! He's *thinking again*!?"
Everyone wanted to leave but couldn't tear themselves away. They hoped he would **think faster this time**.
Time passed.
Eight hours later, Bai Xiaochun took a deep breath, bloodshot eyes gleaming. He knew that he had **almost failed** the fourth batch.
> "This Mo Ling Incense is far harder than anything I've refined before…"
Ever cautious and meticulous, Bai Xiaochun mentally reviewed every step from the last batch, identified the error, and only then began his **fifth batch**.
He ignored the crowd entirely. No matter what anyone said, he would never proceed without full confidence.
The fifth batch started. By now, the spectators were exhausted, forcing themselves to stay alert and keep watching.
A loud bang rang out.
A stronger fragrance than before swept through the area. Everyone's hearts skipped a beat at the scent alone.
**Success! Fifth batch—complete!**
Han Jianye sat frozen, a wave of bitterness surging inside. After a long pause, he sighed deeply, completely speechless.
This time, Bai Xiaochun didn't make anyone wait. With a flick of his sleeve, he immediately launched into the **sixth batch**.
Soon after, **another success**! The fragrance this time was even more intense.
Eyes flashing, Bai Xiaochun didn't stop. He took out more herbs and started the **seventh batch**.
But just as the seventh was nearing completion… a faint burnt smell wafted out. Only Bai Xiaochun noticed it, and his heart dropped.
He quickly adjusted the flame, and after barely salvaging it, the batch was **barely successful**. The resulting incense was **only three inches** and full of impurities—just shy of being downgraded into **poison incense**.
Still, to the crowd—it was a success.
By now, everyone was fully riled up. Their breathing was heavy, and **Xu Baocai** stared with sheer disbelief.
> "Seven times… He actually did it—seven successes!"
> "The same as Senior Sister Zhou Xinqi! I think only one person in history—Senior Brother **Wang Qingshan**—ever succeeded eight times. He's a high-ranking legacy disciple now!"
> "As for *nine*… that's unprecedented. No one's ever done it!"
As the square buzzed with amazement, Bai Xiaochun fell silent, staring at his cauldron. His eyes were bloodshot. He had long stopped caring about the test itself—he was lost in the art of alchemy.
That last near-failure had left him thoughtful. He pulled out the herbs again, inspecting them carefully, until he finally identified the issue.
> "It's this spirit plant called **Mo Fruit**. The ink essence inside each one has subtle differences…"
Staring at the herb in his hand, Bai Xiaochun's mind spun with analysis and deduction.
Time passed slowly.
Watching him silently ponder, many disciples couldn't help but **laugh wryly**. They were amazed—but **his slowness** was simply **outrageous**.
Still, no one wanted to leave now.
They all sat down, waiting. Some leaned on nearby rocks and even **fell asleep**.
Elder Xu gave a strange look, coughed lightly, and also sat cross-legged to wait.
Du Lingfei and Han Jianye refused to leave either. But Bai Xiaochun had drained them both mentally and physically—they were forced to sit and rest, their eyes red with fatigue.
Gradually, the area fell into silence. Eventually, **even snores** could be heard. But some, like **Xu Baocai**, stayed awake, eyes fixed on Bai Xiaochun.
Several hours passed. Someone woke up, glanced over—and saw Bai Xiaochun *still thinking*.
> "He's *still* studying?!"
> "It's already dawn… several times…"
Finally, after more than **ten full hours**, **Bai Xiaochun's eyes shot open**, bloodshot and burning with light.