Chapter 164: Chapter 159: Who Else? (Part 1)
After the apothecary deacon finished recording, Li Ying packed the medicinal herbs into a box and set it aside.
Next, the Outer Institute disciples came up to the large stone one by one to display their hauls.
None of their individual finds were particularly outstanding, consisting mostly of mid- and low-grade medicinal herbs. However, thanks to the sheer number of Outer Institute disciples, their total haul was quite impressive.
Five high-grade herbs, sixty-eight mid-grade herbs, and two hundred seventy low-grade herbs.
Elder Gold Stone waved his large sleeve, and a red-nosed Brocade Rat flew out from before him. It circled once through the crowd of Outer Institute disciples, then quickly scurried back to the elder’s side.
This Brocade Rat was also a strange beast with a keen sense of smell, but it was a grade or two lower than the Fragrant Mink or the Silver-spotted Fox. It could only detect the scent of medicinal herbs, not distinguish their quality.
If one were to take a Brocade Rat to gather herbs, they would most likely only collect a pile of common herbs with strong, coarse properties. It was, however, perfect for checking if disciples had hidden any away for themselves.
In truth, taking the herbs was rather pointless without a formula. Consuming them incorrectly would be more harmful than helpful.
With the Outer Institute’s tally complete, the various departments of the Wuxiang Institute came forward in the order of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth.
First from the Gold and Stone Department was Zhong Yewu. He opened his herb box and laid out over thirty medicinal herbs on the large stone.
Zhong Yewu had taken first place in last year’s Autumn Harvest, so naturally, all eyes were on him. The disciples craned their necks to watch, and before he even finished laying out the herbs, gasps of astonishment already filled the air.
"Three... four... five... six high-grade herbs!"
"I can’t believe it! Did he really gather all those by himself?"
"Well, Zhong Yewu has always been a loner. I’ve never heard of him stealing herbs from any other disciple..."
Zhang Xiaoshan slapped his forehead and cried, "It’s over! There goes my hope for a Five-Six Pill!"
Zhao Lin, however, felt reassured. ’If this is all my most likely competitor for first place has gathered, then that Five-Six Pill is as good as mine.’
The apothecary deacon counted on his fingers for a moment before announcing loudly, "Six high-grade herbs, thirteen mid-grade herbs, and eighteen low-grade herbs."
Elder Water Mirror’s heart sank. He immediately turned and shot a questioning look at Zhao Lin.
By his calculations, Zhong Yewu’s haul was already worth more than a single Top Grade herb. ’Zhao Lin will need at least one high-grade herb, or seven mid-grade ones, plus a few extras on top just to match him.’
Zhao Lin gave a firm nod, which seemed to put Elder Water Mirror at ease.
Zhang Xiaoshan, who was standing in front of Zhao Lin, thought the elder was asking him. He grimaced and said, "Elder, I can’t compete."
Water Mirror rolled his eyes. ’Who asked you?’ he thought.
The Gold and Stone Department lived up to its reputation as the strongest. Besides Zhong Yewu, five other disciples had also harvested high-grade herbs, for a grand total of eleven.
They also had fifty-two mid-grade herbs and one hundred ninety-five low-grade herbs.
A smile spread across Elder Gold Stone’s face. The results were even better than he had expected.
They had already surpassed the Outer Institute. ’As long as we beat the Fire Jade Department, we’ll be at the top of this Autumn Harvest once again.’
At this thought, he glanced at Zhao Lin. ’I wonder how much he gathered,’ he thought. ’It would be wonderful if Zhong Yewu could take first place.’
After the Gold and Stone Department came the Cyan Wood Department.
The Cyan Wood Department’s haul was average. Aside from Lin Qiutong, who had gathered three high-grade medicinal herbs, the rest of the disciples performed poorly. Their results were far inferior to both the Outer Institute and the Gold and Stone Department.
Elder Cyan Wood’s expression was grim, and he shook his head in resignation.
Next up was the Water Mirror Department.
The disciples were called up roughly in the order they had joined the institute, so Guo Enze was first.
He was just about to step forward when he saw Elder Gold Stone motioning for him to stop. He had no choice but to pull his leg back, wondering what was happening.
Elder Gold Stone cleared his throat and announced casually, "I have an announcement to make. Yesterday, a disciple of the Water Mirror Department, Zhao Lin, found a Top Grade medicinal herb: a Yin Erosion Lotus."
"Fearing its medicinal properties would fade, it was sent down the mountain ahead of time. The herb has already been delivered back to the sect. I’m just making this known to all."
Before he had even finished speaking, the disciples erupted in an uproar.
"What? A Top Grade herb!"
"There are Top Grade herbs on Five Finger Mountain?"
"If Elder Gold Stone said so, it must be true."
"That kid is way too lucky! He’s won first place with just a single herb!"
"I’m not so sure. Do the math—Zhong Yewu’s herbs are worth a lot more than a single Top Grade herb!"
Amid the buzz of conversation, most people turned to look at Zhao Lin. Some didn’t even recognize him and had to ask around to find out who he was.
Among these gazes, four were the most intense.
One was from Zhong Yewu. He had thought his victory in the Autumn Harvest was a sure thing, but he never expected Zhao Lin to come out of nowhere and actually find a Top Grade herb.
Although he currently held a slight lead, he had no idea if Zhao Lin had found anything else. A wave of anxiety washed over him.
Two more came from Xiang Bao. When he heard the three words "Yin Erosion Lotus," a flash of insight struck him, and he almost slapped his thigh in frustration.
’He must have found the Yin Erosion Lotus in that cave!’
’If my brother hadn’t been chasing him, how could he have stumbled into that cave by accident?’
’Why does he get all the luck?’
Zhang Xiaoshan turned his head and said in amazement, "So you were the truly capable one all along! No wonder you didn’t want to gather herbs with me."
Zhao Lin remained calm and replied modestly, "You flatter me. My abilities are average and my skills are limited. It was all just luck, nothing worth mentioning."
Zhang Xiaoshan was left speechless for a long moment.
Guo Enze walked up to the large stone and took out the herbs he had gathered. Although he had two high-grade herbs among them, Zhao Lin had stolen all the thunder, and his reveal failed to cause even a ripple of excitement.
Everyone’s attention was fixed on Zhao Lin, eager to see whether he or Zhong Yewu would take first place.
Most people, however, still favored Zhong Yewu. After all, Zhao Lin had only joined the institute two months ago and wasn’t from a prominent family. Finding a Top Grade herb was already a stroke of incredible luck.
’Find another high-grade herb? It’s not that easy!’
Only one person was certain Zhao Lin would take first place: Xiang Bao.
He knew very well that even if Zhao Lin hadn’t gathered a single other herb, his and his brother’s "contribution" alone was enough to surpass Zhong Yewu.
The thought made him feel incredibly frustrated.
The disciples of the Water Mirror Department continued to present their herbs at the large stone. When it was Zhang Xiaoshan’s turn, however, he greatly surprised the crowd.
Zhang Xiaoshan produced four high-grade herbs, but only two mid-grade herbs, and a mere one low-grade herb.
Normally, when gathering herbs, the higher the grade, the harder they are to find. How could someone’s haul be the other way around?
"First time I’ve seen someone with more high-grade herbs than low-grade ones," someone muttered.
Zhao Lin knew that Zhang Xiaoshan used Golden-winged Ants to find his herbs, so he wasn’t surprised. In fact, he had already guessed the reason.
’Ants have limited intelligence,’ he reasoned. ’They can probably only memorize one or two scents at most. So when training them, it only makes sense to have them remember the scent of high-grade herbs.’
Understanding this explained why Zhang Xiaoshan’s haul was so lopsided.
Elder Water Mirror was in a good mood. He did a quick mental calculation: even without Zhao Lin’s contribution, the Water Mirror Department’s results had already surpassed the Outer Institute and the Cyan Wood Department, second only to the Gold and Stone Department.
Zhang Xiaoshan returned to his spot, and Zhao Lin stepped forward, walking to the large stone.
The area fell silent. Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on him...
