"After all that effort, don't tell me this mudball is just a joke?""Look at it, the surface is even losing its color. Anyone who doesn't know might think it's a chunk of coal. But at least coal can burn—what can your mudball do?""Haha..."Kairo laughed without caring about his image. The crowd around burst into laughter too, teasing and gesturing at him.Some even urged the black-robed elder to quickly check the medicinal properties of this mudball. After all, Frank had been wearing a serious expression since the beginning. Now, many people wanted to see the look of panic and embarrassment on his face once he was exposed.Surely this would bring another wave of amusement to everyone."Hmm..."This time, Mole was clearly disappointed by the pill that Frank presented.He did not even reach out to take it and examine it carefully, perhaps afraid of getting his hands dirty.Instead, he let Frank hold it and stood in place to inspect it closely.After staring at it for a while,

Upon hearing Mole's words, everyone present quickly understood.Of course!The purpose of the second trial was to refine pills that could detoxify their bodies, yet Frank had only crafted a mudball using mudroots. How could it possibly have any effect?Due to the nature of mudroots, if Frank were to ingest this mudball, it was likely to be ineffective. And that was not all—it could even trigger the outbreak of the poison.So, when Mole made his suggestion, the crowd cheered and applauded.As expected from an elder who had lived for so many years, he was truly cunning.With just a few words, he had backed Frank into a corner.Frank thought Mole was incapable and could not see through the secrets of his pill, right? Then, Frank should eat it!If it did not work, not only would Frank have to force down a mudball that was obviously hard to swallow, but he would also be utterly embarrassed!How dare Frank utter such disdainful words about Mole's skills and abilities to judge. H

As Yosil uttered these words, a wave of unease washed over Kairo. During the first trial, Yosil had changed Frank's score from zero to over a hundred because he had detected toxicity in the medicinal soup. Was this stubborn old man stepping in again to overturn the already settled outcome? Would he give Frank a high score?At the thought, Kairo began to sweat profusely and forgot to sniff back his runny nose, with his snot almost dripping onto his lips. Kairo was genuinely anxious now. If this old man intervened again and gave Frank a score exceeding a hundred, would he have to kneel down and lick Frank's shoes?!The image of himself mocking Frank flashed before Kairo's eyes, causing him to sweat even more. If this happened, Cloudnine Sect and Kairo himself would truly become a laughing stock in everyone's eyes. This label would likely haunt him indefinitely. He might as well die now.Just as Kairo nervously stared at Yosil, the elder regretfully shook his head in front

Yosil was willing to take in Frank as a promising talent, and he would deal with Kairo and the others according to the usual process. But now, with Kairo bringing up the bet between him and Frank, things became delicate.If Frank were to admit defeat today, kneel, and even lick Kairo's shoe, he might never lift his head again. The psychological impact on Frank could be devastating. It could potentially hinder his future focus on medicine and become a haunting obstacle to his growth.And these were just the factors affecting Frank. If Yosil forcefully recruited him, the older man would also have to face the brutal reality that an apprentice of Kornac's Keep had knelt to an apprentice of Cloudnine Sect and even licked his shoes.Just the reputation of this spreading would be unbearable for Yosil, let alone the other elders of Kornac's Keep. The running of Kornac's Keep was not a dictatorship, and Yosil was not the sole elder in charge. So, anything that damaged Kornac's Keep's rep

"What's happening?"The castellan of Kornac's Keep was behaving so strangely that it immediately piqued the curiosity of everyone present. Even the elders who were watching from afar were intrigued and walked over."Look at this!"Yosil seemed to have discovered something incomprehensible as he handed Frank's wrist over to another elder.After examining it closely, that elder too wore the same expression of disbelief, shock, and confusion as Yosil."How is this even possible?!""I've lived for over eighty years, and I've never... never seen anything like this..."The elders checked Frank's pulse one by one. Finally, they gathered together, shaking their heads in resignation."What are those elders up to? Why are they acting so strangely?" Ira frowned, sensing that something was amiss.Other participants of the trial also craned their necks, trying to catch what the elders were discussing amid the chaos.Ignoring the commotion in the room, Yosil and the elders continued thei