Chapter 159: Verification, Continued Verification, and Still More Verification

The news that the Wushen Academy was going to confer a title on Zhang Chu had spread throughout the entire Binzhou.

To celebrate this monumental joy, a few friends drank themselves to complete intoxication at Li Dashan’s hot pot restaurant.

When they woke up the next day, it was already noon.

Zhang Chu glanced at his phone, which was flooded with missed calls and WeChat messages from Zhang Xueying.

"Good grief, what a complex mix of odors... And I'm a Spirit Realm master, to boot."

He sniffed his clothes.

Cheap liquor mixed with beef tallow hot pot—quite an impressive combination.

He tossed his clothes into the washing machine, took a quick shower, and while shaving, finally returned the call: "Sister Xueying, I got completely wasted with Old Hu and the guys last night and just woke up now. I saw you called several times. Is there something going on at the academy?"

"It's nothing to do with the academy."

"Today's the weekend, so I wanted to ask if you have any plans, and whether you'd like to go on an expedition to the Brain-Machine Beast Sea."

Zhang Xueying was tidying up her makeup in front of the vanity mirror on the other end of the line.

An expedition to the Brain-Machine Beast Sea, followed by dinner and a movie...

This whole routine felt like her very first proactive date.

"Sister Xueying, I have some things to take care of today and need to head out. How about we take a rain check?"

Hearing Zhang Chu’s voice over the phone, Zhang Xueying paused slightly, a trace of unmistakable disappointment flashing in her eyes: "Alright then, I'll go on the expedition by myself. Go handle your business."

She hung up the phone.

Zhang Chu looked at his handsome reflection in the mirror, changed into a white windbreaker, grabbed his car keys, and walked out the door.

...

South of Binzhou City, the Monument Hall.

It was as quiet as ever.

Binzhou was a remote, minor city with limited resources.

On average, it took about a week for someone to successfully certify as a Dual-Force Warrior.

Most of the regular visitors were just hunters heading out for expeditions in the wilderness hunting grounds.

Even so, Zhou Xiaoyu was still patrolling all the service windows on the ground floor with a stern expression.

Not long ago.

She had just received a promotion, becoming the lobby manager of the Monument Hall's Certification Center.

As the saying goes, a new broom sweeps clean.

Noticing that the young man at Window No. 2 was engrossed in his phone, she tapped on the glass: "Xiao Li, why are you playing on your phone during work hours? Put it away immediately."

"Sister Xiaoyu, I'm just checking out the trending searches on the Warriors Forum."

"Besides, aren't you pretty close with Mr. Zhang Chu? The Wushen Academy is going to confer a title on him in a few days. Do you have any connections to get me a pass to see the ceremony live?"

Mentioning Zhang Chu, the staff from the other windows all gathered around.

Every word they uttered was filled with awe and admiration for Zhang Chu.

At the mention of Zhang Chu, a smile couldn't help but creep onto Zhou Xiaoyu's face: "I wonder what Teacher Zhang Chu is up to right now. He couldn't have forgotten about me, could he?"

As Zhang Chu's dedicated 24-hour certification administrator.

She had sent him countless messages, yet not a single one was ever answered.

Coupled with the news of Zhang Xueying's public confession to Zhang Chu spreading all over Binzhou a few days ago, Zhou Xiaoyu felt a sour pang in her heart.

"Ms. Zhou, I'm afraid I have to trouble you again."

Just as the staff members in the lobby were starting to gossip about Zhang Chu and Zhang Xueying, a handsome figure stepped into the Monument Hall.

"Wow, it's Mr. Zhang Chu!"

"What a gorgeous guy!"

"Binzhou's God of War, I want to take a photo with you!"

The moment Zhang Chu walked in, the young men and women of the lobby swarmed around him instantly, pulling out their phones to snap pictures.

Even though he felt awkward enough to wish the floor would open up and swallow him, he still cooperated and posed for the photos.

"What are you all doing during work hours!"

At the crucial moment, Zhou Xiaoyu let out a low reprimand, and everyone scurried back to their workstations, eagerly editing photos to post on their social feeds.

Zhang Chu nowadays was a walking traffic magnet.

"Brother Chu, it's been a while since you last visited the Monument Hall."

Seizing the chance for some one-on-one time, Zhou Xiaoyu put on a coy, endearing act.

"Please help me with a recertification, Ms. Zhou!"

Zhang Chu handed over his warrior badge.

"It's no trouble at all!"

The whole of Binzhou knew that Zhang Chu was the city's youngest Spirit Realm master.

It was only natural for him to come to the Monument Hall for updates.

Following the standard procedure.

Zhang Chu entered the testing center, and shortly after, a prompt echoed throughout the lobby: "Congratulations to Mr. Zhang Chu for passing the Spirit Realm master test, meeting all certification requirements."

Whoa!

A Spirit Realm master!

So admirable!

Witnessing a Spirit Realm master certification firsthand in the lobby was truly a special experience.

Zhang Chu's certification was handled personally by Zhou Xiaoyu: "Brother Chu, this is your Spirit Realm master ID card, and the associated benefits have been sent to your dedicated email. Due to the special status of Spirit Realm masters in Binzhou, you'll need to visit the Martial Administration Bureau in person for the welfare package, or I can pick it up for you and have it delivered to your home."

"No need to trouble yourself, I'll go myself."

This woman looked ready to swallow him whole.

If not for the mandatory Spirit Realm master certification, Zhang Chu genuinely wanted to keep his distance from her.

"Brother Chu, how about I treat you to lunch this afternoon?"

Zhou Xiaoyu summoned the courage to ask, prompting a wave of teasing whispers from the surrounding windows.

"Lunch won't be necessary. I heard that besides warrior rank certifications, the Monument Hall handles other credentials too?"

As soon as these words dropped, everyone in the hall was dumbfounded.

It seemed... they did.

However, since it wasn't a routine procedure, they were a bit rusty and certainly hadn't anticipated that Zhang Chu would need other certifications right now.

"Please help me certify as a Junior Alchemist."

In the next second, Zhang Chu placed his ID card back into Zhou Xiaoyu's hand.

What?

A Junior Alchemist!

This piece of news hit the room like a heavyweight bomb, instantly sending the entire hall into an uproar.

"Brother Chu, you... are you sure?"

Zhou Xiaoyu was completely stunned.

One had to know that both alchemists and array masters required Spirit Realm master cultivation as a prerequisite, but actually attaining these two professions was exceedingly difficult.

Currently, there were only twelve Junior Alchemists in the entire city of Binzhou, and the majority of them worked for the Storage Bureau.

Someone as young as Zhang Chu coming in to certify as an alchemist was utterly unheard of.

"Just process it."

On his way here, Zhang Chu had spent 600,000 mental power points to upgrade both "Junior Alchemy" and "Junior Array Techniques" to the beginner proficiency stage.

In other words.

As long as he had raw materials and an alchemy furnace, Zhang Chu could brew pills on the spot right now.

"Understood!"

Recovering her wits, Zhou Xiaoyu hurriedly processed the relevant certification paperwork.

According to the certification rules.

Zhang Chu needed to enter the Alchemist Certification Center on the third floor of the Monument Hall, randomly select a pill formula to refine on the spot, and successfully complete it within the designated time to pass the certification.

He quickly scanned the list of pills available behind the material requirements and decisively selected the Grade-1 Qi and Blood Pill.

"Brother Chu, if everything is in order, you can head on up to the third floor."

Once the paperwork was done, Zhou Xiaoyu pointed toward the third-floor staircase.

"Wait a moment."

Just as Zhang Chu was about to leave, he suddenly turned back and reached out his hand: "Can you show me the certification procedures for a Junior Array Master as well?"

An array master?

The heads of everyone in the lobby buzzed with a loud hum.

"Since I've got nothing better to do, I might as well knock out the Junior Array Master certification right after finishing the Junior Alchemist one."

Holy crap!

Everyone present was shocked into absolute speechlessness: They had seen warriors getting certified, but never someone doing bulk certifications like this!