The monument she had just surpassed was for the *Spirit Beast Volume Four—effectively the **ninth stone monument. And now, the first-place emblem had shockingly become a **small bottle*.
In an instant, endless cheers rang out in all directions.
"Haha! Senior Sister Zhou succeeded! I knew it—she would definitely set a precedent by taking first place on a ninth monument!"
"She truly deserves to be called a genius with a Plant and Wood Spirit Vein. Her future is limitless!"
"Senior Sister Zhou, we await the day you make history by taking first place on all ten stone monuments! Ring the great bell of the Spirit Stream Sect and shock the entire sect!"
Around the Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion, outer sect disciples erupted in celebration. Though a few wore unpleasant expressions and made sarcastic remarks, their voices were quickly drowned out by the wave of cheers. Zhou Xinqi's status among the disciples was already at its peak. She had become the symbolic figure of Fragrant Cloud Peak.
Zhou Xinqi smiled faintly. Though she was normally aloof, the disciples' passionate cheers stirred a sense of pride in her. That single smile sent the cheers soaring even higher.
Among the crowd, *Bai Xiaochun* also looked at Zhou Xinqi with admiration and sighed. He then turned his gaze toward the *Herbal Codex Volume One* monument. After a glance, his eyes flew wide open. After a moment of disbelief, he hurriedly pulled out his jade slip for the first volume of the Herbal Codex and checked it carefully. Not only had the slip's recorded ten thousand herbs increased by another ten thousand, but—
He looked up proudly. On the stone monument for *Herbal Codex Volume One, there was now a **tortoise emblem* resting squarely *above* the little bottle that symbolized Zhou Xinqi. It looked *so comfortable* perched up there.
Bai Xiaochun had originally planned to leave. But now, standing in the crowd, he resisted the excitement building inside him. He wanted to hear the crowd cheer for him.
However, after waiting a while, he realized everyone was still focused on Zhou Xinqi. No one had noticed the change on the Herbal Codex monument. Zhou Xinqi herself was even preparing to leave.
Growing anxious, Bai Xiaochun blinked and suddenly let out a loud, surprised shout.
"Hey! Look at the Herbal Codex Volume One monument—why isn't *Senior Sister Zhou* first anymore? Someone else took the top spot! And who drew that adorable tortoise?!"
His voice was high-pitched and had enough piercing power to cut through the noise. The content of his statement was so shocking that many around him instinctively turned their heads. Their expressions changed dramatically as cries of surprise spread outward like waves.
More and more people noticed the commotion and looked over, their eyes wide with disbelief. Soon, *everyone* had turned their attention to the monument.
"What the…? Someone actually overtook Senior Sister Zhou on the *first* stone monument?!"
"No way! That tortoise emblem is hideous! Who drew that thing?!"
"Someone actually surpassed Senior Sister Zhou in herbology?! This is huge! That means she didn't take first on nine monuments after all—just eight!"
An uproar broke out. The discussion quickly grew louder than the earlier cheers. No one had expected this. The surprise was too intense.
Standing in the crowd, Bai Xiaochun was bursting with pride, almost laughing aloud. But he didn't dare reveal himself just yet. Still, he continued to make shocked exclamations, blending into the crowd.
Even he hadn't expected to get *first place*.
Just then, Zhou Xinqi—who had been about to leave—suddenly halted. She heard the uproar and turned around, her phoenix eyes locking onto the Herbal Codex monument. She saw the *tortoise emblem* perched on top of her little bottle.
She furrowed her brows slightly, then relaxed. No waves of emotion stirred within her. That first-place emblem, after all, had been earned long ago when she'd just become an outer sect disciple. She hadn't used her full power back then, and she had grown vastly since.
"Not bad. Looks like a talented new disciple has emerged." Her tone was calm. With a flicker of her figure, she flew directly toward the Herbal Codex monument.
Her thoughts were simple: she'd been surpassed momentarily—she'd just take her spot back.
Her movement caused a new surge of excitement among the crowd. Everyone stared intently. When they saw Zhou Xinqi enter the wooden hut beneath the Herbal Codex monument, anticipation filled the air.
"Senior Sister Zhou is going to take her rightful first place back! The junior brother who drew that tortoise was decent… but he'll only hold the spot for a stick of incense's time."
"He's definitely gifted in herbology, but unfortunately, he ran into *her*. Just unlucky."
Bai Xiaochun started to feel nervous. He had no idea how many more herbs could've been completed from the leftover fragments, and Zhou Xinqi's reputation was overwhelming.
Even he thought he'd end up as second place.
"It's fine… second place is still great. A real man doesn't compete with a woman!" he muttered, trying to convince himself. He wanted to leave but couldn't bring himself to go. He stayed, anxiously waiting.
Before long, a stick of incense's time passed. The rankings on the monument hadn't changed. The tortoise was still first.
Zhou Xinqi stepped out of the hut, her expression calm and confident. She had used *80%* of her full capabilities this time and completed *4,000 herbs*—enough, in her mind, to reclaim her spot.
But to her surprise, the crowd was silent. People's expressions were strange, even disbelieving.
Zhou Xinqi was stunned. She looked up—and saw the *tortoise* was still there, squashing her bottle emblem.
Total silence.
Everyone stood dumbfounded. Even Bai Xiaochun was momentarily speechless. Then he looked at Zhou Xinqi, and thought: besides being beautiful, maybe she's not as terrifying as he imagined?
Zhou Xinqi's pupils shrank slightly, but she quickly regained composure.
"This person has some real talent in herbology. I'm curious who they are." She turned and *reentered the wooden hut*.
Now, Bai Xiaochun absolutely couldn't leave. He stayed put in the crowd, watching eagerly with everyone else. No one made loud remarks anymore. Instead, they whispered to each other. The atmosphere grew strange, even mysterious.
The *tortoise* started to carry a sort of mystique.
When Zhou Xinqi came out again after another stick of incense's time had passed—
The *tortoise was still there*.
"Heavens! Who is this person?!"
Bai Xiaochun couldn't help shouting in his sharp voice again, once more stirring the crowd.
"Senior Sister Zhou couldn't surpass him even after two tries?! How many herbs did this guy complete?!"
"Who saw it? Who saw which senior brother entered the hut earlier?!"
The crowd erupted once more. Zhou Xinqi stood beneath the monument, her delicate brows furrowed. She had gone all out this time and completed nearly *6,000 herbs*, yet… still lost.
Her eyes narrowed. With a cold snort, she turned and entered the hut *again, this time with **true seriousness*.
One stick of incense later, she emerged, her expression grim. She turned and *entered again. When she came out, she looked **pale*, but her eyes still burned with defiance. She turned and went back in.
*Once, twice, three times, four times…*
The surrounding disciples watched breathlessly as Zhou Xinqi tried again and again. But in the end, silence returned.
What had they just witnessed?
*It was terrifying.* They couldn't imagine how many herbs the one who drew the tortoise had assembled—so many that even Zhou Xinqi couldn't surpass him after *repeated full-effort attempts*.
The tortoise now left the deepest impression on everyone present.
When Zhou Xinqi came out once more, her eyes bloodshot from exhaustion, many gasped.
Bai Xiaochun kept quietly coughing in the crowd. But he couldn't reveal himself. It was unbearable—like a cat scratching his heart.
> "No! I have to find a chance, in front of the whole sect, to declare: I, Bai Xiaochun, am the first place on the Herbal Codex monument!"
Yawning as night fell, he wore the lonely air of a hidden master.
> "With a mere flick of my finger, Zhou Xinqi crumbles…"
> Flicking his sleeve dramatically, he strode away from the crowd, proudly vanishing into the distance.
As he departed, *Zhou Xinqi* bit her lip and *entered the hut once more*—still unwilling to give up.
Under the bright moonlight, Zhou Xinqi finally emerged, visibly exhausted. Her eyes locked on that tortoise with deep intensity.
Never in her life had she imagined she'd experience something like this. Silently, she turned and left.
Only then did the crowd slowly disperse. But that night, the *legend of the tortoise* spread like wildfire throughout *Fragrant Cloud Peak*.
One would think the matter ended there—but the next morning, disciples were stunned to see *Zhou Xinqi return again*, heading straight for the hut under the first monument. Even after failing, she entered again.
*One day. Two days. Three days...*
For *three full days, her stubborn attempts sparked endless discussion about the **mysterious tortoise. Everyone knew of it. Even **inner sect disciples* heard the tale.
On the *seventh day, Zhou Xinqi stood silently under the monument, staring at the tortoise. For the first time, her eyes showed **defeat. She had used her full strength again and again—her best attempt reaching **7,000 herbs*. But still… she couldn't take back her spot.
"Who… are you?" she whispered.
Taking a deep breath and clenching her jaw, she turned away.
But in her heart, the image of that tortoise was *etched permanently*—never to be forgotten.