Chapter 564: Round 2

Chapter 564: Chapter 562: Round 2

“This Lin Xuan… it seems he has some skill. Who knows what he’ll do next. Hmph!”

“I don’t believe he can keep winning. The real test is just beginning!”

…

The Elders were quite displeased with Lin Xuan’s performance, and even more disappointed in Long Bin and Long Fan. They had expected their disciples to put Lin Xuan in his place, but instead, they were the ones who had been bested.

Before long, the competition grounds were prepared. Rows of Tripod Furnaces stood before the crowd, leading everyone to guess that this round would be Alchemy. However, most Alchemy Masters had their own personal Tripod Furnaces. Using an unfamiliar one could throw them off their game and cause them to underperform.

But anyone who couldn’t overcome such a small hurdle couldn’t be considered a good Alchemy Master.

“You all see the Tripod Furnaces before you,” Long Xingyun announced, briefly explaining the second trial. “This round’s task is Alchemy. You will take a half-finished Elixir Pill and complete its refinement!”

Completing the refinement of an Elixir Pill! It wasn’t exactly difficult, but it wasn’t simple either. The challenge was in taking a pill that was already halfway complete and finishing the process. Most of them could probably succeed, but the final quality of the pills would vary.

For the disciples of Medicine King Valley, this was a common practice. In fact, they had probably done it many times before.

But wasn’t completing a half-finished pill a bit too simple? The first trial had been difficult; perhaps they were making the second one easier since there were fewer contestants? ‘Such a foolish thought,’ they mused. If it were truly that simple, Long Xingyun and the others would never have chosen it as a test.

As such, none of them looked particularly thrilled. Besides, if it was truly simple and everyone succeeded, what would be the point? A competition needed to have a challenge to distinguish the skilled from the unskilled and truly highlight their abilities.

“However, the semi-finished Elixir Pill you will all be refining is a Third Grade Elixir: the Reversal Pill!”

Long Xingyun gestured for a Steward standing beside a Tripod Furnace to open it. The crowd immediately saw that it was full of Spiritual Liquid, seemingly far more than the amount needed to refine a normal Reversal Pill. Those with keen eyes could even spot a dark, round Elixir Pill submerged within!

“You’ve all seen the Elixir Pill inside. That is a semi-finished Reversal Pill, and surrounding it is the Spiritual Liquid used to refine it. As you can see, the amount of Spiritual Liquid far exceeds what’s needed for a single pill. The semi-finished Reversal Pill is already perfectly refined halfway. Your task is to control your Flame and gradually fuse the Spiritual Liquid into the pill until it is complete!”

Once the full details of the trial were revealed, everyone froze for a moment before starting to grumble about the difficulty.

The Reversal Pill was already difficult enough to refine from scratch; completing a half-finished one would be even harder! It was common knowledge that refining a Reversal Pill required two types of Spiritual Liquid. A semi-finished pill meant that one of the liquids had already been processed and integrated. The remaining part of the process involved the second Spiritual Liquid, which was what currently filled the Tripod Furnace.

Their task was to gradually fuse this Spiritual Liquid with the semi-finished Reversal Pill—essentially filling in the missing half. The large volume of Spiritual Liquid in the furnace was obviously not the amount for a single pill; there was enough for several.

If they fused too much, the Reversal Pill would be ruined. Fusing too little could also result in failure or, at best, a pill of extremely low quality. Only by achieving a perfect balance could they create a true Reversal Pill!

In other words, this trial was a test of their Fire Control Ability and their judgment! Fire Control was necessary to make the Reversal Pill gradually fuse with the Spiritual Liquid. If the Flame burned too intensely, the pill would absorb an excessive amount and be destroyed. Only by maintaining a precise temperature could they perfectly fuse the Reversal Pill.

Refining a Reversal Pill from scratch wasn’t the hard part; this one-sided absorption was what made it incredibly difficult.

“I’m sure you’ve all guessed by now that this is a test of your Fire Control Ability. A qualified Alchemy Master must possess decent Fire Control. If you can’t even control a Flame, how can you expect to advance to the next trial? Given the possibility of failure, each of you will have two attempts. Fail more than twice, and you will be eliminated immediately!”

The faces of the Alchemy Masters turned bitter. Only two chances before elimination! Past alchemy competitions had always involved standard Alchemy. Why was this year’s so different? The first two trials were tests of fundamental skills, but these “fundamentals” were far too difficult.

Still, many of the Medicine King Valley disciples were filled with confidence. This wasn’t a major hurdle for them. The biggest challenge lay in the fusion, which demanded extremely strong Fire Control Ability. The difficulty was certainly not to be underestimated.

In contrast, Long Bin and Long Fan looked completely at ease. For them, this was no problem at all. Perhaps they didn’t even consider it a great challenge; they seemed quite relaxed.

The crowd’s attention then shifted to the outsider, Lin Xuan. They saw that he, too, wore a relaxed expression, showing no sign of distress. ‘Could it be that Lin Xuan’s skill is truly so high that this test is nothing to him?’

Lin Xuan paid no mind to their stares. This trial demanded extremely precise Fire Control, but he wasn’t worried in the slightest. When it came to Fire Control Ability, he possessed the soul of a Phoenix and had no concerns in that regard. Nevertheless, he remained cautious. This competition was no joke. Failure here meant absolute failure.

Failure meant elimination. It didn’t matter how many points you had earned previously; if you failed, you were out! In other words, to advance to the next round, you had to score at least one point. If you scored zero, you would be eliminated on the spot, regardless of whether you had a hundred or a thousand points from before.

‘For an Alchemy Master, every part of the process is crucial,’ Lin Xuan thought. ‘If you can’t even pass one trial, how can you call yourself a true Alchemy Master? Someone with real skill wouldn’t fail so completely.’

Lin Xuan didn’t believe he would lose, but he had to be cautious and strive for perfection in everything. The reason was simple: the Resurrection Grass was crucial. Moreover, he had bet his own future on this competition, so he had to give it his absolute all!

“The competition begins now! Scoring will be based on your time and the quality of your Elixir Pill!”

At Long Xingyun’s command, a massive incense stick was planted in a sand tray. A stick that thick could burn for at least a full day, meaning they had one day to complete the task. The second trial had officially begun!

‘Let’s see what you’re really made of in this trial, my grandson…’ Long Xingyun thought, his eyes narrowing. ‘If he can’t even take the top spot in this round, there’s basically no hope for what comes next.’

‘The difficulty will only increase from here, not decrease. If he loses too badly, catching up will be impossible. Then, not only will he fail to obtain the Resurrection Grass, but he will also lose his freedom!’

Long Yuwei appeared calm on the surface, but her hands were already clenched into tight fists. She could only hope that Lin Xuan would display an extraordinary level of skill, allowing them to win the Resurrection Grass and finally awaken Lin Chenyun!