Chapter 98 - 97: Are You Sure You’re Not Targeting Him?
Chapter 98: Chapter 97: Are You Sure You’re Not Targeting Him?
"Pills formed!"
As Yu Changsheng extinguished his Pill Fire and set the Pill Furnace spinning, everyone present turned to look.
"What is this!" Xu Nian’s expression froze.
Then, the Pill Liquid inside the furnace coalesced into pills. A blast of energy sent the lid flying, and three plump, perfectly round Body Forging Pills shot out, landing in Yu Changsheng’s hand.
"Hahaha, excellent!" Gongsun Yang roared with laughter. With just a single glance, he could tell that the Body Forging Pills Yu Changsheng had refined were far superior to Hu Liang’s.
In the stands, the venerable Elder Huang’s eyes narrowed, a smile gracing his lips.
’It seems Gongsun Yang’s Three-coin Fire Refining Technique has been passed on. Perhaps the student will one day surpass the master.’
’This young man has a real talent for Alchemy. But why did he join Beast Taming Peak?’
As he wondered about this, Elder Huang felt a pang of confusion. He had no idea that Yu Changsheng’s Beast Taming Talent was even more terrifying.
"He really formed them?"
"And three of them?!"
Hu Liang’s eyes went wide, and his face turned ashen.
The retort he had prepared died in his throat, leaving him speechless.
Yu Changsheng steadied his breathing and opened his palm, displaying the three Body Forging Pills for all to see. A single glance was enough to tell their potency was beyond question!
Meanwhile, the Outer Disciples who had bet on Yu Changsheng took a deep breath, their hearts pounding with excitement.
"Hahaha, I’ve struck it rich! Struck it rich!"
"This Alchemist from Beast Taming Peak really has some tricks up his sleeve! I’d like to see how Hu Liang can possibly turn this around now, hahaha!"
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Xu Nian felt helpless. ’My disciple,’ he thought, ’even your master can’t help you this time.’
It couldn’t be helped. Anyone could see that the elixirs Yu Changsheng had refined were superior to Hu Liang’s. Even if Xu Nian wanted to give him a low score, he couldn’t possibly justify it.
"To have such skill at such a young age... you’re much better than your master, Gongsun Yang," Xu Nian said with a barbed smile.
"You flatter me. It is all thanks to my master’s excellent instruction," Yu Changsheng replied humbly.
"Three Body Forging Pills, no issues with potency. Your score is forty-five points."
Xu Nian announced, his tone icy.
"Only forty-five points?"
Upon hearing this, some disciples in the crowd cried out in surprise.
That score was far too low, wasn’t it?
Hu Liang got thirty points for two pills. Refining three is much more difficult, and their quality is better. He should have gotten at least fifty or sixty points!
Was Elder Xu deliberately suppressing the score?
Just as some disciples began to look displeased, Xu Nian’s gaze swept over them. Under the pressure of his Divine Sense, the ones who had just spoken immediately fell silent.
Elder Xu was not someone they could question!
Meanwhile, Duan Ran and Mi Lifu, who had yet to form their pills, felt the pressure mounting. As time grew more pressing, they pushed themselves to refine faster.
However, at the most critical moment, Duan Ran’s expression changed drastically.
The Pill Furnace before him suddenly began to shake—the Pill Fire inside was running wild!
"Oh no!"
He tried to regain control, but he was a fraction too slow.
BANG—!
The Pill Furnace exploded. A blast wave slammed into Duan Ran’s chest, sending him flying from the stone platform as he coughed up a mouthful of Essence Blood.
"COUGH! COUGH..."
He struggled to his feet and looked at his Alchemy Furnace, his face a mask of agony.
The Alchemy Furnace was ruined. All the Pill Liquid inside had been reduced to ash; only the Pill Fire still burned.
"I failed!"
His eyes filled with despair and regret.
He had thought he could use a final, intense burst of flame to complete the Body Forging Pill, but instead, the fire had run wild, and he had failed!
And he had failed in front of so many people!
This was a complete loss of face!
"Eliminated."
Xu Nian’s icy words sealed his fate.
"Sigh, I knew Duan Ran couldn’t handle the pressure. You could tell his condition was unstable toward the end of his process."
"This will be a huge blow to him. Never mind losing to Hu Liang, he even lost to the Alchemist from Beast Taming Peak."
"Any hope for the top three is gone for him. Look, Mi Lifu is about to succeed!"
Amid the sighs of the onlookers, Mi Lifu formed a hand seal and pointed. Several Talismans flew into his Pill Furnace, stabilizing the flames. At last, he successfully extinguished the fire!
"Success!"
His face alight with excitement, he lifted the furnace lid. A single Body Forging Pill appeared before everyone’s eyes.
It was only one pill, but it was enough to advance, snatching Duan Ran’s chance for a top-three finish!
No one had expected this Alchemist from Magic Peak to emerge successful from this hellishly difficult Alchemy Conference and claim third place!
"Hahaha!" Mi Lifu roared with laughter, his face a mask of pride and triumph.
"Haha, my eye for talent is perfect! He really is qualified to compete with Hu Liang and Yu Changsheng!"
Seeing the successfully formed Body Forging Pill, a disciple who had bet on him broke into a wide grin. He excitedly threw an arm around his companion, sharing his joy.
Xu Nian’s expression was cold. He spared it a glance before speaking, "Not bad. You managed to form a pill at the last second. One Body Forging Pill, fifteen points."
The score was fair enough. Mi Lifu hastily thanked him.
"The fourth round of alchemy is over. Elder Huang will now preside. Your Body Forging Pill Formulas will be recalled, and you are forbidden from revealing the Pill Formula to anyone!"
Following Xu Nian’s cold command, his Divine Sense descended, placing a restriction on the four Alchemists who had seen the Pill Formula.
Yu Changsheng, however, was stunned for a moment.
In his mind, the Divine Sense Contract that had just been placed felt surprisingly weak. He could break it at any time!
Not even Xu Nian could have imagined that Yu Changsheng’s Divine Sense was at the Golden Core Level!
Thus, the Divine Sense Contract held little power over him.
However, Yu Changsheng didn’t break it, lest Xu Nian notice. Instead, he used a large amount of his own Divine Sense to envelop the contract, balling it up and tossing it into a corner of his mind, effectively sealing it away.
If he wanted to reveal the formula for the Body Forging Pill, he could simply bypass the contract and speak. Xu Nian would neither notice nor be able to stop him.
’I’ve found a loophole,’ Yu Changsheng thought.
After placing the Divine Sense Contract, Xu Nian turned to leave. When he returned to the stands, he was greeted by Gongsun Yang, who was smiling at him. "Elder Xu, it seems your disciple is merely average."
Xu Nian’s face darkened. "There is still a fifth round. Don’t get ahead of yourself."
"Heh heh. The fifth round will be personally presided over by Elder Huang, and with the condition that all competitors compete at the same realm. Do you really think your disciple still has a chance?" Gongsun Yang said with a chuckle, stroking his beard.
"Whether he has a chance is not for you to say," Xu Nian snorted.
"You’re right. After continuously refining elixirs, I’m afraid my disciple’s Cultivation and Magical Power, and even his Divine Sense, can’t compare to Hu Liang’s. Perhaps there really is a chance for a comeback."
Gongsun Yang smiled and then fell silent.
Meanwhile, Elder Huang, presiding over the final alchemy round, slowly walked on air until he was suspended in the sky.
His body was old and his figure frail, yet no one dared to look down on him.
For he was the Alchemist present who was closest to reaching Tier Four!
"I will be brief. The rules for the fifth round are unique. The three Alchemists will compete at the same realm. Of the three, the lowest realm is the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, so we shall use that as the standard."
The moment his words fell, Hu Liang’s expression was the first to change.
’This rule... Are they sure it’s not aimed directly at me?’