Meow! A cat's cry echoed from within Xiao Yan's heart.
(▼ヘ▼#)
"Meow meow meow!" (I'm a Heavenly Flame too, you know!)
Using spiritual transmission, Xiao Yan chuckled and replied, "You've still got some ways to go. When the day comes that all flames submit the moment you appear, then you'll have truly matured into a genuine Heavenly Flame."
Although Mao Wu was just a Seed Flame, it was the Seed Flame of the 2nd-ranked Nihility Devouring Flame. Its potential, once fully grown, was definitely not weaker than any Heavenly Flame, and might even surpass the lower-ranked ones.
Xiao Yan had long anticipated that all the flames in the plaza would submit and bow in worship. With a gentle touch, he placed his palm on the medicinal cauldron, and the Ten Thousand Beast Flame instantly filled its interior.
Only when the Ten Thousand Beast Flame entered the cauldron did the flames of all the other alchemists in the plaza return to normal.
"This guy is really demoralizing." the Little Princess felt somewhat dejected. She had heard that Xiao Yan possessed a Heavenly Flame but had never witnessed its overwhelming might firsthand. She had always believed that the Dry Blue Water Flame she obtained from a Rank 6 magical beast wouldn't be much weaker than a Heavenly Flame.
But as it turned out, forget about comparing, her Beast Flame had directly knelt in submission before his!
Anyone with discerning eyes could see that no matter what kind of flame it was, none could even remotely compare to a Heavenly Flame. Otherwise, such a scene of submission wouldn't have occurred.
Compared to the Little Princess's bewilderment, Liu Ling's expression was dark and gloomy. His flame also originated from a powerful magical beast and was intended to be his trump card. He hadn't expected to lose before the competition even began.
'Hmph, what's the use of merely possessing a superior flame? Alchemy ultimately tests one's alchemy skills!' Yan Li grumbled discontentedly as he poured his black flame into the cauldron.
'Today, I, Yan Li, shall prove that possessing a Heavenly Flame is nothing special!'
Yan Li quickly composed himself as expected of the Deputy Chairman of the Chu Yun Empire's Alchemist Association. He swiftly placed all the necessary medicinal ingredients into his cauldron.
His technique for refining ingredients was not at all slower than Xiao Yan's method of refining them all at once. Although Yan Li still refined each ingredient separately, he stored the refined essences directly inside the cauldron as soon as he finished with each one.
Just like the previous day, Xiao Yan was the slowest to begin. Moreover, this time he didn't dump all the ingredients into the cauldron together but carefully placed them into it one by one.
"As expected, Xiao Yan's Heavenly Flame is superior," said Nalan Jie, seated in the VIP area.
"Indeed. After all, a Heavenly Flame is a heavenly treasure that even Elder Gu He dreamed of obtaining but never succeeded. Naturally, it cannot be compared to the flames of Liu Ling and the others." Beside him, Nalan Yanran's beautiful eyes were fixed on Xiao Yan's position. She had witnessed the might of a Heavenly Flame before.
"The person from the Misty Cloud Sect who came this morning was urging you to return?" Nalan Jie asked.
"Mm, I've applied for early entry into the sect's secret realm," Nalan Yanran nodded slightly.
"Sigh." Nalan Jie shook his head with a bitter expression. "Yanran, truth be told, there may not be a young man who can surpass Xiao Yan throughout the entire Jia Ma Empire. Only he truly meets your standards."
Nalan Yanran's slender fingers, which were about to brush aside her silky bangs, stiffened slightly upon hearing this. Pressing her red lips together, she softly said, "Perhaps."
Nalan Jie refrained from saying more after seeing her reaction. Some mistakes, once made, are irreversible. Some opportunities, once missed, are gone forever. Mistakes could sometimes be rectified, but missed opportunities were gone for good, never to return.
By now, nearly over two hours had passed. In the plaza, some alchemists refining low-grade tier 3 pills had even completed the final pill formation step.
They had produced several enticing medicinal pills.
At this moment, Fa Ma and other judges from the Alchemist Association had descended from the VIP seats and began examining the refined pills.
Of course, even the participants themselves were acutely aware that their low-grade or even middle-grade tier 3 pills were far from sufficient to vie for the championship.
Xiao Yan paid no heed to the participants who had finished their refinement, his gaze fixed intently upon his medicinal cauldron. His left hand occasionally tossed in an ingredient while his right hand swiftly extracted the refined material from within and deftly stored it in a jade bottle.
His every movement exuded an air of extreme caution and meticulous precision.
Time passed by the minute and second. At this point, only four people in the entire plaza had yet to complete their refinement: Yan Li, Liu Ling, Yue Er, and Xiao Yan!
When nearly two-thirds of the allotted competition time had elapsed, the medicinal pill within the Little Princess's cauldron was the first to solidify. Shortly thereafter, a rich, enticing medicinal fragrance wafted out from her cauldron.
"The medicinal fragrance is overflowing, forming a mist. Could it be... a tier 4 pill?!!"
"Not just the Little Princess! Look at Liu Ling's cauldron. There's also medicinal mist emanating from it! And it seems even denser than the Little Princess's!"
"Oh my, both the Little Princess and Liu Ling are attempting to refine tier 4 pills! And from the looks of it, they're on the verge of success!"
"Wait a moment, aren't they merely 3rd-tier alchemists? How can they possibly refine tier 4 pills?"
"Ah, that's where you're mistaken. Even 3rd-tier alchemists have an exceedingly slim chance of successfully refining tier 4 pills. Otherwise, how else would they hope to advance to tier 4?"
"It looks like both of them have won their gamble."
Undoubtedly, the Little Princess and Liu Ling knew that if they only refined tier 3 pills, even peak tier 3, they would still lose after learning about Yan Li's situation.
If they weren't aiming for the championship, they might as well have stayed home. So the two of them steeled their resolve and decided to take a risk!
Seeing the pills on the cusp of taking shape within their cauldrons, Fa Ma's expression finally eased somewhat. With a nod of approval, he said, "Two types of tier 4 pills. These two young ones indeed possess talent not inferior to Gu He."
"Keh keh keh, you two little brats still wet behind the ears think you can snatch the champion's throne from my grasp?!" A strange laugh suddenly sounded from the side. Yan Li's cauldron was burning fiercely, and a faint purple pill mist began to rise from within!
"Colored pill fragrance?! That's indicative of a peak tier 4 pill!!!" All the alchemists who understood what this signified cried out upon seeing the faint purple mist slowly ascending from the cauldron.
Fa Ma's face darkened as he said slowly, "That fellow actually succeeded in refining it!"
Even peak 4th-tier alchemists had less than a 50% success rate when attempting to refine pills of the same grade. Yet Yan Li had succeeded!
It was as if the heavens themselves had aligned in his favor.
"This time, I'm afraid we've lost for certain."
The Little Princess and Liu Ling stared blankly at the faint purple medicinal mist rising from Yan Li's cauldron. Their faces instantly turned ashen, filled with dejection and despair.
In the face of absolute superiority, any excuse would seem utterly feeble.
"Keh keh keh! The championship is mine! Just as you cannot afford to fail, neither can I!"
Suddenly raising his head and letting out a thunderous roar, Yan Li slammed his palm onto the medicinal cauldron. The lid shot off, and a vast expanse of pitch-black flames surged out like a tidal wave. Countless purple rays of light burst forth from the center of these black flames.
A rich, intoxicating purple pill fragrance slowly wafted upward, eventually coalescing into a cloud of purple mist above Yan Li's head, as if it possessed its own spirit.
"Keh keh keh! How could you little brats still wet behind the ears possibly defeat me? Behold, this is my greatest masterpiece!! The Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill!!!"
Even Fa Ma's pupils constricted violently upon hearing the pill's name.
The Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill was a peak tier 4 pill that could rival tier 5 pills!!
"It's over. To think it would actually be the Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill..."
The entire plaza fell into a deathly silence. Everyone stared in shock and horror at the purple pill floating within Yan Li's cauldron, their faces filled with despair.
"That 'little brats still wet behind the ears' you mentioned wouldn't happen to be referring to me, would it?" Just then, the calm voice of Xiao Yan from the other side shattered the grave-like stillness.