Xiao Yan's Eagle Wings were exaggeratedly enormous, spanning nearly four meters when fully extended. The blood-red Ten Thousand Beast Flame emitted faint beastly roars that caused an involuntary tremble in the hearts of those who heard it.
Upon closer inspection, one could even discern lifelike carvings of beast spirits on the fiery wings.
The enormous fire wings directly blocked Yao Ye and Ya Fei beside him and even obscured Nalan Yanran not far away. The spectators in the stands were all captivated by the sight of these massive fire wings.
At this moment, in the VIP area, not even Association Chairman Fa Ma or the Dou Emperors Hai Bodong and Jia Xing Tian were as eye-catching as Xiao Yan.
"Holy shit! Dou Qi forming wings!! Is he a Dou King?!"
"An eighteen-year-old Dou King?! How is that possible!!"
Whether it was the spectators in the stands or the numerous alchemists in the center of the plaza, all were engaged in heated discussions.
The first to notice was naturally Chairman Fa Ma.
"No, those aren't Dou Qi Wings. That's an exceptionally rare flying-type Dou Technique!"
Xiao Yan flapped his wings vigorously and soared straight into the sky with a thunderous boom. Ya Fei's face was flushed as she hastily held her skirt down to prevent it from being lifted by the gust.
A blood-red flame streaked across the sky like a meteor, transforming into a fiery light before slowly descending onto the very center of the plaza, the position reserved for the top scorer in the preliminary test.
"He's the most childish one." Nalan Yanran naturally knew that Xiao Yan possessed a flying- type Dou Technique and that he deliberately expanded the Eagle Wings to their maximum size.
Xiao Yan was the one acting most childishly!
Without a doubt, Xiao Yan's enormous fire wings completely ignited the crowd. Waves of cheers, screams, and applause surged like tides.
Just those fire wings alone had already enamored countless women present with this young man who was the only one not wearing an alchemist's robe.
"He truly has some genuine skill. No wonder Great-Grandfather holds him in such high regard," Yao Ye murmured softly as she gazed at the youth calmly receiving the countless cheers in the center of the arena.
Even Nalan Yanran's beautiful eyes were fixed on that most dazzling star in the plaza. A rare softness appeared on her pretty face, though it was unclear what she was thinking at this moment.
The Mu Clan's Dou King Mu Chen narrowed his eyes as he stared at Xiao Yan in the arena. After a moment, he turned to Mu Zhan behind him, whose right hand was bandaged, and asked, "Is he the one who severed your hand last night?"
"Yes!" Mu Zhan replied viciously. What he found most unbearable was being beaten like that in front of Ya Fei!
Of course, accustomed to running wild, he wouldn't consider that he had been the one to make the first move.
After pondering for a moment, Mu Chen shook his head and said, "Don't provoke him." "But-"
Mu Chen cast a glance at Mu Zhan and said coldly, "You can't beat him. If you like Ya Fei, you can pursue her through proper means. But I advise you to give up; the Mittel Clan won't choose you either."
Mu Zhan was about to speak but, seeing Mu Chen's face darken, he could only shrink his neck and reluctantly agree.
Xiao Yan naturally didn't have time to think about what was being discussed over in the VIP seats. At this moment, he had already picked up the tier 2 pill recipe on the table.
This wasn't a standard pill recipe formed with Spiritual Strength, but a handwritten one. This made precision during the refining process difficult, requiring the alchemist to rely on their own abilities to make judgments.
"This round will probably eliminate most of those below tier 3," Xiao Yan thought. Although it's just the lowest-grade Tier 2 Bone Growing Pill, ordinary 2nd-tier alchemists wouldn't be able to refine it without a precise pill recipe, and even 3rd-tier alchemists would find it challenging.
Moreover, there were only two sets of medicinal ingredients on the table, meaning there was only one chance to make a mistake.
"I'm sure you've all noticed some things. In this first round of assessment, you are required to refine a finished medicinal pill based on this somewhat incomplete pill recipe. You have two sets of ingredients in total. If you use up all the ingredients or time runs out before successfully refining the pill, you will be eliminated."
"Do you all understand?"
Fa Ma's voice, amplified by Dou Qi, spread throughout the entire plaza.
Below in the plaza, the response rumbled like muffled thunder.
"In that case, the first round of assessment officially begins!"
As soon as he finished speaking, over a thousand alchemists began to take out their cauldrons.
The sounds of them placing the cauldrons on the ground rang out one after another.
Xiao Yan turned to look in the direction of Yue Er and Liu Ling. The alchemy cauldrons they used were both of high quality.
After thinking for a moment, he decided not to use the Black Demon Cauldron. Instead, he took out the alchemy cauldron he had acquired from the Amethyst Winged Lion King. He didn't want to have an advantage due to a superior cauldron.
A ball of black flame appeared in his palm with a whoosh. He gently tossed it into the cauldron and injected Dou Qi. Soon, the Nihility Devouring Flame occupied the entire cauldron.
"Hmm? That flame isn't as strong as a Heavenly Flame. It seems Xiao Yan isn't using a Heavenly Flame?" In the VIP seats, Deputy Chairman Qie Mi Er frowned and asked in
It was practically common knowledge that Xiao Yan possessed a Heavenly Flame. When he had used his Eagle Wings earlier, quite a few elite experts had sensed the terrifying aura of
that blood-red flame.
Chairman Fa Ma's experienced eyes looked toward Xiao Yan's cauldron and said calmly, "That black flame gives me a strange feeling. Although it's not as powerful as that red Heavenly Flame, it's definitely not as simple as an ordinary flame. That young man probably doesn't want to take advantage of the benefits of a Heavenly Flame."
Fa Ma and the others weren't wrong. There was indeed a significant difference between the Seed Flame and the main body.
Xiao Yan watched the black flames roaring inside the cauldron and didn't bother to think too much. With a wave of his hand, he tossed all the medicinal ingredients into the cauldron at
"What?! He threw all the ingredients in at once!"
"Each ingredient needs to be refined at a different temperature. Throwing them all in
together will just ruin them!"
Naturally, Xiao Yan, being the center of attention, caused a stir in the stands when he dumped
all the ingredients in at once.
Even some of the elders from the Alchemist Association in the VIP seats were puzzled, not understanding why Xiao Yan would do this.
Fa Ma nodded silently and explained, "Typically, refining pills involves extracting and refining each ingredient separately using the cauldron, as different ingredients require different temperatures. After refining each ingredient and processing them, they are then
fused to form the pill."
"This method can lead to potential contamination of the refined medicinal essences by the air, even if the contamination is only one in ten thousand, which can reduce the pill's quality, though it speeds up the pill formation process."
"By doing it Xiao Yan's way, he can completely isolate the medicinal essences and prevent any contamination. However, this technique demands extremely precise temperature control and extraction accuracy. Without strong fire control and Spiritual Strength, it's impossible. He must be very confident in his fire control and Spiritual Strength."
The group of elders finally understood after hearing Chairman Fa Ma's explanation. Princess Yao Ye murmured from the side, "His fire control and Spiritual Strength have already reached the level of a 4th-tier alchemist."
Even with a precise pill recipe, carefully extracting the ingredients required extreme caution, fearing that the slightest mistake could cause the temperature to be too high. This tier 2 pill recipe only provided a list of ingredients, with no further details.
But Xiao Yan hadn't been refining pills for just a day or two. His alchemy skills were honed through countless experiences and failures over many years.
His Spiritual Strength instantly enveloped the cauldron. All the medicinal essences fused according to the correct proportions and sequence. Years of alchemy experience allowed him to see at a glance how these ingredients should be combined to achieve the desired effect.
Before long, three distinct clinks rang out as Xiao Yan collected three medicinal pills into a
"Three pills in one batch!!"
"Is that for real? Is this really his first time refining a Bone Growing Pill? He can extract the medicinal essences so perfectly even with just a handwritten recipe!"