The first round of the Alchemy competition concluded with Old Man scoring twenty-two points, securing the first place. Among his accomplishments, a high-quality Pill earned him ten points, while a middle-tier Pill granted him five points.
The middle-aged cultivator who successfully concocted eight Pills received eight points and claimed the second position. Following closely behind was a young-looking cultivator with seven points, securing third place.
Wang Hong earned six points in this round, tying for fourth place with seven others. Breaking into the top five seemed challenging for him.
After evaluating everyone's scores, the second round of the Alchemy competition commenced.
In this round, all participants were tasked with refining the same type of Pill known as the "White Dew Pill," a second-tier healing Pill.
During this round, Old Man managed to create eight Pills, with one of them reaching the middle-tier quality, earning him twelve points and maintaining his lead.
Wang Hong, however, still received six points in this round, placing him in fourth position alongside four other cultivators.
Hopes of entering the top five now rested on the final round, a thought shared by many.
As the third round began, each participant received a large bag of Medicinal Herbs but no Pill Recipe. They were required to select Medicinal Herbs from the assortment and refine a Pill.
"Master Mei, isn't this challenge a bit too difficult?" remarked one of the lean judges, sighing.
"Yes, Alchemists who can modify Pill Recipes are a rare breed, and doing it within this short timeframe is even more challenging," another judge concurred.
"Our Qingxu Sect is renowned in the entire Cultivation World for our Alchemy expertise. We not only have the most Alchemists, but we also possess the top Alchemists in the entire Cultivation World. As the Pill Hall's Master, it's my duty to cultivate the finest Alchemists for our Sect," Master Mei said, her expression unusually serious.
Of course, not everyone was helpless in this situation.
Some Alchemists had already begun refining, with occasional bursts of burnt odors filling the room. Others were still pondering, repeatedly picking up and putting down the Spiritual Herbs, unable to make a decision.
At this moment, Wang Hong was still furrowing his brows in contemplation. The elderly man with a white beard also began his refinement after some thought.
Amidst the occasional sounds of furnaces exploding and the pervasive smell of charred materials, Wang Hong finally started his refinement.
In the end, out of the over one hundred participants, only three succeeded in refining Pills in this third round, and among them was Wang Hong.
Due to the modifications made to the Pill Recipes, the success rate for each person's Pills was quite low, with only two or three Pills successfully refined. Moreover, the altered Pill Recipes left everyone uncertain about the effects of their Pills.
The three successful participants presented their refined Pills to the three judges for evaluation.
The lean judge carefully examined the Pill created by the elderly man with a white beard, observing it closely and even tasting a bit of the powder. After a moment, a satisfied expression appeared on his dry face.
"Well done! You modified the Water Spirit Pill's Pill Recipe, removing the Waterweed and Tendon Grass and adding two types of flowers. Your refining technique was also quite appropriate," praised the lean judge, followed by some constructive feedback.
Meanwhile, Master Mei inspected the Pill refined by the middle-aged cultivator, finding it acceptable and offering a few pointers.
Only the slightly overweight cultivator, when examining Wang Hong's Pill, looked puzzled for a long time and couldn't provide any meaningful feedback.
"Could you two take a look at this Pill? My eyes can't discern what kind of Pill it is," Wang Hong finally handed over two Pills to Master Mei and the lean judge beside him.
Both judges accepted the Pills and examined them closely before using various Pill appraisal techniques. Although they didn't recognize the Pill Recipe used for refinement, it didn't hinder their assessment of the Pill's properties and effects.
"Do you happen to know the name of this Pill?" After their evaluation, they guessed that it might be a new Pill, and they were curious about where Wang Hong had obtained the Pill Recipe.
"It doesn't have a name yet. I just refined it recently and haven't had the chance to name it," Wang Hong replied. He had reviewed the Spiritual Herbs in the bag and felt that using an existing Pill Recipe with slight modifications would always leave some shortcomings, preventing the full potential of these Spiritual Herbs from being realized. After careful consideration, he had recombined the Spiritual Herbs to design a new Pill Recipe that could fully utilize their maximum potential.
"So, you're saying that this Pill was created by you on the spot today, using a newly devised Pill Recipe?" Master Mei suppressed her astonishment and maintained a calm demeanor. As the Pill Hall's Master and a Golden Core senior, she couldn't afford to lose her composure in front of the younger generation, as it would undermine her authority.
"That's correct. I came up with the Pill Recipe on the spot. If there are any shortcomings, please feel free to point them out," Wang Hong explained, briefly outlining the design concept of the Pill Recipe. The three Golden Core judges nodded in understanding.
Cultivators had keen hearing, and the other cultivators in the hall had perked up their ears, attentively listening. While most of them didn't fully comprehend the discussion, they sensed its depth and nodded approvingly. Only a few truly understood the content and found it highly beneficial.
"Well done! To have such a deep understanding of Alchemy at such a young age is remarkable. However, there are still some areas where the Pill Recipe can be improved," Master Mei praised Wang Hong while pointing out some shortcomings.
Being a third-tier Alchemist, she couldn't create a Pill Recipe as quickly as Wang Hong did, but she could still identify some flaws in his work. As a senior, she needed to provide balanced feedback, including constructive criticism, to maintain her authority.
After a thorough evaluation, the final ranking was announced. The white-bearded Old Man scored a total of thirty-six points, securing the first place without a doubt. The middle-aged cultivator had a total score of seventeen points, earning him second place. Wang Hong's total score of fifteen points placed him third. While he excelled in theoretical knowledge and Pill Recipe creation, this competition's scoring was based on the Pills he had refined.
Master Mei began by encouraging all the participating Alchemists and then praised the top five Alchemists. She particularly emphasized the Alchemy skills of the white-bearded Old Man and invited him to share his path to success with everyone.
"In this world, there are no shortcuts. The key is to focus and become proficient in your craft," Old Man stated briefly. He had been immersed in Alchemy for decades, not taking a single step away from the Sect. At one hundred and fifty years old, he had dedicated over a century to Alchemy. He couldn't perform Magical Arts, didn't understand talisman-making, couldn't refine tools, and didn't even know how to engage in combat. Apart from Alchemy, he had no other skills.
After Old Man's speech, a profound silence enveloped the hall, touching the hearts and minds of everyone present. To achieve success in a particular field, one must dedicate a considerable amount of time and sometimes sacrifice other pursuits.
Wang Hong's ability to master multiple skills simultaneously was primarily due to his unique spatial abilities. In reality, he had spent over a century in the field of Alchemy. However, he prioritized speed and efficiency in Alchemy, placing less emphasis on Pill Success Rate.
[Read at /shanefreak, and heartfelt thankyou for your support!]