"Alright, I declare the third round—"
The moment the Deputy Pavilion Master's voice fell—
"BEGIN!!"
—an invisible pressure seemed to descend upon the entire hall.
No one dared to waste even a single breath.
Flames ignited.
"Boom!"
"Fwoosh!"
One after another, the furnaces roared to life as candidates circulated their energy, drawing out strands of flame and guiding them into the furnace cores.
The previously silent hall was instantly filled with the low hum of heat, the faint crackling of fire, and the subtle scent of burning herbs.
---
Lin Feng did not move immediately.
He stood calmly before his furnace, his gaze sweeping over the tray of materials placed before him.
Blood Coagulation Grass.
Spirit Stabilizing Root.
Cloud Chasing Vine.
Three main ingredients.
Thirty-two auxiliary herbs.
Six neutralizers.
Probably scattered in this manner to confuse us.
But not simple.
He thought, his eyes narrowing.
"Three sets of main materials… in fact have different and conflicting properties. If one were careless and tried to refine a pill, not only would it fail, but the cauldron would likely explode, causing severe injuries… even if one wasn't injured, it would be impossible to refine another within one incense stick, let alone three…" He shook his head, then began to analyze.
Blood Coagulation Grass is the main ingredient for refining a Blood Coagulation Pill.
Spirit Stabilizing Root is mainly used in a Qi Replenishing Pill, a tier-one elixir used to restore expended spirit energy, whether in battle or escaping. This pill is a basic daily need for all warriors.
Cloud Chasing Vine can be used to refine Swift Wind Pills, a more advanced tier-one high-level pill.
He then glanced at the auxiliary and neutral materials.
Sure enough, of the thirty-six auxiliary herbs, exactly twelve are needed for the Blood Coagulation Pill, another twelve for the Qi Replenishing Pill, while the last twelve are for the high-grade tier-one pill. And the six neutralizers—two of each—perfectly match the remaining requirements.
He concluded after comparing the materials with his knowledge.
---
After his analysis, he couldn't help but look around.
The atmosphere was solemn.
Others had already begun.
Sweat dripped from their brows as they focused on their cauldrons, heating them in preparation.
He sighed faintly, envy clearly visible in his eyes as he watched them pinch one hand seal after another. With each seal, a torrent of fire-attributed spiritual energy surged, either creating flames under the cauldron or increasing the already present flames.
With more than a dozen spiritual flames roaring, the room temperature skyrocketed—enough to melt ordinary materials. If anybody without cultivation were to enter the room, they would almost instantly die of heatstroke. But it wasn't a problem for those present; they all had at least the cultivation of a Martial Warrior. The cauldrons themselves were forged from rare, treasured materials, said not only to withstand spiritual fire but even the flames of terrifying beast fire beyond it.
Back at Lin Feng's table, he shook his head dejectedly.
The difficulty of alchemy had increased exponentially due to his lack of flame spirit roots.
Quickly discarding these thoughts, he checked the formation beneath the cauldron.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
"Luckily, it hasn't been damaged. Otherwise, I would really overturn in the gutter today."
He patted his chest, secretly making a mental note to study formations as soon as possible.
Closing his eyes, he filtered through his memories, searching for the activation method of the cauldron formation.
Soon—
He moved.
Placing his index and middle fingers against the base of the cauldron, he injected spiritual energy, using it as a link between himself and the formation.
His fingers began to move.
Hand seals—rapid, precise.
Faster.
Faster.
Suddenly—
Three golden circles filled with runes and strange patterns appeared beneath the three legs of the cauldron, spinning rapidly.
Then—
They ignited.
Flames burst forth beneath each leg.
---
This scene instantly drew attention.
Heads turned.
Eyes widened.
"What is he doing?"
"Is he crazy? Doesn't he know why the formation isn't used?"
"Yes! The formation fire is extremely unstable. It either fails to refine the materials properly, lowering quality, or burns them into waste!"
"Either way, it's a terrible choice…"
"I'm afraid refining will be difficult for him…"
The elders whispered among themselves, stunned.
But none dared make firm judgments.
They had learned their lesson from the second round.
Instead, they subtly glanced at the Deputy Pavilion Master.
His expression—
Was not good.
A deep frown.
Brows tightly furrowed.
No one could tell what he was thinking.
---
On the other side—
Ouyang Jun smiled.
A wide, vicious smile.
He remembered.
He had once tried the same method.
The result?
Ruined materials.
Exploding furnace.
A brutal beating from his master.
Now—
Seeing Lin Feng repeat that exact mistake—
He was ecstatic.
"Hmph… so he's just an arrogant fool," he thought.
"I was worried for nothing."
"Just wait until you ruin everything… let's see how the Vice Pavilion Master deals with you then."
His eyes gleamed with malicious anticipation.
---
Lin Feng, feeling all the gazes on him, twitched slightly.
"What am I, a monkey in a zoo…"
But he ignored them.
His expression turned serious.
His hand seals accelerated—
Faster.
More complex.
The flames intensified.
The heat rose sharply.
The cauldron glowed faintly red.
Then—
When the temperature reached its peak—
He moved.
Grabbing a batch of carefully separated ingredients—
He threw them into the cauldron.
"CLANG!"
"CLANG!"
Instantly—
A violent aura erupted.
The cauldron trembled violently.
Energy surged wildly within.
Cracks began to spread across its surface.
The entire furnace shook uncontrollably.
"OOHH NOOO!"