Originally, questioning the fairness of the alliance leader was enough to anger the referee, but in truth, this referee also harboured some doubts deep down. Coupled with the desire to demonstrate the impartiality of the competition, he addressed Lin Xiao, “Heimu, show us your recipe.”
Lin Xiao casually handed over the jade slip containing the recipe. The referee quickly scanned it and immediately said, “No issues here, have a look yourselves!”
Using his spiritual power, the referee sent the recipe flying towards Wu Gong. Wu Gong examined it, and his expression grew grim. This recipe was indeed identical to his own.
“How is it possible that you improved it so quickly?” Wu Gong voiced the question that puzzled everyone, his tone filled with confusion.
Seeing Wu Gong’s expression, Lin Xiao explained everyone’s doubts with a single sentence, calmly stating, “Because it’s basic stuff.”
Wu Gong’s face stiffened, and the crowd was momentarily stunned. This response was a bit too humiliating.
Basic stuff? Then how come so many people were eliminated, struggling desperately just to refine their elixirs?
However, they had to admit that Lin Xiao’s talent shone through once again in this round, stealing the spotlight.
“Hmph, let’s see if you can stay this lucky in the later rounds!” Wu Gong snorted coldly at Lin Xiao, returned the jade slip to the referee, and stormed off.
Watching this, Wen Renliang below the stage secretly broke out in a sweat. In this second round, Lin Xiao had once again given them quite a scare.
It might be nothing to Lin Xiao, but to them, it always felt so thrilling…
Soon, the elixir testing concluded. Only thirty percent of the participants had refined effective elixirs, while the majority of the youths were eliminated.
Those who failed to refine a successful elixir left the stage with regret.
But for many of them, making it to the second round was already a decent achievement. Compared to those who didn’t even qualify for the competition, they had something to brag about.
In total, five hundred participants remained, including Wu Sha Xuanxuan and others, who naturally advanced to the third round.
“Now, the third round begins: speed refining,” Ye Fenghua’s voice rang out again at this moment, “The elixir to be refined is a second-grade advanced elixir, the Explosive Yuan Elixir. We will provide the correct recipe and a pile of herbs. You have one hour, and your score will be based on the number of elixirs refined. The top fifty who successfully refine the Explosive Yuan Elixir will advance to tomorrow’s final round.”
Whoa!
As soon as Ye Fenghua finished speaking, the crowd erupted in astonishment.
A second-grade advanced Explosive Yuan Elixir could drastically boost the vitality of a Mysterious Martial Realm warrior. It was an extremely valuable elixir, and even the herbs alone were worth a fortune. To provide a pile of them all at once showed just how much the Spirit Controller Alliance was investing in this event.
What shocked them even more was the difficulty of refining a second-grade advanced Explosive Yuan Elixir. For a second-grade advanced spirit controller to refine even one within an hour was already an impressive feat. Refining multiple elixirs was incredibly challenging, especially for those below the second-grade intermediate level.
In other words, this round was designed to filter out second-grade advanced spirit controllers. Among all the competing youths, there were only about seventy or eighty second-grade advanced spirit controllers or higher.
Only those at or above this level stood a chance of making it to the finals.
For spirit controllers below second-grade intermediate, refining a second-grade advanced elixir required the ability to refine across grades. Due to the limitations of their spiritual power, unless their alchemy skills were exceptionally refined or their spiritual power had the strength to fight above their grade, it was nearly impossible to produce a cross-grade elixir.
Even if they managed to refine one, it would likely be just one. Competing with second-grade advanced spirit controllers and above in terms of quantity, and aiming for a top-fifty spot to reach the finals, was borderline impossible!
Most of the young spirit controllers shook their heads inwardly, already resigned to failure. Some second-grade intermediate youths adopted a try-it-and-see attitude, while only a handful remained eager, their eyes burning with determination to push their limits.
Soon, a small pile of herbs for the second-grade advanced Explosive Yuan Elixir was distributed to each participant in the arena.
Looking at the herbs in the medicine cabinet, Lin Xiao quietly marvelled. The Explosive Yuan Elixir demanded a tremendous amount of spiritual power and energy.
Even for him, refining one Explosive Yuan Elixir would take about half an hour. To safely secure a spot in the finals, he’d need to refine at least two or three.
“Refining them one by one, in an hour, I’d probably only manage two at most…” Taking a deep breath, Lin Xiao made up his mind, “Looks like I’ll have to refine them simultaneously.”
Turning his head to glance at Ye Yu and the others, Lin Xiao noticed they wore similar expressions.
Refining one at a time wouldn’t cut it; they’d have to refine multiple elixirs at once. This third round was likely testing their ability to refine several elixirs simultaneously.
Simultaneously refining multiple elixirs was something ordinary spirit controllers could hardly achieve.
“One more thing: if there’s a tie in the number of elixirs refined for the top fifty spots, the younger spirit controller by bone age will advance. Right, now, begin refining!” At that moment, Ye Fenghua’s voice echoed from the platform once more.
If everyone only refined one elixir, the younger participants would advance to the finals. This prompted many second-grade advanced spirit controllers and above to resolve to refine more than two elixirs.
This added immense pressure even to those at the second-grade advanced level and higher.
As Ye Fenghua’s words fell, the youths in the arena activated their spiritual power, lifting the herbs in front of them and beginning to refine.
Time was short, and every second could determine success or failure, so they hurried to refine, ignoring everyone around them.
To Lin Xiao’s side and front, the black-robed youth glanced at Ye Yu, then at him, a faint smile playing on his lips.
Then, he controlled all the herbs in his hands, sending them floating up simultaneously.
“He’s refining all the herbs at once? How many Explosive Yuan Elixirs is he planning to make?” Seeing the black-robed youth’s actions, the crowd outside the arena buzzed with surprise and uncertainty.
“It looks like that pile of herbs could yield about five elixirs at most, and that’s only if they’re refined with extreme precision. Even if he manages to refine the entire pile successfully, he’ll probably only get three or four at best,” an elder remarked.
“Three or four? That’s a lot, isn’t it? Usually, you don’t hear of spirit controllers refining three or four elixirs at once. I wonder if he’ll succeed.”
“The more you refine at once, the harder it gets. He might end up overreaching, and not only fail to get three or four, but not even manage one. Then he won’t even make it to the finals.”
“That’s hard to say. This youth isn’t ordinary. To dare to refine so many at this stage, he must have some confidence.”
“Spirit controllers are arrogant by nature, especially the top young geniuses of the empire. I reckon Ye Yu and the others won’t aim too low either…”
Amid the crowd’s discussions, a hint of seriousness crossed Ye Yu’s face. After glancing at the black-robed youth, he too began controlling all his herbs.
“Look, Ye Yu’s refining all his herbs too!”
“As one of the contenders for the championship, how could Ye Yu stand to fall behind? Plus, as Ye Fenghua’s nephew, he’s surely had top-notch training. If anyone’s most likely to succeed, it’s probably him.”
The crowd erupted into discussion again, and at the same time, Wu Gong began controlling all his herbs.
While the buzz focused on the two of them, everyone’s attention turned to Lin Xiao. After all, he’d been the standout in the first two rounds.
