Chapter 426: The Second Test
Hui Yue found himself sleeping for the entire afternoon and evening. As he woke up, he found that the moon was high in the sky and his body felt far more energized than he had before.
His body felt rested, and his mind was no longer stressed as it had been. He could think much clearer now, and he was focused on the contest. For him to have gone through the first test as well as he did, he assumed that he would be capable of getting through the second part easily as well. As for what the second part was about, Hui Yue was not certain.
Sitting on the floor, Hui Yue started cultivating. The night passed by, and as the sun rose in the sky, Hui Yue stood up and went to get some food. After having relaxed his mind and slept for the majority of the day, Hui Yue found himself excited about the day because he was going to participate in the second test of the annual alchemist’s contest.
“Father!” As soon as Hui Yue made it to the dining hall, he found that Lao and Jo were already there. The two of them were smiling, and they were as curious about today’s contest as Hui Yue himself was. It was clear that both of them and Wang Ju Long wished to come to the contest and support him. Knowing that they were there, in the audience, observing him and wishing him the best, Hui Yue could not help but feel grateful.
Having finished the food, the two children alongside Hui Yue left the dining hall and met up with Wang Ju Long in the hallway. Together they summoned their flying swords and once more headed towards the square outside the Alchemist Guild.
During the night while Hui Yue had been asleep, another auction was hosted at the square and both children and Wang Ju Long had attended. Much like before, they purchased the pills which were useful for their cultivation. Since Hui Yue wasn’t there to give them money, Wang Ju Long had given them some. When Hui Yue tried to pay her back, she refused to accept the money and to keep the mood good Hui Yue did not pressure her.
By the time they reached the square in front of the Alchemist Guild, they found that the stage and seats from the auction the night before had already been removed and replaced with a massive stage in the middle of which tables were placed. This time there were fewer tables than the day before, half the amount of tables to be correct.
This also made extra space around the stage so even more people could see the competition. Hui Yue arrived somewhat early, yet even though he was early, he found that a large group of alchemists had already gathered at the doorway of the Alchemist Guild. After saying goodbye to his family, he also flew towards the doorway.
Landing, he politely greeted the other contestants. The ones who had shown up early were the ones who had practiced for multiple years before participating in the contest, and it was clear that all of them were nervous.
Usually, this contest would only be between those old fogies who had trained for a long time, however, this year Hui Yue and Zhong Fai, alongside some other skilled young alchemists, were giving them a run for their money. These dark horses which had appeared out of nowhere shocked the elderly contestants and made them feel sour at heart. They had spent year after year training hard to become much stronger than any of the other newly appointed alchemists, yet this year things were different. No matter how much they had trained, there were other people who were much more skilled.
The rewards for winning this contest were amazing for any ordinary alchemist. Therefore, it was natural that some people, especially those who came from ordinary backgrounds, would try their hardest to get first in this contest. Though they had access to the formulas that could be purchased from the Alchemist Guild, the special and more powerful formulas were usually only passed down from great masters, and with an ordinary background, it was impossible for them to get such things. Their only chance to obtain these heaven-defying formulas was to win the contest.
The time slowly ticked by until the woman came out from the Alchemist Guild heading towards the stage. As she moved, Hui Yue and the others followed behind her.
“Today we will be starting the second day of the annual alchemist’s contest!” The voice once more boomed out through the grounds, and everyone quieted down. “Today’s contest was different from the one yesterday. An outstanding amount of experts got through the first test, and now we will make it even more difficult.”
“On each table is a recipe for a fourth-tier pill. There is no time limit in this contest. However, the first seven to create a perfect pill will be the ones who get the positions for the finals tomorrow.”
Hearing this, a murmur started to sound from the audience. No one had expected this. It was clear that this year’s contest was far more outstanding than usual. To think that the newest appointed alchemists were going to create a fourth-tier pill, and not only create it but create a perfect version of it.
Even the contestants were shocked, and Hui Yue could only laugh at himself mockingly. A perfect pill, even with no time limits it was hard to create a fourth-tier pill perfect.
But even so, Hui Yue believed in his own ability. He had the support of his cultivation base and his cauldron. Looking at the others, he saw the same kind of frown on all their faces. None of them felt too sure about this sudden and incredibly difficult task they had been given.
Standing in front of a table, Hui Yue was eager to see the formula they had been gifted. As the woman called, “let the exam begin!” Hui Yue picked up the stone, like all the others, and placed it to his head.
Like before, these alchemists needed to produce their own materials for the pills, but unlike the day before, everyone had all the materials. They had at least enough to make one attempt. However, they all knew that one attempt was not likely to be enough. They had to make the pill perfect, and with just the smallest mistake they would have to start from scratch once more.
The first thing Hui Yue did after understanding the formula was to find his materials. All of the materials were placed on the table together with his cauldron.
Hui Yue did not start refining the medicine instantly. Instead, he took time to calm himself down. Even though he had the support of the cauldron and his high cultivation base, he knew that if he were not calm, he would just be wasting his energy.
Even Hui Yue, who had purchased all the material he could, had only enough for three attempts. The materials needed for this pill were simply too precious.
Opening his eyes, Hui Yue took the first herb and placed it within the cauldron. Refining it was not too challenging, and the first five herbs had been refined in the first half hour.
Within the next half hour, the two rarest and most challenging herbs were refined, and then he was excited as he was about to merge them within the dragon pearl. His attention was focused fully on those merging energies, and as some of the liquid had perfectly dripped into the refined pearl, some of the liquid was still swirling in the cauldron itself.
Suddenly a large boom sounded out as a cauldron blew up, and the boom was so loud that Hui Yue lost focus and missed a tiny drop of the liquid.
Looking at the rest of the pill, Hui Yue had a foul taste in his mouth as he quickly finished the pill. However, he no longer paid much attention to the rest of the process. One mistake caused him to concoct a decent pill instead of a perfect one.
Looking around, he saw that many were still on their first attempt. His speed was far swifter than others, but he now had to start from scratch.
Sighing deeply, he found the herbs and once more began to refine them. By the time he had refined all the herbs five hours had passed by.
Just as he heaved a heavy sigh of relief because no one had gone to the lady yet, he smelled an outstanding medicinal scent and saw that Zhong Fai move towards the woman who was overseeing the exam with a medicinal pill bottle in his hands. Seeing that he was the first, Hui Yue gritted his teeth but kept his entire focus on refining. He could not afford to mess up anymore.
While Hui Yue was fully focused on merging the liquid with the dragon pearl, three other experts went to the lady with their pills, and all of them got accepted. Now only three spots remained, but even so, Hui Yue could not rush the process. If he did, he would end up with a subpar pill once more.
Finally, after eight hours Hui Yue move towards the lady with the pill in a jade bottle. The moment he reached the lady, he could not help but feel worried. Although he knew it was perfect, if just the slightest mistake had been made, then he would not be able to save Sha Yun. His heart was beating rapidly, and his mouth was dry as he waited for the woman to go through it, scrutinizing every single inch of the pill.
After having looked at it for a good ten minutes, the woman finally nodded her head. “Congratulations, you will be in the final tomorrow” She congratulated, and Hui Yue felt a stone vanish from his heart as he moved to stand with the other four experts who had succeeded in creating a perfect pill. Within the eyes of Zhong Hei was hidden mockery. It was clear that he felt superior since he had been the first to hand in his pill. Hui Yue, however, did not care as long as he was in the finals.
Waiting for an extra three hours, the contestants for the finals had been found and the evening’s exam ended.
“Father! Father!” Someone yelled out, and suddenly two children flew from the sky and landed right in front of Hui Yue who had just stepped off the stairs. Seeing the two children jump into the embrace of Hui Yue, everyone was dumbfounded to see that these two children had been capable of controlling flying swords. Flying swords were only for cultivators of the upper dantian, but none of them looked to be much more than ten years of age.
It was not only the common audience which was shocked, but Zhong Hei’s eyes also narrowed, and his heart shook. He was nothing more than an Emperor himself, and he knew how hard he had worked to reach the Emperor rank but here were children who had seemingly done something impossible. The lady from the Alchemist Guild was also deeply shocked, and her eyes sparkled with excitement as she looked at the children.
Previously no one had bothered about Hui Yue’s family. He was the dangerous individual, and his family were nothing more than ordinary experts, overshadowed by his splendor. Yet now it seemed that they were at least as outstanding as him. Everyone present had to reevaluate this young man who had the power to frighten anyone.
