The judge walked to the center of the competition venue.
Chu Liuyue went forward and passed her jade box over.
The judge opened the box, and a strong and fresh medicinal fragrance hit his nose.
His eyes brightened up, and he picked up the pill.
The five horizontal purple lines were very clear and bright on the smooth, green pill. The color of the fifth line was much lighter than the first four lines, but the line was smooth, clean, and pure—it also looked good.
“This is indeed a fifth-grade pill!” stated the judge with certainty as the gaze he directed at Chu Liuyue was filled with admiration. “Even though it’s inferior-grade, the fragrance is clean, and the color is pure. It’s good, very good!”
He said ‘good’ and ‘very good,’ which showed his recognition of Chu Liuyue’s abilities.
The smile on Zhang Hua’s face gradually stiffened. What does that mean? Chu Liuyue’s pill… seems decent? The trouble that occurred in between actually didn’t affect this pill at all?
Chu Liuyue thanked the judge respectfully.
The judge glanced at Weichi Song, smiled, and said, “Old Song, you’re really lucky to be able to have such an outstanding disciple!”
He was also a heavenly doctor, so he naturally understood how rare the talent and sensibility that Chu Liuyue displayed earlier were. I heard that Chu Liuyue chose Chong Xu Cabinet herself at the start… A good talent that others beg for but can’t have was easily accepted by him. How infuriating to compare!
Weichi Song smiled and cupped his fists together as he heaved a sigh of relief in his heart. When Chu Liuyue produced the Zi Yang Pill earlier, he was shocked and surprised as he didn’t feel too sure in his heart.
Now looking at this, the struggle in between was just a shock. It didn’t pose any real danger, and everything progressed very successfully. Chu Liuyue—she indeed successfully produced a Zi Yang Pill, and it looks very perfect!
The judge then looked at Ning Zhiqing.
Ning Zhiqing stood rooted to the ground, motionless, as he held the jade box tightly. His gaze was blank, but nobody knew what he was thinking.
“Ning Zhiqing?” yelled the judge.
Ning Zhiqing then recovered his senses. He nervously held his breath in as he walked forward with heavy steps.
Those who could be the judges at the clan competition were all top elites in the Tianling Dynasty. This person was no exception.
I wonder if he can tell… This was also the first time Ning Zhiqing did such a thing, so he couldn’t help but feel guilty. After walking a few steps, his forehead was covered in sweat, and his face turned pale.
After handing the jade box over, his fingers were trembling slightly. “This is the Rong Ling Pill I produced. Please check it.”
The judge glanced at him. “Are you okay?”
Ning Zhiqing shook his head and forced a smile. “I’m fine.”
Chu Liuyue stood at the side. Even though Ning Zhiqing claims that he’s okay, his eyes are still glued to the jade box. It’s as if… He’s worried about something.
Chu Liuyue followed his vision and fell into deep thought.
The judge had already opened the box and picked up the Rong Ling Pill inside—this was a blue pill with five red lines on it.
Like Chu Liuyue’s, the fifth line on this pill was clearly lighter than the previous few lines.
The judge checked closely again.
Ning Zhiqing’s entire body tensed up, and he felt extremely tortured.
“This Rong Ling Pill is also an inferior fifth-grade pill!” The judge looked hesitant, but in the end, he could only smile helplessly. “These two pills are very similar in terms of grade, and both productions are very successful. It’s hard to decide who’s better, so this round… is a tie!”
Ning Zhiqing’s heart relaxed as his back was instantly drenched by his cold sweat as if he had come back alive. Tie… A tie is also good! It’s better than losing! I don’t want to face the same consequence as Xie Lingyang!
The spectators were all stunned. How can it be a tie?! The two parties fought so intensely for so long, yet it ended up in a tie?! What kind of result is this? It can’t be that Chong Xu Cabinet and Jiu Xing Alliance will be part of the top four clans together, right?
“That’s impossible!” A furious voice was heard.
Chu Liuyue turned around.
Zhang Hua was walking over agitatedly. “This is impossible! Chu Liuyue is a fourth-grade heavenly doctor, and Ning Zhiqing is a fifth-grade one! He’s one whole grade higher than her! How can the two of them produce pills of the same standard?!”
The judge’s expression turned cold. “Are you doubting my judgment?”
Zhang Hua was stumped. No matter how unreasonable he was, he would never refute the judge in public. But… he definitely couldn’t accept this tie!
“Chu Liuyue’s pill definitely has a problem!” He pointed his arrow toward Chu Liuyue. “When she was producing the pill, she had wasted some of her herbs. Everyone present saw it clearly! Under such circumstances, it would normally be impossible for one to even produce the pill, let alone produce a high-grade one.”
Hearing this, the judge felt that it was a joke. Zhang Hua isn’t a heavenly doctor, so he said such ignorant words.
“You thought wrongly. It’s precisely because Chu Liuyue struggled in between but still managed to produce the pill successfully that proves her talent and abilities!”
If one gave her more time, she could definitely win against Ning Zhiqing completely.
However, Zhang Hua was still in disbelief. He didn’t dare to refute the judge head-on, so he looked at Chu Liuyue and coldly questioned, “Chu Liuyue, if your conscience is really clear, do you dare to take out your pill and let it be closely checked again?”
“Zhang Hua, don’t think of smearing and framing her!” Weichi Song also walked over, and he looked enraged. “The results are already out. Who are you questioning?”
Zhang Hua sneered. “If she has no problems, what’s there to be scared of? If she doesn’t dare to do it, it proves that she’s guilty! She’s not worthy of this tie!”
“Who says that I don’t dare?” Chu Liuyue stepped forward and gave Weichi Song a reassuring gaze as she smiled and looked at Ning Zhiqing. “But if my pill needs to be re-checked, the same also has to be done for Ning Zhiqing’s pill to ensure fairness!”
The last shade of blood color in Ning Zhiqing’s face instantly disappeared!
