The first round of the Alchemy Grand Competition began with participants lining up to draw lots, randomly determining the pills each cultivator would attempt to refine.
Xiao Fei stood in line, a dejected family disciple ahead of him and a sighing disciple behind him. It seemed they were all being forced to participate and embarrass themselves after being too arrogant with their usual cheating.
Xiao Fei's expression was calm and unruffled. To others, it appeared as forced composure, a sign of inner guilt.
This year, due to new sect regulations, the number of disciples participating in the competition had increased severalfold. Many onlookers were waiting to witness these disciples make fools of themselves.
For the spectators, while they might smile when others prospered, they couldn't help but feel a pang of envy. However, seeing others suffer was a truly joyous occasion. Thus, there were far more people watching scenes of misfortune than celebratory gatherings.
At this moment, the disciples who had been singled out and forced into the competition became a source of great amusement for many impoverished disciples.
When it was Xiao Fei's turn to draw, he took a jade slip from a wooden box and examined it with his divine sense.
"Qing Ning Pill!"
His luck seemed to be rather poor. Although this was a first-tier pill, it was obscure. He had only read about it in a book and had never refined it before.
He checked with his divine sense; the jade slip contained the detailed formula for the Qing Ning Pill.
Based on the formula, Xiao Fei went to the main stage to collect the refining materials. He could have gathered two sets of these spiritual herbs from his spatial dimension.
In a corner of the plaza, nearly a thousand stone platforms, each about ten feet square, had already been set up. The participants entered one by one, each occupying a stone platform. Those with poorer refining skills generally sat further back, in less conspicuous positions, out of self-awareness.
Xiao Fei entered the venue late and had to find a spot closer to the front. There was a row of stone platforms empty in front of him, and beyond that were the elders and deacons of the Alchemy Hall who were overseeing the assessment. Such front-row seats were usually reserved for talented individuals with higher refining skills.
Beside Xiao Fei, a round-faced youth was still sighing. "Making me sit so close to the front is like putting me on display, isn't it?"
Just then, a group of disciples walked in from outside the venue, drawing the attention of both the participants and the Alchemy Hall deacons. A buzz of discussion immediately erupted from the crowd.
"Wow! The top contenders from the last competition are here!"
"Look, the one at the very front is Zuo Qiu Liang, who ranked first in the last Alchemy Grand Competition. He's bound to take first place again this time."
Xiao Fei followed the crowd's gaze and saw a disciple walking at the forefront, exuding a calm confidence and ease.
"That's not necessarily true. Xin Chu Yao, who ranked third last year, is the daughter of Elder Xin. She receives personal guidance from Golden Core experts daily and has progressed rapidly. It's quite possible she's already surpassed Zuo Qiu Liang in these three years."
"Zuo Qiu Liang was taken as a disciple by a Golden Core elder long ago, so he surely won't fall behind. As long as he wins first place this time and receives a Foundation Establishment Pill as a reward, solidifying his advancement to Foundation Establishment will be a sure thing."
"That's not necessarily true..."
"Actually, Zuo Qiu Liang and Xin Chu Yao look quite good together!"
While the onlookers were arguing heatedly for their idols, Zuo Qiu Liang and his group had already entered the venue. Coincidentally, these two alchemy prodigies were seated right in front of Xiao Fei and the round-faced youth.
After everyone had taken their seats, three more disciples, wearing robes of the Zi Wei Sect, Chi Yang Gate, and Zi Xia Sect respectively, entered the venue and sat in the front row. These three were disciples from other sects who had come for exchanges and to participate in a friendly competition. While called an exchange, it also carried an undertone of rivalry.
"The first round of the Dan Xin Sect's Alchemy Grand Competition now begins. The time limit for this round is three hours."
Refining a first-tier pill usually took about two hours, leaving the extra time for participants to prepare. Hearing this, everyone took out their alchemy furnaces and placed them on the stone platforms. As the saying goes, "A craftsman must first sharpen his tools." The alchemy furnace could roughly indicate a person's refining skill.
Zuo Qiu Liang and Xin Chu Yao's alchemy furnaces were clearly not ordinary items. As for the round-faced youth beside Xiao Fei, he never refined pills normally and was now producing a low-grade furnace to go through the motions. High-grade alchemy furnaces were rare and expensive. Xiao Fei's previous furnace was only low-grade, so he had bought this mid-grade furnace for better performance in this competition.
Xiao Fei took out his furnace and the spiritual herbs, then sat cross-legged behind the furnace, closing his eyes and entering his spatial dimension. Inside, his low-grade furnace was still there. He selected two sets of ingredients for the Qing Ning Pill from the numerous spiritual herbs. He had previously focused on refining Qi Gathering Pills and had never refined the Qing Ning Pill. It was entirely possible that his first attempt at refining an unfamiliar pill would fail. He planned to refine these two sets of ingredients in his dimension first to gain some experience before attempting the one for the competition. It wouldn't take too much time to refine two furnaces of pills in his dimension anyway.
At this moment, everyone in the venue had completed their preparations. Regardless of their skill, the initial actions were performed meticulously. Only Xiao Fei, behind Zuo Qiu Liang, sat there with his eyes closed, motionless, as if he had fallen asleep.
"Hahaha... this fellow is quite a character, falling asleep during the Alchemy Grand Competition."
"This is a good strategy, better than ending up with a mess."
Even among the participating disciples, some began to imitate him. Since they couldn't refine anyway, they might as well sleep and submit a blank paper.
"Fellow Daoist Guang Ling, your sect's disciple certainly has a unique personality," an elder from the Chi Yang Gate on the main stage said with a smile, stroking his beard.
True Master Guang Ling frowned slightly, feeling a surge of annoyance. He shouted loudly towards the competition venue below. "Any disciple who has not begun refining within three hours will have all their task qualifications revoked!"
With True Master Guang Ling's stern shout, many disciples who had intended to emulate Xiao Fei were startled awake and began fumbling with the spiritual herbs before them. Only Xiao Fei remained unfazed, continuing to sit with his eyes closed. For a moment, his presence overshadowed even Zuo Qiu Liang and Xin Chu Yao, becoming the focal point of everyone's attention.
Feeling the mocking gazes of the envoys from the three major sects, True Master Guang Ling deeply remembered this Qi Refining disciple. He dared to ignore his orders in full view of everyone, not only embarrassing him but also disgracing the sect. He couldn't act now, but after the competition ended, there would be consequences for him.
Xiao Fei was at a critical juncture in refining pills within his dimension; a furnace of pills was about to be completed. He left a wisp of his divine sense on his physical body, so he was aware of what was happening outside. However, it was too late to come out now. He could only hope to compensate by demonstrating superior refining skills later.
Soon, the first furnace of pills he refined in his dimension was completed. As expected, only one pill was formed. He didn't immediately refine the second furnace. Instead, he sat in meditation within his dimension for a long time, reflecting on his gains and losses before starting the second refinement. With the experience from the first furnace, the second batch of pills yielded three pills. He was currently refining with his divine sense; when he used his physical body to operate the furnace, the success rate would be even higher.