Chapter 541: An Unexpected Outcome: The Mighty Chu Yao

The three women entered the Instance hand in hand, and at the same time Jiang Chen also noticed Qiao Zhixin's figure.

Qiao Zhixin was also among these challengers. A pure smile spread across her face, and she waved friendly at Jiang Chen.

Li Xueru looked at Qiao Zhixin, smiled warmly and said to Jiang Chen, "Xiao Chen, this young lady's profession is quite rare."

Jiang Chen nodded in agreement, "Indeed it's very rare; I only met her by a chance encounter."

Li Xueru patted Jiang Chen's shoulder and said meaningfully, "Not bad, such opportunities are scarce; you must seize it well."

Jiang Chen felt a bit awkward; he seemed to sense the double meaning in Li Xueru's words. Meanwhile, Hong Jishi teased from beside, "Exactly, Xiao Chen, you'd better study well; if there's anything you don't understand, ask your Teacher Li. After all, in this field, he's said to be second; no one dares to claim first."

Jiang Chen chose to remain silent; he didn't want to keep discussing the topic with these two jokesters.

Lin Caier'er, as an Assassin and also a Mythic Tier Profession, inherently possesses outstanding combat power. Yi Ning, as a Mid Mythic-level Holy Spirit Summoner, possesses a Primordial Rune; her combat strength, compared with the earlier Feng Xuan, is only stronger, not weaker.

As for Qiao Zhixin, although her profession does not focus on combat, the talents and skills she possesses are extremely special. As long as she can use them wisely, she also has a chance to shine brightly in the Instance.

However, the thing that intrigued Jiang Chen most was Chu Yao. He knew Chu Yao's level was not low, probably already above level 65. Yet, regarding Chu Yao's combat method, he still had no clue.

Alchemist is such a rare profession that related information is extremely scarce. In most people's understanding, an Alchemist merely concocts medicines and does not possess combat ability. Moreover, Chu Yao has not yet reached Divine Level, and has not undergone the profession's transformation.

Li Xueru seemed to notice Jiang Chen's confusion, smiled and said, "Just watch carefully; your senior sister Chu will definitely open your eyes wide."

Jiang Chen gave no reply to Li Xueru's words; he felt a bit uncomfortable with the title "your senior sister Chu". He understood that Li Xueru's previous remark was intentionally misleading, so he decided not to fall for it.

Seeing that Jiang Chen wasn't duped, Li Xueru seemed a bit disappointed; his scheme had not succeeded.

The first two stages of the Instance were not very difficult; as long as the profession wasn't an idiot, they could basically pass smoothly. However, from the third stage onward, the challenges gradually escalated.

When the Wind Tiger appeared, Lin Caier'er flashed, and just 0.1 seconds later she was on the tiger's head. The Dagger in her hand thrust down without hesitation, and with a Boom— the Wind Tiger was instantly killed.

At the same time, Yi Ning's Holy Spirit Unicorn opened its mouth and spewed a dazzling beam, likewise instantly slaying another Wind Tiger with a dominant strike.

Qiao Zhixin swung the Platinum Giant Hammer in her hand, each heavy blow landing precisely on the Wind Tiger's body. The Wind Tiger seemed suppressed by her aura, motionless, allowing her to hammer away.

The spectators were surprised, not understanding why the Wind Tiger had no power to resist. However, Jiang Chen saw clearly that Qiao Zhixin skillfully employed her abilities, stunning the Wind Tiger repeatedly.

After only four or five heavy blows, the Wind Tiger fell brutally to the ground, its head smashed to fragments, its death extremely tragic.

At the same time, the situation on Chu Yao's side was also highly eye‑catching. A faint light flickered at her fingertips, and then a pill materialized out of thin air. The pill burst open, turning into a wisp of green smoke. The Wind Tiger, merely smelling a trace of the green smoke, collapsed onto the ground and fell into a deep slumber.

The Instance system quickly judged that Chu Yao had cleared this stage.

Liu Qingqing giggled beside them, "Xiao Chen, did you understand what you saw?"

Jiang Chen nodded, then shook his head, "I saw it, but haven't fully grasped it yet."

In Jiang Chen's view, Chu Yao's skill was indeed bizarre; he had never seen such a peculiar combat method.

Li Xueru explained, "Chu Yao's profession is indeed very special; strictly speaking, her profession is unique throughout the world."

"Her profession's full name is: Alchemical Warrior," Li Xueru continued, "Her skill can create various medicines, and the effects of these medicines are often unexpected."

"The skill she just used is called 'Sleep-Death Smoke'; inhaling it causes deep sleep, possibly never waking."

Jiang Chen was shocked by this explanation; he hadn't imagined such a profession could exist.

"Can potions be created directly through a skill?" Jiang Chen asked in disbelief.

Li Xueru smiled, "Creating something from nothing, turning stone into gold; in this world, nothing is impossible. If you think it's impossible, it only shows your insight is insufficient."

"When you eventually reach Divine Level, you'll understand more," Li Xueru added.

Jiang Chen silently nodded, keeping the words in his heart.

The Instance's trials continued; for Qiao Zhixin, Chu Yao, Lin Caier'er and Yi Ning, the current difficulty was not too great.

Among them, Chu Yao's combat style was the most unusual; each time she only needed to use one skill to create a pill, and the battle ended swiftly.

Qiao Zhixin displayed her innate combat instinct; even in fierce battles, she could always handle it with ease.

Lin Caier'er was like a ghost, the ferocious tigers could not capture her silhouette at all.

Until the eighth stage, real pressure only began to appear. Four tigers merged into one, forming a powerful BOSS whose attributes rose sharply.

However, Qiao Zhixin's skill at this moment revealed its truly perverse side. She could firmly control the BOSS, repeatedly stunning it.

The BOSS, with no power to resist, was ultimately completely slain.

Chu Yao's Alchemical Warrior skill once again amazed everyone; with a light wave of her hand, countless pills exploded around her, instantly shrouding the Instance in a veil of mist. The BOSS lost its way in this fog, and ultimately, after inhaling a large amount of medicine, its life force rapidly dwindled to nothing.

Lin Caier'er and Yi Ning, relying on their formidable combat power, forcefully killed the BOSS and smoothly entered the ninth stage.

However, in the ninth stage, Lin Caier'er again displayed the cunning of an Assassin. She seemed to merge with the air, and the ferocious tigers could not detect her trace. Jiang Chen watched this scene and couldn't help but laugh silently, "It seems she chose to avoid fighting; what a clever approach."

Yi Ning chose a head‑on, hard‑hitting combat style. Holy light flickered over her whole body, perfectly coordinated with her Holy Spirit Unicorn, and she engaged the ferocious tigers in fierce battle.

Qiao Zhixin also displayed her powerful combat instinct. With her talent fully unleashed, she deftly weaved through the tigers' attacks, and whenever there was a sliver of opening, she could skillfully evade.

Chu Yao, however, was the most inscrutable. She had turned the entire Instance into a mist‑shrouded city; outsiders could not see her, and the tigers inside could not locate her. The whole Instance seemed to sink into utter stillness.

Jiang Chen asked curiously, "So, senior sister Chu could probably hold out for a long time, couldn't she?"

Li Xueru shook his head, laughing, "Impossible; the Instance has its own mechanics. The first ten minutes are the easiest; after ten minutes the difficulty spikes dramatically."

Hong Jishi added, "Getting a 90‑point score isn't hard; the difficulty lies in the later challenges."

Just now, Feng Xuan had endured until the ten‑minute mark, successfully earning a high score of 90. Yet the real challenge was only just beginning.

As time passed, among Lin Caier'er's group, only the four of them remained steadfast; the others had already been eliminated.

When the time reached ten minutes, the entire Instance seemed to change. A mysterious, powerful force began to pervade; Lin Caier'er's previously hidden figure was suddenly forced out, and all the ferocious tigers lunged at her. Under the interference of this mysterious force, Lin Caier'er's speed noticeably slowed, making her movements arduous.

Yi Ning encountered the same problem. Both she and her Unicorn's speed dropped sharply, and her attack power seemed weakened as well.

Qiao Zhixin's situation was the worst. The mysterious force disrupted her rhythm, and she was eliminated in the blink of an eye.

Qiao Zhixin emerged from the Instance, a faint bewilderment still on her face, clearly not yet recovered from the sudden elimination. She looked around, as if confirming she had truly left that challenge‑filled Instance.

On the other side, Chu Yao still lingered hidden in the mist, but the mist's turbulence grew increasingly violent, as if a gigantic hand kept stirring it.

As time passed, Chu Yao's perseverance became ever more difficult.

Li Xueru stared at the screen, his voice deep, "Did you see? After the ninth stage exceeds ten minutes, not only do the monsters' power levels rise sharply, but their numbers also surge dramatically."

"Moreover, the Instance's own power will interfere with professions, making battles even tougher," he added.

Jiang Chen nodded, his gaze fixed on the screen. He could see that the force was continuously disrupting Lin Caier'er and the others; Qiao Zhixin was the first to be eliminated, and the remaining participants were struggling to hold on.

Immediately after, Lin Caier was also eliminated. She had endured in an extreme state for a long time, but in the end had nowhere to hide under the monsters' onslaught. She lasted one minute longer than Qiao Zhixin, reaching a Score of 91.

When Lin Caier walked out of the Instance, a satisfied smile spread across her face. She hopped back to the group and, bragging, said to Jiang Chen, "I'm impressive, right? I dodged perfectly!"

Jiang Chen smiled and nodded, "You really are impressive; this method not only saves effort but is also safe."

Lin Caier pouted proudly, "It's the easiest method, and I even got a high Score!"

Jiang Chen nodded again affirmatively, "Your method is truly excellent."

Shortly after Lin Caier, Yi Ning also regrettably fell. She faced a monster horde several times larger than before; even with her great combat power, she could barely resist. In the end, she finished the challenge with a Score of 92.

Now, only Chu Yao remains holding out in the Instance. Her performance astonishes everyone; this seemingly delicate woman actually manages to survive to the end.

The Instance's power repeatedly tries to disperse the fog she created, but never succeeds. Until the 95th minute, a thunderous beast roar echoes throughout the entire Instance.

A colossal creature appears in the sky—a hundred‑meter‑tall five‑colored fierce tiger. It swings its massive claws down forcefully, not only blasting the fog away but also blasting Chu Yao out of the Instance.

Chu Yao finished the challenge with a Score of 95, breaking the highest record of the Divine Stone Instance! This result shocked everyone, who gave her enthusiastic applause and congratulations.