Chapter 516

BOOM!

BOOM BOOM!

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

After the middle-aged man released his Primordial Fire, several more cauldrons on the square also ignited with Primordial Fire beneath them.

Of the hundred contestants, eighty percent possessed Primordial Fire.

This sight shocked many warriors watching the alchemy contest for the first time.

Lin Chen himself was also slightly surprised; though Li Qin had told him that eighty percent had Primordial Fire, he hadn’t expected it to be this widespread.

“Something’s off—some alchemists’ Primordial Fire feels strange.”

Under his spiritual sense, Lin Chen noticed that the Primordial Fire some alchemists released appeared dull, lacking the unique sentience of true Primordial Fire.

“These alchemists haven’t truly assimilated Primordial Fire—they’ve merely subdued it.”

A few breaths later, Lin Chen had his answer.

After all, assimilating Primordial Fire carries risk, while subduing it is far simpler.

After glancing around at the others, Lin Chen also settled his mind and began refining his elixir.

Just as Lin Chen started selecting herbs, Jiang Yaoyan, in the front row, raised his hand. Soon, a judge approached; upon hearing Jiang Yaoyan’s words, the judge’s face showed surprise, but he ultimately nodded.

“What’s he doing?”

Everyone else had begun working, yet Jiang Yaoyan stood motionless—this drew confusion from many spectators.

After yesterday’s top hundred list was released, major factions had investigated the origins of these hundred alchemists, and some gambling dens had even opened odds; the most popular was Jiang Yaoyan, the young master of the Medicine King Valley.

After a hundred breaths, everyone understood what Jiang Yaoyan intended to do.

Disciples from the Thousand Mechanisms Sect carried two additional cauldrons onto the square and placed them before Jiang Yaoyan.

Seeing three cauldrons before Jiang Yaoyan, the crowd erupted in uproar; even the focused contestants paused, their gazes turning toward Jiang Yaoyan.

“Three cauldrons… could it be what I think it is?”

“Simultaneously refining three batches of four-star elixirs? Could Jiang Yaoyan’s alchemy skill have reached Master level?”

“Probably not. Master level requires not just alchemical skill but also spiritual soul strength; Jiang Yaoyan’s realm is only Primordial Third Stage—his spiritual soul likely hasn’t met Master-level standards.”

Regardless of the outside chatter, Jiang Yaoyan was now directing herbs into all three cauldrons, flames slowly rising as all three began refining elixirs simultaneously.

Jiang Chen glanced at Jiang Yaoyan from the side, his pupils contracting slightly; at that moment, Jiang Yaoyan’s gaze also turned toward him, his lips curling with unmistakable confidence.

This was a provocation!

Jiang Chen looked away. His master had already warned him that Jiang Yaoyan’s alchemical skill was no less than his own; his goal was to steadily advance to the third round, avoiding direct confrontation with Jiang Yaoyan in the first two.

Seeing Jiang Chen turn away and resume refining, Jiang Yaoyan’s lips curled in scorn—what a coward. Facing his provocation with indifference, how could this man possibly hope to compete with him for first place?

“This guy… is really arrogant.”

Lin Chen stared at Jiang Yaoyan’s three cauldrons and sighed inwardly—he could probably do the same, but there was no need.

His principle was simple: take the spotlight when there was benefit; avoid it when there wasn’t.

…

After Jiang Yaoyan’s triple-cauldron initiation briefly stirred the crowd, the viewing stands fell quiet again.

Alchemy was an extremely tedious process, especially for non-alchemists—there was little to admire visually.

Experts saw the method; amateurs saw the spectacle.

Right now, there was clearly no spectacle to be had.

Fortunately, everyone had prepared mentally; they wouldn’t grow impatient over several hours. Those admitted to the Heavenly Craft Pavilion were mostly Primordial-level warriors; even the few youths below Primordial level had come with family or sect elders and possessed solid composure.

One and a half hours later, the scent of herbs began drifting across the square.

Two hours later, Jiang Chen’s cauldron lid lifted—his first batch of elixir was complete.

Twelve purple elixirs slowly rose from the furnace and settled onto a nearby tray.

After completing the first batch, Jiang Chen glanced at Jiang Yaoyan; Jiang Yaoyan’s expression was solemn, his hand seals constantly shifting, and the flames beneath his three cauldrons changed rhythm with each seal.

Seeing this, Jiang Chen exhaled slightly—Jiang Yaoyan’s actions meant the elixirs hadn’t yet formed, still only halfway done; he wasn’t falling too far behind.

Ordinary alchemists used their spiritual sense only to monitor elixir status and adjust flame intensity accordingly; but at their level, spiritual sense could be infused into the herbal liquid to accelerate its formation—that’s why their refining speed surpassed others.

It wasn’t just precise flame control—it was using spiritual sense to hasten elixir condensation.

But this demanded extreme spiritual sense control. Jiang Yaoyan was refining three batches simultaneously, each of a different type, requiring his spiritual sense to split into three parts—demanding immense spiritual soul strength and unparalleled control.

Spiritual soul strength was the bare minimum; even if sufficient, it didn’t guarantee success—he needed a technique to manipulate spiritual sense. In this regard, he and Jiang Yaoyan were on equal footing.

The Thousand Mechanisms Sect had such a top-tier technique; so did the Medicine King Valley.

“Quite fast!”

Lin Chen, watching Jiang Chen complete his first batch, narrowed his eyes slightly—he’d only finished two-thirds. He’d need to speed up; if he held back too much and missed the top ten, it would be a costly mistake.

Half an hour after Jiang Chen finished his first batch, a second contestant completed his first; soon after, the third, fourth, fifth… followed.

From second to tenth place, the time gaps were all within half an hour.

“It seems Jiang Yaoyan and Jiang Chen are in a class of their own, while everyone else is second-tier—meaning first and second will be decided between just these two. The real uncertainty lies in third place.”

The spectators, observing the completion of the first batches, all formed their own judgments.

“Xiao… Xiao Shi is tenth?”

At the Li family’s stand, Li Qin, seeing Lin Chen complete his first batch in tenth place, blinked in surprise; Yin Yue, beside her, showed no shock—she knew Lin Chen had deliberately held back; he could have gone faster.

“Maybe… the top ten is within reach.”

Fourth Elder Li Hong’s aged eyes gleamed—Lin Chen placing in the top ten for the first batch meant if he maintained this pace for the next two, he truly had a shot at the top ten.

…

Two hours later!

Jiang Chen completed his second batch, glanced once more at Jiang Yaoyan, then immediately began refining his third.

This time, the others took a full hour longer to complete their second batch.

The gap was widening.

The moment the second contestant finished two batches, Jiang Yaoyan, at the very front, finally stopped his hand seals, a smile spreading across his face.

The next instant…

CRACK!

CRACK!

CRACK!

The lids of his three cauldrons rose simultaneously; every eye on the viewing stands locked onto Jiang Yaoyan.

Three cauldrons opening at once—either total success or total failure.

Many experts rushed their spiritual sense toward Jiang Yaoyan’s cauldrons to see the result—but their spiritual sense hit an invisible barrier just above the square.

An array above the square blocked all spiritual sense from entering.

The Thousand Mechanisms Sect arranged this to prevent anyone from using spiritual sense to sabotage the contestants’ elixirs.

The square’s array could block even a Primordial Sixth Stage’s spiritual sense; only a Myriad Form master could penetrate it—but this was the Thousand Mechanisms Sect, which had Myriad Form masters on standby. Any Myriad Form master arriving would be instantly detected.

One breath… two breaths… three breaths…

Whether intentional or not, the elixirs in Jiang Yaoyan’s three cauldrons rose extremely slowly—twenty breaths passed before any appeared.

“One… two… thirty-six… forty elixirs? Jiang Yaoyan didn’t just succeed in refining three batches simultaneously—he produced more than anyone else.”

Whoa!

The crowd erupted in thunderous gasps as they saw the number.

The standard supply from the Thousand Mechanisms Sect was twelve elixirs per batch; Jiang Yaoyan produced four extra—meaning not a single drop of herbal potency was lost.

Most alchemists inevitably lost some potency; the best could minimize it. For low-grade elixirs, it didn’t matter much—but for high-grade ones, each extra elixir meant thousands of yan coins in value, sometimes more.

Of course, the higher the elixir grade, the harder it was to prevent potency loss.

“Don’t underestimate the world.”

Lin Chen, having just finished his second batch, stared at Jiang Yaoyan’s upright back and sighed inwardly—even with his spiritual soul far surpassing Jiang Yaoyan’s, winning first place in the third round wouldn’t be easy.

On the viewing stands, most eyes remained fixed on Jiang Yaoyan—three cauldrons, superior yield—this alchemy contest would surely become the most talked-about in decades.

Still, some paid attention to other alchemists—mostly relatives, friends, or those with vested interests.

“Xiao Yan completed his second batch—ranked seventh, even faster than his first.”

The Li family was thrilled. Jiang Yaoyan’s performance was astonishing, but it had nothing to do with them; Lin Chen’s unexpected brilliance was what truly delighted them.