Chapter 229: Chapter 217: Alchemy Competition (2)

Inside the top-tier Alchemy Room.

Fang Yun had already laid out all the Spirit Medicines required to refine the Spirit Ascension Pill.

The presence of four extra people in the Alchemy Room didn’t affect him much. He just needed to focus wholeheartedly on his Alchemy.

"Jiang Yan, once Elder Fang begins his Alchemy, you’d better watch closely," He Jiawen said to his disciple.

He knew his disciple had a good relationship with Fang Yun.

He sincerely hoped Jiang Yan could learn from Fang Yun and stop with all the flashy, unorthodox methods in his Alchemy. It was a complete waste of his Alchemy Talent.

When he first took Jiang Yan on as a disciple, He Jiawen had been overjoyed to have found someone with such outstanding Alchemy Talent. But as time went on, Jiang Yan strayed further and further from the proper path, and the more He Jiawen thought about it, the angrier he became.

"I know, you little old man," Jiang Yan answered listlessly.

He was genuinely exhausted.

He hadn’t been asleep long before He Jiawen woke him up, insisting that he come and observe Elder Fang’s Alchemy.

’Elder Fang?’

’Is there an Elder in the sect with the surname Fang?’

Still groggy, it took him a moment to realize they were talking about Fang Yun, who had successfully reached Foundation Establishment and become a sect Elder.

For Jiang Yan, Fang Yun becoming an Elder was a shame. It meant that until he himself achieved Foundation Establishment, it wouldn’t be appropriate to share his creative ideas with Fang Yun.

It was a pity Fang Yun wasn’t Wu Junxin. If he were, Jiang Yan would share his ideas without a second thought.

He didn’t have to hold back with Wu Junxin, but with Fang Yun, he had to be mindful of the gap in their status.

"Call me Master!"

He Jiawen glared at Jiang Yan.

Jiang Yan paid him no mind.

"I know, you little old man."

He Jiawen shook his head, exasperated. He truly had a love-hate relationship with his disciple.

His disciple hadn’t always addressed him this way. He used to call him "Master" respectfully. But after He Jiawen started discouraging his wilder ideas, Jiang Yan began calling him "little old man," and he did it no matter the occasion.

To get Jiang Yan to change back, He Jiawen would have to start supporting his many strange ideas, and that was something he was unwilling to do.

If Jiang Yan insisted on using his own methods for every single refinement, He Jiawen wouldn’t feel so torn—there would be no "love" to go with the "hate."

When he was out of Spirit Stones and Contribution Points, Jiang Yan became much more normal, and he could complete the Alchemy tasks He Jiawen assigned him perfectly well.

After failing to persuade Jiang Yan, He Jiawen had resorted to a series of... creative measures regarding the Alchemy tasks he assigned.

The results, so far, could only be described as "acceptable."

To truly correct Jiang Yan’s ways, he needed to address the root of the problem.

Fang Yun, whose Alchemy Talent surpassed even Jiang Yan’s, was undoubtedly the perfect role model. Aside from Fang Yun, no one—not he, his master, nor even the Management Elder Bai Heyan—could truly compare to Jiang Yan in terms of raw Alchemy Talent.

When it came to Alchemy Talent, He Jiawen was still extremely confident in his disciple.

Once their conversation ended, Fang Yun activated the Earth Fire and began refining his eightieth batch of Spirit Ascension Pills.

Now that he had reached Foundation Establishment, he could use his Divine Sense to assist in refining the Spirit Ascension Pill.

He was not yet proficient in using his Divine Sense.

However, the moment he began the Alchemy process, everything changed.

This was all within Fang Yun’s expectations.

He had been constantly analyzing the patterns and experiences related to his Life Talent and Combat Talent, which were inextricably linked to him.

After all, his Talents were highly unusual. If he didn’t analyze them, he wouldn’t be able to understand them more deeply.

’Refining Second Tier pills really is much easier after reaching Foundation Establishment.’

During his Qi Refining Stage, Fang Yun couldn’t afford the slightest distraction while refining Spirit Ascension Pills. Now, with the aid of his Divine Sense, he could precisely control the fusion of the Spirit Medicines and the entire series of reactions that followed.

Briefly experiencing the difference between Foundation Establishment Pill-Refining and Qi Refining Alchemy had no negative impact on the current refinement.

Everything was within his control.

「Time slowly passed.」

None of the Elders in the Alchemy Room dared to disturb Fang Yun, fearing it would affect the outcome of his refinement.

This was an Alchemy competition, after all, and it was extremely important to Fang Yun.

He Jiawen glanced at Jiang Yan beside him and nearly fainted from rage.

Just as Fang Yun reached the most complex stage of the refinement, Jiang Yan had actually fallen asleep on his feet, and by the looks of it, he was sleeping soundly.

He wanted to wake Jiang Yan, but he was afraid that the sudden movement would startle the boy and cause a commotion that might disturb Fang Yun.

He Jiawen lowered the hand he had just raised.

’His disciple probably anticipated this. That little brat has me completely figured out.’

The entire process of refining the Spirit Ascension Pills took Fang Yun less than twenty-two hours, nearly an hour faster than his times during the Qi Refining Stage.

Song Qiaoqiao watched Fang Yun’s fluid, masterful movements as he refined the Spirit Ascension Pill. He showed no signs of unfamiliarity with the process, and she knew he had already secured a solid victory over Wan Xuanye.

Even though Elder Meng wasn’t on Fang Yun’s side, she couldn’t help but nod in approval as she watched him refine the Spirit Ascension Pill.

She was deeply impressed. He hadn’t even fully adapted to his new Foundation Establishment powers, yet he could still perform the refinement with such incredible fluidity.

’Perhaps this is what true Alchemy Talent looks like,’ she thought.

’The gap between us is immense.’

"Done!"

The sound of pills rolling could be heard from the Pill Furnace’s Output Port.

Seven Spirit Ascension Pills quickly flew into Fang Yun’s hand.

Three were Upper Grade, with two Middle Grade and two Lower Grade.

Without a doubt, with this eightieth batch of Spirit Ascension Pills, Fang Yun had completely shattered his own record.

Song Qiaoqiao rushed to Fang Yun’s side at once.

Fang Yun immediately presented the Spirit Ascension Pills he had just refined for her to see.

"Sen—" Looking at the Spirit Ascension Pills in Fang Yun’s hand, an excited Song Qiaoqiao almost let a slip of the tongue. This was a public occasion; she couldn’t address him so informally. "Elder Fang, your results are comparable to Elder Bai’s!"

She was referring to Bai Heyan’s personal best record for refining Spirit Ascension Pills.

"Wake up!"

Having endured for as long as he could, He Jiawen finally gave Jiang Yan a smack on the head.

"What was that for?" Jiang Yan asked, dazed.

"If you want to sleep, go back to your own room!"

"I was just waiting for you to say that, you little old man."

Suddenly perking up, Jiang Yan immediately bolted.

’Fang Yun was refining Spirit Ascension Pills, which I’ve never even refined myself. Was it really worth the little old man dragging me over here for this?’

’In this situation, even if Fang Yun had innovated the entire refinement process, how would I have known?’

Not long after Jiang Yan left, Bai Heyan and Wan Xuanye appeared in the top-tier Alchemy Room.

"Elder Wan’s results for the Spirit Ascension Pill refinement were: two Upper Grade, one Middle Grade, three Lower Grade, and one Wasted Pill," Bai Heyan announced before turning to the others. "How did Elder Fang do?"

As Bai Heyan announced the results, Wan Xuanye wore a faint, confident smile.

He had performed exceptionally well this time, while Fang Yun had only just broken through to the Foundation Establishment Stage.

’It’s in the bag!’ he thought.

Elder Meng was the one to report Fang Yun’s results.

"Elder Fang refined two Lower Grade pills, two Middle Grade pills, and three Upper Grade Spirit Ascension Pills."

The faint smile on Wan Xuanye’s face vanished instantly.

In its place, a smile bloomed on Bai Heyan’s face.

"Elder Wan, I don’t believe I need to formally announce the result of your competition with Elder Fang, do I?" 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"There’s no need. I have lost. The result is obvious," Wan Xuanye conceded.

"There’s no shame in losing to Elder Fang. Even I couldn’t match the results he produced this time," a delighted Bai Heyan said, offering a word of consolation to Wan Xuanye.

Bai Heyan was certain that Fang Yun had only just recently achieved his Foundation Establishment.

Fang Yun’s results with this batch of Spirit Ascension Pills made him feel that he might have still underestimated the boy’s Alchemy Talent.

This was a wonderful thing for the entire Celestial Cloud Sect.

Perhaps the task of refining the Foundation Establishment Pills could be entrusted to Fang Yun sooner than planned.

"Everyone, let us continue yesterday’s meeting."

As he spoke, Bai Heyan collected the fruits of Fang Yun’s labor, but he only took six of the Spirit Ascension Pills, leaving one Upper Grade pill in Fang Yun’s hand.

Even without that Upper Grade Spirit Ascension Pill, Fang Yun’s results still surpassed Wan Xuanye’s.

Fang Yun understood Bai Heyan’s gesture and didn’t hesitate to put away the Upper Grade Spirit Ascension Pill.

’I’ve proven myself once again. After this meeting, I should be able to acquire even more resources for my Alchemy.’