Wan Er watched Lin Xuan’s back, her small fists clenched tightly, her eyes filled with tension. This time, the odds of winning are probably very low.

The surrounding spectators were also stunned, all of them staring at Lin Xuan in astonishment. What was going on? What was this kid doing here? Could he possibly be planning to perform alchemy? What a joke! The crowd was in an uproar.

Even the members of the Pill Tower were stunned, and the Tower Master himself frowned. But before he could ask, Master Qingyou snorted coldly. "Sunlight Alchemy Alliance, what are you doing? Why are you sending a greenhorn to the stage? Hurry up and let Situ Hang compete!"

The people in the crowd were bewildered. "What’s going on? How is this related to Situ Hang? Isn’t he a member of the Fire Dragon Sect? Why would he take the stage?"

"You don’t know yet, do you?" a member of the Nine Nether Alchemy Alliance chimed in. "Situ Hang is the expert backing the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance."

A wave of shock passed through the audience. "What? Is that really what’s happening?"

"So the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance actually hired Situ Hang."

"That means the two-clawed Yellow Dragon Pill from before was also refined by him."

"This Situ Hang is incredible!"

"I heard he only succeeded because of a lucky fluke."

"His true strength is only that of an initial-stage fourth-rank Alchemy Master."

"So why isn’t he competing this time?"

"Is he scared? Afraid to lose?"

Hearing the crowd’s discussion, Wan Er stepped forward and declared loudly, "Why should Situ Hang take the stage?"

Qingyou laughed heartily. "Come now, stop pretending. Who doesn’t know that your Sunlight Alchemy Alliance hired Situ Hang? Just have him come up."

Wan Er shook her head. "We did not hire Situ Hang. We hired Young Master Lin. The second match will also be handled by him."

"Him? This greenhorn? Is he even worthy?" Qingyou sneered with disdain.

The others were utterly perplexed. Has Wan Er lost her mind, sending a young man to compete? They might as well just admit defeat.

Master Qingyou rolled his eyes, clearly not believing a word she said.

Huo Yuner also had a strange expression. What is this Fairy Wan Er up to? Why is she boasting along with Lin Xuan? Does she really believe Lin Xuan is a fourth-rank Alchemy Master? Has she gone completely mad?

Situ Hang also frowned. He knew he hadn’t helped the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance, but in his view, the one who had acted wasn’t Lin Xuan either; it was someone else entirely. Why isn’t that expert appearing? Why send Lin Xuan out instead? What on earth is the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance plotting?

Over at the Pill Tower, the Young Tower Master snorted. "For such an important duel, the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance is being utterly frivolous. I say we declare them the losers right now."

"Exactly!" the other elders agreed. "This young man probably isn’t even an Alchemy Master. Isn’t it just a farce for him to come up here?"

The Tower Master frowned as well and addressed the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance. "Please take this duel seriously. Otherwise, we will declare your immediate defeat."

Wan Er replied, "We are taking this very seriously. There is no farce. Young Master Lin is the fourth-rank Alchemy Master we invited. The two-clawed Yellow Dragon Pill from before was refined by him."

"What?!"

Her words sent the entire arena into an uproar.

The Tower Master was stunned. The one who refined the two-clawed Yellow Dragon Pill... was this kid?

The Young Tower Master was dumbfounded. So my previous plan was thwarted by him?

Qingyou was stupefied. I was defeated by Lin Xuan? Not by Situ Hang, but by Lin Xuan! I actually lost to a young man? What kind of joke is this?!

Situ Hang was floored. Lin Xuan took my place and partnered with the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance? How could this happen?

Huo Yuner was equally bewildered. Could it be that Lin Xuan wasn’t boasting after all? Is he really a fourth-rank Alchemy Master? Heavens! This is too unbelievable!

The rest of the crowd was even more gobsmacked. "Is that kid even twenty years old? A fourth-rank Alchemy Master?"

"Is it real? I can’t believe it."

"Has there ever been such a young fourth-rank Alchemy Master? I’ve never heard of one."

"Nonsense!" Situ Hang shot to his feet, shouting coldly, "How could he possibly be a fourth-rank Alchemy Master? How could he refine a two-clawed Yellow Dragon Pill?"

"Exactly!" Huo Yuner shrieked. "Fairy Wan Er, have you been deceived by this kid?"

Qingyou snorted. "I refuse to believe he can refine a two-clawed Yellow Dragon Pill."

The Young Pavilion Master’s voice was frigid. "Fairy Wan Er, do you take us all for fools? Did you really think we would believe such lies?"

Others murmured in agreement, their eyes full of skepticism. They simply couldn’t believe it. It’s absolutely impossible. There’s no way such a young man could be a fourth-rank Alchemy Master.

However, Wan Er stated coldly, "Everything I have said is true, and I am willing to take full responsibility for my words. If Lin Xuan fails to demonstrate the skill of a fourth-rank Alchemy Master in the upcoming competition, we will admit defeat immediately."

Her declaration caused another massive stir.

"Damn, could she be telling the truth?"

"Is this Lin Xuan really a fourth-rank Alchemy Master?"

"A fourth-rank Alchemy Master this young... that’s truly heaven-defying! What kind of talent is that?"

Everyone was left stunned.

Huo Yuner was completely dumbfounded. The Young Tower Master’s eyes were practically bulging from their sockets, and Master Qingyou’s brows furrowed into a deep knot. They were all utterly shocked.

"Very well," Tower Master Ouyang announced loudly. "Since it has come to this, then let us have this Young Master Lin perform his alchemy." He no longer made any move to stop Lin Xuan.

All eyes were fixed on Lin Xuan. Everyone wanted to see if he was truly a fourth-rank Alchemy Master. Was he just a braggart, or was he a peerless genius? The truth would soon be revealed.

Under the watchful gaze of the entire crowd, Lin Xuan walked into the center of the arena and stood before the stone platform. On it were three sets of Medicinal Materials and a scroll, just as before. He picked up the scroll and began to review it as the people from the Pill Tower started the timer.

Lin Xuan quickly finished his first read-through of the Pill Recipe on the scroll, but he didn’t start the alchemy right away. This time, the Worry-Free Elixir was even more difficult to refine—more difficult than the Yellow Dragon Pill. He needed to master the Pill Recipe completely before he could begin.

Lin Xuan read carefully, his mind continuously running through deductions. Time ticked by, and the venue was exceptionally quiet. Soon, half a day had passed, yet Lin Xuan still hadn’t made a move.

The surrounding crowd began to murmur amongst themselves.

"Is this kid actually capable or not? Why hasn’t he done anything?"

"Exactly. Master Qingyou started after just half a day. Why hasn’t this kid made a move?"

"He’s probably a fraud, just putting on an act."

As the doubts grew louder, Tower Master Ouyang spoke up. "Everyone, be silent. The Worry-Free Elixir is a brand-new fourth-rank Elixir. It is natural to take a long time to study its Pill Recipe. Some may need half a day, while others may need several days. This is perfectly normal."

After hearing his explanation, the crowd quieted down and resumed their wait. The members of the Nine Nether Alchemy Alliance, however, sneered amongst themselves. To them, the fact that he hadn’t started after so long was a clear sign of his lack of confidence. Even if he really was a fourth-rank Alchemy Master, he would be no match for Master Qingyou.

On his end, Lin Xuan had indeed encountered a problem. He sensed that there was something wrong with the third step recorded in the Pill Recipe, so he consulted the big black dog.

After a look at the Pill Recipe, the dog confirmed, "The third step does indeed contain a trap. I think it must have been intentionally set by the people from the Pill Tower. Anyone without sufficient skill to see through it would inevitably fail their refinement."

Just as I thought! Lin Xuan snorted inwardly. This competition was truly sinister. Master Qingyou had bypassed the trap so smoothly and succeeded on his first try, which was clearly abnormal. With Qingyou’s skill at the early fourth-rank level, it should have been absolutely impossible for him to get past the trap so easily. There was only one explanation: he had obtained the Pill Recipe in advance and already knew about the trap inside. That was the only way he could have bypassed it so smoothly.

If the Sunlight Alchemy Alliance had sent anyone else to perform alchemy today, whether it was Situ Hang or any other fourth-rank Alchemy Master, they would have been doomed to fail. Discovering this trap in such a short amount of time would be incredibly difficult, and even if they found it, bypassing it would be impossible. They would be bound to lose.

But fortunately for them, Lin Xuan was different. Not only was he more skilled, but he also had the big black dog’s guidance. He quickly understood the trap and knew exactly how to get around it. Now, all he had to do was beat Qingyou’s speed.

Qingyou had taken two days to refine the Worry-Free Elixir. Lin Xuan had to do it faster.

Looks like I’ll have to use the Anomalous Fire. With it, if I go all out, I can probably finish the refinement in half a day. Adding the full day I spent studying the Pill Recipe, my total time will be only a day and a half. I’ll definitely be able to surpass Qingyou.

Around the arena, the crowd was growing impatient.

"It’s already been a full day, and that kid still hasn’t moved. Does he even understand the Pill Recipe?"

"Hmph, I think he’s just a fraud."

"Either way, I still don’t believe a fourth-rank Alchemy Master can be this young."

The members of the Nine Nether Alchemy Alliance began to laugh heartily. A day had already passed. It was impossible for their opponent to refine the Elixir in just one day now. Even if he succeeded, his total time would exceed two days, meaning he was guaranteed to lose. Victory, it seemed, was already theirs