Hearing the bell ring, Xiao Xie stood at the stone platform without immediately beginning to refine medicine. Instead, he turned his head and looked around. He found that, aside from Xue Mei's somewhat deeper Dou Qi flame, the flames in everyone else's Cauldrons were all pale yellow. Clearly, their true strength was all below four-star Dou Zhe.
Xiao Xie shook his head and slowly pressed his palm against the fire vent. The Dou Qi within his body surged and flowed into the cauldron.
Bang. With a muffled sound, an eerie black flame suddenly erupted from within the cauldron.
At the same time, Frank, who had been drinking tea, caught sight of the black flame rising from Xiao Xie's cauldron from the corner of his eye. His pupils abruptly widened, and he sprayed out all the tea in his mouth.
Frank pointed tremblingly at Xiao Xie in the light screen and cried out in shock, "Black flames? Heavenly Flames!!!"
At once, everyone's attention focused on Xiao Xie.
"That guy... actually summoned black flames? Could they be Heavenly Flames? How is that possible?"
All the alchemists in the hall stared in shock at the black flames blazing within the cauldron.
"This little fellow... is no simple character. No wonder he dared to take the First Grade Alchemist examination at such a young age!" Frank sighed after gradually calming down.
Otto beside him also regained his composure. Looking at Xiao Xie in the light screen, he softly said, "Although he can control these black flames, which differ from ordinary flames, alchemy does not rely on fire alone. Soul perception, control over the heat, and the required proportions of each medicinal ingredient—every one of these is extremely important. Let's keep watching for now."
Frank nodded. As a Fourth Grade Alchemist, he naturally understood this.