Iron Fool

The Dao Harmony Realm Great Cultivator had clearly noticed Iron Fool's presence as well.

For a powerhouse of that realm, let alone a million people—even ten million could have every detail laid bare before them with a single sweep of divine sense.

And now, he looked at Iron Fool. "Why have you not withdrawn?"

Iron Fool scratched his head. "Huh? Senior, this junior may have gotten a little lucky, but I did succeed."

"Look at this Core Condensation Pill. It's small and round. Though the third halo is somewhat dim, it does have three halos in the end. Perhaps it will fall to Second Grade in ten days or half a month, but at this very moment, it truly is Third Grade."

"Please give this junior a chance..."

The Dao Harmony Realm Great Cultivator's mouth twitched. "..."

"Fine. I'll give you a chance."

With his status, he could not be bothered to argue with an Iron Fool like this.

And, truth be told, Iron Fool was not talking nonsense. A pill with an unstable grade might drop in grade after a few days, or even a few hours, but at least right now, it was Third Grade.

It did meet the advancement requirements.

Xiao Ling'er almost laughed.

Keep showing off, then. Show off so excessively, and now you've drawn their attention, haven't you?

"Still..."

"Everyone seems to be laughing at him. They look down on him even more."

"Was he doing it on purpose?"

Xiao Ling'er swept her gaze over the crowd. Everyone—every single one of them—was laughing at him, no longer treating him as an opponent at all.

"If that really is the case, then he is far too terrifying!"

She asked herself honestly: if it were her, she truly could not guarantee that she could refine this kind of two-and-a-half-grade Core Condensation Pill!

She was confident in refining Second Grade, Third Grade, even Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Grade pills. Yet this two-and-a-half-grade one alone was genuinely difficult. Or rather, who in their right mind would strive for such a grade?

Were they insane?!

There was absolutely no experience to draw from!

"Perhaps only someone like him would..."

"Eh?!"

Suddenly, Xiao Ling'er understood why he had felt so familiar.

At that moment, she could not help but give Iron Fool several long, searching looks.

"The second round: Profound Origin Pill."

The Dao Harmony Realm Great Cultivator spoke blandly. "You will have one incense stick's time to adjust yourselves. Meanwhile, our people will prepare the corresponding medicinal ingredients for you."

"The requirements are the same: one hour, Third Grade or above."

Boom.

The densely packed spectators in the stands immediately erupted into commotion.

"It's actually the Profound Origin Pill! Going from Second Tier to Third Tier, the difficulty rises in a straight line. I'm afraid another ninety percent will be eliminated!"

"Fortunately, it's the Profound Origin Pill—the most commonly used Third Tier pill, without question. Otherwise, I fear ninety-nine percent would be eliminated!"

Core Condensation Pills were Second Tier pills, usable by cultivators of the First and Second Realms to aid their cultivation. Profound Origin Pills, meanwhile, were Third Tier pills, used to assist cultivators in the Third Mysterious Origin Realm with cultivation.

Above them were Cave Heaven Pills, Pointing Profound Pills, and so on.

Pills that aided cultivation had always been among the most common, most frequently used, and most often refined pills.

"Profound Origin Pills?"

Duan Qingyao was not surprised that Xiao Ling'er had entered the second round, but she could not understand why Xiao Ling'er had chosen to hide her abilities.

"Could it be..."

"Is she confident of taking a ranking?!"

Duan Qingyao startled herself with this thought.

But if that were not the case, Xiao Ling'er had no reason to conceal her skills, did she?

One incense stick's time quickly passed.

Likewise, this pill formula differed from the ones Xiao Ling'er knew, but with the experience from last time, she was already familiar with the process.

She secretly learned through her own observation, then refined the pill.

Only this time, she clearly felt the pressure.

Though she was still concealing her abilities, she could only pass by revealing a portion of her true skill.

The result was naturally a "narrow advancement."

What shocked Xiao Ling'er was that Iron Fool had once again produced several two-and-a-half-grade pills—and he had still completed them in the final breath of time!

This discovery did not just shock Xiao Ling'er; everyone else was equally astonished.

"That fellow advanced again?"

"He actually made it!"

"This... his luck is a little too good, isn't it?"

"Twice in a row like this—viewed from a certain angle, he can be considered unmatched in fortune."

Yet compared to those who advanced, there were clearly far more who had been eliminated.

This time, more than ninety-five percent were eliminated!

Of the Million Alchemists, after just two short hours, fewer than five thousand remained.

And most of them wore exceptionally grave expressions...

They had almost reached their limits.

Some had no confidence at all. Their advancement had involved no small measure of luck.

But regardless of their circumstances, the competition had to continue.

"One incense stick's break." The Dao Harmony Realm Great Cultivator spoke again, with even fewer words. "Third round: Fourth Tier Poison Evasion Pill, Third Grade, one hour."

"Choose your own medicinal ingredients."

It really was a Fourth Tier pill!

Quite a few alchemists went pale. "A Fourth Tier Poison Evasion Pill?!"

If it had been a Cave Heaven Pill, they might still have been able to gamble on their luck. But Poison Evasion Pills were relatively obscure, and this was a Fourth Tier Poison Evasion Pill...

Poison Evasion Pills were actually a category of pills, with many pill formulas. Any pill that met the requirement of "Fourth Tier, Third Grade" would do; there were no other special requirements.

But compared with Cave Heaven Pills used for cultivation, Poison Evasion Pills were undoubtedly far more obscure.

Established, renowned alchemists could naturally handle them with ease, but they were all of the younger generation. They simply did not have that much time to study obscure pills; some did not even possess the pill formulas.

Thus, as soon as the topic was announced, nearly a thousand alchemists withdrew with bitter smiles.

"A Fourth Tier Poison Evasion Pill."

Xiao Ling'er took a deep breath. "After this round, I'm afraid fewer than a hundred people will remain."

For alchemists of the younger generation, Fourth Tier pills were already extremely difficult, let alone obscure ones.

The requirement to form the pill would have been manageable, but there was also the Third Grade restriction.

She gently shook her head.

"I'm afraid after this round, I won't be able to hide my abilities any longer."

"Fortunately, by then, there should no longer be any need to hide them."

She had originally thought a competition like this would take a long time, yet she had not expected it to end after merely four rounds—five at most.

Xiao Ling'er immediately calmed her mind and prepared for the third round of refinement.

One incense stick later, the remaining three thousand-odd alchemists immediately got busy.

Fourth Grade pills, and they still had only one hour. The pressure was simply too great for them.

Right from the start, quite a few people made mistake after mistake, leaving them unable to continue and forcing them to exit regretfully.

Iron Fool was still flustered and scrambling, making small mistakes without end, yet he somehow remained "extraordinarily lucky" and never dropped out.

Xiao Ling'er was still concealing her strength, but she had no choice but to reveal around half of her true ability.

For the first time, the Feather Crown man's expression turned grave...

The woman from the Fire Virtue Sect clenched her silver teeth. Her control over the medicinal ingredients was still lacking, but thanks to her exceptional fire-control technique, she encountered no problems.

At last, another round ended.

Only twelve advanced...

"The fourth round."

The Dao Harmony Realm Great Cultivator gave them no time to catch their breath. "The battle for rankings. Each person gets one chance. The value of the pill you refine will determine your ranking."

"After one incense stick, it will officially begin."