A Prodigy Among Apothecaries

Indeed, as some had guessed, Gu Ding hadn't concocted any potions for over three years. Anything left untouched for three years will inevitably feel unfamiliar when picked up again. This is why Gu Ding chose to concoct Cell Enhancer for his first attempt.

The Cell Enhancer isn't actually that difficult to refine; it's just that the steps are complex and the refining process is time-consuming. Gu Ding chose this particular potion because he wanted to quickly familiarize himself with each step of the refining process.

Meanwhile, Belanger, on the other hand, immediately chose the rarest and most difficult potion— the Berserk Potion. He didn't even need to warm up with the brewing process, which led many to think he was arrogant.

One person chose 2 points, and the other chose 10 points. Just looking at this first choice, many people became less optimistic about Gu Ding because the difference was too big.

However, regardless of everyone's subjective opinions, the two continued their sparring.

Belanger got into the zone very quickly, surpassing Gu Ding in the speed of selecting medicinal materials. He had already begun the first step of refining before Gu Ding had even finished selecting the materials.

Gu Ding, however, did not appear flustered at all. After the other party began refining, he maintained his original speed of selecting materials, and it was not until more than ten seconds later that he finished selecting the materials.

"Pay a little attention, this potion-making equipment is a premium set; the container walls are thicker, and it takes longer to heat up. According to my calculations, bottle number 6 will reach the required temperature 1.33 seconds later than before, and bottle number 11 will reach the required temperature 1.42 seconds later. And bottle number 15..."

While listening to the Sea Emperor's ramblings, Gu Ding began to concoct potions.

For his first attempt at refining, he deliberately slowed down the process in order to regain the feel of his previous potion-making skills.

However, Gu Ding's performance made many people anxious. Before he had even finished his first potion, his opponent had already begun crafting his second, and the first potion of Berserk Potion was of Perfect Quality. Given the existing point difference between them, coupled with his slower crafting speed, the other members of Gu Ding Team frowned in frustration.

"This won't do, Gu Ding will lose..." Liliath frowned, looking at Gu Ding with some anxiety.

"Don't worry. This is just the beginning. The captain knows what he's doing." The one in the team who understands best is Dokter, who is also a doctor. In the past three years, although he has not become a pharmacist, he has worked with some pharmacists and knows a lot about potion making.

Fifteen minutes was the time it took Gu Ding to refine his first bottle of Cell Enhancer, which is considered relatively fast among ordinary pharmacists. However, among genius pharmacists, this performance would only be considered below average. Moreover, the bottle Gu Ding refined was not of Perfect Quality, but only of Ultimate Quality, meaning he would not earn any points.

Meanwhile, his opponent, Belanger, had already completed the crafting of his second Perfect Berserk Potion and begun the crafting of his third. The gap between the two had widened to twenty points, leading most of the audience to believe that Gu Ding had no chance of winning.

"This set of equipment is indeed thicker than the one I used before. Just now, there was a heating step that I habitually operated according to the usual heating time, and sure enough, the product was of the Ultimate Quality..." Gu Ding silently communicated with the Sea Emperor in his mind.

"Just be careful later, but that guy over there is definitely not someone to mess with, so don't be careless." Sea Emperor didn't forget to warn Gu Ding that this was a friendly sparring match.

"I understand," Gu Ding replied silently, then began concocting the second vial of potion.

For the second vial, Gu Ding again chose the Cell Enhancer, and the refining speed was only slightly faster than the first time, completing in ten minutes. This time, it was finally of Perfect Quality.

But his unhurried refining process was indeed making people anxious for him, because on the other side, Belanger was already nearing the end of refining the fourth potion.

Only the Potion Venerable, acting as the referee, watched Gu Ding's refining process with a smile on his face, seemingly quite satisfied with Gu Ding's performance.

For the third vial of medicine, Gu Ding again chose Cell Enhancer. His refining speed finally began to increase dramatically, completing the process in just five minutes. This speed was astonishing; his hand speed had reached a level that many could only dream of, and the entire refining process was as smooth as flowing water, flawlessly perfect. Moreover, this five-minute completion time broke the Medicine God Alliance's record for refining a two-star God-rank Cell Enhancer; the previous record was five minutes and forty-eight seconds.

Only then did many of the pharmacists present finally acknowledge Gu Ding's strength. He had concocted Perfect Quality two-star God-rank Cell Enhancer in just five minutes. However, few people still favored Gu Ding in this match, because the score gap between the two was too large; Gu Ding currently only had 4 points, while his opponent already had 40.

Just when everyone thought that Gu Ding would choose a more difficult drug for the fourth vial, they were surprised to see that Gu Ding still chose the Cell Enhancer.

"What is he trying to do? There's no way he can win like this!" came a confused voice from the crowd.

The fourth vial of Cell Enhancer was refined in three minutes and twenty-eight seconds, still achieving Perfect Quality. This refining speed once again broke the record for the fastest refining, leaving many people astonished.

"This should be the fastest speed I can reach in a stable state. I'm almost done warming up..." After finishing the refining, Gu Ding put down all the equipment in his hands, then stood in place and swung his arms and twisted his waist.

The group of pharmacists around him were completely baffled. "What is he doing?"

"It seems like they're warming up..."

"Warm-up... okay..."

After warming up, Gu Ding finally began to select new potion ingredients. This time, he finally chose a rare potion, and he chose the same Berserk Potion as Belanger.

This choice excited many of the pharmacists present. "Choosing the same potion as the other person, it seems Gu Ding is really confident."

The potion-making process began quickly, with Gu Ding's hand speed so fast that most people present couldn't even see his movements.

When the first potion of Berserk Potion was finished, someone in the crowd muttered, "Three minutes and thirty-five seconds..."

Clearly, someone was timing Gu Ding. After the voice appeared, the crowd fell silent, but then erupted in thunderous applause.

As a rare potion, the Berserk Potion is exceptionally difficult to refine. The Medicine God Alliance's previous fastest record for refining a two-star God-rank Berserk Potion was six minutes and thirty-three seconds. Belanger's refining speed was roughly within that range, but Gu Ding nearly doubled that speed, and still produced Perfect Quality. This is truly admirable.

"I just don't know if he can maintain this refining speed..." Many of the pharmacists watching had this question in their minds and looked at Gu Ding's potion refining with great anticipation.

Belanger also noticed Gu Ding's refining speed. His gaze turned cold. "It seems I really underestimated you. Then there's no need for me to hide anymore."

Unbeknownst to everyone, Belanger's refining speed also began to increase, from six and a half minutes to about four minutes. Although still not as fast as Gu Ding, it wasn't far off.

Gu Ding continued refining the potion, and soon, the second and third vials of Berserk Potion were produced in succession. His refining speed was consistently controlled at around three and a half minutes. Everyone finally believed in his true strength.

Just as Gu Ding was refining the fifth potion of Berserk Potion, his opponent, Belanger, suddenly chose to change the potion's ingredients, opting for another rare potion— the Invisibility Potion.

While the Invisibility Potion is difficult to refine, the refining process is relatively simple. Its greatest challenge lies in the special handling of a certain invisibility material, which easily leads to refining failure. However, the simplicity of the refining steps significantly reduces the refining time.

The fastest brewing time for a two-star God-rank Invisibility Potion by the Medicine God Alliance is about three minutes, making it the shortest among all two-star God-rank potions. Choosing this potion clearly indicates that Belanger is prepared to go all out.

Belanger's first attempt at refining was still very cautious, taking about three minutes to complete, and achieving Perfect Quality. His second attempt saw an increase in speed, reaching two and a half minutes. His third attempt followed immediately, with the speed increasing again to two minutes and twelve seconds. Subsequent attempts generally maintained this level, never breaking the two-minute-ten-second barrier, but still impressive enough to leave onlookers in awe.

On Gu Ding other hand, after seeing Belanger change his potion, Gu Ding quickly chose to change his potion materials as well, selecting the same Invisibility Potion as Belanger.

This choice made Belanger frown. Gu Ding was clearly putting pressure on himself by doing this, telling himself that he was better than him at brewing the same potions.

Gu Ding's refining speed was indeed astonishing. The first vial of Invisibility Potion was refined in about two minutes and twenty seconds. But the second vial was refined in a sudden jump of one minute and fifty seconds, which stunned everyone. After that, Gu Ding's refining speed remained at around one minute and fifty seconds.

"With Gu Ding's talent, it would be a waste for him to become Interstellar Pirate."

"No wonder the Potion Venerable values him so much and specially gave him a spot. His potion-making skills are enough to make all of us feel ashamed."

Among the crowd, discussions about Gu Ding were incessant.

The other members of the Gu Ding Pirate Crew were also realizing for the first time that Gu Ding's talent as a pharmacist was truly terrifying. They had always thought that Gu Ding only had a slight talent for the profession, and was far from being a prodigy. Now it seemed that they had completely underestimated Gu Ding.

Time passed by, and two and a half hours quickly went by. Gu Ding's score had already surpassed Belanger's score, with 704 points, surpassing Belanger's 650 points.

Just when everyone thought the outcome was no longer in doubt, an unexpected turn of events occurred.

Suddenly, Belanger shouted, "Potion Venerable, I request permission to refine a new medicine formula. Please prepare the materials for me."

~~~

[Sorry, the router had a problem yesterday, and it was too late last night. The landlord wasn't willing to come over, so I had to go to an internet cafe early this morning to upload this chapter...] (To be continued~^~)