Spiritual Trial
"Spiritual Trial?" Bi Fan looked with interest at the translucent stele in the center of the plaza.
On the way here, Chu Pengcheng had explained the Pill Festival in detail. It had three stages, also known as the Three Trials. The first was the Spiritual Trial, which tested the contestants' Spiritual Power.
Although Spiritual Power wasn't the only measure of an Alchemist's grade, it was an indispensable force for Alchemists. The precise control of medicinal ingredients required Spiritual Power. Among Alchemists of the same grade, those with greater Spiritual Power found it easier to refine pills and produced pills of higher quality.
Spiritual Power was an elusive concept. Although all Alchemists knew it existed, there was no way to measure it. Now that he'd heard the Spiritual Trial could measure and evaluate Spiritual Power, Bi Fan was naturally intrigued. He was curious to see how it was measured.
The Pill Festival had officially begun, and with the Domain Lord presiding over the event, the plaza was completely quiet. Everyone watched the very center of the plaza with bated breath. The spectators around the perimeter craned their necks to watch the live images projected on the screen.
Under everyone's gaze, an old man dressed in dark robes stepped forward.
"Haha! Since no one else is coming forward, let me, Shi Zhenao, be the first to take the trial!"
The old man laughed heartily, his voice bold and hearty.
As the old man stepped forward, Chu Pengcheng introduced him to Bi Fan. "This is Shi Zhenao, head of the Shi Family of Pill City. He was already a Fifth-grade early-stage Alchemist last year."
Bi Fan nodded. He watched Shi Zhenao approach Luo Changsheng, then, at Luo Changsheng's gesture, walk toward the translucent stele.
Thump! Thump!
Bi Fan watched as Shi