Lost?

"Bang!"

Xia Baichi's hand trembled, and the flames surged. The Blood Condensation Fruit couldn't withstand the violently changing flames and was instantly burned to ashes.

For a moment, everyone in the audience had incredibly strange expressions. They looked at each other, unable to utter a word.

"Long Chen!"

A piercing shriek tore through everyone's eardrums, like a vengeful ghost, sending chills down their spines.

The voice came from Xia Baichi's mouth. Her face was contorted and distorted with ferocity as she stared intently at Long Chen.

Just now, she was about to find the critical point of the Blood Condensation Fruit, knowing what kind of heat was most suitable for purifying it.

But startled by Long Chen, her flames surged. By the time she wanted to retract them, it was too late. A precious three-hundred-year-old Blood Condensation Fruit was gone just like that, making her heart bleed.

"Cough, cough, my apologies. I have a habit of moistening my throat before refining pills. To avoid startling you, I let out a couple of shouts first. I just wanted to tell you that I'm about to start refining pills too. So sorry," Long Chen said apologetically.

On purpose, absolutely on purpose. Even a blind person could see that Xia Baichi's eyes were about to spew fire.

But she couldn't do anything about Long Chen. No rules stipulated that others couldn't make noise. This time, she had suffered a silent loss.

"Calm down!"

Wei Cang's cold shout made Xia Baichi slowly suppress her anger. If she didn't calm down, her chances of failure would be even greater.

"I'm very calm, you don't need to worry about me," Long Chen replied coldly.

"Miss Idiot, why don't you continue refining? Next time, I'll try to be quieter. How about that?"

Xia Baichi ignored Long Chen any further. Her face ashen, she took out two strips of cloth from her ring and stuffed them tightly into her ears, so she wouldn't have to worry about Long Chen startling her.

What left Long Chen speechless was that Xia Baichi took out another Blood Condensation Fruit. She actually had a spare, which made Long Chen a bit depressed.

However, now that she was prepared, trying the same trick again would obviously be difficult. He could only consider himself unlucky.

"Whoosh."

Long Chen extended his palm, and a yellow flame rose, causing Wei Cang's pupils to contract. Long Chen's flame was not much weaker than Xia Baichi's.

Looking at Long Chen's Pill Fire, Master Yun Qi was slightly surprised. Long Chen's Pill Fire was much stronger than during their last alchemy session.

"Haha, I knew it. Brother Long will definitely be fine. Look, Brother Long's hand is also on fire," Fatty Yu said triumphantly.

Shi Feng and the others saw Long Chen condense his Pill Fire for the first time, and they felt much more at ease. This proved that Long Chen was indeed a Pill Apprentice.

But Long Chen's Pill Fire shocked many people. Although they had guessed that Long Chen might be a Pill Apprentice, they were still quite stunned when they saw the actual Pill Fire.

In just two months, a Pill Apprentice appeared out of thin air? Everyone looked at Master Yun Qi, who sat steadily on the stage, their hearts filled with reverence.

Master Yun Qi, however, gave a wry smile. Only he knew that Long Chen's alchemy skills were not taught by him at all. It seemed that this Long Chen had many secrets.

Chu Yao watched Long Chen intently condense his Pill Fire. After the Pill Fire stabilized, she also began to warm her furnace. Her movements were calm, and her expression was serene, which made Chu Yao's originally tense mood relax considerably.

Seeing that Xia Baichi had begun to purify the Blood Condensation Fruit steadily, Long Chen considered giving her another "greeting." However, thinking that the chance of success was slim and it would only invite ridicule, he gave up and also began to refine the Blood Condensation Fruit.

Long Chen's Blood Condensation Fruit was only the size of a dragon's eye, vastly different from the three-hundred-year-old fruit the size of a baby's fist.

Not only did the size differ greatly, but the essence within also differed greatly. It could be said that at the starting line, Long Chen had lost more than just a little. This was a completely unfair competition.

Long Chen could now only try his best to remove impurities from the Blood Condensation Fruit to improve the quality of the pill. He was already at a disadvantage from the start and could only make up for it elsewhere.

"Whoosh."

Suddenly, the flames surged. Long Chen's Pill Fire covered the entire pill furnace. The terrifying flames made those around him feel a wave of heat.

"Such powerful Soul Force!"

This time, even Wei Cang was moved. Long Chen used his Soul Force as fuel to support the Pill Fire, and he also had to allocate a portion of his Soul Force to protect the essence within the Blood Condensation Fruit from dissipating. Such a method was truly insane.

However, after being moved, a cold smile appeared on Wei Cang's lips. Soul Force was indeed powerful, but how could a fifty-year-old Blood Condensation Fruit compare to a hundred-year-old one? Not to mention a three-hundred-year-old Blood Condensation Fruit.

Consuming so much Soul Force in the early stages meant that by the time the pill was formed, without sufficient Soul Force to lock the pill, it would be a dead end. In Wei Cang's eyes, this kind of behavior was clearly the act of an amateur.

Among those present, only Master Yun Qi was not surprised by Long Chen's technique. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly that only Long Chen was qualified to act so extravagantly.

"Whoosh."

Long Chen took out a pile of red powder from the pill furnace and found that the powder was bright red with not many spots. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Those spots were impurities. However, with his current firepower, it was impossible to purify them completely. This was already the limit.

He looked up at Xia Baichi and found that her ears were plugged, making her oblivious to the outside world. Her efficiency was extremely high, with a pile of red powder beside her.

That was the medicinal powder of the Blood Condensation Fruit. What made Long Chen's pupils contract was that the three-hundred-year-old Blood Condensation Fruit was indeed different. The powder was much brighter than Long Chen's, with fewer impurities.

Long Chen couldn't help but frown. He hated that although he had many superb alchemy techniques, he didn't dare to use them. If Wei Cang, that scoundrel, saw through the trick, he would definitely target him.

He would take one step at a time. If it really came to it, he would risk it all. In any case, he absolutely could not lose.

He refined each herb into powder. Calculating the time, half an hour had passed. When he looked at Xia Baichi again, she had already sealed her furnace and started refining the pill.

After sealing the furnace, the pill was basically formed. Apart from the final stage of gathering the pill, there weren't many places where mistakes could easily occur.

"Long Chen, time is almost up. I'm looking forward to you giving me a **toe," Xia Baichi said, removing her earplugs and sneering at Long Chen.

Now that she had sealed her furnace, all she needed to do was maintain the input of Pill Fire. To get revenge for the previous incident, she started trying to distract Long Chen.

"Please shut your mouth. The foot odor you emit will affect the air quality," Long Chen said calmly.

"You..."

Xia Baichi's anger flared, and the Pill Fire in his hand flickered slightly, scaring her into quickly collecting herself. She dared not speak again and stuffed her ears once more.

She realized that when it came to arguing, even ten thousand of her wouldn't be a match for Long Chen. She now focused all her energy on the pills, eagerly anticipating the moment Long Chen would be humiliated.

A moment later, Long Chen's side also began to seal the furnace. Both of them activated their Pill Fire, accelerating the formation of the pills.

"Bang"

A quarter of an hour later, Xia Baichi's pill furnace vibrated, and the previously silent scene erupted in excitement.

Even those who hadn't seen alchemy before had heard that when a pill was formed, the furnace would react. This was clearly a sign of the pill's completion.

As the furnace continued to rumble, the sound grew louder and the vibrations more intense. Xia Baichi let out a cold shout, striking the pill furnace with both hands as Soul Force surged in.

"Boom"

After a loud bang, the pill furnace fell silent. Xia Baichi could barely contain her excitement.

Relying on her rich alchemy experience, she had a ninety percent chance of success, though a sliver of unease remained.

She slowly reached out and gently lifted the lid. A rich pill fragrance wafted out, instantly spreading throughout the entire venue.

"What a potent aroma!"

The crowd couldn't help but gasp. Wei Cang's face showed a hint of pride. Without even looking, he knew Xia Baichi had succeeded just from the scent.

"Hahahaha..."

Xia Baichi held a perfectly round pill in her hand, her face filled with fervor as she let out a burst of laughter. However, due to her intense excitement, her laughter was hoarse and unpleasant.

"Who stepped on your neck?" Long Chen glanced at Xia Baichi and asked with feigned concern.

Although she knew Long Chen's words were filled with mockery, Xia Baichi paid it no mind. She coldly stared at Long Chen and said, "Kid, I'm waiting for the moment you kowtow to me, hahaha..."

Long Chen shook his head slightly and said no more. However, he was inwardly shocked. This crazy woman had gotten incredibly lucky to refine a Mid-grade Blood Condensation Pill. No wonder she was laughing like a maniac.

Long Chen saw a faint Pill Pattern on the pill. Although it was dim, it was indeed a Pill Pattern.

For someone of Xia Baichi's skill, the probability of refining such a Mid-grade Pill would not exceed one percent.

Is heaven looking out for idiots? Long Chen cursed inwardly. If this continued, he might actually lose. No, he had to find a way.

"Bang"

Just then, Long Chen's pill furnace also vibrated, indicating that his pill was also nearing completion, reaching the most critical stage.

No, I have to act now.

Long Chen took a deep breath. To everyone's astonishment, he slapped the lid of the pill furnace, lifting it open by a tiny crack.

"What?"

Yun Qi was startled. This was the crucial moment for the pill's formation; opening the furnace lid would cause the medicinal properties to be lost entirely.

Even Wei Cang was surprised. Long Chen's action clearly defied common alchemy sense, yet Long Chen's expression was serious, not like someone who had given up.

As the lid was lifted, Long Chen's Soul Force circulated wildly, tightly locking onto the medicinal properties within the pill furnace.

"Boom boom boom"

The pill furnace seethed violently. Beads of sweat dripped down Long Chen's face. The pill within the furnace was like a Man Niu struggling relentlessly.

Long Chen used his Soul Force to lock it down tightly, but this consumed an terrifying amount of Soul Force.

This is bad, my Soul Force is almost depleted.

Long Chen suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion and let out a roar as his Soul Force surged outward.

"Boom"

The pill furnace let out an explosive sound, shaking the entire arena. Long Chen immediately slammed the lid shut, holding it down tightly.

Only when the pill furnace completely fell silent did Long Chen breathe a sigh of relief, his body drenched in sweat. The consumption just now had been immense.

He slowly lifted the lid, and a pill fragrance drifted out. Looking at the pill lying within the furnace, Long Chen's expression changed.