Liu Ling's Analysis

Qiemier's expression froze instantly, and even the other Fourth-grade Alchemist were stunned. The hall fell into a deathly silence.

Otto coughed lightly and said, "Ahem, Xiao Shi Yi, these kinds of things aren't just made up. Think carefully about how many times you've refined it?"

As Otto spoke, he gestured to Xiao Yu with his eyes. After all, the Ironwood Spirit Leaf could only be refined ten times. Any more refinements would be meaningless. Even if it was only ten refinements, among all the Fourth-grade Alchemist, only Qiemier, the vice president of the alchemist association, could do it.

However, Xiao Yu, like a newborn calf, completely missed the look Otto was giving him and calmly said, "I can assure you, I refined it ten times!"

Upon hearing this, one of the Fourth-grade Alchemist scoffed, "Do you know how difficult it is to refine ten Ironwood Spirit Leaf? Don't even mention you, even alchemists like us who have been immersed in alchemy for many years wouldn't dare say we could refine ten in such a short time!"

"That's right, little guy, you'd better not give out random information!" another Fourth-grade Alchemist chimed in.

Seeing Xiao Yu's unyielding attitude, Otto could only pull Master Bu Lin, who was still sitting calmly on the high platform, and whispered, "You old man, what time is it? Still resting with your eyes closed? I don't know what's wrong with that kid Xiao Yu, he insists that he refined Ironwood Spirit Leaf ten times in such a short time. Go and persuade him!"

Master Bu Lin, however, remained completely unperturbed, saying, "What's the rush? Since Xiao Shi Yi said it's ten times, then it's ten times. I won't doubt it!"

Qiemier, having also heard Master Bu Lin's words, relaxed his furrowed brows slightly and said, "Old Bu, you really trust him that much?"

Master Bu Lin chuckled and said, "Hehe, I'm the one who recommended him, so naturally I trust him completely, that's beyond question!"

Qiemier didn't say anything more, but looked at Xiao Yu with some helplessness and said, "Little guy, since you're so sure, then I won't say anything more. Considering how much Old Bu has faith in you, now put the Ironwood Spirit Leaf you refined on this machine!"

Xiao Yu slowly glanced around. Most of the alchemist elders looked at him with a mocking expression, while some looked helpless and regretful, probably because they regretted that Master Bulin had wasted the recommendation spot!

Xiao Yu smiled faintly, then slowly walked towards the testing machine on the high platform. He took out the jade bottle that had just been refined from his Storage Ring and casually tossed it into the groove of the testing machine.

Everyone's eyes turned to the screen on the testing machine, and suddenly, a huge, bright red "+" slowly appeared.

Apart from Xiao Yu himself and Master Bulin, everyone's expression froze. The two elders who had just spoken were even more embarrassed, not expecting that Xiao Yu had actually refined the Ironwood Spirit Leaf to the tenth level!

Gazing at the large, crimson characters, even Qiemier was filled with astonishment. "Ten" meant he had indeed refined the Ironwood Spirit Leaf ten times. Even he couldn't help but exclaim, "Truly, the younger generation is formidable! Now I understand how you achieved the rank of Third-grade Alchemist at such a young age. Such refining skill is something even I admire!"

Otto looked at Xiao Yu with great surprise, but then he remembered Master Bu Lin's extremely calm demeanor earlier. He turned to look at Master Bu Lin and said, "Do you know something? Otherwise, how can you be so sure that Xiao Shi Yi can successfully refine it?"

Master Bu Lin curled his lip and said, "What's your rush? You'll find out when you get to the Alchemist Tournament."

Seeing that Master Bu Lin was unwilling to reveal anything, and not wanting to ask Xiao Yu directly, he could only give up.

Qiemier then spoke up with a smile, "Xiao Shi Yi's refining results have clearly passed perfectly. Little guy, go sit over there and wait until they're all out before we go together!"

Xiao Yu nodded slightly and walked to the side to sit down. The other elders also glanced at Xiao Yu in shock before returning to the high platform. Some of them thought to themselves, "It seems that Xiao Shi Yi will be a strong contender for the championship this time. His cultivation talent is truly terrifying. We should give them a good talking-to when we get back!"

The hall fell silent again. The hourglass had run for nearly three-quarters of its time, and a hint of helplessness flashed in Qiemier and the others' eyes.

"I wonder if Liu Ling or the Little Princess will come out first. It seems that the Ironwood Spirit Leaf will be quite difficult for them this time! Compared to Xiao Shi Yi, they are far inferior!" Qiemier said with a wry smile, glancing at Xiao Yu who was sitting next to him drinking tea.

Otto nodded and laughed, "How can this compare to that little monster? To be honest, I didn't expect this kid's strength to improve so quickly!"

Time passed second by second. Just then, another black curtain moved, and everyone's eyes immediately turned to see a handsome young man with a sinister smile on his face slowly walking out.

Liu Ling strode out from behind the black curtain and stood in the center of the hall. He then smiled slightly at Qiemier and the others on the platform. Suddenly, his gaze fixed on Xiao Yu beside him.

"How could he be here?" Liu Ling asked, pointing at Xiao Yu with some excitement.

Qiemier glanced at Xiao Yu and said, "He finished refining, so he naturally came out first!"

"Is the refining finished?" Liu Ling frowned slightly, thinking to herself, "Does he think that's all? This idiot didn't just refine it once and think it was done, did he?"

After giving Xiao Yu Liu Ling Xiao Yu's regard for him diminished somewhat. Xiao Yu, sitting to the side, glanced at Liu Ling with a puzzled look, wondering what this fool was standing there laughing about.

Shortly after Liu Ling emerged, a lithe and graceful figure leaped swiftly from behind the black curtain. Upon seeing Liu Ling already standing in the hall and Xiao Yu sitting to the side drinking tea, a hint of disappointment appeared on her delicate face. She slowly walked to the center of the hall and muttered, "Brother Liu Ling, I didn't expect you to be faster than me."

Liu Ling smiled and said, "Hehe, the Little Princess is quite fast too."

"Hmph, although you came out a little earlier than me, your purity might not be higher than mine!" The Little Princess waved the jade bottle in her hand and snorted.

Then the Little Princess glanced at Xiao Yu sitting there and asked with some confusion, "Brother Liu, who came out first, you or him? Why is he sitting there?"

Liu Ling sneered, "This idiot came out before me, but I'm sure he doesn't know that this time the refining isn't about the refining time, but the purity. He probably only refined it once before coming out!"

"Huh? Really?" The Little Princess covered her mouth in surprise.

"Absolutely. If it's extracted in one go, the time must be very short. There's still so much time left, which is why the vice president made him sit down and wait!" Liu Ling analyzed carefully.

The Little Princess tilted her head and thought for a moment before saying, "That seems to make sense, but if that's the case, how did he manage to reach the third rank with that level of intelligence?"

Liu Ling shook her head and said nothing more.

Soon after, the quiet black curtains were lifted one by one, and the alchemists emerged from them, standing quietly in the hall.