The First Step to Conquering the Inner Academy

In the square, Sun Qingyang continuously threw the medicinal herbs on the stone platform into the medicine cauldron. In just five minutes, he had extracted nearly twenty kinds of medicinal herbs!

Seeing that his refining process was in such good condition, the members of the Medicine Gang who had come to cheer him on couldn't help but applaud.

"This Sun Qingyang truly lives up to his reputation Fourth-Tier Alchemist is about to reach the Fifth-Grade; he does indeed have some talent."

In her previous life, Yao Ling was at least Tier 9 Golden Pill Core alchemist. Although her alchemy level has been limited by her soul power, she still has a broad perspective.

"So, it's possible he could successfully refine it?"

Ling Yanfei said thoughtfully.

"Not necessarily. Judging from what Elder Hao just mentioned, the method for refining the Double Spirit Ascension Pill seems to be wrong. I think the person who created the formula probably couldn't refine the perfect pill themselves. The formula might be a semi-finished product, because that kind of refining method can't produce a pill that guarantees Dou Wang's advancement, so there's no such thing as a successful refining."

Yao Ling shook her head and said seriously.

"Can Xiao Yan succeed?"

Shi Xuanxuan frowned slightly upon hearing this.

If all else fails, let's just fight. Why bother with making medicine?

Upon hearing this, a bright smile bloomed on Yao Ling's usually icy face:

"Of course, he's Xiao Yan!"

Hearing the three senior students' concern and trust in Senior Xiao Yan, Han Yue's hands tightened slightly.

This doesn't make sense, does it?

It's only been a few days, and they've already gotten so close to Senior Xiao Yan?

Recalling the scene yesterday morning when Xiao Yan led two senior female students downstairs, Han Yue realized that something she didn't know must have happened behind the scenes!

I really want to know what happened...

With Sun Qingyang's increasingly rapid refining speed, the slightly mocking laughter that had been emanating from the room completely disappeared, and some elders nodded in approval.

"This kid, once he succeeds in refining the pill this time, he'll probably have one foot in the door of Fifth-Grade Alchemist!"

On the stage, Elder Hao stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the focused Sun Qingyang, and nodded slightly.

Such performance truly befits an outstanding alchemist trained by the Alchemy Department of the Jia Nan Academy!

"Call!"

Xiao Yan let out a long breath, his gaze towards the medicine cauldron before him now filled with confidence!

Ignoring Sun Qingyang beside him, Xiao Yan reached out and pressed his hand on the fire pit, and the cobalt blue flames instantly filled the entire medicine cauldron!

This time, there wasn't much restraint on the Heavenly Flames, and the temperature in the world instantly rose!

However, Xiao Yan naturally couldn't allow the Heavenly Flames to affect the Qingyang Fire used by Sun Qingyang, who was not far away. Otherwise, if something went wrong, wouldn't it be troublesome for him to use that as an excuse to deny responsibility?

He sucked the fallen cauldron lid back up and gently covered the cauldron. The next moment, Xiao Yan controlled the flames with his right hand and flicked his left hand continuously on the stone platform, almost leaving afterimages. One medicinal herb after another was continuously thrown into the cauldron, one after another. The terrifying speed made it seem as if Xiao Yan was not refining Fifth-grade Pill, but a third -Third-Grade or lower pill that he was already very skilled at and would never make a mistake in.

Seeing Xiao Yan's terrifying speed in refining medicine, everyone in the square was dumbfounded. Even at that speed before, they had still failed; was this speed really going to be alright?

Yao Ling smiled slightly upon seeing this.

It seems that Xiao Yan has indeed discovered some clues.

This guy's talent in Alchemy is as formidable as ever!

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the two people on the plaza, completely focused, entered the final stage of refining, and the medicinal herbs on the stone platform gradually dwindled...

Even though they had great confidence in Xiao Yan, Han Yue and the others couldn't help but feel a little nervous at this moment.

Suddenly, a faint medicinal fragrance wafted through the square. The group of people were startled, their expressions changed slightly, and they looked toward the source of the fragrance.

The aroma of the medicine also attracted the attention of everyone else in the square. In an instant, astonished gazes were all focused on Sun Qingyang. Who would have thought that he, who had failed at the very beginning of the refining process, was now almost successful?

With his gaze fixed intently on the flames before him, Sun Qingyang's expression grew increasingly serious.

Next, the flames will be transformed for a second tempering!

One cannot be distracted while refining medicine, so Sun Qingyang was not paying attention to what Xiao Yan was doing at the moment.

But the elders present were all extremely perceptive.

At this moment, after Xiao Yan had refined all the medicinal herbs into medicinal liquid, he directly split the fused Cobalt Blue Flame in two inside the medicine cauldron. Two flames, one red and one blue, rose into the medicine cauldron, turning the originally white medicine cauldron into two colors!

"What? Using two different flames to refine pills at the same time?"

The elders of the Alchemy Department below the stage also changed their expressions drastically upon seeing this scene!

You must understand, even they would never dare to refine pills using such a method!

Moreover, judging from Xiao Yan's posture, he showed no intention of converting and then withdrawing the flames. Instead, he planned to use both flames simultaneously to refine the flames until the end!

This little guy's Fire Energy control is even better than theirs!

Such talent is truly terrifying!

At this moment, Xiao Yan had no time to pay attention to the changes outside. He was still trying his best to control the two Heavenly Flames to calcine the medicine that had been divided into two portions!

According to his idea, to perfectly refine this pill, it is necessary to use two different flames to separate the ingredients in the medicinal liquid into two parts for refining. One part needs to be quickly condensed into a pill, and the power of the Heavenly Flames should be used to seal the medicinal power of this part.

The other one needs to be refined more slowly. After the medicinal power is thoroughly refined, it is wrapped around the first layer of medicinal power that has already been refined into the rudimentary form of the pill. Only in this way can it be considered Double Spirit Ascension Pill. Only pills refined in this way can perfectly combine the energy of the Heavenly Flames and the energy of the pill, allowing the user to advance to the Dou Wang level with a 100% success rate!

If not properly controlled during this process, the two flames will collide and immediately ignite each other, causing an explosion.

Fortunately, Xiao Yan had secretly studied the art of creating Fire Lotus. Although he had never actually succeeded in creating one, he had only tried to fuse two tiny flames together, but the success rate was already extremely high. In addition, he had accumulated a lot of experience when he was devouring Fused Heavenly Flame, so everything was going smoothly for him at the moment.

All the steps were proceeding in an orderly manner, stemming from the fact that when Old Yao was restoring his soul power, by chance, the spiritual substance that entered Xiao Yan's soul not only enhanced Xiao Yan's soul power but also gave his soul a spirituality that ordinary alchemists did not possess.

Only in this way could his Alchemy improve by leaps and bounds during this period!

Xiao Yan even had a premonition that once he successfully cultivated his body-refining Dou Technique, the soul power sealed by Old Yao might be completely unsealed. At that time, as long as he accumulated enough alchemy experience, he might even become Sixth-Grade Alchemist, which wouldn't be far away from him!

The nascent form of the elixir has been nurtured sufficiently; its medicinal power can now be increased!

As he gazed at the gradually forming embryonic core, Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed slightly. This step was the most crucial one!

On the other side, Sun Qingyang also narrowly succeeded in transforming the flames, and a cyan fragrance rose from the medicine cauldron!

It has a colored and fragrant aroma, yet it's only Fourth-Grade Pill?

Sun Qingyang was clearly incredulous.

Logically speaking, even if the quality of his refined pills was somewhat inferior, they should definitely not be Fourth-Grade- grade pills!

He clearly prepared it exactly according to the instructions on the prescription!

But no matter what, he would not let the pill be destroyed at this last moment. Therefore, although he was extremely surprised, he calmed his mind and worked hard to complete the last step of pill refining. After the pill was completely nurtured, he directly opened the cauldron and took out the pill!

Buzz!

The lid of the medicine cauldron fell off, emitting a buzzing sound, and a dark blue pill the size of a wutong seed fell into his palm.

Looking down at the pill in his hand, which was of top-grade Fourth-Grade quality, Sun Qingyang couldn't help but blush slightly, not because of shame, but because of some confusion.

Why?

Logically speaking, shouldn't he be Fifth-Grade official?

Sun Qingyang stared at the seemingly perfect but actually unfinished pill in front of him, his face full of confusion. He pondered it over and over, but could not figure it out at all, and could only sigh helplessly.

He then walked somewhat helplessly toward Elder Hao and handed him the pills.

Elder Hao looked bewildered as he took the pill from Sun Qingyang. From his perspective, the pill was well-made, but for some reason, its grade was not Fifth-Grade. Therefore, even if Sun Qingyang had refined the pill first, it was hard to say that he had won the competition.

"Well..."

With a sigh, Elder Hao held the pill and examined it carefully. Then, he smelled an extremely rich fragrance coming from Xiao Yan's direction.

"Huh?"

The rich aroma of the pill was clearly superior to the aroma of the pill that Sun Qingyang had used when he refined it. Therefore, both Elder Hao and Sun Qingyang turned their attention to Xiao Yan, who was concentrating on refining the pill.

After a long pause, Elder Hao suddenly said, "It seems that Xiao Yan has a better chance of winning this time."

Upon hearing this, Sun Qingyang remained silent. He had witnessed Xiao Yan's pill-refining skills earlier, and the aroma of the pills now was even stronger than before.

Therefore, he couldn't refute it and just watched silently.

If he can really refine this Fifth-grade Pill, then it is indeed true that I am inferior in skill. I was the one who proposed the bet, so there is no reason for me to renege.

Although he could be a bit arrogant at times, he was by no means the kind of person who wouldn't take responsibility for what he did; he was willing to accept the consequences of his bets. But what exactly was going on with this elixir?

Where exactly did I go wrong?

As Sun Qingyang finished refining, a few whispers arose in the square.

"Judging from its appearance, it seems like it's been successfully completed, but it also seems like it's failed. What exactly is going on?"

"Probably not. It's said that when Fifth-grade Pill is formed, there are some unusual phenomena. The colored fragrance just now only indicates that the pill is considered good among Fourth-Grade; it shouldn't have reached Fifth-Grade yet."

Among the crowd, a student from the Alchemy Department spoke up to explain.

Under the intense gaze of everyone, Xiao Yan remained focused on his own task. Even through the thick medicine cauldron, he could clearly sense the immense medicinal power contained in the gradually forming pill through his soul power extending into the cauldron!

"The final step!"

With his eyes fixed on the nascent pill inside the cauldron and the almost transparent medicinal liquid floating beside it, Xiao Yan took a deep breath.

The next moment, the power of the soul poured out, enveloping the medicinal liquid, and then the Myriad Beast Spirit Fire suddenly heated up, causing the medicinal liquid to evaporate.

Meanwhile, the Green Lotus Core Flame began to intensely calcify the nascent elixir, causing its slightly pitted surface to melt.

Xiao Yan's hand seals suddenly changed, and then, under the guidance of his soul power, the transparent medicinal liquid began to wrap around the nascent pill. At the same time, the Green Lotus Core Flame and the Myriad Beast Spirit Fire also collided fiercely!

Even though they had been harmonized beforehand with the Flame Mantra and Dou Qi, the energy impact generated by the collision of the Heavenly Flames still began to erupt, striking the inner wall of the cauldron and bouncing back, causing the two Heavenly Flames to vibrate violently.

"Bang!"

On the stone platform, the medicine cauldron suddenly trembled violently, and a crisp clanging sound came from inside.

As the medicine cauldron trembled, Xiao Yan's expression changed slightly. He continued to increase the output of his soul power, and the temperature of the Heavenly Flames suddenly rose. Under the control of his soul power, it suddenly began to spin, transforming into a whirlwind of blue and red flames!

As the fiery whirlwind erupted, the medicine cauldron became increasingly overburdened.

The frequency of the vibrations made many of the female trainees' legs go weak.

The knowledgeable Alchemy Department students and elders also changed their expressions upon seeing this scene.

In this situation, at least in terms of energy, it is enough to meet the standard of Fifth-grade Pill. However, Xiao Yan's medicine cauldron is only Third Tier cauldron, and it seems that its durability is only average. If this continues, it may not be able to hold on!

The pills inside the cauldron began to become more and more rounded. The originally dark blue pills gradually lightened in color as the transparent medicinal liquid was poured in, but the luster on their surface became brighter and brighter.

Fortunately, Xiao Yan's soul power was sufficient to support the current level of exertion, so he did not show any signs of fatigue.

With the presence of two Heavenly Flames and the forced compression of soul power, the pills formed at an increasingly faster pace.

Finally, the medicinal liquid completely disappeared, and a pale blue pill prototype slowly emerged. Next, all that was needed was the final nurturing before the pill could be successfully refined!

Condensate!

Xiao Yan suddenly exclaimed in his heart!

The next moment, the swirling blue and red flames, under Xiao Yan's control, merged together and transformed back into cobalt blue flames, beginning to nurture the nascent core within.

At this moment, fine cracks began to quietly appear in the medicine cauldron.

The devastating impact of the previous burst of Heavenly Flames undoubtedly damaged the durability of this medicine cauldron.

As the Cobalt Blue Flame continued to rise, the irregularly shaped nascent pill visibly became more rounded, and its surface luster became increasingly dazzling.

It's unclear how much time passed, but the pale blue pill had lost its luster, revealing its perfectly round surface, which began to spin continuously in the Cobalt Blue Flame.

"Clang!"

A pale blue energy ripple suddenly surged out from the pill, finally crashing heavily against the inner wall of the cauldron with a crisp and loud sound.

This is an energy disorder caused by the formation of Fifth-grade Pill. I had seen a similar situation before when I observed Old Yao.

"Click..."

After the crisp sound, an extremely faint sound exploded in Xiao Yan's ears like a thunderclap!

Oh no, my medicine cauldron!

Xiao Yan realized something was wrong, but it was too late to fix it!

"Clang!"

Another ripple of energy spread out from the pill, and fine cracks spread rapidly throughout the cauldron like a spider web.

As the cracks grew denser, cobalt blue flames began to emerge from the cauldron, causing many onlookers to change their expressions.

This oven is about to explode!

No one expected that such an unbelievable turn of events would occur at this crucial moment.

Elder Hao's expression also changed slightly. He raised his gaze to look at the young man behind the medicine cauldron, only to find that although the young man's brows were slightly furrowed, his face showed no sign of panic whatsoever.

Sun Qingyang was initially taken aback, but after clearly hearing a "crack" sound, a look of regret appeared on his face.

If he's going to win the competition this way, it would be better to have a rematch...

Alas, what an unfair victory!

Looking at the medicine cauldron that was about to shatter, Xiao Yan sighed helplessly. The next moment, cobalt blue flames began to swirl around his body, transforming into a set of Dou Qi Dou Qi Armor emitting blue flames.

The next moment, before the pill could unleash its energy again, Xiao Yan punched out, shattering the cauldron, and reached into the flames to grab the pill!

However, instead of directly grabbing it into his palm, he wrapped it in Heavenly Flames, just like when the Old Yao used to refine medicine, using the Heart Fire as a furnace to continue the final refining process!

Fragments of the medicine cauldron flew out and landed in the square after traveling a long distance. A shard grazed Xiao Yan's cheek, and a crimson mark quietly appeared.

But Xiao Yan's attention was entirely focused on his palm, completing the final refining process!

Boom!

A violent energy ripple suddenly emanated from Xiao Yan's palm, and a rich fragrance of medicinal pills filled the air!

The blue flame armor slowly dissipated, revealing a flowing white robe beneath. Xiao Yan raised his hand, flipped his palm, and laughed loudly:

"I have fulfilled my mission. This is Fifth-grade Pill: the Double Spirit Ascension Pill!"

As people gazed at the round, pale blue pill held in Xiao Yan's slowly outstretched palm, their expressions shifted from pity to shock!

The square was completely silent. After a moment, Elder Hao came to his senses and looked at the white-robed youth in front of him with some awe. Then his gaze fell on the pill. He reached out and Dou Qi used his battle qi to take the Fifth-grade Pill into his palm, his eyes filled with a hint of fervor.

The fact that this Double Spirit Ascension Pill can create the effect of a Dou Wang expert means that even Dou Emperor level experts would not easily ignore its value, let alone Elder Hao, who is merely Dou Wang expert.

If he had had such a pill back then, he could have saved himself so much hard work!

As Elder Hao was examining the pill, figures flickered below the plaza. Soon, several elderly figures leaped onto the platform, smiled kindly at Xiao Yan, and then surrounded Elder Hao, their eyes fixed on the pale blue pill with some surprise.

"You lot..." Elder Hao shook his head as he looked at the group of people who had gathered around him. He then handed the pill in his hand forward and said, "I've never seen this pill before. You're the professionals, so you can offer a fair and professional assessment."

"Yes, it's definitely real. Although this is the first time I've seen Double Spirit Ascension Pill, I've seen quite a few Fifth-grade Pill. Judging from its color, aroma, and energy fluctuations, this pill is indeed a genuine Fifth-grade Pill!"

One of the elders stroked his beard and praised with a smile.

"I never expected that this little guy, who has only been in the Inner Academy for less than three months, would be able to refine this Double Spirit Ascension Pill. The difficulty of this pill is probably such that only a few senior elders in the Alchemy Department would be capable of refining it."

The other elders echoed their praise.

Their gazes toward Xiao Yan grew increasingly appreciative. They didn't care about Fourth-Tier Alchemist; for them, Fourth-Grade- grade pills were no longer of much use.

However, most of the Fifth-grade Pill had good effects on them. Now that Xiao Yan had truly proven his ability as Fifth-Grade Alchemist, he naturally won their respect.

After all, Fifth-Grade Alchemist is actually more prestigious than an ordinary Dou Wang expert!

Hearing the elders' conversation from the side, Sun Qingyang slowly relaxed his clenched fist.

He could also see that the pills Xiao Yan had refined had indeed reached the Fifth-Grade, and could even be considered to be of excellent quality among the Fifth-grade Pill he had ever seen. Such Alchemy were indeed better than his.

"Ahem, Sun Qingyang, you've heard the elders' evaluations. Do you have any further objections?"

Turning his head, Elder Hao's smile instantly turned into a blank expression as he asked Sun Qingyang indifferently.

Upon hearing this, Sun Qingyang hesitated for a moment, then cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Xiao Yan and asked:

"Junior Brother Xiao Yan, I followed the instructions in the prescription exactly when I tried to refine the pills, so why did I still fail? I'm confident that I didn't make any mistakes in the process. Could you please give me some pointers?"

Xiao Yan hadn't expected Sun Qingyang's attitude to change so quickly. However, the problem with the pill formula was indeed something that ordinary people couldn't see. Since it had to be brought up anyway to prevent the formula from misleading others, telling Sun Qingyang directly now wouldn't hurt.

"Actually, that pill formula is wrong. Following the method step by step will not allow you to refine a true Double Spirit Ascension Pill."

Xiao Yan smiled slightly and said.

"Ah?"

Upon hearing this, not only Sun Qingyang, but also the elders beside him, and even the students below the stage, were all filled with astonishment.

The prescription was actually wrong?

They never imagined that the reason for Sun Qingyang's failure would be related to this pill formula.

Everyone's gaze instinctively focused on Elder Hao; after all, it was he who provided the pill formula...

Sensing the suspicious looks around him, Elder Hao's face stiffened. He truly had no idea there was a problem with the pill formula!

"It's not Elder Hao's fault. He's not an alchemist, so naturally he can't see that the method of refining this pill is incorrect."

Xiao Yan naturally wouldn't let Elder Hao take the blame at this time, so he immediately explained:

"Although this pill was clearly developed based on the idea of the three-pattern or Two-Pattern Green Spirit Pill, and is suitable for Dou Ling Peak experts to break through their bottlenecks, there is a deviation in the approach. Although the ratio of medicinal materials is extremely good, the bottleneck gap between Da Dou Shi and Dou Wang has been ignored. As a result, the refining approach still follows the inherent approach of the Two-Pattern Green Spirit Pill, which is actually a loss."

Senior, you could try infusing this Dou Qi into the pill and then tossing it into the sky."

Upon hearing Xiao Yan's explanation, Sun Qingyang's expression changed slightly, but he felt that Xiao Yan's words made sense. Since the outcome was already set in stone, he might as well give it a try.

The next moment, following Xiao Yan's instructions, he infused his Dou Qi and forcefully threw the pill out.

Boom!

The pill emitted a blue light in the air before exploding with a force comparable to an attack from Dou Wang expert!

Seeing the pills exploding in the sky, Sun Qingyang understood without Xiao Yan needing to explain.

If this stuff were swallowed, probably only those extremely terrifying magical beasts could withstand its terrifying potency!

If an ordinary person ate it, they would be seriously injured, if not killed!

"Actually, it should be that during the refining process, two flames were used simultaneously..."

Xiao Yan continued to explain, recounting the entire method of alchemy he had just used.

At this moment, as Sun Qingyang watched the white-robed figure smiling and speaking, he felt the sounds in his ears becoming ethereal.

After a long pause, Xiao Yan finished explaining. Sun Qingyang smiled with relief, cupped his hands in greeting again, and bowed slightly.

"My junior colleague was so kind as to explain to me why I failed at alchemy, even though we had a past grudge. This time, I'm completely convinced of my defeat!"

Um?

Even Xiao Yan was taken aback by this scene.

This Sun Qingyang isn't so bad after all...

Well, to be honest, their skills are pretty good. If we could get them into the Student Union, it would be a huge help!

"You're too kind, senior. It's only natural for classmates to share experiences. But you can't go back on your promise!"

Xiao Yan said with a smile.

"Of course, I'll arrange it as soon as I get back!"

Sun Qingyang cupped his hands again and said earnestly.

Seeing that the two were no longer at odds as before, but instead seemed quite amicable, Elder Hao nodded with a smile, then turned to face the square below and said in a deep voice:

"The competition is over. I hereby declare Xiao Yan of this alchemy competition!"