A Close Match

Xiao Yan focused completely, unhurriedly fusing the medicinal ingredients within the cauldron.

The surging Purple Flame, under his control, was like a docile little kitten, gently pressing upon the ingredients that had been refined to utmost purity.

More than ten minutes later, under Xiao Yan's steady refinement, the rudimentary shape of a pill gradually appeared within the medicinal cauldron.

"It's done!"

A moment later, Xiao Yan gave a soft shout and flicked his finger. The cauldron lid was knocked open by a gust of force, and with a beckon of his left palm, a pale yellow pill burst from the cauldron.

Xiao Yan swiftly grabbed the jade bottle beside him with his right hand and, with exceptional precision, collected the pill inside. His effortless, crisp movements drew cries of admiration from the female apprentices.

Even Xue Mei's gaze toward Xiao Yan seemed to turn somewhat tender.

When it came to attracting women, Lucky Brother still had the edge!

Su Heng sighed inwardly. He truly could not imitate that little display just now. It was probably just a difference in personality.

After setting down the jade bottle, Xiao Yan slowly raised his head, only to find everyone around him staring intently at him.

"Uh... is the assessment time up?"

Seeing Xiao Yan's slightly awkward expression, Xue Mei was briefly startled before unexpectedly smiling and nodding.

Although this Xiao Yan was an outsider, his abilities seemed evenly matched with Su Heng's. If she befriended him, perhaps she could make Lin Fei and Su Heng suffer a little.

With that thought, Xue Mei took the initiative to step forward and spoke to Xiao Yan in a gentle tone.

"There are still a few minutes left. If you had been any slower, you might have lost your qualification for the assessment."

The icy beauty who had ignored him upon entering now took the initiative to speak to him. Xiao Yan was somewhat surprised, but he still gave Xue Mei a grateful smile.

At this point, every apprentice participating in the assessment had completed their pill refinement. Next came the stage of evaluating the pills.

Frank and Otto first exchanged the pills refined by Xue Mei and Lin Fei, then carefully examined their color and sheen.

After a long while, the two nodded slightly and said with smiles.

"You two did well. Although your heat control was just a little lacking, the pills took shape. You pass the assessment!"

Upon hearing the words "pass the assessment," both Xue Mei and Lin Fei let out long breaths of relief. The two longtime rivals even exchanged rare smiles.

After evaluating the two women's pills, Otto and Frank began inspecting the pills of the other apprentices participating in the assessment.

Of the dozen or so apprentices taking part, four passed the assessment. The rest either lacked the ability or lacked the luck.

"Hehe, there's no need to be discouraged. If this year doesn't work out, come back next year or the year after."

"Young people have time on their side. Time is not your enemy."

Seeing their dejected expressions, Frank offered a few words of comfort with a smile. Then he exchanged a glance with Otto, and the two walked in tacit understanding toward Su Heng and Xiao Yan.

"Little fellow, you hid yourself well!"

Frank looked at Xiao Yan teasingly. Xiao Yan merely spread his hands and said nothing.

The two first glanced at Xiao Yan and Su Heng's pill formulas, and both their expressions changed slightly. Otto had deliberately given Su Heng the formula for the Strength-Accumulation Pill, but Xiao Yan's formula had been drawn at random.

Who would have thought that fate truly had a hand in this?

"Little fellow, I didn't expect you to draw the Strength-Accumulation Pill. This is a pill that even many First-grade Alchemists find difficult to refine. No wonder you took a little longer."

Looking at the formula, Frank regarded Xiao Yan with considerable admiration.

"Just luck..."

Being praised in public, Xiao Yan actually felt a little embarrassed, as though he had truly succeeded by chance.

Upon hearing the words "Strength-Accumulation Pill," Xue Mei and Lin Fei were both deeply shocked. In the end, they could only shake their heads helplessly.

The Strength-Accumulation Pill was far more difficult than the formulas they had received. If they had been asked to refine it, they would already be back home fishing this year.

Everyone present marveled at Xiao Yan's abilities, making Otto's expression somewhat hard to maintain. He picked up the formula in front of Su Heng and shouted in feigned shock.

"You refined a Strength-Accumulation Pill too?"

To be fair, Otto's acting was a little exaggerated. Su Heng could not hold it in and burst out laughing. Fortunately, he had his back to the crowd, so no one noticed the master and disciple's botched performance.

Otto successfully drew everyone's attention. The spectators who had just been marveling at Xiao Yan's abilities instantly shifted their focus to Su Heng.

"That guy seemed to finish his pill a long time ago. I thought it was some simple pill, but it was actually a Strength-Accumulation Pill?"

"Yeah. I heard he's Master Otto's prized disciple. I thought Master Otto would secretly help him out, but I didn't expect him to be so strict..."

Several apprentices who had stood closer to Su Heng during the refinement began whispering among themselves. Soon, the apprentices throughout the hall, along with the friends and relatives watching outside, began to stir.

The Black Rock City Alchemist Guild had produced two alchemical geniuses at once. This was no small matter.

In the past few decades, aside from Pill King Gu He's disciple Liu Ling, no other apprentice had been seen refining a First-grade Strength-Accumulation Pill during an Alchemist assessment.

Quite a few of the families and small sects attending as spectators had already begun considering how to curry favor with these two outstanding young talents.

Otto's sudden attempt to steal the spotlight left Frank somewhat helpless. It was obvious Otto truly did not want his disciple to be overshadowed by Xiao Yan.

"Alright, let's continue the evaluation."

Frank poured the pill from Xiao Yan's jade bottle and handed it to Otto beside him. Otto likewise passed Su Heng's pill to Frank.

Receiving the pills handed over by the other, both men raised them and examined them carefully.

"Pill Patterns!"

Both pills bore strange rippling patterns. The difference was that Xiao Yan's pill patterns were emerald green, while Su Heng's were light red.

This was not because their pill patterns differed in quality. Rather, the flames they used were different, and thus the pill patterns formed were also different.

The words "pill patterns" struck Xue Mei and Lin Fei like thunder. They had never imagined that someone their age could reach such a level.

Even Lin Fei, who had always been familiar with Su Heng, had never imagined that the junior brother who had been blowing up cauldrons three times a day just a few months ago could improve so rapidly.

Xue Mei's pretty face was equally pale. She had once thought of competing with Su Heng, but now it seemed she could not even hope to catch a glimpse of his back.

At that moment, Lin Fei and Xue Mei both looked at each other. They had always believed themselves to be the most talented people in the Black Rock City Alchemist Guild, but the reality before them thoroughly shattered that dream.

Their former open and covert rivalry suddenly seemed meaningless. They exchanged bitter smiles, and from that moment on, their past grudges and grievances dissipated like smoke, wiped clean in one stroke.

Lin Fei and Xue Mei reconciled in silence, but Otto and Frank now faced a great dilemma. For a moment, they could not determine whose pill was of higher quality—Su Heng's or Xiao Yan's.

Both had produced perfect-score pills. Or rather, they had received one hundred points only because the test was worth one hundred points. Their true limits could not be seen from a single pill.

Even Medicine Elder could not render a judgment when faced with this problem.

"You have both refined the Strength-Accumulation Pill's medicinal effect to its utmost limit. With a higher-grade pill, perhaps the difference in strength could be determined. But the ceiling of a First-grade Pill is too low. Even I cannot tell which is superior."

Hearing Medicine Elder's words, Xiao Yan felt five parts admiration, six parts unwillingness to concede, and twelve parts excitement.

A worthy opponent was hard to find in one lifetime. Xiao Yan could not help wanting another match with Su Heng, though there was still something he needed to confirm first.

"Seniors, I... did I pass the assessment? Or not?"

Xiao Yan looked at Otto and Frank, who had fallen into deep thought, and asked quietly.

"Oh! Right! The assessment! Congratulations to you both. You've passed the assessment and are now First-grade Alchemists!"

As soon as those words were spoken, everyone inside and outside the hall turned envious, astonished gazes toward the two remarkable youths beside the bluestone platform.

Yet Xiao Yan's next words shocked everyone except Su Heng even further.

"Um... can I continue with the Second-grade Alchemist assessment?"

Silence... an oppressive silence. Xiao Yan's quiet words were like heaven-shaking thunder, stunning everyone present.

A seventeen-year-old youth actually wanted to immediately take the Second-grade Alchemist assessment.

Everyone stared fixedly at Xiao Yan, their eyes filled with disbelief and indescribable shock.

Under the blazing gazes of nearly a hundred people, Xiao Yan awkwardly scratched his head and revealed a somewhat bashful smile.

What he did not know was that to take the Second-grade Alchemist assessment, one's cultivation had to reach the Dou Master realm.

By the Jia Ma Empire's standards, advancing to Dou Zhe at seventeen was already enough for one's talent to be described as terrifying.

A seventeen-year-old Dou Master, even merely a One-Star Dou Master, was exceedingly rare. In the Jia Ma Empire, there were only a handful.

After all, Nalan Yanran, the personal disciple of the Misty Cloud Sect's leader—the Jia Ma Empire's greatest power—had only advanced to Dou Master at sixteen.

At first, Su Heng had thought that becoming a One-Star Dou Zhe at seventeen made him nothing more than a sewer floor tile.

But after arriving in Black Rock City and seeing Lin Fei, who was nineteen and only at the Ninth Stage of Dou Qi, as well as that "ancestral-level" gambler who was twenty-two and had not even reached the Eighth Stage of Dou Qi...

Only then did he realize how low the average talent of young people in the Jia Ma Empire was.

No wonder Nalan Yanran had dared to go to the Xiao Family to break off the engagement. From the perspective of that time, Nalan Yanran, who became a Dou Zhe at thirteen and a Dou Master at sixteen, was the number one genius of the Jia Ma Empire.

It also explained why, when Xiao Li mentioned Xiao Yan to Su Heng, he merely said his younger brother's constitution was somewhat strange rather than saying he had become useless.

By the Xiao Family's standards, anyone who could reach the Seventh Stage of Dou Qi by sixteen and become a Dou Zhe before twenty-five counted as a talent worthy of focused cultivation.

Only after arriving in Black Rock City and reading a vast number of books did Su Heng truly understand why Qi-Gathering Powder was a Fourth-grade Pill and so expensive that it was nearly impossible to buy.

Because on the Dou Qi Continent, the number of people in their twenties who had yet to advance to Dou Zhe might be several times greater than the entire population of Blue Star in his previous life.

Different perspectives led to entirely different answers. That was why some people thought cosmetics costing a few dozen yuan were cheap, then mocked ordinary people for not working hard enough.

"Teacher, I want to take the Second-grade Alchemist assessment too!"

Just as everyone had yet to recover from Xiao Yan's words, Su Heng stepped forward and loudly announced his decision.

Thunder seemed to explode through the silent crowd, and everyone was so shocked by the sight before them that their mouths hung open.

"My heavens... is the Black Rock City Alchemist Guild about to produce two monsters?"

Inside and outside the hall, the spectators looked at one another in astonishment. Today, they had witnessed history.

"You! Don't underestimate the Second-grade Alchemist assessment! To become a Second-grade Alchemist, not only must you refine a Second-grade Pill, but you must also reach the Dou Master realm. Dou Master! Have you reached it?"

Looking at Xiao Yan's smiling face, Lin Fei could not help frowning. No matter how she looked at him, this guy did not resemble a Dou Master!

"Senior Sister, Brother Xiao Yan is now a Two-Star Dou Master. He's far more formidable than you imagine."

Su Heng walked to Lin Fei's side and lightly patted her shoulder. Then he slowly shook his head, giving her a look that told her not to interfere.

"Brother Su, how about we compete again this time?"

"Just what I was thinking!"

The two exchanged smiles. They cherished one another as worthy opponents, determined to decide the victor without harming their friendship.

Seeing that the atmosphere had reached this point, Frank and Otto were naturally happy to let it happen. They exchanged a glance and quickly made their decision.

"Xiao Yan, of course you may take the Second-grade Alchemist assessment. However, this time, the two of you will refine pills in public. Do you agree?"

Frank walked up to Xiao Yan with a smile and asked loudly.

According to the Alchemist Guild's assessment rules, the Second-grade Alchemist assessment was normally conducted behind closed doors, and its contents were not shown to outsiders.

But Xiao Yan's sudden appearance made Frank and Otto suddenly want to show off in public.

If the Black Rock City Alchemist Guild produced two seventeen-year-old Second-grade Alchemists in a single day, it would become the strongest Alchemist Guild outside the Imperial Capital headquarters.

Not only could it recruit more exceptionally gifted apprentices, but the funding it received each year from the Imperial Capital Alchemist Headquarters would also multiply. With such a wonderful opportunity, why would they refuse?

"Yes, I have no problem with that."

Xiao Yan's response was extremely confident. Since he had decided not to hide his strength during this assessment, he would accept any condition.

Seeing Xiao Yan agree so readily, Otto hurriedly turned his gaze toward Su Heng.

"Of course I have no problem either!"

Having received identical answers from both of them, the two masters' smiles nearly flew up to the hall's ceiling.

Frank skillfully took two pill formulas from his Storage Ring and handed them to the pair. At the same time, he gestured for the surrounding apprentices to step back and leave several meters of space so the two could perform at their fullest.

While the apprentices retreated, the spectators outside the hall could not bear to miss such a spectacle.

With Frank and Otto's tacit approval, many Black Rock City nobles and experts squeezed toward the front, standing alongside the apprentices.

Even Qing Lin, with Lin Fei's help, managed to seize a spot in the front row.

"Xiao Yan, Su Heng, the difficulty of the Second-grade Alchemist assessment differs from that of the First-grade Alchemist assessment. If either of you lacks confidence, it is still not too late to withdraw."

Frank returned to the host's platform and loudly announced the rules of the assessment.

For men, regardless of victory or defeat, backing down was never an option. Neither Xiao Yan nor Su Heng said anything unnecessary. They merely waited quietly for Frank to announce the rules.

"Since neither of you intends to withdraw, you may now read the pill formulas."

Su Heng picked up the scroll before him and slowly unfurled it. The contents that entered his eyes were almost exactly what he had expected.

This time, they wanted the two of them to settle the contest completely.

Otto and Frank had brought out the most difficult Second-grade Pill to refine: the Ice Condensation Pill!