Rise of the Alchemy God

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To everyone's surprise, what seemed like an irreversible situation for the masked boy somehow turned into a victory.

From what they could tell from the judges' expressions, the pill produced by the masked boy was particularly difficult, and it seemed to be of a high level.

Most of the audience didn't understand exactly what kind of pill it was, but several figures among them did, and they didn't hesitate to contact some of their connections.

The Nine Revolutions Pill was too valuable to let others have, so the sooner they acted, the better their chances of acquiring it.

They already knew that the pill would be auctioned after the competition, as they had overheard the masked boy's conversation with one of the examiners, so they were already making the necessary preparations for the auction.

Gathering a large amount of resources wasn't difficult for them, but doing it quickly was, as even in this world, not all wealthy individuals held the majority of their wealth in cash or precious resources, but rather in land and shares.

Although the world was different, the economy in this realm functioned similarly.

That said, even though the pill was rare and hard to obtain, its original price wasn't astronomical.

What concerned everyone was the part where they would have to secure it during the auction.

They knew better than anyone that none of them would let such a valuable piece slip away, especially cultivators at the fourth stage.

The examiners were aware of this and decided to take the necessary measures; otherwise, there would be too much chaos on the day of the auction.

With that, Ethan sealed the pill in the vial, greeted the examiners, and left to return to his team.

Xiang Hua had also already finished her competition, and as expected, she too had won, though with some difficulty this time.

Seeing him walk nonchalantly after producing a pill of that level, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

'So, he's already surpassed me,' she thought, admitting that she couldn't produce a pill of that level.

She had made great progress and was already at the level of a master alchemist, capable of producing Level 3 pills, but she knew better than anyone that producing such a problematic pill at that level was something her current self couldn't do.

What only she and the examiners had noticed was that he had taken his time to refine it, and during the entire process, he never showed any signs of struggle, proving that this wasn't just a lucky achievement but something he could replicate without much trouble.

The examiners thought that someone of his level was too much for the other participants, but it wasn't as though they could disqualify him. Find adventures on m_v l|e'm-p y r

After all, his age had been confirmed, and they couldn't blame him for being too skilled.

Even the heavens can only bow before someone with unstoppable talent.

This was a well-known saying in the cultivation world, but witnessing a genius like that wasn't an everyday occurrence.

Many of them wondered where such a prodigy had come from.

Even Xun Wei, who was seated in the audience, trembled in his seat as he saw the crushing defeat the masked boy had dealt Hu Xingyan.

'So that bastard didn't even take me seriously,' he thought, becoming even more furious over his loss.

Losing to Ethan and handing over his blood flower was already too much for him to bear, but knowing that the other side hadn't even given his all made the taste of defeat even more bitter.

He clenched his fists in anger, his fingers digging so deeply that they made his hands bleed, but he didn't seem to care about this.

And with that, the third round of matches came to an end, and now only the battles between the two groups that had lost their first match of the day remained.

Among them was Yan Mei, who, although she had already accepted that she was not yet at Ethan's level, realized after seeing his performance today that the gap between them was far greater than she had initially thought.

***

The day had come to an end, and everyone had retreated to their accommodations, with only a few going out to relax in the various entertainment spots in the capital of the empire.

Most of the participants chose to rest, as they still had a tournament to face, but not all of them did.

Many decided to go out and unwind alone or with their teammates.

In an alley, away from prying eyes, three figures were currently conversing.

"Hey, it's been a while since I've heard any news from Yǐn Fēng," said a man in his forties, frowning.

"I haven't heard from him in the past few days either," replied the woman, echoed by the other man.

"Now that's strange. Do you think something might have happened to him?"

"I highly doubt it. After all, he's not weak. Maybe after finishing placing the inscriptions around the city, he went on another mission. It wouldn't be the first time he's done that," the woman said with an irritated tone.

Clearly, she was displeased with their teammate's behavior.

"Perhaps, but it doesn't hurt to check.

I confirmed yesterday that the inscriptions were placed at all points, so our mission can be considered nearly complete," he said as he took out a talisman made of reddish-brown jade and infused it with some of his demonic Qi.

Just as he was inspecting something on it, a voice came out of nowhere.

"Hey guys, what are you up to in such an isolated place?

If it's something fun, why don't you let me join in too?" said the person as he emerged from a blind spot in the alley.

Immediately, hearing this voice, all three became alert and turned to see who it was.

"Wait, you're that tournament participant," said the woman, noting the appearance of the person who had spoken.

"Oh, you know me. Well yes, I'm indeed a tournament participant, just like you, right?"

Said a young man with a black mask, now fully visible.

The three, seeing him, recognized him immediately.

After all, why wouldn't they? The person before them had stirred quite a commotion over the past three days of the tournament, especially today, having produced a mid-grade Level 3 pill.

They wondered what he was doing there and, more importantly, how much of their conversation he had overheard.

With this in mind, the man in his forties spoke, ready to act at any moment.

"How long have you been here?" he asked as his two companions, understanding the meaning behind the question, prepared in secret.

"How long, you ask? Hm, let me think…

Ah yes, more or less since you were asking what might have happened to your companion who went around placing inscriptions," he said with a smile, though hidden by the mask.

As soon as those words left his mouth, all three rushed toward him, ready to eliminate him on the spot, but just as they took a step forward, a heavy pressure fell upon them, pinning them in place.

'What?'

While the three were terrified by the invisible pressure that struck them, the masked boy gave a slight smile as he approached them.

"Well, now, why don't we have a nice chat?"

As soon as they heard those words, a sense of danger overwhelmed them all, and they felt that whatever was about to happen wouldn't be anything good.