Scoring

“Did Little Yu... succeed?” President Song asked, sounding a bit uncertain as he looked at the young woman gently stroking the Seven-Color Luan.

Her final step of pill fusion had been far too violent and forceful, forcibly compressing and fusing over a dozen clusters of medicinal liquid together. Had anyone else attempted such a feat, they would have likely suffered an immediate furnace explosion on the spot.

As for Shi Yu... while her furnace hadn't exploded, the dense vapor produced by the reacting medicinal liquids had spilled directly from the furnace chamber, enveloping the entire pill furnace and completely obscuring the situation inside.

Because of this, even President Song was unsure whether she had ultimately succeeded or failed.

Master Ji glanced at Shi Yu's expression, similarly uncertain. “Judging by Little Yu's expression, she couldn't have failed, right?”

Granted, the young woman rarely showed much emotion while refining pills anyway.

Regardless of what everyone was guessing in their hearts, the answer would soon be revealed.

Yin Shixiu and Qin Yu stepped onto the stage together, announcing, “The second trial of the assessment concludes here. Please open your furnaces for evaluation.”

As the announcement echoed, a series of muffled thuds sounded as furnaces were opened one after another.

Yin Shixiu continued, “Alchemists whose pills failed to take shape may leave the stage on their own.”

Fewer than five hundred alchemists remained on stage to begin with. Upon hearing Yin Shixiu's words, more than half shook their heads with bitter smiles, retrieved their pill furnaces, and walked down from the high stage with deep sighs.

Just like that, fewer than two hundred alchemists remained standing on stage. Among them were quite a few trying to fish in troubled waters, believing that as long as their product barely resembled a sphere, they did not count as having “failed to take shape.”

Looking around at the remaining contestants, Yin Shixiu spoke again, “Pill quality evaluation carries a degree of subjectivity. For the sake of fairness, we will proceed one by one. You must present your finished pill in front of the shadow-recording stone so everyone can see it clearly, after which we will jointly evaluate and score it. Does anyone have any objections?”

Seeing as this method was entirely fair, naturally no one raised an objection.

Yin Shixiu nodded and pointed toward the nearest row. “Since there are no objections, we will begin from this end, moving from front to back, one by one.”

Turning to the alchemist at the very front of that row, he said, “Bring your refined pill forward.”

The singled-out alchemist suddenly grew nervous. Trembling as he retrieved the pill from his furnace, he stepped forward and placed it onto a tray carried by a proctor.

The shadow-recording stone immediately focused on it, displaying the pill before everyone's eyes without missing a single detail.

In the projected image, the “pill” on the tray barely formed a hemisphere. Its color was a mottled, dark brownish-black, and its surface was covered in pitted dents.

Bursts of laughter instantly erupted from the spectator stands.

“Can that even be called a pill?”

“Whoa, talk about thick-skinned! How dare he bring out something like that?”

Yin Shixiu's face darkened slightly, and he waved his sleeve to signal the man to leave the stage. “Failed to take shape. Unscored.”

Flushing bright red with embarrassment, the alchemist packed up his pill and hurried off the stage while covering his face. Even so, he was showered with mocked laughter.

Seeing this, hesitation crept onto the faces of many remaining alchemists. Those who had harbored similar hopes of getting by through luck no longer dared stay behind to be publicly humiliated, hastily gathering their belongings and sneaking off the stage.

Thus, another batch of people departed, leaving only around a hundred on stage.

Unsurprised by this outcome, Yin Shixiu stated calmly, “Next.”

Having witnessed the previous candidate's humiliation, the next alchemist stepped forward like a warrior marching to his doom. Stifling his apprehension, he placed his pill onto the tray.

This pill barely passed for a sphere, though its surface remained pockmarked and its color heavily mottled. It appeared to fall somewhere between a waste pill and a low-grade pill.

Yin Shixiu inspected it briefly and discussed it in hushed tones with several association elders before declaring, “As I stated previously, as long as a pill takes shape, one passes this trial. This pill receives forty points.”

The alchemist let out a huge breath of relief and bowed hurriedly. “Thank you, President!”

Only then did he return to his position.

The evaluation continued as the next alchemist stepped forward.

“Forty-five points.”

“Forty-two points.”

...

Shi Yu stood quite far from the front of the stage, so while she was not the absolute last to be evaluated, it would still take a while before her turn arrived among the final few.

By now, over thirty alchemists had received their scores. The highest score so far belonged to an alchemist whose pill formed a complete, proper sphere and qualified as a low-grade pill, earning fifty-three points.

Next to be evaluated was Qin Qingmu.

Moving with graceful, swaying steps, she walked forward and gently placed the pill in her hand onto the tray. “Uncle Yin, please take a look.”

The pill was perfectly round and lustrous, displaying a relatively pure teal color. Plump and smooth, it was quite pleasing to the eye. Furthermore, a fresh, refreshing pill fragrance wafted out, invigorating the minds of all who smelled it.

Perfectly spherical, with pure color and a distinct pill fragrance—this was undeniably a medium-grade pill.

“Not bad.” Yin Shixiu nodded slightly and smiled. “To reconstruct the pill recipe and achieve a medium-grade pill on your very first attempt—you possess fine skill, my niece.”

Qin Qingmu pressed her lips together and hid a smile behind her sleeve. “Uncle Yin flatters me.”

After consulting with several elders, Yin Shixiu announced, “This pill is awarded eighty-one points.”

Eighty-one points! That was a full twenty-eight points higher than the previous high score of fifty-three. The alchemists present gasped in astonishment, turning their eyes toward Qin Qingmu in disbelief.

Praise poured out continuously from the spectator stands below.

“As expected of Miss Qin!”

“Such level of alchemical skill is truly beyond our reach!”

Secretly pleased with herself, Qin Qingmu curtsied before retrieving her pill and returning to her spot.

Yin Shixiu couldn't help but glance toward Yin Wenzhou. Seeing Yin Wenzhou return a confident smile, he gave a subtle nod, averted his gaze, and smiled. “Next.”

After another twenty or so alchemists were evaluated, it was Yin Wenzhou's turn.

Curving his lips into a smile, he presented his refined pill.

The moment Qin Qingmu caught sight of it, the smile on her face faded.

Yin Wenzhou's pill was equally well-shaped and fragrant, undeniably another medium-grade pill.

However, upon closer inspection, its color was even purer than hers, indicating that Yin Wenzhou's pill contained lower amounts of impurities and pill toxicity.

Which was superior was immediately obvious.

The smile on Yin Shixiu's face grew more genuine. Looking at his proud disciple, he praised, “Among medium-grade pills, this one boasts exceptional quality. It receives eighty-eight points.”

An uproar erupted below the stage.

“Experience wins out in the end!”

“Yin Wenzhou is ten years older than Miss Qin. Edging her out slightly isn't surprising—he just has a few more years of experience.”

“Heh, superior skill is superior skill. There's no need to bring up age repeatedly. If you want to talk about age, that young girl from Lingtai Prefecture is only seventeen!”

Yin Wenzhou smiled. With eighty-eight points, his overall score now surpassed Qin Qingmu's, closing the slight gap from the first trial.

He didn't believe anyone remaining could produce a pill of higher quality than his.

Anything higher would enter the realm of high-grade pills.

To refine a high-grade pill without knowing the exact recipe, relying on trial and error on one's very first attempt... that was nothing short of fantasy.

The champion spot of this competition is bound to be mine, Yin Wenzhou thought as he stepped back to his place, brimming with confidence.

Yet his confidence did not last long, for it was now Pei Yanji's turn.

Under the gloomy, unreadable gazes of Yin Shixiu and the others, a pale smile appeared on Pei Yanji's handsome face. Extending his long, slender fingers, he casually tossed a pill onto the tray.

The perfectly round, flawless pill spun a few times on the tray before coming to a stop.

Silence fell. Everyone stared intently at the Mind-Soothing Pill, its teal hue so rich it seemed ready to drip. Its refreshing fragrance permeated the air, lingering stubbornly around their noses.

Moreover... a cloud-like teal halo shrouded the pill, wisps of light swirling gently around it.

Qin Qingmu's eyes widened. Digging her fingernails into her palms in disbelief, she bit her lower lip tightly.

Yin Wenzhou's smile froze on his lips. Staring at the teal halo, he could not tear his eyes away.

Accompanied by a halo... this was a high-grade pill.

The spectator stands were equally silent until someone finally spoke up after a long pause.

“A high-grade pill...?”

“Could that evil cultivator from Wanchou Prefecture actually claim the top spot this time?”

“If that happens, it would be a complete humiliation...”

Most cultivators in Wanchou Prefecture were evil cultivators, ruthless and brutal, with bloodthirsty deeds being commonplace. They frequently raided the border between the two prefectures, creating endless grudges between the regions.

If an alchemist from Wanchou Prefecture truly seized the top spot, Changyuan Prefecture would never be able to hold its head high in the East Continent again.

Killing intent flared in Yin Shixiu's eyes. Yet seeing the faint, fearless smirk on Pei Yanji's face, he knew he could do nothing to him here. If he acted against him under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the reputation of the Alchemy Exchange Conference would be completely ruined.

Furthermore, this competition had far-reaching impact. If he moved against Pei Yanji today, news would reach Wanchou Prefecture tomorrow, pointing their wrath directly at the Hengze Prefecture Alchemist Association and inviting catastrophe upon them.

Taking a deep breath, Yin Shixiu could only declare slowly, “This pill is classified as high-grade. Ninety-two points.”

Hearing this, the corners of Pei Yanji's lips curled into a smirk tinged with mockery and triumph before he turned to walk away.

Heavy with worry, Yin Shixiu exchanged a troubled glance with City Lord Qin Yu, his mind uneasy.

This competition involved the Yanyang Spiritual Realm and the Yanyang Xuancang Flame. Pei Yanji had undoubtedly come for these rewards. If he truly claimed the title of champion... the consequences would be catastrophic.

Inhaling deeply, he spoke with a noticeably heavier tone, “Next.”