"Congratulations, Elder Ming Deng. The Water Moon Sect has produced another refining genius!"
Elder Tan smiled as he cupped his hands, clearly intending to foster a good relationship between the younger generation of direct disciples from the Beast Taming Sect and the Water Moon Sect.
Elder Ming Deng stroked his beard and smiled, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes. "One shouldn't put it like that. Liu Qingyang and the others are the true geniuses of our Water Moon Sect."
"Well said, hahaha! It seems the top three spots in refining will be swept by your sect."
As Elder Ming Deng listened to the praise from the other sect elders, his gaze unconsciously drifted toward Elder Ji and Hua Xiangrong.
These two female cultivators merely smiled without speaking. They gently waved their round fans, their eyes moving back and forth between Jiang Yifan and Chu Chenzhou.
His smile stiffened for a moment before he let out a soft huff. "Of course, the competition isn't over yet. It's too early to draw conclusions."
Hua Xiangrong used her round fan to cover half of her face, revealing only a pair of smiling eyes. "Elder Ming Deng is right. After all..." She looked meaningfully toward Jiang Yifan. "Martial Nephew Jiang from the Five Elements Dao Sect is also quite extraordinary."
Elder Ji nodded slightly, her fingertip brushing the rim of her teacup. "Indeed. Martial Nephew Jiang's refining technique... is very special."
Elder Ming Deng's expression turned somewhat sour, but he couldn't lash out. Even though Elder Ji had been in seclusion within the Shenmu Sect for many years and rarely appeared in the cultivation world, she was still a recognized titan in the Dao of alchemy. Now that she had finally made an appearance, he naturally couldn't afford to offend her.
As for Hua Xiangrong... the Hehuan Sect's interest in the Five Elements Dao Sect was practically written all over her face.
But then again, Jiang Yifan's refining technique was indeed baffling—he didn't seem to be refining an offensive magic tool, nor did he seem to be making defensive or auxiliary ones. Instead, it was more like...
"What on earth is he refining?" Elder Ming Deng couldn't help but mutter under his breath.
In the arena, Jiang Yifan's movements remained steady.
With a light tap of his fingertip, the scarlet flame crystal in the small furnace on the right suddenly erupted with a brilliant red light.
The crystal slowly softened within the flames, and fine cracks appeared on its surface, with crimson liquid flowing through each one.
"The scarlet flame crystal is going to explode!" an experienced disciple at the edge of the arena cried out.
Sure enough, the scarlet crystal began to vibrate violently, looking as if it would burst apart at any moment!
At this critical juncture, Jiang Yifan performed a hand seal with his left hand, sending another bolt of fiery-red spiritual energy into the furnace.
"It's going to explode! Get back!" a disciple screamed in terror, and the crowd immediately fell into a commotion.
A few cowardly cultivators had already begun casting escape spells, ready to flee at a moment's notice, completely forgetting that the arena was protected by an array.
At the judges' table, Elder Tan suddenly stood up, a protective spell condensing in his hand. Even Elder Ji leaned forward slightly, spiritual light shimmering at her fingertips.
Screech—
The scarlet flame crystal burst with a blinding red glare. The entire refining furnace shook violently, and a searing heatwave swept out, causing the robes of the nearby disciples to flutter wildly.
"This..." the round-faced cultivator's face was deathly pale. "This isn't going to kill someone, is it?"
A flash of joy appeared in the purple-robed cultivator's eyes. "Explode! Good! This means our bet..."
His words stopped abruptly.
In the arena, Jiang Yifan's figure remained as steady as a rock.
That seemingly explosive crimson spiritual energy was actually being guided by his exquisite technique, forming a perfect cycle within the furnace.
The cracks on the crystal's surface stopped spreading, and even the liquid inside didn't leak out. Instead, it was bound inside the crystal by some invisible force, flowing slowly.
"This..." Elder Ming Deng's teacup froze mid-air. "He actually used the erupting spiritual energy to..."
"Catalytic refinement!" Elder Ji's voice was filled with wonder. "What daring!"
At the side, the disciples from the Qingxia Sect were stunned.
The round-faced cultivator's mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. The purple-robed cultivator's expression shifted from joy to shock, then from shock to fear, and finally turned ashen.
"He... he actually..." the round-faced cultivator stammered. "He can even control an explosion..."
Jiang Yifan was oblivious to what was happening outside. At this moment, all his attention was focused on the furnace, his fingertips flickering with spiritual light as he guided that rampaging energy.
Gradually, the scarlet flame crystal melted completely, turning into a sphere of crimson-gold liquid that rotated slowly within the furnace.
At the same time, the purple cloud iron in the left furnace was also undergoing a transformation.
The originally hard block of iron gradually extended within the flames, its surface covered in fine purple patterns.
Just when everyone thought he would merge and refine them directly, Jiang Yifan took a handful of translucent powder from his storage bag and lightly sprinkled it into the left furnace.
The moment the powder touched the purple cloud iron, those purple patterns suddenly lit up.
"Starlight sand!" Elder Chang Yan's eyes lit up. "He's actually using starlight sand to stabilize the spiritual energy fluctuations of the purple cloud iron..."
Before he could finish, Jiang Yifan moved his left hand simultaneously, pouring three drops of transparent liquid from a jade bottle at his waist into the right furnace.
The moment the liquid touched the scarlet flame crystal fluid, the molten lava suddenly solidified, turning into fine red crystal threads that wove into a net within the liquid.
The disciples who had bet against Li Nanzhu were already dazed.
The round-faced cultivator's mouth was wide enough to fit a spirit fruit. "What... what is he doing..."
The purple-robed cultivator forced himself to stay calm. "What... what's there to be afraid of? It's just some fancy tricks..."
But his voice grew quieter and quieter because, in the arena, Jiang Yifan suddenly pressed his palms together, causing the flames from both furnaces to briefly merge.
This momentary convergence caused subtle changes in both the scarlet flame crystal fluid and the purple cloud iron—the red crystal threads in the scarlet flame crystal fluid suddenly extended, while the cloud patterns on the purple cloud iron became even clearer.
"I see, I see!" This time, even Elder Ming Deng, who loved finding faults the most, couldn't help but praise him.
They had never considered this kind of refining logic—using common starlight sand to harmonize the properties of top-tier materials, and then using rare cold marrow jade liquid to balance them. It saved materials while achieving the best effect.
At the side, Duan Xianxing looked at the shocked faces on the judges' table and couldn't help but straighten his back. "Look at the expressions on those elders!"
Mu Wenyan's face was also full of relief. "Fourth Junior Brother's move is indeed unexpected."
In the arena, under Jiang Yifan's control, the scarlet flame crystal fluid and the purple cloud iron both split into thirty-six metal threads. They connected with precision in the air, and the moment they touched, they fused together automatically.
As the furnace fire flickered, one spirit pearl after another began to be refined, each gleaming with a strange luster.
Elder Chang Yan took a deep breath. "More spirit pearls? Is it still a consumable magic tool?"
Hua Xiangrong gently waved her round fan. "But looking at this spiritual energy fluctuation... it's at least a tier 4 mid-grade starting point..."
"But a tier 4 explosive magic tool?" Elder Tan shook his head. "This grade of magic tool is only the minimum standard for scoring."
Elder Ji also nodded. "With Martial Nephew Jiang's level, he shouldn't stop here."
While the elders on the judges' table were discussing fervently, Jiang Yifan actually sat down cross-legged, formed a hand seal, and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.
Was he continuing the competition or not?
Rate on N.U.
