Several people looked at Hei Xiangling at the same time, including Xiao Yichen who was not far away.

"I'm so sorry..."

"What are you doing? Sister Xiangling, you can even choke on your tea."

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Hei Xiangling wiped the tea from the corner of her mouth, thinking to herself, "That Feng Ling'er actually dared to compete with a girl in alchemy. What's the difference between that and just throwing points at her?"

The arena immediately became noisy.

"Feng Ling'er, you're really going too far!"

"Exactly, alchemy is of course what their Pill Sect excels at. How dare they let a formation master compete with her in alchemy? Isn't this blatant bullying of a freshman?"

"Yeah, agreeing to her is no different from admitting defeat on the spot!"

"That's right, but only a fool would agree to such an unreasonable request!"

"······"

Feng Ling'er was quite strong, and she naturally heard what the people below the stage were saying. Her face immediately turned red, but she had no choice but to do so in order to get into the top ten.

She was about the same age as her elder sister, Feng Qingxue. When Feng Qingxue was forced to marry, she was also forced to marry someone she didn't like. But unlike Feng Qingxue, she was the future head of the Feng family, while she was just a concubine's daughter.

To avoid being forced into marriage, she made a bet with her father before she arrived: if she didn't make it into the top ten of the ladder competition this time, she would have to obediently get married. But now that she's just one step away, how could she possibly give up?

"How was it, Junior Sister Lan?"

Feng Ling'er continued to ask, though she herself was unsure.

"Alright, let's refine the pills."

Ji Jiuying remained calm and unaffected, while Feng Ling'er was overjoyed, not expecting her to actually agree.

However, the audience was in an uproar.

"Holy crap, is Lan Xi stupid?"

"It's over... It's over again that our Array Sect is going to lose another spot."

Leng Qingqing sneered, "What a fool. What a waste of a spot."

"······"

"Lan Zhao, is Lan Xi an alchemist?"

Some persistent people approached Lan Zhao and asked him questions, since Lan Xi was his sister and he naturally knew about her situation.

Lan Zhao recalled that when they were in the Wind and Cloud Secret Realm, Xiao Huang'er took out the pills to save Jiang Xin, and she ate those Saint-level pills without any hesitation. He guessed that she was an alchemist, but he had never seen her refine pills, so this was just his guess.

"Can't you see for yourselves?" Lan Zhao said coldly. It was clear that Lan Zhao didn't want to say more, and these people didn't dare to ask any more questions.

Lan Zhao glanced at these people out of the corner of his eye, thinking, "I want you to be completely unpredictable."

Dong Li Shen narrowed his eyes: "Yue Hua, could this girl be an alchemist?"

Yuehua's gaze fell on Ji Jiuying, and she shook her head: "Actually, I'm not really sure either."

A glint flashed in Dong Li's eyes. If she had the talent for alchemy, he would have to recruit her to the Pill Sect.

"Since I chose to refine the pills, then you, Junior Sister Lan, can choose which pills to refine, so you won't say I'm bullying you," Feng Ling'er said, suppressing her joy and feigning calmness.

"Then let's refine the Spirit Ascension Pill!"

Everyone froze in place again. Lan Xi was truly dumbfounded. Even Feng Ling'er was stunned. The Spirit Ascension Pill was the most basic pill. Even a novice alchemist could refine it with their eyes closed.

This made Feng Ling'er even more confident. It was just an ordinary life-giving pill, which she could easily obtain. She was sure to win this competition.

"Alright, since everything's settled, let's begin!"

Elder Fu spoke up.

The two took out their respective alchemy furnaces. When Ji Jiuying took out the Nine Nether Cauldron, many people in the audience could tell that the Nine Nether Cauldron was not simple, especially since it exuded a powerful aura.

However, since the cauldron looked ordinary, ordinary spiritual cultivators could not sense its difference at all. But Feng Ling'er's alchemy furnace seemed to be under some kind of pressure and trembled. Feng Ling'er frowned. What was going on?

Her gaze fell on the alchemy furnace in front of Ji Jiuying. Could it be that her alchemy furnace was taller than Ji Jiuying's, thus suppressing her aura?

Feng Ling'er gathered spiritual energy in her hands and poured it into the alchemy furnace. Soon, the alchemy furnace returned to its original state. However, she did not know that if Ji Jiuying had not asked the Nine Nether Cauldron to suppress its aura, not only would the pressure have been calmed, but her alchemy furnace would probably have exploded on the spot.

"Hiss, it seems that Feng Ling'er's alchemy furnace was suppressed by Lan Xi's alchemy furnace just now."

"Only alchemists have alchemy furnaces, could it be that Lan Xi is also an alchemist?"

“That goes without saying. Look at her skillful technique; she doesn’t seem like a novice alchemist.”

"······"

The people below the stage were buzzing with discussion, while those from the Array Sect gradually breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out that Junior Sister Lan really was an alchemist; no wonder she agreed to Feng Ling'er's request. They had misunderstood her earlier.

Listening to the discussions below the stage, Feng Ling'er thought to herself, "So what if her alchemy furnace is more advanced than hers? I don't believe that the pills she refines can be as advanced or perfect as hers. If she were really good at alchemy, she wouldn't have gone to the Array Sect."

The two were some distance apart to prevent the spiritual fire and the elixir energy from clashing and affecting each other.

Feng Ling'er had already started a fire, while Ji Jiuying was still slowly and methodically arranging the medicinal herbs. This scene once again made everyone hold their breath for her.

"Does Lanxi even know how to do it? Why is she so slow? I'm getting anxious for her!"

"You're going, but you're not going?"

"you······"

Bai Lisha watched Ji Jiuying's actions curiously: "Why isn't Xiao Jiuying in a hurry at all?"

Hei Xiangling smiled mysteriously: "You'll see how formidable that girl is in a moment."

Hua Li watched Ji Jiu Ying's actions intently, while Le Ran, who was leaning against the side, had already fallen fast asleep.

"This little beauty is always so calm and unhurried, no matter what kind of pill she's refining. Back in the Demon Realm, when she was refining the Nine Revolutions Universe Pill for you, those spiritual herbs were like weeds that could be seen anywhere on the ground in her hands. She just threw them all into the alchemy furnace. You have no idea how panicked I was at that time," Si Yu said quietly.

Gong Mingyue pursed his lips, recalling the pain he had endured outside the Demon Realm barrier. His gaze fell on the slender figure on the arena, and a pang of heartache flashed in his eyes.

When the alchemy furnace of Feng Ling'er began to gurgle, Ji Jiuying finally finished processing the medicinal herbs.

roar!

When a flame appeared in her palm, the spiritual fire on Feng Ling'er's side was instantly extinguished. This scene stunned everyone. Although the Spirit Ascension Pill is a basic pill, in the process of refining pills, once the spiritual fire is extinguished, it means that the pill in the furnace has failed.

Several sect leaders, as well as Bai Ling Shen Zun and Hua Li, were also stunned and stared at the flame in Ji Jiu Ying's hand. It was one of the divine flames, the Nine Heavens Profound Flame.

A hint of surprise flashed in Xiao Yichen's eyes, but he quickly concealed it. This girl was truly blessed by heaven, constantly surprising him.