Shi Xuan smiled and retorted, "What was the topic I drew? It was the Lightning-Attracting Pill! What does the Lightning-Attracting Pill do? It attracts lightning! Did I attract lightning? Yes! Is there a problem? There are countless pills in this world. Even different alchemists on the same continent may have different formulas for refining the same pill. I've only ever heard of pills being rejected because of their weak effects, but I've never heard of pills being rejected because of their strong effects!"
"Who rejected you!" Fan Hongde roared. "I only said that the pills you refined did not match the formula!"
"That wouldn't be right. Pill formulas aren't standardized. If you insist on using the same formula, you must specify exactly which version or which alchemist compiled it. Otherwise, if I refine it and it works, then it will naturally meet the requirements."
Whether it fits or not is not up to you to decide!
Fan Hongde was about to speak again when Shu Yuanguan stepped forward, unusually serious, and said, "I think it's perfectly acceptable! And it's not just acceptable, it's outstanding! Originally, we only requested a fourth-grade Lightning-Attracting Pill, but look at the Lightning-Attracting Pill that Shi Xuan refined; it has already reached the quality of a fifth-grade pill. If it were to drop from fourth-grade to third-grade, you could say she wouldn't pass the test, but if it's to go from fifth-grade to fifth-grade, how can you say she wouldn't pass the test!"
"but……"
Fan Hongde still refused to budge, but unexpectedly, Feng Hanmo, the sect leader of Langya Sect, spoke up at this moment. He slowly said, "Everyone, instead of getting bogged down in whether the pills this disciple refined are up to standard, we should think about the original intention of our Six Sects Grand Competition. Have we been gone for too long and forgotten our initial purpose?!"
Feng Hanmo's words struck a chord with the group of two- or three-hundred-year-old men, causing them to shudder.
In order to revive the cultivation world and encourage more outstanding disciples, the six sects jointly established this grand competition that allows disciples to compete in a healthy way.
Initially, innovative disciples were highly encouraged, as their comprehension and creativity were seen as the hope for revitalizing the cultivation world. Innovative disciples were more favored by the judges and achieved higher scores than those who followed the established methods.
But since when did innovation become a mistake? Yet disciples are required to copy a fixed format without any change!
This is more than just forgetting our original intentions; if our ancestors knew about this, they would surely show up and scold us.
Apart from Fan Hongde, the other judges looked ashamed. After hearing what Fan Hongde said, they had also wondered whether this unprecedented pill could be defined as the Lightning-Attracting Pill.
Feng Hanmo's words awakened the group. Even if Fan Hongde wanted to object, it was too late. Everyone agreed with Feng Hanmo's statement and recalled the original significance of the Six Sects Competition.
Fan Hongde was aware of this, but he simply didn't want the Divine Cauldron Sect to leave behind such an unsightly record in alchemy competitions under his leadership.
He only won one championship out of the three groups: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, and Golden Core. He couldn't accept this reality!
Why did Shi Xuan appear in this world? Everything started to change because of Shi Xuan! Or, if Shi Xuan were still a disciple of their Divine Cauldron Sect... then everything would be completely different.
Think about how much she respected him as her master when she was in the Divine Cauldron Sect. She always thought of her master first when she got something good. How different she is now, always going against him.
If she were still in the Divine Cauldron Sect, how many outstanding alchemists would have emerged from their generation!
Thinking about these things now is useless. The matter of changing spiritual roots is a done deal and can no longer be changed. The relationship between the two has also changed from master and disciple to irreconcilable enemies.
He had no choice but to accept this outcome.
After one round of competition, during the intermission, Fan Hongde called Fan Mingzhu aside and gave her a few words of advice. Fan Mingzhu nodded, glancing unfriendly at Shi Xuan.
Soon, the second round of the competition began. This round was similar to the second round of the Foundation Establishment stage. Participants selected the pills they were best at refining from the material packs they were given, and the judges would then evaluate the results to determine the winners.
To be fair, everyone was provided with the same material package. Shi Xuan glanced at it and saw that there were many pills that could be combined. After thinking for a moment, she chose a fifth-order pill that was not commonly used but that she could use: the Returning Spirit Pill, which nourishes the spiritual root.
Fan Mingzhu passed the previous round with a mediocre score, and luckily, the pill she chose happened to be the most basic third-tier pill.
She already knew that she was definitely not outstanding among these alchemy disciples, and it was probably impossible for her to get a ranking.
So when Fan Hongde asked her to do something just now, she had no regrets about her alchemy results.
Shi Xuan's Tianyuan Furnace had already begun to heat up, and Fan Mingzhu was doing the same thing, but seemed somewhat distracted.
Shi Xuan had already prepared the materials. This time, she was refining a fifth-grade pill, which was something that could only be barely refined in the late stage of the Golden Core realm. However, Shi Xuan was already capable of it. If she didn't care about the reaction of her spiritual root, she could even refine a sixth-grade pill.
The materials were processed perfectly, and Shi Xuan was very satisfied. He put the processed materials into the alchemy furnace, and as usual, enveloped them with his divine sense and suppressed them with spiritual power.
After processing, the materials were dissolved in the Tianyuan Dan Furnace under Shi Xuan's skilled operation, and then impurities were gradually removed and medicinal properties were released as the furnace rotated.
Everything was just right. The half-formed Returning Spirit Pill was becoming more and more pure and round, and a faint medicinal fragrance was wafting out from the furnace.
The atmosphere on the field was extremely tense. If the Golden Core stage alchemists wanted to win, they would inevitably choose the highest-grade pills they could refine. This meant that everyone had to concentrate and could not afford any mistakes.
Apart from Fan Mingzhu.
She actually chose an extremely simple second-tier pill and processed it at a leisurely pace.
The judges in the stands frowned as they watched. In a Golden Core stage competition, even if a top-grade pill was produced, there was no chance of winning unless someone like Shi Xuan could refine a Dao Seal pill.
But Fan Mingzhu on the field didn't seem worried.
Her attention was focused on Shi Xuan.
From the moment Shi Xuan finished processing the materials and began refining the pills, Fan Mingzhu's divine sense had been faintly drifting over Shi Xuan's pill furnace.
She didn't dare get too close, afraid of being discovered by Shi Xuan, so she just lingered at a distance.
She was also observing Shi Xuan's expression. When Shi Xuan was relaxed, it seemed like he was in the easiest situation; when Shi Xuan's face was tense, it seemed like he was dealing with a more difficult situation...
An hour passed in the blink of an eye, and Shi Xuan suddenly looked tense. She stared intently at the alchemy furnace, not blinking, as if afraid of missing any movement inside.
Judging from her expression, she must be at the most crucial moment.
Now!
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