Chapter 158: Chapter 158 - Unconventional Alchemy
However, at this moment, I wasn’t fully confident deep down inside. From last night until now, my strength had recovered by at most 30%. Without support from my qi, my alchemy technique would drop drastically.
"There shouldn’t be any problems," I looked at the people on the stage and murmured softly.
Time flew by as the selection went through round after round. Lucian River’s disciple remained in the competition, consistently advancing with overwhelming force. After nearly a morning, the selection finally concluded. Other than Lucian’s disciple, three more contestants were chosen. Altogether, there were five people, including me, to participate in the selection.
During the noon break, Elder Drake and I found a place to eat lunch casually.
At this time, Lucian was sitting in a restaurant with the rest of the judges and his disciple.
"Morgan, come in and sit down," Lucian waved to his disciple.
The youth named Morgan Barry quickly entered the room and greeted everyone politely, "Greetings to all the judges."
"Hehe, young Morgan, you don’t need to be so polite."
"Yes, your technique really surprised all of us."
"Indeed, your skill is not inferior to your Master Lucian!"
Lucian even boasted, "To be frank, Morgan has long surpassed me, the student surpassing the master!"
Morgan sat aside in silence, a hint of pride on his face.
After lunch, a few judges left first. Lucian, on the other hand, pulled Morgan aside and said solemnly, "Morgan, you need to pay special attention to Mason Raymond. He’s not a simple opponent."
Morgan replied nonchalantly, "I know him; he’s just a fighter, not worth mentioning. I can defeat him without breaking a sweat!"
Lucian’s expression turned serious. "Morgan, I believe in your strength, but Mason Raymond is not to be underestimated. You must give it your all. Do you understand? Your Master will also assist you secretly."
Morgan laughed, "Master, I told you, I don’t need your help. I can easily defeat him!"
Lucian’s brow furrowed, about to say something when Morgan waved him off. Then, Morgan spread his palm open. Astonishingly, a wisp of spiritual fire started to gather in his hand.
Seeing this fire, Lucian’s pupils shrank instantly, and he shot up on his feet!
"This... is spiritual fire?" Lucian swallowed and his eyes filled with fervor!
Morgan smiled lightly, "That’s right, Master. Now you know why I’m so confident, don’t you?"
Lucian excitedly said, "I knew I wasn’t wrong about you, Morgan. You’re a genius!"
To Lucian, spiritual fire was something one could only hope for but never attain. He had tried his whole life but was never able to produce spiritual fire, only to discover his disciple had already mastered it!
Morgan smiled faintly, "Master, just wait and see how I defeat him."
With that, Morgan turned and walked out of the room.
In the afternoon, the Traditional Medicine Conference finals officially began. To my surprise, the final competition was completely different from the previous rounds, as the venue was almost filled with people! Many nobles and officials had come to watch, with countless martial arts experts hidden in the shadows.
I raised an eyebrow and quickly understood. These nobles and officials also wanted to win the favor of alchemists and seize opportunities to court them.
"Mr. Raymond, it’s up to you now," Elder Drake said excitedly.
I nodded and smiled, "Elder Drake, don’t worry."
After saying that, I walked straight towards the stage. Coincidentally, Morgan was standing right next to me, the distance between us no more than two meters.
"You’re Mason Raymond?" Morgan glanced at me and asked indifferently.
With my eyes slightly closed, I didn’t bother to respond.
Morgan didn’t get angry; he sneered, "You insulted my master, didn’t you?"
Still, I paid no attention, just closing my eyes to conserve my energy and recover my qi.
"Hmph, putting on airs," Morgan couldn’t help but snort.
"I declare, the Traditional Medicine Conference finals begin now!" At this moment, the host stepped up on stage and shouted!
Following the shout, several people brought up baskets filled with herbs for the contestants to use.
I glanced at my own basket and frowned. That’s because the herbs in my basket were almost discarded! They had hardly any qi left, and their medicinal effects were nearly depleted!
My face turned cold, and I couldn’t help but glance at Lucian, sitting below the stage. As expected, a smug smile hung on Lucian’s face as he provocatively looked at me.
"What a despicable and petty person," I murmured in my heart.
"The competition lasts one hour, and judges will determine the winner afterward! Begin!" the host announced loudly.
After the announcement, the contestants on stage started to refine the medicine quickly. Morgan on the side did the same; he skillfully threw herbs into the vessel and then glanced at me.
I alone stood still, my brows furrowed and not moving at all. This was because these herbs were unusable.
"I wonder how you’re going to win!" Lucian laughed coldly.
I took a deep breath and whispered, "It seems I have no choice but to use that method."
After saying that, I dumped the discarded herbs into the vessel all at once. Then, I poured in water, lit a fire, and began to make the medicine.
The audience below the stage couldn’t help but frown, "What kind of method is this? Throwing all the herbs in together as if boiling everything in one pot?"
"I think this kid doesn’t know how to refine medicine at all. Does he think he’s stewing pork?"
"I heard that the Soul Nourishment Pill was made by him, but I bet he’s lying."
Lucian couldn’t help but burst into laughter. "Is he giving up on himself? Hahaha, I’ve never seen such a method!" Lucian sneered continuously. At the same time, Lucian felt relieved in his heart. In this way, I wouldn’t be able to blame the quality of the herbs on him!
Hearing the surrounding comments, I remained silent, only focusing on increasing the fire to quickly turn the herbs into a mush.
Soon, the herbs in my vessel turned into a sticky paste without any trace of medicinal fragrance.
"Mason, with all the medicinal effects escaping because of this method, is there any reason to continue?" Morgan sneered beside me.
I didn’t say anything and just stared at the mushy herbs.
"Hehe, as expected, you’re nothing but a paper tiger. You might as well get off the stage now and stop making a fool of yourself!" Morgan continued to mock.
I glanced at him and sneered, "It’s true that I have an undeserved reputation, but beating you shouldn’t be a problem."
After saying that, I suddenly raised my hand and plunged it directly into the mushy herbs! Waves of qi surged from my palm into the mixture! In an instant, the mushy herbs turned a light blue color!
