The Rich Cultivator

Chapter 776: 776. I am not an Alchemist (1/2)

Tyler quietly handed the four Qi Restoration Pills to the attendants before stepping away from the platform. The judges immediately collected them along with the pills refined by the other contestants. Although countless people wanted to ask Tyler about the strange machine he had used, nobody dared interrupt the competition. Even the judges merely glanced at him from time to time before forcing themselves to continue their work.

The Young beautiful Girls with revealing clothes had already left the arena, leaving behind only the remaining contestants. Compared to the beginning of the competition, less than sixty people were still standing beside their pill cauldrons. The others had either failed because of mistakes during refinement or had their furnaces explode after losing concentration during the Heart-Bewitching Dance.

Many of the eliminated contestants looked depressed.

Some glared at Qin Zhao.

Others looked as though they wanted to rush onto the stage and argue with him.

Qin Zhao noticed their expressions and laughed loudly.

"Originally, those beauties were only meant to liven up the atmosphere. Who would’ve thought so many young fellows would lose themselves so easily?" He stroked his beard with a smile that looked more irritating than kind. "On the bright side, you should thank me. I’ve helped eliminate many of your competitors."

Several eliminated alchemists nearly spat out blood.

"Shameless..."

"How can the chief judge say something like that?"

"If I weren’t afraid of being beaten to death, I’d throw a brick at him."

Their grumbling only made Qin Zhao laugh harder.

The competition soon reached its end.

One after another, the contestants submitted their finished pills. Some proudly carried jade bottles containing perfectly refined pills, while others lowered their heads in disappointment after producing pills full of impurities.

Several judges gathered around a long stone table and began inspecting every submission.

The judges immediately began examining the submitted pills one after another. Jade bottles were opened, medicinal fragrances were tested, and every pill was carefully inspected for purity, weight and medicinal aura. Most batches didn’t remain on the table for long before being pushed aside. The contestants below watched nervously, hardly daring to breathe as they waited for the verdict.

"This batch has too many impurities."

"Seventy-three percent purity."

"Only two pills were successfully refined."

"Failed."

Similar remarks continued to sound from the judging table. Some contestants sighed in disappointment, while others clenched their fists, praying their own pills would receive a better evaluation.

When Tyler’s four emerald-green pills were finally brought over, Qin Zhao personally picked one up. He held it beneath the sunlight for a long moment before scraping away a tiny amount of powder with his fingernail. His relaxed expression gradually became serious, causing the nearby judges to gather around without being asked.

"Hm..."

"Ninety-five percent purity."

The surrounding judges immediately looked at one another.

Qin Zhao picked up another pill before continuing his inspection.

"Four pills from a single batch."

"Every pill is identical in size."

"The medicinal aura is perfectly balanced."

"Almost none of the ingredients were wasted."

The pills were passed from one judge to another. Even the oldest among them nodded after a careful examination. Several contestants stretched their necks, trying to see whose pills had earned such high praise.

"This is undoubtedly the best batch produced today."

A different judge frowned slightly as he looked toward Tyler.

"But these..."

"He relied on that strange machine."

The atmosphere around the judging table immediately became quiet.

Qin Zhao wasn’t surprised by the question. Earlier, while the competition was still underway, he had already inspected Tyler’s strange machine from top to bottom. He glanced toward Tyler, who was calmly standing among the contestants without the slightest trace of nervousness.

"I’ve already examined it."

"He insists it isn’t an artifact."

"What else could it be?"

"He calls it A machine... I don’t understand too.."

The surrounding judges exchanged puzzled looks.

Qin Zhao continued calmly.

"The interior only contains ordinary formations. Heating formations. Moisture-control formations. Drying formations. Mixing formations."

"The formation some alchemists regularly uses for the pill making."

The judges fell silent once again.

The discussion continued for nearly half an hour. Some judges believed Tyler had merely taken advantage of a loophole in the competition rules, while others pointed out that nowhere in the regulations did it state pills had to be refined according to old methods only. As long as the pills were genuine and the contestant hadn’t cheated, there was no reason to disqualify him.

Finally, Qin Zhao lightly tapped the jade table.

"The pills themselves are genuine. Their quality cannot be questioned. The competition rules weren’t violated. His results stand."

No one objected further.

Soon afterward, Qin Zhao returned to the center of the arena. The lively discussions around the square gradually quieted as everyone’s attention shifted back to the stage.

"The judging has concluded."

"We’ll first announce those ranked fourth through tenth."

One name after another was called. The disciples stepped onto the stage in turn, each receiving a small jade bottle containing a drop of Morning Healing Dew, a valuable healing treasure for Qi Refining cultivators. Although they hadn’t entered the top three, every recipient wore a satisfied smile. Simply ranking among the top ten was already enough to bring honor to their sects.

After the applause subsided, Qin Zhao picked up another crystal bottle. Golden liquid shimmered inside like flowing sunlight, instantly attracting every gaze in the arena.

"The third-place winner will receive one drop of diluted Holy Water of Qianyang."

The crowd applauded enthusiastically.

"The second-place winner will receive three drops."

The applause became even louder.

Qin Zhao slowly raised the crystal bottle higher.

"As for the champion..."

"...this bottle contains thirty-six drops of genuine Holy Water of Qianyang."

Even the spectators couldn’t help swallowing.

Thirty-six drops.

That was equivalent to nearly three years of cultivation for someone in the Qi Refining Realm. Such a reward was enough to tempt even many elders.

Just before announcing the rankings, Qin Zhao suddenly smiled.

"However..."

"As always, I’d like our top three contestants to say a few words before we reveal the final results."

The crowd naturally agreed.

The first contestant stepped onto the stage first. He bowed respectfully before talking about the hardships he had experienced while learning alchemy, how his parents had passed away when he was young, how his sick mother had struggled to raise him and his six younger sisters, and how grateful he was to his master for never abandoning him. Quite a few people sighed sympathetically, while others applauded politely after he finished speaking.

The second contestant, a young woman, followed soon afterward. She thanked her sect for nurturing her, her master for teaching her everything she knew, and everyone who had supported her cultivation over the years. Her speech wasn’t particularly long, but it still earned warm applause from the audience.

Finally, Qin Zhao looked toward the last contestant.

"Disciple from the Dark Forest Society."

"It’s your turn."

Tyler calmly walked onto the stage with the strange metal machine beside him. The moment he stepped forward, the square gradually became silent. Unlike the previous two contestants, nobody cared about Tyler’s background or the hardships he had overcome. Every pair of eyes was fixed on the machine standing quietly beside him.

What exactly was that thing?

That single question lingered in everyone’s mind.

Tyler slowly swept his gaze across the crowd. Seeing thousands of curious eyes staring at him, he couldn’t help smiling beneath the skeleton mask. He rested one hand on the machine and waited until the last whispers disappeared before speaking.

"I think everyone here wants the answer to the same question."

He lightly patted the metal casing.

"You’re wondering what this thing is."

The square became so quiet that even breathing could be heard.

Tyler waited another moment before continuing.

"So before anything else..."

"Let me clear up one misunderstanding."

He looked at the countless cultivators before him and spoke in an unhurried voice.

"I’m not an alchemist."

The words had barely left his mouth before the entire square erupted into an uproar.