In the results announced afterward, the highest score was only seventy-nine. No one managed to surpass Dan Qing and Ji Luoyu.
In the end, among all the alchemists participating in the competition, only two remained who hadn’t undergone the test.
One of them was Ling Xiao.
The other was an exceedingly unattractive girl.
Her face was almost entirely contorted, and few people were willing to look at her twice.
"I used to hear that you alchemists from the land were the orthodox practitioners, and your skills should be unparalleled. But judging from today, your reputation is nothing but empty boast!"
Just as people’s attention turned toward Ling Xiao, the girl spoke up.
Her words were essentially a direct challenge to all the alchemists present.
Everyone knew that aside from the Sea Race, other races all lived on land. Her remark was essentially an insult to everyone present, including dicine King Sun Ran.
"You nasty brat, what did you just say?"
Dan Qing was the first to react with indignation.
He could tolerate Ling Xiao provoking him; after all, Ling Xiao had the backing of many powerful figures. But for such an exceedingly unattractive woman to challenge him—what gave her the audacity?
"I said you’re all useless!"
The girl cast a disdainful glance at Dan Qing, then placed her pill into the chanical Bird’s mouth. "I’ll show you that the best alchemist in the Mysterious World doesn’t belong to the land races but rather to us, the Sea Race!"
"Arrogant nonsense!"
Dan Qing sneered, clearly unimpressed.
The Sea Race girl appeared to be about the sa age as Ji Luoyu; given her youth, how could she surpass them without guidance from a renowned master?
"That Sea Race girl isn’t simple."
Ji Qing’s expression suddenly turned serious.
Dan Qing might not have detected the girl’s true capabilities, but Ji Qing, being both an Alchemy Master and a formidable Yin-Yang Realm cultivator, certainly could.
"Indeed. If my observation is correct, her alchemical fla appears to be the ’Deep Sea Demonic Fla,’ derived from the Taiyin Cold Fire. While it doesn’t reach the level of Divine Fire, it definitely falls into the tier of Immortal Fire.
The four ranks of flas are Ordinary Fire, Unique Fire, Immortal Fire, and Divine Fire (or Sacred Fire).
To martial artists, having a fire-related Martial Soul isn’t necessarily indispensable, but for alchemists, this knowledge is mandatory.
Dan Qing and Luo Yu only used Unique Fire, while the majority of others relied rely on Ordinary Fire for alchemy.
Her Immortal Fire is clearly superior.
Moreover, this girl possesses extraordinarily strong soul power. For alchemists, robust soul power allows for better communication with pills and more precise control over the process.
If my observation is accurate, this girl’s soul power is unmatched among her peers. It might even exceed what I had in my pri."
dicine King Sun Ran spoke solemnly, "She surpasses Dan Qing and Ji Luoyu, and even Ling Xiao."
"I’d agree."
Ji Qing nodded in affirmation.
"Surely not? From what you two are saying, can she truly break through the eighty-point limit?"
Jackson Le Grandmaster, though knowledgeable in alchemy, wasn’t an expert.
"Grandmaster, they’re right. This girl is indeed exceptional. Judging by her emblem, she’s most likely from the Water Temple."
The fourth judge, the leading alchemist from Changle Immortal Island, chid in.
Being of lower status than Sun Ran and Ji Qing, he usually refrained from speaking. However, since Jackson Le had asked, he provided an answer.
As they conversed, the chaotic testing site suddenly fell silent.
Countless pairs of eyes stared in astonishnt at the ranking displayed on the Jade Bi—
Tianhai Zhen Zhu: 100 points!
A hundred points was a perfect score, indicating that the effectiveness of the pill Tianhai Zhen Zhu had refined had reached ten full asures.
Even dicine King Sun Ran furrowed his brow.
He had previously stated that eighty points was the ceiling for this test.
And yet, today, soone had achieved a perfect score.
At that mont, Ling Xiao slowly opened his eyes. The sudden silence in the environnt caught him off guard; he wanted to see what was going on.
Spotting the score on the Jade Bi, he froze briefly, then chuckled.
He had long known that Dan Qing and Ji Luoyu weren’t his opponents and had always regarded the alchemy competition as little more than a formality, sothing uninteresting.
But now, he suddenly felt a surge of excitent.
A real opponent had appeared.
He didn’t care who this girl was or what her identity might be—so long as she could challenge him, that was enough.
Through the Tai Chi Eye, he could discern the woman’s true appearance.
The grotesque exterior was rely a disguise; in truth, her looks were no less stunning than those of Ji Luoyu or Fengming Piaoxue.
Perhaps noticing Ling Xiao staring at her,
Tianhai Zhen Zhu turned her gaze toward Ling Xiao, her eyes brimming with icy disdain and animosity.
This left Ling Xiao mildly surprised.
He had never t this person before—why did she harbor such hostility toward him?
But as he thought it through further, Ling Xiao started to understand.
He was the Heavenly Emperor, the one who single-handedly destroyed the up-and-coming New True Demon Empire.
As a mber of the Sea Race, Tianhai Zhen Zhu had so reason to detest him.
But even his reasoning wasn’t thorough enough.
Tianhai Zhen Zhu’s animosity stemd not only from her Sea Race heritage but also from the Water Temple.
Ling Xiao had annihilated the One-eyed Pirate Group in Cri City and subsequently subdued the Twin Flowers Pirate Group, effectively dismantling a region of influence belonging to the Water Temple.
Though the Water Temple hadn’t initiated an all-out war, their hostility toward Ling Xiao was unavoidable.
anwhile, Representative Yan in the audience was particularly excited.
Although this Sea Race girl’s cultivation level wasn’t as high as his, as an alchemist, she was currently the most exceptional among the young generation of the Water Temple.
As long as she participated, Ling Xiao would have no chance of winning the championship in the alchemy competition.
Though they couldn’t yet eliminate Ling Xiao outright, throwing obstacles in his path was certainly achievable.
"We actually lost to a mber of the Sea Race!"
Dan Qing and Ji Luoyu exchanged glances, feeling a profound sense of anger and frustration.
Even though the land-dwelling races weren’t particularly united, they usually rallied together against the Sea Race.
If today’s alchemy competition crowned Ling Xiao as champion, that would be acceptable to them. But having the title snatched by soone from the Sea Race—that would be utterly humiliating.
"What a dark horse!"
Jackson Le Grandmaster let out a bitter laugh. Though he wasn’t highly knowledgeable about the intricacies of alchemy, the fact that Tianhai Zhen Zhu scored perfectly in the first round suggested her creativity rivaled even dicine King Sun Ran’s.
Who could possibly be her opponent?
Ling Xiao? Could he succeed?
The odds seed slim.
"I told you, you land-dwelling races are all worthless! You ought to bow before us Sea Race!"
Tianhai Zhen Zhu stood proudly, the wind tousling her hair. Though her appearance was grotesque, her deanor radiated both arrogance and dominance.
Dan Qing refused to concede.
Ji Luoyu refused to concede.
But neither of them said anything, as their defeat in the first round was clear enough, and their loss to Tianhai Zhen Zhu was absolute.
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