Cultivating Disciples to Breakthrough

Having completed the challenge that required her to make a pill, Qing Yi soon passed through a few more challenges, with nothing too hard. However, Qing Yi still began to worry, as she only had one hour left and had yet to find her way out of the maze.

Not to mention finding her way out of the maze, Qing Yi did not even have any idea if there was anything special about the different paths that would indicate that they led towards the exit!

So, all she could do, was try and complete as many challenges as possible and hope to find the way out…

…

"Another time consuming one…"

Looking towards the three different challenges that had appeared in front of her, Qing Yi could not help but smile wryly as she realized that every single one of the challenges were incredibly time consuming.

One of the challenges was for her to concoct a Spirit Grade Pill. Another wanted her to brew a Spirit Grade Potion, while the last of the three challenges wanted her to make both an Earth Grade Pill and an Earth Grade Potion!

No matter how she looked at it, Qing Yi felt that she would only have time to make a single pill or potion. So, without thinking too much about, Qing Yi decided to make the Spirit Grade Potion.

It was after all what she would be most comfortable with and have the easiest time making…

"I wonder what kind of potion it will be…" Muttering this to herself as she made her way over towards the challenge, Qing Yi soon spotted the all too familiar cauldron and other alchemy tools.

Reading through the challenge that was neatly described by a few words on a nearby wall of mist, Qing Yi could not help but let out a sigh of relief.

The challenge only wanted a Spirit Grade Potion made, there was no requirement for a specific potion or anything along that line. On the other hand, there was even a few recipes for different Spirit Grade Potions laid out on a small table that all used the spiritual herbs present for her!

Given that she had just recently become an Expert Alchemist and she did not really know too many Spirit Grade Potion Recipes outside of the one she had used to breakthrough to the Expert Realm. So, the fact that there were recipes present for her was a god sent helping hand.

As without it, she really had no idea what to do, if she ended up not knowing any Spirit Grade Potion Recipes using the spiritual herbs, she had been given for the challenge…

Feeling that the challenge would not be too hard for her to complete, Qing Yi let out a sigh of relief as she began reading over the recipes before deciding on which potion she wanted to make.

However, at this moment, Qing Yi slowly began to realize that things would not be as easy as she had expected and the Reason for this was simple…

All the recipes on the small table were for higher level Spirit Grade Potions! Not a single one of them were for early-stage Expert Alchemists like herself, like she had secretly hoped for!

<br/>Let alone making such a potion on the first try, Qing Yi even doubted that she would be able to make such a potion without a time limit!

…

Able to see what was happening inside the alchemy trial, Xuan Hao had also read what Qing Yi's challenge was about and could not help but grow a bit nervous for his disciple. After all, she only had around one hour left to make a completely unfamiliar Spirit Grade Potion!

And from the look on her face, Xuan Hao could instantly tell that it would not be an easy one… At the very least he already knew that his disciple had reached the last challenge, as long as she managed to pass through her current challenge, she would successfully manage to pass through the third test and move on to the fourth test!

Only two people had made it to the fourth test so far, the young girl and the crown prince of the Dark Sky Kingdom…

Not only would she be able to move on to the fourth test of the alchemy trial if she made it through the current challenge, but she would also directly enter the top three in the alchemy competition!

"Qing Yi! You have to make it!"

"Go Qing Yi! If you can make it through the third test, I will give you a few spiritual herbs from my personal collection when we get back!"

"You can do it!"

At the same time, the elders beside him were all cheering as they remained fully focused on what Qing Yi was currently doing.

The same could be said for the rest of the crowd of spectators, as currently, the other two had yet to reach the site of the fourth test.

As for the rest of the participants? They had already been eliminated in the third test. Making Qing Yi the only person left inside the third test!

If not her, who else could the spectators watch at this point?

Seeing everyone having focused their attention on Qing Yi, as there was even a group of people cheering her on among the crowd of spectators, Xuan Hao could not help smiling happily to himself.

The only thing that caused him to feel a bit conflicted over the large amount of attention that his disciple had gotten all of a sudden, was the fact that the Artisan Alchemist, Fang Shi, was also paying quite a bit attention to his disciple.

Even beginning to smile approvingly while nodding his head as Qing Yi began the brewing process!

This old man is having thoughts about my disciple!

Clearly understand the look of the old Artisan Alchemist, Xuan Hao could not help narrowing his eyes as he glanced down towards the old man at the centre of the platform with the large cauldron.

No matter what, he would have to make sure the old man kept his hands off his disciple…

"Hm? Why do I feel like someone is staring at me? Wait… Could they have discovered the tail?!"

At the same time down at the platform, Fang Shi suddenly felt someone looking at him as he began panicking. Thinking that someone other than his disciple might have discovered his new permanent limb on his back…

"Yi Min…"

Thinking that he had discovered the person looking at him, Fang Shi could not help smiling wryly as he looked up towards the place where Yi Min was located. Only to be met with the laughing eyes of his old friend who had indeed discovered the tail now permanently situated at his behind….

However, even when he knew that Yi Min was the one who had been looking at him, Fang Shi could not help but feel that something was wrong.

The gaze he had felt earlier should have been different from the one Yi Min was giving him… But he could not find out if it really was a different person or just Yi Min having a bit of fun teasing him after finding out about the tail…

"Hah…"

Shaking his head, Fang Shi decided not to think about this any longer as he returned his focus back towards the participants inside the alchemy trial.

Not only had Qing Yi's performance exceeded his expectations, but the young girl that had suddenly appeared as a contender for first place out of nowhere had completely caught him off-guard!

Not only was she the youngest among all of the participants, but she might even be the strongest among them as well!

Such a talent was not something he wanted to miss and for the first time since the start of the alchemy competition, Fang Shi began thinking about whether or not he should take in more than one personal disciple after the end of the alchemy competition…

Even if he ignored the crown prince of the Dark Sky Kingdom, both Qing Yi and the young girl currently at the fourth test, were more than qualified to become his personal disciples!

To top it all off, both of them were girls, so there was no chance of his first personal disciple, Cai Yu, being resistant to him taking both of them under his wing!

Whoosh~

Feeling that he had struck gold with the alchemy competition that he had decided to host, Fang Shi forgot about the fact that he had recently gained a permanent tail on his back, as it unintentionally became visible for the surrounding elders from the Iron Sky Kingdom stationed nearby to see.

Realizing his mistake almost instantly, Fang Shi quickly hid it away, but it was far too late… The elders had already seen the small rabbit tail, as they soon began looking over towards him with a weird look on their faces.

"…"

I need to get this bloody tail removed as quickly as possible!

Not even wanting to think about how his friends back in the capital of the Sky Empire would react to his new tail, Fang Shi became even more determined to remove the tail as quickly as possible after the end of the alchemy competition!