Eternal Cultivation of Alchemy

"Another ingredient? What's wrong with this one?" the staff asked softly so as to not alert the rest of the contestants who were already underway in the competition.

"This bark isn't of the right weight. I need one that is at least 45 grams, which this is not," Alex said.

"Certainly that is no problem, right? It's just a few grams," the staff said.

"Sir, I am trying to make the best pill I have ever made in my life. If you are going to deny me of that opportunity, then I would like to speak with someone else," Alex said.

"Okay, okay, I will talk with the host," the staff said and went to the host. He whispered a few words and the host walked up to Alex.

"Is it true that you need another ingredient?" he asked.

"Yes," Alex said.

"But the round has already started. I cannot delay the round for you," he said.

"It is fine. I can wait for you to bring the ingredient," Alex said. "If you cannot, I have the ingredient with me. I will just need you to ask it from my mother in the audience."

"No, if you are willing to wait, we will get it for you," the host said and ordered someone to go get one that was at least 45 grams.

Alex closed his eyes and waited, knowing certainly that the host didn't have a favorable opinion of him in this matter.

However, it was important so he was willing to disregard other people's thoughts for his own opportunity.

After 10 or so minutes, a staff member finally returned and handed him the ingredient.

Alex took the bark and weighed it. 46 grams.

He lightly scratched a bit of the bark until it was 45 grams and was finally ready to make the pill.

By the time he was starting to make the pill, the others were starting to finish their pills. Just a few minutes and they would have their pills ready.

Alex handed over the weighing formation as he promised and pulled out his cauldron and placed it on the furnace.

The moment the cauldron touched the fire, both the fire and the cauldron heated up to exactly 544 degrees as the recipe required him to.

Not a degree higher, and not a degree lower. Alex waited for a minute as he watched the flame and cauldron and there was absolutely no fluctuation on his part.

What little Yang energy his body was releasing had absolutely no effect on his alchemy today, and that gave Alex confidence he hadn't felt ever since he made those Earth spirit root enhancing pills back in DawnSpring city.

Alex took out the first ingredient and placed it into the cauldron. The moment the ingredient touched the base of the hot cauldron, Alex could hear the sizzling sound, and he started moving it around to quickly pulverize it.

After 5 and a half slow rotations, he could see the ingredient was done being refined, so he turned up the heat again.

With his Dao, the fire increased in temperature and so did the cauldron. At exactly the same time, he placed the second ingredient.

Alex was making sure to make no mistake on his part for this pill. He wasn't taking any chances by letting the previous powder stay in the cauldron far too long while he fumbled around, waiting for the next ingredient to be put inside.

While the ingredients once powdered didn't burn up like they would when they were ingredients, it was only because the other ingredients would soak up the heat.

If the powder alone was left there, it would certainly lose some of its ability to take in the energy.

In the grand scheme of Alchemy, that mattered very little. It hampered maybe a percent or two. However, right now, every single percentage counted, so Alex did his absolute best to not let any ingredient take in more heat than it already had.

As soon as the third ingredient was done being powdered, Alex instantly moved away heat from the fire and cauldron into the air and decreased its temperature.

At the same time, he put in the fourth ingredient and continued.

Alex was so into his pill that he didn't even notice the people stand up from their spot and walk up front to hand over their pills.

Some looked excited, while some looked disappointed. Some were nervous as they wondered how good their pill was, while the others were confident that this was the best pill they had ever made.

The host let them put their pills onto the 20 pills testers and had the percentages checked.

67%. 65%. 69%. 72%.

One after another, the number started popping up. As it did, the ranking in the sky kept on changing as well as the people from this group started jumping into the top 10.

Xue Meirong stood up from her spot with the pill in her hand. While she was stubborn, she still had to acknowledge just how great this recipe was.

As her father had told her that day, whoever came up with that recipe was a master of Alchemy.

She agreed with him as well. Only —she turned to look at Alex— she didn't want to believe it was him.

She searched for an open tester and walked towards it. However, before she reached it, Zhanrou appeared out of nowhere and placed her pill in it.

"Oh, didn't see you there," she said with a smirk on her face.

"Goddammit! You always like taking what's mine," she said and turned away to another tester and placed her pill in it.

The two of them acted like they were focusing on their pills alone, but their rivalry was too much to keep them from making side glances at each other's pills.

As the testers fogged up and went past 50%, they watched their result with bated breaths.

60%, 65%, 70%. It didn't stop.

71%, 72%, 73%. Around that part did the pill finally started slowing down and it looked like it would stop.

74%. And then, 75%.

The crowd was shocked, to say the least, as the first Immortal grade pill ever appeared in the competition. Two of them at once too. But it wasn't over yet.

The percentage went up to 76% and it stopped for Zhanrou. However, it didn't stop for Xue Meirong at all.

The pill went one step forward and stopped at 77%.

A happy smile appeared on Xue Meirong's face as she looked at the 77% pill.

"Congrats," Zhanrou said after losing to Xue Meirong.

Xue Meirong looked at her with surprise, forgetting for a moment what she was even doing in her happiness. "Oh, congrats to you too, I was just ahead by a single percent."

This was too happy an occasion to drown it with smugness and disdain towards others.

The ranking in the sky flickered as Gu Zhanrou appeared in the 2nd place and Xue Meirong appeared in the 1st place.

She had a definite chance of becoming the 1st place if only—

"Step aside, ladies," Zhou Ren appeared behind her. "It's my turn now."

Zhou Ren placed his pills onto the empty tester in between them and waited for the fog to rise up.

Zhou Ren was the only person waiting for his pill to work and the eyes of the contestants, the host, the staff, and everyone in the audience were on his pill now.

Zhou Tianqiu sat alongside Zhou Zirong, who was a relatively young man, and watched his son's pill from a separate building just like the princess.

"Just watch, your nephew will catch up to you in no time," Zhou Tianqiu said.

"I hope so. I expect a lot from him," Zhou Zirong said with a smile.

"He will, I assure you," Zhou Tianqiu said. "The recipe these kids have is nothing but perfection. My son will do great."

"Yes, the recipe is indeed great," Zhou Zirong said. "That's why I'm more curious about the recipe maker."

"That kid?" Tianqiu's face was angered for a split second as he remembered Alex and the night when he went to personally ask for the medicinal paste recipes.

"He's nothing. Didn't you hear about his performance on the 3rd day? The kid got 30 points in total and lost his first-place ranking. I guess he's only good when it comes to ingredients and recipes."

"When it comes to actually making pills, he's but a common man with no talent at all," Zhou Tianqiu said.

"Is that so?" Zhou Zirong asked with his smile not fading for a single second. "But I have heard different rumors."

"What rumors?" Zhou Tainqiu asked.

"Well, let's just say we might have an interesting round in our hand," Zhou Zirong said, not answering the question.

"Doesn't matter," Zhou Tainqiu said with a massive grin on his face. "Can he beat that?" He pointed to his son's result that had finally settled on the stage below them.

Back on stage, Zhou Ren's eyes went wide in shock because of his own pill. He knew he had done well, but not this well.

Zhanrou and Meirong couldn't help but be shocked when they saw the result.

Zhou Ren had outdone himself and made a pill with a Harmony of 79%, shocking everyone in the audience.

"I did it! I won!" he exclaimed, only to get shushed by the host.

"Huh?" he was confused and looked around to see a single tester empty. "Someone's not done yet?"

He turned around to the furnaces and saw Alex move his arm around in various gestures. Then he finally stopped and so did the fire.

Alex opened his eyes as the lid popped open and let out a single pill.