Alchemy Master

Chapter 592, Self-Destruction and Abandonment?

Translator: Silavin

Qian Zhengchen cast a meaningful glance at the stone platform where Qin Yichen stood, then the corners of his mouth curved into a confident smile once more. With a wave of his palm, he tossed the Crimson Flame Fruit into his Pill Furnace.

Clearly, he had already noticed Qin Yichen.

He was quite surprised that Qin Yichen could surpass him in herb identification. However, refinement was not that simple.

This second test examined each person’s true capabilities.

First was one’s Spiritual Energy cultivation. If one’s Spiritual Energy was insufficient, everything else would be in vain. After all, the Crimson Rock Fruit was not something easy to purify!

Its name contained the character ‘rock’ (岩), indicating that its hardness was comparable to rocks metres in size.

Even Alchemy Masters at the Spiritual Rupture Realm would find it difficult to purify it if their Spiritual Energy cultivation was too low.

Qin Yichen seemed to sense Qian Zhengchen’s gaze. He shook his head slightly, chuckling inwardly as he picked up the Crimson Rock Fruit and placed it into the Pill Furnace before him.

Then, with a thought, flames rose within the Pill Furnace.

Inside the furnace, the flames did not seem particularly vigorous, nor did they emit the terrifying and shocking high temperatures like those of the others.

This scene immediately caught the attention of many who had been observing him.

“Something’s not right. He defeated Gan Li, so his Spiritual Energy should be at the Spiritual Rupture Realm. Why are his flames so weak?”

“How could such flames possibly purify the Crimson Rock Fruit?”

“It seems he must have consumed too much in the first round and his Spiritual Energy is insufficient now…”

Discussions arose all around, all centred on Qin Yichen’s current condition.

In the crowd, Shen Fangu frowned. “Could it really be due to excessive consumption?”

He found it hard to believe but could not explain Qin Yichen’s current abnormal state.

Those weak flames and that feeble temperature… No matter how one looked at it, they could not possibly purify the Crimson Rock Fruit.

“What a pity…” Even Chen Yun on the high platform sighed.

Up to this point, Qin Yichen’s performance could be said to be the most outstanding, and she had witnessed the situation in the first round, which was indeed somewhat unfair to Qin Yichen.

However, Dan Xuan beside her remained silent. Watching Qin Yichen’s movements, a trace of confusion flashed in the depths of his eyes. This was because he did not sense any signs of mental and spiritual fatigue from Qin Yichen.

This indicated that Qin Yichen was not, as those people claimed, completely depleted of Spiritual Energy.

But he could not understand why Qin Yichen’s Spiritual Flame was so weak.

In the crowd, Ouyang Wensu, who had already been eliminated, came to Ouyang Haotian’s side.

The expression on his face at this moment could be described as spectacular.

Originally, he had wanted to personally teach Qin Yichen a lesson, but he had never expected to lose to a girl younger than himself…

Although he had been somewhat careless at the time, in the instant he was defeated, he could feel the terrifying Spiritual Energy Gongshu Zhiyi possessed.

Ouyang Haotian merely glanced at him indifferently, his attitude neither warm nor cold. This made Ouyang Wensu’s heart tremble, and he opened his mouth to explain, “I was just…”

Ouyang Haotian raised his hand, stopping him from continuing, which made Ouyang Wensu’s heart sink even further.

He knew Ouyang Haotian’s character all too well.

Ouyang Haotian would not waste even a moment’s energy on someone useless.

As Qin Yichen began to stoke the flames and purify, Ouyang Haotian’s expression eased slightly.

Clearly, he too believed that the consumption from the first round had taken its toll.

Even if Qin Yichen had taken first place in herb identification, if his performance in this round was too poor, he would still be eliminated.

“With just your abilities, you think you can compete with me…” Staring directly at Qin Yichen on the high platform, Ouyang Haotian’s eyes were filled with cold killing intent.

***

The discussions from the crowd did not affect Qin Yichen.

After raising the flames, he began refining.

*Bang! Bang! Bang…*

His palms tapped lightly and swiftly on the Pill Furnace, left then right, without any discernible pattern or method.

This scene, falling in everyone’s eyes, made him appear as though he had already given up on himself.

“His mental fortitude still needs improvement…”

This was Chen Yun’s assessment of Qin Yichen.

Clearly, even she believed that Qin Yichen had lost his fighting spirit.

A person who had lost their fighting spirit was destined never to become a true powerhouse, and moreover, would have no chance of breaking through to the Earth Grade.

A person who could not break through to Earth Grade, regardless of how good or bad their current talent might be, was meaningless.

Subsequently, she shifted her gaze away. She had originally intended to observe Qian Zhengchen, but when she inadvertently glanced at Dan Xuan beside her, she discovered that his attention was still focused on Qin Yichen.

“Why are you…” She wanted to say something, but upon seeing Dan Xuan’s increasingly grave expression, she could not help but focus her attention on Qin Yichen once more.

“Something’s not right…” After a moment, a trace of astonishment flashed in Chen Yun’s eyes.

Although the flames in Qin Yichen’s Pill Furnace were not vigorous, and although the temperature within the furnace was not the highest, she could see that the Crimson Rock Fruit inside the furnace had actually begun to melt!

She was not unfamiliar with the refining of Crimson Rock Fruits. She knew all too well how difficult it was to refine them. Even for her, completely refining a Crimson Rock Fruit was an extremely difficult task.

Moreover, it was an extremely time-consuming endeavour.

Normally speaking, an Earth Grade Alchemy Master would need at least an hour to thoroughly refine a single Crimson Rock Fruit.

This test actually did not require the complete refinement of a Crimson Rock Fruit. This round would be determined by the number of refinement cycles completed.

However, judging by the current situation, Qin Yichen was about to complete his first round of refinement…

But how much time had passed?

It had been less than two minutes!

[Completing his first refinement in under two minutes!?] Chen Yun was immediately stunned. Because even if she adjusted herself to her optimal condition, she absolutely could not complete one refinement cycle in two minutes.

This gave Chen Yun a sense of perplexity and stupefaction.

[Is this young man better than me? How is that possible?]

It was precisely because she had discovered this point that Chen Yun began to take Qin Yichen seriously.

“That Alchemy Technique…” After a moment, her pupils could not help but dilate slightly. Because she discovered that Qin Yichen’s seemingly chaotic palm technique—every palm strike, every tap—was executed with perfect precision. The overall movement appeared fluid like flowing clouds and water, without the slightest hesitation or pause.

Only then did she understand why Dan Xuan had been paying attention to Qin Yichen all this time.

This Alchemy Technique alone was sufficient to draw both their attention. Indeed, in Dan Xuan’s eyes, she even detected a trace of burning intensity.

Clearly, Dan Xuan was moved.

Compared to this Alchemy Technique, their current methods appeared far too crude.

If they could obtain this Alchemy Technique, it would certainly improve their Alchemy efficiency by a significant margin.

Of course, not many people could discern this point. In others’ eyes, Qin Yichen was simply giving up on himself in despair.