Eternal Cultivation Of Alchemy

Despite the pill he had eaten, Alex could still feel the aftereffects of the two day long pill-making session. Walking out of the platform, the sudden presence of Qi was like plunging into cold water on a hot day.

Alex nearly gasped out loud.

He felt his body —without him needing to— draw in Qi from the surroundings. It had been devoid of it for so long that it now wanted to drown in it.

Alex had only made it to the entrance of the hall when he heard a distinct ting~ sound, as though something hard was striking harmonious metal. He turned around and saw what the sound was for.

The number 11 that was in the sky when he failed had now dropped to 10. One of the men far to the other side seemed to have failed. Now, only 10 remained.

Alex entered the hall and was immediately made to go in one direction, where a smaller group of people was gathered. On the other side of the hall was a larger group of participants, who all looked sad and dejected.

Alex could guess immediately that those were the ones who must’ve failed the competition. Meaning the group he was sent to included the ones who had passed.

Alex noticed Killersky sitting by herself with no one around her seemingly talking to her. She looked toward him and gave a firm smile, gesturing to the empty space next to her.

Alex walked over while looking at the others. He saw Leafheart off to the side, who glanced toward him once —giving an offhand nod— before looking back at the screen where the competition was still being shown.

Alex saw Jai Heiyun next, away from Killersky, seemingly cultivating. She wasn’t focused on the competition at all. He was surprised she had passed. He was sure she would have failed.

How had she passed?

Alex finally sat down. “How did you do?” he asked Killersky.

“I lost somewhere in the upper 100s,” she said. “You lasted much longer than I would’ve imagined. It doesn’t match what I sense of your cultivation base.”

“That should tell you to not let your senses deceive you,” Alex told her.

Killersky shook her head. “I don’t think they have,” she said. “We’ll know in a few decades.”Alex could not understand what she was trying to say. He didn’t find himself capable of caring at the moment, it seemed. He wanted to cultivate as soon as he could, to get some more Qi back into his body.

He began doing so almost immediately. It was not as though he would be the only one doing that. Everyone else did the same as well. Most, if not all, were lacking in Qi, so they could only get back that which they had lost.

Another ting caught Alex’s attention. He could afford to split some of his senses away from his cultivation and looked toward the image that hovered in the hall.

Another person was out. He couldn’t help but be surprised when he saw who that person was. He was a rather young man, way too young to be an Immortal.

“An actual Saint made it this far?” Alex thought. He supposed that made sense since Saints dealt with Saint pills, but still, the surprise didn’t lessen in effect.

“Where is Riveroak, by the way?” he asked. “Did she fail?”

“I think so,” Killersky said. “She must be somewhere in that group.”

Alex didn’t turn to check. He couldn’t do that while also constantly cultivating.

Another ting followed soon after, and someone else failed. It was the woman this time. Alex was still surprised by how long Aethersage was lasting. Even Killersky mentioned it a few times.

As the hours passed, more and more failed, until Aethersage failed as well. When he failed, the numbers dropped from 3 to 2.

Now, only the old man Windborn and another seemingly older competitor remained in the competition.

Aethersage returned to the hall a minute later, a wobble in his step as he had used up all he could as well.

“Oh, I’m glad you lot passed,” he said as he sat down beside Alex and Killersky. He looked around, searching for others. “Did Riveroak not pass?”

“Seems so,” Alex said.

“That’s unfortunate,” Aethersage said.

“I’m surprised you lasted as long as you did, brother Aethersage,” Alex said. “Any special reason?”

Aethersage grinned. “Of course. How would someone not even in the Immortal Transcendent realm last without something special?” he asked. “If our friendship lasts for a long time, I might consider telling you the answer, brother Dawnblade.”

“He’s not the only one who lasted for so long,” Killersky said from the side. “Why don’t you tell us as well?”

Alex chuckled a little. “I suppose I have a special reason too. Maybe I too will tell you guys should our friendship last a long time.”

“I’m sure it will,” Aethersage said. “Once I win the tournament, you guys will keep wanting to be my friends after all.”

Alex and Killersky could hear the unseriousness in his voice, so they only laughed alongside him.

Half an hour later, the final ting came, and everyone looked to the screen to see Windborn as the only one remaining on stage. The old man had ended up becoming first.

And with that, the 5th Competition was over.

The two old men walked inside the room, one after another, followed by a bunch of cheers and congratulations. The old man seemed happy to have achieved what he did, but he only smiled to show it.

He went over to the side and sat to rest. He was very much tired as well.

The Alchemy God announced the end of the tournament and revealed to the audience the names of everyone who had passed. Everyone’s name was in a ranking based on how long they lasted.

Alex saw Aethersage’s name in the 3rd position, his own name in 12th, Leafheart in 105th, Killersky in 184th, and Jai Heiyun in 487th.

Everyone had done quite well in the competition.