Invincible Soul Emperor

Chapter 205: Chapter 205: Shocking the Entire Audience

Ye Qingchen was wholeheartedly cultivating the seed. Faced with Cheng Zhibin’s mockery, he was completely unmoved and didn’t even bother to glance in his direction.

Cheng Zhibin, who now held a huge advantage, naturally wouldn’t miss the opportunity to taunt Ye Qingchen. ”Ye Qingchen, I’m just kindly reminding you. Two hours have passed and your seed still hasn’t sprouted. I bet you picked a dead one, didn’t you? HAHAHA! I advise you to give up now while you can still save some face. Otherwise, when the results are out, you’ll have shamed everyone from the Qingyun Sect!”

However, no matter how Cheng Zhibin mocked him, Ye Qingchen acted as if he hadn’t heard a thing, continuing to nurture his Ironwood Flower Seed. After taunting for a while, Cheng Zhibin found it boring. With a cold snort, he refocused all his effort on nurturing his own Ironwood Flower.

Princess Cai Yunji, who had been watching Ye Qingchen since the seed selection, couldn’t help but shake her head at his disappointing performance. This kid from the Qingyun Sect is so young, and only a Third-Grade Alchemist. He probably just tagged along with his sect elders to see the world. What a shame, wasting a perfectly good Ironwood Flower Seed!

With this thought, Princess Cai Yunji no longer paid attention to Ye Qingchen, instead turning her gaze to the other alchemists. After seeing the lush, flourishing Ironwood Flower in front of Cheng Zhibin, she nodded. It seemed this year’s champion would be from the Heavenly Profound Sect.

In the Qingyun Sect’s rest area, Li Zongrui was hopping about anxiously. But after Elder Wuji shot him a stern look, he didn’t dare say another word.

Qin Zhantian and Qin Yue, however, were both filled with worry. Qin Yue was the first to lose her composure, turning to Qin Zhantian and asking, ”Grandfather, do you think Ye Qingchen actually misjudged and picked a dead seed? If so, doesn’t that mean he’ll get no score for the first round?”

Qin Zhantian wanted to reassure her, but the words wouldn’t come. After all, even the worst alchemist on the stage was currently leagues ahead of Ye Qingchen.

Only Pavilion Master Zhang was smiling silently, looking completely confident in Ye Qingchen.

As a Sixth-Grade Pill King who had spent a great deal of time with Ye Qingchen recently, Pavilion Master Zhang knew a thing or two about his unique abilities. He had noticed something peculiar when Ye Qingchen selected the seed, but he had simply chosen not to point it out.

Seeing Pavilion Master Zhang’s enigmatic smile, Qin Zhantian couldn’t help but ask, ”Pavilion Master Zhang, aren’t you worried about Ye Qingchen at all?”

Pavilion Master Zhang smiled, shook his head, and replied, ”Old Master Qin, let’s just watch patiently. Ye Qingchen has a knack for creating miracles. He won’t disappoint us this time either.”

After hearing Pavilion Master Zhang’s words, Qin Zhantian and Qin Yue nodded doubtfully, their eyes returning to Ye Qingchen on the stage.

Only he understood. The Thunder Attribute Ironwood Flower Seed was inherently the most difficult to cultivate. Its slow initial growth was just a facade; it was actually accumulating Energy. Once it had stored enough, it was bound to surge ahead and surpass all the others! That was why he had absolute confidence in this seed.

Three hours had passed since the competition began when Ye Qingchen’s Ironwood Flower Seed finally sprouted a small, green shoot.

Qin Yue couldn’t help but feel happy seeing the seed sprout, but her happiness faded when her gaze fell on Cheng Zhibin’s Ironwood Flower, and worry crept back in. Cheng Zhibin’s plant was already starting to blossom.

Comparing Ye Qingchen’s progress with Cheng Zhibin’s, the gap was enormous.

Another hour passed. Cheng Zhibin’s Ironwood Flower had already begun to bear fruit—a quick count revealed at least twenty of them! Ye Qingchen’s, in contrast, had only grown about twenty centimeters tall.

There was only one hour left in the competition.

Given Ye Qingchen’s current progress, it would be a miracle if his plant even grew to be as tall as a person.

Another hour went by. Six of the fruits on Cheng Zhibin’s Ironwood Flower had already ripened. He picked the six fruits and confidently submitted them to the judges’ table. The smug pride in his heart was obvious; with a performance like this, the championship was practically his.

When Cheng Zhibin’s gaze fell upon Ye Qingchen, a cold sneer formed on his lips. Five hours had passed, and Ye Qingchen’s Ironwood Flower hadn’t even bloomed. The idea that it could bear fruit in the remaining hour was nothing but a mad fantasy!

At this point, the Ironwood Flowers of the other alchemists on the stage began to bear fruit in succession, and those with outstanding results started to submit their fruits to the judges’ table as well.

With time on his hands, Cheng Zhibin couldn’t resist taunting Ye Qingchen some more. ”Oh, Ye Qingchen, Ye Qingchen. Look at your pathetic plant. Do you honestly think it can bloom and bear fruit in the time that’s left? Once time is up, your score will be zero. That’ll be the worst result in the entire history of the Grand Alchemy Dao Tournament. I guess you really are creating a miracle for the Qingyun Sect, aren’t you? HAHAHA!”

In the Qingyun Sect’s rest area, Deputy Pavilion Master Liu was also filled with worry. But Zhang Dingqiang, who had already seen through the situation, was quite confident. He offered some words of comfort, ”Don’t worry, Deputy Pavilion Master Liu. Qingchen won’t let us down.”

Even Princess Cai Yunji couldn’t bear to watch any longer. She feared that Ye Qingchen would be the only contestant in this entire Grand Alchemy Dao Tournament to produce no fruit. He would become not only the laughingstock of the Qingyun Sect but a disgrace to the tournament itself!

Ignoring Cheng Zhibin’s taunts, Ye Qingchen calmly continued to nurture his Ironwood Flower.

Finally, only ten minutes remained. Every other contestant had finished nurturing their plant and had harvested their fruits. On the entire stage, Ye Qingchen was the only one left.

Cheng Zhibin sneered and continued his mockery, ”Ye Qingchen, you’ve lost! It’s over!”

Cheng Zhibin had barely finished speaking when the scene that unfolded next made his jaw drop in astonishment.

Before their very eyes, Ye Qingchen’s Ironwood Flower, under his care, suddenly accelerated its growth. It shot up like a bolt of lightning, its branches and leaves flickering with a radiant glow as flower buds sprouted forth!

Cheng Zhibin was stunned!

The buds swelled at a speed visible to the naked eye, on the verge of opening, before bursting into full bloom! The entire process took only a mere three minutes!

Cheng Zhibin swallowed hard. ”How... How is this possible!”

The crowd was completely dumbfounded by the miraculous sight.

”HISS! So fast...”

”That’s just incredible...”