Immortal Path Space

Chapter 270: Fourth Level Foundation Building

One month later, Wang Hong finally broke through to the fourth level of Foundation Building, becoming a mid-level Foundation Building cultivator.

At the same time, he elevated his hidden cultivation level to the second level of Foundation Building. Among the batch of cultivators who started Foundation Building with him, those who practiced faster were now in the mid-level, and those who progressed slower had reached the second level. He couldn't afford to fall too far behind.

After reaching the fourth level of Foundation Building, he felt that his Spiritual Power was a bit unstable, and it didn't flow as smoothly as he'd hoped. This was likely due to his excessive consumption of Green Spirit Peaches, which had rapidly increased his Spiritual Power but left it impure and his Realm unsteady.

He couldn't continue to use Green Spirit Peaches to increase his cultivation level in the short term. Instead, he needed to refine his Spiritual Power and stabilize his Realm.

With this promotion, his dantian's sea expanded by another two feet, now measuring twelve feet in width, surpassing the majority of late-stage Foundation Building cultivators. Due to his naturally larger foundation, each two-foot increment required much more Spiritual Power than others at his level.

Wang Hong only secluded himself for a few days to stabilize his cultivation before emerging, as the Alchemy competition organized by the Pill Hall was about to begin.

If possible, he hoped to make it into the top five, but he was still a newcomer, having only reached Foundation Building within the last ten years.

Within the Pill Hall, some of the older Alchemists had been in the second tier for over a century, making their Alchemy experience immensely rich.

For this Pill Hall competition, participants had to bring their own materials, and they could choose the type of pill they wanted to refine. Wang Hong decided to bring materials for the Nourishing Essence Pill, as it was the one he had the most experience with.

He also had to bring his own Alchemy Furnace. The Spiritual Weapon-level Alchemy Furnace he currently used had been acquired from the assassin Zhu Yan in the past. However, it was not convenient to use it openly, so he had to settle for a high-quality Magical Weapon Alchemy Furnace. Despite it potentially affecting his Pill Success Rate, Wang Hong remained confident.

"Now, I announce the start of the 453rd Alchemy competition of the Qingxu Sect!" declared the chief judge, Master Mei, seated at the head of the Pill Hall's main hall. She was accompanied by two others who would serve as judges for the competition.

All around the hall, more than a hundred participants were seated, each with a distance of several feet between them and an Alchemy Furnace in front of them.

Wang Hong's Alchemy Furnace stood out due to its size, taking up a whole room. This forced the surrounding cultivators to move further away. It was unavoidable, as his Spiritual Weapon-level Alchemy Furnace was not suitable for this occasion. He had to rely on this high-quality Magical Weapon Alchemy Furnace, even if it might slightly affect his Pill Success Rate. Nevertheless, Wang Hong remained confident.

"With the judge's command, the 453rd Alchemy competition of the Qingxu Sect begins!" As the judges gave the order, everyone quickly went into action, lighting fires and heating the furnaces. These initial steps were the same for everyone.

However, the real divergence in their skills began when they started refining the pills.

The first round involved using self-prepared materials to refine pills, and the final score would be based on the Pill Success Rate, with each successfully refined pill counting as one point.

Glancing around, Wang Hong noticed that most of the cultivators around him were refining Nourishing Essence Pills, including himself. There was no choice, as among the second-tier pills, the Nourishing Essence Pill was the most common and widely practiced.

Almost everyone had full confidence in this first round of the competition and displayed their true abilities, believing they could achieve a good rank. Wang Hong was no exception. He had lost count of how many Nourishing Essence Pills he had refined during his ten years of practice, and he was confident that many second-tier Alchemists hadn't produced as many pills in their entire lifetimes.

Wang Hong skillfully administered the medicine, tempered, fused, and performed various other steps with ease, like a river flowing smoothly.

Not even an hour had passed when Wang Hong completed the process of refining the pills. After extinguishing the furnace, he finally had the opportunity to observe his surroundings.

To his surprise, he was the first to successfully form the pill. There were a few other cultivators who seemed idle and disappointed—Alchemy failures.

Wang Hong lifted the enormous lid of his Alchemy Furnace and retrieved six thumb-sized Nourishing Essence Pills from within.

The five judges seated at the front examined him with curiosity and used their Divine Sense to assess the number and quality of his pills, nodding in approval.

"I remember he's from the group that came out of the secret realm before Foundation Building, right? To become a second-tier Alchemist in such a short time is truly impressive," one of the lean judges, who seemed to have a recollection of Wang Hong, remarked.

"Yes, indeed! His Pill Success Rate is even at sixty percent. It seems his Alchemy talent is indeed extraordinary," another slightly chubby judge agreed.

With a hint of teasing, the lean judge said, "With such a talented young man, you should consider taking him as your disciple."

"No need to think about it; he was already taken in by Gu Qingyang long ago," Master Mei, who had remained silent until now, responded. As the head of the Pill Hall, she knew quite a bit about the Alchemists under her jurisdiction.

"This kid reacts quite quickly," the lean cultivator commented.

After Wang Hong's pills were produced, the pills of others began to be completed one after another. It was at this point that Wang Hong realized his sixty percent Pill Success Rate might not be high enough.

Just by looking around, he saw several participants with a Pill Success Rate of sixty percent or even higher. There was one young cultivator who had achieved a seventy percent Pill Success Rate.

This revelation dashed the small sense of achievement Wang Hong had accumulated earlier.

At that moment, a chorus of astonished voices arose from the crowd. Wang Hong followed their gazes and saw that the pills of a middle-aged cultivator had just been completed. Incredibly, he had produced eight pills from a single batch.

"Quiet down! Anyone causing a commotion will be expelled from the hall," Master Mei at the head of the hall admonished loudly.

The scene instantly fell silent, with only the sound of Spirit Fire hissing and the bubbling within the Alchemy Furnaces audible.

At this point, only three participants had yet to complete their pills. Among them, an old man with white hair, an air of serenity, and a demeanor befitting an immortal, stood out the most. His focus was exceptional, and every movement he made was precise and meticulous. He seemed oblivious even to a mosquito landing on his brow.

Such unwavering concentration would make one think he was refining an unparalleled Immortal Pill.

After a moment, the pills of the other two cultivators were also completed, producing only three or four pills each. They didn't seem disappointed, as this was likely their usual level of performance.

A few breaths later, the pills of the white-haired old man were finally finished.

Everyone craned their necks, eager to see how many pills he could produce from one batch, given his meticulous approach.

Some who were familiar with the old man were filled with anticipation.

The old man slowly opened the furnace lid and waved his hand, causing nine glowing points to fly out of the Alchemy Furnace and land in a prepared jade tray.

"Hiss! Hiss!"

Gasps filled the room; it was truly astounding. They had just witnessed a miracle.

In the jade tray were nine round and radiant Nourishing Essence Pills. Among them, one pill emitted an exceptionally brilliant radiance—it was a top-grade pill.

Apart from the top-grade Nourishing Essence Pill, there was also a middle-grade pill in the tray.

The old man had produced nine pills in one batch—nine pills, including one top-grade and one middle-grade pill.

Based on this batch of pills alone, it was clear that the first place in this Grand Competition belonged to him.

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