Chapter 19: Wan Hua Dan

  "What's going on? There is another medicine in the formula that is incorrect?"

  "What's going on here? Apart from the ice plate water, any of the other five herbs could be wrong, and it would take at least half a day to rule them out one by one. How can we possibly do it in such a short time?"

  "That's right, this is definitely making things difficult for us! I...I won't participate anymore, this is obviously a scam!"

  "Come on, come on, one more of you won't make a difference, one less of you won't make a difference..."

  “……”

  For a moment, everyone was talking and speculating, and the voices from the high platform grew more and more noisy.

  The paper had written on it a recipe for a second-grade spiritual medicine called "Wan Hua Dan": Huiling, Xiangxun Qingling, Luoyunzi, Bai Gan Ye, Chenxingcao, Bingpan Shui. This was originally no problem, but at the back of the recipe there was an additional note: Before refining, one type of medicinal herb must be removed!

  "Elusive Elixir!"

  Wanhua Dan, in the game of Yao Mo, is a second-tier medicine. After taking it, players can temporarily increase their resistance by a few points for a short time. It's very cheap and is considered a kind of trash potion. Nie Kong has used this medicine multiple times to practice his skills, its formula consists of Huiling, Xiangxun Qinglian and other five types, but does not include Bingpan Shui.

  When refining low-grade spiritual medicine, it is often used with medicines like "Ice Plate Water". I estimate that many people will confirm at a glance that it is one of the materials for refining "Wan Hua Dan". As a result, these people will naturally fall into the trap, and what awaits them is elimination!

  "Today's luck isn't bad!" Nie Kong's mouth curled up with a hint of strange smile.

  "Silence!"

  Mo Xingtu suddenly let out a loud shout, attracting everyone's attention. Only then did he chuckle and say, "If there is anyone else who looks around, whispers to each other, or makes a racket without stopping, they will immediately be disqualified from the competition!"

  His seemingly benevolent smile, falling into the eyes of the participating spiritual medicine masters, directly turned into a sneer. The crowd's hearts were chilled, and they didn't dare to make another sound. Even the few guys who had been clamoring to withdraw from the competition became well-behaved children. If they were driven out of the arena, it would be humiliating!

  The crowd immediately fell silent, with different expressions, some with furrowed brows and bitter faces, others gritting their teeth, or with a confident air. Some of the more cunning ones tried to sneak a peek at the surroundings out of the corner of their eyes, but soon their luck was shattered by a cold snort, and two fierce gazes shot over from the front.

  According to the rules, this is the first warning. If they sneak a peek again for the second time, their qualification will be cancelled. Under the gaze of those Fusing and even Transcending cultivators in front, it was hard for them to make any small movements. In the end, they could only focus their minds on their own wooden boxes honestly.

  "Lao Mu, you've made it through the first pass quite cleverly."

  On the judging table, Lian Tianxin let out a light sigh to Mu Zixi sitting beside him, "With just this one 'Wan Hua Dan', I'm afraid we'll have to eliminate nearly half of the people!"

  Upon hearing Tian Xing's sigh, Mu Zi Si pinched a few of his whiskers and smiled to himself: "Those who harbor lucky thoughts, running here to muddy the waters or join in the excitement, it's naturally better for them to leave early."

  The formula for "Wan Hua Dan" was only recently figured out by Muzi Si in the past two years, and even her granddaughter Mu Xiaoling doesn't know about it. To identify the incorrect ingredient from that formula, one must first be familiar with the medicinal properties of Huiling, Xiangxun Qinglian, and four other medicines, which is the only way to have a chance at success.

  This is just a possibility. To accurately identify it, it requires the experience of a skilled alchemist and their proficiency in combining medicines. Moreover, after confirming the formula, one must successfully refine a single "Wan Hua Dan" within a short period of time.

  The first round is difficult to win smoothly. For many alchemists, this is both the starting point and the end of their pharmaceutical conference.

  "Huh, what's with that little guy? Bringing out such a small toy, trying to refine medicine or something?" A hoarse laugh sounded from beside him. The speaker was Wu Er Rong, a fifth-grade spiritual pharmacist from the Luoxia Sect, with shiny black hair and dark skin, only his facial wrinkles revealing that he wasn't young.

  "Master Er Rong, that little guy is my disciple." Looking at Nie Kong on the high platform putting a small medicine cauldron into his arms, Yan Tianchen's serious face cracked a smile.

  "What?"

  Wò ěr róng didn't expect that the object of his joke was actually a disciple of Liàn Tiān Xīn, he was stunned for a moment, then slightly embarrassedly laughed and continued to watch.

  "Brother Feiliu, look quickly, that is old man's proud disciple!"

  On the far left, Nie Xingyun patted the shoulder of Cheng Fei Liu in front of him and pointed at Nie Kong who had already started taking his medicine, grinning from ear to ear. He openly called his disciple "my pride" - this old man was capable of doing so; if it were someone else, even if the disciple was exceptionally talented, they would still have to be humble.

  Cheng Fei was born into the imperial royal family, and in the Cheng family, he is also an outcast. He doesn't fight for power or wealth, nor is he obsessed with cultivation. Most of his time is spent studying alchemy, and on him, there is not a hint of the majesty of a superior being, but rather a rustic and kind demeanor like that of an old farmer in the fields.

  At the words, Cheng Fei's eyes rolled and he looked at Xing Yun with a smile: "Oh? Brother Xing Yun, your disciple is using such a small cauldron to refine medicine, very characteristic. Hmm? He's adding medicine to the cauldron, could it be that he's already picked out those wrong medicines so quickly?"

  In the end, Cheng Fei couldn't help but feel a slight sense of surprise, after all, from the start of the trial to now was only a matter of moments.

  At this time, Que Yu and Qu Tingyun on the judges' seats, as well as others in the VIP seats behind them, all discovered Nie Kong, who was the first to start refining medicine. They couldn't help but look at each other in surprise, their faces filled with shock, astonishment, and curiosity. Some even burst out laughing, apparently thinking that Nie Kong was trying to attract attention by causing a commotion.

  The actions of those alchemists in the middle section of the high platform were obvious to the judges, and almost everyone saw through Nie Kong's choice of herbs.

  "Huilian, Xiangxun Qinglian, Luoyunzi, Baigan Ye, Chenxingzao... completely correct." Cheng Feiliu couldn't help but praise in a low voice. In fact, Nie Kong had also taken out the small jade bottle containing "Ice Plate Water" and swirled it around the mouth of the cauldron after adding the Chenxingcao, but these five-grade spiritual medicine masters were no ordinary people. They naturally had sharp eyesight and could discern even the slightest detail, and they immediately saw through Nie Kong's fake action as a disguise.

  "Xing Yun, little brother, this disciple of yours is quite cunning." Cheng Fei said with a lost smile.

  "Haha..."

  Nie Xingyun laughed so hard that his mouth couldn't close, "Your family's fourth child isn't bad either, has also started taking medicine. And then there's Mu Xiaoling from the Mu family, Qu Xinyi from the Qu family, Yu Qingguan from the Luoxia sect... and that little girl from number 108, they're all not bad. Of course, compared to my family's Nie Kong, they still fall a bit short. Haha."

  Seeing his complacent appearance, people around him like Cheng Fei couldn't help but sneer.

  At this moment, a huge noise suddenly emerged from the open space. It turned out that the news of the first round having a trap had spread from the front. Those who had friends or children participating in the Medicine Assembly Competition began to shout and cheer, and for a while, the sound waves at the Zhuangyuan were like a tidal wave...

  ……