txolops Chapter 89 The Mini-Competition Begins
Chapter 89 The Mini-Competition Begins
Zhang Lin returned to courtyard number seventy-two, closed the door, and gathered the spirit stones he had obtained that day together with his previous savings, carefully counting them.
Eight thousand two hundred and thirty low-grade spirit stones.
He had nearly ten thousand spirit stones, which were all his reserves for Foundation Establishment. However, this was far from enough to strengthen his foundation and produce thousand-year-old spiritual herbs if he wanted to establish his foundation through the Heavenly Dao.
After distributing the spirit stones, he sat cross-legged on the futon and closed his eyes in deep thought.
Chen Boyuan's words flashed through his mind one by one.
The Cuiping Peak competition is scored out of 100, with alchemy accounting for 40%, magic techniques for 30%, and practical combat for 30%.
Alchemy was his forte.
With the blessing of the Hundred-Refined Copper Furnace and the Danxia Fire Control Technique, the success rate of pills is 100%, starting with the highest grade.
Among the outer disciples, there are no more than a handful who can rival him in alchemy.
In terms of spells, not counting auxiliary spells, he possesses six third-tier combat spells, making him virtually unmatched among his peers.
Zhang Lin opened his eyes, took out the bamboo slips given to him by Chen Boyuan from his storage bag, and began to read them carefully.
Although there are some differences from what Gu Beichen gave, the changes are not significant.
At the end of the bamboo slip was a line of small characters, handwritten by Chen Boyuan:
"Fellow Daoist Zhang, please note: In the practical combat category, there are many precedents in previous years where the outcome was determined by third-tier spells. If you can demonstrate a third-tier spell, the judges will give you at least ten points. If you have more than one third-tier spell and they are used properly, you can expect to get thirty points."
Zhang Lin put away the bamboo slips, having made up his mind.
He knows as many as eight third-tier spells, but in arena battles, one cannot rely solely on sheer numbers to overwhelm the opponent.
Instead, the appropriate tactics are chosen based on the actual combat situation and the strength of the opponent.
After the preliminary competition comes the grand competition of the outer sect rankings. At that time, the opponents will be stronger, so the less you reveal your trump cards, the better.
With the plan finalized, he put away the bamboo slips and took out the hundred-refined bronze furnace.
There are five days left until the competition.
Over the next five days, he will refine the last batch of pills, which he will not sell, but only use as practice for the first round of alchemy assessment in the small competition.
He threw out a cluster of Danxia fire, which ignited the flames and increased their temperature.
Flames licked the bottom of the furnace, and the furnace body emitted a faint hum.
He closed his eyes and focused his mind, probing his spiritual sense into the furnace to feel every change in the flames.
Elder He Chuan's description of the three realms of fire control refers to the initial stage of fire, the division of fire into yin and yang, and the spiritual connection of fire.
Although he has not reached the third level, with the help of the Hundred Refined Copper Furnace and the Danxia Fire Control Technique, his fire control precision has far exceeded that of the first rank.
As expected, the alchemy test for Xiao Bi will involve one of the five first-grade pills: the Qi-Nourishing Pill, the Qi-Returning Pill, the Healing Pill, the Mind-Concentrating Pill, and the Spirit-Clearing Pill.
He had refined each of these five types of pills in dozens of batches, and knew them by heart.
Flames rose, and the alchemy furnace hummed.
Zhang Lin closed his eyes and concentrated, beginning his final preparations for the competition.
For the next five days, he would get up at dawn every day, meditate for an hour to absorb the spiritual energy of the spring, and then use the hundred-refined copper furnace to refine two batches of pills to maintain his skill.
In the afternoon, I went to the Dharma platform to listen to the elders talk about the art of combining spells, and in the evening, I practiced spell combinations alone in the courtyard.
The wind wall protects the body, the wind blades follow the momentum, and the fireball explodes after the wind blades. This is a combo.
Wind Blade injures the enemy first, Fireball finishes off the enemy, and Wind Wall protects you throughout.
One attack, one defense, one pursuit—the battle was over in three breaths.
The enormous, dark hand grabs people, and the golden blade technique slashes down—this is another set of moves.
Earth-based binding, metal-based slaying—clean and efficient.
The wooden vines entwine, and the Heavenly Flame attaches to them. Wood generates fire, and the Heavenly Flame, once it touches the vines, blazes wildly, turning the restraints into a cremation.
He combined the techniques in pairs and groups of three, practicing them repeatedly.
Each time he practiced until his true energy was exhausted, he would meditate to recover, and then practice again, repeating this process tirelessly.
Yu Youwei would sometimes come over to watch and learn.
She had only been practicing the "Mysterious Yin Technique" for a short time, and although she had learned two techniques, she was not yet proficient. So she watched him demonstrate, which served as a form of on-site instruction.
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
On the eve of the minor competition, Zhang Lin put down the last batch of pills, sat cross-legged on a futon, closed his eyes, and concentrated.
As the Taishang Ganying Pian (Treatise on the Response of the Supreme Being) was activated, silver light flickered in the sea of spiritual consciousness, and the range of spiritual consciousness expanded from fifty zhang to fifty-five zhang, becoming increasingly acute.
He opened his eyes, his gaze calm as still water. Five days of preparation had been completed.
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The next day, at the beginning of Mao hour.
Before dawn, the small gathering place on Cuiping Peak was already bustling with activity on the discussion platform.
The Discussion Platform is located halfway up Cuiping Peak. It is a blue stone platform with a radius of about 100 square meters, carved into the mountainside. It has sheer cliffs on three sides and an opening on one side facing the sea of clouds.
There are ten alchemy furnaces in the arena, and in the center is a ten-zhang square arena paved with bluestone and covered with reinforcing runes. Despite hundreds of years of fighting and trampling, it is still as smooth as new.
At this time, more than a hundred disciples had gathered on the sidelines, most of them there to watch the battle.
Of the more than 300 outer disciples of Cuiping Peak, most of them have arrived, excluding those who are in seclusion or on missions.
On the high platform to the north, there are seven rosewood chairs in a row, which are the seats for elders and deacons.
The center table was empty; that was the seat for Peak Master Lu Yuanshan.
There are three on each side, with the deacons Du Zhong, Sun Mao, and Qian Tong, as well as Elder He Chuan of the Dharma Platform, Elder of the Sutra Repository, and an elder of the Cloud and Water Hall.
Zhang Lin led Yu Youwei up the steps and verified their identity tokens at the entrance of the Dao Discussion Platform.
The gatekeepers were two outer disciples at the late stage of Qi Refining. After verifying the token, one of them glanced at Zhang Lin and whispered, "Senior Brother Zhang, have a good match today. All of us brothers hope you win."
Zhang Lin nodded slightly and stepped into the arena. These disciples had all been bullied by the scions of aristocratic families when they went on missions, and they hoped to see the scions of aristocratic families suffer.
The participating disciples had arrived, about sixty in total, and gathered in small groups in the waiting area on the west side of the arena.
Some people sat in meditation with their eyes closed, some talked in hushed tones, and some repeatedly wiped the alchemy furnace in their hands, each with a different expression.
Chen Boyuan squeezed through the crowd, spotted Zhang Lin at a glance, and quickly walked over to him.
"Fellow Daoist Zhang, you've finally arrived." He lowered his voice and leaned closer, saying, "I just made some inquiries, and the topic for today's alchemy assessment has been decided—the Qi-Nourishing Pill."
Zhang Lin's eyebrows twitched slightly.
The Qi-cultivation Pill is the most basic pill for the Qi Refining stage. It may seem simple, but it is actually the best test of a master alchemist's skill.
The three medicinal herbs, Linglan grass, Juqi grass, and Ninglu flower, have one main and two auxiliary properties. The main and auxiliary herbs are matched together, like the principal, assistant, adjuvant, and guide herbs. If the cooking time is slightly different, the quality will be inferior.
The more basic the elixir, the harder it is to create a significant difference.
Conversely, the more basic the elixir, the more its true power is revealed.
"The medicinal materials will be provided uniformly by the sect, one set for each person, and the quality will be the same," Chen Boyuan continued. "The time limit is two hours. If one pill is not made, 20% will be deducted, and if the quality is lower, 10% will be deducted. The final ranking will be based on a comprehensive evaluation of the number of pills made, their quality, and their efficacy."
He paused, then said, "Last year, Luo Yuan refined the Mind-Concentrating Pill, twelve of which were of the highest grade and he won first place with a perfect score. Although the topic is different this year, with his fire control skills, the Qi-Nourishing Pill will probably also have a 100% success rate."
Zhang Lin nodded: "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Chen, I understand."
Seeing that his expression remained unchanged, Chen Boyuan secretly sighed that victory would be difficult and said no more.