Chapter 288: Alchemy Competition
Beside them, Ling Feng's expression changed. Who was Master Xiang?
He was a top figure in the East Sea Alchemy World!
Every person gets sick and needs medicine at some point. Every martial artist faces life-or-death struggles where their life hangs by a thread. In either case, they would all seek out Master Xiang.
Therefore, Master Xiang was incredibly formidable, both in his skills and his connections. Even the Lin Family dared not offend him!
"No, no, no, Master Xiang, you've misunderstood. Zhao Dong didn't mean that," Ling Feng hastily tried to smooth things over, then turned to Zhao Dong and said urgently, "Zhao Dong, apologize to Master Xiang!"
Zhao Dong furrowed his brows and said disdainfully, "Apologize to him? He's a mere charlatan seeking fame. Why should I apologize to him?"
"Insolence! What an arrogant, brash young boy!"
At that moment, a cold shout echoed from within the bamboo house.
Then, a slender woman in a white gauze dress strode in.
Zhao Dong looked over, slightly surprised. The woman was tall and slender, dressed in white purer than snow. Her pale, oval face was strikingly cold, framed by willow-leaf brows. Her eyes were like shimmering water, and her lips resembled rose petals. Her features were so perfect they seemed sculpted by a divine hand, beautiful enough to daze anyone.
Gritting her teeth, the woman marched up to Zhao Dong and glared. "Apologize to my master right now, or you won't be leaving this place today!"
Zhao Dong was startled for a moment before giving a faint smile. "I've already said he's not worthy of my apology, so I won't be giving one today. Besides, who are you?"
"You!" The woman's face flushed red with anger. "My master is a renowned Alchemist in the East Sea, respected by powerful figures from far and wide! People come all the way from the Provincial City just to visit him. Who do you think you are? How dare you speak of my master that way? What right do you have?"
Zhao Dong pursed his lips and said dismissively, "What the hell do I care who visits your master? As far as I'm concerned, his Alchemy is mediocre at best. I can do it too."
"You?!" The woman was taken aback, then scoffed and rolled her eyes mockingly. "You sure can talk big. You know Alchemy? Are you even qualified?"
Zhao Dong frowned and replied calmly, "There's no need to boast. If I say I can do it, then I can."
Stunned, the woman turned to the old man. "Master, he says he knows Alchemy."
Xiang Wendao sneered. "What an ignorant youth! When I was your age, I was only just beginning to comprehend the Alchemy Dao, and it took me many years to grasp even a fraction of it. You, at your young age, claim to know Alchemy? How utterly arrogant! What preposterous lies!"
Zhao Dong said nonchalantly, "Believe it or not. I said I can, and I can."
The woman in white chuckled in exasperation. "Alright, you're certainly stubborn. Why don't you show us what you've got?"
Ling Feng was also utterly astonished. Although he didn't believe Zhao Dong knew Alchemy, the look in Zhao Dong's eyes suggested he actually did.
The woman in white bit her lip and said with a sudden, mocking smile, "Why are you so quiet all of a sudden? Afraid you'll be exposed? How about this: let's have a competition."
"Compete over what?"
"You said you can perform Alchemy, didn't you? And you were disrespectful to my master. So, let's just assume you can, and we'll have ourselves a little competition, shall we?"
Zhao Dong smiled. "There's no need. I'm afraid I'd crush you."
The woman's vision went dark with fury. She snapped, "You insolent brat! How dare you be so arrogant! You... I won't let you get away with this! If you have any guts, you'll compete with me!"
Zhao Dong simply yawned and remained silent.
This made the woman even more furious. She gritted her teeth and said, "My name is Leng Yue, and I am Master Xiang's Disciple. Do you dare compete with me or not?"
"Why should I compete with you?" Zhao Dong asked, a playful glint in his eyes.
"Hmph! If you're scared, just admit it. Stop making excuses!" Leng Yue said haughtily. "If you don't dare, then get on your knees and apologize to my master."
"Scared?" Zhao Dong sneered. "And what happens if I win?"
"Well..." Leng Yue was suddenly at a loss.
Master Xiang, standing to the side, scoffed with disdain. "My Disciple has inherited all of my teachings. If she loses, I will have her kneel and apologize. Furthermore, I will give you this Alchemy Pavilion and never practice Alchemy again!"
Zhao Dong was stunned. He glanced around the Alchemy Pavilion and was immediately astonished. There are strong fluctuations of Spiritual Energy in here... There are treasures!
A flicker of desire crossed Zhao Dong's eyes. After a few seconds of silence, he said, "Alright! We can compete!"
"Don't be so quick to agree!" Master Xiang snorted. "If you lose, you will not only kneel and apologize, but you will also cripple one of your own arms. Do you dare?"
"What?" Ling Feng panicked and quickly tried to intervene. "Zhao Dong, the stakes are too high! You can't agree to this!"
"Don't worry, cousin," Zhao Dong said with a faint smile.
Ling Feng was dumbfounded. Why does Zhao Dong seem... so confident, as if he really knows how to do this?
Zhao Dong turned to Master Xiang and grinned. "Fine. Never mind one arm—I'd even cripple both of my arms without a second thought!"
Xiang Wendao said mockingly, "What a brash young man. You said it yourself. Don't you dare go back on your word!"
"Naturally. I, Zhao Dong, am a man of my word."
Xiang Wendao's smile was filled with derision. "Brash young man. I, Xiang Wendao, have traveled far and wide for many years. I consider my Alchemy to be top-tier in the entire Eastern Province, yet I have never met a young person who knows Alchemy. Today, this old man will see for himself. Oh, by the way, I'm going to call a few friends to come watch the competition. You don't mind, do you?"
Zhao Dong replied indifferently, "Suit yourself. The more, the better."
"Good! Kid, I admire your courage!" Xiang Wendao let out a cold laugh and began making calls.
Leng Yue raised her eyebrows. Why does he sound so confident? Could he really know Alchemy? But how is that possible? Across the entire Eastern Province, a young Alchemist is one in a million. I was lucky enough to study under Master Xiang, but it still took me several years to learn even a little. How could this Zhao Dong possibly know? No, impossible!
Ling Feng stood by, fraught with worry. He tried several times to warn Zhao Dong not to be reckless, but Zhao Dong kept reassuring him with a look.
「A short while later.」
Over a dozen luxury cars stormed into the bamboo forest.
"It's Master Li!"
"Is that... is that Master Zhang?"
"Master Wang, Master Hai, Master An... My god... all the Alchemy Masters of the East Sea are here!"
Ling Feng was shocked as he watched them arrive. These were all Alchemists from the East Sea. While not on Xiang Wendao's level, they were all highly capable practitioners. He felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He had intended to plead for mercy on Zhao Dong's behalf if he lost. But with so many masters present, it was clear that Xiang Wendao was dead set on claiming Zhao Dong's arms! It's over!
Xiang Wendao looked at Zhao Dong with a cheerful smile. "Kid, everyone's here. The competition can begin. It's just as well. I get bored with my daily Alchemy, so this will be a bit of fun."
The crowd of newcomers began asking, "Old Xiang, what's going on?"
"Yeah, what's so important that you called all of us over?"
The group chattered among themselves.
Xiang Wendao chuckled and pointed at Zhao Dong. "My fellow Daoists, this young man here claims he knows Alchemy and even challenged my Disciple, Leng Yue, to a competition. I thought I'd let you all come and witness it."
Everyone turned to look at Zhao Dong in astonishment, then broke into wide, incredulous smiles.
"Who is this kid? I've never seen him before. Is he one of our disciples?"
"Disciple, my ass! He doesn't look like someone who knows Alchemy. He's probably just a clown making a fool of himself."
"I agree. He doesn't have the look of an Alchemist. He's just asking for humiliation."
The group laughed, completely dismissing Zhao Dong.
Zhao Dong just shook his head, not bothering to argue with them.
Soon, Master Xiang brought out an ancient tome and walked up to Zhao Dong, smiling. "Since this is a competition, let's make it a challenging one! This book contains the recipe for the Dragon Blood Pill. Whoever can successfully concoct it first will be the winner."
"What? The Dragon Blood Pill?" one of the Alchemists exclaimed. "That's one of Old Xiang's most treasured recipes! He's really using it for this competition? Isn't he afraid his techniques will be stolen?"
"Bah, that kid obviously knows nothing about Alchemy. What good would the best recipe in the world be if he can't even understand it?"
"True, true..."
The crowd jeered.
After reading the recipe, Zhao Dong himself was inwardly shaken. The Dragon Blood Pill lived up to its name. It used the blood of a flood dragon as a medicinal catalyst, combined with forty-nine unique spiritual herbs, and had to be refined with Spiritual Fire to take form.
Because the flood dragon's blood was incredibly volatile, the process required perfect mastery over the furnace fire! A slight mistake would, at best, cause the furnace to explode and the pill to be destroyed. At worst, the furnace fire would backlash and claim the Alchemist's life!
Even if every step was performed flawlessly, the final success rate for Solidifying the Pill was no higher than thirty percent.
Such rare ingredients and unique refining methods also gave the Dragon Blood Pill terrifyingly powerful effects. A Cultivator who consumed it could directly break through one minor realm! If they didn't digest the medicinal power and instead let it erupt, their cultivation could temporarily surge by three minor realms! It was an absolute ace for turning the tide of battle.
"Don't tell me you're scared now?" Leng Yue glanced sideways at Zhao Dong, her eyes filled with malice. "You can still surrender. Just kneel, kowtow a few times, and apologize to my master. That will be the end of it."
"If you're scared, then just kneel down and chop off your arm! Don't humiliate yourself!"
"Heh, it's just a trivial little pill," Zhao Dong scoffed dismissively and walked toward another Pill Furnace that Master Xiang had brought out.