Gao Tian's hands moved with deliberate elegance, forming a chain of complex hand seals. His breath synchronized with the rhythm of the cauldron, every inhale and exhale matching the subtle rise and fall of the flame. The Blue Azure Flame didn't rage—it pulsed, calm and deadly like a predator watching its prey.
Within the cauldron, the ingredients began to melt and merge.
The three Spirit Grass Roots dissolved first, turning into a thick green essence. Next, the Azure Cloud Leaves crackled briefly, then melted into the green liquid, turning it into a vibrant turquoise. The Golden Sun Flower flared as it entered the mix, but the blue flame suppressed its burst, forcing it to surrender its golden pollen into the potion.
Then came the Earth Marrow Dust. A single pinch caused a slight reaction—a bubble, a faint rumble—but the spiritual dragon circling the cauldron growled softly, suppressing it with ease.
Refined Beast Bone Ash… low rank, but stable. Gao Tian thought, as he stirred the mix using his spiritual sense.
The bone ash dissolved almost immediately, enriching the blend with a silver hue. Finally, the Spirit Stone Powder followed. Upon contact, it fizzed violently.
Most cultivators would panic at this stage.
But Gao Tian didn't blink.
He calmly lifted two fingers and directed a thin stream of his spiritual energy into the cauldron. The moment the energy merged with the unstable concoction, a wave of serenity washed over it. The violent reaction ceased, and the mixture calmed into a clear liquid—shimmering like a gemstone caught in morning light.
From afar, Sen Zhuo exhaled in disbelief.
"He neutralized the conflicting elements instantly… It's like he's done this a hundred times."
Tong Men clenched his jaw. "No… this is something else. That blue dragon… it's not just a technique—it's a spiritual guide. It's teaching the fire how to behave."
On the ground, more candidates' cauldrons burst one after another. Frustration, fear, and failure spread like an epidemic.
But Gao Tian?
He was unfazed.
His fingers moved faster now—seal after seal, flowing like water. The flame shrunk inward, focused like a scalpel. The contents inside began to swirl slowly, forming a spiral pattern.
And then… the spiral condensed.
The arena seemed to quiet for a brief moment.
From within the cauldron, a glowing light emerged—a golden hue wrapped in a faint bluish mist. The Heaven Ascension Pill had begun to take shape.
The Pill Tower woman in front of Gao Tian trembled slightly. Her heart was racing.
This boy… he's truly an alchemy prodigy. No—he's beyond that.
Shu Yu, several rows away, noticed the change in the air. The golden-blue glow reflected faintly in her eyes. She gritted her teeth, ignoring the pressure in her chest.
I have to finish my pill before he does!
Ruler Dog kept watching Gao Tian for a few moments longer before his eyes turned downward—towards the Shu Yu beneath him.
Hmph. My master is also powerful… They don't know, but she's about to complete her pill.
Gao Tian didn't even look up. He raised one palm, guiding the final condensation stage.
A heavenly fragrance filled the entire arena.
It was subtle—but those with sharp senses could tell:
That was the smell… of a perfect Heaven Ascension Pill.
And Gao Tian hadn't even begun the cooling and shaping process yet.
The audience erupted again. From elders to disciples, everyone watched, spellbound.
Even the referees standing around the arena exchanged glances.
"Could it be…"
"He might really produce a Perfect Grade Heaven Ascension Pill…"
Far from Gao Tian.
Shu Yu's brow tightened as she looked at the radiant glow from Gao Tian's cauldron.
Her fingers trembled just slightly.
He's ahead of me… and that flame… that alchemy technique…
But she didn't allow the pressure to break her focus.
The Inferno Dragon Flame—golden with streaks of earthen brown—swirled around her cauldron like a serpent made of molten light. Its roar was silent, yet the heat it gave off caused the surrounding candidates to sweat, even from a distance.
She exhaled once, long and steady, and closed her eyes.
Focus, Shu Yu. You are the Tianlei Family's direct heir. You've refined more complex pills in harsher conditions.
She had already refined four ingredients.
Only two remained.
She dropped the Refined Beast Bone Ash and Spirit Stone Powder into her cauldron with precision. At once, the contents began to boil violently. A thick cloud of spiritual mist burst forth, covering her completely.
The girl in pink robes standing near Shu Yu took a few steps back instinctively, shielding her eyes.
From within the mist, the sound of a thunderous crackle echoed—then silence.
When the mist cleared, Shu Yu stood like a statue, one hand raised in a forming seal, her other palm guiding the flame. Inside her cauldron, the ingredients had fused into a brilliant golden fluid.
The Inferno Dragon Flame wasn't just burning—it was compressing the spiritual energy into every droplet.
Shu Yu's eyes opened, sharp and unwavering.
Gao Tian may be ahead… but I can still produce a pill just as perfect.
She clenched her fingers and began the final sequence of seals.
Eight seals—formed one after the other—each creating ripples of force around her.
With the ninth, she pressed down, and the golden fluid within her cauldron condensed rapidly. It spun in place, forming the shape of a pill, shining with a gentle golden light and laced with fine lightning cracks along the surface.
From the audience, someone shouted in awe:
"She's forming a Lightning Vein Pill!"
Tong Lin looked down from the upper balcony, eyes sharp.
"Lightning Vein Heaven Ascension Pill… a rarer variant formed when the cultivator possesses powerful thunder-based spiritual energy. And it's nearly complete."
Even Sen Zhuo stood up from his seat, lips parted in admiration.
"That girl… she's not falling behind."
Back on the arena floor, Shu Yu's breathing steadied as she completed the final step.
Her pill floated up from the cauldron, rotating slowly.
The smell of ozone mixed with spiritual fragrance wafted through the arena.
A beam of sunlight happened to strike the pill at that moment, and the crowd collectively held its breath.
A Lightning Vein Pill, gleaming with crackling threads of thunder energy.
Shu Yu calmly flicked her finger, sending the pill into the jade case provided beside her.
She didn't smile. She simply whispered to herself:
"One down."
Then she looked toward Gao Tian.
He was still refining—but his expression was calm, almost bored, as if the process was far too easy for him.
Shu Yu narrowed her eyes.
I won't lose to you.
In the blazing heat of the arena, while the crowd remained focused on Gao Tian's blue flame and Shu Yu's golden dragon fire, three others stood firm in their own sections of the field.
Luo Yanhan, wrapped in his red and gold robes, clenched his fists and growled to himself.
"I won't lose to some nobody."
He summoned a crimson flame, the Scarlet Blaze Flame, exclusive to the Great Luo Clan. His cauldron trembled as he threw in his ingredients one by one. Beads of sweat rolled down his face, but his confidence never wavered.
Hang Puling from Fulong Sect sat cross-legged. He was calm, controlled. A soft blue mist surrounded his cauldron — the Frozen River Flame, a rare cold-type flame. Unlike the others, he refined slowly, prioritizing stability. His goal was a solid mid-grade pill, not perfection, but certainty.
Fu Chengge, standing proud in yellow and white, smirked.
"All show, no skill," he muttered as he glanced at Gao Tian.
He summoned the White Dragon Flame, a silver-white fire said to be passed down from the founder of his sect. Fu Chengge tossed in four ingredients at once, grinning as his flame danced around them.
But soon, trouble began.
Luo Yanhan's flame surged too high — a crack split across his cauldron. He shouted and tried to suppress it, but the heat turned wild. The cauldron burst with a loud pop, throwing smoke and sparks into the air.
Disqualified.
Hang Puling kept refining, but his pill formation slowed midway. The cold flame preserved the ingredients, but the pill spirit failed to form — a sign of imbalance. His cauldron stayed intact, but the result was clear: low-grade, incomplete.
Fu Chengge fared better. His silver flame controlled the process efficiently, and within minutes, a faint silver glow emerged from his cauldron. A decent Second-Tire high-grade Heaven Ascension Pill formed, stable and clean. He raised it with pride.
The judges nodded slightly — acceptable, but not remarkable.
From the high platform, Tong Men looked down and murmured.
"Only one among them has some talent… but none can match those two."
He looked to Shu Yu, calm as ever. Then to Gao Tian, his body surrounded by dragon-shaped azure fire and a pill shining with nine rings of brilliance.
And in the crowd, many disciples whispered the same thing.
"This year… a monster was born."