'He actually chose the most common Vermilion Flame Fruit. Just as I thought. The only reason that kid beat me before was because he'd read more books than me. Otherwise, why would he pick a Vermilion Flame Fruit?'
Wang Kaitai could tell at a glance that Yang Xiao had chosen the most common Vermilion Flame Fruit.
His heart was instantly put at ease.
As for Yang Xiao, he just looked at the Spirit Medicine Block before him, still showing no reaction, just like during their last competition.
"Yang Xiao, this time I'm going to show you what I can really do! I'll make sure everyone knows you're nothing but a lucky bookworm!"
"You've got a long way to go before you can compete with me in medicine!"
Wang Kaitai declared with a sneer.
Such a confident, arrogant declaration immediately fired up the crowd.
Those who supported Wang Kaitai were instantly invigorated.
The shift in atmosphere completely overwhelmed Yang Xiao's side, which had been evenly matched until now.
"Save your boasting for after you've actually done it."
Yang Xiao shook his head.
He didn't bother with any trash talk; this opponent wasn't worthy of it.
Then, after a casual glance at the Spirit Medicine Block before him, Yang Xiao was once again the first to start writing.
This action immediately weakened the other side's momentum considerably.
Even Wang Kaitai felt the stifling pressure.
'He's just putting on a show. We'll see how he gets himself out of this later!'
With a cold snort, Wang Kaitai began to examine the medicine.
A quarter of an hour passed.
Yang Xiao had long since put down his brush.
Wang Kaitai was still examining the medicine.
Half an hour passed.
Wang Kaitai was still examining the medicine.
'This time, I'll ensure Yang Xiao is utterly defeated.'
However, before he could finish writing his answer, a middle-aged man silently walked down from the second floor. In a flash, he was standing before Yang Xiao.
He took the answer from his table.
It all happened in a flash.
Yang Xiao himself was caught off guard.
However, he did not make any rash moves.
Instead, he remained calm, as if the answer that was taken was of no importance to him.
The man who had taken Yang Xiao's answer gave him an appreciative glance. He then unfolded the paper and began to read. The more he read, the more surprised he became, his expression growing increasingly solemn. Finally, he even went over to personally taste the Spirit Medicine Block on the table.
It was as if he was the one competing against Wang Kaitai.
It was a baffling sight.
However, on behalf of Juhua Studio, Steward Cao said nothing, and the four Great Pharmacists also remained silent. They had clearly acquiesced to this man's actions, not daring to speak up, lest their rashness cause them to offend some important figure.
"Excellent! This round, young man, you have won again! Based on this answer, I can give you a perfect ten on my master's behalf!"
The strange middle-aged man watched for a long time, then smiled faintly. Disregarding everyone present, he directly announced the result of the competition.
As for Wang Kaitai, who was still writing furiously, his face instantly turned pale, and the brush in his hand fell from his grasp at these words.
His whole body trembled as he looked at the man.
He recognized the man at a single glance.
He couldn't even utter half a word of doubt.
"Master Cheng... wh-why..."
It took a long while for Wang Kaitai to speak.
The middle-aged man seemed to only just notice him. He smiled faintly and said, "Your talent is not weak, but your temperament is much poorer. In this round, without even looking at your answer, just based on your conduct, I can give you five points on my master's behalf. So, reflect on that!"
"Yes, Master Cheng!"
Wang Kaitai fell silent.
He actually accepted the middle-aged man's words.
This, once again, plunged the onlookers into shock.
"I know who he is! He's Study Lord Cheng, the Study Lord of our Juhua Studio! I heard he's the eldest disciple of our Medicine Peak's Supreme Elder!"
"So he's Elder Yao's eldest disciple! No wonder Pharmacist Wang calls him Master Cheng. I remember that back in the day, even Sect Leader Wang once attended lectures under the Supreme Elder."
"So when Study Lord Cheng said 'on my master's behalf,' he meant... I get it! I finally understand why in the first round, a score of nine was as good as winning! It was a nine given by Elder Yao himself!"
"A nine personally graded by Elder Yao? Th-that's one point higher than the eight Sect Leader Wang got back in his day..."
"Exactly! And did you hear about the second round? Study Lord Cheng gave that piece of trash—no, Young Master Yang—ten points! And he said it was on behalf of Elder Yao. Meanwhile, Wang Kaitai only got five!"
"The difference is just too great."
Hearing these piercing words, Wang Kaitai walked out in a daze, utterly crestfallen.
He had clearly suffered a huge blow.
Ye Chenghao had originally wanted to cause more trouble, still in disbelief, but seeing Wang Kaitai's state and hearing the crowd's words, he had no choice but to accept his defeat, no matter how unwilling he was.
As a member of the Ye Family's direct lineage, how could he not know who Elder Yao was?
Although Elder Yao had not appeared in person, Cheng Boxuan's presence meant that he had intervened in this matter. The outcome of the bet was already decided.
Forget him, not even his father—no, not even his grandfather—could change this if they came.
Unless his own clan's ancestor were to show up.
But would the ancestor show up for a single Gang Transformation Pill?
Obviously not.
"Yang Xiao, don't get cocky! You may have used some crooked trick to beat Brother Wang this time, but just you wait! You won't be so lucky next time!"
Ye Chenghao roared at Yang Xiao.
Yang Xiao smiled.
He slowly walked over.
He closed in step by step, and Ye Chenghao's expression changed with each one. He was on the verge of retreating.
It was as if his furious threat from moments ago had been nothing but a fart.
Seeing the contemptuous expressions of the people around him, his face immediately turned red.
He forced himself to stand his ground for once, halting his retreat to look at Yang Xiao.
"Don't be nervous. What are you afraid of? It's not like I'm going to eat you!"
Walking up to Ye Chenghao, Yang Xiao's gaze swept over him.
He didn't even touch him.
But Ye Chenghao felt a sharp, needle-like pain in certain parts of his body.
However, the pain vanished in an instant.
For a moment, he couldn't tell if it was real or just his imagination.
"I really have to thank you for this. You've brought me so many good things."
Retracting his hand, Yang Xiao's eyes held an uncanny glint.
No one knew that just now, he had controlled the ambient Fire Elemental Power and infused it into one hundred and eight of Ye Chenghao's acupoints.
He had formed a mystical Fire Gathering Array.
From this moment on, these one hundred and eight acupoints would continuously absorb the ambient Fire Elemental Power until Ye Chenghao could no longer bear it.
And die by self-immolation.
'To be able to so easily deal with the man who killed this body's previous owner...'
Yang Xiao's mood was naturally excellent at this moment.
What's more, just as he had said, he had gained a great deal from these two consecutive bets.
The Red Flame Dragon Fruit, a Level 4 Peak Spirit Medicine.
And that was the worst of his winnings.
Then there was the Kunling Pill, which could be traded for at least two Red Flame Dragon Fruits, and the Gang Transformation Pill, which could fetch seventeen or eighteen Red Flame Dragon Fruits.
All told, that was the equivalent of over twenty Level 4 Peak Spirit Medicines.
'The Red Flame Dragon Fruit is a Spirit Medicine of Pure Fire Elemental Power. With twenty of them, forget Great Success of the Red Flame Realm—I might even have a shot at reaching the Peak.'
Filled with joy, he paid no mind to the venomous glare Ye Chenghao shot him as he left.
After all, he was just a dead man walking.
What did it matter if he let him stew in his hatred for a bit?
At this moment, the mysterious middle-aged man from before stepped forward. "Young Master Yang, I wonder if you would be interested in accompanying me to meet an elder?"
"An elder?"
Yang Xiao was slightly displeased. 'I am the Human Race Medicine Ancestor. How dare a mere mortal presume to be my elder?'
'However, I've gained so much this time, and this man and the person behind him were indispensable.'
'There's no harm in meeting them.'
'What's more, if I want to trade the Kunling Pill and Gang Transformation Pill in my possession for a sufficient amount of Fire Elemental Power Spirit Medicines, I'll probably have to rely on this man.'
At that thought, he nodded, his tone indifferent as he said, "Please lead the way."
"This way, Young Master Yang!"
Cheng Boxuan smiled faintly, not minding Yang Xiao's arrogance in the slightest. Instead, he personally stepped forward to lead the way.
The people who hadn't yet left saw this, and every one of them was filled with envy, wishing it were them standing before Study Lord Cheng.