After Jiang Chen sat back down, he could distinctly feel that attention from all sides had once again shifted toward the Yan family. The factions that had previously dismissed them were now casting wary glances in their direction once more.
Even the Jade Lake Sect, which had been proceeding without distraction at their own pace, had evidently been thrown off. They kept glancing over at the Yan family from time to time.
Jiang Chen knew that his earlier low profile had bought them a brief period of peace. Going forward, fooling their opponents would be far more difficult.
Now that the Yan family had racked up thirty points, no matter how he concealed his strength, they were bound to become the other factions' primary rival.
That said, Jiang Chen wasn't particularly anxious about it. He decided to keep controlling the pace—no need to go overboard, but he still had to keep the situation firmly in hand.
As the dark horse of this competition, the Yan family had inevitably become the center of everyone's attention.
From that point on, Jiang Chen deliberately moderated their tempo. Without his participation, the Yan family disciples genuinely held no advantage in a pill dao exchange like this.
When Jiang Chen wasn't pulling the strings, neither Yan Zhenhuai nor Yan Qingsang could remotely contend with the real pill dao prodigies.
For some questions, by the time the two of them had even begun to grasp the answer, the others had long since figured it out and snatched the chance to respond.
In this way, sixteen questions passed in short order.
Of those sixteen, Jiang Chen had intervened only once, raising the Yan family's score to forty points.
Meanwhile, the Jade Lake Sect had fought with growing momentum and already reached fifty points.
These two factions had become the clear frontrunners. The next highest among the other groups had barely scraped together twenty points. Given how things stood, it seemed virtually impossible for anyone to challenge the Jade Lake Sect or the Yan family now.
Only four questions remained.
Jiang Chen decided it was time for a decisive counterattack.
When Zi Che Min noticed the Yan family's momentum dip slightly, he was mildly surprised. He even found himself privately wondering—given the way those Yan family youngsters had performed earlier, their current score didn't quite add up.
Could it be that the Yan family disciples had been hiding their true strength?
The thought had barely flickered through his mind before he startled himself. Wasn't the Yan family's mediocre performance exactly what one would have expected?
Why would he suddenly suspect them of holding back?
"The seventeenth question pertains to knowledge of pill fire..." Zi Che Min continued.
Without a moment's hesitation, Jiang Chen blinked, and Yan Qingsang immediately raised his hand to answer. This pattern hadn't been seen in quite some time, and when Yan Qingsang's hand shot up, everyone froze.
When Yan Qingsang answered like this, his responses were almost always spot-on. Of course, that confidence came entirely from Jiang Chen.
After Yan Qingsang delivered a crisp, decisive answer, Zi Che Min regarded him with a knowing look, then glanced at Jiang Chen, then at Yan Zhenhuai.
Clearly, Zi Che Min had realized that these young people from the Yan family had been playing the fool. There had to be a true expert among them in the pill dao.
However, which of the three was the expert, Zi Che Min couldn't immediately tell. In his estimation, the most likely candidate was Yan Zhenhuai, followed by the young man called Shao Yuan, with Yan Qingsang being the least probable.
Of course, there was also the possibility that the ancient desolate jade Yan Qingsang had obtained in the Blue Smoke Islands was remarkably powerful—beyond the level of a Pill Emperor.
What the true reason was, Zi Che Min had no way of knowing. But he was now certain that the Yan family had absolutely been hiding their strength before.
Only now, toward the end, had their true prowess been revealed.
At this point, only three questions remained, and both the Yan family and the Jade Lake Sect were tied at fifty points each—dead even.
Among the other major factions, two had twenty points, three had ten points, and two had yet to score a single point.
Now it wasn't just a battle for first place—even the contest for third was brimming with suspense.
With three questions left, it was obviously impossible for any of the other factions to catch up to the Jade Lake Sect or the Yan family.
In this moment, many of the young cultivators couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret. More than a few were secretly cursing the Yan family for playing the fool.
Back at the start of this pill dao exchange, when they'd been invited to join the wager, the Yan family had acted reluctant—as if the hundred million Heaven-grade spirit stones were going to kill them.
Now it seemed they strongly suspected the Yan family's geniuses had done it on purpose. They had deliberately feigned weakness, playing the pig to eat the tiger.
Even the Jade Lake Sect's prodigies had begun to harbor similar suspicions.
But the Jade Lake Sect had always been proud when it came to the pill dao. Even if they suspected something, they wouldn't say it aloud—they considered it beneath them.
After all, even if the Yan family had been playing the fool, that didn't violate any rules. A bit of strategy in an exchange like this was perfectly acceptable.
"Last three questions, everyone—please stay sharp! These three questions will determine your final rankings. The battle for the championship, the battle for third place—everything is still up in the air!"
Zi Che Min reminded the crowd.
Though in truth, no reminder was necessary. Everyone already understood the situation perfectly. These last three questions—every faction wanted to claim them. Even the groups that hadn't scored a single point could secure a solid third place if they swept the final three.