Comparing pill formulas with Jiang Chen, it had to be said, was a tragedy for Shen Sanhuo.
Looking across the entire Divine Abyss Continent, it was safe to say you couldn't find a single person who could rival Jiang Chen in terms of pill formulas, even with a lantern.
Jiang Chen merely let his mind wander, and all sorts of obscure formulas flashed through his thoughts.
Jiang Chen casually selected a particularly obscure formula and wrote it down, producing two copies. In one copy, he omitted three auxiliary materials.
Shen Sanhuo had clearly come prepared. The formula he brought this time was also extremely obscure, one he'd obtained from a sect elder. This pill was not an ordinary medicinal concoction; the ingredients and methods used were highly unusual, following the "Tricky Formula" path—a true niche specialty.
After writing down his formula, a faint, cold smirk played on Shen Sanhuo's lips. If Jiang Chen could figure this one out, then he was a genius.
Once both had finished writing, they swore a solemn oath to Heaven and Earth, promising not to use any fabricated formulas to cheat.
Oaths completed, they exchanged formulas.
Jiang Chen received Shen Sanhuo's incomplete formula. One glance, and a slight smile touched his lips.
"Tsk, tsk. This Shen Sanhuo really did come prepared. This formula, if I'm not mistaken, belongs to the so-called 'Tricky Formula' school."
In his previous life, Jiang Chen had been a renowned alchemy master across the Myriad Heavens. His knowledge of alchemy encompassed everything. How could he not be familiar with the Tricky Formula path?
The Tricky Formula school was characterized by its cunning and unorthodox use of ingredients, deliberately choosing unconventional approaches. They built formulas using bizarre and ingenious methods.
The formulas of this school often shared a common trait: unexpected yet logical.
Alchemy masters of the Tricky Formula school were usually eccentrics. Their greatest joy lay in completing formulas in ways that were vastly different from others, in exaggerated and dramatic fashion.
The more bizarre the method, the happier they were, the more they prided themselves.
While the Tricky Formula school wasn't mainstream in the world of alchemy, it was a school that couldn't be ignored. In his previous life, Jiang Chen had studied all the famous alchemy schools of the Myriad Heavens, and the Tricky Formula school was naturally among them.
Although Shen Sanhuo's formula also belonged to the Tricky Formula school, its level was clearly not high. Jiang Chen was very familiar with their methods. After examining it for a moment and applying the Tricky Formula mindset, he deduced the general structure of the formula with just a little thought.
After pondering a bit longer and working through the logic carefully, it didn't take long for Jiang Chen to fill in the three missing auxiliary spiritual medicines.
These three medicines also had potential substitutes. To be safe, Jiang Chen wrote down two alternatives for each.
According to their rules, as long as the substitute materials matched the original formula, it was considered a correct answer. However, only two substitutes could be listed for each material.
This meant for the three auxiliary medicines, Jiang Chen could list three options for each, totaling nine medicines.
Having finished, he checked the time. Less than half had passed.
He glanced over at Shen Sanhuo, whose brow was deeply furrowed in clear constipation. Jiang Chen chuckled inwardly. Shen Sanhuo had been too clever for his own good.
Getting his hands on a Tricky Formula formula and then using it to gamble against Jiang Chen in a formula battle? In the realm of pill formulas, competing with Jiang Chen was just asking for humiliation.
The formula Jiang Chen had given, while not exceptionally obscure, was absolutely beyond Shen Sanhuo's ability to recognize.
Moreover, given Shen Sanhuo's knowledge base, he also lacked the ability to deduce it.
Therefore, Jiang Chen was certain that Shen Sanhuo was completely stumped.
He didn't feel any sympathy for the man, merely smiling leisurely. "Fellow Daoist Shen, I've already completed your formula. The ball is in your court."
Shen Sanhuo's heart lurched. He stared at Jiang Chen in disbelief. Seeing the confident smile on the other's face, his heart couldn't help but skip a beat. Could it be that this Jiang Chen had actually deciphered even the Tricky Formula?
"Impossible! Impossible! This Jiang Chen must have seen how difficult the formula was and given up. He's just scribbled down random ingredients, trying to get lucky and beat me on time."
Shen Sanhuo tried to comfort himself, but the faint worry in his heart was impossible to suppress. As time ticked by, he still couldn't find a single clue about the formula.
It wasn't until the competition time was nearly up that Shen Sanhuo desperately filled in some random ingredients. It was all a long shot, hoping a blind cat might stumble upon a dead mouse.
However, in the world of alchemy, there were millions upon millions of spiritual medicines. This method of randomly guessing was almost impossible to get right.
The original, complete formulas were then brought out for comparison.
After seeing Jiang Chen's original formula, Shen Sanhuo's face was ashen. He couldn't help but curse. "Jiang Chen, what kind of formula is this? I suspect you fabricated it!"
Jiang Chen smiled calmly. "The Oath of Heaven and Earth stands above us. If you suspect me of fabrication, Heaven and Earth will judge and punish me. You need not worry about that."
In the cultivation world, the Oath of Heaven and Earth was absolutely binding. No one dared to cheat on such an oath, as breaking it resulted in almost immediate retribution.
Shen Sanhuo's original formula matched Jiang Chen's answer perfectly.
Thus, in this formula battle, Shen Sanhuo suffered a crushing, absolute defeat.
Mu Gaoqi clapped his hands in admiration. "Brother Chen wins two out of three. Shen Sanhuo, you've lost."
Shen Sanhuo's face was gray. He simply couldn't accept this reality. He had come prepared for three rounds, yet he hadn't even gotten the chance to compete in all three before his defeat was a foregone conclusion.
"Jiang Chen... you... you..." Shen Sanho stuttered with rage, unable to form a coherent sentence.
"Shen Sanho, are you still unconvinced?" Mu Gaoqi asked with a cold smile.