Each person had nine sets of materials.
The Grand Dream Thousand Autumns Pill wasn't exactly an obscure formula.
It was a pill designed to temper divine consciousness and strengthen mental willpower. If one suffered damage to their divine consciousness from a soul attack or spiritual assault, taking the Grand Dream Thousand Autumns Pill would aid in recovery.
However, the difficulty of successfully refining this pill was extremely high, and the crafting techniques were very demanding. In the Pill Dao Palace, no one had yet been able to refine a supreme-grade Grand Dream Thousand Autumns Pill.
Aside from a handful of Pill Dao powerhouses like Elder
The two of them each had half a shichen to familiarize themselves with the formula and study the refining techniques.
This was a necessity for any alchemist.
As for
After half a shichen, Shen Qinghong laughed aloud. "Time's up. Let's begin."
Jiang Chen smiled. "Wait a moment. How exactly do we determine a win, a draw, or a loss? Let's set the rules first."
"Standard rules, naturally. Nine sets of materials, and we compare the single highest-quality pill produced. If the pill qualities are the same, whoever finishes first wins. If the quality and timing are both identical, it's a draw."
What Jiang Chen actually cared about wasn't how to win, but how to secure a draw.
His only mission in this wager was to hold the line to a draw. Not to defeat Shen Qinghong.
The Celestial Peak Cauldron and the Celestial Shuttle Cauldron.
The two great treasure cauldrons of the Pill Dao Palace appeared before the crowd.
Even the perpetually frosty
The Five Great Cauldrons — in the Pill Dao Palace, these represented the supreme honor, the pinnacle symbol of an alchemist's status.
In times past, who among the owners of these five cauldrons had not been a legendary figure in the Pill Dao Palace's history?
Who had not rendered extraordinary service to the palace?
Which of these treasure cauldrons did not carry its own glorious legacy within the halls of the Pill Dao Palace?
And now, two of the Five Great Cauldrons had somehow ended up in the hands of the younger generation.
Ling Bi'er held her own Pill Dao abilities in high esteem, believing herself no inferior to Shen Qinghong, yet due to matters of background and backing, she had never been able to obtain a legacy on the level of the Five Great Cauldrons.
And this Jiang Chen, a mere newly risen genius, had actually received the Celestial Shuttle Cauldron directly from Palace Master
The alchemy began.
Every pair of eyes fixed on this pinnacle battle.
The Celestial Shuttle Cauldron against the Celestial Peak Cauldron.
This was destined to be a clash written into history. It represented the highest level of the Pill Dao Palace's younger generation and would shape the future trajectory of the entire institution.
Preheating the cauldron, Jiang Chen didn't put on any flashy displays. He used a perfectly standard, orthodox method to bring the cauldron to temperature.
After half a shichen of contemplation, Jiang Chen had already committed the Grand Dream Thousand Autumns Pill's refinement process to memory.
At this level of pill, for someone of Jiang Chen's current cultivation, it posed absolutely no challenge.
The real difficulty lay in the fact that he didn't know just how skilled Shen Qinghong truly was. What quality of pill would he need to produce in order to match Shen Qinghong and secure a draw?
"Never mind. I'll aim for the best I can. Ideally, I'll have examples across every quality tier — that way, no matter what level Shen Qinghong reaches, I can match it at any point."
This absurd requirement for a draw was driving Jiang Chen to extraordinary lengths.
He had to consider not only the pill's quality tier, but also the refining time.
Timing was actually harder to manage than quality. Jiang Chen would need to split his attention to monitor Shen Qinghong's progress.
He had to calculate precisely so that his pill would finish at the exact moment Shen Qinghong's did.
This demanded incredibly fine control over his fire management.
Even the slightest deviation would create a difference in finishing time and decide the outcome.
Fortunately, Jiang Chen had cultivated the Seven Apertures Spiritual Resonance, and his powers of observation had already reached a microscopic level. Observing his opponent's progress in this open-air setting was no pressure at all for him.
As a result, Jiang Chen's refining process appeared perfectly conventional throughout. He simply followed Shen Qinghong's rhythm.
When Shen Qinghong sped up, he sped up.
When Shen Qinghong slowed down, he slowed down.
Only, he did it with such subtlety that no outsider could detect the technique. Seeing Jiang Chen's focused and composed demeanor, many felt a measure of respect.
After all, this was Jiang Chen's first attempt at refining the Grand Dream Thousand Autumns Pill, and managing to keep pace with Shen Qinghong was already impressive.
The Grand Dream Thousand Autumns Pill held no mysteries for Jiang Chen.
He wasn't interested in any flashy flourishes. As long as he followed each step methodically and handled every detail properly, he was confident the finished pill would be more than satisfactory.
An alchemist's foundation revealed itself in many ways.
While refining, Jiang Chen was also quietly observing Shen Qinghong.
In Jiang Chen's estimation, Shen Qinghong's technique still placed too much emphasis on showmanship, and his attention to detail lacked a certain steadiness.
This was a common failing among young alchemists.
Jiang Chen surmised: "Shen Qinghong's batch would be considered good if it produced high-grade pills. Supreme-grade is definitely out of the question. In several small details, Shen Qinghong has already shown minor flaws."