This competition had a total of fifteen days.
Jiang Chen had spent a full twelve days just refining the Ten Thousand Years Pill, and with the two previous rounds eating up another day, that meant he had used a total of thirteen days.
In terms of speed, he certainly didn't have any advantage this time.
At least twenty people had finished before him.
However, among those people, aside from a few who wore indifferent expressions, most of them had looks of frustration on their faces.
Clearly, the difficulty of this alchemy round hadn't allowed everyone to perform as well as they'd hoped.
After all, the alchemy round wasn't about speed — it was about what kind of pill you refined and how effective it was.
Finishing first didn't necessarily mean your pill was of higher quality.
The four grades — A, B, C, D — were ultimately decided by the judges.
Moreover, the first two rounds, whether supplementing the pill formula or analyzing the ingredients, had been quite difficult. No one dared claim they could secure every last point with certainty.
Calculating the time, there were still two days left. Jiang Chen didn't waste them and began cultivating in the competition area.
Time was precious. He couldn't just spend two full days in idle waiting.
Two days later, the competition time ended.
The restrictions were lifted, and all contestants rose from their positions.
All answer sheets were collected in order. As for the pills — regardless of how many had been refined — only one needed to be submitted.
Jiang Chen kept three Ten Thousand Years Pills for himself and left a single low-grade one there.
"All contestants, return to the main hall of the Illusory Wave Grand Palace to await the results. This wait will be somewhat longer, as we need to tally not only the fourth round's scores but also the overall results of the Illusory Wave Mountain Alchemy Competition."
With the announcement from the organizers, all contestants headed toward the main hall.
"Brother Chen!"
Mu Gaoqi jogged up from behind Jiang Chen, his face beaming with excitement. "Brother Chen, that pill from the second round — was it a Trick Pill School creation?"
Seeing Mu Gaoqi's animated expression, Jiang Chen knew he'd performed well and asked with a smile, "So you managed to figure it out?"
Mu Gaoqi grinned. "I didn't completely analyze it, but I identified it as Trick Pill School, so I was able to determine seven or eight of the ingredients. I think I shouldn't be too far off."
Being able to identify it as the Trick Pill School at least gave one an inherent advantage.
"It was indeed the Trick Pill School — the Heavenly Heart Nirvana Pill."
Jiang Chen nodded and clapped Mu Gaoqi on the shoulder. "Let's go."
He was quite pleased that Mu Gaoqi had managed to identify the Trick Pill School.
"Hmph, surnamed Jiang, stop pretending. These pill formulas were all taken from the Forbidden Lands. They've never circulated in the Myriad Phenomena Region — how could you possibly have analyzed what specific pill it was?"
A mocking voice drifted over from behind. Without turning around, Jiang Chen knew it was Wei Qing.
Jiang Chen simply gave a casual smile, not bothering to argue. Facts spoke louder than words.
Ling Bier caught up as well. "Junior Brother, you said the Heavenly Heart Nirvana Pill — what ingredients does it have?"
She too had identified the Trick Pill School. But the Heavenly Heart Nirvana Pill was clearly beyond the scope of her knowledge, so there was no way she knew what it was.
Even without knowing the pill's identity, analyzing its ingredients was still possible. Even if she couldn't identify all of them, each additional ingredient would earn her twenty more points.
"Senior Sister, how many did you identify?"
"I only identified seven with confidence. The remaining three — I wasn't sure enough to write them down." Ling Bier answered honestly.
When analyzing pill ingredients, writing an incorrect answer would result in a deduction. So like everyone else, she hadn't dared write anything down carelessly.
"Let's talk after we leave."
Once they'd shaken off the people behind them, Jiang Chen listed the ten ingredients.
Mu Gaoqi was overjoyed. "Ha ha, Brother Chen! Then the eight I identified should all be correct! What a pity — the other two were too obscure. I couldn't analyze them at all. My skills just aren't there yet."
Ling Bier was also deeply impressed but felt a measure of satisfaction. "The seven I analyzed matched up too, but that's one fewer than Junior Brother Mu."
She harbored no jealousy toward Mu Gaoqi.
The group chatted and laughed as they made their way to the main hall.
Seeing the three of them moving together, Shen Qinghong felt a bitter taste in his heart. As the foremost figure among the younger generation of Danqian Palace, he ironically found himself feeling isolated.
Still, he wouldn't show jealousy in front of his fellow disciples. He smiled and said, "Seeing how relaxed you all look, you must have done quite well."