Invincible Soul Emperor-Chapter 218 Substitute Ye Qingchen

What Qin Xi didn’t know was that Ye Qingchen had also been the one to save Qin Yue from her last painstakingly designed assassination attempt. If she had known, she would have lost her composure completely.

But even so, Qin Xi had no intention of letting Ye Qingchen off. How dare you oppose me, Qin Xi? There’s only one path for you—death!

Malice consumed her thoughts. She lost all interest in visiting Qin Zhantian and turned to leave, already plotting how to deal with Ye Qingchen.

After returning to his room, Ye Qingchen eagerly took out the jade stone, preparing to melt it with the Fire Poison. But at that moment, a knock on the door stopped him in his tracks.

Ye Qingchen put away the jade stone and the Fire Poison, then opened the door, puzzled.

"Qingchen, you’re finally back! I’ve come by several times, but you were never in."

Vice Pavilion Master Liu’s voice was tinged with anxiety, which only made Ye Qingchen more confused. He asked, "Vice Pavilion Master Liu, did you need me for something?"

Vice Pavilion Master Liu nodded, pulling Ye Qingchen outside as he spoke. "Pavilion Master Zhang knows you’re a fourth-grade Alchemist now, so he has decided to let you participate in tomorrow’s mixed competition as well!"

Ye Qingchen frowned slightly. "But I only signed up for the youth division competition. Can I still participate?"

Of course, Ye Qingchen was eager to participate in the mixed competition. The chance to practice alchemy alongside two Pill Kings like Pavilion Master Zhang and Vice Pavilion Master Liu would certainly elevate his own understanding of the Alchemy Dao.

Vice Pavilion Master Liu smiled, looking back at Ye Qingchen. "You don’t need to register for the mixed competition; each sect just submits a list of participants. However, from what Pavilion Master Zhang said, it seems you’ll be participating as a substitute!"

Ye Qingchen nodded. He didn’t care about his role as long as he could be on stage. Still, he asked, "Vice Pavilion Master Liu, why are you in such a hurry? Where are you taking me?"

Ye Qingchen had already collected enough Fire Poison. Since he was competing tomorrow, extracting and fusing with the Spirit Fire Seed from the jade stone today would be a huge advantage. That was why he couldn’t understand why Vice Pavilion Master Liu was taking him somewhere right now.

Vice Pavilion Master Liu answered, "Even as a substitute, there’s still a chance you’ll go on stage. Today is the final day, so it’s the perfect time for you to practice and coordinate with the others!"

Ye Qingchen nodded in agreement. The mixed competition was all about cooperation. Synchronizing with his teammates was indeed more pressing than melting the jade stone.

Before long, Vice Pavilion Master Liu had brought Ye Qingchen to Pavilion Master Zhang’s Pill Refining Room. Inside, three other elite alchemists from the Qingyun Sect were already working together to refine Spirit Pills.

Under Pavilion Master Zhang’s guidance, Ye Qingchen joined them.

After a full night of practice, Pavilion Master Zhang led the group to the venue for the Alchemy Dao Competition the next morning.

As the grand finale of the Alchemy Dao Competition, the mixed event naturally drew a massive crowd of spectators. The spectator stands, originally built to hold over 10,000 people, were now crammed with more than 20,000.

「In the Qingyun Sect’s resting area.」

"So many people?" Li Zongrui muttered, his lips curling in displeasure.

"Isn’t a large crowd a good thing? You should get out more instead of acting so lazy and careless all day. Look at Qingchen! He’s either cultivating or practicing alchemy every single day. What do you do with all your time?" Elder Wuji scolded him, his voice full of disappointment.

Over the past few days, Li Zongrui had heard the name "Ye Qingchen" so many times he felt like his ears were growing calluses. Still, he didn’t dare talk back to his master and could only curse Ye Qingchen inwardly.

"Are all four of you ready?" Vice Pavilion Master Liu asked, looking at Ye Qingchen and the other three alchemists.

Ye Qingchen and his teammates nodded.

Thanks to Pavilion Master Zhang’s guidance, Vice Pavilion Master Liu had long since recovered his spirits. For the past few days, he had been clamoring to get revenge on the Heavenly Profound Sect.

Spurred on by Vice Pavilion Master Liu’s righteous indignation, the morale of the Qingyun Sect’s elite alchemists was high. After several days of practicing together, the team was brimming with confidence for the mixed competition.

"Let’s go," Pavilion Master Zhang said with a nod. He then led Vice Pavilion Master Liu and the four young alchemists, including Ye Qingchen, toward the arena.

When Li Zongrui saw Ye Qingchen also walking toward the arena, he blurted out in surprise, "Didn’t they say that brat wouldn’t be participating? Why is he going up there too?"

As the Young Pavilion Master of the Qingyun Sect, he had been there when the participation roster was submitted. He was sure Ye Qingchen’s name hadn’t been on it.

Li Zongrui had hoped that with Ye Qingchen not competing, he would finally be free from his master’s lectures. Seeing him now walking onto the stage, how could he not feel disappointed? In Li Zongrui’s view, Pavilion Master Zhang’s alchemy was unrivaled. The Qingyun Sect was guaranteed to win the championship, and the others were just tagging along to share in the glory.

Hearing Li Zongrui’s words, Elder Wuji couldn’t help but snap, "You fool! Ye Qingchen is now a fourth-grade Alchemist, so of course he’s qualified to compete."

Li Zongrui pouted and said reluctantly, "With Pavilion Master Zhang and Vice Pavilion Master Liu competing, the others are just reaping the rewards without doing any work! If I’d known, I would have gone on stage too. Can’t let Ye Qingchen hog all the spotlight."

Unable to restrain himself, Elder Wuji smacked Li Zongrui on the head. "Why haven’t you matured at all, you brat?" he scolded. "In this mixed competition, all ten major sects are sending their Pill King experts to compete. I’ve heard that several sects have two or even three fourth-grade Alchemists participating. We don’t have much of an advantage in this battle at all!"

Elder Wuji’s words were a wake-up call for Li Zongrui. If what his master said was true, the Qingyun Sect didn’t just lack an advantage—they were at a severe disadvantage!

At this thought, Li Zongrui shot up as if he’d been injected with adrenaline and began cheering loudly for Pavilion Master Zhang and the others.

Just then, Qin Zhantian and Qin Yue arrived at the Qingyun Sect’s resting area. "Grandfather, this is all your fault! We’re late again!" Qin Yue complained.

Qin Zhantian laughed heartily. "Not late, not late at all. The competition hasn’t started yet, has it?"

Frustrated, Qin Yue stomped her foot. She had specifically wanted to arrive early to personally cheer for Ye Qingchen before he took the stage, but with so many people around, she was too embarrassed to say anything. All she could do was sulk in silence.

Qin Zhantian chuckled and shook his head. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Elder Wuji, he sat down with Qin Yue.

By this time, the contestants from the ten major sects had all taken the stage. Just as Elder Wuji had mentioned, each sect had sent at least two Pill Kings and four elite alchemists to compete. Besides the Pill Kings, there was also a considerable number of fourth-grade Alchemists.

In comparison, the team from the Qingyun Sect looked somewhat shabby.