The Path of Immortality: Starts With Creating Water Bear Gu-Chapter 381: Defying the Heavens

“Such a gathering of geniuses! I never expected anyone could improve the recipe of the Ice-Fire Polar Pill. If he succeeds in refining it, his score might be the highest in the competition.”

Long Xiaoyao cast a surprised glance at Qin Dan, a hint of solemnity showing on his face.

Suddenly, he noticed Feng Jiu making a move nearby. His attention immediately shifted. Compared to Qin Dan, Feng Jiu was the one he truly needed to focus on.

Feng Jiu lightly gestured behind him, and a large number of spirit herbs flew out from his storage ring, swiftly moving toward him. However, the herbs were all enveloped in a gray mist mid-air, obscuring their types and preventing anyone from discerning what kind of pill he intended to refine.

Feng Tiancheng frowned slightly. Though he couldn’t see the herbs through the gray mist, he noticed they were taken from the third-tier spirit herb section, indicating he was likely refining a third-grade pill.

Refining a fourth-grade pill would undoubtedly be harder than refining a third-grade one, and it would yield more points. Feng Tiancheng naturally hoped Feng Jiu would aim for the fourth-grade pill to secure a stronger chance of victory.

“Is he too proud to use a fourth-grade pill to crush the competition, or is he deliberately holding back?” Feng Tiancheng mused to himself, his brows furrowed.

At the same time, Long Xuan kept his eyes fixed on Feng Jiu. Despite Feng Jiu’s deliberate secrecy, using a mysterious gray mist to conceal the herbs, it could not escape Long Xuan’s Heavenly Secret Eye.

This was a pill he had never seen before. Initially, he couldn’t deduce its purpose from the materials. It seemed Feng Jiu had intentionally included many irrelevant herbs and burned them in the pill furnace.

While others might be fooled by these actions, they couldn’t escape Long Xuan’s insight. Based on the remaining herbs, Long Xuan slowly deduced the pill’s purpose through its pharmacological properties.

The pill was exceedingly difficult to refine and required nine individuals using nine different spiritual flames simultaneously. A single misstep in coordination would lead to total failure. Feng Jiu working alone to achieve what normally required nine people was unimaginably challenging. The difficulty surpassed that of the Ice-Fire Polar Pill.

The pill’s function appeared to be suppressive—capable of suppressing everything within the body, including terrifying forces like Heavenly Fire and Heavenly Water.

“This pill would be immensely useful for me,” Long Xuan thought, his eyes narrowing. Recalling the Heavenly Water he had yet to subdue in Thunder Swamp, he immediately memorized the pill recipe.

Though others couldn’t discern its purpose, they could tell how challenging it was. When nine different spiritual flames emerged beneath Feng Jiu’s pill furnace, everyone’s expressions turned to shock, their gazes drawn to him.

Whether it was spiritual flames or Heavenly Flames, it was best to have only one in the body. If multiple flames coexisted, they would devour each other, and the more there were, the greater the danger. Suppressing nine different spiritual flames in the body without conflict was already a herculean feat, let alone using them simultaneously for pill refinement.

The audience collectively gasped when they saw Feng Jiu using nine flames for his refinement.

“Incredible! Simultaneously controlling nine flames for pill refinement is far more challenging than creating the Ice-Fire Polar Pill.”

“I predict this round’s highest score will go to this mysterious genius from the Feng clan. Hahaha…”

Feng Tiancheng laughed loudly, his eyes full of triumph as he glanced at Long Xiaoyao. However, Long Xiaoyao didn’t respond, his attention locked onto Feng Jiu in the square, his expression growing heavier. The more he watched, the more unsettled he felt.

“This person’s refinement techniques are far beyond what a third-grade alchemist should be capable of.”

Although Feng Jiu was refining a third-grade pill, his methods seemed more akin to those of a fourth-grade alchemist. The thought sent a chill through Long Xiaoyao, who realized the severity of the situation.

If Feng Jiu truly was a fourth-grade alchemist, then the Long clan was destined to lose this wager. No matter how skilled a third-grade alchemist was, they couldn’t surpass a fourth-grade one.

Meanwhile, in the square, Long Xuan stopped focusing on Feng Jiu. With all the opponents now engaged in refining and having deduced their chosen pills, he felt confident in his strategy.

After careful consideration, he decided to use the Great Cauldron Alchemy Technique to create Spirit Gathering Pills. He had previously tested this technique on a deserted island, attempting to refine high-grade Breakthrough Pills, but its efficiency was limited. The technique was better suited for refining lower-grade pills in bulk, potentially producing tens of thousands at once.

While he had considered using the Great Cauldron Technique for the Ice-Fire Polar Pill or the King Breaking Pill, the circumstances didn’t allow it. Thus, he opted for the Spirit Gathering Pill, the most challenging first-grade pill.

After all, the competition scored based on difficulty rather than grade. If he could demonstrate exceptional skill with a first-grade pill, he could still achieve the highest score.

He didn’t believe that refining 100,000 Spirit Gathering Pills in a single batch wouldn’t earn him the top spot.

Taking a deep breath, Long Xuan steadied himself and beckoned. Instantly, a large number of herbs flew toward him. As a top contender and champion from the first round, his actions immediately drew attention.

However, seeing the herbs were all first-grade, the crowd grew puzzled and began murmuring among themselves.

“What’s going on? Why are they all first-grade herbs? Even if third-grade pills require first-grade herbs for balance, this is excessive.”

“There’s not a single third or second-grade herb among them. Is he seriously planning to refine a first-grade pill? What’s his plan?”

“Judging by the materials, he’s trying to make Spirit Gathering Pills. Is he serious?”

The crowd was in turmoil, filled with confusion. Even Long Xiaoyao frowned, perplexed, until his expression suddenly froze. Standing abruptly, he exclaimed in shock:

“No, this isn’t right! The amount of herbs doesn’t add up. What’s he trying to do?”

“Could it be that he’s planning to refine over 100,000 Spirit Gathering Pills in one go?”

The thought made Long Xiaoyao’s pupils shrink in disbelief. His voice trembled as he muttered, “What a mad idea! This method is unheard of. Is this boy trying to defy the heavens?”

Feng Tiancheng was equally stunned, his face pale as he stood up in shock. “Impossible! This has never been done in history!”

The judges behind the two individuals were also stunned by this scene, standing up in unison with vacant expressions, their faces filled with shock and disbelief.

By this time, everyone in the audience could tell something was amiss. The sheer number of spirit herbs soaring into the air was overwhelming, so numerous it could only be described as blotting out the sky. These countless spirit herbs poured into a massive silver pill furnace.

Even storage rings flew over, hovering above the silver pill furnace, dumping their vast contents of spirit herbs into the furnace in a frenzy.

As more and more spirit herbs flew in, the silver pill furnace began to expand, growing larger and larger.

Gradually, a colossal pill furnace loomed over the heads of the contestants. Many contestants felt the sky darken and instinctively looked up, only to see the enormous pill furnace above them, as well as the countless spirit herbs madly surging into it. Their mouths fell open in astonishment.

Suddenly, a muffled sound came from their own pill furnaces, and due to their distraction, an otherwise excellent batch of pills was completely ruined.

At this point, if the crowd still couldn’t figure out what Long Xuan was planning, they would truly be fools.

The previously noisy crowd instantly fell silent.

Everyone stared at the gigantic pill furnace with wide eyes and gaping mouths, their hearts filled with unparalleled shock.

Someone was actually attempting to refine tens of thousands of portions of Spirit Gathering Pill ingredients simultaneously. This person must be insane! Who refines pills like this? Such a method is bound to result in the furnace exploding.

With tens of thousands of portions piled together, the power of an explosion from the furnace would be unimaginably massive. Realizing this, the crowd’s faces turned pale, and fear filled their eyes. As they came to their senses, they began to flee in panic.

The spectators started a large-scale stampede. The square, already packed with people, descended into chaos as the frantic escape caused widespread disorder. Countless individuals were knocked over amidst the shouts and curses.

“Damn it! That lunatic!”

“Run! He’s gone crazy!”

Many contestants on the square also turned pale at the sight and stopped refining pills, rushing down the stage in terror, fearing they’d be caught in the explosion if they delayed.

As important as the pill refinement competition was, it wasn’t worth risking their lives for.

Long Xuan’s audacious move successfully frightened away a significant number of alchemists, leaving only the most daring ones gritting their teeth and holding their ground.

Long Yuyao glanced at him and cursed, “Lunatic!”

Yet she didn’t flee, stubbornly continuing to refine her pills. After all, each participant had only one chance in this round of competition—running away wasn’t an option.

“Damn it! Has he lost his mind? Who taught him to refine pills like this?”

“Damn it! You want to die? Don’t drag me into this!”

Feng Shuang and Wang Wu were also startled when they saw the massive pill furnace in the air and began cursing furiously.

If such a gigantic furnace exploded, it could truly kill them! How could they not be terrified? The mere possibility of an error…

Both of their faces turned pale, but neither dared to flee. The outcome of this competition was tied to the fate of their respective clans—they couldn’t afford to abandon their furnaces now. They had no choice but to grit their teeth and endure, praying no mishap occurred.

Qin Dan stared blankly at the enormous pill furnace in the sky, his mouth twitching involuntarily as he exclaimed in shock:

“Refining tens of thousands of portions of spirit herbs at once to produce tens of thousands of pills in a single batch—what an innovative idea! Why didn’t I think of this?”

“I’ve never heard of anyone refining pills like this. You’ve truly opened my eyes!”

“Fascinating! Absolutely fascinating! I’m going to try this method myself in the future!” Qin Dan exclaimed excitedly.

Feng Jiu also looked up at the incomprehensible scene, his expression growing serious. He turned to Long Xuan and said gravely, “Combining tens of thousands of portions of spirit herbs—what boldness and madness! I’ve never seen anyone dare to refine pills this way.”

“There must be at least millions of spirit herbs inside your pill furnace. Even if a single herb fails during the process, it could trigger a chain reaction and cause the furnace to explode. Refining pills like this is nearly guaranteed to fail. Aren’t you afraid of being blown to bits?”

With his strength, Feng Jiu wouldn’t fear the explosion’s power, but he had realized the difficulty of what Long Xuan was attempting. It far exceeded his own Nine Flames Tyrant Pill. Was he being overly confident in refining a mere third-grade pill?

If this young man truly succeeded against all odds, his score would undoubtedly surpass his own.

Long Xuan didn’t respond, his entire focus on refining the Spirit Gathering Pills. Using such a method, even he didn’t dare to lose concentration for a single moment.

As herb after herb flew into the furnace, each one was instantly liquefied by the intense heat within.

Under the control of countless spiritual clones, his refinement speed was astonishingly fast. These were only first-grade spirit herbs, and as a third-grade alchemist, refining them was child’s play for him.

Although the pill furnace contained millions of herbs, his speed in refining the Spirit Gathering Pills wasn’t slow. The “Great Cauldron Alchemy Technique” required roughly the same amount of time as conventional methods, and time-saving was one of its key features.

Moreover, first-grade pill refinement was inherently quick. It wasn’t long before Long Xuan surpassed all the other alchemists, becoming the first to complete his refinement.

Inside the pill furnace, the sea of spiritual liquid began condensing into countless pill orbs under the precise control of his spiritual clones.

In no time, the furnace was packed with pill orbs—over a hundred thousand of them!

Refining a hundred thousand pills in one batch was utterly shocking.

At that moment, perhaps due to the heaven-defying nature of Long Xuan’s actions, the sky suddenly became shrouded in dark clouds, and fierce winds began to howl, making it difficult for everyone to keep their eyes open. The pills he refined even triggered a phenomenon, leaving the crowd in stunned silence.

Fortunately, the dark clouds didn’t unleash a thunder calamity, allowing Long Xuan to breathe a sigh of relief.

“Rise!”

With a loud shout, Long Xuan struck the furnace forcefully.

“Boom!”

The massive furnace lid flew off, sending the hundred thousand pills soaring into the sky.

For a moment, the sky was filled with pills, as though it were raining elixirs.

The crowd’s eyes burned with fervor as they stared at the sky, their breaths quickening. Such a vast number of Spirit Gathering Pills—how many Marrow Cleansing Gu cultivators could this create?

Everyone felt their scalps tingle and couldn’t remain calm.

This young man was truly defying the heavens...