Chapter 00271: The Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect's Alchemy Competition
# The Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect's Alchemy Competition
Chapter 271
Novel: Abandon The Universe
Chapter 271: The Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect's Alchemy Competition
"Junior Sister Guang Jie, why are you still here? Come with me to listen to Senior Brother Xin discuss alchemy. Senior Brother Xin, Senior Brother Quan Yu, and Senior Sister Liu are all over there discussing the possible scenarios for this alchemy competition," a petite woman, even slimmer than Guang Jie, tugged at her sleeve, trying to pull her through the crowd.
Guang Jie quickly replied, "Senior Sister Di Yi, you go ahead. I don’t think I’ll understand much."
She knew exactly who Di Yi was referring to.
Senior Brother Xin Wuhe, a prodigy in alchemy from the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect, was said to be less than ten thousand years old but had already reached the level of a third-grade immortal alchemist.
The competition’s rules stipulated that participants had to be under a hundred thousand years old, so even if Xin Wuhe continued to study for another ninety thousand years, he could still participate.
Senior Brother Fu Quanyu, also a third-grade immortal alchemist, was known for his speed in alchemy.
His master was none other than Yi Yiming, the top alchemist in the sect, a fifth-grade grand immortal alchemist.
Then there was Senior Sister Liu Xunshang, another third-grade immortal alchemist.
It was almost a given that the top three spots in this competition would be taken by these three.
The rest could only fight for fourth place.
When Guang Jie said she wouldn’t understand, she wasn’t lying.
Ever since Lan Xiaobu had taught her his unique methods of alchemy and the use of alchemy techniques, she found that her approach to alchemy was completely different from others.
Not only was it different, but many aspects were also contradictory.
Before, she had been using the methods taught by her master, which led to slow progress and frequent failures, often resulting in low-quality or even ruined pills.
But after adopting Lan Xiaobu’s techniques, she rarely failed, and the quality of her pills had significantly improved.
In the end, she decided to stick with Lan Xiaobu’s methods, even though it meant she rarely attended her master’s lectures on alchemy.
Fortunately, she was never a standout among her peers, and with so many senior brothers and sisters, no one really noticed her absence.
"Ah, you... I really don’t know if choosing alchemy was the right path for you. Well, I’ll go ahead then," Di Yi sighed and left.
She knew Guang Jie was introverted and not particularly favored by their master.
She always tried to help when she could, but even when she actively invited Guang Jie to join the discussions, Guang Jie often declined.
There was little she could do about it.
The excitement and heated discussions in the square continued for over an hour until a tall, clear-faced middle-aged man stepped forward.
This was none other than Xiao Yueshui, the sect master of the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect.
The Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect had one fifth-grade grand immortal alchemist and two fourth-grade grand immortal alchemists.
However, Sect Master Xiao Yueshui was not among them.
As for his alchemy skills, no one knew how high they were, as he never personally crafted pills for anyone.
"The sect master is here," someone whispered in the crowd, and the entire square fell silent.
The disciples, who had been tightly packed together, quickly made way and took their designated positions.
The central area of the square, reserved for the alchemy competition, was soon cleared.
Xiao Yueshui nodded and waved his hand, releasing several formation flags.
The competition area was immediately sealed off by a barrier, making it impossible for anyone to enter without permission.
A semicircular judging platform appeared beneath Xiao Yueshui.
After he took his seat in the center, several elders and grand alchemists from the sect also ascended the platform and sat down.
"I see Elder Guan He and Elder Lou Qianyun, both fourth-grade grand immortal alchemists, and even Hall Master Peng Yishuang..."
"What’s so special about that? Look who just arrived!"
"Isn’t that Yi Yiming, the only fifth-grade grand immortal alchemist in our sect? How lucky are his disciples! They don’t even need to worry about pills until they reach the Great Perfection Immortal stage."
The crowd buzzed with excitement, but Guang Jie quietly recited her alchemy steps in her mind.
Although she was already very familiar with them, she didn’t want to make even the slightest mistake during this competition.
Even though Lan Xiaobu’s alchemy skills might not be top-tier, she was certain that his alchemy heritage was extraordinary.
Once everyone was seated, Xiao Yueshui smiled and said, "Today is a significant day for our Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect. This alchemy competition will be a test of what you’ve learned since joining the sect. Hall Master Peng, please introduce the details of this competition."
A burly man with a thick beard stood up.
His gaze swept across the square, and the murmurs that had been lingering instantly died down.
In a hoarse voice, the man said, "It seems you all fear me more than the sect master. Even though you all know who I am, I’ll introduce myself anyway. I am Peng Yishuang, the Hall Master of the Enforcement Hall. In the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect, everything is good, but don’t make mistakes, or you’ll see me again. But today is a joyous occasion, and I’m here to support you all. This alchemy competition isn’t just important to our sect; the entire Mysterious Profound Immortal Domain is paying attention. The top ten from our sect will represent us in the Star Ascension Immortal Court’s alchemy competition. If they succeed there, they’ll represent the Star Ascension Immortal Court in the Mysterious Profound Immortal Domain’s competition. The conditions for participating in our sect’s competition are simple: first, you must be a disciple of the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect, and second, you must be under a hundred thousand years old..."
A hundred thousand years wasn’t an exceptionally long time for an immortal.
Once a cultivator reached the True Immortal stage and converted their essence into immortal energy, they could live for a hundred to two hundred thousand years.
At the Golden Immortal stage, their lifespan extended to five hundred thousand years, and at the Profound Immortal stage, it reached eight hundred thousand years.
While this might seem like a long time, many cultivators would exhaust their lifespans without advancing from True Immortal to Golden Immortal.
It wasn’t uncommon for immortals to die of old age.
If cultivation itself was so challenging, how many people would spend a significant amount of time learning alchemy? Alchemy required not only talent but also the right cultivation techniques and external conditions.
The resources needed for alchemy were almost terrifyingly vast.
Many people didn’t even have enough resources for cultivation, let alone alchemy.
If your cultivation technique was poor, your alchemy talent weak, you couldn’t find suitable flames, or you lacked alchemy resources...
In such cases, even if you practiced alchemy for a million years, you might never reach the level of a first-grade immortal alchemist.
Peng Yishuang’s voice rose slightly, "Becoming an immortal alchemist is extremely difficult, and becoming a grand immortal alchemist is even harder. But if you do become an immortal alchemist, the benefits are countless. Tell me, disciples of the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect, even if you’re just a first-grade immortal alchemist, you’ll never lack cultivation resources. As for the rewards of this competition, even I, as the Hall Master, am envious. The rewards for this competition have been updated. The top fifty will each receive a breakthrough immortal pill. If you’re a Golden Immortal, you’ll receive a Void-Breaking Pill. If you’re a Profound Immortal, you’ll receive a Silent Yi Immortal Pill. And if you’re a Great Yi Immortal, you’ll receive the Ultimate Radiance Pill..."
A wave of murmurs spread through the crowd.
Although most of them were alchemists, the majority were only first or second-grade immortal alchemists.
They couldn’t even dream of crafting the pills being offered as rewards.
Peng Yishuang waved his hand, "In addition to these, there are also rewards of immortal crystals, access to the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect’s secret realms, magical treasures, and more. The first-place winner will also receive a top-grade immortal alchemy cauldron, a million top-grade immortal crystals, and a special-grade cave residence within the sect..."
As the list of rewards continued, every disciple who wanted to participate clenched their fists in determination.
They might not aim for first place, but just making it into the top fifty would be a dream come true.
Peng Yishuang spent a full incense stick’s worth of time detailing the rewards before finally sitting down.
Sect Master Xiao Yueshui stood up and announced, "I hereby declare the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect’s alchemy competition officially open. All disciples who wish to participate, please enter the competition area with your jade tokens and take your seats according to the markings."
As his voice faded, rows of seats appeared in the competition area.
Each seat was spaced several meters apart and sealed with a barrier.
The Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect’s competition didn’t require prior registration.
Any disciple who met the requirements could enter the competition area with their disciple token.
Guang Jie hung her inner disciple token at her waist and followed the other participants into the competition area.
She chose a seat slightly towards the back and sat down.
After learning alchemy from Lan Xiaobu, she could now craft third-grade immortal pills, but most were of low quality, with only a few reaching medium or high grade.
In Guang Jie’s eyes, those like Xin Wuhe and Fu Quanyu, who sat at the front, were the true third-grade immortal alchemists.
She felt she was still far from their level.
Once all the participants were seated, a woman stood up.
The disciples of the Eternal Jade Alchemy Sect recognized her immediately—Lou Qianyun, a fourth-grade grand immortal alchemist and one of the most approachable among the grand alchemists.
Lou Qianyun smiled and said, "This competition is mainly to determine the top ten who will represent our sect in the Star Ascension Immortal Court’s alchemy competition. I’ve just taken a look, and there are a total of one thousand and seventy-one disciples participating. The competition will be fierce, but only through competition can we improve. This competition consists of two rounds. The top fifty from the first round will advance to the second round, while the rest will be eliminated. Now, I’ll announce the first round’s task: purifying immortal spirit grass. You’ll have a choice of ten types of immortal spirit grass, ranging from first to fourth grade. Each participant can select the grass they wish to purify from the options in front of them. The competition begins now."
As Lou Qianyun finished speaking, a virtual screen appeared in front of each participant, displaying ten types of immortal spirit grass.
To make a selection, they simply had to tap on one.
Guang Jie initially considered choosing second-grade immortal spirit grass.
Her low success rate with third-grade pills was mainly due to insufficient purification of the spirit grass.
But then she thought, if she chose second-grade grass, it would be difficult to make it into the top fifty.
Since it was already a long shot, she might as well go for third-grade grass.
So, she selected the Red Dawn Three-Leaf Sprout.
The Red Dawn Three-Leaf Sprout was a particularly challenging third-grade immortal spirit grass to purify.
Guang Jie chose it because Lan Xiaobu had given her a batch of these grass, and she had practiced purifying them.
Given its difficulty, Lan Xiaobu had even taught her specific purification techniques and alchemy formulas.
(End of Chapter)