Rise from a Poor Family: My Martial Arts Counterattack

Chapter 499 This is a dark horse!
three days later.

Tiangong Pavilion.

As a landmark building found in every city of the Thousand Machine Domain, the Heavenly Craft Pavilion is located in the very center of each city.

At this moment, people were coming and going from the Heavenly Craft Pavilion in an endless stream, including both advanced martial artists and innate martial artists.

"If an adult wants to sign up for alchemy, they can skip the preliminary round simply by showing their credentials."

The high-ranking martial artist in charge of registration smiled when he saw Lin Chen approaching.

What proof?

"It's the rank certificate issued by the Weapon Forging Guild. Don't you have one, sir?"

The high-level martial artist was completely bewildered by Lin Chen's question. Generally, those who pursue the path of alchemy start practicing alchemy from the entry level of martial arts, and by the time they reach the Innate Realm, they are at least intermediate-level weapon refiners.

It's impossible to cultivate to the Innate Realm before starting alchemy; that would be putting the cart before the horse.

What is the purpose of weapon crafting? Apart from a few who are truly obsessed with weapon crafting, most weapon crafters do it to acquire resources, to assist their martial arts cultivation, and to have the opportunity to enter the Innate Realm through weapon crafting.

"No."

Lin Chen's expression remained unchanged as he calmly asked, "What? Can't I register without proof?"

"Yes...yes, this is your competition number, sir. After you go in, please select the Alchemy Hall, and someone will guide you there."

The high-ranking martial artist quickly explained, and at the same time handed Lin Chen a jade token with a number engraved on it.

After taking his number, Lin Chen headed straight for the alchemy hall, completely ignoring the strange looks from the others around him.

……

The Alchemy Hall.

The hall was bustling with people. There were several side halls in the main hall, each containing hundreds of alchemy furnaces. Many people had already begun refining pills.

The rules for the preliminary round of the weapon-refining competition are simple: within a specified time, you only need to refine three batches of pills. The medicinal materials will be provided by the competition organizers. Once you have completed this, you will have passed the second round.

Compared to other contestants who had to find the location of the alchemy furnace on their own, Lin Chen received special treatment. Staff from the main hall personally guided him to the furnace and brought him medicinal herbs.

The status and treatment of innate experts are naturally incomparable to those of those who have entered the ranks of martial artists.

An hour later, Lin Chen opened the furnaces of three pills at the same time. This scene shocked the other alchemists in the hall. They would finish one batch before starting the next, trying their best to ensure that the pills could be successfully refined.

Each person only has one chance; once they fail, they are eliminated.

Simultaneously refining three batches of different pills requires absolute confidence in one's own abilities; otherwise, no one would dare to attempt such a feat.

Lin Chen was the first to finish refining his pill in the side hall. After being announced as having passed the preliminary round, Lin Chen didn't rush to leave. Instead, he observed the pill refining of others in the side hall. However, after observing for a while, he lost interest. The pill refining skills of these alchemists were not as good as those of a newcomer like himself.

For a martial artist at the Innate Realm to refine pills, even if they are just starting out, is like a game-changer for those alchemists at the entry-level.

Those skilled alchemists should directly participate in the semi-finals.

Losing interest in watching any further, Lin Chen left the side hall. The semi-finals wouldn't start until the day after tomorrow, so instead of wasting time here, he might as well go home and refine a few more batches of pills to familiarize himself with the process.

……

The next day.

In the alchemy hall, several elderly men sat upright in chairs, each holding a list in their hands.

This is the list of contestants who have passed the preliminary round and entered the semi-finals.

"It seems there are no rising stars in this year's preliminary alchemy competition."

The weapon crafting competition is the top event in the Thousand Machine Domain, and it is related to the interests of each city. Each city attaches great importance to it, but the families and sects of each city do not expect to rely on the contestants in the preliminary rounds to achieve a good ranking in the final.

But just because we can't count on them now doesn't mean they're unimportant. The weapon crafting competition is held every five years, and these promising talents from the preliminary rounds are the future driving force, the candidates for the final competition in the next or the year after.

Many cities will make decisions based on the performance of the preliminary round contestants. If no promising talents are found in the preliminary round, they will try to recruit some talented weapon refiners from other cities.

"There is one impressive one who refined three different batches of pills within an hour."

Hearing the old man on the left's words, the other old men smiled helplessly. Being able to refine three different batches of pills within an hour in the preliminary round was indeed a sign of great talent.

The key point is that this contestant is already a naturally gifted expert.

If this contestant were an entry-level weapon refiner, or even a high-level one, it would be considered quite talented. But for a Xiantian expert, it would be nothing special.

"This Xiao Yan must have started practicing alchemy after entering the Innate Realm. His achievements are largely due to his superior spiritual abilities."

Those present were all innate experts and alchemists, and they clearly knew how much an innate expert's soul could help with alchemy. Moreover, the pills being refined in this round were relatively common and not very difficult.

While these elders were discussing it here, the outside world was also talking about it.

The alchemy sub-competition within the weapon-refining competition has always been the most watched, because it's the one that all martial artists have the most contact with; every martial artist has taken pills.

"Have you heard? In this year's preliminary round, the first-place winner refined three different batches of pills within an hour."

"So amazing! Has another genius emerged from our Hundred Refinements City?"

"hehe?"

What's the meaning behind that smile?

"That person is already a Xiantian expert."

……

……

The scene was completely silent.

Are even innate experts participating in the preliminary rounds?
This has nothing to do with alchemy talent. This innate expert named Xiao Yan was able to take first place purely because of his powerful divine soul.

Xiao Yan's name began to spread among those who were following the alchemy competition.

Li's Trading Company

Upon hearing this news, Li Chongshan's lips twitched. If he remembered correctly, when he sent the invitation to this Brother Xiao, Brother Xiao didn't even know much about the weapon-refining competition and asked him quite a few questions.

Any alchemist will know some of the rules of the weapon crafting competition.

In other words, this Brother Xiao learned alchemy after receiving the information from him, and then went to sign up for the alchemy competition.

"Manager Li, do you know this person?"

In the courtyard behind the shop, a young woman saw Manager Li's strange expression, put down the list in her hand, and asked curiously.

"Young Miss, I do indeed know this Xiao Yan. Not long ago..."

After hearing Li Chongshan's words, the young woman smiled and said, "It seems that Xiao Yan is just joining in the fun. He will have an easy time in the preliminary round, but the semi-final round is another matter."

The alchemists in Hundred Refinements City who were at least at the intermediate level and didn't need to participate in the preliminary rounds were able to get first place.

However, there are quite a few innate-level alchemists who can enter the semi-finals, and they have all been immersed in alchemy for more than ten or even several decades. Without the advantage of divine soul, Xiao Yan will not be able to pass the semi-final assessment.

……

……

next day!

The Tiangong Pavilion was even more bustling than it had been three days ago.

The semi-finals of the Hundred Refinement City Weapon Forging Competition have begun, and those who have made it to the semi-finals are all quite famous in Hundred Refinement City.

"What, aren't you coming with me?"

"I'm afraid of losing face."

In front of the Heavenly Craft Pavilion, Yin Yue shook her head. It was obvious that a Xiantian martial artist participating in the preliminary rounds would cause a stir. If it were just a matter of discussion, that would be one thing, but the main problem was that she had no confidence in Lin Chen.

Lin Chen isn't afraid of losing face; she's the one who's only been practicing alchemy for less than seven days.

"Alright, you can keep this invitation."

Lin Chen tossed the invitation letter from Li Chongshan to Yin Yue, then entered the gate and headed towards the contestants, while Yin Yue went to the guest seating area.

The semi-finals will still be held in the Alchemy Hall, but not inside the hall; instead, they will be held in the square outside the hall.

When Lin Chen entered the square, there were already many contestants standing there. The alchemy furnaces in front of these contestants were of all kinds, but Lin Chen could tell with the naked eye that these alchemy furnaces were extraordinary and could not be compared with the alchemy furnaces provided by the organizers during yesterday's preliminary round.

Lin Chen looked somewhat awkwardly at the young man leading the way and asked, "Don't you provide alchemy furnaces for the semi-finals?"

Upon hearing this, the young man in front stiffened and turned around, saying, "Sir, many of you are used to refining pills in your own furnaces, so you are allowed to bring your own furnaces for the semi-finals. However, if you need one, we can provide one."

The semi-finals required the competition to provide alchemy furnaces, which was something he had never encountered before.

"Hmm, I forgot to bring my alchemy furnace when I went out today. You can provide me with one."

Lin Chen's expression remained unchanged as he stood in his position, waiting for the young man to fetch the alchemy furnace for him. However, several alchemists around him looked at him with strange expressions, and some even showed mockery on their faces. But despite the mockery, no one said anything sarcastic.

Perhaps it's because those who can stand here are not young upstarts and wouldn't easily make enemies, or perhaps it's because Lin Chen's strength at the second level of the Innate Realm makes these people wary.

On the contrary, many people in the VIP seats were now looking at Lin Chen.

Throughout the entire plaza, all the other contestants had alchemy furnaces in front of them, but Lin Chen stood there all alone, which would have been strange if he hadn't attracted attention.

"This sir didn't bring his alchemy furnace?"

"How could I not have brought my alchemy furnace? For an alchemist, the alchemy furnace is of utmost importance. A good alchemy furnace and one that is easy to use can increase the probability of successful alchemy by 10% or even several times."

"If it were any other adult, I certainly wouldn't say that, but I met this person yesterday as well; he's Xiao Yan, who appeared in the preliminary rounds."

"Xiao Yan? Is that the Xiao Yan who stepped into the Innate Realm but wasn't even a mid-level alchemist?"

"Does he not even have a pill-refining furnace?"

"I... I don't think so. After all, this is the semi-finals. If someone didn't have some skill, why would they participate? Maybe they really forgot." The last person to speak spoke softer and softer, because even he himself didn't believe this guess.

What alchemist would forget to bring their alchemy furnace?

Yin Yue, sitting in the guest seats, looked up at the sky, somewhat speechless. She was right not to choose to come in with Lin Chen.

After a short while, the young man who had led the way carried in a pill furnace and placed it in front of Lin Chen.

A quarter of an hour later.

At the top of the square, five elderly men appeared. Upon seeing these five men, many people's eyes lit up with excitement, especially the one in the middle, who had a five-star alchemy furnace pattern embroidered on his chest.

"It's Master Chen. I didn't expect it to be Master Chen who came this time."

"Although Master Chen came from our Hundred Refinements City, he has lived in Thousand Machines City for a long time and has not returned for many years. He must have been invited here this time."

Listening to the discussions around him, Lin Chen's gaze also turned to Master Chen in the middle.

He knew a little about weapon refiners. His master had mentioned in the jade slip that in the Thousand Machine Domain, anyone who could refine treasures that could be used by experts at the fifth level of the Innate Realm could be called a master.

Masters are divided into two levels: five-star master and six-star master.

Five-star refers to items that are supplied to those at the fifth level of the Innate Realm, while six-star refers to treasures that can tempt even those at the sixth level of the Innate Realm.

Especially in terms of pills, the distinction is even more obvious, because pills themselves are divided into grades. Pills taken by martial artists in the first stage of the Innate Realm are called one-star pills, while those taken by martial artists in the sixth stage of the Innate Realm are called six-star pills.

"The task for this semi-final is to refine the Rejuvenation Pill. All the materials have been prepared for you. The top ten will be determined by the number of finished products and the time taken."

The old man standing to Master Chen's left glanced at the entire room, spoke slowly, and the next moment the five of them turned back into the hall.

The Rejuvenating Pill is a medicine for those with weak spirits and souls. Many innate martial artists with damaged or injured spirits choose to take the Rejuvenating Pill. In terms of star rating, the Rejuvenating Pill is equivalent to a two-star medicine.

Soon, someone brought over the prescription.

Lin Chen looked at the pill formula with a strange expression.

This pill formula actually records several different formulas, so the Rejuvenating Pill is a pill with multiple formulas.

The main ingredients of the various prescriptions are the same, but the auxiliary ingredients are slightly different.

Different auxiliary medicines will have different effects. The prescription also clearly states that the stronger the effect, the lower the success rate of refining.

"So, this is one of the assessments in the semi-finals. Choosing the simplest option has a high success rate, but the score will definitely not be as high as the one with stronger medicinal effects. This is how these alchemists make their choices."

Lin Chen could guess why the organizers used the Rejuvenation Pill as an assessment question: to see if these contestants had enough confidence in their alchemy skills, and whether that confidence was blind or genuine.

Without hesitation, Lin Chen chose the most difficult one and gave an order to the young man beside him. The young man's expression turned strange again, but he didn't say anything and hurriedly went to get the medicinal herbs.

……

Main hall.

"They've got guts, fifteen of them chose the most difficult version. I just don't know if they're really confident or just taking a gamble for their ranking."

The elders also received the prescriptions compiled by their subordinates.

Of the nearly one hundred contestants, only fifteen chose the most difficult version of the formula, but not all of these fifteen were confident in themselves; some were inevitably taking a gamble.

The semi-finals only select the top ten. If you choose one of the other three pill formulas, even if you succeed in refining them, you can only gamble on others failing. Otherwise, it is impossible to enter the top ten. Many contestants present should be able to guess this. Under such circumstances, some contestants choose to take control of their rankings and gamble rather than wait for others to fail.

"Master Chen, how many contestants do you think will be able to successfully refine it?"

Upon hearing this, Chen He put down his teacup: "I estimate that seven or eight people will be able to successfully refine it."

The Rejuvenation Pill is a two-star pill, and the most difficult version is close to a three-star pill. Among the contestants participating in the semi-finals this time, there are no three-star alchemists, only eight who have been two-star alchemists for about ten years. These eight people have a chance to successfully refine it.

As for the other seven, I'm afraid they won't have a chance.

There's no room for luck in alchemy; if your strength isn't sufficient, even by a small margin, you'll never succeed.

……

On the plaza, Lin Chen put the medicinal herbs into the alchemy furnace in order, unlike other alchemists who waited for some herbs to burn for a while before adding the next one. With his powerful divine soul, he could finely separate and purify the herbs inside the furnace.

Seeing Lin Chen's actions, many people's eyes fell on him.

"This person is far too arrogant, actually putting all the medicinal herbs into the cauldron at once."

"In this way, the impurities in the medicinal materials will mix together and cannot be separated at all. Even the most novice apprentices who are new to alchemy would not make such a basic mistake."

Many people in the guest seats were puzzled by Lin Chen's actions.

Those who come to watch, even if they are not alchemists, are all quite knowledgeable about alchemy. The first step in learning alchemy is to identify medicinal materials, then to understand how to extract the impurities of various medicinal materials, and then to refine the pills.

"What exactly is Lin Chen trying to do?"

Yin Yue was also sitting in the stands, watching Lin Chen's actions, which made her look thoughtful.

If at first she thought Lin Chen was just participating in the competition to kill time out of boredom, she no longer thinks so.

Lin Chen is not the kind of person who seeks attention by being sensational. He would not do anything outrageous just to stand out or gain attention. After all, if Lin Chen wanted the spotlight, he only needed to reveal his identity.

The fact that the person who reached the summit of Wudao Mountain, and who is said to be the highest-quality summit in the last hundred years, is enough to attract attention as soon as his identity is revealed.

So Lin Chen had some kind of purpose, but he didn't tell her.

Not far from Yin Yue, Li Chongshan was sitting with a young woman in the stands.

"This is Xiao Yan?"

"Hmm, this person is Xiao Yan. My impression of Brother Xiao is that he is a very composed person. What is the reason for his unusual behavior today?"

Li Chongshan looked puzzled. Li Qin smiled slightly when she heard the word "steady". Manager Li had told her that he suspected Xiao Yan was a Tribulation Cultivator. The so-called "steady" referred to the low profile and forbearance of a Tribulation Cultivator.

Those who cultivate through tribulation will not expose themselves to the public eye, but will remain hidden in the shadows, choosing to strike with a single, decisive blow.

……

Half an hour later, flames roared across the square, and almost all the contestants had begun the process of refining pills.

At this moment, Lin Chen looked at the flames below the alchemy furnace, a smile curving his lips. The next moment, a wisp of flame appeared on his finger. The instant this wisp of flame appeared, all the flames in the entire square suddenly began to leap wildly, but after a breath, these flames bowed down in one direction, just like humans bending over.

"Primordial Fire!"

From the guest seats, a powerful voice, tinged with shock, rang out.

Li Qin's beautiful eyes were also fixed on Lin Chen's figure: "Manager Li, has Xiao Yan refined the Innate Flame?"

"This...this old man does not know."

Li Chongshan's old eyes also showed shock. He and Xiao Yan were not very close. He coveted the treasures on Xiao Yan's body and wanted to buy them at a low price. Xiao Yan also needed a channel to sell his stolen goods.

Inside the main hall, Chen He, sitting at the head of the table, seemed to sense something. His eyes lit up, and he stood up abruptly: "It's actually an innate fire! Now I understand why Xiao Yan, who is at the innate realm, hasn't participated in the alchemy assessment yet. If I'm not mistaken, Xiao Yan hasn't been refining this innate fire for very long. He only decided to embark on the path of alchemy after refining the innate fire."

Chen He's old eyes gleamed. If one starts refining pills again at the Innate Realm, one's future achievements will not be very high, after all, decades have already been wasted.

However, if one possesses innate fire, the wasted time can be completely made up for.

In alchemy, the role of the innate fire is even more important than the alchemy furnace. With the innate fire, the purification of medicinal liquids and the removal of impurities can be achieved to an extremely refined degree.

"What a pity. If Xiao Yan were ten or twenty years younger, I'm afraid the Thousand Machines Sect would have specially recruited him."

Hearing Chen He's regretful words, the other four elders looked at each other. Master Chen felt it was a pity, but he didn't think that if Xiao Yan hadn't entered the Innate Realm, how could he have refined the Innate Flame?

"It seems that the winner of this semi-final has already been determined."

An old man smiled helplessly. With the blessing of the innate fire and being at the second level of the innate realm, Xiao Yan's cultivation level was among the top in the competition. This first place was undoubtedly his.

"Now we just hope that others won't be affected, otherwise it won't sound good if only Xiao Yan succeeds in refining it."

Just as the old man finished speaking, a loud explosion suddenly came from outside the square; someone had set off an explosion.

After that explosion, a series of explosions followed. The four elders present changed their expressions drastically. Just a moment ago, they hoped that others would not be affected, but they did not expect the result to be revealed at this moment.

……

On the plaza, the contestants stared at the shattered alchemy furnace, their faces filled with despair. Their eyes were filled with anger as they looked at Lin Chen, but when they saw the ghostly blue flame, their anger turned into jealousy.

The furnace exploded because the flames were out of control for a moment, causing a deviation in the purification of the medicinal liquid. In an attempt to make up for the loss of control over the fire in the panic, the furnace exploded.

The culprit behind all this was still nonchalantly refining elixirs.

Lin Chen naturally sensed the explosions of the alchemy furnaces of the other contestants around him, but he didn't think it was his own. Instead, he assumed that the explosions were caused by tension or other reasons.

"Everyone except Xiao Yan, please stop refining pills!"

Chen He appeared in the square, and his voice reached everyone: "The others can retake the test later."

Upon hearing this, the anger on the faces of those whose alchemy furnaces had exploded turned into ecstasy. They decided to try refining again. With the experience of their furnaces exploding just now, they would be more confident in succeeding the second time.

After Chen He finished his announcement, his gaze fell on the flames beneath Lin Chen's alchemy furnace.

He couldn't recognize the origin of the dark blue innate fire.

This is normal, though. There are many innate flames in the entire Yan Dynasty, and many of them are almost indistinguishable from each other in appearance. Apart from the experts of the Wanhuo Sect, no one dares to say that they can recognize the origin of an innate flame just by looking at it.

"This... Xiao Yan not only refined the innate fire, but also seems to be able to control it with ease. His soul also seems to be quite strong. If he is properly nurtured, he might actually achieve a ranking in the final competition."

Seeing how easily Lin Chen manipulated the innate fire to refine pills, Chen He also made his own judgment.

This is a dark horse!
In the guest seats, Li Qin also looked thoughtful. After a while, she said to Li Chongshan, "Manager Li, after the competition is over, please arrange a meeting with Xiao Yan for me."

"it is good."

Li Chongshan nodded; he could guess what the young lady was thinking.

Regardless of how long Xiao Yan has been practicing alchemy, with his innate fire, becoming a four-star alchemist is no problem. The entire Li family only has two alchemy masters and five four-star alchemists.

(End of this chapter)