Boom…
In the blink of an eye, the Soul Cauldron directly surged to a height of ten meters.
Moreover, it did not slow down or stop in the slightest, continuing to charge upwards.
"Heavens, he's already surpassed Tang Feng!"
Someone screamed in shock.
"Impossible… impossible…"
At this moment, Tang Feng felt his face burning, filled with disbelief.
On the platform, Eunuch Ouyang stared at the Soul Cauldron suspended high above, wide-eyed and jaw slack. He no longer dared to drive Ye Yunfei off the stage.
Standing beside the Second Prince, Yan Qing clenched his fists tightly, his gaze fixed dead on the still-rising Soul Cauldron.
"Senior Sister Xuexi, how does he possess such powerful Soul Power!"
The young Red-clothed Maiden's fresh cherry lips hung open stupidly, too shocked to close.
"Haha… Brother Ye, you truly didn't disappoint me!"
The Third Prince was immediately relieved and laughed heartily.
Guo Shijie and Lin Ming, however, looked ashen-faced, utterly silent, as if frozen in place.
"Look! Thirteen meters!"
Suddenly, someone shouted.
The entire arena erupted.
Every gaze was firmly locked on the Soul Cauldron high in the air.
"How is this possible?!"
The green-robed youth staggered back over a dozen steps, his face a picture of incredulity. He simply couldn't accept the sight before him.
He had come prepared, intending to crush all the alchemists of the Great Qin Empire with his absolute strength. He never imagined a terrifying rival like this would suddenly appear, catching him completely off guard.
Hum…
Under the crowd's stunned gazes, the Soul Cauldron, having reached thirteen meters, still did not stop. It continued to ascend!
Fourteen meters!
Fifteen meters!
Sixteen meters!
…
As the Soul Cauldron kept rising, everyone in the arena felt their very souls trembling, overwhelmed by awe and fear.
Some even began to doubt if they were in an illusion.
Hum…
The Soul Cauldron continued its relentless ascent.
Finally,
It stopped only after reaching a height of thirty meters.
At this moment, everyone was petrified. Each person seemed paralyzed, their minds in utter disarray.
"Do you think my participation is a waste of everyone's time? Do you have the right to judge whether or not I am an alchemist?"
Ye Yunfei's gaze shifted to Tang Feng as he spoke plainly.
Tang Feng's face flushed a deep crimson, but he didn't know how to respond.
"Earlier, you said you would revoke my qualification to compete?"
Ye Yunfei turned his gaze to Eunuch Ouyang and asked with a cold sneer.
"You…"
Eunuch Ouyang was furious, but how could he dare mention revoking Ye Yunfei's qualification now?
Under the watchful eyes of the entire crowd, Ye Yunfei had lifted the Soul Cauldron to thirty meters, stunning the entire arena. If he dared speak of revoking Ye Yunfei's qualification again, he reckoned at least half the people present would object.
Not to mention, the Emperor and his ministers were watching with their own eyes.
"Passed!"
Eunuch Ouyang suppressed his inner rage and said in a shrill voice.
"Hmph!
Having strong Soul Power doesn't necessarily mean one's alchemy skill is high! Ye Yunfei, perhaps you had some kind of fortuitous encounter that made your Soul Power exceptional.
However, alchemy is an art that requires relentless cultivation from a young age; there's no faking it.
In the upcoming matches, just wait to have your true capabilities exposed."
Tang Feng suddenly yelled loudly.
"Presumptuous fool."
Ye Yunfei swept a glance at Tang Feng, gave a cold laugh, then jumped off the platform and returned to the Third Prince's side.
"Haha, Brother Ye, you've absolutely thrilled me."
The Third Prince roared with laughter, utterly delighted.
"Hmph!"
The First Prince snorted coldly, his gaze toward Ye Yunfei overflowing with killing intent.
"Immediately send someone to investigate Commander Leng's whereabouts."
The First Prince ordered a subordinate beside him.
The subordinate immediately left the arena with men to conduct the investigation.
The gazes of the other princes as they looked at Ye Yunfei were also far from friendly.
Guo Shijie and Lin Ming stood nearby, watching the Third Prince's warm attitude toward Ye Yunfei. They could hardly contain their burning jealousy, staring at Ye Yunfei with eyes filled with the utmost resentment.
"Xuexi, that fellow's Soul Power is too shocking. He's about the same age as us, how could he possibly possess such powerful Soul Power!"
In another part of the arena, the two stunning beauties stared at Ye Yunfei with shocked, beautiful eyes, whispering to each other.
"Kid, just you wait. In the upcoming competition, I will definitely crush you!"
Having already stepped down from the platform and now standing within the crowd, the green-robed youth glared at Ye Yunfei, gritting his teeth as he spoke.
"Alright, I announce that the first round, the Soul Power Test, is officially concluded. Next, the second round, the Pill Flame Test, shall begin. Only alchemists who successfully passed the first Soul Power Test may participate."
Eunuch Ouyang proclaimed clearly from the platform.
"Everyone, seventy-eight portions of spiritual herbs have been prepared on the platform. Participating alchemists shall each use their Pill Flames to refine one portion, extracting the medicinal liquid.
The faster one refines the herbs, the higher their ranking will be. Anyone exceeding the time of one incense stick will be directly eliminated."
Eunuch Ouyang continued.
"Alright, now, all competing alchemists, please come onto the platform in turn for the test."
Eunuch Ouyang announced loudly.
Sure enough, the Soul Manifestation Formation and the Soul Cauldron on the central platform had already vanished.
Seventy-eight portions of spiritual herbs were piled in their place.
Each portion contained a significant amount, a mix of over a dozen different spiritual herbs.
This made many of the alchemists preparing to compete feel quite pressured.
In the first round, a total of seventy-eight alchemists had successfully passed the test.
As Eunuch Ouyang declared the start of the competition, those alchemists walked onto the platform one after another.
The platform's area was vast, easily able to accommodate several hundred people, so merely seventy-eight was naturally no problem.
Each alchemist took a portion of the spiritual herbs and began refining.
The majority of the alchemists took out Pill Cauldrons, placing the herbs inside to refine them.
However, a small portion with formidable Pill Flames and high-level pill-refining techniques didn't need cauldrons. They simply placed the herbs before them, directly releasing their Pill Flames to incinerate them and extract the medicinal liquid.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Fireball after fireball ignited on the arena platform, an extremely dazzling sight.
*Whoosh!*
Suddenly, a tremendously powerful Pill Flame erupted, shooting high into the air and capturing everyone's attention.
"Look! Pill Master Tang Feng's Pill Flame is incredibly powerful!"
Someone exclaimed.
Everyone looked over to see a fiercely burning Pill Flame in front of Tang Feng. It enveloped the spiritual herbs, suspending them before him and continuously incinerating them.
Under the burning Pill Flame, the spiritual herbs could be seen slowly melting.
What astonished people was that within the Pill Flame before Tang Feng, there faintly appeared the phantom of a lion, flickering in and out, extremely imposing.
Even occasional lion roars seemed to emanate from within the Pill Flame.
"That's the Raging Lion Flame. It's said Master Chen Xuan extracted the flame essence from a Beast King-level Purple Flame Demonic Lion and had Tang Feng refine it into his Pill Flame. Its power is incredibly formidable."
Someone in the know murmured quietly.
The Purple Flame Demonic Lion was a type of magical beast with immense strength, naturally wreathed in flame from birth.
"Hmph, Ye Yunfei, I told you, strong Soul Power doesn't mean strong alchemy skill. In the coming matches, just wait to be crushed by me."
Hearing the crowd's discussion, Tang Feng felt quite smug. He swept a glance at Ye Yunfei and spoke coldly.