Chapter 324: Who is Holding Who Back?
“Such rich fragrance of the pill!” someone exclaimed.
Elder Su instantly glared at the person, who showed an embarrassed expression and immediately fell silent.
All eyes were focused on the Pill Furnace in front of Fang Lin. Not only was there a thick fragrance, but the shimmering light was also awe-inspiring.
“This is actually the Pill Formation Rainbow Light, albeit very faint. Its appearance means that the quality of the pill will not be inferior,” Elder Su muttered to himself.
The faces of the two from the Li Family turned somewhat gloomy. The presence of the Pill Formation Rainbow Light was a sign of high accomplishment in Pill Refining. Probably only one out of ten excellent pill refiners could achieve this.
It can be said, as long as there was the presence of Pill Formation Rainbow Light, the quality of the pill was essentially very good, if not outstanding.
Fang Lin looked at the Rhinoceros Pills in his Pill Furnace with satisfaction.
After all, he was using the Soul Commanding Pill Fire. If he failed even to yield the Pill Formation Rainbow Light, he might as well just throw himself into the river.
The Pill Formation Rainbow Light lasted for quite a while before gradually disappearing. By this point, He Liangyong had also completed his pill refining.
When the pills were formed, there was a burst of fragrance, but nothing more – no Pill Formation Rainbow Light – and the fragrance seemed slightly faded compared to Fang Lin’s.
He Liangyong’s face did not show any disappointment. His mindset had been indifferent to the outcome from the start of the competition, even Fang Lin’s use of the Soul Commanding Pill Fire did not affect him.
Both took out the pills they had refined and handed them to Elder Su for a verdict.
“Fang Lin, you are indeed amazing. I admit my inferiority,” He Liangyong said with a smile. His expression remained calm; although he admired Fang Lin’s talent, he did not harbor any jealousy.
Fang Lin also held him in high regard. Although they had just met, Fang Lin could see that He Liangyong was an upright person, possessing traits lacked by many Pill Refiners.
That trait – being down-to-earth!
Many Pill Refiners, especially young ones, were over-anxious and did not have the patience to polish their skills.
The impressively-talented were the minority. Most people were average, and if they wished to stand out, aside from seizing opportunities that came their way, the most important thing was to understand themselves and to be down-to-earth.
Others’ talents are always others’; there is no point in being envious. Instead, it would be better to focus on their work and rely on their determination to better themselves.
It was obvious that although He Liangyong was somewhat gifted, he was not outstanding. Despite failing once, he did not let it consume him. Instead, he chose to improve himself slowly over time, step by step.
As a Steward in the Pill Alliance, He Liangyong had seen many talents, but he did not let this affect his mindset or discourage him. Instead, he remained ever more composed and reserved.
Compared to geniuses, Fang Lin valued someone like He Liangyong even more. He might not stand out now, but someday he might shine brightly like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis.
“Elder Brother He is the one I should admire,” Fang Lin said with a smile.
Elder Su had already examined the Rhinoceros Pills refined by both of them. Undoubtedly, Fang Lin’s pill was superior.
All four Rhinoceros Pills he refined were of high quality, and they faintly exhibited signs of reaching perfect quality. However, due to the ordinary Pill Furnace and medicinal herbs, it barely missed that stunning perfect quality.
As for He Liangyong’s pills, although they were good, they were two of medium quality and two of high quality.
Just like this, Fang Lin succeeded in his challenge.
“Congratulations, Fang Lin,” He Liangyong said.
Fang Lin smiled slightly, saying, “Thank you, Elder Brother He, for the lesson.”
A Steward from the Pill Alliance immediately raised Fang Lin’s rank to twentieth on the leaderboard, causing He Liangyong to drop to twenty-first, thus pushing all the subsequent ranks down by one.
When the leaderboard changed, all the Pill Refiners in the Qian Country were once again astir.
“What’s going on? How did Fang Lin suddenly shoot up to the twentieth place?”
“He challenged the original twentieth, He Liangyong. He must have won.”
“That’s terrifying! He was just over a hundred earlier, and now he suddenly entered the top twenty.”
Voices of amazement echoed from all across the Qian Country, whether from young Pill Refiners or old ones, all were astonished.
Although they knew that Fang Lin was very good, he had just become a Three Cauldrons Pill Refiner for less than a day and had jumped directly to the twentieth place on the leaderboard. It was outrageous.
Even those who doubted Fang Lin previously shut their mouths now. This twentieth place was not something to be taken lightly, and it was enough to show that Fang Lin was a formidable competitor among the Three Cauldrons Pill Refiners in Qian Country.
“According to the rules, your successful challenge should reward you with a thousand-year-old Ancient Medicinal Herb,” Elder Su said with a somewhat pained expression.
Who would have thought that Fang Lin would take such a big leap and challenge the twentieth directly? The jump was too large, hence the reward had to be a thousand-year-old Ancient Medicinal Herb.
However, thousand-year-old Ancient Medicinal Herbs were incredibly precious, and even within the Pill Alliance, the inventory was not large. Earlier, Elder Su had promised Fang Lin that if he obtained a spot in the Pill Pole Tower, he would reward him with a thousand-year-old Ancient Medicinal Herb. Now, after Fang Lin’s successful challenge, he had to give him another. This young man was on his way to emptying out the Pill Alliance’s inventory of thousand-year-old Ancient Medicinal Herbs.
Fang Lin looked at Elder Su smilingly. With great reluctance, Elder Su passed a Nine Palace Bag to Fang Lin.
After checking it, the smile on Fang Lin’s face grew even wider.
“Thank you, Elder Su,” Fang Lin chuckled.
Elder Su rolled his eyes; although he was not unwilling to part with a thousand-year Ancient Medicinal Herb, he just thought Fang Lin’s smile was too irritating.
At this point, the two from the Li Family walked over. Li Feng glanced at Fang Lin, his face was entirely cold and disdainful.
Li Jianlong, however, approached him with a smile and said casually, “It was indeed an exciting contest. I wonder if Fang Lin is interested. We also wish to exchange pointers with you.”
Fang Lin directly shook his head: “Not interested.”
Li Jianlong’s smile remained, saying, “If so, I won’t insist. However, at the Pill Refiners Convention in two months, I hope you won’t hold us back.”
That annoyed Fang Lin – what do they mean ‘holding us back’? Was he, Fang Lin, the kind of person that would hold someone back? He should chop off their legs instead.
Fang Lin sneered: “Who’s going to hold who back has yet to be seen. The Li Family’s lip service is far superior to their actual skills.”