Chapter 803: Gold List Appears, Xiao Lang Obsessed

Xu Xiaoshou hadn't expected to recruit another young girl, quite haphazardly, through Xiao Wanfeng.

The Yu family was, after all, a prominent and major family in the Central District. The family boasted experts at the Dao Severing stage, and while it was unknown if they had Transcendent Void experts, their foundation ran incredibly deep. Xu Xiaoshou had heard whispers of this after arriving in the city.

Furthermore, Yu Chuchu was President Dongling's most talented disciple. The Imperial City Alchemist Association Headquarters, where Yu Chuchu trained, also had ties to numerous Transcendent Void powers. With this alchemist apprentice joining them, First Pylon in the Sky, having just lost Mr. Si Ren, now had a significant new asset. Who would dare challenge First Pylon in the Sky now?

If anyone dared to mess with them, they could just throw Yu Chuchu out as a human shield! Their enemies would then have to weigh whether they could afford to offend the Yu family and President Dongling.

As for the possibility of losing the bet... Xu Xiaoshou hadn't even given it a thought. Although he wasn't particularly skilled in orthodox alchemy, his "Culinary Mastery" had reached the Sovereign level. Even without resorting to his "Soup-Boiling Alchemy" method at this competition, it would still be a cakewalk for him; he didn't foresee any difficulty.

"The little girl is still too naive and innocent," he chuckled to himself. "How interesting. No wonder so many people in this world enjoy 'recruiting' young girls…"

To one side, Yu Chuchu pulled Xiao Wanfeng to a corner away from Young Master Xu, seemingly having already begun her frantic "brainwashing" campaign, preparing him for his eventual resignation and new employment. Although her voice was muffled, Xu Xiaoshou's "Perception" allowed him to clearly hear phrases like, "I'm better than him," "The Yu family has a bright future," and "The Alchemist Association Headquarters is incredibly powerful." He heard every word clearly!

"Tsk, tsk!" Xu Xiaoshou shook his head, unable to suppress a smile. This attempt at poaching was so outlandish it was beyond ridiculous. If Xiao Wanfeng genuinely cared about such things, he probably wouldn't have come to work at First Pylon in the Sky in the first place. The title of a Half-Saint's disciple alone surely trumps these empty promises a million times over?

Ignoring Xiao Wanfeng's occasional pleas for help, Xu Xiaoshou decided that letting the young man sacrifice a little of his charm in exchange for a major asset was entirely worth it.

"Hang in there, Wanfeng!" After a silent word of encouragement, Xu Xiaoshou turned his attention back to the competition.

The two-ke time limit was almost up. Some participants had already successfully refined their pills. Without a doubt, the Thirst Quenching Profound Pill, used for this assessment, was extremely difficult to refine. However, the Eastern Heavens Realm was home to many geniuses, and the young alchemy prodigies from the Five Domains certainly lived up to their reputation.

The first to successfully refine a pill was surprisingly not the sixth-grade alchemist Zhu Yan, but an unknown eighth-grade alchemist. Qiu Jiangzhi, who appeared to be in his twenties, had a refined appearance and an extraordinary demeanor. Clearly, an eighth-grade alchemist badge did not reflect his true standing.

"He's just like me, planning to play the pig to eat the tiger..." Xu Xiaoshou secretly noted this young man. To have completed the pill before a sixth-grade alchemist indicated a strength that should not be underestimated.

The two-ke time limit swiftly passed. The first round of the assessment concluded. Staff members came forward to collect the pills, and the referees began their scoring. After the first group left the arena, they were all moved into a special spiritual array, the "Confinement Zone," to prevent any leakage of information about the test. However, being unable to contact the outside world didn't stop them from craning their necks, eagerly awaiting the results from the judges' panel and the final comments.

The second group entered the arena and, as usual, received the pill formula and ingredients, starting another wave of worried expressions.

"How interesting!" Xu Xiaoshou was genuinely curious about what the pill formula looked like. The way so many people's expressions changed so quickly was truly astonishing. He made a rough calculation. Among the first 500 participants refining the Thirst Quenching Profound Pill, over 400 had their cauldrons explode. Of those who successfully refined pills, and excluding the failed ones, he estimated only about thirty would receive a valid score.

During the second group's alchemy session, a spiritual array on the judges' panel activated, and a glorious golden list appeared.

"Here it comes!" The audience immediately stirred with excitement. The alchemists waiting their turn also craned their necks, eagerly watching. The elimination rounds were primarily time-sensitive, so the judges wouldn't comment on each individual. However, the results of the successful pill refinements would be announced promptly. This "golden list" was instantly displayed by the judges' panel once the scores were available. Those with objections could present their case to the judges' panel, provided they believed that, as a mere youth, they possessed the eloquence to successfully argue against eighteen mutually supervising, fair, and impartial "old foxes."

"Quick, look! The golden scoring list has appeared, just like in previous years.""First stage, wow, only thirty-six people made it onto the list?""My heavens, out of five hundred people, only thirty-six have results. Is this Thirst Quenching Profound Pill extraordinarily difficult this year? Is it really that challenging?"

The golden list displayed ranks for a hundred individuals. However, only thirty-six individuals actually made it onto the list; the remaining spots were merely numbered and blank.

"1. Qiu Jiangzhi, 92 points."

Almost immediately, everyone's gaze fell upon the top spot. However, that unfamiliar name plunged the tens of thousands in the audience into silence.

"Qiu Jiangzhi, who is that?" This question filled everyone's minds.

Yu Chuchu pulled Xiao Wanfeng back and was now also staring at Qiu Jiangzhi in the top spot, lost in thought.

"Qiu Jiangzhi?""The top spot isn't Zhu Yan?""How is it possible that Zhu Yan, a sixth-grade alchemist, isn't at the top?"

The little girl's large eyes were wide with disbelief, almost popping out of her head. Xu Xiaoshou, amused, leaned in closer and remarked pointedly, "This world is full of talented people. Not everyone cares about the superficial prestige of an alchemist badge, like myself, for instance." He puffed out his chest confidently.

Yu Chuchu glared at him impatiently. "Stop praising yourself so much," she retorted. "Just wait until you have to give up Xiao Wanfeng!" After a derisive snort, the young girl, like most others, cast her gaze towards the alchemists from the first completed round in the "Confinement Zone."

Inside the Confinement Zone, Zhu Yan also stared blankly at the golden list.

"I'm not first?" He stared at "Qiu Jiangzhi" at the top of the list, completely stunned. Although the Thirst Quenching Profound Pill was challenging, after truly grasping the formula and steadying his mind, Zhu Yan hadn't found the refining process overly difficult. It was all about the fundamentals! It was just the final step of pill condensation where he made a slight error, then was troubled by conflicting medicinal properties, which took some extra effort. Yet even so, the quality of his refined pill was not low.

Based on the alchemy world's quality tiers of "inferior, medium, superior, and supreme," he believed that for his first attempt at refining this pill, even if it didn't reach "superior grade," it could at least be considered "medium grade." It was important to remember this was his first time encountering a new pill formula. Achieving a "medium grade" was already quite impressive. Most people either ended up with a failed pill or the lowest of the "inferior grade," prompting hesitation about whether it was even worth consuming. However, a "medium grade" pill meant it was very close to perfect, at least non-toxic. As the saying goes, "All medicine has a trace of poison." An "inferior grade" pill was still in that "three parts poison" stage. "Medium grade" meant it had surpassed this stage, being non-toxic and harmless. As for "superior" and "supreme grades," those were high-quality products that could only be produced after mastering the alchemy process. Toxicity was out of the question; there were only two levels: "extraordinary efficacy" and "exaggerated efficacy."

Zhu Yan, a sixth-grade alchemy grandmaster, could refine the Thirst Quenching Profound Pill to "medium grade" on his first attempt. He felt that anyone surpassing him would have to achieve a "superior grade" pill.

"This Qiu Jiangzhi, on his very first attempt at the Thirst Quenching Profound Pill, actually refined a superior-grade pill?" The young Zhu Yan was lost in thought. The Alchemy Competition truly was a gathering of exceptional talents, not just empty talk!

With the golden list displayed, the alchemists in the Confinement Zone erupted in chatter. They all turned their eyes, searching for the top-ranked individual. Among the crowd, Qiu Jiangzhi, with an eighth-grade alchemist badge on his chest, slightly puffed out his chest, stepped forward, and confidently raised his head. His demeanor was already remarkable. Among all the people looking around, his posture made him stand out like a crane among chickens, and he was immediately recognized.

"Eighth grade?""That's impossible!""This is definitely a sixth-grade grandmaster, a wolf in sheep's clothing.""Darn it, he's a big shot...""Brother Qiu, you must be more than eighth grade, right?" someone asked, stepping forward to greet him.

Qiu Jiangzhi surveyed the entire area, basking in the joy of vindication. After years of secluded cultivation, wasn't this exact moment, showcasing his skills, precisely what he had been striving for?

"A mere eighth grade is nothing worth mentioning," he replied. Upholding the virtue of humility, Qiu Jiangzhi pointed to the eighth-grade badge on his chest, refuting the rumors that he was a sixth-grade alchemist.

"Haha, Brother Qiu, you're joking," someone laughed. "If you're truly only eighth grade, then all of us seventh-graders might as well go feed pigs.""Your eighth-grade badge, I assume it hasn't been updated in a while, has it?"

Hearing this, Qiu Jiangzhi lifted his chin again. "Not long," he said, "just five years."

A collective gasp rippled through the crowd. The crowd collectively gasped. The smile on Qiu Jiangzhi's face widened. Everyone exchanged disbelieving glances. An alchemist badge was a symbol of honor. Basically, once one's strength broke through, no one could resist the temptation to immediately undergo assessment to upgrade their rank. This Qiu Jiangzhi, endured for five years? Even asceticism wouldn't require such strong willpower!

"Five years, from eighth-grade to sixth-grade..." Zhu Yan looked at the young man not far away, who was soaking up all the attention, gritting his teeth in annoyance. He hadn't lost by much. If he had handled the final step of pill condensation properly, his score wouldn't have been lower than Qiu Jiangzhi's. And in his opinion, taking five years to go from eighth-grade to sixth-grade meant his talent could only be considered average. He was sixteen this year and already a sixth-grade grandmaster. His entire alchemy career had only spanned five years. In contrast, Qiu Jiangzhi, just by his appearance, was already over twenty; his talent could only be described as excellent, but not on par with Zhu Yan's genius.

But that was reality. A competition wouldn't be delayed just because someone was too young. A single test wouldn't be postponed just because someone was unprepared.

"Lost is lost," Zhu Yan muttered, clenching his fist. "Next time, I'll win it back. There are still two more rounds!"

"Don't just look at the first-place entry," someone called out. "Look further down, and you'll discover a new world!"

The audience outside could hear the conversations happening within the Confinement Zone. Once the top-ranked individual was identified, the audience saw the person, but as their appearance wasn't particularly outstanding, nor were they a slender goddess, interest quickly waned. At this moment, someone shouted, pointing at the golden list, seemingly having discovered another anomaly.

Xu Xiaoshou saw that the "pig-eating-tiger" he had been observing had indeed captured everyone's attention, so he didn't bother looking further. If he were a representative of a major power, he would actually prefer Zhu Yan. This kind of genius was precisely what the old folks on the viewing platform truly desired.

Grandstanding... If it weren't for the passive points he could gain, Xu Xiaoshou himself would despise such behavior!

"Is there a problem with the golden list?" He had only glanced at the top spot at first and hadn't looked further. Now, hearing the audience's shouts, he redirected his gaze. Yu Chuchu also looked over, quietly reading out each entry as she pointed with her finger.

"1. Qiu Jiangzhi, 92 points.""2. Zhu Yan, 86 points.""3. Zhang Erde, 62 points.""4. Zhao Zishe, 59 points…"

"Hiss!" She quickly noticed something was amiss. "From the third entry, the scores suddenly dropped by over twenty points," she exclaimed. "The highest is only sixty-two points?""From the fourth entry onwards, they're already failing?""My heavens…" Yu Chuchu's mouth formed an 'O' shape, and she clutched her head, visibly shocked. Just how difficult was the Thirst Quenching Profound Pill? Scoring less than sixty points meant that the more than thirty people ranked below, even if they had successfully refined pills, those pills were undoubtedly "inferior grade," but whether they could actually be consumed was another matter entirely.

"This is quite something!" Xu Xiaoshou felt a surge of excitement. He wasn't afraid of challenges, only of challenges that weren't significant enough. This Thirst Quenching Profound Pill was clearly more challenging than anyone expected. Although it was normal for cauldrons to explode during a first refinement, and successfully refining a pill was already difficult, yet among the talented contestants present, only three out of the first 500 managed to pass. Wasn't that a bit too exaggerated?

The young girl beside him was already looking worried. Xu Xiaoshou's thoughts were unconstrained, and he quickly realized something, chuckling aloud: "Scared already? Daunted by this?" he said. "Let me guess, this also has something to do with the registration order, right? After all, heroes always appear last, like me."

Yu Chuchu instinctively wanted to retort and glared fiercely. But halfway through her glare, she suddenly realized that Young Master Xu had a point. The geniuses from the Five Domains and the talents from the Eastern Heavens Realm. The truly powerful ones had all entered the city in the last few days. Although registration was today, it was conceivable that those people had traveled from afar, some even rushing to register as soon as they entered the city without stopping. It was indeed somewhat influenced by the order…

But! This didn't stop Yu Chuchu from wanting to retort to this dandy Young Master Xu: "What do you know? Registration is all done today, it has nothing to do with the order!"

Xu Xiaoshou chuckled and turned to Xiao Wanfeng. "Wanfeng," he said, "women are all irrational. For instance, when I try to enlighten someone, I use a sarcastic tone, worried they might lose face. But then they... hey, they genuinely can't tell, and genuinely don't appreciate it."

Xiao Wanfeng: "..." He kept his eyes lowered, adopting a look that said, "I know nothing, I'm just a child."

Yu Chuchu's pretty face burned hot from these words, as if she had eaten a pound of chili peppers. This guy was absolutely detestable! Why would anyone speak in such a manner? Couldn't he keep up the pretense a little longer, just to give her a graceful exit? Hadn't she just been processing it? How could he just tear down the facade so abruptly! Darn it…

[Cursed, Passive Points +1.]

Time flew by. Groups entered and exited the arena. The golden list updated in real-time. Talented individuals from the Five Domains emerged one after another. Qiu Jiangzhi's top spot only lasted one round before someone from below surpassed him. The highest score, starting from 92, continuously updated to 94 and then 95. But for a long time, it seemed like 95 was the highest possible score, the ultimate pinnacle. After four consecutive groups, no one managed to surpass the 95-point mark.

"Don't the judges give full marks?" Xu Xiaoshou asked curiously. This round was almost over, and it would soon be his turn.

Yu Chuchu snorted. Having been constantly approached in the back, and now somewhat familiar with Young Master Xu, her tone of voice had unknowingly become tinged with sarcasm. "Full marks? You're dreaming! First time refining a pill, even if you're an alchemy grandmaster, producing a superior grade is already excellent. Full marks naturally require a supreme grade; can you refine that?" She paused, then added, "Oh, wait, don't interrupt. You can, of course. You're someone who plays the pig to eat the tiger, a 'tenth-grade alchemist,' after all." Yu Chuchu covered her lips, her large eyes sparkling as she tilted her head, a hint of feigned admiration in her gaze.

Behind her, Xiao Wanfeng looked up. The young man, with his shallow understanding, only found Sister Chuchu to be very mischievous and lively at that moment, or perhaps… quite captivating. Xu Xiaoshou was accustomed to seeing beautiful women. The most stunning woman for him was Yu Zhiwen after her veil had fallen. He naturally wouldn't be as easily swayed as Xiao Wanfeng by this underdeveloped young girl, so he merely scoffed.

"Full marks? Soon enough.""Heh heh.""Heh heh.""Heh heh!""Heh heh."

Darn it… losing several exchanges in a row, Yu Chuchu grew anxious. Why was it that even though it was the same "heh heh," she felt Young Master Xu's version was more irritating? She had already mimicked him so well…

"Xiao Wanfeng, wait for Big Sister!" Yu Chuchu ignored Young Master Xu and turned to look at the young swordsman.

"Okay," Xiao Wanfeng replied, still gazing blankly, his mind completely blank.

Xu Xiaoshou patted his shoulder. "Wanfeng, stop thinking about it," he said. "Once I apprehend this 'demon,' I'll make her guard the gates of First Pylon in the Sky with you at night."

"Ah!" Xiao Wanfeng exclaimed, startled, and waved his hands repeatedly. "No, no, I wasn't thinking about a daughter…"

Xu Xiaoshou: ???

Yu Chuchu's face was flushed crimson, as if it would bleed. "Young... Master... Xu," she stammered, "you... shut... up!"

[Received Request, Passive Points +1.]