Chapter 386: Yao Lao: Xiao Yan, the Cauldron is Just a Tool!

  As the loud annou echoed in their ears, most testants in the square were taken aback by the sudden exam requirements. After a moment of shock, some of them began to turn pale.

  It was clear that these individuals hadn’t prepared the proper prescription or suffit medial ingredients. Without these, they would have to settle for refining lrade pills, which would greatly increase their ces of losing.

  Although Xiao Yan had already learned about the exam topi Fa Ma, he still preteo be slightly startled. Maintaining a calm expression in su uedly challengi could easily raise suspis of favoritism.

  While trolling his expression, Xiao Yan quickly gnced around. He noticed that although the little princess and Liu Ling had initially been surprised by the exam’s requirements, they soon recovered. Their expressions showed no signs of panic.

  “Impressive background,” Xiao Yan mused. “Though this test caught them off guard, it doesn’t seem to hiheir abilities much.”

  “Now that everyone is familiar with the exam rules, let’s begin!”

  Oform, Fa Ma slowly raised his hand and then lowered it with a subtle motion. His calm voice echoed throughout the square: “The third round of the assessment begins now!”

  As Fa Ma’s voice fell, the slight murmuring in the square instantly fell silent. In the audience, tless pairs of eyes were fixed on the dozens of testants in the massive square below, eagerly awaiting their performance.

  On the square, after Fa Ma’s annou, almost none of the testants moved. Instead, they remained silent, each deep in thought, sidering their approach to the assessment.

  After nearly ten minutes of silehe little princess finally broke it. With a wave of her hand, an antique, blue cauldron with a faintly powerful aura appeared ooform.

  Hearing the cauldrole onto the ptform, Xiao Yan gnced over, frowning slightly. The cauldron she was using was evidently different from the one she had used yesterday. Judging by the aura it emitted, this cauldron’s quality far surpassed his own dark-red cauldron.

  “Tsk tsk, Jia old man, your royal family certainly doesn’t hold back. You even brought out the Azure Fme Cauldron—this is a fifth-tier medial cauldron! I remember several frade alchemists once fought over it years ago. I never expected it to end up in your hands.” Watg the little princess summon the azure cauldron, Fa Ma chuckled with a hint of surprise.

  “Haha, I don’t know much about it myself. Most likely, that girl begged her father until he finally let her borrow it,” Jia Xing Tian replied with a casual smile, shaking his head.

  With that, both he and Fa Ma shifted their gazes to Liu Ling.

  At that moment, a red medial cauldron, about half a meter tall, stood ooform in front of Liu Ling.

  The cauldron had a dark-red hue and was adorned with faint shimmering lights. he base, four sinister snake heads were carved in intricate detail.

  The gaping mouths of the snakes formed four interected fire els. The els curved and narrowed as they extended inward, suggesting an eborate internal design.

  At the top of the cauldron, a massive serpent coiled to form the dark-red lid. A unique opening on the lid ecifically designed for adding ingredients.

  Finely crafted from ice-silver, tiny holes were scattered across the lid, serving as ventition to prevent overheating, which could otherwise cause the cauldron to explode.

  The middle part of the cauldron was fitted with a transparent mirror crafted from pure ice crystal, allowing a clear view of everything happening inside during the pill refi process.

  Intricate and magnifit engravings of magical beasts adorhe cauldron’s surface, appearing so lifelike they seemed almost alive.

  Seeing this, Jia Xing Tian sighed, “This cauldron of Liu Ling’s is truly extraordinary; it appears to be far superior to that of Princess Yao Yue.”

  “It is indeed remarkable. This cauldron, he Crimson Serpent Cauldron, was uedly gifted to Liu Ling by Gu He!” Fa Ma echoed Jia Xing Tian’s se, visibly pleased. Gu He’s willio i so heavily raised Liu Ling’s ces of winning even further.

  In the world of alchemy, a good cauldron offers immense support to an alchemist, greatly enhang the success rate of pill refi. Lower-quality cauldrons often ot withstand high temperatures, occasionally leading to sudden explosions during the process.

  Thus, cauldrons are finely graded, from oo eight, from lowest to highest. Above the eighth grade lies the elite “Heavenly Cauldron List,” a level of cauldrons of whily thirtee in the world today, making their value extremely precious.

  “Teacher, with such impressive cauldrons around, should I sider getting a new one?” Xiao Yan couldn’t help but unicate his reluce to Yao Lao.

  “Ahem, Xiao Yan, ordinary cauldrons don’t catch my eye. Right now, there’s only the Bck Demon Cauldron. But if you were to use it publicly, it might attrawatention!” Yao Lao coughed lightly, a trace of caution in his voice.

  Hearing this, Xiao Yan could only nod iant agreement.

  “Don’t feel disced, Xiao Yan. While a cauldron is helpful, it’s still just a tool. The most important factor remains your own strength!”

  “A true master alchemist form a cauldron with the palm of their hand, refining pills with plete freedom, uricted by aernal limitations. That is the real grandeur of a master.”

  “Uood, Teacher!”

  With Yao Lao’s encing words, Xiao Ya his fidence restored. The moment, without hesitatioook out his own dark-red cauldron.

  Seeing Xiao Yan’s cauldron, Fa Ma’s expression soured.

  He had assumed that Xiao Yan might only ck a few ingredients, but he hadn’t expected him to still be using such a modest cauldron in the finals.

  “Sigh, a miscalcution—I should’ve asked st night if he needed a better cauldron!” Fa Ma murmured to himself.

  As Xiao Yan brought out his humble dark-red cauldron, not only was Fa Ma surprised, but tless astonished gnces were cast in his direany had assumed Xiao Yan, like the little princess and Liu Ling, was saving his best equipment for the final round. Yet, to everyone’s shock, he still chose to use this pin and battered cauldron.

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