Nie Sheng asked, “Elder Wu, the Southeastern Exalt is proficient in pill concoction, that I know. Still, it is not only the Southeastern Exalt who is proficient in it. How can we judge just based on that?”
Wu Zixiu said slowly, “Therefore, it is not pill concoction but projecting pill formulas that we are doing now.”
“This old man likes analysing the dao of alchemy. Still, guiltily enough, whilst being greatly hungry for knowledge, my skill in it is still sorely deficient.”
Nie Sheng shook his head, “No need to be humble, Elder Wu. You are our sect’s top alchemy expert. Everyone is always greatly in admiration of you.”
Wu Zixiu said, “I myself am clear on my own longtime faults. Still, there are still some uses for this. Even for the alchemical methods of powers outside of the Royal Reed Sea, while I only know a little about them, it is still sufficient to identify where they originate from.”
“It’s fine if this young man holds it in and doesn’t make a move. As long as he is tempted to and thus acts, this old man will be able to tell his origins from his paths of thought in the restoration process.”
The old man sighed lightly, “Let us await with bated breath.”
History's Strongest Senior Brother Chapter 633: Too low level, can’t catch his eye
HSSB633: Too low level, can’t catch his eye
The Dim Darkness Sect contained three halls, the Non-Brightness Hall, the Primordial Darkness Hall and the Obscure Dimness Hall.
It was the Non-Brightness Hall and the Primordial Darkness Hall that were competing right now.
Both parties were Martial Grandmaster experts, one being at the late Essence Spirit stage while the other was at the early Essence Talisman stage.
While there was a gap between their cultivation bases, at this level, one’s attainments in alchemy depended more on their individual skill, their cultivation bases not being a decisive factor.
Some Martial Grandmasters even had higher attainments in alchemy than Martial Saints. This was not all that rare a thing.
At the very least, after Yan Zhaoge had glanced twice at them, he felt that the Essence Spirit Martial Grandmaster of the Non-Brightness Hall might be somewhat more proficient in the area of alchemy.
Not having to personally concoct pills now, the possible effects of the discrepancy in their cultivation bases were therefore completely wiped away.
Projecting and restoring pill formulas was purely in the theoretical domain. While there was the suspicion of them not knowing what they were talking about, Yan Zhaoge could observe things more directly this way.
“Oh, their proficiency isn’t low…” Yan Zhaoge secretly nodded to himself after watching for a moment, “Growing from the low to the high, the World beyond Worlds has also inherited the most legacies from pre-Great Calamity times, or one might say developed the fastest. Its standard is not just a little bit higher than the Eight Extremities World, Floating Life World and Vast Ocean World.”
Ah Hu secretly sent Yan Zhaoge a sound transmission, “Young Master, who do you think will win?”
“The one from the Non-Brightness Hall,” Yan Zhaoge replied casually, “Still, if I were to say, both of them should be considered losers.”
Ah Hu stared, looking rather blankly at Yan Zhaoge.
Looking at that pill formula, Yan Zhaoge said casually, “To them, how can restoring an incomplete pill formula come so easily?”
“If it could be completed within a short period of time, this pill formula would already long since have been restored fully with pills concocted using the suitable ingredients. Why would it still have been used for a competition?”
“The content of their competition is actually only to see who can restore more of those contents within a set period of time. Of course, the precondition to this is that they cannot make a mistake.”
“Although that one of the Primordial Darkness Hall is a little faster now, he has already made a mistake,” Yan Zhaoge said mildly, “The one from the Non-Brightness Hall is fine for now. Still, slow labour in careful work. He is just much too slow.”
Ah Hu scratched his head, “Young Master, do you have the complete pill formula?”
Yan Zhaoge said, “I don’t. Still, after having viewed the contents of the pill formula, it should be a pill known as the Scenic Heart Pill that was rather common in pre-Great Calamity times but has already been discontinued now. I had not thought that I would see a remnant portion of its formula here.”
He was not lying to Ah Hu. Yan Zhaoge indeed didn’t have the formula for the Scenic Heart Pill, the reason for this actually being that the level of this pill was just too low…
Still, Yan Zhaoge’s attainments in the dao of alchemy were just too much higher than everyone here.
With just a mere few glances, Yan Zhaoge already had a rough approximate of what both sides were unable to project and restore within a short amount of time.
After all, aside from artifact forging, what he was most proficient in were alchemy and formations.
Of these, formations had been painstakingly trained on by him afterwards while alchemy had been his forte all along.
Still, he had not been able to display too much of it initially, due to the fact that he had left an impression on others of not being very proficient at alchemy in the days of his youth.
The time when he had helped the Eldest Prince Zhao Yuan to beat down Zhao Hao in the Eastern Tang Kingdom that year was a special case, having been in consideration of the national situation.
Accompanied by his increase in cultivation base, as there were more and more places he went to with his experience growing richer as well, he could naturally grow gradually in the area of alchemy, allowing his true grasp of it to be displayed more and more over the years.
Ah Hu chuckled, egging Yan Zhaoge on, “Young Master, aren’t you intending to show them a thing or two? Letting them know what really is called standard?”
Yan Zhaoge said nonchalantly, “Showing a thing or two would also not be done in front of them. Even them being able to understand what is shown would also be a problem.”
Ah Hu stared, only recovering after a long time whereupon he shot Yan Zhaoge a thumbs up, “Young Master, I really worship you so much!”
Yan Zhaoge composedly and leisurely watched the competition between the two Dim Darkness Sect martial practitioners like a teacher watching two students squabbling.
To him, victory and defeat wasn’t really of any consequence at all in this competition. He was merely observing these two people to project the alchemy standard of the Dim Darkness Sect, therefore doing so for the Royal Reed Sea and the entire World beyond Worlds as well by extension.
Yan Zhaoge was in a leisurely mood, yet Wu Zixiu and Nie Sheng felt pained.
Nie Sheng smiled bitterly as he looked at Wu Zixiu, “Elder Wu, what if he doesn’t go over? Could it be that he isn’t proficient in this?”
Wi Zixiu shook his head, saying confidently, “That can’t be it. His expression is not that of someone who is ignorant of the ways of the art. Instead, he appears full of confidence. Heh, I’m afraid that he might be scorning the level of the Scenic Heart Pill for being too low.”
Nie Sheng frowned, “In not speaking up, is it due to politeness or has he realised our intentions?”
Wu Zixiu pondered for a moment before shaking his head, “He should not have detected it. If he has, either he is being polite or he is completely disdainful of even bothering with it.”
The old man sighed, “From the looks of things, his level might be even higher than what this old man had thought.”
Nie Sheng pondered for a moment, “What if he is unrelated to the Southeastern Exalt, coming from an even more faraway place?”
Wu Zixiu fell silent.
If Yan Zhaoge was unrelated to the Southeastern Exalt and instead hailed from an even more distant place, he would have overstepped his bounds!
If it was merely normal adventuring and nothing cropped up, that would be fin
e. However, if something cropped up and he had gotten on good terms with their Dim Darkness Sect, the Southeastern Exalt might even be provoked and enraged after the incident.
From how it appeared now, Yan Zhaoge having enmity with the Radiant Light Sect and also just having slain someone of the Grand Xuan Dynasty, it didn’t seem like nothing would happen at all.
Wu Zixiu slowly exhaled, “Not being able to clarify his background, I just cannot rest at ease.”
Nie Sheng looked at Wu Zixiu for a while, “Elder Wu, it cannot be that you are intending to go on in person, right?”
Wu Zixiu said, “That won’t be necessary.”
Saying thus, he summoned someone inside. It was a Non-Brightness Hall Elder who was at the first level of the Martial Saint realm, the early Merging Avatar stage.
Nie Sheng recognised him as Wu Zixiu’s personal disciple, Chen Ke.
Elder Chen Ke possessing Wu Zixiu’s teachings in his martial arts aside, he was also outstanding in the domain of alchemy, being one of the peak figures amongst the Dim Darkness Sect’s Merging Avatar Martial Saints.
After Wu Zixiu had explained things to him, Chen Ke nodded, “Abiding by Master’s instructions.”
The next moment, Chen Ke appeared in the pill concoction hall.
Looking as if he had just arrived there by chance, he exchanged greetings with Yan Zhaoge. The Dim Darkness Sect disciples bowed to him as well, after which he indicated for the match to continue.
Chen Ke began chatting casually with Yan Zhaoge. Yan Zhaoge discovered that his attainments in alchemy were really not bad, being even more brilliant than those two currently competing Martial Grandmasters.
Like this, Yan Zhaoge was not in a hurry to leave as he chatted casually with Chen Ke whilst waiting for the match to end.
The match would not have to be examined and debated over with the other party. Instead, Chen Ke would act as their judge. While Chen Ke was an Elder of the Non-Brightness Hall, the martial practitioners of the Primordial Darkness Hall did not voice any objections to this.
Chen Ke glanced at Yan Zhaoge from the corner of his eye before taking the lead in appraising their work.
History's Strongest Senior Brother Chapter 634: You can’t not admit it!
HSSB634: You can’t not admit it!
The Dim Darkness Sect had indeed only gotten their hands on a deficient pill formula of the Scenic Heart Pill.
Still, having set his mind on this, Wu Zixiu had naturally made preparations for this by projecting and restoring the pill formula himself.
A pill formula which would be rather taxing for those of the junior generation would not be so hard for an expert in alchemy at the level of Wu Zixiu.
It was just that Wu Zixiu would usually not be bothered with pill formulas like the Scenic Heart Pill’s, having more important things to attend to.
Due to his plan to test Yan Zhaoge this time, Wu Zixiu had rushed out the pill formula.
With Wu Zixiu’s instructions in mind, Chen Ke calmly evaluated the results of both parties.
As Yan Zhaoge had said, that Essence Talisman Martial Grandmaster of the Primordial Darkness Hall had made a mistake in the projection process.
Having made a first mistake, more would naturally follow.
Meanwhile, while that Essence Spirit Martial Grandmaster of the Non-Brightness Hall had a lower cultivation base, he was superior in the domain of alchemy, being stable in his projections as well.
Victory and defeat had already been made clear. Still, rather than ending things off after having judged the results, Chen Ke continued on the foundations of both parties from the competition, projecting and restoring the pill formula of the Scenic Heart Pill yet further.
As he projected, he explained things for the Dim Darkness Sect disciples who were present.
Of the many Dim Darkness Sect martial practitioners gathered in the pill concoction hall, aside from those who had come here to join in the commotion, they were mostly interested in alchemy as well. Chen Ke made use of this chance to give them a lesson.
The Dim Darkness Sect disciples naturally treasured this rare chance, focusing well as they listened.
Yan Zhaoge also smilingly listened from the sidelines.
Speaking from conscience, he felt that Chen Ke was still somewhat skilled in alchemy, his thoughts in projecting and restoring the pill formula being clear with the paths accurate. While it seemed rather unwieldy, the depths of his skill could still be seen.
Still, as he continued listening, Yan Zhaoge just felt that it was a little wrong.
Even as Chen Ke was explaining things to the Dim Darkness Sect disciples, he was actually also observing Yan Zhaoge in secret.
Noticing Yan Zhaoge’s gradually changing gaze, Chen Ke’s heart jolted slightly. The words that his Master Wu Zixiu had told him earlier surfaced within his mind.
“In Master’s pill formula, I intentionally left an error at the end. See if that Yan Zhaoge can spot it.”
“If he points it out, make use of the chance to interact with him, hearing his complete paths of thought in the projection of the pill formula of the Scenic Heart Pill.”
Whilst thinking about this, there were no changes in Chen Ke’s expression as he continued with his explanation.
Yan Zhaoge patiently heard Chen Ke out and thought for a bit before communicating to him via sound transmission, “Elder Chen, pardon my suddenness, but there seems to be some problems with this pill formula of this Scenic Heart Pill.”
While he liked to show off, act cool and stand in the limelight, as they were still on rather friendly terms with the Dim Darkness Sect now, Yan Zhaoge did not directly question Chen Ke before everyone as he instead chose to use sound transmission to interact with just him.
Chen Ke’s gaze turned serious, “He indeed discovered it!”
Chen Ke had analysed the pill formula as well, finding that his Master’s projection had been extremely perfect.
While Wu Zixiu had intentionally left behind a flaw, it was actually concealed very deeply. If he had not been told about it, Chen Ke would not have discovered it even after having looked a few times. He would have had to look through the entire thing several times before detecting that problem.
It was even to the point that according to Chen Ke’s analysis, it was not accurate to call it a flaw. It would instead be more appropriate to call that one tiny deficiency a cause for regret.
If he had concocted a pill according to the current formula, the concoction might indeed succeed, just that the quality of the pill would be a little lower.
But Yan Zhaoge had actually discovered it immediately?
“Could this person possess the original version of the Scenic Heart Pill’s pill formula that was prevalent in pre-Great Calamity times?” Chen Ke could not help but think.
While he suspected so, he remained outwardly calm as he replied via sound transmission, “Oh? This pill formula of the Scenic Heart Pill has been lost since the time of the Great Calamity. Our sect only managed to obtain a deficient pill formula by chance. Could Young Master Yan possess a complete pill formula from pre-Great Calamity times?”
Yan Zhaoge smiled, “I don’t. It is just that when those of your sect were competing just now, this Yan also tried projecting it a little.”
Chen Ke asked slowly, “I wonder what Young Master Yan has noticed?”
Yan Zhaoge said, “In the formula, the amount of the ingredient, Thousand Scale Blood Droplets, is fifty percent more than it should be.”
“Hmmm…hmmm?” Chen Ke had just been about to nod when he suddenly realised that something was wrong.
This was different from the flaw that his Master, Wu Zixiu, had told him about!
“So he’s actually just pretending to be knowledgeable,” Realisation suddenly flashed through Chen Ke’s gaze as he unconsciously opened his mouth to rebut.
Still, the words had just been about to leave his mouth when he stopped in his tracks. Chen Ke was proficient in the dao of alchemy as
well. Carefully pondering on Yan Zhaoge’s words, he suddenly felt that…it seemed like…perhaps they did make sense somewhat?
Chen Ke was astonished by this.
Yan Zhaoge continued at his own pace, “Then, there is thirty percent less of Clear Scenic Rocks. The effects will be better if you add in a little more.”
“Also, Grand Heart Grass Pith seems already to be extinct? Yes, it would still be fine using the flower pith of the Bright Cloud Flower as a substitute. Still, I think that if you use the grass pith of Middling Dragon Grass, the effects should be a little stronger.”
“Other than that, I feel that rather than using entire East Acorns, it would be better to dry them up first before crushing them into powder.”
“Finally, if you’re a little faster when opening the furnace and retrieving the pill, it would be easier to produce the pill and reduce the amount of ingredients needed as well.”
After having finished with all this, Yan Zhaoge looked sincerely towards Chen Ke, “These are all just small faults, perhaps being a little perfectionist. Still, I see that Elder Chen’s projection process is extremely intricate. Perhaps because you did it in short notice, some details have been overlooked. If you take notice of them, the pill formula of this Scenic Heart Pill would basically be perfected.”
“Of course, the precondition is that the required environmental conditions can be met.”
He indeed wasn’t overthinking things. On the contrary, Yan Zhaoge was truly feeling that the pill formula Chen Ke had provided was already pretty good, just feeling that it was rather a pity that it had not been at a level of perfection.
Therefore, he had felt less like showing them a thing of two, instead just having decided to help Chen Ke out.
Chen Ke sent a deep glance Yan Zhaoge’s way. He was already unable to hear Yan Zhaoge’s words, his mind being full of thoughts about how to improve the pill formula of the Scenic Heart Pill as Yan Zhaoge had just said.
Apart from crushing the Eastern Acorns into powder which was what Wu Zixiu had mentioned to him earlier, the rest were all problems that the two of them had never ever thought about before.
History's Strongest Senior Brother c1-1474 Page 352
