Long Chen also didn’t continue talking. He placed a hand on the Moon and Star Refining Furnace, causing translucent flames to begin dancing inside.

“Ha? He needs to warm the furnace? These are rudimentary techniques. Is he really a master of alchemy?”

Long Chen’s actions could be considered standard. There was nothing outstanding about them. Many disciples of the Divine Pill Division did not need to go through the process of warming their furnaces first because they had reached the level of having their heart be one with their furnace. When they wanted to refine pills, the pill furnace would automatically warm up on its own and enter a refining state.

On the other hand, Ye Qian was already refining his medicinal ingredients. His Spiritual Strength was flowing in smoothly, and the images of a dragon and phoenix above the furnace were growing clearer and clearer. His flame control was perfect. That control was something that no other disciple of the Divine Pill Division was able to achieve. The title of the Divine Pill Division’s number one genius was not for nothing. Even Wan Qing had no choice but to admit that she couldn’t find one flaw in Ye Qian’s alchemy arts.

The only one whose alchemy could surpass Ye Qian was the Pill Fairy, so Wan Qing didn’t have very high hopes for Long Chen. Furthermore, after warming the furnace, Long Chen began refining his first ingredient. Everything he was doing was simply standard, with nothing to praise.

As for the Moon and Star Refining Furnace, it was still deathly silent, looking to be powerless.

Sneers began to ring out all around him, but Long Chen wasn’t listening. He was now focused on his alchemy.

What they were saying was something about how other than looking like a master, everything about Long Chen’s alchemy was in line with an amateur.

“Long Chen’s already lost. His Inverse Dao Water Spirit Flame might be the number one Earth Flame, but it seems that he cannot fully control it. There are many impurities he has failed to expel in his ingredients,” said one of the Elders of the Divine Pill Division. With his vision, he could clearly see that the impurities had not been fully expelled.

For an ordinary disciple, that level of purity could be considered excellent. But it was still lacking in their eyes.

After all, Long Chen was facing Ye Qian. Ye Qian had an inherited flame, and even without a pill furnace, he was capable of refining ingredients without leaving the slightest trace of impurities.

As for Long Chen, even with the assistance of a pill furnace, he was unable to achieve the same level of purity. It made them wonder if Long Chen himself was this weak, or if his pill furnace was too badly damaged.

Most inexplicable of all, it seemed that Long Chen was unaware of the impurities remaining in his refined ingredients. He was focused on refining more of them.

“For the Moon and Star Refining Furnace to land in his hands really is a waste of a treasure.” One Elder sighed sadly. For the head of the ten great pill furnaces of the ancient era to fall into such a novice’s hands was truly sad.

“Well, we…” Another Elder opened his mouth, only for the Elder beside him to glare at him and make him shut his mouth.

They glanced toward the Pill Doyen, but the Pill Doyen didn’t seem to be listening to them. He was focused on Long Chen, seemingly pondering something.

Most people’s gazes were concentrated on Ye Qian. He was elegantly refining, with his flame undergoing a thousand transformations every second. Both alchemists and martial artists were capable of learning various things from his display.

As for Long Chen’s movements, there was nothing spectacular about them. Ninety-nine percent of the people here didn’t bother to look at him anymore. Even if they did, it was only to sneer.

Feng Fei was beginning to frown. One of her attendants said, “How about we leave? This competition is entirely just Ye Qian showing off. We’re wasting our time.”

Feng Fei hesitated before shaking her head. “Let’s just keep watching. We’re already here. I still feel like this Long Chen isn’t a good person. Why would he jump into such an obvious trap?”

“That’s true. I’ve investigated his history. I can’t even count how many people he has conned to death,” said that attendant.

Feng Fei was naturally irritated that Long Chen had essentially kicked her out last time when the eighth legion had reclaimed their camp. He hadn’t given her any face. As a result, she had decided to investigate him to find what kind of person he was.

The investigation had shocked her and her attendants. His history was practically a miracle. But during his growth, he had also used many evil moves. In the Xuantian Monastery’s disciple selection, he had kicked someone into a river and pissed on him.

There was a time he had conned a whole group of people, only to step in and reap the Jade Butterfly Queen Bee Honey.

He had dug a hole and had the Dragonblood Legion crap into it, all for drawing someone with mysophobia inside of it. There was too much of his mischief to count.

The con of the third legion was nothing compared to his past cons.

As a result of this, they had labeled Long Chen a sinister and wicked fellow. Such a person wouldn’t just jump into someone’s trap for no reason. That was why Feng Fei wanted to see the conclusion even if she was bored now.

There were many ingredients to purify, which took a great deal of time. The slightest mistake could ruin everything during this process. This was why every alchemist’s Spiritual Strength needed to be strong.

Time passed bit by bit. Refining hundreds of different ingredients was a huge labor that didn’t allow Ye Qian or Long Chen to slack off.

However, people gradually came to notice something curious. Ye Qian’s movements were all beautiful and perfect. His dancing flame’s efficiency was extremely high. On the other hand, Long Chen’s actions were slow and clumsy. Ye Qian’s refining speed should have far surpassed his, but somehow, they were still refining the same ingredient at the same time. Although Ye Qian would pick up his next ingredient first, Long Chen would always follow.

The speeds of their refinements were equally matched. No matter how Ye Qian tried, he was unable to shake off Long Chen.

At this time, people started to sense something, and looking closely at Long Chen’s movements, one person sneered, “To keep up, he hasn’t managed to purify many of his ingredients. What nonsense.”

These disciples didn’t have the vision of the Elders. After all, they didn’t have that much experience. Only now did they notice that Long Chen’s refined ingredients still had a trace of impurities in them.

The disciples of the Divine Pill Division grew even more spiteful of Long Chen. In pursuit of speed, he was leaving impurities in his ingredients. That was so foolish that there was no cure for it. The result was obvious.

Time quickly passed. Long Chen’s movements continued to look dull. No one paid further attention to him.

Just refining all the ingredients took three days, but in the end, they finished at the same time.

Ye Qian snorted and formed a hand seal. His medicinal powders began to merge together inside the pill furnace one by one. His flame energy soared once more. A dragon and phoenix revolved around his pill furnace.

Long Chen followed suit. He began sending his medicinal powders into the pill furnace.

“He… he’s using his hands…”

When people saw that Long Chen was using his hands to send the powders inside the pill furnace, the alchemists almost staggered.

Was that not the technique of an amateur? Even a new student should be able to use their Spiritual Strength to send the powders inside the furnace. What was Long Chen doing?

If Long Chen’s actions had seemed lackluster before, it was understandable. But what was this for? Was it an intentional insult to the divine families? The Divine Pill Division’s disciples grew angry once more.

“Let’s just see how long he can act arrogant for. When the results are in, will he still be able to act that way? I’m looking forward to seeing him bark like a dog and clean the bricks,” sneered one of them.

Suddenly, Ye Qian’s pill furnace rumbled. He had closed the lid. A dragon and phoenix cry resounded through the world.

The world’s energy formed a giant vortex around his pill furnace. It was a shocking sight that made the other alchemists’ blood heat up. The moment that every alchemist anticipated the most was about to arrive.

“Long Chen has also closed his lid. When did that happen?” asked one person suddenly. Long Chen had also reached the final stage of his refinement at some point.

“He’s just messing around. Who cares?” sneered someone else. All their focus was on Ye Qian.

“All the Heavenly Dao energy is gathering around senior apprentice-brother Ye Qian. Long Chen hasn’t managed to absorb a single trace. There’s no way his pill will form,” said another disciple coldly.

Although Long Chen had closed his lid, there was no phenomenon of absorbing the world’s energy. With Ye Qian present, his pill couldn’t absorb any Heavenly Dao energy. The competition’s conclusion was already clear.

At this moment, Long Chen’s worn-down pill furnace finally began to light up, and the rust spots ignited. Suddenly, a starry sky appeared around everyone.

“What?!”

In that instant, all the experts involuntarily stared at the Moon and Star Refining Furnace, filled with shock.