After the Elder retreated, Auslen retracted his gaze to observe the items on his metallic work-surface once more.

Three sealed conical flasks, carrying liquid of similar viscosities, were the first items that attracted his focus. One of which contained transparent liquid, another blue, and the last a putrid green fluid.

These chemicals were the three components necessary to create an important element to Spirit Elixir refinement, known as the deliquescing agent.

Unique, non-toxic solvents, deliquescing agents were engineered for two primary purposes. They were responsible for breaking down Spirit Plant fibers, “liquefying” the Spirit Plants to a state which could then be combined together to form a solution.

Their second function was to restrain the Profound Qi that would inevitably leak out from the dissolving Spirit Plant, sealing those strands within the refined Elixir for a limited amount of time. For stable Spirit Elixirs, the Profound Qi wouldn't begin dissipating for an entire year's time, while unstable Spirit Elixirs began deteriorating the moment the refinement process concluded.

Every Elixir Refinement Technique utilized a deliquescing agent, but their chemical compositions were vastly different. Plant taxonomy, the cultivation of the plant, as well as the mixture of plants being concocted all played pivotal roles when manufacturing a deliquescing agent.

No longer hesitating, Auslen ignored the clamorous noise around him.

Auslen’s movements were slow, opening each of the flasks before gently pouring small amounts of each into the beaker in gradual increments. His brows furrowed as he measured the chemicals with cautious precision, the proportions as specified in the Five Aspects Convergence Elixir Refinement Technique, before pouring them into the awaiting cauldron.

Alright. So far so good. Now, I need that thermometer…

Flickers of exhilaration tickled Auslen's old soul as he worked.

He partially concentrated on revealing a sufficient amount of uncertainty within his movements. His fingers grabbed ahold of the long thermometer, arms extending as he attached it to the inner portion of the cauldron, its long, silver probe tip sitting comfortably in the puke-colored deliquescing agent.

Then, his eyes landed on the Ignition Plate underneath the cauldron, reaching his left hand in its direction, thinking, ‘Now, I just have to start up th—’

Boom!!

Just as his fingertips touched the shiny bronze surface, a harsh noise exploded from a cauldron towards his front.

…

Elder Judas' finger had been extended towards the source of the ruckus long before the concoction within the cauldron had even erupted.

At the destination of his pointed gesture, a orange, undulating barrier was covering a work-surface standing in front of a disciple, only gentle heat radiating onto the brown-haired boy who had backed several meters in fear.

“And there goes the first,” Elder Judas transmitted in jest to Elder Lin, who was sitting to his right.

As he retracted his finger, the fiery barrier dissipated along with it to reveal a charred work-surface.

Elder Judas stated sympathetically, “Examinee number 17, your Examination is complete. Please patiently wait at the seating area to your right.”

He turned his eyes away from the upset disciple retreating from the blackened table, scanning the reactions of the rest of the disciples. Agitation dominated the lot, their disturbed emotions from the nearby explosion causing many of them to pause their own work, diverting their focus elsewhere. Luckily, not many had truly begun the refining process, otherwise, more than one cauldron would have exploded just then.

Retrieving his gaze from the examinees, Elder Judas continued secretly conversing with Elder Lin.

“Let’s have a small wager between the two of us, Lin.”

Elder Lin hummed and stroked his beard. “As long as the stakes have nothing to do with the gift I received from the girl upstairs, then I do not mind.”

“Tsk.” Elder Judas blinked disapprovingly.

“Fine. A branch from your Thunder Calling Dogwood Tree. I know you have one, Lin, so there's no need voice the lie that you're conceiving.”

Elder Lin’s calm countenance trembled for a split second, quickly recovering before his deep black eyes bore into the seemingly-young man smiling at him.

Not bothering to ask who he had heard his secret from, Elder Lin transmitted: “Alright Judas. But, if I were to win, I’ll require 6 petals from Agatha's Luminescent Moonflower.”

"..." Upon hearing his older sister's name, Elder Judas' smile stiffened.

“I know Agatha's the one who told you what should have remained secret, and I'm also aware that she hasn't refined the Luminescent Moonflower she's been hiding within her Alchemy Palace," Elder Lin continued calmly.

“Deal.” Elder Judas didn't mind that he was seen through, satisfaction evident in his grin.

He closed his eyes and said, “Choose your prospective winner, and I’ll choose mine?”

The proposition finally revealed, Elder Lin’s eyes flickered as he observed the few disciples associated with his Outer Sect mountain.

His attention focused on the current first place examinee, Natalie, the talent he had been tasked with carefully advising during the past half year. Gratified at her growth, his head pulled down to a small nod as he witnessed the girl barely distracted by the previous disturbance, which was a sharp departure from the frightful panic she exhibited during her first Elixir refinement mishap when they had first began her private lessons. However, the child currently lacked experience and had only managed to concoct a few stable Spirit Elixir's so far.

Before long, he turned his gaze to another child, Tarek. While his movements were methodical and understated, the look in his eye conveyed an unmistakable assertiveness, which a youngster his age could only have obtained from a considerable amount of practical training. Tarek’s family heritage was no secret, as his elder brother had also worked as a Refining Assistant of his while he was still an Outer Sect Disciple. So he had no doubt that Tarek, just like his brother, could concoct a stable Tier 1 Elixir, even before he entered the Sect.

Elder Lin's gaze continued to shift, and at one point, it slid towards the youngest, slowest moving figure amongst the group of examinees.

At this moment, Elder Lin couldn't stop from releasing a sigh mixed with regret.

‘What a talent. It’s unfortunate that his Pure Water Elemental Affinity suggests lackluster prospects in the field of Alchemy. Diligence can only take one so far…’

Eyes remaining closed, Elder Judas transmitted: “Having trouble making a decision?”

“I've decided. Elders first.”

Elder Judas chuckled. “Examinee number 2. And you?”

Elder Lin’s brows raised slightly as he examined the pale-skinned boy with tied-up, copper-colored hair standing at the second work-surface. Although his age was difficult to determine, the youngster's nearly 2-meter height towered over the rest of the nearby disciples. His refinement speed was surprisingly fast, already well into the concoction process.

Although he was suspicious at Judas' confidence in the unknown teenager, he wasn't too interested in investigating how the two were related. Regardless if he lost the wager, giving away one branch from his Thunder Calling Dogwood Tree wouldn't cost him much.

Elder Lin responded, “Examinee number 7.”

Eyes opening, Elder Judas verified, “That boy from the Sharif Clan? Are you sure? He’s a little young.”

“Perhaps you’ll understand by the end of the Examination.” Elder Lin laughingly transmitted.

“Perhaps,” Elder Judas concurred after a moment's observation.

The two settled back in stillness amidst the other silent Outer Sect Elders.

…

Stimulating his Soul Force and Profound Qi, Auslen carefully activated the Ignition Plate, watching as the inscriptions shimmered with light. It didn’t take long for a small, but startlingly hot flame to appear underneath the cauldron. However, it wasn’t quite tall enough to reach the cauldron’s base.

This is a bit tougher than expected...

Whilst activating the Mystic Artifact was not an issue, deftly manipulating the flame-producing Ignition Plate proved to be a very difficult task. However, Auslen had been forewarned that this would be the case for him specifically, as his Pure Water Elemental Affinity was in direct opposition to fire.

It was as if the more he focused his Soul Force on controlling the flame, the more violent and uncontrollable it became. For the first time, his expansive Soul Force seemed to be hindering his efforts.

Auslen frowned, not needing to exaggerate the difficulty as he honestly struggled. But eventually, with far less dominating intentions from his consciousness, he managed to safely grow the disobedient flame to an acceptable height after tens of minutes had elapsed.

Finally feeling sufficiently satisfied with the flame's intensity, he used his free hand to close the safety lid of the cauldron, a small hole at the rear of the lid providing clearance for the top of the probe thermometer to extend out.

His eyes focused on the dial on the thermometer closely, grappling with the heat of the flame as the temperature of the deliquescing agent rose and fell bit by bit.

This was a very delicate process. Not enough heat, and the deliquescing agent wouldn't be able to break down the Pseudo Spirit Plants, possibly producing noxious fumes from the addition of unstable factors. Too much heat, and the deliquescing agent would deteriorate and possibly ignite, along with the Pseudo Spirit Plants inside. This temperature range was very small, so the Alchemist’s focus had to be maintained at all times in efforts to prevent the occurrence of dangerous chemical reactions.

Over thirty minutes passed before the temperature ascended to the required range.

Eyes not leaving the thermometer, Auslen removed the lid and reached towards the boxes of Pseudo Spirit Plants. Nimbly opening the jade cases designed to obstruct the leakage of Profound Qi, a pleasant aroma surrounded him, discharging from the five ordinary-looking herbs contained inside. A moment later, Auslen used a pair of long tweezer to deposit each of the five Peak Pseudo Spirit Plants into the caul—

Boom!!

— into the cauldron containing the hot deliquescing agent. Each Pseudo Spirit Plant aligned to one of the five primary Energetic Aspects; Cooling, Warming, Grounding, Healing, and Poisoning.

Auslen then began stirring the contents with the 20-cm-long steel stirring rod, watching in fascination as the Pseudo Spirit Plants slowly dissolved, releasing a pungent aroma into the surrounding air.

Despite the fancy name of his Tier 1 Elixir Refining Technique, the actual concoction process was visibly unappealing. On the other hand, this step was the slowest, most difficult part of all and was the main reason why Alchemy was such an arduous process.

No Elixir refining procedure was ever the same as the last, because every Pseudo Spirit Plant is unique. Even amongst the same species, minute differences exist, which affected the refinement process, however so little. Because of this, minor adjustments needed to be made to the heat, frequently altering the size and position of the flame emitting from the ignition plate to ensure that the Pseudo Spirit Plants were all dissolving at a steady rate.

Only in this fashion could a stable Spirit Elixir be successfully refined. But regardless of the temptation prickling his heart, Auslen had no plans on attempting this right now.

Time continued to pass quickly.

Using his peripheral vision, Auslen mentally surveyed the remaining examinees.

Less than half are left?

It's been around two hours or so. I guess it's about time for me to wrap things up.

A rivulet of sweat traveled down the side of Auslen’s cheek, and the flame from the Ignition Plate trembled violently, sparks flying from the unstable blaze as the heterogeneous liquid inside the cauldron bubbled dramatically.

He didn't have the time to even think of retreating before a force pushed his body away from the cauldron, a warm barrier of gentle flames obscuring his vision.

Appearing as if his mentality had been strained, Auslen breathed deeply with bitter dejection covering his young face.

“Examinee number 25, your Examination is complete...”