Chapter 113: Imperial Alchemy Tournament

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In the residence of the Yan family, in a medium-sized room, two people were present: one comfortably seated and the other standing near a cauldron no taller than a meter.

Neither spoke, and the only sound was the crackling of the fire beneath the cauldron.

The room, made of sturdy wooden walls, was sparsely decorated, with only a few cabinets and shelves holding various objects and ingredients, each in its own container.

The aroma of different herbs and substances that should have permeated the air was contained within each vessel, even if they were open.

The two continued in silence.

The seated figure was an elderly man with a long beard and white hair, watching the girl before him, who was busy refining, with a calm but attentive gaze.

This elderly man was none other than Yan Qingshui, the grandfather of Yan Mei and one of the esteemed alchemists of the Medicine Pavilion.

He typically spent his time refining his alchemical techniques and researching the various uses of certain herbs and substances needed for alchemy.

After all, he was a master alchemist, still far from being a grand master alchemist.

Though he was advanced in age, he still possessed the drive to improve himself and become even better at alchemy.

This attitude was what had brought the Yan family to where they were today, and it was how he intended to spend the rest of his years.

It could be said that this desire to become better was present in all alchemists who had reached this stage in their journey, and like Yan Qingshui, they were reluctant to stop here.

It wouldn't make sense; after dedicating so much of their lives to pursuing the pinnacle of their profession, settling for the title of Master Alchemist, held in high regard throughout the Long Empire, was not enough.

Until a few centuries ago, many had given up, believing there was no higher rank than their current one. But when the first grand master alchemist emerged, a flame reignited within all of them that had nearly gone out.

In just a few centuries, three more grand master alchemists appeared, and now everyone was striving to become the fifth grand master alchemist.

And Yan Qingshui was one of them.

Today was one of the rare occasions he could be found doing something other than secluding himself for research.

This was mainly due to the girl in front of him.

Yan Mei, the prodigy of alchemy in the Yan family, was a source of pride for Yan Qingshui.

She had invited him today to showcase her progress.

According to what she had told him, she was now capable of refining level 2 pills.

Usually, seeing someone refine pills of this level would be nothing special for Yan Qingshui, but it was different for his granddaughter.

Considering she was under 20 years old, an age where it was already a feat for an alchemist to refine even medium-grade level 1 pills, hearing that she could now refine level 2 pills was enough for him to set aside his research and watch her demonstrate.

As both her grandfather and teacher, he felt immense pride in her.

He had never taken a disciple in his long journey as an alchemist, but recognizing his granddaughter's talent, he decided to make an exception, helping her whenever he could.

Most of the time, he let her pursue her path as an alchemist independently, only occasionally stepping in to assist with certain challenges.

He believed that every alchemist had their own path to follow, and as her mentor, he needed to guide her in the right direction while allowing her to take the necessary steps to achieve her goals.

Watching her progress so quickly, he knew she was doing exceptionally well.

Now, all that remained was to see if she could successfully refine the level 2 pill.

Although it was just a low-grade pill, it was still level 2. S~eaʀᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

If she succeeded, she could attempt to take the exam to become a one-star expert alchemist.

With his status in the pavilion, he could testify for her and help her become an expert alchemist without an exam, but he didn't want to pamper her in any way.

He wanted her, like everyone else, to go through the normal process to acquire this rank, not that she needed his help.

With her talent, passing the test would be easy.

The more he watched her refine, the more he could envision how the pill would turn out in the end.

He had been observing her from the beginning and had noticed various mistakes and shortcomings that, while minor, needed to be addressed to avoid problems later.

That said, he could also tell that overall, she was on the right track. In fact, after just a few minutes, she successfully finished refining the pill.

Seeing the pill that his granddaughter presented to him, he nodded and said, "Not bad, you've indeed managed to successfully refine a level 2 pill."

Just as she was about to rejoice at the compliment, he continued, "That said, you made several mistakes throughout the refinement process, especially in the final part. If you hadn't rushed, you could have achieved slightly higher purity."

He began listing all the errors she had made, explaining what went wrong and giving suggestions on how to improve those aspects.

He had poured a bucket of cold water on Yan Mei's happiness, which she hadn't even had time to savor, due to the subsequent lesson he gave her.

But this didn't seem to sadden her; instead, she took her grandfather's teachings to heart, jotting down all the mistakes he pointed out.

Seeing her attitude, Yan Qingshui smiled to himself.

Among the many things he appreciated about his granddaughter, this attitude was one of them.

Many others would let themselves be swept away by reprimands and often waste time comforting themselves instead of improving.

He had always maintained a serious, but not too serious, attitude when it came to teaching his granddaughter alchemy.

He praised her when she succeeded at something and reprimanded her when she made mistakes.

In all this, he tried to maintain a certain balance, so as not to overwhelm her with either positive or negative feedback.

He knew that being too strict would only lead to the opposite result, just as overindulging her would.

He could tell that due to her good alchemical talent, she had developed a certain superiority complex compared to her peers, but there wasn't much he could do about it.

It was fine to be proud of one's talent, but she needed to be careful not to let it overwhelm her.

This was what he tried to teach her every time, but he had to admit that although she was respectful towards her elders, she still tended to treat those who weren't as skilled as she was poorly.

He could only hope she would improve this aspect of her attitude over time.

Shaking off these concerns, he asked her,

"There's only a month left until the selections for young generation alchemists participating in this year's Imperial Alchemy Tournament begin.

Tell me, do you plan to participate this year?"

"With your current skills, you shouldn't have too many problems competing and securing a good placement," he said, recalling how last year she had refused to enter.

At that time, she had barely learned to create level 1 pills, which was sufficient to participate in the selections, but she had declined, saying she wasn't good enough yet.

If other alchemists had heard her then, they would have spat blood at the thought of an 18-year-old girl claiming that refining level 1 pills wasn't enough to be considered skilled.

It should be noted that anyone who managed to do this by the age of 20 was considered above average, let alone someone who succeeded at 18.

Yan Qingshui didn't push her too much, as he believed it was indeed too early for her to compete at that level.

After all, this competition was divided into two categories.

The beginner category included anyone under the age of 30 who had at least reached the rank of apprentice alchemist.

The expert category allowed participation from anyone under 100 years old who had reached at least a two-star adept alchemist rank or a one-star expert alchemist rank.

Technically, she could choose to compete in either category, and she could have performed well in both.

In the first category, she had the chance to take first place, while in the second, securing the top spot at her current level would be difficult, but she could certainly aim for a good position in the top 10.

This competition tested not only an alchemist's refining abilities but also their knowledge of ingredients and refining techniques.

Pills were just one of many products an alchemist could refine, and while that was the most commonly produced item, they also needed to be skilled in creating other products, such as elixirs, powders, and even talismans with specific effects, and so on.

The alchemist profession was not limited to producing various types of pills, but extended to other areas as well, which is why they were highly regarded for their versatility with other products.

Hearing her grandfather's question, Yan Mei didn't think long and nodded while saying,

"Yes, I intend to participate in the tournament this year.

It's time I made a name for myself as an alchemist, right?" she said proudly.

Seeing this side of her, Yan Qingshui couldn't help but shake his head, but in his heart, he was glad she had this attitude.

Fully dedicating oneself to studying alchemy is fine, but overdoing it while neglecting everything else does more harm than good.

Seeing her maintain a cheerful personality warmed his heart.

'Haa... , at this rate, this girl will surpass me in no time.'

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FRANK_LEE_JUNIOR:

Here's today's chapter. I hope you enjoyed it.

As usual, if you have any comments, suggestions, or errors to report, you know where to do it.

See you tomorrow.