199: Chapter 199 The disciple was merely lucky.

Shen Qing's already relaxed fingers resumed forming hand seals, and all the remaining Water-type mana in his body was squeezed out.

This time, he used a trump card he rarely displayed in front of others: the Azure Tide Return to Ruins Art.

This secret technique required him to fully activate his Water Spirit Body, using his own essence blood as a guide to condense an invisible pulse of water within the medicinal liquid.

Unlike the previous water net, this pulse seeped directly into the interior of the five medicinal liquids, smoothing out the conflicts between their attributes from the very depths.

The cost was the consumption of a large amount of essence blood; after casting it, he would need at least half a month of quiet recuperation to recover.

The blue halo of the Water Spirit Body reached its peak around Shen Qing in an instant, and even the tips of his hair were coated in a layer of damp mist.

He changed the hand seals between his fingers three times, his Divine Sense continuously pouring into the Pill Furnace.

The gray-gold medicinal mass trembled violently twice, and its color began to change; the gray receded, the golden light became warm, and the turbidity on the surface vanished.

Eighty-five percent; Shen Qing had done it.

When he withdrew his hands, his whole body swayed, his Face was pale, and the fine beads of sweat on his forehead formed a line.

But the quality of the medicinal liquid mass explained everything; it was a pure dark gold, an improvement of a full half-grade over the previous gray-gold.

The Disciples of Xuanguang Peak were silent for a breath, and then a heaven-shaking cheer erupted.

"Eighty-five percent! Shen Qing achieved eighty-five percent!"

"The Azure Tide Return to Ruins Art! That is Shen Qing's exclusive secret technique; he was actually forced to this point!"

"How can Su Cheng catch up now? Eighty-five percent!"

Shen Qing ignored the cheers and instead cast his gaze toward Su Cheng's Pill Furnace.

Su Cheng also noticed the change on the opposite side; his original plan was to stop once he was slightly higher than Shen Qing.

But the Bloodline secret technique Shen Qing used at the last moment completely exceeded his expectations. This Senior Brother's trump cards were deeper than he had thought; eighty-five percent was no longer enough to win.

A tie was equivalent to a loss; others wouldn't analyze the process, they would only look at the result.

If the result is the same, it means you didn't win, and if you didn't win, what right do you have to talk big and lose Face for my Xuanguang Peak?

Su Cheng quickly performed a round of pros and cons analysis in his mind, taking less than two breaths of time.

Then, he increased the output of the Qi of Creation.

The infusion amount, which he had previously carefully controlled below the critical point, was increased at this moment.

The pale green spiritual power continuously surged into every crevice of the Five Elements medicinal liquid.

The color of the medicinal liquid mass changed. Dark gold? No, it had already surpassed dark gold.

A warm, moist amber color spread from the core of the medicinal mass, devouring the last trace of Impurities.

The surface of the fist-sized medicinal liquid ball became smooth, and inside it, the Five Elements medicinal powers ran steadily on their respective tracks, the whole thing clear and transparent.

Su Cheng's brow twitched.

Ninety percent.

He had originally only intended to push it slightly past eighty-five percent, but the affinity between the Qi of Creation and the Five Elements medicinal liquid far exceeded his estimations.

Once that power of unity was released, the Fusion of the medicinal liquid naturally climbed all the way up, unable to be suppressed.

By the time he stabilized the value again, the Fusion rate had already exceeded eighty-five percent and was heading straight for ninety percent.

He couldn't pull it back.

Su Cheng cursed in his heart, but on the surface, he remained calm and steadied his hands, letting the final number settle at ninety percent.

The square went quiet, and the surroundings fell into a collective dead silence.

That clear, amber medicinal liquid ball floated in the center of the Pill Furnace; there were no Impurities or transition zones on its surface, and the Five Elements medicinal powers flowed along independent tracks, each in its proper place, orderly and neat.

"Amber..." Someone's voice was dry, and the half-sentence squeezed out became stuck in their throat.

"Ninety percent." Another voice finished the second half for him.

There were no cheers or discussions on the square, only an uncomfortable silence.

Shen Qing stood beside his own Pill Furnace, his gaze fixed on that amber medicinal liquid ball in Su Cheng's Pill Furnace, not moving it for a long time.

His Water Spirit Body Fusion method took half a stick of incense, and he had to use a Bloodline secret technique to barely push it to eighty-five percent.

Su Cheng used about the same amount of time, and the Fusion rate was ninety percent.

And from beginning to end, there hadn't been any trace of strain on that young Face.

Shen Qing closed his eyes, then opened them.

"Junior Brother Su."

Su Cheng looked up.

"You won." When Shen Qing said these three words, his tone was very calm, merely stating a fact.

Su Cheng stood up and bowed: "Thank you for your grace, Senior Brother."

The atmosphere in the square was very subtle.

The expressions of the Xuanguang Peak Disciples varied; some were shocked, some were unconvinced, others were bewildered, and those purely watching for the spectacle had goosebumps.

That tall Disciple who had been the most boisterous earlier stood at the very front of the crowd, his mouth agape, unable to say a word.

Shen Qing looked around at his Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters, then said a sentence:

"Junior Brother Su is my friend. The previous rumors are untrue, and this ends here. If anyone gossips again in the future, I will take action."

No one made a sound.

Su Cheng retrieved the medicinal liquid ball from the Pill Furnace; although this thing was useless, it was a waste to throw it away, so he turned and bowed to say goodbye to Shen Qing.

"Let's chat another day."

"Let's chat another day."

Su Cheng and Chen Yuan left Xuanguang Peak side by side.

After flying half a mile, Chen Yuan finally couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Junior Brother, how the hell did you do that?!"

Chen Yuan's volume almost scared away two passing spirit birds.

Su Cheng glanced at him: "Senior Brother, don't shout while riding your Flying Sword; even if you don't die from falling, it's embarrassing."

"Stop trying to distract me!" Chen Yuan slowed down his Flying Sword and leaned over to Su Cheng's side. "Ninety percent! You brat, you pushed the Fusion rate of the Five Elements medicinal liquid to ninety percent!"

"I have been practicing Alchemy for decades, and even if I exhausted all my skills, I estimate I could only reach seventy-five percent."

"Even in the entire Danding Sect, among the Foundation Establishment generation of Disciples, those who can achieve your level can be counted on one hand, and aren't they all Geniuses who possess exotic fire or hold a precious artifact pill furnace?"

"Tell me, what the hell is that pale green spiritual power of yours? How exactly did you do it?"

"My Cultivation Technique is special."

"That sentence again! You say that every time!"

Chen Yuan nearly jumped off his Flying Sword. "I've flipped through that crappy 'Evergreen Art' of yours; it's just a common breathing Cultivation Technique for Loose Cultivators. At best, it makes Wood-type spiritual power three parts gentler than others, so where does it get the ability to smooth out the Five Elements conflict? You're trying to fool a ghost!"

He raised his hand and pointed vaguely at the tip of Su Cheng's nose, with the posture of having solved the case: "You must have some kind of special Physique, right?"

Su Cheng turned his head, his gaze falling on the clouds in the distance, and helplessly said three words: "I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know? You don't know your own body?"

"Because these are all facts."

Chen Yuan was choked up and rolled his eyes, but there was nothing he could do about Su Cheng.

After hanging out with this Junior Brother for more than half a year, he had already learned one thing: if you can't get an answer, don't ask; if you ask too much, he won't say an extra word.

When the two returned to Qingmu Peak, before they had even landed, a Utility Disciple ran over.

"Senior Brother Su, Revered Master requests your presence up the mountain."

Su Cheng and Chen Yuan looked at each other, then Su Cheng went up the mountain alone.

On the mountaintop, Elder Qingmu was sitting cross-legged beside a cluster of third-grade Spiritual Plants, a stream of spiritual power extending from his fingertips, slowly catalyzing the medicinal properties.

Back when the Alchemy duel at the foot of Xuanguang Peak ended, he had already withdrawn that strand of Divine Sense that had been observing the whole situation from mid-air.

Hearing the movement and knowing it was Su Cheng who had arrived, he finally withdrew his Cultivation Technique and looked at Su Cheng, who was walking up.

"Ninety percent Fusion rate." There was an irrepressible joy in Elder Qingmu's voice. "That old bastard Zhao Zhengyang is probably so angry today that he's closing his doors to guests. You did a beautiful job this time."

Su Cheng bowed: "Revered Master knows? That was just luck, Disciple was just lucky."