The next day, Ling Luo Yi appeared on time at the judges' bench for the alchemist competition. This time, she did not bring Gu Yun Cheng with her, but came alone.
There were a total of three judges on the bench. Ling Luo Yi sat in the middle, with President Lin to her right and the Third Elder of the Royal Family to her left. The Third Elder was also a third-grade alchemist and served as the Vice President of the Alchemist Guild.
Seeing that Ling Luo Yi had not brought the white fox they had seen before, President Lin asked curiously, "Miss Ling, you don't seem to have brought the little fox from the other day? You seemed to like it quite a bit before. Why haven't you brought it today?"
"President Lin, that fox is having a tantrum, so I simply didn't bring it."
"So that's how it is."
The Third Elder, overhearing their conversation, chuckled, "So Miss Ling likes foxes. How about I give you one?"
"Third Elder, rarity makes things precious. If there were many, I wouldn't like it as much."
"Miss Ling speaks the truth. No matter what it is, once it's everywhere, it's no longer precious."
As the three of them were talking, the competition below had already begun.
This type of professional competition started simultaneously, but with separate venues. The venue where Ling Luo Yi was located was for the alchemist competition.
There was no age limit for the professional competition, as long as one reached the rank of a first-grade alchemist, they could participate. Thus, Ling Luo Yi saw that sixty percent of the contestants below were white-haired, thirty percent were middle-aged, and ten percent were young. However, without exception, every single one of them was a first-grade alchemist.
It was understandable, though. Tian Wu Kingdom only had one fourth-grade alchemist, President Lin. There were two third-grade alchemists, the Third Elder of the Royal Family and another Vice President of the Alchemist Guild. The rest were all first or second-grade.
Second-grade alchemists already had their places secured, whether it was the Alchemist Guild, Flowing Cloud Pavilion, or as guest elders in various families. They were not lacking in opportunities, and the restrictions on the continent's periphery did not apply to them, so they naturally did not need to compete with first-grade alchemists.
However, even with this, the number of contestants was less than a hundred.
Ling Luo Yi looked around and couldn't help but mutter, "There are really few alchemists in Tian Wu Kingdom."
Hearing Ling Luo Yi's words, President Lin said, "Miss Ling, the cultivation of alchemists is very difficult, and it is not easy to form pills. Even for the most talented alchemists, a batch of medicinal ingredients can only yield two pills, and it takes a month. Moreover, medicinal ingredients, pill furnaces, these are all consumables. Therefore, cultivating an alchemist requires a large amount of financial and material resources, which ordinary families cannot afford."
"It is indeed not easy to cultivate an alchemist, especially an excellent one. But if one is truly cultivated, an alchemist can bring more than just that."
After speaking, Ling Luo Yi looked at President Lin.
"Therefore, the cultivation of alchemists is becoming increasingly difficult. Furthermore, rare pill recipes, medicinal ingredients, and refining methods are buried in the long river of history, making it even more difficult to cultivate high-level alchemists."
What President Lin said was the truth. Pill recipes, medicinal ingredients, and refining methods were more important than anything else to alchemists.
Upon hearing President Lin's words, Ling Luo Yi sighed, "Troublesome."
President Lin nodded and suddenly asked, "Has Miss Ling ever considered taking disciples?"
"Taking disciples?" Ling Luo Yi chuckled and said, "If I see potential and effort in her, I wouldn't mind taking her as a disciple." Anyway, she had more than one disciple. It was the same effort to herd one sheep as it was to herd two; a few more wouldn't make much difference.
"Then Miss Ling should take a good look. Perhaps you will find someone you like."
"Are you talking about these people, President Lin?" Ling Luo Yi pointed at the people below and said, "I don't think much of these people; their talent is too poor."
"If Miss Ling wishes to take disciples, I might be able to recommend a few."
"Please do, Third Elder."
"Then I won't be polite. The current Second Princess, at only sixteen years old, is extremely interested in alchemy and has been pestering me to teach her. The Fifth Princess is fifteen. Although she has not been exposed to alchemy, her mental power level is extremely high, reaching the advanced beginner stage. Prince Kang's youngest legitimate daughter, Princess Jia Xue, is thirteen this year, and her alchemical talent has been praised by President Lin himself..."
The Third Elder named several people. Ling Luo Yi, too lazy to remember them, said, "Since the Third Elder believes they have good talent, let's meet them tomorrow afternoon."
"Very well, let's meet at the Ling Residence tomorrow afternoon at the beginning of the Shen hour."
"Agreed."
The talent selection would conclude tomorrow, and the Ling family would have to get busy.
Those who were drawn by Ling Luo Chen's advancement in spiritual roots and Ling Luo Fu's newly grown spiritual roots would likely become impatient. If the Ling family continued to refuse visitors, these people might very well break down the doors of the Ling Residence.
Although they might not be able to do so, it would make it difficult for Ling family disciples to go out for training in the future.
The alchemist competition was not as intense as the combat of spirit cultivators. They simply refined pills at their own stations, where insiders could see the skill and outsiders could enjoy the spectacle. However, the audience knew that such a competition required silence, so no one was speaking.
Alchemy took a considerable amount of time, so the competition was conducted in rounds. Only those who successfully refined pills could be ranked, with a time limit of three hours.
For alchemists, three hours was not long. But for the audience, it was incredibly long, so Ling Luo Yi saw many people dozing off.
Ling Luo Yi didn't mind. They couldn't understand the process, nor could they speak loudly, so their only option was to doze.
Ling Luo Yi also propped her head up, carefully observing their refining techniques and considering if there were any improvements to be made.
The competition went well for the first two hours, as there was ample time and no incidents occurred. Towards the end, as time became scarce, people began to panic. Word spread, and eventually, most of them became flustered.
President Lin maintained order, "Don't rush, everyone. Alchemy is most susceptible to impatience and anxiety. If you continue like this, not only will you fail to form pills, but you might even cause your furnace to explode. So, calm down."
Unfortunately, although President Lin's words were effective, many people still caused their furnaces to explode. However, with protective barriers in place, it did not significantly affect others.
Two quarters of an hour later, someone below was about to form a pill.
"So fast!" President Lin and the Third Elder exclaimed in surprise.
Ling Luo Yi glanced at the person about to form a pill and said, as expected, "Presidents, two and a half hours. Isn't that considered fast?"
"Miss Ling, you may not know, but even I take two hours to form a pill when I refine. This is merely a first-grade alchemist, and to be able to form a pill in two and a half hours is already very impressive. I wonder whose family she belongs to?"
"She is my paternal aunt," Ling Luo Yi said unhurriedly, ignoring their stiffening expressions, and continued, "My paternal aunt's alchemy skills were taught by me. Two and a half hours to form a pill, I actually think it's slow."
Ling Li had a very good memory. Ling Luo Yi's book had been fully memorized by her in just seven days. Later, Ling Luo Yi refined a pill in front of her, and Ling Li remembered it. She had been refining pills in the courtyard ever since, with servants delivering her meals.
Ling Li's pill-forming process was smooth. Pills of this grade would not trigger heavenly tribulations, so Ling Li's pill was formed in just a moment.
Ling Li collected it into the medicine bottle on the table, placed it aside, took the pill given by Ling Luo Yi, and then sat in meditation to recover her mental power.
She had only just advanced to the rank of a first-grade alchemist, and successfully refining a pill was not easy for her. Moreover, she had completed it ahead of time. Therefore, her mental power was severely depleted.