Chapter 65 The Answer That Shocked The Judges

Chapter 65: Chapter 65 The Answer That Shocked The Judges

The entire gathering remained silent.

Hundreds of young alchemists were still staring at their answer sheets.

The final pill had proven far more difficult than anyone expected.

Even the strongest participants had struggled.

Some had written only the pill’s possible rank.

Others had managed to identify a few of its ingredients.

A few had simply left their papers blank.

But one person had already finished.

Lin Ruyan.

She calmly placed her brush on the table.

Then leaned back.

She wasn’t worried.

There was nothing else for her to do.

---

At the judging platform—

President Shen Haotian looked across the participants.

"We can begin collecting the answers."

The judges nodded.

Several assistants immediately walked into the competition area.

They began collecting the answer sheets.

One by one, the papers reached the judging platform.

Shen Haotian personally examined several of them.

"Ye Qingxuan."

He looked at her answer.

"Very good."

Qin Yuchen nodded.

"She identified the main ingredient correctly."

Another judge looked at the paper.

"Her explanation of the medicinal effect is also accurate."

Shen Haotian nodded.

"She should be among the top participants."

---

The next answer belonged to Zhao Lingfeng.

Shen Haotian examined it.

"He correctly identified the pill’s rank."

Qin Yuchen nodded.

"But he missed two of the secondary ingredients."

"Still impressive."

The judges continued.

Luo Yichen’s answer was next.

"This one is interesting."

Shen Haotian looked at it carefully.

"He correctly identified the refinement method."

"However, he misunderstood the final stage."

Qin Yuchen nodded.

"That mistake will cost him points."

---

Then—

Jin Ling’er’s answer arrived.

Jin Tianming immediately looked toward the paper.

His granddaughter had performed well throughout the examination.

He knew her abilities better than anyone.

Shen Haotian examined her answer.

"Rank: correct."

"Main ingredient: correct."

"Secondary ingredients..."

He paused.

"Mostly correct."

Qin Yuchen smiled.

"Her answer is very good."

Jin Tianming nodded slightly.

He wasn’t surprised.

His granddaughter had spent years studying alchemy.

Her performance was exactly what he expected.

Jin Ling’er herself sat confidently among the participants.

She wasn’t worried.

She believed she had performed exceptionally well.

Her gaze occasionally moved toward Lin Ruyan.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

Let’s see how well you did.

---

The judges continued grading.

More answer sheets arrived.

Some were excellent.

Others were mediocre.

Several participants had completely failed the final question.

The competition was slowly becoming clearer.

There were only a handful of genuine young alchemy geniuses remaining.

Then—

An assistant placed another answer sheet in front of President Shen Haotian.

Shen Haotian glanced down.

His hand stopped.

His expression changed slightly.

Qin Yuchen noticed.

"What’s wrong?"

Shen Haotian didn’t answer.

He continued reading.

His eyes slowly moved across the page.

The longer he read—

The more serious his expression became.

Jin Tianming noticed the change.

He looked toward Shen Haotian.

"What is it?"

Shen Haotian remained silent.

He read the answer again.

Then a third time.

Finally—

He raised his head.

"Who wrote this?"

The assistant immediately answered.

"Lin Ruyan."

The judges exchanged glances.

Jin Tianming’s eyes narrowed.

Lin Ruyan?

The sixteen-year-old girl?

---

Shen Haotian lowered his eyes again.

He carefully examined the answer.

The pill’s rank.

Correct.

Main ingredient.

Correct.

Secondary ingredients.

Correct.

Effects.

Correct.

Refinement method.

Correct.

Possible flaws.

Correct.

Pill structure.

Correct.

And even the reason for the strange medicinal aura—

Correct.

Shen Haotian’s expression became increasingly serious.

"This..."

Qin Yuchen leaned closer.

"She got everything?"

Shen Haotian nodded slowly.

"Yes."

Jin Tianming frowned.

"Impossible."

Everyone looked toward him.

Jin Tianming pointed toward the paper.

"The final pill was deliberately designed to be difficult."

"Even experienced alchemists would need time to examine it."

"How could a sixteen-year-old identify everything?"

Shen Haotian didn’t immediately answer.

He looked toward Lin Ruyan.

She was sitting quietly.

Her expression was completely calm.

---

Jin Tianming picked up the answer sheet.

He read it himself.

His expression gradually changed.

He couldn’t find a mistake.

Not one.

He looked toward Shen Haotian.

"Are you certain this answer is hers?"

Shen Haotian nodded.

"The name is written here."

Jin Tianming remained silent.

He looked toward Lin Ruyan again.

His eyes became complicated.

Where did this girl learn all this?

She wasn’t simply talented.

Her understanding of alchemy was far beyond what he had expected.

Even with his status as a Pill Saint, he couldn’t help feeling surprised.

---

Among the audience—

Lin Xin stared toward the judging platform.

"Why are they looking at Ruyan like that?"

Lin Wan’er tilted her head.

"I don’t know."

Lin Shiyu frowned.

"Did she do something wrong?"

Lin Qing immediately shook her head.

"Impossible."

Lin Chen smiled.

"Let’s wait."

Lin Mo laughed.

"Look at President Shen’s expression."

He leaned closer to the others.

"I think Ruyan just gave the judges a headache."

Lin Yu smiled.

"Probably."

The group laughed quietly.

---

Meanwhile—

Lin Ruyan remained completely calm.

She had no idea how much attention her answer had attracted.

She simply waited.

After a while—

The judges finished examining the remaining answers.

Shen Haotian stood.

His voice spread across the gathering grounds.

"The second stage has officially ended."

The participants immediately became nervous.

The results were about to be announced.

Shen Haotian continued.

"After reviewing all the answers..."

"The judges have determined the 30 participants who will advance."

The golden screen above the platform lit up.

Names began appearing.

---

1. Lin Ruyan

The entire gathering became silent.

Then—

"What?"

"First?"

"Lin Ruyan?"

"Who is she?"

"She’s the girl who registered yesterday!"

"She’s only sixteen!"

The crowd erupted into discussion.

Lin Ruyan herself blinked.

She hadn’t expected to be first.

Lin Xin immediately jumped up.

"Ruyan!"

Lin Wan’er laughed.

"First place!"

Lin Shiyu clapped excitedly.

"I knew it!"

Lin Qing smiled.

"Well done."

Lin Chen and the others also smiled.

---

The next names appeared.

2. Ye Qingxuan

3. Jin Ling’er

4. Zhao Lingfeng

5. Luo Yichen

The crowd continued discussing the rankings.

Ye Qingxuan had performed extremely well.

Jin Ling’er had also maintained her position among the strongest young alchemists.

Zhao Lingfeng and Luo Yichen had also advanced.

The remaining names continued appearing.

One after another—

Thirty participants were selected.

Some celebrated.

Others looked disappointed.

Those who failed were forced to leave the competition grounds.

The atmosphere became increasingly serious.

---

Jin Ling’er stared at the ranking.

Her name was third.

She clenched her fists.

Third wasn’t bad.

But she had expected to be first.

Her eyes slowly moved toward Lin Ruyan.

First place.

Again.

The girl she had mocked earlier had surpassed her.

Jin Ling’er’s expression became cold.

Don’t get too proud.

The final stage hasn’t begun.

She quietly clenched her fists.

---

Ye Qingxuan looked toward Lin Ruyan.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

"Interesting."

Zhao Lingfeng also looked toward her.

"So that’s Lin Ruyan."

Luo Yichen nodded.

"She’s definitely not ordinary."

The strongest young alchemists had begun paying attention to her.

---

Shen Haotian raised his hand.

The crowd gradually became quiet.

"The second stage is now complete."

"Tomorrow..."

He paused.

"The final stage will begin."

The participants immediately became serious.

Shen Haotian continued.

"The final stage will test your actual pill refinement ability."

"The ingredients will be provided by the Pill Association."

"Every participant will receive the same ingredients."

"You will have to refine a pill using only those materials."

"The quality of your final pill will determine your ranking."

The crowd immediately became excited.

This was the true test.

Identifying pills was one thing.

Actually refining them was completely different.

Shen Haotian looked across the thirty finalists.

"Tomorrow..."

"We will see who among you truly deserves to be called a young alchemy genius."

His voice echoed across the gathering grounds.

The participants became filled with anticipation.

Lin Ruyan calmly looked toward the stage.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

Finally...

She would get the chance to refine a pill.

End of Chapter 65