Chapter 109 - 106: Definitely Failed to Upgrade

Inside Hongyan Building.

After a good while, another person successfully enhanced their pill. When seventy percent of the time had passed, two soft HISSES echoed through the room. Chu He had successfully enhanced two pills.

"He did it! Chu He successfully enhanced two!"

"This Double-Handed Pill Lifting Technique is truly formidable. By the looks of it, he’s the first to enhance two pills; Bai Xiu and the others are far behind him!"

"With seventy percent of the time gone, Chu He probably won’t be able to enhance another two simultaneously, right?"

"If he focuses all his energy on enhancing just one, there should still be hope."

Sure enough, amidst the crowd’s murmurs, Chu He did not attempt to enhance two pills simultaneously this time. Instead, he took out only one pill to infuse with spirituality. With thirty percent of the time remaining, it was hard to say whether he would succeed, but everyone present believed he could do it.

Right after Chu He finished his pair, someone ran outside to relay the news.

When eighty percent of the time had elapsed, another HISS sounded. Mo Qianqian had successfully enhanced another pill and placed it on his tray.

"What? Asura successfully enhanced another one?"

"How is this possible? Didn’t he just take half the allotted time? How did he speed up?"

"He only used thirty percent of the time for this one?"

The crowd gasped in waves. Logically, the time a Spirit Master needed to enhance a pill should remain relatively consistent, as it reflected their base skill level. Even on their first attempt, they would undoubtedly perform at their absolute best. Yet, this Asura defied common sense—he had used fifty percent of the time for his first pill, but only thirty percent for his second?

"How is this possible? How could you be so fast on your second pill?" Bai Xiu, standing nearby, revealed a look of sheer disbelief.

"There’s no way you successfully enhanced that pill!" Ye Xiao, on the other side, also found it unacceptable.

"Whether it’s successful or not, won’t we know when the pills are examined later?" Mo Qianqian chuckled and began infusing his third pill.

There was only twenty percent of the time left! If he succeeded, he would have enhanced three pills in a single two-hour period. Of course, even if he managed this, it was impossible to sustain such a pace to enhance over thirty pills in a day. This method consumed far too much Spiritual Power and could not be maintained for long. Everyone’s Spiritual Power was finite, limiting how long they could enhance pills each day.

"He can increase his speed?" Chu Yiming noticed the clue.

"If that’s the case, this Asura is far from simple," Qiu Fengliang added from the side.

"Elder Asura is incredible!" Shi Muyao cheered in excitement on the other side. Pei Hong and the others also beamed with joy.

Meanwhile, the crowd broke into fresh murmurs.

"Asura is starting on another pill. Could he actually pull off a third?"

"There’s only twenty percent of the time left. That’s way too short; it’s going to be difficult."

"He only took thirty percent of the time for his second pill. Maybe his third will be even faster."

"Those first two pills must have been a massive drain on him. The third one will be significantly harder."

Various discussions flared up once again.

Outside Hongyan Building.

A middle-aged man rushed out and loudly reported, "Asura has enhanced his second pill and is now working on his third!"

"What?"

"How is that possible?"

"Didn’t Asura take half the time just to enhance one pill? How did he finish his second one using only thirty percent of the time?"

The crowd immediately cried out in shock. The members of the Ye Xiao Conglomerate and Bai Xiu Conglomerate were completely stunned, finding it hard to believe.

"Hahaha, our Great Treasure Master has already finished his second pill! Where are Ye Xiao and Bai Xiu now?"

"Now we see who’s truly faster!"

"Who knows, our Great Treasure Master might even successfully enhance a third!"

The members of the Asura Conglomerate all laughed excitedly. Previously, Asura’s slower start compared to Bai Xiu had subjected them to a fair amount of mockery. Now, they could finally vent their frustration.

The members of the Bai Xiu Conglomerate and Ye Xiao Conglomerate felt a burning sting on their cheeks, as if they had just been publicly slapped.

"Hmph, completing the process doesn’t guarantee a successful enhancement. What if the pill is a failure? Besides, with only twenty percent of the time left, there’s no way Asura can successfully enhance another one!" the members of the Bai Xiu Conglomerate retorted.

"Not successful? Do you even believe that yourselves?"

"Just accept the facts, you trash from the Bai Xiu Conglomerate!"

"Even if the third pill fails, the time he took for two is still leagues ahead of yours!"

The members of the Asura Conglomerate completely let loose. Throwing insults was easy; why should they just stand there and take it? The members of the Ye Xiao and Bai Xiu Conglomerates felt incredibly stifled.

The members of both conglomerates cursed inwardly, "Hmph, let’s see if you can still be this arrogant in the second round!"

Inside Hongyan Building.

As time passed, others succeeded in enhancing their pills one after another. Of course, they had only completed one each. Currently, only Chu He and Mo Qianqian had managed to enhance two.

As the time limit neared its end, two soft HISSES rang out. Bai Xiu and Xian Ling’Er had succeeded almost simultaneously.

HISS!

Immediately after, Ye Xiao also succeeded.

"One hundred breaths left!" Chu Yiming announced.

BANG!

Hearing this, someone panicked, and their pill instantly exploded. The blast left the unfortunate Spirit Master with a blackened face and hair standing on end.

HISS!

Meanwhile, someone else succeeded.

"Fifty breaths!" Chu Yiming’s voice rang out again not long after.

Many eyes fixed on Mo Qianqian and Chu He. Chu Yiming and Qiu Fengliang were also staring intently at the two.

"Thirty breaths!"

HISS!

Chu He successfully finished his enhancement and placed the pill on his tray.

"He did it! Chu He succeeded!"

"Three pills! He has the highest count here. Now we just have to see if Asura can succeed."

"Even if Asura succeeds, Chu He’s speed was still the fastest."

The crowd buzzed with discussion. Only five people remained actively enhancing pills on the floor. Aside from Mo Qianqian, the other four had yet to successfully enhance even a single pill.

"Ten breaths."

"Nine, eight, seven..."

BANG!

Another pill exploded! So far, three people had blown up their pills. If a Spirit Master grew too nervous, applied too much force, or lost their balance, the pill would instantly be ruined. However, another person managed to finish their enhancement in the nick of time.

Now, only three people were left.

"Three, two, one."

"Time’s up!"

HISS!

At the exact moment Chu Yiming called the end, Mo Qianqian succeeded, instantly placing the pill onto his tray.

"What? Asura succeeded at the very last second?"

"No way, right? Did he just force an incomplete pill onto the tray?"

"It only counts if it passes the examination!"

The onlookers were shocked, but many found it hard to believe that Asura had truly succeeded. As for the other two remaining Spirit Masters, they completely failed to finish in time. Counting the three who blew up their pills, a total of five people were left empty-handed. Of course, this was all before the pill examination.

"Asura, there’s no way you enhanced three pills!" Bai Xiu clenched his fists.

"That last pill is definitely a failure!" Ye Xiao chimed in.

Off to the side, Luo Wushuang also couldn’t help but clench his fists.

"Commence the pill examination!" Chu Yiming announced.