Chapter 27: A Double Blessing—Second-Tier Alchemist and Middle Earthly Yuan Stage

Lin Yan moved swiftly. After purchasing the necessary medicinal ingredients from the Qingyang Town Bazaar, he quickly returned home.

Now that he had the financial support of the Lin Clan, things were much more convenient.

Unlike before, when he had to carefully consider whether he had enough savings to buy ingredients, purchasing medicinal herbs had become significantly easier.

As soon as he arrived home, he went straight to the backyard, took out his cauldron, and began refining pills.

Regardless of the type of pill, the first step in alchemy was always refining the ingredients.

Only by extracting the most essential components could the medicinal properties blend properly, ensuring a successful pill formation.

If the refinement process was poor and too many impurities remained in the ingredients, not only would the pill's quality suffer, but it could even lead to complete failure.

Thus, Lin Yan immediately focused on purifying the medicinal ingredients.

Now that he possessed the Purple Flame, refining ingredients had become significantly easier.

Unlike the internal Yuan Power-generated flames, which were illusory, the Purple Flame was a real fire, allowing for more precise control and higher temperatures.

As always, Yao Lao watched Lin Yan refine the pills from the side.

This time, however, he didn't offer any guidance.

After all, now that Lin Yan had successfully entered the path of alchemy, he needed to develop his own understanding.

If he relied too much on Yao Lao's instructions, he would struggle to make true progress in alchemy.

Nonetheless, Lin Yan's performance was flawless.

Although second-tier pill ingredients varied in heat tolerance—some requiring lower temperatures, others needing higher—Lin Yan's mastery of the Purple Flame had improved significantly.

As a result, despite refining a higher-tier pill, he appeared even more composed than before.

"Hmm, not bad, not bad!"

Yao Lao nodded approvingly, clearly satisfied with Lin Yan's performance.

Meanwhile, Lin Yan continued his refining process.

Once the purification was complete, he combined the extracted essences into the cauldron and carefully controlled the flame to refine the pill.

This step also tested his ability to manipulate fire.

However, as previously mentioned, Lin Yan's control over flames had already reached an impressive level.

Thus, not long after, he successfully completed the pill refinement.

As the cauldron's lid opened, a green pill floated into the air, accompanied by a rich medicinal fragrance.

Yao Lao caught the pill with one hand.

After carefully examining its luster and taking a deep sniff of its scent, he smiled with a look of admiration in his eyes.

"High completion rate, top-tier quality! Excellent!"

Turning to Lin Yan, he smiled and said, "Congratulations, little friend. You have officially become a second-tier alchemist."

Hearing this, Lin Yan's eyes flickered with excitement.

Every rank increase for an alchemist was a significant breakthrough,

as it expanded the range of pills they could refine.

"I never expected little friend to reach the second-tier alchemist level in just a few months."

"Such talent truly leaves others in awe."

Yao Lao couldn't help but sigh in amazement.

With his extensive knowledge of alchemy, Yao Lao had seen many so-called geniuses.

Yet, he had never encountered anyone who progressed as rapidly as Lin Yan.

Many self-proclaimed prodigies spent years advancing from entry-level to second-tier.

But Lin Yan?

He had achieved it in mere months.

"It's all thanks to Senior Yao Lao's guidance."

Lin Yan responded with a smile.

Just as he was about to say more, he suddenly felt his Yuan Power surge like an erupting volcano.

His expression grew serious.

"It looks like… I'm about to break through."

Seeing this, Yao Lao chuckled. "Isn't this a double blessing?"

He quickly added, "Hurry and swallow this pill. This is a Clear Mind Pill, which enhances perception and stabilizes the mind. It's highly beneficial for cultivation and breakthroughs."

Lin Yan immediately nodded and swallowed the pill in one gulp.

Then, he sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and entered a breakthrough state.

Yao Lao remained by his side, observing Lin Yan's progress.

As he watched the increasing vitality in Lin Yan's complexion and the surging strength in his aura, he stroked his beard with a satisfied smile.

"Huff—"

After a long while, Lin Yan successfully exited his cultivation state.

He opened his eyes and exhaled a deep breath of turbid air.

"You broke through?" Yao Lao asked with a knowing smile.

"Yes, I did. I'm now at the Mid Earthly Yuan Stage," Lin Yan nodded.

He immediately threw a punch, feeling a noticeable increase in his physical strength compared to before the breakthrough.

Additionally, the Yuan Power within his body had become even more robust.

This made Lin Yan smile in satisfaction.

The Next Day—The Hunting Competition Begins

The Qingyang Town Hunting Competition was the largest event in the surrounding hundred miles, occurring only once every few years.

Those who distinguished themselves in the competition would not only receive generous rewards but also bring immense prestige to themselves and their families.

Because of this, the competition attracted not just the factions within Qingyang Town but also participants from other regions.

Early in the morning, the members of the Lin Clan set out for the competition grounds.

The venue was an enormous coliseum outside Qingyang Town, the largest structure in the entire town.

Upon arriving at the site and seeing the growing crowd, Lin Xiao began explaining the competition rules:

"The forest ahead connects directly to the deep mountains, where numerous ferocious Demonic Beasts reside. This will be the main battlefield for the Hunting Competition."

"Every participant will receive an identification token. The goal is to traverse the forest and reach the final destination."

"During this journey, competitors must rely on their own strength to survive the attacks of the Demonic Beasts."

"But there's another rule—only those who reach the final destination with ten identification tokens in hand will be allowed to step onto the stone platform."

"In other words, there will also be battles between the participants themselves."

Lin Xiao explained everything in detail, though the rules were relatively straightforward.

Soon, Lin Yan and the others fully understood how the competition would proceed.

Lin Xia and Lin Dong both looked eager.

After all, this was their chance to represent the Lin Clan and showcase their abilities.

Furthermore, both of them had made considerable progress in their cultivation recently.

Meanwhile, Lin Yan carefully scanned the competition grounds.

To him, this Hunting Competition was an important event in the early stages of the original storyline.

He recalled that Lin Dong, Wu Yun, and the others had obtained the Fire Python Tiger here.

However, Lin Yan had no interest in that.

He was focused on only one thing—

Would he be able to activate a sign-in at this location?

A Heavenly Flame? A cultivation method? A magical treasure?

Even acquiring just one of these would be a tremendous boost to his strength.