Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

After several rounds of intense competition, they were thoroughly enjoying themselves. Finally, only two remained on the field, one of whom was Yang Ling. He wore a mask, cleverly concealing his aura, making it impossible for anyone to discern his true strength and identity; it seemed he was using some kind of magical artifact. The other was a disciple from a powerful family named Hua An.

This large family is no ordinary family.

Hua An hails from Falling Flower Valley. In terms of talent, he is in no way inferior to the carefully cultivated prodigies of those powerful families. His strength, in particular, is outstanding. Despite his young age, he is said to be a key figure being groomed for advancement within the valley. His arrival here is clearly aimed at making a name for himself. He is well aware of his purpose.

Hua An knew full well that what the Lin family had brought was far beyond what ordinary families could offer. He resolutely stepped onto the stage. The crowd looked at Hua An with eyes full of admiration. He was so young, yet his achievements were already almost on par with their family's patriarch. As for the other person, he always wore a mask, completely concealing himself, making his background impossible to discern.

"May I ask who you are? Why do you dare to remove your mask and show yourself?" Hua An asked. If the opponent was weaker than him, he would respond with equal strength. Although the opponent was elusive and exuded an eerie aura, he was confident that he could win.

Hua An seeks fair and just duels and dislikes using force to suppress others.

"I don't care, do as you please, I'm not that particular!" Yang Ling deliberately lowered his voice and said softly. The voice sounded similar to the old man's, and everyone became even more curious about who this person was.

They exchanged glances, but neither of them recognized the man.

Hua An frowned. Was the other party joking with him? This sounded rather disrespectful. He looked around and saw that the people from the powerful families also looked bewildered. Could this person really have appeared out of nowhere? Had he never shown his face in the martial world before? The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

Thinking of this, he cupped his hands and said, "You have all come from afar, so I will do my best. I also hope that you will not hold back!"

As he spoke, his aura surged, and a golden light flashed around him.

Yang Ling then brought out something slightly inferior to his. Upon seeing this, Hua An said bluntly, "I will never lose to you. Of course, I will use whatever you use. That's fair and just!" Yang Ling seemed thoughtful, raised an eyebrow, and thought to himself that this person was quite interesting.

"You don't need to accommodate me, and I don't need anyone to lower their status for me. The rest depends on your performance!" Yang Ling's words sounded a bit off. Hua An was a highly respected figure in Falling Flower Valley. In recent years, he had distinguished himself and won the praise of many people.

He wouldn't have been so excited if the things the Lin family hadn't offered were so tempting. Thinking about this, his head was buzzing, and he wondered to himself: Is this person being far too arrogant?

He kindly offered to the other person, but the other person didn't appreciate it and instead made sarcastic remarks.

"I'm doing this for the sake of fairness, and besides, I don't have a habit of winning unfairly. You should understand, right?" Yang Ling smiled, thinking that if this person was serious, then he would have no choice but to play along. The two were at loggerheads, and the air was thick with tension, which everyone could feel.

There's something good to watch now.

"I see this person is wearing a mask. After he loses, why don't he take off the mask and let us see his true face?"

"Exactly! They come here acting all sneaky, what kind of behavior is that? I just don't understand!"

"Why isn't the Lin family doing anything about this? Are they just going to let this person continue like this?"

"Forget it, let's not go and say anything. If we attract Yang Ling's attention and offend him again, things will get complicated!" They were still wary of Yang Ling after all. Based on their understanding of Hua An, he was genuinely angry this time. Yang Ling had concealed his identity; even the Lin family head didn't know he had appeared. Hua An looked Yang Ling up and down, filled with curiosity, wondering what this man's background was.

Yang Ling felt their gazes, and a slight smile crept onto his lips. He didn't want to attack directly because he was worried about scaring them away, which would be pointless. He had meticulously planned this for so long precisely to demonstrate his power, not to frighten them away.

He quickly stepped forward.

"The pills you two are about to refine are Twin Pills. These pills are extremely powerful and have very strong effects, so they probably won't be easy to refine!" As soon as he finished speaking, everyone was stunned. This was too ruthless! He unleashed a powerful move right from the start, and this pill was extremely demanding on a person's willpower, completely forcing them to rely on their instincts.

Hua An gritted his teeth, thinking to himself: This is indeed a considerable challenge, quite difficult. He turned to look at Yang Ling, curious about how Yang Ling would handle it. However, the methods Yang Ling displayed surprised them greatly.

Many people recognized him.

"This is actually a long-lost martial arts technique! This move looks somewhat familiar. No wonder he dared to make such boastful claims. To be able to master such a move to such a high degree, you can tell how powerful he is!"

"My God, that's incredible! I've never seen anyone this powerful before. Every move they make sends chills down my spine!"

"So what he said earlier wasn't just boasting; he really has the skill!" You can tell someone's ability just by their first move; Yang Ling's method makes him incredibly fast. Hua An's eyes lit up, secretly alarmed: This person's speed is too fast; he's a formidable opponent! He could tell that Hua An was about to reveal all his trump cards.

Yang Ling ignored Hua An; whatever the other party did was irrelevant to him. They knew that it was precisely at such crucial moments that their true strength would be unleashed. Yang Ling's speed was extremely fast, and the others frowned upon seeing this. For some reason, based solely on the spectacle Yang Ling displayed, they felt that he was stronger than them.

"This man has met his match! His strength is unfathomable; even I am ashamed of my own inferiority!" The old man's words greatly surprised them. He was from Medicine King Valley. If even he said so, how powerful must this man be? This man was truly hiding his true strength.

Yang Ling responded slowly and methodically, not wanting to end the competition now, intending to play around with them first. However, the old man saw through his intentions, while some who didn't understand remarked, "How boring! Hua An should have used all his skills!"

"Can he really win with such a conventional approach?"... "This is amazing! I haven't seen such a spectacular match in a long time!"

"I don't know who this person is, but I think he's no match for Hua An!"

The old man looked at Yang Ling, thinking that among the crowd, probably very few could discern the intricacies of Yang Ling's techniques. Yang Ling had no intention of competing with Hua An in these areas; to him, they were child's play. Yang Ling's background was definitely not insignificant, and he certainly had many more formidable methods yet to be used.

The old man truly had his eyes opened.

Hua An suddenly opened his eyes, and let out a long sigh of relief when the pill landed in his hand. Developing such a potent pill in such a short time was a considerable challenge for him. Fortunately, however, it wasn't difficult for him. He turned to look at Yang Ling, who had remained calm and composed throughout.

How could this be? It was as if refining pills was as simple as eating and drinking for him. At this moment, the Lin family head walked up to them. He was full of doubts. Both of them had displayed great strength, but he really couldn't discern Yang Ling's background. He had to help judge this competition and couldn't afford to mess things up at this crucial moment.

The Lin family head acted with extreme caution, after all, so many eyes were watching him. If anything went wrong and word got out, it would be incredibly embarrassing. He took the pills from their hands and placed them on the magical artifact. The people around him exchanged bewildered glances.

"Could Hua'an be going to lose? I don't think Hua'an can possibly lose!"

"This magical artifact is a relic from ancient times; it's definitely not simple, and its origins must be significant!"

“That’s right, I also think this magical artifact is no ordinary thing!” At this point, they looked at the situation in front of them and were all a little confused.

Hasn't the result come out yet? They firmly believed that Hua An was very strong. If Hua An lost to this person of unknown origin, then this person's strength must be above Hua An's. He pondered, many thoughts flashing through his mind. Surely he couldn't really lose to this person of unknown identity.

They looked at each other, silently awaiting the result. The Lin family head suddenly looked up; the outcome had completely exceeded his expectations. They all looked up as well, eagerly awaiting the Lin family head's announcement. Hua An touched his forehead, where fine beads of sweat appeared. He thought to himself, "I absolutely can't lose! What will I do if I lose?" He was hoping to cultivate a good relationship with Yang Ling and obtain some resources from him. The Lin family head's name was rather complicated; he really hadn't expected this.

"This result might surprise you all; clearly, this person of unknown origin has won!" The Lin family head nodded; to him, the result seemed reasonable. Yang Ling's display of such strength while concealing his identity was truly remarkable. Moreover, every step he took was extremely risky, like walking a tightrope.

Hearing the words of the Lin family head, they were filled with confusion and disbelief. This shouldn't be happening.

Hua An, in particular, never expected to lose. The Lin family head, seeing Hua An's performance, also felt a pang of regret. In truth, Hua An's strength wasn't lacking; it was just that he had unfortunately encountered a talent like Yang Ling, a formidable figure who had the potential to win the championship.

"Alright, your strength is indeed formidable. I have indeed lost to you, and I am truly ashamed of my inferiority!" Hua An said. Yang Ling calmly nodded. In his view, being able to accept defeat gracefully is the mark of a true strongman. The others didn't dare to say anything more, after all, they had Yang Ling backing them up, and it was Yang Ling they truly feared. What if Yang Ling suddenly became displeased and went on a killing spree? Who among them could possibly defeat him?

"By the way, senior, the pill you refined is extremely exquisite. May I keep it for myself?" Hua An asked. Yang Ling smiled. This was just something he practiced casually in his spare time. If Hua An wanted it, he could take it; he wouldn't say anything.

"Since you like it, take it." Everyone present gasped upon hearing this. Yang Ling's casual tone was no different from offering a cabbage. They had originally thought Hua An was the most likely winner, after all, at Hua An's age, no one could compare to him. But Yang Ling had defeated Hua An so easily, which at least indicated that his strength was at a higher level.

They frowned, realizing this person was no ordinary individual. The previous rounds had already eliminated many, and those people had put in tremendous effort for this competition. Were they really going to lose to Yang Ling?
For several days in a row, Yang Ling crushed his opponents with his powerful moves. Every move he made shattered everyone's expectations, leaving them completely unable to believe their eyes. In fact, many people were defeated by Yang Ling, and they were very dissatisfied. After all, Yang Ling had never revealed his true strength from beginning to end, so why should they be considered the losers?

"This person always wears a mask; he must be ashamed to show his face. Why doesn't he dare to show his true face? Besides, are you trying to protect him?"

"He's not that powerful. If he's so afraid to show his face now, he'll be even less likely to do so in the future!"

"That's right, it's a misfortune for us to keep this person here. Why don't we get rid of him!" Their words carried a hint of accusation. Yang Ling listened as if he had heard a joke. Did they really think they could compete with him? Knowing that these people wouldn't give up easily, the Lin family head simply took out something and placed it in front of them. When those people saw the pills that Yang Ling had refined, they were all stunned.

They observed the expressions on those people's faces, wondering why they had changed so much.

"What did these people see? They all look like wilted eggplants, how did they change so much!"

"I was curious too, but no one dared to go up and ask."

After realizing they were no match for Yang Ling, the Lin family head took his items back. To be honest, they finally understood the gap between themselves and Yang Ling; no wonder they couldn't win. Yang Ling knew they would admit defeat after seeing what he had crafted. He remained expressionless, but those around him were more curious about the face beneath Yang Ling's mask and his true identity.

During this time, the Lin family searched everywhere for Yang Ling, but couldn't find him. So, they made a bold guess: the masked man was Yang Ling. If that were true, everything would make sense. They all knew Yang Ling possessed extraordinary talent in this area, but he hadn't shown it yet. If Yang Ling revealed it this time, they would be relieved.

"So it was Yang Ling! I knew it was going to happen. This is truly unexpected!"

"Patriarch, if it really is Young Master Zhao, then why is he unwilling to come forward?"

At this point, his face twitched involuntarily. If Yang Ling were to show up, those people would probably be scared away. Everyone knows Yang Ling's temper; offending him is tantamount to courting death. (End of Chapter)