My equipment is designed for cultivation; I started by slaughtering my way through a small world.

Seeing Gu Qing intensify the hellfire once again, many people in the square were worried for him.

He's absolutely insane.

There's no way to refine pills like that. Refining pills is a delicate task that requires powerful spiritual energy to control every wisp of flame. Gu Qing's method of refining pills seems even more volatile than refining weapons.

Many people even began to shake their heads and sigh.

"It seems that the three Grand Alchemists at the Golden Core Realm have put a lot of pressure on him!"

"People are starting to take risks."

"Isn't that obvious?"

"Go and have a go at a Grand Alchemist in the Golden Core Realm. You probably won't even be able to stand up straight."

"hehe……"

"If I had that talent, would you still be standing next to me?"

Many people in the surrounding crowd began to argue in hushed tones.

Compared to others, Wen Xingjian, Zhao Yi, Luo Zhengge, and others, who were also alchemists, saw it more clearly. Only they, as fellow alchemists, knew just how difficult Gu Qing's actions were.

Luo Zhengge stared at Gu Qing with a tense expression, puzzled, "Judging from his performance yesterday, he shouldn't be so eager for quick success, right?"

"As long as the flames are kept under control, this pill of his will be at least at the level of a first-grade spirit pill."

"The One-Pattern Elixir is not difficult for him."

"But that's all!"

"To defeat those three Golden Core Realm Grand Alchemists, a single Spirit Pill is far from enough..."

Wen Xingjian stared intently at the figure on the alchemy platform, not missing a single detail.

He was secretly learning Gu Qing's fire control techniques.

However, after watching for a while, Wen Xingjian broke out in a cold sweat, his heart filled with horror.

Controlling fire like Gu Qing does is an incredibly demanding task on one's soul and spirit. After just a brief simulation, he came to a startling conclusion: he could only maintain the ability to manipulate flames like Gu Qing for a maximum of three-quarters of an hour.

Whether it was the thousands of onlookers who were merely watching, or fellow alchemists, they were all present.

Their exclamations and gasps had no effect on Gu Qing, who was in a strange state.

When Gu Qing chose to actively break through his limits and deduce the two-pattern spirit pill, his mind was completely focused on the pill furnace in front of him.

"The essence of the One-Pattern Elixir lies in the perfect fusion of all spiritual elements."

"It's equivalent to one plus one equals two."

"To break through to the first level of the Spirit Pill, one must amplify the pill's spirituality on the basis of perfect fusion, exceeding the limitations of the materials themselves."

"One plus one must be greater than two, and the spiritual effects of the elixir must reach three, or even more..."

"How can we break this deadlock?"

In Gu Qing's mind, the knowledge inherited from the three alchemists, as well as the alchemy knowledge passed down by the four elder brothers of the Meng family in the Immortal Kingdom, were constantly colliding and sparking flashes of inspiration, which were then deduced and verified in his mental world.

Meanwhile, among the other three Golden Core Realm Grandmasters in front of the square, Lan Siqi, who came from behind, was the first to extinguish the Azure Phoenix Illusion Flame in the alchemy furnace.

Wisps of fragrant alchemical aroma wafted from above the alchemy furnace, attracting wisps of spiritual energy and instantly drawing the attention of the surrounding cultivators.

"The pill spirit pattern has appeared. As expected of a Golden Core Realm Grand Alchemist."

"I wonder how many spirit runes will condense?"

"Judging from the speed and amount of spiritual energy gathering, it is comparable to the Grade 2, 1-pattern spiritual pill that Master Gu refined yesterday."

"It's about the size of a single-patterned elixir."

"What do you mean by 'that'?"

"Don't talk nonsense if you don't understand, okay? Even becoming a Grand Alchemist at the Golden Core Realm is very difficult; it requires staying up all night to deduce pill formulas..."

Many Qi Refining Realm cultivators defended Golden Core True Persons and took the initiative to speak up for Lan Siqi.

The argument in the crowd didn't last long before they were drawn to Han Feng not far away. They saw an even richer fragrance of pills emanating from Han Feng's alchemy furnace, attracting wisps of spiritual energy to gather.

"Another elixir?"

"This is truly eye-opening!!"

"That's because... if the Azure Emperor Sword Sect hadn't hosted the Alchemy Gathering, who could have invited three Grand Alchemists at the Golden Core Realm?"

In the square, many disciples of the Sword Sect proudly raised their heads.

The sect's pill-making gathering broadened the horizons of the Sword Sect disciples and enhanced their sense of belonging to the sect.

The two Golden Core Realm Grandmasters successively refined the elixir, making the discussion in the square increasingly heated. In comparison, Gu Qing, who had not yet entered the Core Formation stage, seemed quite pathetic.

however.

Just when everyone thought Gu Qing was about to give up, Gu Qing made another move.

This time, Gu Qing's movements were even more stable.

Inside the alchemy furnace, wisps of dark red hellfire were continuously heated, transforming into wisps of pure black flames. Under Gu Qing's deliberate control, these black flames were meticulously refining and cleansing the soul of the Gold-Devouring Insect.

"When refining soul-type pills, in most cases, when dealing with demon souls, insect souls, and ghosts, the process involves reducing or removing the consciousness, memories, and malevolence carried by the soul, leaving only the pure soul essence for pill refining."

"The Insect Soul Condensation Pill we are refining this time needs to preserve the insect soul intact and transform it into a soul seed to be integrated into the pill."

"Since we need to break through to the first-grade pill level..."

"We must go long!!"

"Based on ordinary elixirs, it unleashes the potential of ancient remnant ferocious insects."

Thinking of this, Gu Qing looked at the several clumps of things that had been peeled out from the Foundation Establishment Insect Soul in the Hellfire.

The first cluster was the insect soul's instinctive killing intent, and a series of mournful roars came from within the cluster of light.

The second cluster was the insect soul's instinctive devouring consciousness, seemingly whispering incessantly, muttering "eat...hungry..."

The third cluster represents the insect soul's instinctive reproductive consciousness. The cluster of light emitted a low, rustling sound, like the rubbing of an insect's carapace.

……

"Refine and devour instinctive consciousness."

In the extreme heat of the black hellfire, the soul orb of the insect soul, driven by its devouring instinct, murmured in the flames. This instinctive backlash seemed to become even purer in the hellfire.

"Eat...eat it..."

The insect soul's instinctive will was backfiring on Gu Qing's spiritual consciousness and impacting his state of mind. Fortunately, Gu Qing's mental world was beyond the reach of ordinary people.

Compared to the insect soul's instinctive devouring will, the demon star that Gu Qing's spiritual world condensed possessed an even stronger devouring instinct than the insect.

In the clash of wills, although Gu Qing was at the Qi Refining Realm, the instinctive devouring consciousness of the Foundation Establishment Realm insect soul could not shake the demonic star in Gu Qing's mental world.

Inside the alchemy furnace, under Gu Qing's control of his mental power, the insect soul's instincts, tempered by the hellfire, tumbled continuously in the flames, much like a steak being pan-fried.

"Absorbing instinctual consciousness, tempering complete."

A few quarters of an hour later, the temperature of the hellfire controlled by Gu Qing returned to normal.

Immediately, he burned several other clumps of insect soul impurities into blue smoke.

Inside the alchemical furnace.

Inside the hellfire, there floated more than twenty other clusters of spiritual herbal essence.

"Next, we'll condense the core."

"Adding the insect soul's devouring instinct to condense into a hybrid, I wonder what it will evolve into?"

In the impromptu simulation, Gu Qing combined the Devouring Instinct with the Soul Origin of the Insect Soul, using the Devouring Instinct to stimulate the Soul Origin's innate abilities. As for what exactly it would stimulate, Gu Qing didn't know.

"bring it on!!"

"The unknown is what's interesting."

"Life always needs a little surprise..."

Gu Qing unleashed the Twenty-Four Seals of Civil and Martial Arts, transforming the karmic fire into the form of a dragon and a tiger. He used the Li Character Fire-Containing Pill Technique to control all spiritual substances, which slowly fused together in the furnace fire.

Time flies.

Another hour passed in the blink of an eye. Gu Qing was being extra careful in the final step of condensing the core and integrating all the spiritual energy.

In particular, the step of stimulating the insect soul's soul essence through its devouring instinct is handled with extreme care.

I don't know how much time has passed.

The entire square became quiet. Even Han Feng, Lou Guan, and Lan Siqi, who had just finished refining pills, were watching Gu Qing closely from a short distance away, observing the techniques Gu Qing used to condense the pills.

"Can it succeed?"

"Young friend Gu ultimately integrated the insect soul's desires, and his pill-condensing technique was somewhat similar to a demonic method."

How can two different philosophies of alchemy be integrated?

Seeing Gu Qing break with convention, Lan Siqi frowned from a short distance away.

"have no idea!!"

"The hand seal he used at the end was unlike anything I've ever seen before. I wonder where young friend Gu learned it?"

"Quiet down, everything's beautiful..."

Han Feng was getting impatient and couldn't help but interrupt Lan Siqi and Lou Guan's discussion.

You know nothing, so what are you discussing? You should just watch and learn properly.

Even learning just one or two tricks will bring you immense benefits.

In fact, Han Feng's idea was correct.

Even though Gu Qing learned the basic alchemy techniques from the four Meng brothers, the basic alchemy techniques of the Immortal Kingdom were all based on the foundation laid by the Immortal Kingdom through countless trials and tribulations, and naturally contained profound meanings.

For example, Gu Qing's method of dealing with devouring intent is the result of the Immortal Kingdom's integration of technologies from many other civilizations, and the improvement of the Immortal Kingdom's own basic alchemy techniques.

"Um?!"

"It seems to be working; the fragrance of the elixir is beginning to waft out."

With only half an hour left before the third round of the competition, the alchemy furnace in front of Gu Qing finally began to emit wisps of fragrance, attracting the surrounding spiritual energy to gather.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone around, Gu Qing lifted the lid of the alchemy furnace, and a pill automatically rose from the furnace.

A large amount of spiritual energy lifted the pill into the air.

The pill was dark gold in color and about the size of a longan. On its round surface, there seemed to be a phantom image of a faint insect enveloping it.

"Did it work?"

"Why haven't the Pill Spirit Patterns condensed?"

"Fool, didn't you notice that spiritual energy is still continuously gathering around that pill?"

"Well……"

"That can't be!"

"Judging from the amount of spiritual energy, you mean this pill's quality surpasses that of a one-pattern spirit pill?"

"Wouldn't that mean...?"

On the plaza, the cultivators who were watching the drama unfold didn't finish their sentences, but their meaning was clear.

The quality of the pill refined by Gu Qing surpasses that of the pills made by three Golden Core Realm Grandmasters.

but……

No one dared to say that.

A while later.

The pill in mid-air trembled slightly, and all the gathered spiritual energy surged into it.

"Bang! Bang!"

Two dazzling halos of spiritual energy appeared on the pill, eventually shrinking to the surface and transforming into two fine and intricate spiritual patterns.

The moment the spirit pattern appeared, the ethereal insect phantom surrounding the pill suddenly emitted a series of hisses. Although the sound was faint, it carried the pressure of some ancient ferocious insect, causing the expressions of the Qi Refining Realm cultivators with slightly lower cultivation levels to change slightly.

Immediately afterwards, the insect shadow shrank abruptly, transforming into a blinding golden light that merged into the pill.

The pill hovered in mid-air for a moment before slowly falling into Gu Qing's palm.

The pill hovered in mid-air for a moment before slowly falling into Gu Qing's palm.

The square was deathly silent.

A moment later, someone gasped, and uttered four words in a trembling voice:

"Two Danling patterns have truly condensed."

"Second-grade, second-spirited!!"

These words caused an uproar in the room.

The three Golden Core Realm alchemists exchanged glances, their eyes fixed on the dark golden pill in Gu Qing's palm.

Before the match.

They were mentally prepared to lose to Gu Qing, and in their own names, they paved the way for Gu Qing to reach the pinnacle of success.

But even when they used all their strength, they still lost to a Qi Refining Realm alchemist.

The three of them remained unsettled.

Gu Qing truly lost, and without holding back at all; he won a fair and square victory against the three of them.

"Hahaha……"

"Your talent in alchemy is unparalleled, and you have won today's alchemy competition. From this day forward, you will be the guest elder of my Azure Emperor Sword Sect."

"All disciples of the Azure Emperor Sword Sect bow to Fellow Daoist Gu!!"

On the high platform, Su Changge's voice boomed like a thunderclap in the sky above the square.

All the Sword Sect disciples who were in a state of shock suddenly heard Su Changge's words, and their hearts clenched again. Even Meng Yu, the Foundation Establishment Realm Deacon, looked at this scene in astonishment.

A genius alchemist at the Qi Refining Realm defeated three Golden Core Realm alchemists and became an elder of the Azure Emperor Sword Sect!

All of this seems absurd, and in fact it is, but that's reality.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Gu Qing created miracles step by step.