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**
From his experience, Elder Zhong could tell that Dan Chen was already not far from reaching the realm of an eight-tier alchemist. If nothing unexpected happened, by the time of next year's Pill Gathering, she would definitely be capable of refining an eighth-tier pill!
Then he raised his head toward the sky where the silver lightning was gathering power, and with a sudden wave of his palm, a surge of crimson flame shot forth like a blazing whip, striking the thick dark clouds above the plaza.
"Rumble!"
With a deafening crash, both the clouds and the Pill Lightning scattered completely, vanishing into the air. The warm sunlight once again spilled down onto everyone below.
Lin Feng couldn't help but click his tongue in surprise when he saw this scene. Although he could easily block Pill Lightning himself, to disperse it so effortlessly with just a casual wave — that was beyond him.
As for Cao Ying, standing off to the side, when she saw Dan Chen's alchemy level, a faint glint of wariness flashed across her bright crimson eyes. That girl's alchemy was already no weaker than her own.
If not for Dan Chen's lower Dou Qi cultivation putting her at a disadvantage when refining high-tier pills, there was a real chance she could've been overtaken. Most of the other students present were also looking at Dan Chen with admiration and awe.
While they were still lingering at the middle or high ranks of seventh-tier alchemists, she had already reached peak seventh-tier. The most astonishing part — Dan Chen was only eighteen years old, two or three years younger than most of them here.
After the Pill Lightning above was destroyed, Dan Chen gracefully waved her jade-like hand, pulling the escaping pill from within the cauldron straight into her palm. Then she walked over to Elder Zhong and handed it to him for inspection.
"Not bad," Elder Zhong nodded with a pleased smile after examining it. "The quality of your pill is only slightly inferior to Cao Ying's, but given that your cultivation level is weaker, in terms of alchemy skill, you two are practically equals."
Even for him, her alchemical talent was something to be envied. Not only was her physique special — capable of directly absorbing soul power to strengthen herself — her learning ability was also extraordinary, one of the rarest he had ever seen.
"I really wonder which lucky man this genius girl will end up with in the end," Elder Zhong sighed inwardly as he returned the pill to Dan Chen. Then he turned toward Lin Feng. "Lin Feng, it's your turn. Refine a pill and let me see your current level."
"Yes."
Lin Feng stood up, responding respectfully before stepping toward the open area.
Seeing this, Dan Chen gave him an encouraging look. Lin Feng smiled slightly in return, nodding back. Meanwhile, off to the side, Cao Ying's charming face showed a flicker of displeasure as she witnessed their interaction.
Even though she didn't really have feelings for Lin Feng yet, a genius like him — who didn't fawn over her like the others — was already unusual enough. But now, seeing him exchange such friendly glances with her rival? That, she couldn't tolerate.
However, Lin Feng had no idea that his brief exchange with Dan Chen had irritated Cao Ying. He calmly sat down in the center of the square and summoned his gray eight-mouthed cauldron.
With a flick of his hand, a cyan flame streaked through the air and entered the cauldron. The instant the Green Lotus Core Flame appeared, the flames within the bodies of over a dozen nearby students trembled violently, instinctively submitting to it.
"That's… a Heavenly Flame!"
Feeling the sudden turmoil in their internal flames, everyone froze for a moment before standing up one by one, shock filling their faces. After all, aside from a Heavenly Flame, there was nothing else that could cause such a reaction in their own flames.
"A cyan flame… when it burns, it occasionally takes the shape of a lotus… it seems to be the Green Lotus Core Flame, ranked nineteenth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking," Elder Zhong muttered in astonishment as he gazed at the fire burning within the cauldron.
The others quickly recognized it as well.
For alchemists across the continent, Heavenly Flames were the ultimate dream — mysterious fires filled with unimaginable power. Of course they had studied and memorized information about them.
But at this moment, Lin Feng had already begun refining his pill and had no time to bother with their shock. He had long anticipated such a reaction when revealing his Heavenly Flame.
After all, within the Pill Tower, quite a few people already knew that he possessed one. Therefore, he didn't bother to hide it in front of everyone.
"Didn't expect this Lin Feng to be so lucky, to actually find a Heavenly Flame, and even successfully absorb it."
Cao Ying's crimson eyes fixed on Lin Feng, who was fully focused on refining the pill.
In her heart, she was already scheming about how to borrow his Heavenly Flame for a few days just to play around with it. Encountering such a treasure—even if she couldn't have it permanently—it would still be nice to use it for a few days.
After all, even among the Elders of the Small Pill Tower, not everyone had personally refined pills using a Heavenly Flame.
With Lin Feng's current alchemy skills, his failure rate when refining a tier-seven pill was extremely low. Thus, after being watched by countless fiery gazes for several days, he finally succeeded in refining a peak seventh-tier pill.
"Not bad. Among all these students, your alchemy skill is probably the strongest."
Elder Zhong glanced at the pill in his hand. With his sharp and experienced eyes, he immediately discerned the pill's exact quality, then praised.
Afterward, he tossed the pill back to Lin Feng and said, "You may return to your seat. I've already understood your general level. Next, I'll explain some knowledge about pill refinement."
Lin Feng carefully stored the pill and quickly returned to his seat.
However, just as he sat down, Dan Chen, who normally wasn't much of a talker, suddenly broke her usual calm and leaned toward him with a rare look of excitement.
"Brother Lin Feng, I know this might sound sudden, but… could you lend me your Heavenly Flame for a few days? I really want to experience what it feels like to refine pills using it."
Dan Chen's beautiful eyes burned with anticipation as she spoke.
Lin Feng caught the faint, pleasant fragrance from the girl beside him, and his expression became a bit strange. He knew that whenever it came to anything related to alchemy, Dan Chen's attitude would completely change.
But he hadn't expected her obsession with alchemy to run this deep.
When Dan Chen saw that Lin Feng didn't answer right away, the anticipation in her delicate face slowly faded, replaced by disappointment. Still, even though she was disappointed, she didn't resent him.
After all, such a priceless treasure wasn't something one could casually lend out. If something went wrong, the loss would be unimaginable.
At that moment, Lin Feng finally came back to his senses. His gaze fell upon the girl beside him, her small face filled with dejection.
Then, under her misty-eyed stare, he nodded slightly and smiled, saying, "No problem. After class, come to my room. I'll explain some things you should pay attention to when using the Heavenly Flame."
"Brother Lin Feng, really?"
Hearing that, Dan Chen's eyes instantly lit up again, filled with disbelief and joy.
"Really."
Lin Feng nodded and unconsciously reached out to gently pat her head. But he quickly realized that the gesture was a bit inappropriate, and he withdrew his hand.
"Then Chen'er thanks Brother Lin Feng in advance."
After getting his confirmation, Dan Chen nodded without hesitation. As for whether it was appropriate for the two of them to be in the same room together that evening—well, that thought had long vanished from her mind.
"Lin Feng, Dan Chen, stop whispering to each other and pay attention. Otherwise, even if your soul power increases in the future, your alchemy will still be a mess, and you'll waste your talent!"
"Yes."
Lin Feng replied helplessly, then sat up straight and listened obediently—just like when he was a child in his past life.
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