After a period of time, the alchemists finished drawing their numbers. At this moment, Ding Fan calculated the time. He knew that the maid had already completed drawing the number plate earlier, which was evidently a treatment reserved for VIP alchemists. It had been nearly an hour since he finished drawing his number. This indicated that there were indeed quite a few participants in the Great Alchemy Competition.

After all, he took less than a minute to complete it. Ding Fan estimated that there would be over a hundred alchemists participating in this Great Alchemy Competition. He knew that those who could participate in this competition were certainly skilled, and they were considered elites in the Alchemist Realm. After all, this was one of the major Great Alchemy Competitions on the Donglai Continent, and it attracted alchemists from across the continent.

Even though alchemists are quite rare in the Cultivation World, it's not limited to just a hundred. There must be many alchemists who lack the confidence to participate in this competition.

Soon, that maid came in to remind Ding Fan that it was time for him to go out and participate in the first official round of the competition. Then, Ding Fan and He Qianyao, under the guidance of the maid, left the VIP room and walked onto Wuji Square. As Ding Fan and He Qianyao entered Wuji Square, they went directly to the front row, where a spot had evidently been reserved for Ding Fan.

And as Ding Fan and He Qianyao took their seats in Wuji Square, a pair of resentful and angry eyes were staring at Ding Fan. Turning around, Ding Fan saw Gao Lian amidst the crowd. Gao Lian was already familiar to Ding Fan. Ding Fan gave him a light glance, then relaxedly sat down.

To Ding Fan, the other individual was clearly just a small figure, not worth his attention. Even though combat was prohibited in Wuji Square, Ding Fan wouldn't mind stepping outside to eliminate the other if he continued causing trouble. Ding Fan felt that even if he killed the man in Wuji Square, it might not be a problem.

However, Ding Fan clearly didn't want to invite such trouble since avoiding problems is better than dealing with them.

He Qianyao also noticed Gao Lian, and her gaze turned icy. She evidently hadn't forgotten what Gao Lian did to her years ago, and she also felt frustrated about a recent incident at the inn with Ding Fan. But seeing Gao Lian squeezed in with the other cultivators while she and Ding Fan were comfortable was quite satisfying to her.

Gao Lian saw Ding Fan and He Qianyao with a face full of resentment and unwillingness. Originally, the seats Ding Fan and He Qianyao took were his since he too had an invitation from Dancheng. But Zhang Meng, responsible for the security of the Great Alchemy Competition, decided to give Ding Fan a position as he was suddenly added to the preparations.

In the end, Zhang Meng decided to assign Gao Lian's seat to Ding Fan. Even though Gao Lian had Dancheng's invitation, Ding Fan with his jade plate was more important. Gao Lian was annoyed and helpless, especially since his seat went to He Qianyao and Ding Fan.

Even while frustrated and angry, Gao Lian could only endure it since the competition was held on the City Lord Mansion's territory. He could only stare at Ding Fan and He Qianyao with resentful eyes in the crowd.

Immediately, Elder Wu stepped onto the stage again, addressing the crowd:

"Now we proceed with the first stage of the Great Alchemy Competition: Alchemy! Each participating alchemist will receive a pill recipe. Whoever refines the highest grade medicine pill in the shortest time wins. We will select the top hundred to advance to the second round, while the rest will be eliminated! We will proceed in groups of ten, with each group having twenty people, going one by one."

Elder Wu spoke in a loud and clear voice, paused briefly, and then announced the start of the competition!

Soon, various alchemical tools were set up in the center of the square, and all sorts of spiritual materials were prepared, including a standardized alchemy cauldron. Of course, if alchemists preferred using their own cauldron, they could do so for pill refinement.

The first group of twenty alchemists then entered the square, getting ready. Shortly after, staff members handed each of the twenty alchemists a pill recipe, which was obviously the same for everyone. The expressions of the alchemists varied, with most looking troubled, indicating the recipe's difficulty.

"The first stage, first group, officially begins!"

After the staff handed out the recipes, Elder Wu loudly announced the start of the competition. As Elder Wu declared the beginning, several staff members lit timing incense.

Then, the twenty alchemists started working. Though the recipe was challenging, being seasoned alchemists, they knew the preparation tasks well. Starting work confidently would also exert pressure on others—a common tactic used in the Great Alchemy Competition.

However, among these twenty alchemists, there were still quite a few who were distressed. They kept staring blankly at the pill recipe, clearly at a loss on where to begin, evidently shocked at the difficulty of the recipe. They never expected the pill recipe to be so hard, and in fact, just in the first round of the competition, one alchemist had already announced his withdrawal and elimination.

The alchemist had a square face, and he certainly didn't look like an ordinary person. After contemplating the pill recipe for a few minutes, he decided to withdraw voluntarily, clearly realizing that this was not something he could refine.

This action by the alchemist left the audience in shock and sparked a lot of discussion.

"I know this alchemist, I heard he was quite competent. I originally thought he could make it to the top twenty, but I never expected he would withdraw just in the first round! It's quite shocking!"

"The pill recipe is actually this hard? To quit without even starting is simply unbelievable!"

"Perhaps the alchemist was just too cowardly!"

"Maybe..."

For a moment, there was a lot of chatter; some cultivators felt that the alchemist who withdrew was not up to standard, while others believed he was sensible, knowing his own limits and not pretending otherwise.

Additionally, many cultivators started to critique the evident intensity of this Great Alchemy Competition. Out of two hundred alchemists, half would be eliminated in just the first round, which showed just how fierce the competition was.

Ding Fan was also a bit surprised. Initially, he thought there would be a little over a hundred alchemists participating in the competition, but he didn't expect there to be as many as two hundred. Moreover, eliminating one hundred in the first round was indeed brutal. However, Ding Fan didn't particularly feel much about this. When Ding Fan saw this alchemist who voluntarily exited, he felt a bit of respect for him.

After all, alchemy is not something where one can cut corners. If Ding Fan were in the same position, and upon seeing that the pill recipe was beyond his capability, he would also choose to give up decisively, to not waste any time. However, Ding Fan knew that there were very few pill recipes he was completely unfamiliar with.

Soon, the first set of the competition concluded. Only the Nameless Alchemist managed to complete the pill refinement, while the others met with failure. This scene left everyone in shock, asking how it could be possible. After all, these alchemists were said to be the finest in the Donglai Continent, yet out of twenty participants in the first group, only five managed to refine a pill, while others didn't even manage to produce one. It was truly unbelievable.

Subsequently, the five alchemists who refined pills promptly delivered them to the judge area. Several elders sat in the judge area, evidently alchemy masters of various ranks. Although their standards weren't comparable to Master Nanyang whom Ding Fan had seen before, these three judges still held certain authority. Finally, the three judges evaluated the five pills. They were identified as three first-grade pills, one second-grade pill, and one third-grade elixir.

When the evaluation results were announced, astonishment was palpable, as no one expected the highest level among the refined pills to be only a third-grade elixir. In the Cultivation World, third-grade elixirs are considered lower-tier pills, quite common, and generally affordable using spirit stones.

This was one of the largest Great Alchemy Competitions in the Donglai Continent, and every alchemist present had previously refined high-grade elixirs, yet the highest refined here was merely a third-grade elixir.

This was simply unbelievable!

How difficult was this pill recipe? People were evidently shocked that out of so many alchemists, only five refined pills, with the highest being a third-grade elixir. How could this be possible?

At this moment, He Qianyao, standing by Ding Fan, was also in shock, not expecting such an outcome in just the first set of the first round. It was simply unprecedented! He Qianyao couldn't help but worry for Ding Fan, frequently casting glances toward him, wondering if Ding Fan could manage such a difficult pill recipe. However, when He Qianyao looked at Ding Fan, he seemed calm and indifferent, distinct from the surrounding tension. For a moment, He Qianyao was curious, could Ding Fan be so confident? But everyone could see that the pill recipe was indeed exceedingly challenging.

Especially those alchemists who came down from the first group, now appearing disheartened, showing a clear sense of defeat.