Elder Wang remained silent, which made things very difficult.

After all, Elder Wang is the chief judge, clearly in charge of everything concerning the Great Alchemy Competition. The other judges trust and respect Elder Wang greatly, and they know he would certainly not overlook such matters. Yet, the reason behind Elder Wang's hesitance was a subject of wild speculation among the observers.

At this time, Elder Wang noticed Ding Fan entering. Previously, the affair with Zhang Hao had made Elder Wang somewhat displeased, but upon seeing Ding Fan, his mood lifted instantly. Clearly, Elder Wang had great confidence in Ding Lin, though it wasn't absolute. Elder Wang knew Ding Fan's alchemy level was beyond doubt, but undoubtedly, his youth put him at a disadvantage in this third round of the competition, which aims to assess the overall strength of participating alchemists. Given Ding Lin's young age, his cultivation was definitely at a disadvantage.

Elder Wang hoped Ding Fan could attain the championship of the Great Alchemy Competition because Ding Fan's alchemy skills had already surpassed all of them, making him truly deserving of the title!

However, Elder Wang also felt a bit resigned, aware that things don't always go as planned, since the competition also tested an alchemist's overall strength. The demands were high not only in alchemy skills but also in the alchemist's cultivation and comprehensive capabilities, which were areas where Ding Fan indeed had a shortcoming.

Because he was still too young, Elder Herr and a few elder alchemists posed significant challenges for Ding Lin in this third round of the competition. Elder Wang questioned whether Ding Fan could ascend the mysterious high platform, given its heavy pressure. He knew the pressure was not something ordinary cultivators or alchemists could withstand. Even cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage would find it no easy feat to ascend.

Of course, in terms of spiritual power, alchemists generally surpassed average cultivators, but if one's cultivation was low, it was indeed a problem.

Thus, Elder Wang felt deeply concerned for Ding Fan, but his heart was filled with longing for Ding Lin's potential, knowing this youngster had already performed a miracle once before and might very well do so again.

At that moment, Ding Fan had entered the competition venue, remaining calm amidst the discussions around him. Though he was uncertain of the difficulty level of the third round, Ding Fan was clearly eager to witness its challenges!

Soon enough, the second group's alchemy competition featuring Ding Fan officially began. Like other alchemists, Ding Fan surged towards the high platform. Upon stepping onto it, he felt the platform's pressure, which was rather ordinary. Yet, Ding Fan didn't find it particularly challenging, feeling quite at ease. With his first steps, he realized the platform's pressure wasn't merely targeting alchemy skills but also spiritual power.

Ding Fan's spiritual power was evidently strong, especially his divine sense. Within moments, he had reached halfway up the high platform without encountering any sense of difficulty.

While this was the case for Ding Fan, other alchemists were evidently struggling. Nearly half had stalled below the halfway point of the platform, unable to withstand its pressure. For most alchemists, overcoming the platform's challenge was tough, and many had already halted.

Ding Fan had already ascended past the halfway mark and was consistently holding a position at the top, with Elder Herr close behind. Elder Herr had also surpassed the midpoint, followed closely by a white-clad elder who seemed poised to overtake him.

The outside audience was utterly astonished by this vista, unable to imagine Ding Fan persisting at the top of the high platform, even surpassing Elder Herr, which was quite a shock!

"No way! Brother Dalin is actually in first place now, and his climbing speed is quick!"

"Indeed, isn't Brother Dalin supposed to be only at Nascent Soul Early Stage? How can he be so impressive!"

"Haha! I've always told you to trust our Brother Dalin! With him around, nothing is impossible!"

"You don't say! It seems like Brother Dalin is about to create yet another grand miracle for us!"

"Brother Dalin is simply awesome!"

"…But we shouldn't celebrate too early. It's clear that the pressure from the high platform increases with height. Even though Ding Lin is climbing smoothly now, it doesn't guarantee the same for later stages. Initially, it's relatively easy for the participating alchemists, but they struggle towards the end! I think if Ding Lin can climb to the seventieth level or so, it's already pretty good. Continuing further will obviously be very challenging!"

"You do have a point! After all, Brother Dalin is really young, and obviously can't be compared to people like Elder Herr, who are superb in both alchemy and cultivation! Definitely not something an ordinary alchemist can handle."

"I pity my Brother Dalin…"

For a while, everyone started discussing excitedly. Clearly, the spectators were both amazed by Ding Fan's current performance and worried about his upcoming challenges. Even Nascent Soul Mid Stage cultivators couldn't climb more than thirty steps on this platform. While Ding Fan is an exceptional alchemist, he's already climbed over half the stairs, more than fifty steps, which might just be his limit.

So, many people were deeply worried about Ding Fan, considering that he was still quite young. Climbing this high platform seemed an incredible feat in everyone's eyes.

At this time, Elder Herr noticed Ding Fan consistently ahead of him, and felt quite shocked. Although the pressure at the front of the platform wasn't as significant as further back, achieving this level of climbing was not an easy feat for an alchemist at the Nascent Soul Early Stage. Yet Ding Lin seemed effortlessly ahead, which was already astonishing.

Elder Herr clearly understood that this was not something an ordinary cultivator or alchemist could accomplish, given the significant pressure of the high platform. For himself, nearing the peak of Nascent Soul Late Stage, even one step away from Divine Transformation Stage, climbing to this point was strenuous. Yet, Ding Lin seemed even more at ease, an astonishing fact indeed!

Currently, Elder Herr's condition wasn't optimistic. Ding Lin remained ahead, while the white-robed elder was closely behind, potentially surpassing him at any moment. Elder Herr was clearly unhappy with this situation, especially as his spiritual power was weakening while the platform's pressure intensified, clearly to his disadvantage.

However, Elder Herr knew that although climbing higher was getting increasingly strenuous, neither Ding Lin ahead nor the white-robed elder behind were likely faring much better, especially Ding Lin, whose cultivation was around Nascent Soul Early Stage. His progress indicated strong mental power.

Yet, even for an alchemist around Nascent Soul Early Stage, this was likely the limit of strong mental power. Elder Herr anticipated Ding Lin would soon stop, allowing him to surpass with ease and relish in Ding Lin's jealous gaze. This thought brought a smile to Elder Herr's face.

Meanwhile, the judge elder was also stunned seeing Ding Fan reach this height. Initially, they believed Ding Fan was too young to pass this round of the Great Alchemy Competition. But the judge elder was surprised by his progress, almost completing the platform climb, remarkable indeed!

Importantly, the judge elders didn't anticipate Ding Lin's momentum, not even appearing strained, which was indeed impressive!

However, everyone was concerned about Ding Fan, as he had only climbed halfway, and climbing further involved increasing difficulty. The pressure from the platform intensified, a challenge far beyond most cultivators. Despite Ding Fan crossing halfway, whether Ding Lin could reach the top was uncertain!

Elder Wang's lips curved slightly seeing Ding Fan, clearly satisfied with his performance. But whether Ding Fan could reach the top or even surpass Elder Herr and Zhang Hao was uncertain. After all, Ding Fan was still too young, with relatively low cultivation.

Though Elder Wang heard rumors of Ding Fan once defeating a cultivator in the Divine Transformation Stage, he found it hard to believe. Ding Fan, a Nascent Soul Early Stage cultivator, defeating a higher stage cultivator seemed exaggerated! The gap between Nascent Soul and Divine Transformation was substantial, beyond simple ranking, a whole different tier.

Crossing this tier meant at least a decade's training for talented cultivators to progress from Nascent Soul to Divine Transformation. For ordinary cultivators, it usually took twenty or thirty years, illustrating the vast gap.

This gap was exceptionally large, making it nearly impossible for a Nascent Soul Early Stage cultivator to defeat someone in the Divine Transformation Stage, seemingly an incredible tale, one that few would believe. Elder Wang wondered why such rumors surrounded Ding Lin. Had the public mythologized him?