Chapter 517: Setting the Rules

In Wuxuan's alchemy room, it was already packed with people.

Xiao Ruyan, upon hearing that Ye Yuan was going to test Ren Dong, was extremely unwilling and insisted on coming along.

Cao Fang, also very curious, followed as if by some strange impulse.

Ye Yuan naturally noticed this but said nothing more.

Seeing the materials Ren Dong had chosen, Wuxuan was taken aback: "Brother Ye, why are all the ingredients he selected first-grade? Isn't the threshold for your entrance exam too low?"

Ye Yuan smiled and said, "Just watch, brother. You'll understand in a moment. This Ren Dong has some insight; I didn't expect him to reach this level so quickly. Look at his eyes, full of bloodshot veins—he probably hasn't slept in days."

How could the entrance exam Ye Yuan had set be so easy to pass?

Even for the lowest level of Lesser Formless Art, reaching the level of refining top-grade first-tier pills would require about half a month of hard practice for those with slightly better aptitude. Those with poor aptitude might never find the trick to refining at all.

As Ye Yuan had expected, Ren Dong had not rested for a single moment these past few days, spending all his time from morning to night in the alchemy room, just to complete the entrance assessment as quickly as possible.

Moreover, achieving the level of refining top-grade pills with the Lesser Formless Art was not something that could be accomplished through hard practice alone.

Without Ye Yuan's demonstration, Ren Dong would not have found the trick so quickly. He had been recalling the scene of Ye Yuan refining pills with his bare hands these past few days, constantly comparing and contrasting, which allowed him to comprehend it so quickly.

It was only because the Lesser Formless Art was too simple, with almost no technical content, that Ren Dong could reach this level in just a few days.

However, the fact that Ren Dong could reach this level also showed that he had extraordinary talent.

In Ye Yuan's view, Ren Dong's talent in the Dao of alchemy was probably even above Xiao Ruyan's.

Everyone watched Ren Dong with great curiosity, wanting to see what exactly this entrance assessment was.

Although Ren Dong was exhausted, he was now in a state of extreme excitement.

Ye Yuan had opened another window for him, showing him a path to the heavens. For an alchemist, nothing could be more thrilling than this.

Everything was ready. Ren Dong said to Ye Yuan with an excited face, "Master, watch closely!"

As soon as Ren Dong made his move, everyone couldn't help but widen their eyes.

"Minor Formless Art? Brother, what are you really up to?" Wuxuan was completely baffled.

Using the Minor Formless Art as an entry test—how low could the bar be!

Even a Grand Alchemist taking on disciples wouldn't use this to assess them.

"Heh, keep watching, old brother. This kid is somewhat interesting," Ye Yuan commented with an air of maturity.

Interesting indeed. Ren Dong had only spent three days and had already touched the threshold of the Legendary Realm. It seemed his aptitude was quite good.

For Ye Yuan, the Legendary Realm was nothing special.

But for others, it was not so easy.

Moreover, no one would ever bother to master the Minor Formless Art to reach the Legendary Realm.

Any refining technique, upon reaching the Legendary Realm, would have very powerful effects, and the Minor Formless Art was no exception.

Of course, those effects only applied to first-grade pills.

Cao Fang looked at Ren Dong with utter disdain.

"Has this guy lost his mind? That Ye Yuan is clearly messing with him, and he actually takes it seriously! A quasi-Dan King taking a quasi-Dan King as his master—heh, how ridiculous!" Cao Fang sneered inwardly.

Cao Fang did not doubt Ye Yuan's alchemy skills, because his performance before the Thousand Questions Wall had already said it all.

At the very least, Ye Yuan's theoretical level was quite high.

Having a disciple's entrance assessment be first-grade pills and first-grade alchemy—wasn't that ridiculous?

Refining first-grade pills didn't take much time, and Ren Dong quickly finished.

"Condense!"

With a soft shout from Ren Dong, the pill was formed.

"Hehe, Master, care to evaluate?" Ren Dong came up to Ye Yuan, ingratiatingly.

Ye Yuan smiled and nodded: "Not bad. But the Lesser Formless Art is only an entry-level alchemy technique; you still have much to learn. Next, your task is to use the Greater Formless Art to refine a super-grade pill."

"Huh? The... the Greater Formless Art?" Ren Dong didn't react at first.

Xiao Ruyan, standing by, couldn't stand it anymore and scolded: "You fool, hurry up and come pay respects to your master!"

Ren Dong suddenly understood, a look of ecstasy on his face, and he fell to his knees with a thud: "Master above, please accept this disciple's bow!"

"Rise. From now on, Ruyan is your senior sister. My sect has few rules, but there are a few things you must remember," Ye Yuan said calmly.

"Please speak, Master!"

Ye Yuan nodded and said: "Do not rebel or be disobedient; do not commit crimes or break the law. Everything else is up to you. If I find you doing anything heinous, I will personally cripple you! Ruyan, the same goes for you!"

"Yes, Master, this disciple will keep it firmly in mind!" Ren Dong quickly said.

"This disciple understands!" Xiao Ruyan, seeing Ye Yuan's seriousness, dared not be flippant.

Having spent time with Ye Yuan, Xiao Ruyan had more or less figured out his temper.

Most of the time, no matter how she joked, it was fine, but once Ye Yuan got serious, it wasn't so amusing.

However, Xiao Ruyan harbored no evil thoughts; such rules were essentially optional for her, and she didn't take them too seriously.

"Brother Ye, did you just say... using the Lesser Formless Art to refine a super-grade pill?" After they finished the apprenticeship ceremony, Wu Xuan asked Ye Yuan in surprise.

"That's right, that's the entrance assessment I gave Ren Dong," Ye Yuan said with a smile.

"Hiss... let me take a look."

Wu Xuan opened the cauldron and took out the pill; it was indeed super-grade.

"Using the Lesser Formless Art to actually refine a super-grade pill! But... what's the use of that?" Wu Xuan asked, puzzled.

A super-grade first-grade pill could also be refined with high-level alchemy techniques; there was nothing remarkable about it.

Using the Lesser Formless Art to refine a super-grade pill, though surprising to Wu Xuan, seemed to him a wasted effort.

With all this time spent studying first-grade alchemy, it would be better to devote it to high-level alchemy.

Cao Fang was also quite disdainful in his heart, but he dared not speak. Now hearing Wu Xuan's question, he pricked up his ears, wanting to hear Ye Yuan's explanation.

Ye Yuan smiled and said: "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. In my lineage, what we value most is not flashy alchemy techniques, but laying a solid foundation! Do not underestimate first- and second-grade alchemy; even high-level alchemy techniques are derived from these low-level ones. Once you thoroughly understand low-level alchemy, cultivating high-level alchemy will yield twice the results with half the effort."

Wu Xuan shook his head: "But that would consume a great deal of energy, not worth the gain!"

Ye Yuan did not answer Wu Xuan, but instead asked Ren Dong: "Do you think it's not worth the gain?"

Ren Dong shook his head very firmly: "Absolutely not!"