Zhou Lihua woke up before the first light of dawn. The first thing she saw upon opening her eyes was a broad chest. She spent a long moment admiring it, then looked up, into Wu Jian’s sleeping face. His mouth was slightly ajar. He must have had trouble breathing through his nose. The slow rise and fall of his chest told her that he was still in a deep slumber.

“He looks so vulnerable like this,” she whispered.

She wished she could stay like this, but she had woken up so early because she couldn’t remain here. Reaching up, Zhou Lihua placed a tender kiss on Wu Jian’s mouth, then slipped out of bed and made for the door. She paused outside and listened carefully. She didn’t hear anyone. Another moment passed just to be safe before she opened the door open and peered outside. No one. Sighing in relief, she slipped out of Wu Jian’s bedroom and into her own.

Zhou Lihua got dressed in her alchemist robes and pinned her Palladium badge to her breast. While donning her clothes, she heard the door to Wu Jian’s bedroom open and footsteps receding down the hall. She exited her room and followed the footsteps, which led to the inner courtyard.

Wu Jian was exercising. He stood on his hands, balancing a massive boulder easily twice her size on his feet as he did handstand pushups. His movements were smooth, fluid, and graceful as he slowly lowered himself until he was just about to touch the ground, then raised himself back up. What made his actions all the more impressive to her was that he wasn’t using chi to enhance his strength.

She tucked her feet underneath her bottom and watched him until the sun rose and the others began waking up. Master Wong Jiu was the first to awaken. He found her like this and merely sighed as he sat down.

“Are you ready for the tournament?” he asked.

“More or less,” Zhou Lihua said. “I’ve prepared as much as I can, but I do wonder if I’m truly ready for this.”

This would be the first alchemy tournament Zhou Lihua had participated in. She was more nervous about it than she had been about her participation in the Three Clans Competition back in Zahn City. It felt like there were butterflies in her stomach. She thought she might get sick if she thought too much about it.

“You will do a fine job,” Master Wong Jiu assured her. “I have watched you progress with your alchemy. You struggled for a while, but ever since a few months ago, your alchemy has progressed by leaps and bounds. You’re progress is truly like that of a carp leaping through the dragon gate.”

“Thank you, Master,” Zhou Lihua said with smile.

Master Wong Jiu smiled back, then glanced at the young man in the courtyard, still exercising. “Do I have that young man to thank? You seem to have become quite enamored with him ever since Her Highness brought him back.”

Zhou Lihua didn’t know what face she was making, but she was worried about giving her feelings away. It would be bad if Master Wong Jiu found out who this young man was.

“He… reminds me of someone,” she said at last.

“Hmmm. I have noticed the similarities between him and a certain young man that you used to be very sweet on. They’re personalities are quite similar,” Master Wong Jiu said.

Zhou Lihua tried not to flinch. Anyone who knew Wu Jian back then would be able to recognize the similarities. They were the same person, and while the young man had changed in many ways, the core of his beliefs and personality had remained unchanged. He was still the caring young man who sought strength to protect his loved ones. He was still highly competitive. The only thing that had changed, from what she could see from their time together, was that he was a bit more somber and would sometimes just stare into space.

He sometimes looks lost. I guess that’s to be expected since Mei isn’t by his side anymore.

Wu Jian and Wu Meiying had been inseparable. She almost never saw one without the other. It was obvious to anyone watching that Wu Jian had looked up to and listened to Wu Meiying. She was his guiding light, and now that light was no longer around. That was why he felt so lost sometimes. At least, that was what Zhou Lihua believed.

“I suppose that is why Her Highness likes him so much too, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to try and replace one person with another,” Master Wong Jiu added.

“You’re quite right. Do not worry, Master. I don’t intend to use this man as Wu Jian’s replacement,” Zhou Lihua assured him. Of course, it was impossible for Jian Wu to replace Wu Jian since they were one and the same. If only her master knew that.

Everyone else soon woke up and breakfast was eventually served. Zhou Lihua did not have much of an appetite. Her worry over the tournament made it hard to put food in her stomach. She was certain anything she ate would come right back up. If it wasn’t for Wu Jian insisting she eat something, she wouldn’t have even been able to finish her congee.

Soon enough, Zhou Lihua, Wu Jian, and Master Wong Jiu were boarding a carriage that would take them to the place where the tournament was being hosted. She sat on one of two couches, while Wu Jian and Master Wong Jiu sat across from her. Zhou Lihua swung her left leg over her right, then shifted and swung her right over her left. That didn’t feel comfortable either, so she tried sitting with her knees together.

“I understand you’re worried,” Wu Jian said when he noticed. “I’m always nervous when I know something important is coming up.”

Zhou Lihua smiled wryly and shook her head. “It’s more than just nerves for the tournament. There’s so much riding on my victory.”

The victor would get their hands on a heavenly flame, which she needed to refine tier 5 pills. She would not be able to create the Nirvana Soothing Pill without it. Hou Jingshu’s father was depending on her achieving victory. It was the idea of not being able to help her friend, more than anything else, that caused her stomach to twist into knots.

***

Known far and wide as the Kěnéng Arena, the structure they were heading toward was located on the outskirts of the city, away from the hustle and bustle of the main thoroughfares. Despite not being located in the city center like other arenas, it still retained the magnificence expected of one.

The edifice was long and oblong-shaped. It consisted of six floors built in tiers. Each floor had an extended roof to shade viewers from the sun. Unlike many arenas where the VIPs would be at the top, here they were at the bottom, which meant they were the closest to the action. The VIP booths were at ground level, meaning they were not part of the tiered structure that made up most of the arena’s infrastructure.

“Jian Wu. Master. I’m going to head to the meeting room where the first round is taking place,” Zhou Lihua said.

“Good luck,” Master Wong Jiu said.

Wu Jian closed the distance between them for a moment and whispered, “I know how much is riding on your success, but even if things don’t turn out the way we want, I will find a way to help you get a heavenly flame.”

While being told that it didn’t matter if she won or lost would probably upset most people, Zhou Lihua felt like a slight weight had been removed from her shoulders. She took a deep breath as though releasing the tension that had been building in the pit of her stomach.

“Thank you,” she murmured softly. Then she grinned. “If it weren’t for that mask and master watching, I’d have kissed you for that.”

“You can kiss me later tonight,” Wu Jian said.

“Hmph. It’s not fun when you don’t blush.”

“I’m wearing a mask. You can’t see me blush anyway.”

“Ahem,” Master Wong Jiu coughed into his hand. He could not hear them talking since they were being quiet, but he was clearly perturbed by their behavior.

Zhou Lihua backed away with a smile, bowed to her master, then parted ways with the pair.

Round one of the tournament would not be viewable. It was a private affair since it was considered the most boring part of this tournament.

It was set to take place in a large circular room underneath the arena. Several young men and women were already present. Most of them were Palladium rank alchemists like her, but there were two people who ranked far above that.

The first person was one she recognized. Zhong Mu stood in the center of the floor with a smile on his face. Standing beside him was a much older man with white hair, a drooping mustache, and a giant hat that looked like an alchemist’s cauldron. The badge pinned to his chest represented the numerical value of gold, meaning he was the master of the Kěnéng Alchemist Association Branch.

Her presence garnered a lot of attention from the other participants.

“Who is that?”

“I don’t know, but she’s super pretty.”

“Pretty? That’s an understatement if I’ve ever heard one. Her beauty could topple a nation!”

“I wouldn’t mind toppling a nation if it meant getting her in my bed.”

“Before you even think of seducing a woman like her, you should fix your ugly face.”

“As if your face is any better!”

Zhou Lihua pretended she didn’t hear the words being spoken about her. Had she been auctioning off pills, she might have acted more flirtatiously, but she had no need nor desire to do that here.

More people arrived, and before long, the room was filled with several hundred participants. That was when the Gold rank alchemist stepped forward and smiled at them all like an amicable grandfather.

“Welcome to the Zhou Kingdom’s annual alchemy tournament. My name is Yao Song. I am the head alchemist here, and I will be the one overseeing this tournament.”

Yao Song really looked the part of an ancient grandfather. He stood with a stooped back and the many wrinkles lining his face stood as testament to his age. The cane in his hand looked quite extravagant. It was made from gold and had numerous gems overflowing with chi. She couldn’t sense his cultivation, which meant it far surpassed her own. He was at least a Human Limit Realm cultivator. She guessed he was probably several hundred years old too.

He tapped his cane against the ground and several sections of the ground rose to create a series of tables. There were enough tables for five hundred people.

“These shall be your work stations. We will be providing you with enough ingredients to refine two pills. Your goal will be to refine at least one tier 3 pill, which will then undergo a quality test.”

The man tapped his cane again, and this time, the ground behind him split open and something rose from the surface. Zhou Lihua at first thought it was a furnace. It reminded her of an oven used to bake bread. Near the top was a crescent-shaped indicator with an arrow attached to it.

“This is a quality assurance device created by my branch. When you have finished refining your pill, you will place it inside of here. If it is a tier 3 pill, the quality assurance device will rank it based on a variety of factors. The smoothness of the pill, the number of blemishes and imperfections, the purity of the ingredients, and so on. Pills will be ranked from one to ten. A pill with a rank of ten will be awarded three points. A pill with a rank of eight to nine wil be awarded two points. Pills ranked five to seven will be awarded one point. And any pill below that will be ranked zero. If your pill is ranked zero, it means you failed.”

A young man raised his hand. “Excuse me, sir. Might I ask a question?”

“Go ahead,” said Yao Song.

“Why is anything below a five given a zero?” he asked.

“Hmph. Can you not already guess? If your pill is so bad that it ranks below a five, you don’t even deserve to take part in this tournament. I’ll not have someone who’s so inept at alchemy embarrass my Alchemist Association with their lack of talent. Does that answer your question?”

The young boy blushed and apologized before stepping back. Zhou Lihua felt bad for him, but his question really had been obvious.

“Does anyone else have any questions? No? Good. In that case, let us bring out the ingredients so you can begin.”