Rise of the Alchemy God

Ethan finished his round in just over ten minutes.

Normally, this part of the competition didn't take much longer, but people still expected it to last around 15 to 20 minutes per match. Experience tales at m v|l e'm,p| y- r

With Ethan's quick responses, along with his opponent's, the match ended relatively fast.

When Ethan returned to his seat, he found four pairs of eyes staring at him as if he were some unique, strange creature.

Not knowing how to respond, he simply decided to ignore them.

Especially since one of those pairs of eyes belonged to a girl, whose gaze was more intense than the other two.

'Damn, another one fell for my charm,' he thought, recalling the countless stares he'd received from the opposite sex in recent days.

Particularly during his outing with Bai Yu to explore the city.

If Bai Yu had been there, she would have shaken her head at Ethan's assumptions.

Just like the participants, the alchemy masters were also surprised by the level of knowledge this masked young man displayed.

He had already stunned everyone by taking first place in the first part of the trial.

Now, with his results in the first match of the second part of the theoretical trial, they had the feeling he would repeat his previous success once again.

At some point, many began to wonder if he was, in fact, an expert alchemist, perhaps one of their own, disguised to take part in the competition.

The level of knowledge he had shown so far was enough to classify him at their level, because they too knew how difficult those questions were, and not all of them could confidently say they would have been able to give perfect answers like his.

Now, the only thing left to examine was his refining skills.

If those were also up to their expectations, then there was no reason why they wouldn't consider him a master alchemist.

The very idea of having a master alchemist at that age gave many of them chills.

None of them would have been able to say they could compare to him, if this turned out to be true.

That said, having talent of this level excited them, because it meant that another person with the potential to become the next grand master had appeared.

While everyone was lost in their speculations, Ethan, who had maintained a calm expression throughout, now had a slightly more serious look as he thought to himself:

'I understand, so that's how it is.'

***

In a remote and deep area to the north of the empire's capital, a large figure had a furrowed brow as he tried to communicate with one of his subordinates, but received no response.

The figure could tell the person in question was still alive and that the formations they had set up in parts of the city had been completed, so he didn't immediately consider the worst-case scenario.

Standing up from his seat, he looked off into the distance, pondering something for a moment.

Then, taking a step forward, he vanished from his position, leaving the place as silent as it was before.

However, the peculiarity of the location didn't stem from its lack of light or its underground-like appearance, but from the scattered remains of animals and other creatures strewn about.

Even where the figure had just been standing, there lay the mangled corpse of what was once a mountain bear.

Sensing something might be wrong, the figure decided to check the situation personally.

He appeared at the entrance of a cave, still shrouded in deep darkness.

Taking a step forward to exit, his form shifted visibly.

As soon as he placed his foot outside the cave, the massive figure was no longer visible, and in its place stood the silhouette of a middle-aged man.

With another step forward, he vanished once more, this time heading directly toward the imperial capital.

In no time at all, he covered several kilometers and found himself outside the capital's walls.

Stopping at a certain distance, he tried once again to sense the aura of his underling.

Just as he managed to perceive it, his expression changed, and he turned to look to the side.

There, lying sprawled beneath a tree, was the man he had been searching for.

Noticing his condition, he could tell that the man wasn't injured, just unconscious.

'Something's not right here,' he thought, becoming even more alert.

Everything about the current situation was far from normal.

It was likely that his underling had been discovered by someone, and leaving him here was likely a trap meant to lure him in.

Just as he hurried to send a mental communication somewhere, a voice reached his ears, and his body stopped responding to his commands.

'What's happening to me?'

"It seems you've finally decided to leave your lair," said a soft voice, coming from somewhere nearby.

In front of the man, the figure of a woman materialized, as if a veil had been lifted from her.

Seeing this woman, the man felt an instinctive fear, as his body was overwhelmed with danger signals from all directions.

He wanted to ask who she was, but he couldn't even open his mouth, and with panic written all over his face, he could only stare at the figure before him.

"You know, I've always wondered what your kind looked like," the woman said, her calm expression unchanging as she looked at him with deep blue eyes that seemed to glow faintly.

Suddenly, a force struck his body, and in an instant, he returned to his original form, still immobilized.

Seeing this, the man felt a mix of shock and disbelief, combined with the growing fear within him.

'Who on earth is this woman?

Wasn't it said that there weren't many powerful beings in this place?'

Bai Yu, observing the true form of the figure, couldn't help but comment.

"Hm? I knew demons didn't have fixed forms, but this… it seems you were originally from the race of giants," she said, noticing the various differences between him and a race she was familiar with.

She knew that such a race didn't exist in the mortal plane, so she could only think that the demon was one of the survivors from the celestial plane.

Intensifying her aura around the demon, she smiled as she said calmly:

"Well then, why don't we have a little chat?"

These words, which seemed harmless on the surface, were like a bolt of lightning for the immobilized demon.

He knew it was over for him, so he decided to make one last attempt.