The man, Raymond, nodded at Severin after sensing thetter’s gaze. The other person, a woman,


    exuded


    grace and charm. d in a flowing white dress that resembled the petals of a white lotus, the faint


    scent


    of orchidaceous fragrance was perceivable even from afar.


    Severin spected that the woman was Celeste, and the spectators soon confirmed his suspicions.


    After


    Raymond and Celeste made their appearance, a wave of exmations echoed across the entire open


    area in front of the Alchemy Tower.


    “Isn’t that Raymond?! He’s the fourth core disciple!”


    “And that’s Celeste, the fifth core disciple!”


    “Wasn’t Raymond in seclusion on Phecda Isle? Why has he joined us here today?”


    “Who would’ve thought that today’s contest would draw the attention of two core disciples who rarely


    make an appearance outside of their inds?”


    As the disciples on the scene discussed the unexpected arrival of Raymond and Celeste, a perplexed.


    expression unfurled across Emery’s face. Though she had no idea why they were there, their presence


    piled up the pressure for her.


    Following Emery’s decision to challenge Severin, she had trained hard under Danie’s guidance and


    sessfully crafted a sixth–grade pill. Even a pill as challenging as the Crystal Spring Pill would allow


    her to boast a 20 percent sess rate. However, her confidence took a slight hit when Celeste arrived.


    “Take a deep breath, Emery. You need to believe in yourself!” Emery looked away and took a deep


    breath


    before cheering herself on.


    Sometimeter, a few more streaks of light descended from the sky. When the figuresnded, Severin


    recognized them as elders from their attire. They were likely the guardians of each mountain, as well as


    other elders within the sect’s hierarchy. They could not have been there for any other reason than to


    witness the contest.


    Severin recognized one of a familiar face among them. Fend was there too, and he nodded subtly to


    Severin before gesturing toward the elegant woman beside him. He looked as Severin and said, “This


    here is Danie, guardian of the Sixth Mountain. I invited her here today today to witness your duel.”


    Grasping the hint in Fend’s words, Severin greeted Danie respectfully. “I’m very pleased to meet


    you,


    ma’am.”


    Danie nced at Severin and said with a smile, “I’m not surprised that our sect leader made the


    apprentice.”Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    Her smile then faded as she shifted her gaze away from Severin. Her tone became more reserved as


    she


    said, “Emery was a little shaken when you surpassed her in the rankings.”


    Danie subtly implied that Severin’s achievement had affected Emery emotionally. Her swift change in


    demeanor caused Severin’s smile to tense up. Deep down, his impression toward her had turned cold.


    After looking at Emery’s confidence and then at Severin’s unemotive expression, she stood up and


    dered, “Since both sides have agreed to this contest, then let them have at it.”


    Fend smiled and stroked his goatee as he announced, “I hereby dere the start of this contest!


    Whoever produces the highest–quality pill is the winner!”


    The rules of the contest were straightforward–it was a measure of their proficiency in crafting pills. At


    Fend’s conclusion, Severin and Emery descended to the ground and retrieved their cauldron.