At this moment, the presiding sect leader spoke to the crowd with a very serious expression:

"This time, our big brother participating in the selection competition is already a very fair decision from the Lake Master. Otherwise, the Lake Master would have directly allocated a quota to big brother. We, as sect leaders, dare not have any objections because big brother saved our lives. Even though the quota to enter the Xuantian Secret Realm is very valuable, it's right to give it to big brother. Therefore, you must thank the Lake Master and big brother here, do you understand?"

Upon hearing the presiding sect leader's words, the disciples all shouted in unison with a serious look:

"Understood!"

...

The presiding sect leader continued:

"It's good that you understand. Therefore, if you want to compete for more quotas to enter the Xuantian Secret Realm this time, you must give it your all! Moreover, this selection competition is not just a contest to fight for entrance to the Xuantian Secret Realm; it is also a competition among the sects you represent. The sect of any disciple who performs excellently will receive substantial rewards from the Lake Master."

The presiding sect leader paused for a moment and then continued:

"Of course! If you violate any competition rules or behave terribly, the Lake Master will also punish you severely without mercy. One sect has already been severely punished by the Lake Master, and I hope you do not follow in the footsteps of this punished sect! Finally, I wish you good luck and a good performance!"

After finishing, the presiding sect leader cast a glance with some sympathy at the sect leader of the Qinghe Sect. Clearly, everyone already knew about the matter with the sect leader of the Qinghe Sect, and they couldn't help but feel a lot of sympathy. After all, it was a year-long resource punishment for the Qinghe Sect, which was no laughing matter.

Upon hearing the presiding sect leader's words, the disciples couldn't help but feel a little surprised. The selection competition hadn't even started yet, and a sect had already been severely punished by the Lake Master. Which sect was so unfortunate...

Amid the disciples' bewilderment, only the muscular man Leng Jian felt more apparent hatred towards Ding Fan. Meanwhile, the young cultivator from the Gaoyuan Sect naturally knew which sect the presiding sect leader referred to as being punished, and he couldn't help but cast a sympathetic glance towards the few disciples from the Qinghe Sect, who had very gloomy expressions.

...

"Now, I announce that the selection competition officially begins!"

Finally, the presiding sect leader announced loudly to the crowd, and immediately, with the preparation of some working disciples, the venue for the first competition was already set up. A large alchemy cauldron appeared in the square, with some flames already lit beneath it, continually heating the alchemy cauldron.

All the disciples were divided into two circles, keeping a distance of nearly twenty meters from the medicine cauldron, surrounding it. After a while, the staff set up a concealment formation around the alchemy cauldron. This specific concealment formation was unusual; the people outside couldn't see the alchemy cauldron, but they could see the steaming hot vapor emanating from it. Apparently, if there were spiritual materials within the alchemy cauldron, the aroma of the refining spiritual materials would seep out and be smelled by the disciples.

At this time, Ding Fan had also stepped out and, like the other hundred or so disciples, stood more than ten meters away from the alchemy cauldron, gazing at it. Since Ding Fan had participated in the Great Alchemy Competition before, he speculated about the content of this first competition.

The disciples maintained a certain distance, surrounding the medicine cauldron, and Ding Fan knew that it was likely that the disciples would have to deduce the spiritual materials used within the medicine cauldron based on the scents emitted from it. However, this was just Ding Fan's speculation.

Very soon, Ding Fan's speculation was confirmed. An elder walked into the circle surrounded by the disciples, approached the vicinity of the alchemy cauldron, and, with a meaningful smile, spoke to the people:

"As you have seen with the alchemy cauldron, the subject of this first competition is related to the medicine pill. Therefore, this selection competition is not only to select outstanding disciples for future entrance into the perilous yet opportunity-filled Xuantian Secret Realm but is also a comprehensive test of your capabilities by the thirty-six caves."

The elder paused and then continued:

"The Xuantian Secret Realm is filled with countless precious spiritual materials. However, how to acquire the best, most valuable spiritual materials is your test and your opportunity. You must understand that the Xuantian Secret Realm contains many spiritual materials that have been lost in the Cultivation World, something I may not even recognize in its entirety."

"Therefore, this selection competition will only select cultivator disciples with the strongest skills in medicine pill and spiritual materials. This ensures the thirty-six caves gain the maximum benefit. As cultivators, medicine pills are the most common form of cultivation resources. While other cultivators may not require special skills in medicine pills, as a top disciple of the thirty-six caves, you must also be an alchemist!"

After the elder finished speaking, some disciples were already rejoicing while others were worried. After all, not just any cultivator can become an alchemist; it's much more challenging than cultivation itself. Even if you're a highly talented cultivator, you may still be nothing in alchemy.

Thus, those who excel in both cultivation and are alchemists are exceptionally rare and undoubtedly supreme talents. Although these disciples of the thirty-six caves are already extremely talented, none of them have a cultivation below the Emergence Stage.

But even among these disciples, only a small portion have any talent for Medicine Pills; if they are Alchemists, then there are even fewer.

At this moment, the Elder continued:

"In a moment, I will put some Spiritual Materials into the Alchemy Cauldron. I won't tell you the specifics of how much. This is a test for you all. Once I finish placing the Spiritual Materials, it will soon be time for you to hand in your answer sheets. You only have the time it takes for one incense stick to burn to observe. Do you understand?"

Upon hearing the Elder's words, many cultivators among the disciples were already feeling overwhelmed. Clearly, there was a Concealment Formation beside the Alchemy Cauldron, making it impossible to see what Spiritual Materials the Elder was putting in. They had to determine how many and which Spiritual Materials were present based on the scent wafting from the Alchemy Cauldron, which indeed was very challenging for many of these young individuals who were not Alchemists.

All the disciples couldn't help but respond gravely to the Elder:

"Understood."

"Understood."

...

The Elder looked at the group, whose expressions had become somewhat dull, and couldn't help but reveal a very playful smile. But when the Elder noticed the still calm Ding Fan, the smile on his face suddenly froze, not understanding why the other was so relaxed and nonchalant—was he confident?

Soon, the Elder felt relieved in his heart; after all, the other was the elder brother of the Lake Master, and even if he felt discontent towards him, he couldn't say anything.

The Elder then directly walked into the Formation near the Alchemy Cauldron, instantly disappearing before everyone's eyes. The Elder then took out some Spiritual Materials from his bosom, very quickly and stealthily placing them into the Alchemy Cauldron, knowing well that there was a Concealment Formation outside.

But he couldn't be sure if there were any disciples among them with exceptionally powerful Divine Sense who could see inside through the Concealment Formation.

Therefore, as the Elder put in the Spiritual Materials, not only were his techniques extremely swift, he also maximized his Divine Sense to conceal the Spiritual Materials in his hand, to prevent anything from leaking out.

At this moment, the disciples outside saw that the calm was gradually replaced by different colored mist, and each focused intently while racking their brains over what Spiritual Materials the Elder had put in. Of course, there were also quite a few disciples hoping to exploit their Divine Sense to penetrate that Concealment Formation.

However, despite the Concealment Formation being relatively simple, it was clearly a High Level Seven Stars Concealment Formation, and none of the disciples had Divine Sense capable of penetrating it; even if they did, they wouldn't see what Spiritual Materials the Elder had put in.

The Elder had another line of defense over there. It was evident to all these disciples hoping to cheat that it was truly impossible.

But for Ding Fan, wanting to use Divine Sense to see what Spiritual Materials the Elder had put in wasn't difficult at all. Not to mention the High Level Seven Stars Concealment Formation, even a Nine Stars Formation could be penetrated by Ding Fan's Divine Sense. Although it couldn't be viewed clearly, seeing a rough outline was no problem.

Therefore, regardless of that Seven Stars Concealment Formation or the Elder's additional line of defense, Ding Fan had no issue casting Divine Sense over to see. However, Ding Fan didn't do so. Clearly, this first trial was indeed very difficult for many disciples, but for Ding Fan, it was utterly ordinary.

It must be known that compared to the Great Alchemy Competition that Ding Fan participated in, this trial on Medicine Pills was much simpler. Therefore, relying on the scent emitted from the Alchemy Cauldron to determine what Spiritual Materials the Elder had put in was exceedingly easy for Ding Fan.

Moreover, Ding Fan believed that even for those who weren't Nine Grade Alchemists like him, this test wouldn't pose much difficulty. Even for Alchemists above Seventh Grade, it wasn't particularly challenging. After all, those who had reached Seventh Grade in alchemy had already mastered their familiarity with Spiritual Materials to an expert level. So skilled were they that even if presented with an unknown Medicine Pill, Alchemists above Seventh Grade could identify several of the contained Spiritual Materials simply from the pill's appearance.

Not long after, the Elder finished placing the Spiritual Materials. At this time, the scent emerging from the Alchemy Cauldron had become extremely complex. The Elder then walked light-footed out, careful not to disturb these competing disciples. Clearly, determining what Spiritual Materials were used wasn't an easy task.

The Elder subsequently lit an incense stick at the table in the center; when this stick finished burning, it was time for over a hundred cultivators to hand in their answer sheets.

At this moment, all the disciples had tense faces, simultaneously sniffing unceasingly at the scent wafting from the Alchemy Cauldron and gazing at the complex mist form gathered above it. Each cultivator's face was profoundly serious, brows furrowed—relying solely on smell to write down what Spiritual Materials the Elder placed into the Alchemy Cauldron was certainly not a simple task.

Having made a simple observation, Ding Fan immediately picked up a pen and began writing down one Spiritual Material after another on the answer sheet. Evidently, this competition was hardly challenging for Ding Fan, especially since the Elder used relatively common Spiritual Materials, unlike those extraordinarily rare and seldom seen in the Great Alchemy Competition, hence making it even easier for Ding Fan.

Within mere seconds, Ding Fan had written down all the names of the Spiritual Materials the Elder had placed.