Chapter 2122 — Changing the Rules of the Contest

"Oh? Then lead the way!" Wei Zhao said mildly, his face betraying not the slightest ripple.

"Yes..." The disciple nodded and led the way ahead with a respectful air, yet all the while his hand was secretly working his phone, sending a text to Old Master Zhao's side: Wei Zhao asked about the contents of the match. He is on his way to the council hall.

In the council hall, Old Master Zhao read the message, his face darkening. He handed the phone to Old Master You and said, "Your scheme from before is useless. Wei Zhao did not give up. He even asked what the contest would be—and the moment he heard it was alchemy, he came!"

"That strike from an early Heaven Rank expert failed to kill him. Truly uncanny!" Old Master You was beside himself with fury as he stared at the message. This alchemy contest—true, it had been prepared for the You family from the start, but now it seemed tailor-made for Wei Zhao!

Tier-two elixirs meant nothing in Wei Zhao's eyes. Apart from the Minor Qi-Gathering Pill, which he had pocketed, elixirs like the Foundation-Building Pill, the Minor Restoration Pill, and the Meridian-Unblocking Pill he had not even deigned to glance at. What did that mean? It meant Wei Zhao could likely refine such pills himself!

And the reason he had accepted the Minor Qi-Gathering Pill was probably that its ingredients were a bit more costly than the rest—so Wei Zhao wanted it—whereas the other ingredients were hardly precious, their value lying only in the tier of the finished elixir. If Wei Zhao could refine them himself, naturally he would not give them a second thought.

"Grandfather, what are we to do? I can only manage a tier-one elixir right now, and not even with a hundred percent success rate. If Wei Zhao simply walks in and refines a tier-two elixir on the spot, am I not doomed to lose?" said You Panhu. "Still, losing would be one thing. By the rules of the contest, whoever refines the higher-tier elixir wins, so at least I would take second place. But the crux of the matter is—Wei Zhao would have another first place!"

As if Old Master You wanted Wei Zhao to take another first place! The You family was a clan renowned for alchemy. To let an outsider seize the alchemy championship would be a slap in the face—a bare, naked slap—bringing shame not only upon the You family but upon their masters, the Mystic Elixir Sect!

That face could absolutely not be lost. In this match, Wei Zhao must absolutely not be allowed to win again!

"Indeed. We must find a way to keep Wei Zhao from taking first place!" said Old Master You. "Panhu, in other matches, it hardly matters where we bury the You family's ranking, because the Mystic Elixir Sect does not care. But if we are humiliated in an alchemy contest, the Mystic Elixir Sect will certainly be displeased!"

"Yes..." You Panhu nodded. "That Wei Zhao is truly detestable!"

"Old Master You, I happen to have a fine idea!" Old Master Tang spoke up at this moment.

"Oh? What fine idea? Do tell, Old Master Tang!" Old Master You asked hurriedly.

"Change the rules of the contest!" said Old Master Tang. "If we alter the rules—say, whoever refines a tier-three elixir in the shortest time within the allotted limit is the victor, and so on by the same logic..."

"A tier-three elixir? How could that be possible? Even I could not hope to refine one successfully!" Old Master You was stunned.

"It is precisely because it cannot be refined successfully that it serves as a rule!" Old Master Tang smiled faintly. "Old Master You, tell me—do you want Wei Zhao to win, or do you want no one to win?"

"Of course!" Old Master You's mind cleared all at once. "Though we change the rules to require a tier-three elixir, and thus the You family cannot win this match either, Wei Zhao absolutely cannot win it either. When everyone loses, there is no question of face at all!"

"Grandfather, that is indeed a fine idea—though a bit of a pity!" You Panhu sighed. Originally, he had hoped to show off a little in this alchemy contest, but upon learning that Wei Zhao was also competing, that notion had died.

"It is no pity. This is the only way. If we let Wei Zhao win another round, I shall die of rage!" Old Master You struck the table. "Good—let it be done by this rule!"

So it was that Old Master You changed the contest rules on the spot, while Wei Zhao and the others arrived at the council hall.

Han Tianba registered Wei Zhao's name and stake, then sat to one side, quietly waiting for Old Master Zhao to announce the rules of the contest.

Yet whether it was Han Tianba or Han Xiaohu, both were filled with unprecedented confidence in this match—for they had long known that Wei Zhao was an alchemist, that alchemy was Wei Zhao's forte. The odds of taking the championship once again were therefore still very high!

Only, for all that Wei Zhao's face showed no ripple, bitterness filled his heart. He, an alchemist? Alchemist his foot! It would be more like it to have Han Jingyi compete in his place! But Wei Zhao was not yet willing to reveal Han Jingyi, his hidden card, before the crowd—the tallest tree catches the wind. Han Jingyi was not Wei Zhao; Wei Zhao had a few hidden cards and means of self-preservation, but Han Jingyi had none!

If the You family or the Mystic Elixir Sect sensed the danger and sent men to do away with Han Jingyi, Wei Zhao would weep too late for regret. So there was no need at all for him to bring Han Jingyi out for such a paltry stake!

Even if Han Jingyi were to appear, it would have to be for some heaven-defying reward before Wei Zhao would so much as consider it. For a trifling affair like this, Wei Zhao did not harbor the slightest such thought.

The reason Wei Zhao had come here at all was simply to exert a kind of pressure upon the old masters of the hidden Zhao family, the hidden You family, and the other great clans—to tell them that an early Heaven Rank strike had failed to do anything to him, that he was still alive and well and hopping about; so let all their plots against him take a rest for now!

Sure enough, when these people saw Wei Zhao arrive for the contest with his usual calm expression, they were all rather startled. After all, the disciples of the Golden Bell Sect from before were still bedridden with their injuries; the Fire Wolf Gang's disciple was dead; and the You family's disciple had vanished no one knew where.

"You Panhu, how do you do? This time, why not have your You family swap the stake for a tier-two cauldron? I saw the thing—it looked rather nice. How about losing one more to me?" Wei Zhao called out with a smile when he spotted You Panhu.

"Damn it, do you think a tier-two cauldron is a street-stall trinket? In this contest, putting up a tier-one cauldron as a stake is already no small feat, and you want tier-two? Do you think my family runs a cauldron factory?" Hearing Wei Zhao speak as though victory were already assured, You Panhu was instantly furious.

"So stingy." Wei Zhao shrugged.

"You—I'm stingy?" You Panhu was so enraged his blood boiled. Am I the stingy one, or are you? You cobbled together a worthless bit of information, swindled two cauldrons out of me, and you call me stingy?