With things on his mind, Zhao Li lost the desire to keep watching. To him, this kind of competition was like watching children play house; there was truly no fun in it.
After speaking, Zhao Li transmitted a message to everyone, inviting a few people from the various powers, and then stepped into the air and departed.
Seeing Zhao Li vanish, a few sharp-eyed individuals felt a stir in their hearts. They had seen Zhao Li step into the air and disappear, a technique only available to Dou Sect experts.
Their previous respect for Zhao Li was only because he was suspected of having Sixth Rank or higher Alchemy Technique, and they wanted to form a connection. A Sixth Rank Alchemist could still command respect from second-tier powers on the continent, let alone in this small Jia Ma Empire.
Zhao Li's unintentional display of this technique made them realize that he himself was also a powerful expert, and they became even more respectful towards him.
Seeing Zhao Li's sudden departure, although the crowd didn't know the reason, their minds became active.
The Dou Emperor experts on the field had different thoughts, but they tacitly swept their gazes towards the other few people, understanding in their hearts. They were equally astonished.
The competition naturally didn't stop because Zhao Li left. The final result was just as Zhao Li expected: Yun Xin'er crushed the numerous contestants with her Fourth-Grade Medicinal Pill and won the championship.
This naturally caused another stir among the audience.
After Zhao Li left, he naturally didn't know about these things.
He just felt that since he had the ability to make some changes, he should take root in the world, become a towering tree, and shield those upward-growing saplings from the wind and rain.
He reflected on the past two years of his journey and began to introspect.
"Success comes from preparation, failure from lack thereof. Yet, throughout this journey, I haven't thought about changing anything. I always thought about doing these things after becoming a strong expert, but I clearly am a strong expert now—at least in these remote small countries, I already have the strength to make changes."
Zhao Li lay back in the rocking chair, his fingers unconsciously tapping his thigh, his brows sometimes furrowed, sometimes relaxed...
After a long while, Zhao Li pressed his temples. The experiences of the past two years had made him more profound, but also added a touch of weariness.
"No wonder I show a face of someone in their twenties, yet rarely encounter others provoking me. Perhaps this weariness makes them all see me as an old monster."
Zhao Li shook his head. He found that he seemed to lack the constitution of a protagonist who is always sought out by trouble, and he wasn't looked down upon because of his age when interacting with seniors.
He had reached the Realm of Returning to Simplicity. Even a Dou Sheng might not be able to see through his strength, and he usually didn't show off. He naturally wouldn't think that all of this was due to his strength. He figured that the occasional aura he revealed was also one of the reasons people avoided him.
Looking at the sky, he figured there was still some time before the Alchemist Competition ended. Alchemy was a complicated process, although for him, Third-Grade and Fourth-Grade Pills could be casually concocted.
"It seems I'll have to stay in this Jia Ma Empire for a while longer."
So Zhao Li left his residence, preparing to find a place to open an Academy.
No matter what happened after he left, at least he could guarantee that during his time in Jia Ma Holy City, he would definitely be able to teach peacefully. In the future, accumulating little by little, gathering grains of sand to form a tower, would also be a change.
Zhao Li searched for a long time and finally found a relatively quiet place in a small village surrounding Jia Ma Holy City. He spent a lot of Gold Coins to buy it.
"As expected of the Imperial Capital. Even outside the fifth and sixth rings, land is still incredibly expensive. Since I'm doing it, I might as well go all out. Opening an Academy in every place I go to in the future, a chain across the entire continent, wouldn't be bad either."
The Academy hadn't even opened yet, but Zhao Li was already thinking about a chain across the entire continent. He also started to look forward to it.
Zhao Li spent some money. Not wanting to bother with two different things, he also had the people from the agency find some servants to redecorate the courtyard. Zhao Li looked at it and was quite satisfied.
"An immortal touches my head, ties my hair, and grants me longevity. This is my wish. Let the Academy be called 'Jade Capital'."
...
On the Alchemy Plaza, as numerous contestants gradually refined their Pills, a layer of medicinal fragrance also permeated the plaza. This invigorated the audience who had been watching for a long time. They knew that the final decisive stage had arrived.
Time passed, and the Medicine Cauldrons burning with Flame became fewer and fewer. As the Flame in the last Medicine Cauldron faded, it signified the end of this alchemy session and the time to reveal the results.
"There were seventeen contestants in this competition. Eleven successfully refined Third-Grade Pills, one failed. Two successfully refined Fourth-Grade Medicinal Pills, and three failed. After deliberation by the judges, it was unanimously decided that the Fourth-Grade Spirit Ascension Pill is superior. Congratulations to its refiner, Yun Xin'er, the champion is hers."
Susan announced the competition results. In this competition, a young man from the Jia Ma Empire, under pressure, successfully refined a Fourth-Grade Medicinal Pill, but he was slightly inferior. However, he lost wholeheartedly.
His participation in the competition was originally to test his learning results and motivate himself. Of course, it would be even better if he won the championship and achieved fame, but at least he was extremely satisfied with the harvest from this trip.
With their performance, the major powers would naturally approach them and try to recruit them.
Seeing Yun Xin'er preparing to leave, Susan's heart stirred, and she invited her to Zhao Li's banquet.
She hadn't forgotten that Zhao Li looked at this young woman with different eyes. Of course, even without Zhao Li, she wanted to absorb this outstanding young woman into the Alchemist Guild.
These things happened the next day. Zhao Li patrolled the courtyard he had bought. The preparations for opening the class were almost complete; they just needed students to start teaching.
When Susan found Zhao Li, he was chatting with the old residents next to the Academy. Seeing her approach, Zhao Li ended the conversation, "Old brother, a friend is visiting, let's chat again next time."
After Susan told Zhao Li about the situation of the Alchemist Competition, Zhao Li was not surprised by Yun Xin'er's victory. Instead, the little fellow who overperformed and refined a Fourth-Grade Medicinal Pill surprised Zhao Li slightly, and he sighed with emotion.
"Besides fame, the meaning of competition is mostly like this. They are all very good."
"Senior is right. Senior, you don't know, those old guys wanted to visit you a long time ago, but they didn't get a reply to their several invitations, and they were very anxious. Today, they heard about your invitation, and their faces are all beaming with smiles."
Susan agreed, and thinking of the expressions of those old fellows, she couldn't help but smile.
This couldn't be blamed on them. It was just that on this continent, the reverence for the strong had always been this way.
Zhao Li smiled. It wasn't that he wanted to put on airs and not see them; he just didn't want too much trouble. It was just right to take this opportunity to meet them all at once.
Seeing that the sky was darkening and it was almost time, Zhao Li took Susan and hurried to the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant.
Since Zhao Li was new here, he couldn't host guests at home like the major powers for a while, so he had to invite them to the best restaurant in Jia Ma Holy City.
Zhao Li raised his cup and drank it in one gulp.
"Zhao is new to this esteemed place. Please forgive me for such a simple reception."
Everyone smiled in accompaniment and also drank a cup.
Not to mention Zhao Li's strength, even the wine and dishes at the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant were among the best in the Jia Ma Empire. How could setting up a banquet here be considered disrespectful?
A dinner isn't just about the food; it's about the gathering, and that holds true even in a different world.
After a few drinks, everyone loosened up and started chatting, making the atmosphere lively.
Zhao Li talked with people from the major powers, gaining a better understanding of the current situation.
They all got acquainted and built some goodwill, without getting too entangled.
They weren't fools; naturally, they didn't think they had anything that would make Zhao Li want to stay.
Everyone present had weathered half a lifetime of storms, so the scene was quite spirited.
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