Chapter 28

Zhuang Yi and his group suddenly entered the First-Class Refinement Room with a fierce momentum, instantly causing the atmosphere to become agitated. A series of surprised gazes were cast their way.

Yan Lingqing also noticed their arrival, her face immediately turning stern as she coldly rebuked, "Vice President Zhuang Yi, are your people so unruly?"

Zhuang Yi wore a smile and said, "Vice President Yan, there's no need to be angry. I came here to discuss the previous matter. Since the First-Class Refinement Room has been under your management, the production of Spirit Water and Odd Light has decreased, and there have even been many substandard products. This has seriously affected the performance of our Xiyang House."

He had a worried look on his face.

Yan Lingqing replied coldly, "You know very well the reason for the decrease in production, don't you? If you hadn't restricted the materials, how could this have happened?"

Zhuang Yi frowned and said, "Vice President Yan, you're just making baseless accusations. Materials are inherently scarce; how could I just produce them out of thin air?"

"I think that although Vice President Yan comes from the Holy Profound Star Academy, you are still inexperienced. Some of your ideas may not align with those of our Xiyang House's First-Class Refinement Masters. If you were to guide them, it might hinder their progress."

Inside the First-Class Refinement Room, no one dared to interject. Everyone could see that this was a conflict between the two vice presidents, and they had no need to get involved and become cannon fodder.

Zhuang Yi stared at Yan Lingqing and said, "Vice President Yan, as Refinement Masters, we must judge everything by results. You have been in charge of the First-Class Refinement Room for some time, but the results have not been significant. The First-Class Spirit Water and Odd Light you have guided the First-Class Refinement Masters to refine has a maximum refinement power of only just over fifty percent. In contrast, my disciple Shi Yun can steadily refine Spirit Water with a refinement power of fifty-six percent."

"You should know that in the past, the average level of the First-Class Spirit Water and Odd Light produced by our Xiyang House was only fifty-three percent. If Vice President Yan truly has the best interests of Xiyang House at heart, I suggest you hand over the First-Class Refinement Room. Otherwise, the First-Class Spirit Water and Odd Light produced by Xiyang House will lose its market in the Tian Shu Prefecture."

Zhuang Yi looked at some of the other high-ranking officials of Xiyang House who had come with him and asked, "Do you think my words are reasonable?"

The high-ranking officials looked thoughtful. Although they did not want to get involved in the conflict, they had to admit that Zhuang Yi's words made sense. In Xiyang House, everything depended on results.

The fact that Zhuang Yi's disciple could steadily refine Spirit Water with a refinement power of fifty-six percent was a clear indication of his excellence.

Thus, one of the high-ranking officials hesitated and said, "Vice President Yan, why don't you hand over the First-Class Refinement Room to Shi Yun? This way, you can focus on guiding the Second-Class Refinement Room, which is also one of our key products."

Yan Lingqing's face was expressionless. If she gave in now, it would mean that she had lost the battle with Zhuang Yi, setting a precedent that would put her at a disadvantage in the future.

However, if she refused to back down, Zhuang Yi's aggressive stance and seemingly justifiable reasons would also have an impact on her.

Thus, she found herself in a difficult position.

Zhuang Yi, seeing the struggle in Yan Lingqing's eyes, couldn't help but smile. No matter how talented a student of the Holy Profound Star Academy she was, she was still just a young bird.

Buzz!

Just as the pressure on Yan Lingqing was mounting, a blue light suddenly burst forth in the nearly frozen atmosphere of the First-Class Refinement Room.

The sudden change left everyone stunned. They followed the light and saw Li Luo, holding a bottle of emerald-green liquid, with a look of joy on his face.

His first bottle of Spirit Water and Odd Light had been successfully refined in this tense situation.

After refining the bottle of "Emerald Spirit Water," Li Luo casually picked up the nearby refinement needle and inserted it into the bottle.

He watched as the needle began to climb rapidly.

A few moments later, the needle stopped at the sixty percent mark.

Wow!

The nearby First-Class Refinement Masters clearly saw this and couldn't help but burst into exclamations of shock.

One by one, they rushed over, exclaiming, "Sixty percent refinement power?! The bottle of 'Emerald Spirit Water' refined by the Young Master actually reached sixty percent refinement power?!"

"How is that possible?!"

Inside the First-Class Refinement Room, those who heard the exclamations were immediately filled with disbelief. They ignored the conflict between Yan Lingqing and Zhuang Yi and swarmed towards Li Luo.

When they saw the needle on the refinement meter, they were momentarily speechless, their eyes filled with awe as they looked at Li Luo, who was smiling.

They knew that Li Luo had only been learning the art of refinement for about two weeks. In such a short time, not only had he successfully refined First-Class Spirit Water and Odd Light, but the refinement power of the Spirit Water was incredibly high!

What kind of talent was this?

"Move aside."

Yan Lingqing's voice rang out from outside the crowd, and the people quickly parted. She quickly walked in, her beautiful eyes fixed on the bottle of emerald-green Spirit Water in Li Luo's hand.

"Let me see it," she said to Li Luo.

Li Luo handed it over as requested. Yan Lingqing took it and quickly poured out a drop of the emerald-green Spirit Water, sensing it slightly. Her face showed a hint of surprise: "What pure Emerald Spirit Water, indeed capable of reaching sixty percent refinement power."

She stared intently at Li Luo, her eyes burning. She hadn't really noticed before, but Li Luo seemed to have a remarkable talent for the art of refinement.

After all, this was his first attempt.

She remembered that when she first became a First-Class Refinement Master, the products she refined only reached about fifty-seven to fifty-eight percent, which was considered quite good.

Yan Lingqing seemed to suddenly think of something, and a smile appeared on her usually cold face. She grabbed the bottle of Emerald Spirit Water, turned around, and looked at Zhuang Yi, who was also staring in shock, and said, "Vice President Zhuang Yi, it seems I don't need to hand over the First-Class Refinement Room for now."

Zhuang Yi's face was a mix of emotions as he stared at the bottle of Spirit Water and Odd Light. He had heard the exclamations earlier. Li Luo had refined Emerald Spirit Water with a sixty percent refinement power?

Even if he and Yan Lingqing, both Fourth-Class Refinement Masters, were to refine First-Class Emerald Spirit Water, they could barely reach sixty-five percent refinement power. However, Zhuang Yi hadn't refined First-Class Spirit Water and Odd Light for many years, as it was a waste of time and had a very low cost-to-benefit ratio. After all, a bottle of First-Class Spirit Water and Odd Light was worth only a few dozen Tianliang gold.

This was the first time he had heard of someone reaching sixty percent refinement power on their first attempt. His disciple Shi Yun had practiced for a whole year to barely reach fifty-six percent.

Compared to Li Luo, it was like the difference between heaven and earth.

Zhuang Yi's lips twitched, and he said stiffly, "Vice President Yan, did you do something to it? The Young Master has only been in contact with the art of refinement for less than half a month."

Yan Lingqing gave him a cold look and said, "Many people saw the Young Master refine it. Your excuse is too weak. Do you want the Young Master to perform it again for you?"

Many people around nodded; they had indeed seen the bottle of Spirit Water and Odd Light being refined.

Zhuang Yi's expression became even stiffer. Finally, he forced a laugh and said, "No, no."

Although he didn't place much importance on Li Luo, Li Luo was nominally the Young Master, and in front of so many people, he didn't dare to show any disrespect.

"Vice President Zhuang Yi, if the person who refines the First-Class Spirit Water and Odd Light with the highest refinement power can become the head of the First-Class Refinement Room, can I also be considered?" Li Luo added with a smile.

Zhuang Yi laughed awkwardly and said, "That depends on Vice President Yan's decision."

Zhuang Yi realized that his challenge had failed, so he awkwardly added a few more words and then turned to leave, his face dark.

The atmosphere in the First-Class Refinement Room immediately relaxed, and congratulations began to pour in. The gazes directed at Li Luo were filled with envy and admiration.

Li Luo smiled and responded to the congratulations. Then, Yan Lingqing sent everyone back to continue their practice and looked at Li Luo with interest, saying, "I didn't expect that you could refine Spirit Water with such a high refinement power on your first try. It seems you have a real talent for being a Refinement Master."

At the Holy Profound Star Academy, Yan Lingqing had seen many refinement geniuses, and while some could reach this level on their first try, she hadn't expected that Li Luo, with his Fifth-Class Water Phase, could achieve this. This indicated that Li Luo had a unique sensitivity in the blending and harmonizing of various materials, a special talent that Yan Lingqing had seen in the Refinement Academy of the Holy Profound Star Academy.

"Maybe it was just good luck," Li Luo said modestly. If he knew what Yan Lingqing was thinking, he might have felt a bit awkward, because he didn't have that so-called talent. His first attempt reaching sixty percent refinement power was simply due to the unique refinement properties of his "Water Light Phase," as he had discovered that even with his constant estimation, he had underestimated the refinement power when the Water Phase and Light Phase were perfectly combined.

Yan Lingqing ignored his modesty and said, "Thanks to you this time, but I'm too lazy to say thank you, after all, Xiyang House is also making money for you."

Then she paused, and a smile appeared on her usually cold face.

"But since I'm in a good mood, I can treat you to a meal later."

Li Luo originally wanted to say that he actually wanted to go home to practice his phase techniques, but thinking of Yan Lingqing's usual strictness, his survival instinct ultimately made him show a happy expression.

(Note: There was a mistake earlier. The other vice president should be called Zhuang Yi. The name Bei Yu was the initial name, which was later changed because it sounded unpleasant. I have already made the corrections, which do not affect the reading experience.)