Long'er and Xiao Hu ferociously pounced towards the tribulation lightning.
Arcs of electricity flickered across their bodies.
The sizzling sounds, coupled with their bared teeth and grimaces, sent shivers down the spines of the distant onlookers.
Zi Linling was not idle either.
The tribulation lightning struck her, emitting a charred smell.
She gritted her teeth, enduring the pain as she met the tribulation lightning head-on.
"Boom!"
With the thud of a heavy object landing, Zi Linling, her face blackened, smashed a deep pit into the ground.
"Puff!"
She spat out a mouthful of blood, but before it could hit the ground, it was instantly evaporated by the tribulation lightning.
"Nine Extremes! Spirit Replenishment!"
The Nine Extremes Qiankun Cauldron, sensing Zi Linling's call from within Linxian City, appeared above her head in the blink of an eye.
The lid opened, revealing a pill radiating purple light suspended in the air.
The Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill!
The surrounding crowd let out gasps of shock.
They had originally thought that the pill Zi Linling had refined would be destroyed by the combined effects of the explosive spiritual energy and the spirit gathering array.
Yet, upon seeing the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill now, they realized that the pill had not been destroyed.
However, due to the previous surge of spiritual energy, the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill now bore faint cracks.
This meant that if this pill were to be compared with Lü Bingchang's, Zi Linling's chance of losing would be as high as sixty percent.
"What is she doing?"
"Doing this will ruin the pill!"
"What a waste of a precious treasure! That pill, despite its flaws, is still a bona fide quasi-Emperor grade pill!"
"It's over! If that pill is exposed to the heavenly tribulation, it will be pulverized!"
"..."
Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, Zi Linling's soul power surged forth, enveloping the pill.
"Heavens, her soul power is too terrifying!"
"Exactly! But isn't she being too overconfident, daring to expose her soul power to the heavenly tribulation!"
"Who's to say otherwise! The soul is the most vulnerable part of a cultivator. If it's struck by heavenly tribulation, there's no hope of survival!"
"..."
Not only the curious onlookers, but even Nian Youyu and Feng Mo looked perplexed.
"Boom!"
A bolt of tribulation lightning struck the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill. The pill trembled but did not shatter.
Zi Linling, however, spat out a mouthful of blood with a "puff," her face growing pale.
"This is..."
Feng Mo's gaze narrowed, then widened in shock as he exclaimed, "She's replenishing the pill's spirit!"
"Spirit replenishment?!"
Nian Youyu also appeared enlightened, "She is indeed replenishing its spirit!"
"Spirit replenishment? What does that mean?" a bystander asked, confused.
Feng Mo explained, "When some pills are formed, they may develop flaws due to insufficient spiritual energy, preventing perfect fusion and sealing of medicinal properties, thus rendering them hollow in grade but lacking in efficacy.
Spirit replenishment, then, is a highly aggressive method of secondary refining to bring such pills closer to perfection."
"It can be done like this?" the onlookers exclaimed in shock.
Feng Mo nodded and said, "The path of alchemy is vast and profound, with varied techniques. While pills can be replenished, the success rate is extremely low, less than one in a thousand."
"No way? That low? Then why is Alchemist Zi doing this?" a worshiper of Zi Linling asked.
"She's gambling!"
Nian Youyu said with concern, "Originally, the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill refined by young Zi would have definitely surpassed the one refined by Lü Bingcheng in grade.
But at the critical moment of pill formation, Lü Bingcheng despicablely detonated the spiritual energy in the arena, nearly destroying this pill.
And for Zi Linling to win against Lü Bingcheng, she must do this. If she succeeds, she will win; if she fails, she will be utterly defeated."
"Alchemist Feng, Alchemist Nian, since it's secondary refining, why isn't Alchemist Zi using her cauldron?" another onlooker inquired.
"Firstly, there isn't enough time. The agreed-upon three days are almost up.
Secondly, secondary refining is not easy and requires even more powerful energy than the initial refining. The tribulation lightning at this moment is undoubtedly the best choice."
While Feng Mo and Nian Youyu were imparting their knowledge, the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill had already endured three bolts of tribulation lightning.
Zi Linling had also coughed up three mouthfuls of blood, her face ashen, her breath weak.
Fortunately, her suffering was not in vain.
The cracks on the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill had completely vanished, and its purple hue had become even more lustrous.
"Success!"
Zi Linling rejoiced. "Since I've already gone this far, I might as well go even further!"
She staggered to her feet, wiped the blood from her lips, and shouted, "Long'er, Xiao Hu, help me!"
Long'er and Xiao Hu instantly enlarged their bodies and positioned themselves above Zi Linling's head.
Zi Linling formed hand seals and softly chanted, "Spirit Ascension!"
The seals landed outside the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill, forming a transparent shield.
A large amount of spiritual energy surged into the shield, or more accurately, flowed towards the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill.
"Boom!"
Another bolt of tribulation lightning struck the shield of the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill, and white arcs of electricity crisscrossed the shield.
A small portion of the arcs penetrated the shield and seeped into the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill, rapidly compressing the spiritual energy that was flowing into it.
"This is... Spirit Ascension!"
Feng Mo and Nian Youyu exchanged glances, their eyes filled with unconcealed shock.
Spirit Ascension was a technique to enhance the quality of a pill.
Generally, the quality of a pill was fixed at the moment of its successful refinement.
However, Spirit Ascension broke this convention, capable of elevating a pill's quality by one tier.
This meant that the current quasi-Emperor grade Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill, upon successful Spirit Ascension, could become a true Emperor grade pill.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Three consecutive bolts of tribulation lightning struck the Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill, making it more solid and its surface even more lustrous.
"It's successful! It's successful!"
Zi Linling exclaimed excitedly.
She formed hand seals again, and the Emperor grade Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill returned to her hand.
"Excellent!"
Zi Linling laughed with delight.
"Boom!"
Joy turned to sorrow. Zi Linling was once again struck to the ground, her hand still tightly gripping the Emperor grade Purple Sunflower Tribulation-Breaking Pill.
The dark clouds dispersed, and seven-colored divine light descended, bathing Zi Linling and rapidly healing her wounds.
Long'er and Xiao Hu, also exhausted, were within the range of the divine light.
"Quick! That's the light of Heavenly Dao's blessing!"
Someone in the crowd shouted, and the onlookers all sat down on the ground, attentively sensing the aura of the Heavenly Dao.
A moment later, the seven-colored divine light faded.
Zi Linling, Long'er, and Xiao Hu, who had been enveloped by the divine light, had also completely recovered.