Chapter 107 Perfect Score

"Father, I think this boy is just spurning your kindness and wasting this spot," Li Zongrui said from behind Li Qingfeng, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Li Qingfeng waved his hand in dissatisfaction, wondering,

What does Ye Qingchen really mean? Could it be that he’s still unhappy with the Sect because of the earlier incident and is using this method to vent his feelings?

But then he shook his head.

Based on my understanding of him, Ye Qingchen is definitely not one to act so rashly. Besides, the fact that he was recognized by a Divine Level Cultivation Technique is extremely important for the Qingyun Sect.

He had already secretly resolved that no matter how Ye Qingchen performed, he would find a reason to secure him a spot as an Inner Sect Disciple.

With the clang of the gong, the first round of the competition officially ended. The elders left the judges’ seats and began to individually evaluate the participating disciples. The disciples themselves were a mix of joy and sorrow. Those who had identified many items beamed with happiness, while those with poor results sighed in lament.

Elder Liu Qin was the first to approach Ye Qingchen. He paid his respects to her, but she simply snorted disdainfully. She took the storage ring and the paper with Ye Qingchen’s answers from the table and began comparing it with the prepared answer key.

Li Qingfeng’s gaze followed Elder Liu Qin’s every move. He watched as her initially contemptuous expression turned to surprise, and then to utter shock. Finally, Elder Liu Qin stood with her mouth agape, completely forgetting to maintain her dignified image as an Elder.

Li Zongrui snorted coldly and began to mutter, "Father, look at this kid. He must have scribbled nonsense. Look how angry he’s made Elder Liu Qin."

Li Qingfeng shook his head, because at that moment, Elder Liu Qin’s expression didn’t seem angry, but rather shocked. He stood up and walked toward Elder Liu Qin.

Ye Qingchen’s expression remained placid, as he was highly confident in his answers. Although he noticed that Elder Liu Qin seemed to have a poor opinion of him, he didn’t believe she would dare to play any underhanded tricks under the watchful eyes of the entire crowd.

"Elder Liu Qin, what are the results?" Li Qingfeng asked as he walked up to her and took the answer sheet.

Elder Liu Qin recovered from her shock. Although she was reluctant to admit it, Ye Qingchen’s answers were indeed flawless. Out of the five hundred herbs in the storage ring, Ye Qingchen had successfully identified every single one. What was most frightening was that Ye Qingchen had identified so many herbs in less than an hour. If he had been given the same amount of time as the others, just how many herbs could he have identified in an hour and a half?

Although Elder Liu Qin had her grievances with Ye Qingchen, she was a person of integrity. She answered, "A total of five hundred identified. All correct!"

"What? That’s impossible! He was clearly scribbling nonsense, Elder Liu. You must have made a mistake," Li Zongrui, who had just walked over, exclaimed in surprise at the result.

Elder Liu Qin gave a wry smile and left without another word, moving on to evaluate the other competing disciples.

Li Qingfeng was also incredulous. Although he knew Ye Qingchen possessed Alchemic Talent, he never expected him to be able to identify all the herbs in such a short amount of time.

"Ye Qingchen, you’ve done very well," Li Qingfeng said meaningfully as he patted the young man’s shoulder.

Ye Qingchen merely smiled lightly and said nothing more.

There were many disciples competing this time. After several elders tirelessly compared the results, the scores of the top fifty from the first round were finally delivered to Li Qingfeng an hour later. Li Qingfeng looked at the list before him, then swept his gaze over the disciples on the high platform before he began to announce the results of the first round.

"Fiftieth place, Liu Sandao, with a score of two hundred and ten!"

"Forty-ninth place, Ma Yi, with a score of two hundred and twenty-three!"

As Li Qingfeng’s resonant voice announced the names, the disciples who were called out began to cheer and jump for joy. Meanwhile, those whose names had not been called watched Li Qingfeng with tense expressions, fearful they might miss their own name. Although most of them had a rough idea of their scores, they still harbored a sliver of desperate hope.

"Fifth place, Zhao Tiezhu, with a score of three hundred and six!"

"Fourth place, Wang Peng, with a score of three hundred and ninety!"

"Third place, Wang Cong, with a score of three hundred and ninety-eight!"

Finally, the top five scores were announced, and everyone was stunned by the results. To be able to identify over three hundred herbs within an hour and a half was more impressive than some First-Grade Alchemists, yet it had happened here at the Pre-Alchemist Conference. After their initial shock, the crowd couldn’t help but speculate.

Who will be the first-place winner of this round? And how terrifying will their score be?

"Xiao Xiao, I still haven’t heard Ye Qingchen’s name. Could the Sect Master have forgotten to read it?" Ye Ying said anxiously. After all, Ye Qingchen had only started the competition right before it ended. Making it into the top fifty was already a stroke of incredible fortune; Ye Ying never dared to imagine that Ye Qingchen could actually win the first round.

"Sister Ye Ying, don’t worry! The Young Master is definitely the champion, so his name will be announced last," Xiao Xiao grinned confidently. Ye Ying could only sigh and continue to watch Li Qingfeng nervously.

"Second place, Liu Ming, with a score of four hundred sixty-three!"

With the second-place score announced, the audience erupted. Liu Ming was a favorite to win the championship, and his score of over four hundred sixty herbs clearly demonstrated his strength.

But who could it be that surpassed Liu Ming to seize the championship?

Li Qingfeng deliberately paused, sweeping his gaze across the audience before he continued his announcement.

"The champion of the first round is... Ye Qingchen, with a score of five hundred!"

"Five hundred? A perfect score? How is that possible?"

"Who is Ye Qingchen? Why have I never heard of such a person among the Pre-Alchemists?"

Cries of shock echoed one after another through the crowd.

"It’s the Young Master! It’s the Young Master! Sister Ye Ying, see? I told you the Young Master would win the championship!" Xiao Xiao exclaimed, joyfully leaping into Ye Ying’s arms. Although she had always been full of confidence in Ye Qingchen, a part of her had still been deeply worried.

After Li Qingfeng finished the announcement, other disciples came onto the stage and began clearing away the tables in preparation for the second round of the competition. The top fifty disciples gathered before Li Qingfeng, waiting for him to announce the rules of the next round.

Ye Qingchen noticed that as he stood among these fifty people, many unfriendly glares were sent his way. It was as if they were looking at an anomaly.