Zi Lingling emptied her mind, focusing her energy on her nose.
She observed her nostrils twitching slightly as she differentiated the medicinal aromas emanating from the poison cauldron by their intensity.
Weaker scents indicated a smaller proportion, while stronger scents meant a larger one.
Through this process of comparing proportions, she could roughly deduce what poison Zhao Yunfei was refining.
Poisonous Scale Claws, 10%!
Ghost Thorns, 10%!
Nether Serpent Venom, 20%!
...
Zi Lingling analyzed as she rapidly processed information in her mind, performing precise calculations.
Soon, a smile curved her lips, and she silently thought, "Sorrow of the Night!"
"Zhao Yunfei, you are truly ruthless, starting with Sorrow of the Night, one of the Ten Great Poisons!"
"One of the Ten Great Poisons! That's a deadly venom second only to the Nine Great Ancient Poisons!"
"A pity. For anyone else, it would be a dead end. But who told you to cross paths with me?"
"If Sorrow of the Night encounters Night Grass, can it truly remain without sorrow?"
Zi Lingling understood and had already quietly prepared the medicinal ingredients.
Although she had calculated that Zhao Yunfei was refining Sorrow of the Night, she couldn't refine the antidote yet.
In a poison duel, the antidote could only be refined after consuming the poison created by the opponent.
As seconds ticked by, Zhao Yunfei's Sorrow of the Night was finally ready.
He sinisterly handed the Sorrow of the Night to Zi Lingling and said, "This is Sorrow of the Night. After you consume it, you will have only a quarter of an hour to refine the antidote. Exceed that time, and your internal organs will begin to rot."
"Sorrow of the Night?! The Guild Master is ruthless, using one of the Ten Great Poisons right off the bat!"
"That young lady is in danger. The antidote for Sorrow of the Night is extremely troublesome to refine. Even without a single mistake, a quarter of an hour is not enough time!"
"What a shame for such a beauty! The Guild Master showed no mercy; this beauty will soon become a withered skeleton!"
"You can't blame the Guild Master for this! If it were me, I would do the same. Who told that girl to challenge the Guild Master at such a young age?"
"Exactly! If the Guild Master loses, he won't just lose his position, but also his and the Royal Poison Master's dignity!"
"Alas! Regardless, it's too much of a pity for such a beauty to die!"
"..."
The onlookers, who were poison masters, chattered amongst themselves, with many siding with Zhao Yunfei.
Of course, some were forced to bow their heads under the circumstances, while others sought to curry favor with Zhao Yunfei.
Zi Lingling accepted the Sorrow of the Night and, without even looking, consumed it, sneering, "Your move is ruthless, but it's not enough!"
As she spoke, with a flick of her mind, the Nine Extremes Qiankun Cauldron landed heavily on the stage.
"A quarter of an hour is too long. Half a quarter of an hour will suffice!"
Her confident demeanor drew more than a few sarcastic remarks from the onlookers.
Comments like "arrogant," "overestimating herself," and "ignorant of heaven and earth" were rampant.
Of course, there were also some who spoke in Zi Lingling's defense, including the scholar Rong Guang.
However, their voices were quickly drowned out by a wave of accusations and curses before they could gain any traction.
Zi Lingling ignored them and calmly took out some medicinal ingredients, including the Night Grass, and tossed them into the Nine Extremes Qiankun Cauldron.
She had lost count of how many times she had used Night Grass as a catalyst to refine the super-potent universal antidote, so it was a familiar process.
However, she didn't intend to refine the universal antidote this time; she only needed to create an antidote specific to the properties of Sorrow of the Night.
Indeed, in less than half a quarter of an hour, the antidote was refined by Zi Lingling.
She casually tossed it into her mouth and crunched down on it.
Of course, this was merely for show.
As for the Sorrow of the Night, the moment it entered her body, it had been enveloped by the Phoenix True Fire of the Phoenix Robe, being used to temper her Ten Thousand Poisons Body.
To verify the antidote's efficacy, everyone waited for another half a quarter of an hour.
Zi Lingling was quite content with the wait, as half a quarter of an hour was enough time for her to use Sorrow of the Night to temper her Ten Thousand Poisons Body once more.
After half a quarter of an hour, Zi Lingling showed no adverse effects.
This meant that the poison in Zi Lingling's body had been neutralized.
What a slap in the face!
Those who had just accused and cursed Zi Lingling were instantly silenced.
Zi Lingling, too indifferent to bother with them, turned to Zhao Yunfei and sneered, "Since Sorrow of the Night has been dealt with, it's time for me to set the challenge, isn't it?"
"Hmph! The next round will certainly be a more tragic end for you! Set your challenge!"
Zhao Yunfei spoke casually, but inwardly he was lamenting the missed opportunity.
He was extremely curious as to how Zi Lingling managed to refine her antidote in just half a quarter of an hour.
If he knew that Zi Lingling was simply a master of her craft, would he have coughed up blood in frustration?
Of course, Zi Lingling didn't care whether he was curious or not.
Now, it was her turn to set the challenge, and why would she let Zhao Yunfei off easy?
What poison should she concoct?
Zi Lingling pondered in her mind.
Originally, her best plan was to refine "A Smile of Ephemeral Beauty," but she had already used that. If Zhao Yunfei shamelessly accused her of cheating, it would be difficult to explain.
"Forget it, I'll be generous and let him taste the ancient poison 'Spring Intent'! " Zi Lingling decided and began collecting medicinal ingredients in the Goddess Hall.
Spring Intent, ranked sixth among the Nine Great Ancient Poisons, exhibited the most prominent symptom of extreme cold after poisoning.
This cold was more intense than the cold of the underworld, capable of freezing the very soul of the victim.
Therefore, the ingredients for refining Spring Intent were all ice-element and ghost-element herbs.
As for the refining method, Zi Lingling had already mastered it the moment she activated the "Poison Chapter" of the "Human Emperor's Pharmacopoeia."
Two quarters of an hour later, a pale white pill appeared on Zi Lingling's fingertip.
She held it out to Zhao Yunfei and said, "Poison's Name: Spring Intent! You have one hour to refine the antidote!"
"Spring Intent?"
Zhao Yunfei exclaimed, "The ancient poison Spring Intent?"
Zi Lingling sneered, "You still have some knowledge! What, are you afraid to accept? If you're afraid, you can concede!"
Her words struck the listening poison masters like thunder.
"Am I seeing things? I actually see Spring Intent, ranked sixth among the ancient poisons?"
"No way! Haven't the refining methods for ancient poisons been lost to time? How could a young girl of thirteen or fourteen possibly refine it?"
"It must be a bluff, right? Ancient poisons aren't that easy to refine!"
"Legend has it that the ancient poison Spring Intent is incredibly cold, capable of freezing everything! Look at the chilling aura emanating from it; it's chilling to the bone. If it's not the ancient poison Spring Intent, then what else could it be?"