The beakers, cauldron, mortar, and pestle had all been supplied. There was nothing special about them, they were all of excellent quality, but they weren't mine. I would have liked to use my cauldron, but I understood why it wouldn't be allowed. The difference in quality between tools would only help those that had money. This competition was about talent not backing. There was no other way to make sure the test was fair and equal among all contestants if we used our own equipment.

Although I would have liked to use my cauldron, it wouldn't make much of a difference. The cauldron supplied was almost of the same quality. Mine might have eliminated an additional small amount of the impurities, but nothing more.

There were no herbs, nothing that might hint at what we would need, just as we'd been informed. The only thing that could be found at our workstations, other than equipment, was a jade slip that contained the recipe for Soul Wandering pill (Rank 2).

Once we had each arrived at our assigned stations, there were changes to walls, the floor dropping so that what to this point had been made to look like an open courtyard, transformed into an arena. A stadium that allowed those interested in a place to sit and observe. Rows of seats created transforming the sterile laboratory environment that we were used to, to a more gladiator type coliseum.

Knowing that we were being closely observed was intimidating, but that might have been the purpose of transforming the illusion. Perhaps the judges were testing to see how we would react under pressure and having the eyes of a multitude of unknown people watching our every move, ramped up the pressure we were already under. Pressures from dealing with an unfamiliar formula, time, and limited resources.

Ten attempts. It was a daunting prospect having only ten chances to succeed, especially knowing that there were times that I needed hundreds of attempts to create a perfect tier pill. The only thing I could do was hope that I could form a pill, even a poor-quality pill full of impurities would be better than nothing.

"The jade slips located at your station include the formula, and steps required for creating the Soul Wandering Pill, with the one caveat already mentioned," one of the judges said, standing from his seat on a raised dais where a group of five men and women also sat. It seemed he was going to play announcer and make this more like a reality show event. A competition to entertain those watching.

"One of the ingredients is missing from the list. The only clue you will be offered is that the missing ingredient is a catalyst. There are three known catalysts that work for this pill, each one has been tested to be effective, one of them is the ideal ingredient.

"You will be awarded five points for selecting any of the three ingredients that might work, with those that select the optimal catalyst awarded seven. Not a large advantage, but you will find every point helps," he explained.

"The allocation attendants found on each end of the aisle will supply you with any ingredient you ask for, but if you have not chosen one of the three catalysts that will work within the first hour, you will be eliminated," he warned us.

"Secondly, the ingredients supplied are not all equal. They have been mixed together to test how sensitive you are to Spiritual Qi. It is up to you to decide if and how to divide the herbs, you requisition. Before you begin pill creation, judges will inspect how well you do in dividing the herbs into potency.

"Those that fail this task will be eliminated. Points will be awarded based on your selection. Five points are possible for each herb.

"We will monitor how you process your resources. Those that know an ingredient should be steeped in a suitable liquid will gain bonus points. It is up to you how you prepare the herbs you requisition; the formula only contains information on the amount you need to use for each attempt.

"The final step is pill formation itself. You have only ten attempts to create the Soul Wandering Pill. Every success will be judged, and the aggregate of the pill's potency will be used to assign your final point.

Stolen story; please report.

"Be warned, the person who creates the most pills will also receive a bonus, no matter their quality. It may be enough to determine a position in the rankings. Quantity does not guarantee a win. Someone who successfully creates one perfected-quality pill will receive more points than a person who has created ten poor-quality pills.

"For the duration of the competition, your Qi perception will be monitored. If you extend that perception beyond the confines of your workstation, you will be eliminated. If you attempt to speak or interfere with another contestant, you will be eliminated. And if you have not met certain milestones during the time allotted, you will be eliminated.

"Good luck," he finally said, "Time starts now."

There was none of the mad scramble you would expect from a timed event. Instead, the hundred or so people competing simply began extending their Qi into the jade slip Dragon Spire had provided. The formula the jade slip contained was very specific. Not only did it list the ingredients that were required, except for the catalyst, but it also explained how the weight to use of the processed ingredient, what potency the spirit herbs should contain, the temperature used at each stage, and how long to heat and temper each stage. The recipe even went so far as to provide visual and olfactory clues to look for during each of those stages.

The formula required white stractylodes, ginseng root, dang gui root, and shou wu root. White stractylodes and ginseng had similar properties, they were used to strengthen a person's Qi, helping refine a cultivator's stored Qi by increasing both density and potency. Dang gui root and shou wu root facilitated regulation and flow of Qu along meridian channels, while stractylodes and ginseng root aided the Cultivator in maintaining control of the increased density and power was stored energy was further refined.

The trick when creating a pill had to do with balance. An alchemist needed to be able to find a way to blend these herbal properties together effectively. The refinement of Qi and Dharmic control must also be balanced. This need for balance was another hint, pointing me in the direction of the missing ingredient. I needed to choose a catalyst that would compliment and balance the properties of the identified ingredients..

Without that balance, a Cultivator might introduce irregularities within their Dantian or Spirit Sea. They already had to consider the impurities that were certain to be found. Even a perfected-quality pill would have a measurable amount of impurities. The balance was vital, otherwise, those irregularities might not be noticeable until too late, after a breakthrough was attempted.

As I went over the listed ingredients again, I noticed that for three of the ingredients, the part of the herb that was used was the roots. That presented a problem and another clue. Roots were steeped in Yang energy, nurtured by the Yang of earth. The white stractylodes was the only Yin ingredient and could not provide enough Yin energy on its own.

I needed to select a catalyst that would balance not only the medicinal properties of each herb but the Yin and Yang of the pill. I could think of a dozen that would work to balance the characteristics of the pill I was looking for, but only two that contained enough Yin to offset the high concentration of Yang. If I wanted to create balance and harmony, I would have to decide between those two ingredients.

The announcer had mentioned that there were three catalysts that were suitable, but no matter how I searched my memories, I could only think of two. We had not been given reference books or jade slips for the competition, and those I might have in my spatial storage device could not be used.

But as Cultivators, our memories improved exponentially as we honed our body and organs. I couldn't browse the jade token I had, but my memory was powerful enough I could manifest Dharmic recreations for every alchemical book, formula, and technique I had studied. That ability should have been helpful, but no matter how carefully or frantically I flipped through tomes, the two catalysts I had immediately thought of were the only two I could find.

Either blue citrus peel or rhizome should work. I could think of no reason why either would fail, but I could only select one. I admit I took a hit to my confidence when I was unable to discover that third catalyst. I hoped that whatever it was, wasn't the catalyst that was the most effective.

Between blue citrus peel and rhizome, I finally decided on the blue citrus peel. Rhizome required the plant to create a large root system for successful growth and to support the stems that grew horizontally. The plant would work, but it contained almost as much Yang as Yin. Because it was already in balance, there was no point in selecting it. I would need to harvest only the stem sections, those areas that had much higher concentrations of Yin to create harmony. The blue citrus peel, on the other hand, was brimming with Yin, so much so that it should work as a temper for the Yang.

The real test would be to monitor how much I added of the blue citrus peel so that Yang was not overwhelmed.