The Mighty Mage-Chapter 456: Talented

However, even after 3 hours, no one came out.

The audience felt bored.

Long Yifan clenched his fist and exited the VIP room.

He walked toward the area where Shen Yue was. As soon as he reached the lounge, he heard whispers.

After pausing for a while, Long Yifan raised his hand and knocked on the door.

The whispers instantly died down.

A moment passed.

Then the door creaked open just a little.

Shen Yue stood there, his face calm but his eyes nervous.

"Oh, Long Yifan," he said with a smile. "What brings you here?"

Long Yifan didn’t return the smile. He looked straight at Shen Yue.

"I heard voices," he said. "Who were you talking to?"

Shen Yue blinked. "Ah... no one. I was just talking to myself. You know, stress."

Long Yifan narrowed his eyes. He didn’t believe that.

He stepped closer. "Move."

Shen Yue’s smile faded. "I don’t think—"

"I said move."

Shen Yue froze, then slowly stepped aside.

Long Yifan pushed the door open and looked inside.

The room was empty.

But something felt off.

He walked in, looked around, and sniffed the air.

"...Sleeping powder," he muttered. "Faint, but still here."

Shen Yue tried to laugh. "Oh, I used some earlier to help calm my nerves. It’s not illegal."

Long Yifan turned to him, voice sharp. "Did you try to use this on Gu Jin?"

Shen Yue’s smile dropped completely.

"I didn’t do anything," he said quickly. "I swear!" ƒгeewёbnovel.com

Seeing the sincerity in his eyes, Long Yifan changed the question and asked,

"Did you see Gu Jin inside?"

Shen Yue shook his head. However, he unconsciously clenched his fist.

Long Yifan stared at Shen Yue’s face for a while and said,

"If she doesn’t come out safely, I’ll make sure you regret it."

"I don’t know anything!" Shen Yue shouted.

Long Yifan ignored him and turned to leave.

Suddenly, he paused,

"Shen Yue, if you know anything about Gu Jin, it would be best if you spit it out now. Don’t hold it back. Otherwise, the next time, you won’t be able to say anything."

Shen Yue’s back was covered with cold sweat. He dared not to breathe.

"No! No...I..."

Long Yifan turned around and stared into Shen Yue’s eyes, slowly asked,

"Do you know something?"

Shen Yue, who was about to say something, suddenly fell into a daze and said in a dull tone,

"My brother saw her. She was having an epiphany. Maybe she would stay there for the next 6 months or so."

Long Yifan relaxed. Looking at the dazed Shen Yue, he didn’t ask what Shen Yue meant by saying ’my brother’

He was only interested in Gu Jin’s matter.

Long Yifan didn’t waste a second.

He walked fast, his steps heavy, heading straight toward the judges’ room. The guards outside saw him coming but didn’t stop him. His face was too serious, and his presence too strong.

Inside, the judges were talking softly, still wondering why Gu Jin hadn’t come out.

When Long Yifan pushed the door open, they all turned to look.

One judge stood up. "Long Yifan? What is it?"

He spoke clearly,

"Gu Jin might be in the middle of an epiphany. That’s why she hasn’t come out."

The judges all froze.

"An epiphany?" the head judge repeated. "Are you sure?"

Long Yifan nodded.

"That’s what I was told. She’s fine, but she might be in deep meditation. It could last hours... maybe even days."

The judges looked at each other, unsure what to do.

One of them said, "If that’s true, we can’t force her to leave. That could ruin her progress."

Another nodded. "Epiphanies are rare and very important for alchemists. We must wait."

"But what about the rules?" another asked.

The head judge thought for a moment, then sighed.

"Let’s give her some more time. Two more hours. If she still doesn’t come out, we’ll decide what to do next."

Long Yifan nodded.

................................

Back outside, the crowd was still noisy.

People were getting tired and confused.

"Why is it taking so long?"

"Did something happen in there?"

"Did she fall asleep?"

"Don’t be stupid. Gu Jin’s not someone like that."

Mrs. Gu held her hands together, eyes closed as if praying.

Gu Jihu stood beside her, arms crossed but quiet.

Gu Jichun, for once, wasn’t jumping or talking.

Even the usually loud kids in the back of the audience had gone quiet.

Everyone was waiting.

.........................

Two hour passed.

Then—

The gate glowed.

Someone shouted, "Look! The light!!"

The glowing light at the gate became brighter and brighter, shining like the sun.

Wei Lin stepped out. His condition was pretty disheartening. He looked like a beggar.

The enthusiasm of the audience waned.

"Eh? Even Wei Lin is out. Why hasn’t Gu Jin come out yet?"

Wei Lin wobbled as he walked. His clothes were torn, his hair messy, and his face pale.

He looked like he had been through a storm.

A judge quickly stepped forward to help him.

Wei Lin weakly waved his hand. "I’m fine... Just tired."

Another judge asked, "Where is Gu Jin? Did you see her inside?"

Wei Lin slowly shook his head.

"No... I didn’t see anyone. I was too busy trying to finish my task. It was hard this time..."

He didn’t understand why the judges were asking about Gu Jin.

From what he had seen, Gu Jin should be first to come out.

The judge frowned. "You didn’t see her at all?"

"Ugh...that...I did see her. She had collected all the herbs by then." Wei Lin said.

"When did you see that?" The judge asked.

"Around 1 hour after the competition started."

The audience was shocked,

"So Gu Jin had already collected all the ingredients in just 1 hour?"

"From that logic, Gu Jin should have left the gates long ago!"

The judges frowned and turned toward Long Yifan,

"Are you representing as Gu Jin’s family?"

Before Long Yifan could answer, a stern voice sounded,

"No!"

The judges turned around and saw the entire Gu Family.

"We are representing Gu Jin." Mr. Gu said.

Long Yifan knew it was better to keep quiet.

The judges exchanged glances and said,

"There are still 12 hours left. We can wait for Miss Gu Jin to come out. After all, there is still a contestant left inside other than Gu Jin.

But from what Mr. Yifan had said, Miss Gu Jin is having an epiphany. If that is true, then her staying in the forest is not safe.

We can take her out, but if she hadn’t made any pill, her result may be put on hold, considering she wasn’t able to make a pill because of the epiphany.

If she has made a pill by now and is in epiphany, then the pill which she had made would be considered for evaluation based on which she would be ranked.

And if she doesn’t have any epiphany and is simply injured, because of which she wasn’t able to make any pill, the she would be disqualified."

The word epiphany stunned the crowd.

"What the f*ck she has epiphany?"

"Is she already at Earth Rank? How can she have another epiphany?"

"That is not the point! Epiphany is one of the rarest breakthroughs any alchemist can have!"

Even the Gu Family was stunned.

To think their daughter has an epiphany in the middle competition, it shows how intelligent she is!

The judge looked at the audience, who were chattering as if there was no tomorrow, and raised his hand,

"Please quiet down! We are making a important decision."

The crowd became quiet again. Everyone listened carefully to what the judge said.

Some people nodded; others looked unsure.

Mrs. Gu took a deep breath. "Gu Jin will not let us down," she whispered.

Mr. Gu stepped forward and said calmly, "We trust our daughter. She will not disappoint."

Gu Jihu stayed silent, but his eyes were firm. He believed in his sister.

Gu Jichun looked nervous. "Sister will come out soon... right?"

The judges discussed for a bit, then one of them said loudly,

"Very well. We will wait for the full twelve hours. If she doesn’t come out by then, we’ll send someone to check."

The crowd slowly calmed down.

Time passed.

The sun began to set.

A golden light painted the sky.

People started yawning and stretching. Some left to get food. Others stayed, afraid to miss anything.

The last contestant returned too, but because he didn’t make any pill, he was disqualified.

Once 12 hours were over, Long Yifan requested to enter the gate.

Gu Jihu frowned and said,

"I will go too."

Gu Jichun wanted to tag along, too, but Mrs. Gu held her back and said,

"Don’t go. God knows what type of danger lies there. Let your big brother and Long Yifan go inside."

Gu Jichun could only pout and nod.

Long Yifan and Gu Jihu walked inside the gate and started to look for Gu Jin.

The moment they found Gu Jin, their heart reached to their throat.