Chapter 2533: One Point

The paste-like substance was pitch-black, clearly containing many impurities.

Compared to the Dragon Bone Grass refined by Gu Mao, its quality was obviously far inferior at first glance.

But still, it had been refined after all!

Ye Yuan shook his head slightly, frowning and muttering to himself, "Is this what affinity is? Truly difficult!"

During the refining process, he felt as if he and the Dragon Bone Grass belonged to two different worlds.

This was the first time in his life he had encountered such a refining experience.

The products of the Rule World were indeed extraordinary!

Tai Ming Yu Wan Tian was a pure world, a world entirely on a different level from the Lesser Thousand Worlds.

As clear as black and white!

While refining the Dragon Bone Grass, he distinctly felt a force of repulsion.

Ye Yuan had been pondering this repulsive force and had completely failed to notice the expressions of the other two.

Gu Mao and Tang Yu wore identical expressions—eyes wide, mouths agape, almost large enough to fit a fist.

Clearly, their shock was immense.

"Hmm? Why are you looking at me like that? I told you, his fire control skills are nothing but superficial." Ye Yuan finally came to his senses and said calmly, looking at their expressions.

"You... have you refined Dragon Bone Grass before?" Gu Mao asked in astonishment.

Ye Yuan shook his head. "No, this is my first time refining a heavenly herb."

"Impossible! As a ascender, you succeeded in refining a heavenly herb on your first try? Do you take me for a fool?" Gu Mao jumped up and cursed.

Ye Yuan looked at him as if he were an idiot. "You call this success? Do all heavenly alchemists have such low standards? Well, your skill is mediocre anyway; I doubt the quality of your pills is any good."

Gu Mao nearly spat blood. This critique was unbeatable!

Being so despised by an ascender who had turned Dragon Bone Grass into a black paste, Gu Mao's spirit was crushed.

Yet, he couldn't refute it!

With an affinity of less than three points, Ye Yuan had still managed to refine Dragon Bone Grass successfully, showing how solid his foundation was!

It could be said that, aside from affinity, Ye Yuan's alchemy skills completely surpassed his!

Gu Mao bristled and snorted coldly, "Kid, don't get cocky! Without affinity, even with heaven-defying talent, you can never refine a true heavenly pill! Affinity is a chasm, one you can never cross!"

Ye Yuan ignored him and asked Tang Yu, "What exactly is affinity?"

Tang Yu shook his head vigorously to snap out of his shock. "Heavenly herbs are born from heaven and earth; they are innate objects. Humans are the most intelligent of all creatures, but they are acquired. Native celestial powerhouses are born as celestial beings; though also acquired, they are closer to the innate than ascenders. Thus, heavenly herbs have a stronger affinity for us. Ascenders, who ascend from lower realms and cultivate step by step to attain the Dao, are the most acquired of the acquired."

"Moreover... the lower your starting point, the less innate spiritual essence you were born with, and the weaker your affinity. Judging from the fluctuations earlier, Brother, your affinity for heavenly herbs is probably... less than three points!"

By the end, Tang Yu also felt deeply regretful.

With talent as heaven-defying as Ye Yuan's, if his affinity were sufficient, he would undoubtedly be an immensely powerful heavenly alchemist.

Unfortunately, as Gu Mao said, affinity was a chasm that barred all heavenly alchemists.

And Ye Yuan was especially so!

Ye Yuan, however, was not too disheartened. Instead, he asked curiously, "Three points... how much is that?"

Gu Mao sneered, "Affinity is measured in a hundred points. The closer to a hundred, the stronger the affinity! Of course, except for the legendary innate constitution, it's impossible to reach a hundred. To become a heavenly alchemist, the minimum affinity is thirty points! My affinity is thirty-nine points! Ordinary ascenders have at least eight points, and some even reach the threshold of thirty points to become alchemists! As for you... heh."

The last two words were dripping with sarcasm.

Tang Yu smiled bitterly and interjected, "From Brother's fluctuations just now, it shouldn't exceed... three points! Of course, the exact value needs to be tested with the Innate Cloud Stone. Maybe... there's hope it exceeds three points."

By the end, even Tang Yu didn't believe it himself.

That consolation was so fake!

He changed the subject, "But Brother, precisely because of that, the fact that you managed to refine Dragon Bone Grass into a paste is outrageously impressive! I can't imagine how powerful you'd be if your affinity reached thirty, or even ten!"

He had truly been shocked!

Logically, with Ye Yuan's level of affinity, he shouldn't have lasted even half a breath, let alone a hundred breaths.

Yet he had forcibly refined the Dragon Bone Grass into a paste.

How much skill did that require to compensate?

Unimaginable!

Of course, precisely because of this, Tang Yu felt even more regret.

Affinity was innate and could not be compensated for later.

With such low affinity, Ye Yuan could never become a heavenly alchemist, no matter how heaven-defying he was.

After all, refining Dragon Bone Grass was merely a basic skill for heavenly alchemists.

The process of refining a heavenly pill was thousands of times more complex!

Without affinity as support, it was impossible to refine one.

"Hey, I happen to have an Innate Cloud Stone here. Let's test it! If this kid's affinity exceeds three points, I'll cut off my head and let you kick it like a ball!" Gu Mao sneered.

Without affinity, Ye Yuan was useless.

He knew Ye Yuan couldn't save him, so there was no need to hold back.

Before long, Gu Mao brought the Innate Cloud Stone.

Ye Yuan did not refuse; he was also curious about his own affinity.

The Innate Cloud Stone was a cloud-shaped stone covered in dense markings, clearly used to test affinity.

He placed his right palm on the stone, and the next second, Gu Mao and Tang Yu were dumbfounded.

"Hmm? No reaction at all? Could this Innate Cloud Stone be faulty?" Ye Yuan wondered.

He had kept his hand on it for a while, but the stone showed no movement, making him doubt the thing.

"Ha... haha, faulty? Kid, it seems I overestimated you! It's not the stone that's faulty; it's you! Your affinity is less than one point! In the path of heavenly alchemy, you are utterly worthless! No matter how superb your fire control skills, you can never become a heavenly alchemist! So don't show off in front of me anymore!" Gu Mao's expression was extremely strange.

His words were half sarcastic, half astonished.

Ye Yuan was the first person he had ever met with an affinity of less than one point!

That was astonishing.

Tang Yu was also dumbfounded. He smiled bitterly and said, "My big brother, exactly where did you ascend from? Not even one in ten million ascenders is like you, with less than one point!"