I Became the Alchemy Master by Picking Up Trash-Chapter 192 - 190: Xi Yuan Tournament (Part 16)

After Team Tianyi left the Oasis, under the command of Chu Yunyi, they headed straight for the Turquoise Pool.

After the last match, Jiang Yuesheng, An Qing, and Lin Caier swore and promised that they would no longer hide in Chu Yunyi’s Wind Array to gain an unfair advantage.

So, from the start of this match, Team Tianyi advanced in a wedge formation. Jiang Yuesheng led the way in the front, with An Qing and Chu Yunyi on the flanks, protecting Lin Caier in the center.

Without having to constantly manipulate the talisman array as before, despite traversing the harsh desert environment, Chu Yunyi felt unprecedented ease, but the situation for the others wasn’t so optimistic.

With no Wind Array to shield them from dust, Team Tianyi’s Battle Armor no longer looked as pristine as if it had just been picked up from the dry cleaners. The temperature regulating talismans couldn’t make them completely immune to the heat, and the black armor was soaked with sweat, plastered with sand, looking mottled and disheveled.

The crumpled clothes made Jiang Yuesheng and An Qing appear bedraggled, in stark contrast to their noble family’s sons’ suave and refined image from the Team Tianyi match.

Without the aid of the Wind Array, Jiang Yuesheng, at the point of the spearhead, undoubtedly bore more environmental resistance, putting both his Primordial Spirit and stamina to a tremendous test.

Fortunately, he truly repented, took this match as a trial, and genuinely shouldered the responsibility of a martial master. The netizens’ evaluation of Jiang Yuesheng slowly warmed up.

Lin Caier’s long wavy hair, caught static in the dry air, covered with a layer of yellow sand, appeared both dry and yellow, resembling the mane of a parasol-crested lizard.

Though Lin Caier didn’t have a mirror to see her own ugliness, the itchiness from dryness tormented her to the brink of madness.

Before the match, Lin Caier set a persona for herself as strong, hardworking, and unyielding, determined to shed the label of a "fool" and win back the fans she lost in the last match.

Unfortunately, while the ideal is full, reality is bony. Lin Caier’s persona hadn’t even been established before being bewildered by the climate of the Ruoye Desert.

Having lived all her life in the humid and rainy City of Tianyi, Lin Caier was utterly unprepared for the arid desert environment. Additionally, she used physical discomfort as an excuse to skip the pre-competition training, thus lacking any wilderness survival knowledge.

The temperature regulating talisman was constantly on its highest setting, and her allotment of drinking water and nutrient solution was consumed within hours.

Deprived of moisture, Lin Caier’s skin quickly lost its luster, her lips cracked, unsure how many times she’d have to undergo beauty treatments to restore their former plump state.

Before she could emerge from the fear and worry over the lasting sunspots and wrinkles, the temperature swiftly plummeted to below zero degrees.

For an Elemental Spirit, the scorching heat of the day was more unbearable than the cold of the night, so the temperature regulating talisman on the contestants only had a one-way function to cool. At nightfall, when the temperature dropped, they could only endure, which was tormenting for the frail-bodied Lin Caier.

Under the torment of extreme changes in temperature, ideas of strength, hard work, or unyielding spirit were all thrown to the back of Lin Caier’s mind.

She missed the days protected by the Wind Array sorely, where no matter the external climate, inside the array, it was always as warm as spring.

But she had sworn, and millions of cloud fans were watching her, so she dared not ask for it aloud, only hoping with longing eyes that Chu Yunyi would understand.

To her disappointment, Chu Yunyi either felt nothing from her tender gaze or returned it with a polite smile, continuing to command Jiang Yuesheng to adjust their course, with no intention of opening the Wind Array for her.

Lin Caier was both angry and resentful, yet had no recourse, so she could only drag her sore legs and follow the team like a scapegoat.

Under Chu Yunyi’s guidance, they chose the shortest route to the Turquoise Pool. Although Star Beasts were active at night, the path they took was relatively safe, encountering only small low-level Star Beasts.

Sensing the presence of a strong aura in the team, those small Star Beasts either fled or hid in their burrows, giving Team Tianyi no opportunity to engage.

Without Star Beasts to provoke them, An Qing was quite disappointed; it seemed their dinner would only be the unappetizing sand rats and rock salt crabs.

Walking for several hours, everyone was tired, and Chu Yunyi decided to rest in a Stone Forest not far ahead.

This Stone Forest was composed of hundreds of Stone Peaks, the tallest reaching sixty meters, the shortest at least forty meters, slightly darker in color than the sand. Each Stone Peak had several holes on its surface, with diameters ranging from over five meters to small enough for a person to pass through.

"Yun Yi, why don’t we rest in the Stone Peak caves? It’s warmer inside."

Chu Yunyi had already used his spiritual power to probe the Stone Peaks, but the soil contained Yellow Spring Soil, making spiritual probing ineffective.

For matters that couldn’t be confirmed, Chu Yunyi always took a cautious attitude, thus rejecting Jiang Yuesheng’s suggestion and had everyone set up a cloud formation tent under a tall Stone Peak for a short rest.

Inside the tent, Lin Caier was crying with tears streaking down her face, refusing to eat the sand rat meat. An Qing had no method to deal with this delicate young woman, so she could only seek help from Chu Yunyi.

Chu Yunyi’s patience was running thin as well, but as the team leader, he had the responsibility to correct the wrongful behavior of his team members.

"Caier, you being a high-scoring reserve, surely understand the importance of food for an Elemental Spirit, right?"

Lin Caier sobbed, remaining silent.

A truth that even children understood, how could she not know? Energy is conserved, and without enough to offset consumption, even with ample reserves of Primordial Spirit, one cannot unleash an effective Elemental Attack.

"I know what you’re thinking; with the spatial pin, we can carry plenty of nutrient solution into battle, and usually, we don’t have to worry about food. So, in your view, the restrictions on food and water in this match are nothing but a joke, right?"

Glistening with tears, Lin Caier nodded.

"Have you considered that a battlefield changes constantly? Who can guarantee your spatial pin will always be on you? Or if you fall into a place where spiritual power can’t be used, and the pin cannot open, without nutrient solution, are you planning to starve?"

Lin Caier’s tears dripped down her cheeks.

She understood the principles, yet couldn’t bring herself to eat. Watching An Qing skin and disassemble that ugly sand rat without washing it, then let Jiang Yuesheng grill it over the fire.

Dastardly Jiang Yuesheng didn’t even cook the meat thoroughly, claiming it preserved the meat’s water content to its maximum, having her swallow it down with blood. How could she possibly eat that!

Jiang Yuesheng grew increasingly annoyed with Lin Caier, couldn’t fathom what Jiang Junnan saw in her. A beauty with no substance who even free offered would not tempt him.

"Forget it, Yunyi, don’t waste your breath. If she doesn’t eat, let her go hungry; when hunger strikes, she’ll eat eventually!"

After speaking, Jiang Yuesheng took a piece of sand rat meat from An Qing’s hand and swallowed it without chewing. The half-raw sand rat meat had a pungent, nauseating taste; he couldn’t swallow it if he tried chewing.

Lin Caier glared at Jiang Yuesheng fiercely, then pitifully looked at Chu Yunyi, her almond eyes moist with light.

Chu Yunyi sighed, took out a nutrient solution from his pocket, and handed it to her.

"Caier, this is the last nutrient solution. Take it. The sand rats and rock salt crabs do taste bad, but perhaps the next meal may taste even worse. Regardless of whether you can adapt, I won’t help you further. You must take care of yourself."

"Brother Yun, you’re the best! You do care for Caier... sob—!"

Lin Caier finished and was about to throw herself into Chu Yunyi’s arms but was pushed back by a firm hand on her shoulder.

"Once you’ve eaten, get some rest. We’ll head out in an hour. This place’s spiritual power doesn’t penetrate well, so it’s best we leave as soon as possible."

Not far from the cloud formation tent, a colossal creature was approaching steadily, with slow steps.