Francis had only managed to shatter the outer shell of the soul crystal right when he was about to run out of strength. If he had expended all his true energy without being able to shatter the outer shell, Francis would have no other option but to give up.
That would mean that Francis would get nothing out of visiting the Soul Grotto.
After all, they were only allowed to enter the grotto once a month, and they were not allowed to stay for more than a day each time. Under all those restrictions, failure would mean giving up until the next chance.
Obviously, Buck Tooth knew he would gain nothing if he failed, and that was why he would use everything he could. He made the preparations for a long battle.
“You’re all terribly stubborn, really,”
sighed the white-haired man. “Can’t you just choose a smaller soul crystal? Even though the effects of absorbing a large soul crystal are much better than a small one, don’t forget to work within what you’re capable of. If you try to take on too much, you might end up with nothing!”
Even though Jackie did not like that whitehaired man that much, he had to admit that the man still had a point. Even if they wanted to fight for it, they needed to have the skills.
Retreating and choosing something they were capable of would be the right choice. However, Buck Tooth was too riled up by Francis’ achievement and was brimming with confidence, which led him to choose a soul crystal much like the one Francis had chosen.
After the white-haired man spoke, there was a clamor of discussion among
“I think he’s an elder disciple. Does anyone remember his name?”
“I don’t, but he looks familiar. He must’ve been brought under the wing of an elder, but even if he’s an elder’s own disciple, he doesn’t look like he has that much talent. He doesn’t seem that smart either, so I doubt he’ll amount to much in the future.”
After hearing that, Jackie had a strange look on his face. Normally, an elder disciple was ranked higher than an inner disciple. After all, being accepted by an elder to be a personal disciple was proof of a certain amount of skill.
However, listening to the people around him, it seemed like being an elder disciple was nothing noteworthy. They seemed to look down on that elder disciple.
As his thoughts wandered, Jackie heard a set of urgent footsteps from nearby.
Turning around, he saw someone rushing in from outside. He looked over and heard someone softly calling out, “Alex.”
Alex Sharp nodded as he wiped away the sweat on his forehead. It seemed like he had run over.
Alex’s eyes fell on Buck Tooth. When he saw Buck Tooth battling away, he frowned somewhat unhappily.
After that, he looked at Jackie. When he saw the badge on Jackie’s chest as well as his alchemist attire, he immediately knew Jackie’s status.
He could not help but say, “Why is an alchemist here?”
The mild displeasure was evident in Alex’s words. It was as if Jackie, despite just standing nearby, was wrong.
Jackie’s lips twitched in exasperation, not saying anything.
Alex did not hold back as he continued, “Mr. Alchemist, this isn’t somewhere for the likes of you. Other than wasting time, it’s pointless for you to stand there. I have an urgent matter I need to attend to. Give me your spot.”