You have no regard for your elders and betters! In my role as an alchemist, I will ask you, an apprentice alchemist, a question. Let’s see if you dare to stand up and answer!” The old man chuckled coldly.
Meng Hao had no desire to get into an argument with the old man, so he casually stood up.
“Do you acknowledge your error?” the old man demanded. “Well, too late! Let me ask you: why was your attention wandering during my lecture? Why did you keep frowning? If you don’t enjoy listening to my lectures here, then you can just get lost! You’re not permitted to stick around here and annoy people!
“You’re name’s Fang Hao, huh? From now on, you are not welcome here!” He snorted coldly. This old man was not a tolerant person, so Meng Hao’s continued frowning had really been a provocation, or even a challenge.
Meng Hao frowned, and an icy coldness could be seen within his eyes. He looked at the old man for a moment, but didn’t say anything. As he turned to leave, the old man snorted again.
“Did I say you could leave? If you can’t explain why you were frowning just now, then I’ll throw you out! You can’t just walk away!”
Meng Hao stopped in place and slowly looked back at the old man. Then, he began to speak, his voice calm.
“The first time I frowned was when you mentioned Sunbirth Leaf. Although that leaf’s medicinal strength is indeed greatest at high noon, that is not a suitable time to harvest it, let alone to use it to concoct medicine. At that time, the Yang energy in the leaf is too intense. If you concoct medicine with it then, and it is not the primary ingredient, then it doesn’t matter. However, if you use it as the primary ingredient, the concoction will fail! The correct time to harvest said leaf is at a specific time AFTER high noon!”
Meng Hao’s voice boomed out in all directions as he took a step forward toward the man.
The old man’s face darkened, and he was just about to say something when Meng Hao continued to speak.
“The second time I frowned was when you talked about Groundfall Root. What you said was completely incorrect. You said that Groundfall Root contains an aura of rot. However, true Groundfall Root is the part that connects the plant to the ground. Half an inch is underground, the other half is above ground! If you harvest the incorrect part of the plant, then any pill you concoct will be black and full of toxins. It would be detrimental to anyone who consumed it.”
As he spoke, he took another step forward, and his energy surged.
The old man’s face flickered. When it came to Sunbirth Leaf, he had an argument that he could make in his defense. But when it came to Groundfall Root, as soon as the words left Meng Hao’s mouth, his heart began to thump. He suddenly remembered that when he had attempted to concoct a pill with Groundfall Root in the past, the result was exactly as Meng Hao had described.
“The third time I frowned was when you brought up Tenderwillow Branch. The first half of what you said about it was absolutely correct. If you take nine of its leaves and refine them together, it will form a true Tenderwillow Leaf. However, you missed something very important; it is vital to collect some of the soil from beneath the tree itself and combine that into the mixture. The reason is that the soil in areas where Tenderwillow Branches grow, when compounded with wood and metallic elements, can purify the metal portion, leaving behind a newborn plant!”
As Meng Hao took another step forward, the old man’s face flickered again. Beads of sweat broke out on his forehead, and he subconsciously took a step backward. As Meng Hao neared, the man sensed an amorphous energy that filled him with fear.
Most importantly of all, what Meng Hao had said about the Tenderwillow Leaf left him completely shocked. It was actually the first time he had heard of such a thing. However, it suddenly caused him to think back to a time when he had been invited to visit another alchemist, who at the time happened to be concocting a pill with Tenderwillow Leaf. He had actually put some soil into the mixture. At the time, the old man had been confused as to why he would do that, but too embarrassed to ask about it.
“The fourth time I frowned was when you spoke of Cloudsipping Grass. How could that grass possibly grow inside of clouds, which is exactly what you said? That’s nothing but sheer and utter nonsense! It’s a grass that grows in mountain streams, surrounded by wisps of cloud and mist. THAT’S why it’s called Cloudsipping Grass!” The next step Meng Hao took left the old man completely ashen-faced. Yet again, he subconsciously stepped back. He suddenly remembered that Cloudsipping Grass was exactly as Meng Hao had just described it. When he had talked about it earlier, he had intentionally spouted some hogwash; his explanation actually had nothing to do with reality. That was because he had no idea what the plant really was.
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