The Extreme Alchemist of the Mighty Cauldron
Chapter 1129 - Chapter 1129 Chapter 1128 Lining Ones Pockets

Chapter 1129: Chapter 1128: Lining One’s Pockets Chapter 1129: Chapter 1128: Lining One’s Pockets When everyone heard Fang Lin’s voice, they immediately walked over, and the four middle-aged men’s expressions turned particularly ugly, tinged with a hint of despair.

As the crowd reached Fang Lin’s side, they saw him pointing at the herbs in front of him, then he glanced at the four middle-aged men.

“The Green Mooli Root is one of the main ingredients for refining Biyun Pills, but it seems there’s no problem with it,” Long Qingyi said after examining the herbs, clearly puzzled.

Mr. Long Jiu and the others couldn’t find any issue either; these Green Mooli Roots looked no different from the ordinary ones.

The four middle-aged men stood aside, their hearts filled with extreme nervousness, yet they still harbored a sliver of hope.

Fang Lin smiled faintly, picked up a Green Mooli Root, and with a slight force, snapped it with a crack.

The crowd was stunned, and Mr. Long Jiu stepped forward, picked up a Green Mooli Root, and with a little effort, snapped it as well.

At this, Mr. Long Jiu’s complexion turned sour as he glared furiously at the four middle-aged men.

The four middle-aged men, realizing they could no longer hide their deceit, knelt with a thud and began to kowtow to Mr. Long Jiu, begging for mercy.

It turned out that Green Mooli Root is a very sturdy ingredient, which shouldn’t break so easily. However, these roots were surprisingly fragile, obviously of compromised quality.

Once their ruse was revealed, the four middle-aged men no longer tried to conceal the truth and spilled everything.

It emerged that these four had conspired to sell off some of the manor’s herbs and had brought in some inferior quality herbs into the storehouse in their place, substituting the bad for the good and profiting from the deception.

These compromised herbs looked normal on the surface, which is why they had managed to escape detection.

Since Green Mooli Root is a primary ingredient for Biyun Pills, substandard roots would naturally lead to failure during the pill refining process.

The mystery was thus resolved, and it all came down to the fact that the issue wasn’t with Long Qingyi’s alchemy skills, but with the quality of the herbs, which had led to his repeated failures in refining Biyun Pills.

The fate of the four middle-aged men was clear– they would undoubtedly face the Long Family’s severe punishment. Taking private profits from the manor’s storehouse was a taboo offense. The fact that these four had colluded in such an act meant that their punishment would be even more severe.

“Lord Fang, how did you know there was a problem with the herbs?” Mr. Long Jiu asked curiously.

Fang Lin smiled slightly, “I detected an unusual scent from the pile of discarded herbs and surmised that there must be a problem with the ingredients.”

Hearing this, everyone was full of admiration and their view of Fang Lin completely changed.

The scent from the pile of discarded herbs was pungent and unpleasant. If it were an ordinary Pill Refiner, even a Master of Pill, they probably could not discern anything special.

But Fang Lin had managed to do just that, which was almost unbelievable. Could it be that Fang Lin’s sense of smell was so acute that he could detect the scent of each individual herb from a pile of discarded material?

Without further explanation, the facts spoke for themselves. Fang Lin had been able to detect the very subtle scents of various herbs in the waste, and he could immediately identify which herb’s scent was not quite right.

Starting from this clue, Fang Lin speculated that there was a problem with the herbs. This prompted him to visit the Long Family storehouse, ultimately pinpointing the source of the issue.

“Lord Fang, you’ve made us see the ridiculousness of our situation,” Mr. Long Jiu said somewhat shamefacedly. An issue had arisen within their storehouse, yet the people of the Long Family had been completely unaware. It was Fang Lin who had identified the problem, bringing it into the light.

Fang Lin shook his head and laughed, “It was just a fluke. Even if I had not come to the Long Family, you would have discovered the matter sooner or later.”

Suddenly, Long Zhixin spoke up, “Lord Fang, are you really so sensitive to the scents of herbs?”

Fang Lin looked toward Long Zhixin and said, “I consider myself to be quite sensitive to the scents of medicinal herbs.”

Long Zhixin then said, “In that case, this young lady has a little challenge and would like to test Lord Fang.”

Fang Lin smiled and asked, “What challenge does Miss Long have in mind?”

Mr. Long Jiu did not stop her, as he knew that Long Zhixin always acted with measured restraint and would likely not deliberately make things difficult for Fang Lin.

Long Zhixin took out two items, but kept them hidden from Fang Lin’s view, holding them in her palms as she extended her hands toward him.

“Lord Fang, would you be able to identify these two medicinal herbs just by their scent?” Long Zhixin asked, with a hint of a smile on her lips.

Mr. Long Jiu and the others were both amused and exasperated, finding Long Zhixin’s method of testing Fang Lin to be quite audacious.

With Long Zhixin’s body naturally exuding a fragrance, discerning the scents of the two herbs beneath that veil of aroma would be a considerable challenge.

Fang Lin smiled faintly and leaned close to Long Zhixin’s hands, inhaling carefully.

“Truly a compelling fragrance,” Fang Lin remarked, causing Long Zhixin to become slightly shy.

Fang Lin did not continue to smell, appearing to have a clear idea in mind.

“Has Lord Fang already discerned their scents?” Long Zhixin inquired.

Fang Lin nodded, yet did not immediately respond.

Long Zhixin looked at him with skepticism. The two herbs she had chosen were extremely rare and had nearly identical scents, and with her own fragrance masking them, how could he have identified them so easily?

“Then may I know if Lord Fang is aware of what these two herbs are?” Long Zhixin asked, her gaze intently fixed on Fang Lin.

Only then did Fang Lin speak, “One is Three Day Wither, and the other is Green Scale Ash. Am I correct?”

Long Zhixin was completely stunned; Fang Lin had actually identified them correctly. What on earth was his nose made of? How could it be so preternaturally keen?

Seeing the shock on Long Zhixin’s face, Fang Lin asked with a smile, “How about it? Are they as I have said?”

Long Zhixin was thoroughly convinced and opened her hands to reveal indeed the Three Day Wither and Green Scale Ash, two herbs with very similar scents.

Fang Lin’s ability to discern the subtle differences in scent under the exotic interference from Long Zhixin’s body proved his worthiness as the youngest Master of Pill in the Pill Alliance.

“Lord Fang truly is a prodigy, deeply admirable,” Mr. Long Jiu said.

As time passed, nearly half a day had gone by. The Long Family hosted a banquet in Fang Lin’s honor, during which Fang Lin met several other senior members of the family and paid his respects.

He even met Long Zhixin’s parents, who were exceedingly warm toward Fang Lin, though their gazes made him feel somewhat uneasy.

Just as the banquet was in high spirits, a member of the Long Family arrived at the table with a somewhat grave expression and whispered something into Mr. Long Jiu’s ear.

Upon hearing the message, Mr. Long Jiu’s own expression changed, showing a hint of worry between his brows.

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