Chapter 3

Li Bo's face was a bit grim. Li Mo's actions were quite impolite, but he was indeed curious about the origin of the pill. As he walked inside, he glared at his son, "I told you to practice hard and make a name for yourself in the future. Look at the kind of friends you've made! At such a young age, you show no respect to your elders!"

Li Gaoyuan shrugged, not taking it to heart, but he couldn't help but worry about Li Mo.

One after another, they entered the inner courtyard. Li Mo, who had arrived earlier, was already sitting in the main seat.

Ignoring the elders below, Li Mo stroked the armrest of the redwood chair, reminiscing about the carefree days he spent in the imperial city mansion.

Second only to the emperor, above ten thousand others, with countless praises, how glorious and honorable it was.

But now, everything was like a dream, a bubble, a shadow, and everything had to start anew.

Seeing Li Mo becoming increasingly disrespectful, Li Bo suppressed his anger, his knuckles hitting the table forcefully, and he asked sternly, "Li Mo, where did you get this pill from?"

Li Mo slowly reined in his thoughts and replied leisurely, "Where else? I refined it myself."

"You're not only unlearned but also full of lies. Do you think I'm a three-year-old child who would believe your nonsense?" Li Bo was furious, and the other alchemists also crossed their arms and sneered.

Bluffing also requires knowing who you're bluffing to.

Li Mo's face remained calm, and he said calmly, "Proving what I said isn't hard. Uncle, give me another set of ingredients, and I can refine it right here."

Li Bo's eyes widened, and he pointed at Li Mo's nose, scolding, "You're a sly little brat. To trick me into giving you ingredients, you came up with this scheme. Do you think I'll fall for it?"

He waved his hand and shouted, "Enough, get out. If you dare to take ingredients from my pharmacy again, I'll break your legs!"

Li Bo was a formidable Fourth Realm expert, and his stern rebuke was like thunder.

But Li Mo remained unmoved, and instead, burst into laughter.

This laughter was extremely audacious and grating to the ears.

"Li Mo!" Li Gaoyuan couldn't help but remind him. He knew his father's explosive temper, and if he got angry, no one could stop him.

Sure enough, Li Mo's laughter made Li Bo's face even darker, and he asked coldly, "What are you laughing about?"

His expression suggested that if Li Mo didn't explain clearly, he might take action on the spot. With his cultivation, just one finger could make Li Mo lie down for ten to fifteen days.

Li Mo showed no fear, and his smile grew even wider. He had seen countless experts, and to him, someone of Li Bo's level was like an ant, incapable of scaring him.

He chuckled, "I'm laughing because, though you're a businessman, you don't understand the principles of business. A set of ingredients costs a few dozen taels, but a top-grade pill has a hundredfold profit. If I'm tricking you, you'll only lose a few dozen taels, but if what I said is true, the top-grade pill I refine will be yours, and you'll make ten thousand taels!"

"Ten thousand taels."

Li Bo's pupils dilated, and he stared at Li Mo, his eyes filled with a strange look. Although he hadn't seen Li Mo for a few years, the young man sitting before him was far from the Li Mo he remembered. His calm and composed demeanor suggested he had seen great things.

His leisurely tone carried an authority that was hard to question, and each word was like a chisel.

The profit from a top-grade pill also made his heart stir.

At this moment, Li Mo casually tossed the pill to him.

Li Bo was greatly surprised, quickly catching it, and glared at Li Mo, "You... you little brat, this is ten thousand taels of silver. What if it falls to the ground?"

"At this close distance, Uncle, you're a Fourth Realm martial artist. How could you miss? Since you're my uncle, let's consider this pill as a deposit. If I fail, the pill is yours. If I succeed, the top-grade pill is also yours. Is this a fair deal?" Li Mo said lightly.

"Really?"

Li Bo's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed joyfully.

This was a deal with a thousandfold profit. Even if he didn't believe Li Mo, for the sake of the top-grade Taiyuan Pill, he had to agree.

He decisively said to Li Songchi, "Go get the ingredients for the Taiyuan Pill."

Just as he finished speaking, Li Mo said, "Wait, get the ingredients according to this formula."

Li Mo had no interest in refining a Taiyuan Pill specifically for someone else. He came here to refine a cultivation pill.

He tossed the formula he had written earlier to Li Songchi, who looked at it and was stunned, "This is... the Guiyuan Pill!"

Li Bo and the other alchemists were also stunned, looking at the formula, which was indeed the formula for the Guiyuan Pill.

The Guiyuan Pill was one of the most difficult Yellow-grade pills, even more so than the Taiyuan Pill.

Not only did Li Mo want to refine the Guiyuan Pill, but he also claimed he would refine a top-grade Guiyuan Pill!

"This brat..."

Li Bo was furious. In his forty-plus years, he had never seen such an arrogant young man. If it weren't for the top-grade Taiyuan Pill, he would have beaten him to a pulp.

But he waved his hand, instructing Li Songchi to get the ingredients.

After the ingredients were brought, Li Mo went into a side room alone, closed the door, and began refining the pill.

Li Bo sat in the hall with a grim face, only showing a hint of a smile when he looked at the top-grade Taiyuan Pill. Making ten thousand taels of silver was a wonderful thing.

The alchemists sat on the side, all with sneers, thinking about what they would say to mock him if he failed.

Only Li Gaoyuan was uneasy, wondering what had gotten into Li Mo. If he failed, he would never be able to take any ingredients from the pharmacy again.

After half an hour, a faint aroma seeped through the door.

"This is... the aroma of the Guiyuan Pill!"

An alchemist suddenly stood up, his face shocked.

The others were also familiar with this aroma and looked at each other in surprise.

"Once the pill aroma appears, the next step is to collect the pills. This brat actually made it to the final step. How is this possible?" an alchemist muttered, his brows furrowed.

At their age, they were still apprentices, not even in the alchemy path, let alone reaching the stage of collecting pills.

This alone made them secretly amazed.

Even if all the Guiyuan Pills Li Mo refined were of low quality, it would still indicate that he had the skill of a First Rank Yellow-grade alchemist, on par with the thirty-somethings.

But Li Mo was only fourteen.

"Don't be nervous. Even if he makes it to the final step, there are a thousand reasons why the pill could fail," Li Bo said sternly.

Everyone nodded, but they were still uneasy.

After a while, the aroma dissipated, and the door opened.

Li Mo slowly walked out, casually placing the pill furnace on the table.

It was clear that after refining the pill, he hadn't even opened the furnace to check, showing extreme confidence.

Everyone had a bad feeling, and one alchemist walked over, carefully opening the furnace lid. His face froze, and he exclaimed, "Six pills in one furnace!"

This made everyone's faces change, and they crowded around.

Seeing the scene in the furnace, they were all struck like lightning, exclaiming in shock.

Six pills in one furnace was already astonishing.

More astonishing was that these were not just any six pills. One was of low quality, two were of medium quality, two were of high quality, and the last one was indeed a top-grade pill!

The number of pills that could be refined from one set of ingredients and their quality were directly related to the alchemist's ability.

Refining six pills in one furnace for the Guiyuan Pill required at least the skill of a Third Rank Yellow-grade alchemist.

With the appearance of a top-grade pill, it might even be a Mystic-grade alchemist!

"Is... is this really you who refined it?" Li Bo's voice trembled, and his look at Li Mo had completely changed.

Who would have thought that this martial arts waste of the Li family was actually a genius in alchemy?

What is a genius in alchemy?

To a businessman, it's a mountain of gold and a sea of silver!

To the head of a family, it's a shortcut to revitalizing the family!

As for the other alchemists, they were stunned, their minds a blank, and their thoughts sluggish.

Li Mo remained calm, and if it were his previous cultivation, a furnace wouldn't have just one top-grade pill.

He took five of the pills and left one top-grade pill, saying, "This is as per our agreement."

With that, he walked away.

Everyone was still in shock, but Li Bo reacted quickly, calling out as Li Mo was about to leave, "Nephew, wait!"

He quickly walked to Li Mo's side, his previously stern face now full of smiles, and he rubbed his hands, "It's rare for you to come to my pharmacy. Why are you in such a hurry to leave?"

"If I stay, I'm afraid Uncle will say I'm tricking you for ingredients again," Li Mo said with a hint of mockery.

How could Li Bo be angry? Instead, he laughed heartily, patted Li Mo's shoulder affectionately, and said, "I was just joking, nephew. You and I are family, blood relatives. Whatever ingredients you need, I'll have the manager get them for you."

Li Mo looked at him silently, not speaking.

Li Bo quickly added, "Whatever amount you need!"

Li Mo then smiled slightly and said slowly, "Since Uncle is so generous, I'll stay and talk."

Thus, Li Mo slowly sat back in the main seat, and Li Bo sat on the side, smiling.

At this moment, they no longer cared about seniority. His mind was full of the top-grade pill, and the other alchemists were just beginning to recover, their eyes filled with surprise and shock, unable to believe what had happened.

The ridicule and mockery they had just shown now felt like slaps in their own faces, painful and burning.

Mocking others, they didn't realize they were like frogs at the bottom of a well.

"So, nephew, you're already a Third Rank Yellow-grade alchemist?" Li Bo asked cautiously.

"More or less," Li Mo replied casually.

Hearing this, Li Bo's face was full of smiles, and he used an unprecedentedly gentle tone, flattering, "I've watched you grow up, and I knew you would achieve great things. Now that you're a prestigious Third Rank Yellow-grade alchemist, I, your uncle, will help you. You can take any ingredients you need from here, and in return, just give me some top-grade pills every month, how about that?"