Chapter 56

"Brat, you’re really getting cocky..."

Lanslo narrowed his eyes and suddenly swallowed the rest of his words, his gaze toward Shen Lang becoming a bit more serious.

Potions, even for someone of his cultivation, had to be handled with care when taking them out or putting them away. This young man had tossed it out so casually... It was one thing to toss it, but the real issue was that the technique was truly impressive. Using spiritual energy to manipulate objects with such precision required at least the Qi Martial Realm. Martial artists at the Force Martial Realm, to put it bluntly, found it difficult to release their spiritual energy from their bodies; they could only use it to strengthen their physical bodies.

However, even the Qi Martial Realm wasn’t that astonishing...

The problem was that this young man was far too young, probably only fifteen or sixteen.

As an appraiser, Lanslo’s judgment wasn’t too bad, so he didn’t dare to be too presumptuous in the absence of certainty. He could only nod with a somewhat reluctant expression and said, "I can appraise it for you, but my time is very tight. I still need to continue with what was interrupted earlier. I’ll give you three minutes."

"Ha, I personally think that if you can’t appraise my potion within three minutes, Sima Yan probably wouldn’t recognize you as his student. Don’t glare at me, get to work." Shen Lang leaned back in his chair, looking at Lanslo mockingly.

Lanslo snorted and focused his attention on the potion on the table.

The potion on the table had a very unusual color. Ordinary potions usually had a clear, single color, but this one was a bizarre mix of various hues, indescribably strange.

From Lanslo’s experience, a potion with such a mix of colors was either very poor, like something a beginner might mess around with, or it was of a very high grade, crafted by a master.

However, this young man, from head to toe, didn’t have the aura of a master...

Moreover, even before the bottle cap was opened, a strong, pungent smell filled the room. Just a whiff made Lanslo frown. If the cap were opened, who knew what would happen?

Who would dare to drink something with such a strong smell?

Lanslo sneered, opened the cap, and began his inspection...

"Inferior Tiger Strength Potion, capable of temporarily enhancing strength, estimated value: 500 gold coins." It took Lanslo less than twenty seconds to make his judgment.

Not only that, but as he placed the potion back on the table, he muttered with a pout, "Trash... But, for your abilities, being able to refine such a potion is pretty good."

"Trash? Inferior Tiger Strength Potion? 500 gold coins?" Shen Lang’s forehead was covered in black lines, and he laughed, saying, "May I ask, is your teacher really Sima Yan? Could he have taught a student like you?"

"Damn it!" Lanslo slammed his hand on the table, furious. "What do you mean? Are you doubting my abilities?"

"No, how could I?" Shen Lang smiled.

Lanslo’s expression had just improved a bit when he heard Shen Lang continue, "I’m not doubting your abilities; I simply don’t believe you have any... If Dean Sima Yan knew his student was so arrogant and incompetent, he might want to find a block of tofu to bash his head against."

"You... you... you..." Lanslo’s finger trembled as he pointed at Shen Lang, shivering like he had the chills.

Though a thousand voices in his head screamed to beat this brat to a pulp, he held back.

The Treasure Pavilion had a strict rule: no physical contact with customers, or the consequences would be severe...

"Alright, continue refining your pills. You’ve wasted my time." Shen Lang shook his head in exasperation and stood up.

He really didn’t want to say anything more, picked up the Giant Strength Potion, and was about to leave.

What a joke, a Grade 5 Spirit-level Giant Strength Potion, even more potent than the one he gave Deng Jianchen, being treated as trash, not even worth a second glance. Did they really think he was a fool with money to burn?

"Damn it, who’s wasting whose time!" Lanslo was so angry his whole body trembled.

However, just as Shen Lang was about to leave, the door was pushed open.

It was pushed open forcefully.

An old man, about the same age as Sima Yan, with white hair and a wrinkled face, burst in, panting heavily, followed by Zhanlan.

"Is this Shen Lang? I’m Sima Qing, the chief appraiser of the Treasure Pavilion." The old man said cheerfully, ignoring Shen Lang’s reaction, and shook his hand vigorously.

"Oh, it’s Mr. Sima. What brings you here?" Shen Lang glanced at Zhanlan, whose eyes were still red, and already understood what was going on.

However, the name seemed a bit familiar...

Sima Qing laughed heartily and said, "Do you think my name sounds a bit like Sima Yan, the Dean of the Alchemy Department at Tayan Academy? That’s right, that idiot is my younger brother, hahaha..."

"Idiot..." Shen Lang broke out in a cold sweat. In Tianfeng City, the only person who dared to call Sima Yan an idiot was probably this old man.

Even if Sima Yan was far inferior to him in alchemy due to the War Emperor’s legacy, he still respected him due to his age and wouldn’t call him an idiot. Sima Qing, however, was straightforward.

Sima Qing held Shen Lang’s hand tightly, pulling him back to his seat, and sat down in the spot where Lanslo had been, panting heavily. "I was busy outside, and Zhanlan told me you were here. I immediately ran over. Fortunately, I made it in time. Please don’t think I was being rude, young friend!"

"Senior, you’ve come in person, how could I blame you? You’re too kind." Shen Lang said politely. His principle was to treat others as they treated him.

On the other side, Lanslo, who had been staring blankly, swallowed hard.

This was too terrifying...

The chief appraiser of the Treasure Pavilion, Sima Qing, was actually being polite to a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy?

And he had run all the way here!

Sima Yan himself didn’t even come in person, so why...

What kind of background did this young man have? Could he really be from a major power in Tianfeng City?

But that didn’t make sense...

Even if it were City Lord Ye Xiao, Sima Qing wouldn’t treat him like this. Ye Xiao would still have to call him "Senior" respectfully!

Lanslo had been at the Treasure Pavilion for several years and had never seen him treat a customer so politely.

"Could this brat be from the Evil Wind Valley? Yes, that must be it. Only someone from the Black Iron-level Evil Wind Valley would make an old man like him so courteous, and even run over personally?"

Lanslo wiped his sweat, desperately thinking about how to explain this to Sima Qing.

No matter what, even though this brat brought a trash potion, he was from a major power, and his actions had indeed been a bit embarrassing. He needed to find a way to save face.

But how to do it was a difficult task.

As a respected alchemist, he couldn’t lie and call a trash potion a high-grade potion.

Otherwise, his reputation would be ruined! Who would trust his appraising skills in the future?

So, he could only praise the young man for becoming an alchemist at such a young age and for his handsome appearance...

Yes, that’s what he would do.

Damn it, it’s just about lowering his pride and flattering. With this, both face and dignity would be saved. He, Lanslo, was truly a genius!

While Lanslo was in internal conflict, the others paid no attention to him.

Sima Qing squinted and said, "By the way, I heard from Zhanlan that you brought a high-grade potion today?"

"What? High-grade?" Lanslo was stunned and then glared at Zhanlan viciously.

This was outrageous. Even if he wanted to flatter, he should have found a better way! Even if the other party was from a major power, he shouldn’t do this. Zhanlan was really messing things up!

If you praised a trash potion as a treasure just because the other party was from a major power, and then sold it as a treasure, wouldn’t it be a joke?

The Treasure Pavilion’s reputation would be severely damaged... Zhanlan really needed to be replaced!

She was too stupid!

Even flattery lacked skill!

Shen Lang smiled and said, "It’s not that high-grade. It’s just something I made casually. If I weren’t short on money, I wouldn’t have made this to exchange for money."

Lanslo immediately beamed. Look at him, someone from a major power was different. He didn’t lack money; he was just playing around... Made casually, how honest he was!

"Ah?" Sima Qing looked at Shen Lang in surprise, then at Zhanlan standing opposite.

This didn’t seem right. Didn’t Zhanlan say he brought a Giant Strength Potion? Why was he saying it wasn’t that high-grade and was made casually?

Joking, a Giant Strength Potion wasn’t something you could make casually.

Not only was it difficult to make, but the few spiritual herbs required were extremely rare. Even if you knew how to refine it, finding all the materials wasn’t easy.

"Even though it’s something I made casually, I wouldn’t have brought it out to sell casually. I’ve changed my mind just now..." Shen Lang said with a pout.

"Don’t, don’t, don’t change your mind. Honestly, I haven’t seen a Giant Strength Potion in a while, especially one refined by an alchemist of your age... Please, bring out the Giant Strength Potion for this old man to observe!"

Sima Qing said this while giving Lanslo a murderous glare.

"Giant... Giant Strength Potion?" Lanslo was dumbfounded, thinking he had heard wrong.

"Yes, Giant, Strength, Potion..." Sima Qing almost gritted his teeth, saying each word slowly.