"He is a blue-grade alchemist whose skills in both alchemy and herbology are at the same standard..."
With his introduction as a guest teacher at the Jade Leaf Academy, the crowd finding out he was a blur grade alchemist didn't hit as hard as it would have had they not heard of his association with the Jade Leaf Academy.
The fact he was a guest teacher at the Academy, they felt him being a blue-grade alchemist whose skills in alchemy and herbology matched, was only par for the course as a teacher at one of the most prestigious institutions in the continent.
"Thank you for having me, ki..I mean Judge Yang Qing.." Ma Bo said as he chuckled in embarrassment at his almost blunder in addressing Yang Qing.
Yang Qing could only shake his head with a rueful smile at this. He was able to invite the Alchemist Ma Bo for his case, not through using the Order's connections but his own.
Other than being a guest teacher at the Jade Leaf Academy, Alchemist Ma Bo was basically a rogue cultivator, who liked to roam from place to place in study of different plants and even exchange pointers with various organizations that had built themselves upon the foundation of alchemy.
Since he had lived his whole life as a rogue cultivator, he never put on airs, and never minded whom he exchanged pointers with. It was in one of his travels that he stumbled upon the Yang family before they moved their clan home to the Order. At the time Yang Qing wasn't even born yet.
Ma Bo was deeply fascinated by his clan's long documented research that spanned countless years and their insights into the body refinement realm, which was supplemented with their knowledge of various materials to aid in that subject. The clan had done their in-depth study of the reactions of various materials with each other, and their combined effects on the human body.
The Yang family may have been borderline fanatics of the body refining realm, but their passion was built upon solid knowledge and understanding of the cultivator's body and it didn't just stop there but even extended to the materials needed to strengthen that body.
Ma Bo was instantly drawn to the strides and the studies they had made and immediately managed to strike up a friendship with his great-grandfather, which was about 400 years ago. He stayed at their clan grounds for almost 15 years and then left, but he occasionally passed by over the years.
He was one of the few outsiders the Yang family ever took to. As body refinement fanatics with an unpopular reputation they never made friends that easy, and with their obsession in digging the mysteries of the body refinement realm, they never bothered in knowing or striking up relationships with others. Ma Bo was one of the few.
He learned a lot from the Yang family and the Yang family benefited a lot from him too, be it when it came to additional knowledge and access to materials that they would not be able to have easy access to. Ma Bo was already a palace realm cultivator and a guest teacher of the Jade Leaf Academy when he met the Yang clan.
With his identity as a guest teacher of the Jade Leaf Academy, his palace realm cultivation, and his skills as a blue-grade alchemist, he had tonnes of connections and was able to supply the Yang family with tonnes of materials for them to experiment with.
The ingredients used on Yang Qing over the years were courtesy of him, especially the ones used when he broke through to the diamond body stage and then finally the peerless jade body including the array used to seal his senses.
No one in the Yang family knew of his identity as a Guest teacher of the Jade Leaf Academy except his grandfather, they all thought he was just a slovenly-looking old man with good connections, great skills in alchemy, and potentially a reincarnated ancestor of the Yang family who came back to push forward the clan's research into the body refinement realm.
It was only after they came to the Order, and Yang Qing was an outer core court judge did his grandfather let it slip one night when Yang Qing was comparing the Institute's library to the grand library of the Jade Leaf Empire, and the library of the One thousand hall battle palace wondering which had the best collections, and what he would give to be a librarian at all three libraries.
His grandfather at the mention of the Jade Leaf Empire opened up about Ma Bo's identity to Yang Qing. His reaction at the time was the same as Li Shu's and the rest because unlike them he knew intimately how awe-inspiring their Academy and the empire as a whole was, and to be a guest teacher there for what seemed to be 400 years was no small feat.
With his talents as a guest teacher, he was more than qualified to be an instructor at the Institute.
Even after the Yang family moved to the Order, his grandfather and the rest of the elders still maintained contact with him and continued a lot of research together.
With his identity as a guest teacher of the Jade Leaf Academy, being given special entry access to various facilities of the Order including where the Yang family generally conducted their experiments wasn't an issue, and the Order also had a good relationship with the Empire.
Some of their members have also been guest teachers at the academy. Yang Qing had entertained the thought at some point, to do it as a part-time time during his leave days since the remuneration was really good at least better than his measly pay at the Order, but he changed his mind since it meant more work.
What use were breaks, if you just worked? It wasn't a soft life at all. It went against everything he stood for.
Yang Qing was many things but he wasn't one to violate his life principles all for the sake of five thousand high-grade spirit stones per lecture. But...
When Yang Qing got the list of cases and went through this particular case, on seeing its parameters decided to call on Ma Bo for his expertise in the case, his identity would make his opinion acceptable to both parties and the best part was, Yang Qing could get for cheap as opposed to what he had to spend to invite the blue haired man next to him.
Yang Qing hatefully gnashed his teeth as he outwardly smiled when he made the next introduction.
"Next to Alchemist Ma Bo is Alchemist Luo Fan. He is a blue-grade alchemist with matching skills in medicine and spirit beast zoology. He is also one of the appraisers of the White Rose Pavilion..."
Yang Qing need not say more about the White Rose Pavilion. While it was lower in rank compared to the Jade Leaf Academy, as it was only a rank 2 organization, but when it came to reputation and being well known around the continent, it had the same level of renown as the Academy.
Almost every kingdom, empire, or territory of any sect had a branch store of the White Rose Pavilion merchant group.
Though the Golden Bamboo Pavilion in terms of rank was the same as the White Rose Pavilion, fundamentally be it in terms of scale and even power they were miles apart. Among the rank 2 merchant organizations, if the White Rose Pavilion claimed itself to be second no one would dare name themselves first.
Their level of influence and scale of business was the same as some of the rank 1 merchant organizations around, and Luo Fan's identity as one of the appraisers carried significant weight with the members present, same as Alchemist Ma Bo.
"I'm glad to be of service Judge Yang Qing and we appreciate your trust and patronage.." said Luo Fan in a gentlemanly tone.
Yang Qing's eyes twitched at the mention of patronage.
Is this bastard teasing me?
He needed an additional seasoned alchemist for balance and for the sake of fairness to the members present he couldn't use those from the Order. He could thus only use outsiders for this, and when it came to outsiders, it had to be those who had belonged to organizations with a worldwide repute.
Sourcing blue-grade alchemists from renowned alchemy-based organizations was difficult since they were always too busy to even humor the Order, but there was one place where they would gladly offer their services for a price and that was merchant organizations. While it was easy to gain their services it wasn't cheap either.
Yang Qing had to fork out two low-tier blue-grade recipes, of which it didn't matter whether it was incomplete or not, and add 50 high-tier sky-rank herbs under the specification that Luo Fan wanted.
Redeeming the items from the external logistic division using his discretionary funds cost him 48,908 high-grade spirit stones and that was even at an employee discount. The 40,000,000 high-grade spirit stones he was getting, now didn't seem high at all.
He quickly pushed down the urge to punch Luo Fan as he introduced the last person.
"And lastly this is Liang Tian, a top-tier orange grade herbologist. He is here because the various spiritual herbs owner Bai Zou uses, are produced by him.
Of the members present, palace master Meng Ye and Vice palace master Pan Xin, you both diagnosed Li Shu with pill poisoning. You just need to share your findings and rationale as you did the tests.
As for Liang Tian, you'll need to provide detailed guidelines in the farming process of the herbs you sell to owner Bai Zou and if there was anything you might have changed in the process during the last ten years, and finally
Alchemist Ma Bo and Alchemist Luo Fan are both skilled seniors of high repute and integrity. They have been trusted by this court and the Order enlarge, to provide their own unbiased opinion on your injuries Li Shu.
They will both perform independent screenings of their own and give their opinion. They will be screening Li Shu, the gold-feathered duck, the moonsilver-scaled carp, the crimson fire pig, and the cerulean deer which are the meat dishes Li Shu has mostly consumed over the years at the Golden Duck Platter Restaurant.
In addition, they will also be testing the red scale fairymoss, ocean tassel, and volcano fennel which are the three herbs supplied to the restaurant by Liang Tian.
Their findings will be openly shared in the court so none of you can have any doubts when I give my ruling.."
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