Chapter 424: Chapter 424: Giving Up the Bidding
"Young man, is what you’re saying really true?"
Yuan Fei’s voice carried from his private room, tinged with a heavy gravity.
"Whether what I’m saying is true is for you to judge, Patriarch Yuan. You shouldn’t believe me based on my word alone. However, I want to tell you that a normal Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill is refined from seven main ingredients and twenty-one auxiliary ingredients. But this Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill on the stage has had two of those auxiliary ingredients—the Luoxin Fruit and Alfalfa Liquid—replaced with Dolan Fruit and True Injury Water. This modified Pill can cure most types of fire poison, but it is completely ineffective against the fire poison of a Winged Fire Beast."
"If you’re unclear on this point, Patriarch Yuan, feel free to ask another Alchemist."
Ye Xuan said calmly.
Ye Xuan’s confident tone made Yuan Fei frown and fall into deep thought.
At this moment, the Yuan family’s private room had descended into chaos.
"So this Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill is actually a plot by the Qin family?"
"Is this even true? Can we really trust that kid from the Luo family?"
"I heard the Luo and Qin families are at each other’s throats right now. This isn’t some attempt by the Luo family to use us against the Qin family, is it?"
"It’s possible, but would the Luo family dare to offend us like this?"
"What do you think? If the Luo family dares to go head-to-head with the Qin family, why wouldn’t they dare to use us?"
"Still, I have a feeling that what the kid from the Luo family said has some truth to it."
"True or not, we have to win this Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill. This is our only chance."
The elders debated endlessly, arguing back and forth.
"Fifth Elder."
At that moment, Patriarch Yuan Fei suddenly spoke, and all eyes instantly fell upon him.
Yuan Fei asked in a grave voice, "You’ve always been in charge of matters concerning the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill. Tell me, do you know how many main and auxiliary ingredients it has, and are Luoxin Fruit and Alfalfa Liquid among them?"
An elder in blue robes thought for a moment before immediately answering, "Patriarch, the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill is made of seven main and twenty-one auxiliary ingredients. The Luoxin Fruit and Alfalfa Liquid you mentioned are indeed two of the twenty-one auxiliary ingredients."
In their desperation to heal Yuan Zhen’s injuries, the Yuan family had exhausted all means, even managing to obtain the recipe for the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill. Unfortunately, the refinement process was incredibly difficult, and very few in the Imperial Capital could successfully produce it. That was why they had been unable to acquire one until now.
Upon hearing the Fifth Elder’s reply, Yuan Fei was already starting to believe.
"What would happen if the Luoxin Fruit and Alfalfa Liquid were replaced with Dolan Fruit and True Injury Water?" Yuan Fei asked again.
Everyone looked at each other, but no one had an answer.
It couldn’t be helped. No one in the Yuan family was an expert in alchemy.
However, as one of the four great families of the empire, the Yuan family had extensive connections. Soon, Yuan Fei sent a voice transmission to a nearby Celestial Level private room.
In that Celestial Level private room sat a single old man dressed in an Alchemist’s robe. The badge on his chest was ringed with gold, identifying him as a Sixth Grade Alchemist.
Furthermore, a symbol of the Sky Empire was engraved next to the Alchemist badge, clearly marking him as a high-ranking figure in the Sky Empire’s royal Alchemy Pavilion.
"Master Mu En."
The sound of Yuan Fei’s voice transmission made Mu En pause. ’Yuan Fei is locked in a tense bidding war with the Chen family,’ he mused. ’Why would he suddenly contact me?’
"Brother Yuan, is something the matter?" the old man, Mu En, replied via voice transmission.
"I wanted to ask you about something..." Yuan Fei then briefly explained the issue of the substituted ingredients in the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill.
Mu En wasn’t sure why Yuan Fei would suddenly ask about this, but he pondered for a moment before replying, "Brother Yuan, the twenty-one auxiliary ingredients in the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill are all very specific. Each group of ingredients corresponds to a particular type of fire poison. The fire poisons in this world have a wide variety of attributes and can’t be neutralized by a single substance. The Luoxin Fruit and Alfalfa Liquid you mentioned specifically target fire poison of the Yin Metal Attribute. Replacing them with Dolan Fruit and True Injury Water is theoretically feasible and wouldn’t affect the Pill’s other properties. However, if you did that, it would lose all effectiveness against fire poison of the Yin Metal Attribute."
As he said this, Mu En’s expression suddenly froze. He whipped his head toward the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill on the auction stage, his face filled with shock.
"Brother Yuan, don’t tell me this Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill on the auction stage was refined using Dolan Fruit and True Injury Water as substitutes! The last time your Fifth Elder sought me out, I recall him saying that the poison afflicting your Yuan Zhen was from a Winged Fire Beast, correct? If so, then I’m afraid this Pill won’t be able to cure him. The fire poison of a Winged Fire Beast is of the Yin Metal Attribute."
Mu En said gravely.
"Master Mu En, can you tell if the ingredients of the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill on the stage have been changed?" Yuan Fei asked nervously.
Mu En gave a wry smile. "Brother Yuan, even though I’m a Sixth Grade Alchemist, there’s no way I can tell if the ingredients have been altered just by looking from this distance. The only way to know for sure would be to inspect it personally."
"Thank you, Master Mu En."
Although Mu En hadn’t given a definitive answer, Yuan Fei had already come to his own conclusion.
However, he didn’t act rashly. Instead, he sent a voice transmission to Ye Xuan and asked in a low voice, "Your Excellency, are you truly confident you can cure my Yuan family’s Supreme Elder’s injuries?"
At this moment, Yuan Fei didn’t want to dwell on whether the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill had been tampered with. He only wanted to know if Ye Xuan was truly confident that he could heal Elder Yuan Zhen’s injuries.
"Patriarch Yuan, no matter what I say here, I doubt you would fully believe me. However, I can tell you this: I, Xuan Ye, have never gone back on my word. You can ask Master Lu Li about this."
Yuan Fei was taken aback. Ye Xuan was right. Given Ye Xuan’s current identity, no matter what grand promises he made, it would be impossible for Yuan Fei to trust him completely. But with Master Lu Li to vouch for him, it was a different story.
Master Lu Li was of noble status, the number one Artifact Refining Master in the empire, and was known for his impartiality. Yuan Fei had great faith in his words.
He had heard that this Xuan Ye of the Luo family was very close to Master Lu Li. Surely, Master Lu Li would know something.
In his private room, Lu Li was still baffled by Ye Xuan’s earlier words when Yuan Fei’s voice transmission arrived: "Master Lu Li, this is Yuan Fei of the Yuan family. I’ve heard that your relationship with Xuan Ye of the Luo family is extraordinary. I would like to ask you, Master, is what Xuan Ye just said about being able to cure my family’s Supreme Elder’s Winged Fire Beast poison true or false?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Li immediately understood Ye Xuan’s strategy.
He realized Ye Xuan wanted the Yuan family to withdraw from the auction, forcing the Qin family to be hoist by their own petard.
And Ye Xuan knew his own words didn’t carry enough weight, so he wanted him to act as a guarantor.
’Still,’ Lu Li thought, ’I’ve heard about Yuan Zhen being poisoned by a Winged Fire Beast. The difficulty of treating it is extraordinary; otherwise, the Yuan family would have solved it by now. Can that kid really do it?’
Lu Li couldn’t help but feel a flicker of doubt.
But doubt was doubt; he still had to support Ye Xuan. He replied in a measured tone, "Patriarch Yuan, young friend Xuan Ye is the most astonishingly talented youth I have ever met. Frankly, I don’t know if his claims are true or not. However, I am certain that he would never make such a statement unless he had a high degree of confidence."
These words from Master Lu Li were utterly sincere and carried immense weight, forcing Patriarch Yuan Fei to take them seriously.
To be honest, hearing Master Lu Li say this, Yuan Fei was very tempted.
If he were to back out now, it would undoubtedly be the best counterattack against the Qin family’s scheme.
But he was terrified. ’What if Ye Xuan fails to cure the Supreme Elder in the end? Then this last sliver of hope will be completely extinguished!’
’Who knows when another Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill might appear.’
For a moment, Patriarch Yuan Fei, who had always been decisive, was now hesitant and uncertain.
Seeing Yuan Fei’s hesitation, Ye Xuan sent a calm voice transmission: "Patriarch Yuan Fei, if you let the Qin family manipulate you at a time like this simply because you’re afraid of losing, then I, Xuan Ye, must have been blind to have thought so highly of you. I, Xuan Ye, may not be some great figure, but my word is my bond. Would I have sent you a transmission if I wasn’t completely confident?"
"Whether you allow the Qin family to toy with you, losing all face and dignity, or you strike back with confidence and restore your prestige—the choice is yours."
A mere Winged Fire Beast’s poison was nothing to Ye Xuan. He had already said so much; if the Yuan family still didn’t believe him, then there was nothing more to say.
Patriarch Yuan Fei jolted at his words, and his gaze gradually hardened with resolve.
Just then, from the Qin family’s private room, Patriarch Qin Feng’s faintly mocking voice sounded once again: "Heh heh, I never thought the ever-decisive Brother Yuan Fei would have a moment of hesitation. But I suppose it’s understandable. One hundred sixty thousand Lower Grade Profound Stones, after all. That price is almost as much as our Qin family’s Heaven-Burning Fire Skill! Tsk tsk, for a single Pill... is it really worth so much? If Brother Yuan finds it too pricey, I think you’d best give up quickly."
Seeing the price of the Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill soar to one hundred sixty thousand, the Qin family’s goal had been achieved. Qin Feng was ecstatic and started making gloating remarks.
In his mind, the Yuan family had no choice but to keep bidding. Since that was the case, wasn’t it more satisfying to mock them a little?
Patriarch Yuan Fei suddenly burst out laughing. "Brother Qin, I find myself agreeing with you. It’s just a measly Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill. Why should it be so expensive?"
The moment he said this, Qin Feng’s brows furrowed. He couldn’t understand the reasoning behind Yuan Fei’s words.
’Is the Yuan family actually going to give up on the bidding?’
’Impossible. Absolutely impossible. That old bastard Yuan Zhen’s injuries still aren’t healed. Would Yuan Fei really dare to give up? Not a chance in hell.’ Qin Feng refused to believe it.
The rest of the people present were also completely baffled.
Then Yuan Fei was heard laughing heartily again. He looked towards the Chen family’s private room and boomed, "Patriarch Chen, your bid of one hundred sixty thousand was truly magnanimous. For the head of a great family to be willing to spend one hundred sixty thousand Profound Stones on a single Pill—for that boldness alone, I am deeply impressed. Since Patriarch Chen desires this Clear Fire and Bright Heart Pill so desperately, then I, Yuan Fei, will be the good guy for once and let you have it."
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