"Master... Master Lin Qing..."
Fang Mu's heart pounded wildly. He was quite frightened. When had Master Lin Qing ever acted like this?
What was going on? Could it be that he had discovered that today's Alchemy Room was rented to Mo Wangchen?
It shouldn't be...
"You came at the right time!"
Lin Qing paid no attention to Fang Mu's reaction. He quickly stepped forward, his face flushed from excitement. "Who was refining pills in the Alchemy Room today?"
Gulp!
Hearing Master Lin Qing's question and seeing his expression, Fang Mu's heart tightened.
Finished, Master Lin Qing really found out?!
The Alchemy Room wasn't usually open to outsiders. Knowing that Master Lin Qing discovered he rented it out, especially to that pampered Young Master Mo Wangchen, he might severely reprimand him.
Out of fear, Fang Mu forced himself to lie, "N-no... It was me... I was refining pills today..."
"You?"
Hearing this, Lin Qing was stunned and frowned.
"I know your Alchemy Dao skills well. How could it possibly be you?" With that, Master Lin Qing took out the Waste Pill Mo Wangchen left behind. "Though this pill is only a semi-finished product, the method used is clearly far superior to mine. Who is it?"
What?
Better than Master Lin Qing?
Fang Mu's eyes widened in disbelief, his heart pounding incessantly.
He took the semi-finished Body Tempering Pill from Lin Qing's hand and brought it to his nose, "Boneless Flower..."
Upon smelling one of the herbs, the very one he'd sold to Mo Wangchen today, Fang Mu nearly fainted.
How was this possible? Wasn't this semi-finished pill made by that kid Mo Wangchen?
"It... it was that kid from the Mo Family!" He swallowed, realizing that the pill might very well have been made by Mo Wangchen, and his voice began to tremble.
As an Alchemist, he could tell that the semi-finished Body Tempering Pill had a color that ordinary people couldn't produce. The smoother the pill color, the more skilled the person.
This semi-finished pill... even Master Lin Qing couldn't refine something like this...
"The Mo Family? That kid?" Hearing Fang Mu's words, Lin Qing's eyes narrowed as he thought of Mo Wangchen's family. "Who exactly is it?!"
"It... it's Mo Wangchen!" Fang Mu swallowed again, saying, "Today, Mo Wangchen came to my Alchemy Pavilion to purchase herbs..."
Soon, he recounted the events.
"That pampered brat?" After hearing this, Lin Qing was somewhat flabbergasted. "How could it be him? Does he even know Alchemy?"
No wonder Lin Qing was so shocked. Mo Wangchen was known in Fangtian City as nothing but a wastrel, someone impossible to associate with the identity of an Alchemist. This was certainly unlikely.
"Could it be someone else..."
After his surprise, Lin Qing said again, "During this time, besides Mo Wangchen, has anyone else entered the Alchemy Pavilion?"
"No!" Fang Mu shook his head confidently. "There are no other Alchemists in Fangtian City. This Alchemy Room, except for two months ago when a Guest Elder from the Alchemist Alliance borrowed it, no one else has entered. I've even had it cleaned several times, so no Waste Pills could have been left behind..."
"So you're saying this pill was left here today, and the herbs Mo Wangchen purchased perfectly match this pill's formula..." Master Lin Qing's eyes flashed with an unusual glow. After a long silence, he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "Keep an eye out for him these days. If he comes again, notify me immediately!"
"Alright... alright!" Fang Mu nodded heavily. Now he was almost certain that this semi-finished pill was very likely produced by Mo Wangchen.
Meanwhile, Mo Wangchen was unaware of the conversation between Fang Mu and Lin Qing at the Alchemy Pavilion. At that moment, he walked through the night-lit streets of Fangtian City, heading towards the Mo Family.
"Hey? Isn't that kid Mo Wangchen?"
As he walked, Mo Wangchen suddenly heard someone calling his name.
He looked up and saw three or four young men walking toward him not far ahead.
"Mo Cheng?" Recognizing the lead person among them, Mo Wangchen frowned slightly.
Mo Cheng was his second uncle's son, now at the sixth level of the Vein Condensation Realm, having condensed two Spirit Veins. Among the younger generation in Fangtian City, he was the top talent.
Unfortunately, his second uncle had always been at odds with his father, having never gotten over the fact that their grandfather passed the Clan Leader position to his father.
Because of this, the Mo Family was now divided into two factions, one led by Mo Xiaotian and the other by Mo Wangchen's second uncle, Mo Xiaofan.
The two factions were never in harmony, so naturally, a rift existed between Mo Wangchen and Mo Cheng.
This Mo Cheng often ridiculed Mo Wangchen, flaunting his status as Fangtian City's top genius, while Mo Wangchen, wary of his strength, tried to avoid conflict whenever possible.
"That useless guy got his engagement called off today, and now he's wandering around as if it doesn't embarrass him!" A branch family disciple of the Mo Family lowly mocked beside Mo Cheng.
Hearing this, Mo Wangchen frowned, and as he walked past them, he hesitated and stopped.
"Stop!" He said sharply.
"Huh?!" The group turned their heads. Originally, they had no intention of causing a scene on the street, to avoid turning the Mo Family into a laughingstock. But unexpectedly, Mo Wangchen's shout drew the attention of everyone around them.
"Hey? Isn't that the Mo Family's useless Young Master? And over there... isn't that Mo Xiaofan's son Mo Cheng, our Fangtian City's top genius?"
"In a month, Yun Chu Academy will be recruiting disciples from Yun Country, and our Fangtian City will have one as well. Mo Cheng will definitely be selected."
"Of course. Sixth level of the Vein Condensation Realm plus two Spirit Veins. If Mo Cheng isn't selected, no one else stands a chance."
"Hehe, compared to him, Mo Wangchen is truly useless..."
"What do you want?" Hearing the crowd's discussions, an air of pride surfaced on Mo Cheng's face, and he looked at Mo Wangchen with disdain.
Smack!
However, in response to Mo Cheng's question, Mo Wangchen didn't even glance at him. He raised his hand and slapped the Mo Family branch disciple who had spoken earlier.
"I am the Young Master of the Mo Family! Who are you to judge me?!" Mo Wangchen's eyes narrowed as he said coldly.