Rationality told Amberxiu that the City of Alchemy would never sell him authentic goods for five hundred gold coins, yet he couldn't resist the urge to see how convincing the counterfeit truly was.
The young saleswoman mysteriously handed Amberxiu a small vial of silver solution.
The weight felt substantial, though the difference in mass was minimal.
However, as Amberxiu examined it closely, his face immediately showed signs of disappointment.
"This mercury has separated into layers. No, this is pure mercury, isn't it?"
Although Amberxiu wasn't a master of alchemy, he was well-versed enough to recognize the substance at a glance.
A small amount of true living mercury solution, diluted with ordinary mercury, it appeared indistinguishable to the untrained eye. But a connoisseur would notice the incompatible layers of color.
Living mercury can dissolve most metals and be easily extracted, but it cannot merge with true mercury.
The quality of this counterfeit was utterly poor for a five-hundred-coin price.
The saleswoman, a little uneasy, responded, "I knew you'd be able to tell. Don't worry, this is just a sample. It's meant to help experts like you understand the quality before continuing negotiations."
With that, the saleswoman swiftly swapped the bottle.
The new vial of living mercury genuinely intrigued Amberxiu.
At least visually, there was no apparent flaw. Determining whether it was authentic or counterfeit would likely require opening the bottle for testing.
"Two entirely different levels of forgery, both priced at five hundred coins?" Amberxiu inquired.
"Certainly not. The first vial was five hundred; this one costs at least three thousand."
Amberxiu was about to suggest testing the contents when a sudden realization struck him. He praised her, saying, "This isn't living mercury at all. It's a solution made from deceased mercury slimes. No wonder it's indistinguishable at first glance. Clever, indeed."
The saleswoman's face went pale with surprise, and she whispered, "Keep it down! Are you buying or not?"
She panicked. She had only intended to make a quick sale for a commission, but the young alchemist before her had immediately deduced the counterfeit's nature. This was a forgery personally crafted by the Alchemist's Guild, touted as completely undetectable.
Yet, this young man, without even opening the vial, had figured out the method behind it?
How could that be? Had she encountered one of those mischievous old alchemists, the ones who act young but are centuries old?
Seeing her reaction, Amberxiu knew his suspicion was correct. The method wasn't complicated at all.
Living mercury was a failed creation from the City of Alchemy, originally intended to produce a new kind of slime. What resulted was a mercury slime in a comatose state—alive but with no awareness, remaining motionless except for its instinct to devour metal.
Had it not been for this instinct, it would have been discarded as waste.
Yet, this "comatose" slime was still a living organism, and living things eventually die.
The mercury slime in its deceased state didn't decay, maintaining the same appearance as when it was alive, making it nearly impossible for the alchemists to tell the difference. The only way to distinguish the two was by tossing in a piece of metal.
Living mercury slimes would consume the metal; the deceased ones could not.
It was unclear which genius had come up with the idea of mixing bits of living mercury slime with the remains of dead ones to create this half-alive state. The metal consumption effect remained, but much diminished.
Ordinary folk, however, likely wouldn't recognize that the living mercury had deteriorated or been "weakened" during transport, possibly thinking it could recover with time.
As for the worse quality counterfeit, it was likely made by some underling, perhaps even the saleswoman herself, hoping to pocket a quick gain.
When she realized she couldn't fool Amberxiu, she had produced the higher-end forgery.
The City of Alchemy knew that the genuine product was too expensive to sell, and without proper maintenance, the living mercury slimes would keep dying, leading to constant financial losses. That's why they resorted to these deceptive methods.
Amberxiu suspected that many naïve buyers had already paid full price for these high-end fakes.
Clever, yet thoroughly unscrupulous tactics.
True to its nature, the City of Alchemy had been the wealthiest city on the continent for years, but it had never made an appearance on the moral rankings.
Amberxiu initially intended to reject the offer.
After all, he planned to do business with his friends from the Mourning Poets' Society.
Though he was short on money, he knew that any gains made through trickery would quickly be lost. The Headless Horseman was married into the Bone Dragon family, and if he discovered Amberxiu had hidden any wealth, his wife would certainly find out—and that would not end well for him.
At that point, he would be facing the wrath of a legendary Bone Dragon and the Headless Horseman.
Such a "husband-and-wife double whammy" would surely spell disaster for Amberxiu, making it a clear loss.
Just as he handed the bottle back to the saleswoman, Amberxiu suddenly thought of something.
Could a dead mercury slime still be considered a corpse?
Alchemy was a field Amberxiu knew well, but necromancy was his true expertise.
He had originally intended to ask the Alchemists' Guild if they had ever used necromancy on the deceased mercury slimes, but the words got stuck in his throat.
The thought was purely a flash of inspiration. Perhaps the Guild had never considered such a possibility. By mentioning it, he might only alert them to an idea they hadn't thought of.
If it turned out useful, the Guild could easily take advantage of it, and Amberxiu would never see a penny in royalties.
With this in mind, Amberxiu turned to the saleswoman and said, "Three thousand gold coins is too expensive. Can you lower the price?"
"This is the listed price. No negotiations."
"Listed prices are for authentic goods, not for fakes!"
"Sorry, I can't lower the price."
"Then throw in two bottles of the lower-quality stuff."
...
After some haggling, Amberxiu spent three thousand gold coins for one high-end counterfeit and one low-end product, along with two packets of enchanted seeds as a bonus.
It was clear that the living mercury had not been selling well.
Amberxiu had initially planned to browse a bit more, given that he needed more supplies to sustain people in the Lich's domain. But now, his mind was entirely focused on the vial of living mercury solution. His instincts told him there was a huge business opportunity here.
Leaving the City of Alchemy, Amberxiu rushed back to his castle at top speed, even transforming into smoke and entering through the roof.
After dispelling his transformation, Amberxiu resumed his fearsome Lich appearance and headed straight to the laboratory with the two vials of counterfeit mercury.
Isabelle was still diligently preparing Petrifying Lizard Oil, and the shelves were already stocked with several completed bottles. Under Amberxiu's guidance, she had finally mastered the preparation method. The diligent young girl had managed to prepare ten bottles, with only one failure—an excellent result.
However, when Amberxiu glanced over the wasted materials, Isabelle couldn't help but feel her heart race.
Would this Lich be furious over her wasted resources? Would he turn her into a test subject for his necromantic experiments?
The skeletal face of the Lich betrayed no emotion, but its ever-grim appearance only heightened Isabelle's anxiety as he walked towards her, wordlessly. She felt an overwhelming pressure, wishing she had someone to turn to.
Where was that young alchemist from before? He was a necromancer too, wasn't he?
Though he'd only given her a few pointers, he had been her teacher.
Teacher, please come save your student!
End of Chapter