Chapter 4838 — The Chief Alchemist

"Hey, I called you Master Qing Xuanzi out of respect for you as the academy's chief alchemist, but aren't you being a little too shameless here?" Chai Laoshi could hold back no longer and spoke out in righteous indignation. "You call this stepping back? Even if a Great Restoration Pill is somewhat easier to refine than a Lightning Mystic Pill, it is still a seventh-grade pill, and you want ten of them within a single day—the difficulty has only gone up, not down! If you mean to make things impossible for us, just say so outright!"

The rest of the crowd chimed in with murmurs and pointed fingers as well. Ten seventh-grade Great Restoration Pills within a day—how lightly he said it. Never mind that the entire auction today had produced only two Great Restoration Pills in total, and one of those had come from the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce.

"Hmph, spare me the useless talk. So long as you can produce them, I give you my word as the Morning Star Academy's chief alchemist that the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce will be the sole supplier!" Qing Xuanzi sneered.

As he said this, his eyes could not help darting a furtive glance at Ling Yuanqing. He had been driven into a corner before saying such a thing; otherwise, no matter how bold he was, he would never have dared to be so presumptuous to Ling Yuanqing's face. The status of chief alchemist was lofty, to be sure, but not so lofty that one could treat everyone else as beneath notice.

Fortunately, Ling Yuanqing made no response at all. Instead, he settled back into his seat at his leisure and watched the proceedings unfold with a cold eye. Qing Xuanzi let out a breath of relief at once—this was tacit approval!

Of course. He was, after all, the alchemist the academy relied upon most. As the academy's director, Ling Yuanqing could not, by any measure of reason or sentiment, side with the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce over one of his own. Today the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce had to be trampled into the dirt!

"Oh? Are you sure you have the authority to make that call?" Wei Zhao glanced at Ling Yuanqing as well.

"Naturally. And I can tell you this besides: if you can manage it, then from now on the pills I refine will also be supplied exclusively to the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce for sale!" Qing Xuanzi said, his words startling everyone.

"Is that true?" Chai Laoshi's eyes lit up at once. Though a moment ago he had been furious at this man, there was no denying one fact—this was a genuine seventh-grade alchemist. If all the pills this man refined were to be supplied solely to the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce, then in the future they would have gained a major source of high-grade pills. This was a stroke of fortune beyond all asking.

Granted, thanks to Wei Zhao, they had just produced a pile of seventh-grade pills this time, but one thing Chai Laoshi understood very clearly: Wei Zhao would not stay here forever. What would they do once he was gone?

What Chai Laoshi could see, Wei Zhao naturally could see as well. If this Qing Xuanzi could truly be made to turn and cooperate with the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce, then they would have nothing to worry about in the future. This was a fine thing delivered right to their door.

"Hmph, do you think a man of my standing would speak empty words before so many people?" Qing Xuanzi frowned, then suddenly turned and exchanged a glance with Steward Hao. In a low, measured voice he said, "But let me make the ugly terms clear upfront: if you cannot produce them within a day, that will prove your supply chain is unstable. Even though the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce won in the auction just now, you will still have to yield the position of sole supplier—yield it to the Great Clans' Guild."

Only then did the crowd finally understand. After all that circling about, this was Qing Xuanzi's real aim.

The academy's chief alchemist had deliberately stepped forward to target the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce precisely to make them step down and yield their place, handing the partnership qualification to the Great Clans' Guild—skipping right over even the All-Success Guild in the process.

"What?!" Wan Zhongjie's eyes nearly bulged out of his head at these words. A moment ago, when they had all been ganging up on the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce, he had been the most eager and active of the lot, fully expecting that once the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce was pulled down from its horse, the partnership qualification would fall automatically to his own All-Success Guild. Who could have imagined Qing Xuanzi would suddenly say such a thing!

Under Qing Xuanzi's cold sweep of a glance, the words on the tip of Wan Zhongjie's tongue were forcibly swallowed back down. Though he was a thousand times unwilling, on this patch of ground that was Morning Star City, he dared not set himself against the academy's chief alchemist. What if he ended up following in the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce's footsteps and got targeted and banned as well...

At this moment, no one was paying Wan Zhongjie any attention. There were only two protagonists worthy of notice: Qing Xuanzi and Wei Zhao.

"That condition isn't much to speak of. You're a seventh-grade alchemist yourself, aren't you? Do you think you could refine ten Great Restoration Pills in a day? How about we swap—I'll supply the materials, and you take a crack at it?" Wei Zhao suddenly curled his lip and said.

"That..." Qing Xuanzi was instantly choked off. An outsider might not know, but as the academy's chief alchemist he understood the difficulty of this better than anyone: ten seventh-grade Great Restoration Pills in a day was an utterly impossible task. He had only proposed it to deliberately make things hard for the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce!

If it were truly possible, Qing Xuanzi would never have proposed it with such confidence—he was not a fool, after all.

For a moment Qing Xuanzi did not know how to keep pressing them. Everyone fully expected Wei Zhao to take the out and step down from the platform, but instead he spoke again: "Forget it. Bring the materials over. I'll reluctantly refine a batch for you, you idiot, and let you see just what the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce is made of."

"What? What do you mean? Don't tell me you're saying you'll do the refining yourself?" Qing Xuanzi was stunned once more.

"Oh, I forgot to mention—I am not only the honorary vice president of the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce, but also serve concurrently as the chief alchemist of its Morning Star Branch. I can't refine everything, but a few paltry seventh-grade Great Restoration Pills are no trouble at all," Wei Zhao said in a mild tone.

At these words, not only was Qing Xuanzi completely dumbfounded, but the whole hall erupted in an uproar, and even Ling Yuanqing could not help but be moved once again.

Honorary vice president of the Hong Clan Chamber of Commerce was one thing—that position did not necessarily require great strength. In theory, anyone who had made tremendous contributions to the chamber could obtain it, so while it was rare enough, it was not too astonishing. But a seventh-grade alchemist? How could a youngster like this possibly be one?

Wei Zhao had long anticipated the crowd's shock. His alchemy had already been exposed back on the warship anyway, so there was no need to keep hiding it. And exposing such a thing was not entirely a bad thing either—at the very least it would make people regard him more highly, and at times it would make things more convenient. A matter of pros and cons, one might say.