“The fourth time I frowned was when you spoke of Cloudsipping Grass. How could that grass possibly grow inside of clouds, which is exactly what you said? That’s nothing but sheer and utter nonsense! It’s a grass that grows in mountain streams, surrounded by wisps of cloud and mist. THAT’S why it’s called Cloudsipping Grass!” The next step Meng Hao took left the old man completely ashen-faced. Yet again, he subconsciously stepped back. He suddenly remembered that Cloudsipping Grass was exactly as Meng Hao had just described it. When he had talked about it earlier, he had intentionally spouted some hogwash; his explanation actually had nothing to do with reality. That was because he had no idea what the plant really was.
“The fifth time I frowned was when you talked about the Tree of Nine Eyes….
“The sixth time I frowned was because of what you said about Gauzewood Moss….
“The seventh time I frowned….”
Every time he spoke, Meng Hao took another step forward, and the old man’s face grew paler as he fell back in retreat. His expression soon became one of panic, which caused the surrounding apprentice alchemists to stare in shock.
“The twelfth time I frowned was because you said that Brightmoon Vines have flowers that bloom with two different colors. One color is toxic, the other isn’t. You spoke of the plant’s medicinal properties, but then never explained how to tell the difference between the two. That is why I frowned!” Meng Hao advanced with each of his explanations, and the old man fell back. By this point, Meng Hao was now standing on the platform.
“The last time I frowned was when you talked about Midwinter Sap. I have no idea from whom you learned about plants and vegetation, but even though Midwinter Sap can be produced by burning it with a cultivation flame, that will produce an inferior product. The highest quality Midwinter Sap requires magically induced lightning to create!” With that, Meng Hao flicked his sleeve.
Voice echoing, he continued, “The Dao of alchemy is vast and limitless. The number of medicinal plants is like the water in the sea. No one can remember all of them, and the mistakes you made are not unforgivable. However… we are in our clan’s Dao of Alchemy Division. The apprentice alchemists here to listen to your lecture are all fellow clan members. If you know something, then talk about it. If there’s something you’re not clear about, no one will make fun of you for that. That being the case, there is absolutely no reason to make up random garbage! If you do that, these apprentice alchemists might end up paying with their lives because of the mistakes they will make in the future!”
Meng Hao’s words were spoken with little courtesy. Originally, he had intended to simply leave. However, the old man had aggressively provoked him, and as such, he laid bare all of the reasons why he had frowned earlier.
The old man opened his mouth to respond, but there was nothing he could say. His mind spun as he realized that there were indeed aspects of his speech in which he didn’t know what he was talking about. However, he had fallen into a habit of lecturing on those things merely based on his own personal experience and judgement.
Currently, his face was as pale as death, and he was trembling. There was nothing he could do to refute Meng Hao’s stern criticism. In fact, for some reason, the feeling he got when he looked at Meng Hao was the same feeling of awe he’d had years ago when he was an apprentice alchemist looking at the full alchemists.
Everything Meng Hao had said left him shaken, and actually answered many questions that he himself had wondered about.
In the silence that followed, the surrounding hundreds of Fang Clan apprentice alchemists began to talk.
“Fang Hao…. I just remembered! He’s the one with the 30,000-meter Bloodline Gatebeam! His bloodline is inconceivably strong! It’s that Fang Hao!!”
“It’s really him! He came from Planet South Heaven. Supposedly, he experienced some kind of Seventh Year Tribulation. Now he’s back, and not only does he have a strong bloodline, he also managed to silence an alchemist on the subject of plants and vegetation!”
“He’s the eldest grandson of the direct bloodline! His bloodline is even stronger than Prince Wei’s. I can’t believe he’s here in the Dao of Alchemy Division!”
“After hearing him talk about all those different medicinal plants, I suddenly feel like I understand them far better than I did before! Could it be that Fang Hao is also an alchemist?”
Meng Hao was just about to leave when the trembling old man stepped forward. Clasping hands, he bowed deeply to Meng Hao.
“Alchemist Fang. Sir, you were right to chide me. My name is Fang Qun, and everything was my fault. Would you mind staying for a moment and clearing up some of my confusion, Alchemist Fang? I… I actually have some questions about plants and vegetation that I hope you can help me with.” Although Fang Qun seemed a bit embarrasse