Even just concocting one pot of the crappiest first-grade Gold Talisman Pill would be enough to show off in front of ordinary Pill Masters. It took the Second Prince several failed attempts before he finally managed to produce a single pill.
Such lousy skill is not even worth mentioning in the presence of an Alchemy Dao giant like Chu Feng.
Even among general Talisman Elixir masters, it’s considered bottom-of-the-barrel stuff.
Yet there he is, acting all high and mighty as if he’s the most talented person in the world. As if he’s the best there is.
Qiao Sheng, Chen Yanjuan, and the others gathered behind the Second Prince, relentlessly flattering him and making him feel even more smug and light-headed.
Just when the Second Prince was at his most self-satisfied, he caught sight of Chu Feng out of the corner of his eye and sneered as he walked toward him.
"Ha, you shameless piece of trash! You still dare to come to the Golden Talisman Sect Store?"
"Looks like the basin of water last time didn’t scare you enough!"
Surrounded by a crowd of followers, the Second Prince was swaggering in his arrogance, looking down on Chu Feng with disdain.
"Manager Sun, this time I suggest you go directly for manure! To prevent this Sword King Mansion’s pauper from constantly turning up at a high-class place like the Golden Talisman Sect Store."
"This kind of person coming in is not only an eyesore but also bad for business." The Second Prince sneered as he proposed to Manager Sun.
As he spoke, he showed off by smacking a hundred taels silver note onto the counter.
"Manager Sun, as long as you perform well, these hundred silver taels are yours! The Prince here has plenty of money; there’s much more good stuff to come!" The Second Prince generously offered a rare treat, all to get Chu Feng even more miserably beaten down.
Manager Sun glanced at the hundred taels silver note on the counter and looked at Chu Feng.
He immediately decided to pocket the money and gave a clerk a signal: "Bring a ladle of manure here! Splashing it on this pauper in the store wouldn’t be good. We’ll have to kick him out before doing it."
To be so ignorant is to be fearless; Chu Feng is now the guest Alchemist of the store. He was personally invited with much humility by the shopkeeper of the Golden Talisman Sect Store.
His status is so high that not just any counter manager, but even the Chief Steward, must be polite to Chu Feng.
Manager Sun actually wanting to douse Chu Feng with manure is literally courting death.
Just like last time, Chu Feng stands unafraid of authority.
With an indifferent and icy tone, he responded, "You still want to splash me? Fine, very well. Don’t just bring a ladle; bring a whole bucket. Then we’ll see, I’ll surely allow you to splash to your heart’s content!"
The last time Manager Sun splashed him with a bucket of water, he ended up drenched and humiliated.
Chu Feng came this time with a status that could crush Manager Sun, and he was determined to have his revenge.
Just as he was considering how to deal with Manager Sun, this old fool came to him of his own accord!
Isn’t this just sticking his face out for Chu Feng to slap?
"You little bastard. Seems that a basin of water last time wasn’t enough to sober you up! You even dare to spout nonsense, threatening me, the manager. Then bring a bucket of manure here to make you drink it gladly!" Manager Sun sneered, instructing the clerk to increase the amount and bring over a bucket.
The Second Prince was also watching with a pleased smile, waiting for the show.
Soon enough, the place was packed with people, all of them looking at Chu Feng with pity. Some regulars recognized Chu Feng as the poor young man who was thrown out a couple of days ago and shook their heads.
Some even advised Chu Feng to bow his head, admit his mistake, and leave the store to avoid being forced to drink manure water.
This was the Golden Talisman Sect Store, where even if the Jianyun Emperor came, he might not dare to behave wildly.
He, a fallen prince of the Sword King Mansion, was even less worth mentioning.
"What are you doing?" Teacher Xie Bing stood beside Chu Feng, glaring at Manager Sun and the others with a furious expression.
"Hehe, nothing much. Just teaching this kid a lesson!"
Manager Sun laughed lewdly, his gaze towards Teacher Xie Bing entirely disrespectful.
"Teacher Xie Bing, you’d better not interfere in this matter, and you can’t handle it anyway! This is not the Alchemy Academy!" The Second Prince did not take Teacher Xie Bing seriously at all.
The tone was arrogant and haughty, with not the slightest intention of respecting teachers and valuing the way.
"Is this how you treat your customers? I will handle this matter! I brought Chu Feng here to visit Master Huang Qingshan. Who dares to lay a hand on him?" Xie Bing was so angry that her pretty face turned pale, but she also realized her teacher status held no sway here.
She immediately invoked Master Huang Qingshan to control the situation.
"You are guests of Alchemy Master Huang?" Manager Sun’s expression changed slightly, with a clear hint of fear in his eyes.
Alchemy Master Huang was the Grand Alchemist in the store, a revered figure, and even if they were only his guests, Manager Sun would not dare to offend them.
Just at this moment, Teacher Zhao Gou had come down from upstairs.
He stood next to Xie Bing, exuding a formidable presence.
"Alchemist Zhao, good to see you!" Manager Sun actually recognized Zhao Gou and hurriedly nodded and bowed, greeting him.
An extreme display of sycophancy.
Compared to the Second Prince, Zhao Gou’s alchemy skills were much more superior. The shop’s attendants and managers all knew Zhao Gou had caught the favor of Alchemy Master Huang Qingshan.
He was a regular client of Alchemy Master Huang.
Everyone was extremely reverent towards Zhao Gou.
Xie Bing was overjoyed and quickly sought help from Zhao Gou, "Teacher Zhao Gou, your timing is perfect! Please help Chu Feng!"
"What’s the matter?" Zhao Gou stood with his hands behind his back, posing like a high-ranking leader, exuding an air of aloofness.
"It’s ..." Manager Sun hurriedly described the situation, embellishing the details.
Of course, he portrayed himself as being in the right.
Zhao Gou never viewed Chu Feng as an equal, bringing Chu Feng to visit Alchemy Master Huang was only to give face to Xie Bing. He hoped to win Xie Bing’s gratitude and develop a more-than-friends relationship with her.
After listening, he immediately pulled Xie Bing aside and said to Manager Sun and the others, "Every family has its own rules, every country has its laws! Since this Chu Feng has violated the store’s regulations, he must receive the appropriate punishment!"
"This kid named Chu Feng only came to seek an audience with Alchemy Master Huang and can’t be considered a guest! Whether Alchemy Master Huang will see him or not is still uncertain. Whatever punishment you wish to impose on him, go ahead as you please!"
Zhao Gou had long noticed Teacher Xie Bing treated Chu Feng very kindly.
Although Chu Feng was merely a student, it still made him feel somewhat jealous and inexplicably threatened.
This time, when he went upstairs to meet Alchemy Master Huang, he only briefly mentioned Chu Feng’s request for an audience.
In reality, Zhao Gou feared that Chu Feng would gain the favor of Alchemy Master Huang and one day surpass him. Therefore, Zhao Gou had been quite scheming.
On the surface, he introduced Chu Feng to Master Huang Qingshan, but behind the scenes, he sabotaged him.
Alchemy Master Huang, being such an important figure, was naturally proud and asked Chu Feng to wait downstairs.
This was exactly what Zhao Gou wanted.
He hoped Chu Feng would grow impatient from waiting and eventually leave.
Now, learning that the counter’s Manager Sun wanted to deal with Chu Feng, it was exactly what Zhao Gou desired. Not only did he not speak up for Chu Feng, but he also kicked him when he was down, completely severing any relationship Chu Feng might have had with Alchemy Master Huang.