"Of course, I brought them! These are not elixirs that help people, but outright poison pills!"
"See for yourselves! These are crafted by your store’s Chief Alchemist, Master Huang Qingshan!"
As he spoke, the Hong Family Master, incensed, took out a box with leftover elixirs and slammed it onto the counter.
Inside, there was only one left.
If there was a problem with the elixirs, Young Master Hong surely only took one. This means that out of this batch of Golden Talisman Elixirs, only two succeeded.
Chu Feng couldn’t help but touch his nose, a sneer appearing on his face.
It seems that Master Huang Qingshan’s success rate in elixir formation has some serious issues!
Normally speaking, as long as the level of alchemy isn’t disastrously low, a batch of talismanic elixirs should yield at least three successful pills. For someone like Chu Feng at the Alchemy Venerate Level, as long as all conditions are met, he could even achieve a shocking 100% success rate.
Chu Feng had crafted the Golden Rune Protecting Body Elixir, which was a difficult elixir. Even with subpar carving tools, he could still yield four or five successful elixirs.
Master Huang Qingshan, long renowned, was the number one alchemist of the Golden Talisman Sect Store. Crafting a batch of Golden Talisman Elixirs, and only succeeding with two, which turned out to be problematic poison pills no less, casts doubts over his alchemy capabilities.
Last time, in front of Chu Feng, Huang Qingshan had put on quite an inflexible demonstration, astonishingly pretentious.
This time, he’s likely to make a fool of himself.
Chu Feng was not in a hurry to leave but instead strolled over leisurely.
Upon closer inspection, he saw the remaining elixir had a rounded shape, and its surface was covered with runes that flowed with golden light, making it look extremely enticing.
Of course, that’s just how it appears to laypeople.
To someone like Chu Feng, an expert in the Alchemy Dao, it was obvious that this Golden Talisman Sword Qi Elixir had issues.
This elixir was a classic example of ’all bark and no bite,’ impressive in appearance but worthless inside.
"Hehe, the quality of an elixir reflects the character of its maker; it seems Master Huang Qingshan’s character isn’t all that great, either. Definitely the type that seeks glory above all else!" disdain flashed through Chu Feng’s mind.
Elixirs are meant for people to take.
No matter how good they look on the outside, if the efficacy inside is subpar, what’s the point?
Manager Ma, holding the elixir, scrutinized it closely, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter.
"Go fetch Master Huang Qingshan down here!" As the Chief Steward of the store, effectively at the level of a general manager, Manager Ma naturally had keen eyesight.
He likely already saw that there was a problem with the elixir.
"Hong Family Master, look, we’re all businessmen here and have a longstanding relationship! Rest assured, our store will give you a satisfactory explanation!"
"Regardless of whether there’s an issue with the elixir, our Golden Talisman Sect Store has always adhered to the principle of prioritizing customers above all. Since a problem has occurred while the customer was using our elixirs, our store will naturally do our utmost to help solve the issue."
The previous statement was directed at the Hong Family Master.
The latter was a promise made to all the onlooking guests.
Reputation above all else; if a customer encounters an issue with an elixir purchased from the store, and the store doesn’t take responsibility, who would dare to buy in the future?
Just look at the counter; some customers were already finalizing their purchases and about to pay. Now, they all wear peculiar expressions, observing the developments on the side of the Hong Family Master.
Should the elixir truly be problematic, they would likely reconsider their plans to purchase.
After all, there’s more than one kind of talismanic elixir; aside from Golden Talisman Elixirs, there are also Earth Talisman Pills, Water Talisman Elixirs, and so on.
They might as well shop at other stores.
However, relatively speaking, because the Golden Talisman Elixir is the easiest to concoct. There is a more established market for it, making it easier to purchase. There are also more options to choose from, and it’s relatively cheaper than other Talismanic Elixirs.
It’s apparent that Manager Ma is very smooth in handling matters.
First, he placated the Hong Family Master, then called out Master Huang Qingshan, just a few courteous words to smooth things over. Everyone here is a businessman, and with that, the matter could be suppressed.
Then they can solve it in private.
In this way, the negative impact can be minimized.
Not long after, the attendant who went to invite Master Huang Qingshan came down. His expression looked rather unpleasant.
"Chief Steward... Master Huang Qingshan says he’s in the midst of Alchemy and doesn’t have time to come down now!" the attendant muttered.
Manager Ma’s expression changed slightly, this Grand Master Huang really didn’t know how to behave. Even now, with such a serious issue at hand, he was still putting on airs.
The Hong Family Master had just calmed down a bit, but now streaks of anger were resurfacing on his face.
Manager Ma hurriedly apologized with a smile, "Hong Family Master, please sit for a moment! I will immediately go up and ask Grand Master Huang to come down. Even if it means discarding the batch of Elixir he’s currently concocting, he will descend to give you an explanation."
With that, Manager Ma hurried upstairs to personally invite Grand Master Huang.
After a long enough time for a cup of tea to pass, just as Hong Family Master was growing impatient, Manager Ma finally managed to invite Master Huang Qingshan down.
"Who dares to question the Elixirs I concoct? Does the Hong Family think they are something special?"
"Even if their Ancestor from the Hong Family came before me, he would have to bow down and call me ’Grandson’!"
Master Huang Qingshan really was imposing; as soon as he descended the stairs, he began to roar loudly.
This was turning into a disaster.
The Hong Family Master, who had been harboring a raging fury, had barely suppressed it with Manager Ma’s placation. But now it was reignited by Master Huang Qingshan’s provocation.
Not only did he not apologize, but he even put on airs, saying that the Ancestor of the Hong Family would have to bow before him.
Who could tolerate this?
"This is outrageous! I, the Family Head, spent a fortune to order a batch of Golden Talisman Sword Qi Elixirs from you. You concocted a batch of Poison Pills that harmed my son, causing damage to his sword meridians and his cultivation to regress. Yet you stand here, confidently justifying yourself, do you take the Hong Family for pushovers?"
"If this matter is not resolved today, my Hong Family will spare no expense to seek justice!"
The Hong Family Master slammed his palm on the counter, shattering the glass and wooden structure. The Elixirs scattered all around.
Faint sword light condensed at the tips of the Hong Family Master’s fingers.
Chu Feng’s eyes narrowed slightly, observing the profound depths of the Four Great Families.
Just the Hong Family Master alone possessed Great Sword Master Cultivation, hinting that hidden ancestors of the Hong Family might be even more powerful.
"Hehe, serves that Master Huang Qingshan right. Seems he’s displayed his arrogance right against a high wall today. At the very least, he’s going to suffer a nasty fall." Chu Feng was happy to watch the drama unfold with cold eyes.
The last time Xie Bing brought him here, hoping Master Huang Qingshan would offer some guidance, Chu Feng had ended up extremely frustrated.
The sudden turn of events caught Manager Ma off guard.
"Hong Baojiu, you dare to slander the Elixirs I concoct as poison? This place is not your playground!"
"Where are the guards, seize him!"
Master Huang Qingshan thundered with authoritative rage.