Strongest War Emperor

"You’ve got a lot of nerve, kid..."

Lanlos’s eyes narrowed, and he suddenly swallowed the rest of his words. His gaze on Shen Lang grew a little more serious.

Even with his level of cultivation, he always handled Potions with the utmost care. Yet this kid had just tossed it over so casually... But forget the toss for a moment. The technique itself was exquisite. To wrap an object with Spiritual Power with such precision required at least the Qi Martial Realm. To put it bluntly, a Martial Artist at the Martial Power Realm could barely get their Spiritual Power to leave their body; they could only focus on physical training.

But even being at the Qi Martial Realm wasn’t that astonishing...

The problem was, the kid in front of him was just too young. He looked to be fifteen, sixteen at most.

As an Appraiser, Lanslo’s judgment wasn’t half bad, so since he couldn’t be certain, he didn’t dare to push it. With a sullen look, he nodded and said, "It’s not that I can’t appraise it for you, but I’m on a tight schedule. I have to get back to what you interrupted. I can only give you three minutes."

"Heh, I’d say if you can’t appraise my Potion in three minutes, Sima Yan probably won’t even acknowledge you as his student. Don’t glare at me. Get to work." Shen Lang leaned back in his chair, watching Lanslo with a mocking expression.

Lanlos let out a soft snort and turned his attention to the Potion on the table.

The Potion on the table was a very strange color. Ordinary potions are typically one distinct color, but this one was a bizarre, indescribable swirl of many hues.

In Lanlos’s experience, a multi-colored Medicinal Liquid was one of two things: either it was extremely poor quality, like something a beginner had botched, or it was an incredibly High Grade Potion refined by a master.

But looking this kid over from head to toe, there was no way he had the air of a master about him...

The cap wasn’t even open, yet a strong, pungent odor already filled the entire room. Lanlos couldn’t help but frown after a single whiff. ’If I actually open this, the smell will be unbearable!’

’Who in their right mind would dare drink something that stinks this much?’

Lanslo sneered, uncorked the bottle, and began his inspection...

"A low-quality Fierce Tiger Potion that can temporarily boost one’s strength. Estimated value: Five Hundred Gold Coins." It took Lanslo less than twenty seconds to make his judgment.

Not only that, but as he placed the Giant Potion back on the table, he muttered disdainfully, "Garbage... Still, for someone of your skill level to concoct a Potion like this, I suppose it’s not bad."

"Garbage? A low-quality Fierce Tiger Potion? Five Hundred Gold Coins?" A dark look crossed Shen Lang’s face, but then the corners of his lips curled into a smile. "May I ask, is your master truly Sima Yan? How could he possibly produce a student like you?"

"You bastard!" Lanlos slammed his palm on the table, roaring, "What’s that supposed to mean? Are you questioning my abilities?!"

"Not at all, why would I do that?" Shen Lang said with a smile.

Lanslo’s expression had just started to soften when Shen Lang continued, "I’m not questioning your abilities. I’m flat-out certain you don’t have any... If Dean Sima Yan knew the student he taught was so arrogant and incompetent, he’d probably want to die of shame."

"You... you... you..." Lanlos’s finger, pointed at Shen Lang, trembled uncontrollably, as if he were stricken with a fever.

Although a thousand voices in his head were screaming at him to go over and beat the hell out of this little bastard, he forced himself to hold back.

’The Treasure Pavilion’s rules... never, ever attack a customer. The consequences would be dire...’

"Alright, go on back to your alchemy. You’re wasting my time." Shen Lang shook his head with a look of utter resignation and stood up.

He didn’t feel like saying anything more. He just grabbed the Giant Potion and turned to leave.

’What a joke. A Spirit Level Fifth Grade Giant Potion, even more potent than the one I gave Deng Jianchen, being treated like trash he can’t even be bothered to look at twice? Does he really think I’m some rich idiot?’

"You bastard! Just who is wasting whose time here?!" Lanlos trembled with rage.

However, just as Shen Lang, having driven Lanslo mad with anger, reached the doorway, the large doors were pushed open.

They were thrust open with great force.

An old man about Sima Yan’s age, with a white beard and a wrinkled face, burst in panting. Zhan Lan followed close behind him.

"You must be my young friend, Shen Lang! I’m Sima Qing, Chief Appraiser of the Treasure Pavilion," the old man said with a cheerful laugh. Without waiting for a reply, he seized Shen Lang’s hand with his own large, rough ones and began shaking it vigorously.

"Oh, Mr. Sima. To what do I owe the pleasure...?" Shen Lang glanced at Zhan Lan, who was standing nearby with red-rimmed eyes, and he instantly understood what had happened.

’This name, though... it sounds a bit familiar...’

Sima Qing let out a booming laugh. "Thinking my name sounds a bit like Sima Yan, the Dean of Tayun Academy’s Alchemy Institute? You’re right! That idiot is my younger brother, HAHAHAHA..."

’Idiot...’ Cold sweat trickled down Shen Lang’s back. This old man was probably the only person in all of Celestial Phoenix City who would dare to call Sima Yan an idiot.

Even though Sima Yan’s skill in alchemy was worlds apart from his own, thanks to the War Emperor’s legacy, Shen Lang still respected the man’s age and would never call him an idiot. Sima Qing, on the other hand, was brutally direct.

Sima Qing refused to let go of Shen Lang’s hand, pulling him back to his seat. He then plopped himself down where Lanlos had been sitting and said, still huffing and puffing, "I was busy outside when Zhan Lan came and told me you’d arrived. Ah, I ran over as fast as I could! Thank goodness I caught you. My young friend, please don’t think me slow to greet you!"

"You came personally, Senior. How could I possibly blame you? You’re too kind," Shen Lang said politely. He had always been one to return a foot of respect with ten feet of his own.

Meanwhile, listening to the conversation between the old man and the young man, Lanlos, who had been standing there with a stunned expression, swallowed with great difficulty.

’This is terrifying...’

’The Chief Appraiser of the Treasure Pavilion, Sima Qing himself, is being this polite to a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old kid?’

’And he actually ran all the way here!’

’He doesn’t even bother to show up in person when Sima Yan visits! So why would he...’

’Just what is this kid’s background? Could he really be from one of the great powers in Celestial Phoenix City?’

’But that can’t be right.’

’With Sima Qing’s status, he wouldn’t necessarily act this way even if City Lord Ye Xiao Zheng himself were here! Ye Xiao Zheng would have to respectfully address *him* as Senior!’

’I’ve been at the Treasure Pavilion for several years, and I’ve never once seen him treat a customer with such courtesy.’

’Could this kid be from the Evil Wind Valley? Yes, that must be it! Besides someone from a Profound Iron Level Influence like the Evil Wind Valley, what other brat would make the old master act so politely? And even run over in person?’

As Lanslo wiped the sweat from his brow, his mind raced, trying to figure out how he was going to explain himself to Sima Qing.

’No matter what, even though the kid brought a garbage Potion, he’s from a major power. My behavior just now made him lose face. I have to find a way for him to save it.’

’But how, exactly? This is going to be difficult.’

’As a distinguished Alchemist, an Alchemist with dignity, I absolutely cannot go against my conscience and call a garbage Potion a High Grade one.’

’My lifelong reputation would be ruined in an instant! Who would ever trust my judgment again?’

’My only option, then, is to praise the kid for becoming an Alchemist at such a young age... and for being handsome and dashing...’

’Yes, that’s what I’ll say in a minute.’

’Damn it, it’s just a matter of groveling and kissing a little ass. With that praise, he saves face and I save my reputation. I, Lanlos, am a genius!’

While Lanlos was consumed by his internal struggle, the others had already stopped paying him any mind.

Sima Qing narrowed his eyes and said, "By the way, I heard from Zhan Lan earlier that you brought a High Grade Potion with you today, my young friend?"

"What? High Grade?" Lanlos froze for a second before shooting a venomous glare at Zhan Lan.

’How ridiculous! Even if you’re trying to kiss his ass, you have to find another way! You can’t do it like this, even if he has a powerful background! That Zhan Lan girl is really making a mess of things!’

’If you call the trash in his hands a treasure just because he has an impressive background, we’ll become a laughingstock when we try to sell it!’

’The Treasure Pavilion’s reputation will be ruined... It looks like that Zhan Lan girl is incompetent. She needs to be replaced!’

’She’s so unbelievably stupid!’

’She doesn’t even have the skill to kiss up properly!’

Shen Lang smiled and said, "I wouldn’t call it particularly High Grade. It’s just something I whipped up. If I weren’t short on cash, I wouldn’t have bothered making something like this to sell."

Lanlos’s face immediately brightened. ’See? People from major powers are just different. He doesn’t even need the money; he’s just messing around... He "whipped it up." See how honest he is?’

"Huh?" Sima Qing looked from Shen Lang to Zhan Lan in astonishment.

’Something isn’t right here. Didn’t Zhan Lan say he brought a Giant Potion? Why is he saying it’s nothing too High Grade, just something he casually whipped up?’

’That’s absurd. A Giant Potion isn’t something you can just "whip up."’

’It’s not just that it’s troublesome to make; several of the Spirit Medicines it requires are extremely scarce. Even if one knew how to concoct the Medicinal Liquid, gathering all the ingredients is no simple task.’

"Even though it’s something I just whipped up, I’m not going to just sell it to anyone. Because just a moment ago, I changed my mind..." Shen Lang said flatly.

"No, no, no, please don’t change your mind! To be honest, I haven’t had the chance to see a Giant Potion in a long time, especially one concocted by an Alchemist as young as you... Please, my young friend, bring out the Giant Potion and let this old man have a look!"

As Sima Qing spoke, he shot a murderous glare at Lanlos, who was standing off to the side.

"Gi... Giant Potion?" Lanlos was dumbstruck, thinking he must have misheard.

"Yes. Gi. Ant. Po. Tion." Sima Qing practically spat the words out, enunciating each syllable through gritted teeth.