"Clearly, the theory of constitution isn't valid!"
"Thus, Apothecary Zhang Jian studied it seriously and left his conclusion in 《Pill Tempering Theory》. This book contains his viewpoint in detail. He believes that the difference in the effects of Body Tempering Pills isn't due to one's constitution, but due to the uneven distribution of medicinal energy during pill forging! Even pills of the same tier within the same cauldron can have different medicinal effects! "
"This theory lasted for several years until twelve years ago, when it was questioned and overturned! The one who questioned it wasn't an apothecary but a 1-star master teacher. He said that if the medicinal energy isn't evenly distributed during pill forging, why would such a situation only occur with Body Tempering Pills? Why aren't other pills the same? "
"Thus, he came up with a bold hypothesis and recorded it in 《Ning Han's Quotations》. This book doesn't sell very well in the market and there is only one copy in the guild's basic tier book collection vault. If you haven't read it before, you can take a look when you are free. It's at the far right corner of the 19th bookshelf!"
Zhang Xuan chuckled and continued, "This master teacher named Ning Han came up with a bold hypothesis. He believes that the reason why Body Tempering Pills behave this way is due to the difference in the main ingredient or forging method! Of course, he only came up with a theory and didn't put it into practice! "
"Eight years ago, the apothecary of Hongxuan Kingdom, Zhao Le, received inspiration from this book and conducted a series of experiments. He tried eighteen different main medicinal herbs and forty-two different pill forging methods before coming to a conclusion. He also wrote down the results of his research and compiled it into a book called "Detailed Notes on Body Tempering". Coincidentally, we have it in our guild's basic book collection vault. It's on the upper left side of the 27th row. It's together with "Yang Zhen's Alchemy Guide" and "Jade Blood Pill Refining Method"! If you don't believe me, you can get someone to bring it over to take a look! "
"I believe that the answer in this book is correct and sufficient to answer your question!"
At this point, Zhang Xuan stopped and gestured for Ouyang Cheng to send someone to retrieve the book.
"There's no need for that..."
Upon hearing these words, the gleeful Apothecary Jin Chen's face turned as dark as the bottom of a wok. He took two steps back, as though he had aged several years in an instant.
"What's wrong? If I don't bring the book over, I'm afraid that the Jindan master won't acknowledge my answer! "Zhang Xuan said.
"Your answer is correct. I have read this book before, and it is exactly as you said!" Apothecary Jin Chen nodded.
"Correct?"
"Identical?"
"That shouldn't be possible... Apothecary Jin Chen casually asked him a question, and he actually answered it without thinking. On top of that, he even mentioned so many books, and he even remembered the exact location... How is this possible?"
"Is he still human? Really? "
…
Hearing him admit it, the room exploded again.
Just now, everyone thought that Zhang Xuan was limited by his age and had not read many books. Only after hearing it with their own ears did they realize that compared to him … they were the ones who had not read any books!
After reading a book, not only could he remember the contents and time, he could even tell the name of the book and the location of the book in the library …
As for them … it was already good enough that they could remember the contents inside!
Looks like there's a f * cking gap between people!
"Since Golden Pill Master admits that my answer is correct, may I ask the second question!"
Zhang Xuan smiled.
Competing on memory?
You must be joking. With the Library of Heaven's Path in my head, I can summon the book to me with just a thought. No matter how good your memory is, can it be more accurate than mine?
"The second question is, why does the cauldron crack when forging a grade-1 [Strength Enhancement Pill]?"
Apothecary Jin Chen hesitated for a moment, and this time, it took him ten minutes before he spoke.
"Incredible!"
"What a sharp question!"
"Indeed, when forging a grade-1 Strength Enhancement Pill, it is common for the cauldron to crack. On the surface, it seems to be a problem of the apothecary, but in reality, it has something to do with the blacksmith as well!"
"Indeed, let's see how he answers!"
…
Hearing Apothecary Jin Chen's second question, everyone's minds jolted.
The cauldron of an apothecary was forged by a blacksmith. For it to crack while forging a pill, it was no longer within the boundaries of pill forging.
Of course, if one were to think about it carefully, it was still within the boundaries of pill forging. It was precisely because of this ambiguity that most apothecaries wouldn't pay attention to such questions, needless to say, answer them.
Everyone understood the meaning behind his words, and Zhang Xuan's lips curled up. "For this question, Apothecary Wu Xiao's 《Cauldron Maintenance》, Apothecary Zhao Qian's 《Important Matters to Pay Attention to in Pill Forging》, Apothecary Niu Xuan's 《Miscellaneous Matters》, Apothecary Pang Bo's 《New Cauldron Maintenance》..."
Without any hesitation, he listed the names of more than a dozen books. Finally, he said, "... There are records in these books. Actually, it isn't a problem. The cauldron you are using is ordinary Nine Smelting Metal. Even though this metal is tough, it isn't able to withstand the impact of heat and cold. The main ingredient of the Strength Enhancement Pill is the blood of an ice savage beast. It carries extreme yin and cold energy, and when it comes into contact with a hot cauldron, it is naturally unable to withstand it!"
"If you want to solve this problem, it is best to use a Black Steel Cauldron! Or, for every cauldron you forge, you can switch to another cauldron! "
Zhang Xuan said with a smile.
This question might seem tricky, but it was actually recorded in the basic tier book collection vault. However, there were simply too many books in there. All of the apprentice apothecaries in the Apothecary Guild wanted to research some pill forging methods so that they could take the official apothecary examination. Thus, why would they bother to study a bunch of useless books!
Besides, after taking the official apothecary examination, one's standing would be different. They would be able to socialize and gain more authority. As such, they would have less time to read books. Many knowledge could be found in the book collection vault, but they had never looked for it before.
Thus, even though other apothecaries were unable to answer these questions, to Zhang Xuan, who had copied the entire basic tier book collection vault in his head, it wasn't difficult at all.
"May I know if Apothecary Jin Chen is satisfied with this answer? If not, I can continue speaking... "
"There's no need for that. Your answer is correct!"
Cold sweat dripped down Apothecary Jin Chen's forehead.
When he first started forging the Strength Enhancement Pill, he met with this question and asked around. Eventually, he found the answer in a book. It was the book that Zhang Xuan spoke of, Apothecary Pang Bo's 《Maintenance of a New Cauldron》.
Initially, he thought that this was the only book that recorded this matter, so he made use of this opportunity to make things difficult for the other party. He didn't expect that the fellow before him would list more than a dozen books in a single breath.
It was fortunate that he didn't reveal the name of the book. Otherwise, if the other party were to list so many books in a single breath, he would definitely embarrass himself.
The heck, what is this fellow's brain made of?
How can he remember it so clearly?
Seeing his appearance, Ouyang Cheng and Du Man glanced at each other and smiled bitterly at the same time. This was nothing. If they knew that the fellow in front of them could even clearly see which page that sentence came from in the book, they probably wouldn't have been so irritated and insisted on carrying out this kind of Pill Debate!
Honestly speaking, the other party's request to point out the flaws in the pill forging process was indeed an increase in difficulty. To compete with the other party in terms of knowledge...
Probably, one could only dream...
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