Chapter 1307: Worthless
Translator: CKtalon Editor: CKtalon
"You have defamed my Brightheart Veranda repeatedly. If you do not give a good explanation this instant, my Brightheart Veranda will definitely not let this matter rest!" Manager Su said coldly.
The Brightheart Veranda's reputation had always been extremely good. The reason why it was so famous was that the dishes it served aided in rejuvenating one's skin. In other words, its food could make people prettier and let them retain their youth.
This was very attractive to young people, especially girls.
Although warriors could use various mystic techniques to flawlessly alter their looks, the resulting appearance was ultimately not their own. Who wouldn't want to keep their original looks younger and prettier?
And it for was this reason that Princess Redjoy was a loyal customer of the Brightheart Veranda. She had eaten at Brightheart Veranda numerous times.
Upon seeing the situation pan out, Jing Yuesha turned anxious. From her point of view, Yi Yun was standing up for her, placing himself in this predicament for her sake. She could not help but give Jing Yueyin a pleading glance.
"Don't worry. Hear what Yi Yun has to say."
Jing Yueyin was also irked by Princess Redjoy and the Brightheart Veranda. She believed that they had gone overboard in the way they handled things. But could the young Yi Yun really point out the flaws in Brightheart Veranda's specialty dish?
"Excellent nourishment and acts exactly like herbal pills? If that were the case, your Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds would not be a cheat that earned you undeserved fame," said Yi Yun.
Everyone was stunned. Princess Redjoy nearly burst out into laughter. She stared at Yi Yun. "What's this? Punk, do you think you are pulling a fast one? Do you think we will let you off?"
"What's the rush? It's not like you are trying to bed someone." Yi Yun gave Princess Redjoy a nonchalant glance.
Princess Redjoy's face immediately flushed red. "You!"
She cultivated a special cultivation technique that made her have an alluring quality. However, she would usually suppress it and instead appeared ice-cold on the surface.
But at that moment, Yi Yun seemed to see through the coquettish disposition she had deliberately hidden and used it to mock her.
"I said what I said because your Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds is not a food dish at all. It consists of absolutely nothing but medicinal pills. And that is just one of the reasons," said Yi Yun as he shook his head.
"What nonsense are you spouting!" Princess Redjoy frowned.
If it were made of medicinal pills, the price would still be high but it would not be as sought after. That was because food dishes were special. Just like clothes and accessories that were made of different materials, they would have the same utility as clothes made of other materials; yet, they would lack something unique and rare.
Also, it was unheard of to make food dishes with medicinal pills. They were intrinsically different.
An abnormal glint flashed in Manager Su's eyes as she screamed, "What insolence! How dare you utter such nonsense in my Brightheart Veranda! The recipe for making this dish comes straight from my Pillheart Sect! Its heritage is unimaginably deep, more than one such as you can fathom!"
In the Heavenly South Great World, the Pillheart Sect was not to be offended. Many of the best supreme-grade pills and relics were sold by the Pillheart Sect. Even the Outcloud Empire and Divine Empire of Thunder had to be courteous to the Pillheart Sect.
At that moment, Yi Yun was standing in front of the Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds. He took a whiff and said, "This is simply made up of a nourishment pill and a pill that aids in retaining one's youth. It is then prepared with other natural herbs by a Herbal Board Master. Then, the nourishment pill and beautifying pill are infused into the food through a special technique, creating this Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds. But that’s not all… the pills used in this dish are problematic as well.
Manager Su felt her heart skip a beat. The punk described it all in vivid detail. Did he really manage to deduct all of that? Or could it be that he was not some average junior at all? Instead, was he a spy sent by a foe of the Pillheart Sect? He could have been deliberately given the information to use as a tool to strike at them.
Manager Su's expression darkened. She felt that the latter was more possible. At Yi Yun's cultivation level and age, he definitely did not have the capability to discern such things. He probably had someone feeding him information.
Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds was very special or it would not have become Brightheart Veranda's specialty. The secret recipe was something only the Pillheart Sect knew. Manager Su was not knowledgeable in alchemy but she knew a little. The actual cooking of the dish was the responsibility of an alchemist.
Manager Su refused to believe that the punk in front of her could pinpoint every flaw just from receiving a tip.
"What nourishment pill and beautifying pill are you talking about? It's all random nonsense," said Manager Su.
Princess Redjoy added, with a sneer, "So many guests visit this place, and plenty of them are herbalists and alchemists. If this dish was truly made from melted pills, why couldn't anyone tell except you? By making those irresponsible remarks, you incur the wrath of not only the Brightheart Veranda, but the Pillheart Sect as well."
Jing Yuesha anxiously looked at Yi Yun. The situation was continuously escalating and she did not wish for Yi Yun to implicate himself in such a troublesome situation because of her.
"So what if a mistake is made? Can't others rate it when you put it up for sale?" Jing Yuesha said stubbornly.
"That's right. Our Brightheart Veranda's dishes can certainly be appraised by others, but we prohibit slandering," said Manager Su coldly.
"You and your white knight should bow your heads and apologize. Then scram. If so, I will plead to Auntie Su on your behalf. I believe Auntie Su would magnanimously forgive you on my account," said Princess Redjoy with a beaming smile. She looked meaningfully at Jing Yuesha, as if to say "Are you going to bow your head today or not?"
Jing Yuesha was extremely embarrassed and furious. She decided that even if she had to bow her head today, she would slay Redjoy at the martial competition a few days later!
At that moment, they could hear a din coming from a short distance away.
Following that, a middle-aged scholar, accompanied by a few maidservants, walked in.
Upon seeing the middle-aged scholar, Manager Su's expression changed. She immediately smiled and walked over to greet him. "Alchemist Zhang, what brings you here?"
Alchemist Zhang was Brightheart Veranda's presiding alchemist that hailed from the Pillheart Sect. Some of the herbal food, such as the Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds, was prepared by him.
Princess Redjoy also greeted him with a smile, "Greetings, Alchemist Zhang."
Alchemist Zhang represented the Pillheart Sect, so how could Princess Redjoy slight him?
"What's going on?" Alchemist Zhang's gaze swept the crowd as he asked indifferently.
In fact, he was there because he had caught wind of the situation. He wanted to know who would dare question the dishes of his Brightheart Veranda.
"Oh? It's just a white knight of some old acquaintance of mine. He says that Brightheart Veranda's Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds is undeserving of its fame." After Princess Redjoy said that, she sniggered. She was hoping for the situation to become worse.
Upon seeing Jing Yuesha's livid expression, Princess Redjoy was extremely delighted. Jing Yuesha was as dumb as ever. Did she actually think she would be spared if she apologized?
Alchemist Zhang looked sternly at Yi Yun. "Do you think a young punk like yourself has the right to question me?"
However, Yi Yun sneered and suddenly extended his hand.
A gray flame crackled in his hand as it jumped straight onto the beautifully laid out dish.
The food was instantly enveloped by Yuan Qi and burned by the gray flame.
"Ah!"
The attendant that was holding the plate cried out in shock. On the other hand, Manager Su bellowed in anger, "What the hell are you doing!?"
"What's all the hysteria for? It's just a plate of food. I'll compensate you if I spoil it," said Yi Yun indifferently. "Or could it be that you are suffering from a guilty-conscience?"
Manager Su darted her eyes over to Alchemist Zhang.
He too had his brows furrowed. It appeared as though Yi Yun really did know something. Based on his actions, it appeared that he was refining a pill?
This was the sect's secret recipe. Even if Yi Yun could tell that the dish was made from a melted pill, it was impossible for him to know the pill's recipe. Since the pill had melted, what could he refine even if he did so with fire?
Upon thinking of this, Alchemist Zhang composed himself. He nodded at Manager Su.
With Alchemist Zhang around, Manager Su was relieved. "If you can't prove anything today, don't go thinking you’ll ever step out of Brightheart Veranda's door again!"
"If I can prove it…" Yi Yun looked at Princess Redjoy and Manager Su. "You wanted me to apologize and then scram. I'll have you do the same thing, then. Also, Old Woman, since you wanted to chop off my leg, I will chop off your arms. Think of it as a little bit of interest."
Princess Redjoy gave Alchemist Zhang a glance and sneered. With Alchemist Zhang around, she refused to believe that Yi Yun could get the upper hand.
Meanwhile, the gray flames were blazing, melting the food they enveloped into a mist.
Minutes later, the mist began to shrink in midair, transforming into different shapes and sizes.
With the passage of time, the transformations became more obvious.
Upon seeing this scene, Manager Su felt her heart pound furiously.
Could this punk really know alchemy?
Even Princess Redjoy was frowning slightly. Why did it seem like the situation was getting worse?
That shouldn't have been the case. She was a regular customer of Brightheart Veranda and she knew that the specialty was the Pillheart Sect's secret recipe. Since it was secret, how could he know of it?
She looked at Alchemist Zhang and could not help but ask, "Alchemist Zhang, what is he doing?"
Alchemist Zhang had a sunken face. He had never seen Yi Yun's methods before. As such, he could not tell that they were capable of anything special. All he saw was the food being burned with fire. How could a melted pill be produced from burning?
"He's only deliberately trying to act mysterious."
That was Alchemist Zhang’s evaluation.
"So that's the case. This punk is only trying to stall for time…" Just as Princess Redjoy said that, Yi Yun stretched out his hand and beckoned. A white light flashed as the mist rapidly converged towards Yi Yun's palm as though it was being attracted to something.
Following that, Yi Yun slowly opened his hand.
To everyone's astonishment, two milky-white crystalline pills appeared in the middle of his palm.
The two pills had been condensed and refined from the mist!
"Since they are pills that have been melted before, all I can do is restore seventy or eighty percent of the original." Yi Yun held the two pills and said indifferently.
Manager Su looked as though she had seen a ghost. Just a moment ago, she was certain that Yi Yun did not know the pill's recipe. But now, he proved that he not only knew it, he was also very skilled in it!
At that moment, the color of Manager Su's face oscillated between red and white. Her eyes were wide as she stared.
Princess Redjoy was also taken aback. "This… This…"
Even if she did not know alchemy, she could tell that Yi Yun had reconstructed the melted pills!
Furthermore, the pills in Yi Yun's hand had a refreshing fragrance, identical in smell to the Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds. This also proved that what Yi Yun said was the truth. The Love Seeking Phoenix In Clouds really was the result of melting the two pills.
However, the pills were extremely rare. After being melted, they could easily be disguised in a dish. At least, Princess Redjoy had never seen these pills before.
At that moment, many of the guests for Princess Redjoy's banquet had arrived and gathered around. These people thought they would be watching Princess Redjoy beguile her foe, but who knew that they would witness such a scene? They were extremely shocked.
Even Jing Yuesha’s beautiful eyes went wide as her mouth was agape, so wide that an apple could be stuffed in. She looked at Yi Yun as if he was an old monster.
At that moment, Princess Redjoy felt like she had just eaten a fly. However, her side still had someone backing them. She hurriedly looked at Alchemist Zhang. Maybe Yi Yun had used some despicable means that Alchemist Zhang could expose!
But when she saw Alchemist Zhang's face, she was left stunned. The shock that Alchemist Zhang was experiencing was in no way less than hers. In fact, he was more shocked than her!
This was because only Alchemist Zhang knew the truth behind the Pillheart Sect's recipe.
He looked at Yi Yun in disbelief as he said stiffly, "How do you know the recipe!?"
But immediately following that, Alchemist Zhang calmed himself down. Now wasn't the time to question Yi Yun for he would only dig his hole deeper.
He said, "So what if they are melted pills? What's wrong if the food dish itself is a pill?"
Upon hearing Alchemist Zhang's words, people found them irreproachable. Medicine and food were different after all. Food was milder and warriors could eat a feast and enjoy life if they had the time. However, few would eat a meal of pills for no good reason.
Brightheart Veranda had become popular because of its food.
But now, they were discovering that, for all these years, they had been coming to Brightheart Veranda to eat pills. Why did that make it sound like they were sick?
"If it were only that, I wouldn't say much but this beautifying pill—let's call it that tentatively—is itself a failed pill!"
Yi Yun's words were shocking. Everyone felt their hearts jolt when they heard that.
"A failed pill?"
Yi Yun shook his head gradually. In fact, he was very surprised too. This was an ancient recipe recorded in the divine alchemist's notes. He never expected the Brightheart Veranda to have the recipe as well.
"Punk, what nonsense are you talking about?" Alchemist Zhang's expression was livid.
Yi Yun thought nothing of it as he continued, "The recipe you used for this beautifying pill has a serious flaw. It is only effective for youngsters with relatively strong vital potentials. However, there is a side effect of damaging one's vital potential. To put it bluntly, those who take this pill sacrifice their vital potential for a beautifying effect. However, the harm it does to the body is rather mild, and youngsters have lower cultivation realms, so they can hardly detect it. Therefore, your dish continues to be massively popular and highly appraised."
"With that being the case, this pill is nothing but trash to me. It's worthless!" Yi Yun's voice boomed with bold undertones.
The crowd was stunned. Of course everyone wanted to look good, but if it was at the cost of damaging their vital potential, even the slightest amount of damage was not worth it.