Following that, a middle-aged alchemist clad in an elixir robe and of slender build emerged from the back hall and walked towards them.
"Edward Li?" Terra Su narrowed his eyes upon seeing the middle-aged man. He remembered this person from his past life, known as Edward Li, who was an apprentice alchemist at the Five Treasures Hall.
In his previous life, Terra Su had inadvertently crossed paths with Edward Li, who was then arrogant and scornful, ridiculing Terra Su as worthless.
Who would have thought that in this new life, he would encounter Edward Li so soon.
"Master Li is here!"
"Master Li is an intermediate apprentice alchemist at the Five Treasures Hall, rarely seen in public. It's unexpected to see him today."
The crowd buzzed with discussion, and even the elder and the young girl gave Edward Li an extra glance upon hearing that he was an apprentice alchemist.
In a small city like Clear River City, apprentice alchemists were indeed a rare sight.
"Was it you who said that this elder's injuries cannot be healed with the hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb?" Edward Li walked straight up to Terra Su, looked him up and down, and asked.
"Is that any of your business?" Terra Su retorted.
"Ignorant child!"
Edward Li's eyebrows shot up as he rebuked loudly, "Injuries inflicted by an Ice-Scaled Python should naturally be treated with Supreme Yang herbs, and the effects would be even better with a hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb. This is common knowledge known to all alchemists. You, a layman, spout nonsense without knowing anything. As an intermediate apprentice alchemist, it's only right for me to stop you."
While speaking, Edward Li's gaze surreptitiously drifted towards the elder and the young girl. He had his own calculations; if he could treat their injuries, they would surely remember his kindness, which would be extremely beneficial for his future.
While Edward Li was busy with his own schemes, Terra Su didn't give him the slightest bit of face, sneering, "You're the one talking nonsense."
Edward Li was instantly furious, shouting, "What are you, to dare question me, an intermediate apprentice alchemist?"
Terra Su ignored Edward Li, turning to the young girl and saying, "I can treat your grandfather's injuries without the need for a hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb, just the most common Yang Origin Stone will suffice. I am willing to help you on the condition that you give me the hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb."
Terra Su's words instantly caused an uproar within the Five Treasures Hall.
"Did I hear that wrong? This young man is actually questioning an intermediate apprentice alchemist?"
"He claims he can treat a bite from an Ice-Scaled Python? He doesn't even seem to be an alchemy apprentice, isn't he bragging a bit too much?"
Even Edward Li couldn't help but laugh dismissively, "I thought you had something serious to say. You, a mere boy, dare to claim you can treat an injury from an Ice-Scaled Python without using a hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb? Are you out of your mind or did you take the wrong medicine?"
Terra Su paid no attention to Edward Li, instead calmly addressing the young girl, "If you trust me today, I can heal your grandfather's injuries. If you don't, by the time I walk out of the Five Treasures Hall's doors, it'll be too late for regrets."
Edward Li loudly said, "Honorable miss, you need not listen to this young braggart's nonsense. I, as an intermediate apprentice alchemist, guarantee on my honor that everything he says is utter rubbish. Injuries from an Ice-Scaled Python are complex and difficult to treat, and must be healed with a hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb. Moreover, today in the entire Five Treasures Hall, only I possess the ability to treat it."
The two stood their ground, and all eyes in the hall turned to the young girl, wondering whom she would trust.
The young girl pondered for a moment, clearly struggling to decide.
After a short while, she bit her lip and looked at Terra Su, "Sir, I have some understanding of the Elixir Path. I would like to know why you say that my grandfather's injuries cannot be healed with a hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb, and that it would instead worsen the condition?"
Terra Su glanced at the bandage wrapped around the elder's arm and said, "It's simple, because your grandfather's wound is not from an Ice-Scaled Python bite, but from a Cold-Hearted Python!"
"Cold-Hearted Python?"
The young girl was visibly shaken. The Cold-Hearted Python was an extremely rare Monster Beast, and its venom was ten times more poisonous than that of an Ice-Scaled Python!
"How is that possible?" the young girl immediately asked, "Sir, could you be mistaken? The Monster Beast that attacked my grandfather should have been an Ice-Scaled Python, I couldn't have seen it wrong!"
"It's very difficult to distinguish between an Ice-Scaled Python and a Cold-Hearted Python just by their appearance!"
Terra Su spoke indifferently, pointing at the bloodstained bandage on the elder's arm, "But from the bloodstains on this bandage, it can be determined that it's a bite from a Cold-Hearted Python."
Considering the time from when you were attacked in the mountains to when you entered Clear River City and came to the Five Treasures Hall, at least three hours must have passed, yet the bloodstains continue to seep through the bandage, indicating that the wound has not healed.
This is against common sense, as the scent of Gold Wound Medicine emanates from the bandage. If it were a normal wound, it should have started to heal after the application of Gold Wound Medicine.
Only the Cold-Hearted Python, with a substance on its fangs that disrupts the clotting process, would cause a wound that struggles to heal."
Terra Su's calm voice floated through the hall.
Edward Li's face changed colors several times as he looked at the elder's bandage, forced to admit that he had indeed overlooked the continuous seepage of bloodstains!
Immediately, Edward Li's face turned ashen, and he said resentfully, "Fine, even if it is as you say, a Cold-Hearted Python bite, so what? Does that mean a hundred-year-old Supreme Yang Herb can't be used to treat it?"
Terra Su smiled, looking at Edward Li as if he were looking at an idiot, and quietly said, "Of course not. The Elixir Path requires precise treatment for specific conditions. The venom of a Cold-Hearted Python is completely different from that of an Ice-Scaled Python, so naturally, the same medicine cannot be used to treat it."
With that, the corners of Terra Su's mouth curled up slightly, "Master Li, the words that come out of your mouth are so unprofessional, it really makes me doubt whether your title of intermediate apprentice alchemist was obtained through deception."
Edward Li's face turned extremely ugly, wishing he could slap himself for having said such unprofessional things in a moment of frustration.
He immediately looked at the young girl and said, "Miss, I…"
But before Edward Li could finish, the young girl interrupted him apologetically, "Master Li, I would like to try this gentleman's treatment plan first."
As the young girl spoke, a flash of intense irritation crossed Edward Li's eyes. He hadn't expected that between himself, an intermediate apprentice alchemist, and an unknown youngster, she would choose to trust the latter.
However, Edward Li couldn't afford to turn against the young girl on the spot, because judging by the young girl and the elder's attire and demeanor, they were most likely nobles from afar, and he dared not offend them, nor could he take the risk.
"Fine, let's treat him right here, so I can witness it myself!" Edward Li stood to one side with a sullen face, not believing that this unknown youngster could really treat a Cold-Hearted Python bite.
The Cold-Hearted Python was an extremely rare Monster Beast, and even Edward Li had only heard of it but had never seen its bite firsthand.
Edward Li believed that Terra Su was bluffing and that faced with the rare injury from a Cold-Hearted Python bite, Terra Su would surely fail to cure it, and might even worsen the condition.
When that happened, he, as an intermediate apprentice alchemist, would step in and turn the tide in front of everyone, performing a miraculous cure and elevating his reputation to new heights.
Thinking this, Edward Li simply crossed his arms and stood aside with a sneer, waiting to see Terra Su make a fool of himself.
At this time, the number of people gathered in the hall was increasing.
Proofreader & Editor:Peter Pan
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