Chapter 80: Putting on a Mysterious Act

Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Putting on a Mysterious Act

The Alchemy Room was spacious, its floor paved with bluestone slabs.

In the center stood a Purple Copper Eight Trigrams Alchemy Furnace. Beside it were several wide, long tables, upon which dozens of processed medicinal ingredients were neatly arranged by category.

Clearly, this Alchemy session was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. It had been well-prepared in advance, with all the ingredients already processed.

Besides a young apprentice standing respectfully with his hands at his sides, there was one other person in the Alchemy Room.

This man was about fifty years old, dressed in the deep brown brocade robe common among Chen Clan Elders. He stood before a window with his hands clasped behind his back, seemingly admiring the view outside.

Hearing footsteps, he turned around.

Upon seeing the man, Lin Quan’s face filled with surprise. He quickly cupped his fists in a salute. "So it is Clan Elder Chen Yan! Forgive my lack of respect!"

The elder, addressed as Chen Yan, gave a slight nod, his gaze sweeping placidly over Lin Quan.

"The county has been restless lately. To ensure the peace of the Zhige estate and guard against troublemakers, I have been stationed here for some time."

Realization dawned on Lin Quan. He quickly turned to introduce Chen Yue. "Chen Yue, this is Clan Elder Chen Yan of our Chen Family. He is highly respected and of great prestige within the clan, and his Cultivation is profound."

Chen Yue followed protocol, cupping his fists. "This junior, Chen Yue, pays his respects to Clan Elder Chen Yan."

As he spoke, he subtly sensed the man’s aura and determined that this Clan Elder Chen Yan’s Cultivation was likely at the Bone Forging Realm.

’But when his gaze fell on me... was that a faint, assessing look in his eyes?’

Chen Yan nodded. His gaze lingered on Chen Yue’s face for a moment before he spoke slowly.

"While in the estate, I have often heard your name. Chen Jing has nothing but high praise for you. It’s a pity I’ve always been preoccupied with mundane affairs and never had the chance to meet you. Today, at last, I have."

"The Clan Elder overpraises me. This junior is unworthy," Chen Yue replied humbly.

By now, Chen Zhige had already seated himself on a cattail cushion in front of the Purple Copper Alchemy Furnace. His gaze swept over the ingredients beside it, and his tone grew focused.

"The most difficult part of refining this Dan Yang Pill is the final Solidifying Pill step. I have tried several times before, only to fail at the very last moment, just as the Medicinal Power was about to fuse into one.

"When I reach that critical point later, I ask that you both watch very carefully. Perhaps you will notice an oversight that I have missed."

Lin Quan quickly waved his hands. "Duke Zhige, you jest. If even you find it difficult with your Alchemy Skill, how could we, who have only just glanced at the Pill Formula, offer any guidance? It is already a great fortune for us just to observe and learn."

Chen Zhige glanced at Lin Quan, then seemed to casually flick his eyes toward the quietly standing Chen Yue. "On the path of the Alchemy Dao, an outsider’s insight is sometimes necessary!"

With that, Chen Zhige said no more. He began adding the processed ingredients into the Pill Furnace one by one in a specific order. His technique was skillful and practiced, and his control over the heat was simply sublime.

Inside the Alchemy Room, the scents of various ingredients mixed and mingled, gradually forming a strange, rich fragrance.

Lin Quan was completely focused, staring at Chen Zhige’s every move, unwilling to even blink for fear of missing the smallest detail.

Chen Yue appeared to be observing intently, but in his peripheral vision, he was keeping an eye on Clan Elder Chen Yan. Ever since they had entered, the elder had been standing casually, yet his gaze would land on Chen Yue from time to time, faint but frequent.

When Chen Zhige reached a certain step in the process and added a few pungent-smelling ingredients, the medicinal aroma in the Alchemy Room seemed to undergo an extremely subtle change.

Having cultivated the Heart Nourishing Technique to the level of Minor Success, Chen Yue was particularly sensitive to such changes in scent.

His nostrils flared almost imperceptibly. He didn’t smell anything pungent or obviously out of place, yet an extremely faint sense of dizziness began to spread quietly through his mind.

Just then, Lin Quan, who had been completely absorbed in watching the Alchemy, suddenly swayed without warning. He staggered a step, a look of dazed confusion on his face, and seemed to want to turn and say something.

But before he could speak, the light in his eyes rapidly faded, and his entire body slumped sideways.

Chen Yan, who had been standing nearby looking casual, seemed to have anticipated this. With a slight shift of his body, he instantly appeared at Lin Quan’s side, his hand reaching out to steady the collapsing man. His movements were fluid and natural, showing no hint of panic or surprise.

At almost the same moment, the waiting apprentice also collapsed bonelessly to the floor without a sound, losing consciousness.

The only sounds in the Alchemy Room were the WHOOSH of the burning firewood and the faint gurgling of the medicinal liquid inside the Pill Furnace.

After setting Lin Quan down, Chen Yan’s gaze, sharp as lightning, suddenly snapped toward Chen Yue, who had remained standing in place, his expression calm from start to finish.

His eyes no longer held their previous placid, assessing quality; they were now filled with unconcealable shock and suspicion.

Meanwhile, in front of the Pill Furnace, Chen Zhige, who had been engrossed in his Alchemy, also stopped his movements without any warning.

He slowly turned his head, his gaze piercing through the hazy medicinal vapors to land on Chen Yue as well.

The face that had just worn a warm smile was now covered with undisguised astonishment and confusion, as well as a hint of grimness from a disrupted plan.

Chen Yue met their gazes, sharp as knives and swords. He tilted his head slightly and said softly, his tone indifferent:

"Should I have fallen down like them?"

Chen Yue hadn’t smelled anything strange—only normal medicinal aromas. But it was obvious that a colorless, odorless Seductive Fragrance was mixed in, perhaps coming from within the Pill Furnace, or perhaps wafting from somewhere else.

But with his various Cultivation Techniques and his more-than-half-mastered Talent, Immune to Hundred Poisons, this kind of knockout drug was useless against him.

The air inside the Alchemy Room instantly froze.

The light from the fire danced across Chen Zhige’s and Chen Yan’s faces, illuminating their shifting expressions.

Seeing Chen Yue’s calm face, Chen Yan’s pupils contracted sharply. He grabbed Chen Zhige’s shoulder, pushed off with his feet, and dragged him backward in a sudden retreat, not stopping until their backs hit the Alchemy Room’s wooden door.

His gaze was like a hawk’s, locked tightly onto Chen Yue. The calm, assessing look from before was completely gone, replaced by a cold wariness, as if he were re-evaluating prey that had suddenly escaped his control.

Chen Yue ignored Chen Yan’s posture, which was like that of a man facing a formidable enemy. His gaze swept over the collapsed Lin Quan before finally returning to Chen Yan’s face.

"I don’t understand. Since I, Chen Yue, entered this estate, I have focused on my Alchemy and never overstepped my bounds. Why go to such great lengths to set this trap for me?"

’This kid wasn’t just unaffected by the Mistaken Heaven Fragrance, he can even question us so calmly? This is definitely not how someone in the Skin Refining Realm should be acting!’

’Could it be that he has some incredible protective treasure on him?’

All sorts of speculations flashed through his mind. A fierce glint appeared in Chen Yan’s eyes. He snorted coldly, his voice full of impatience.

"Putting on a mysterious act! How dare you play such tricks in front of me!"

Before his voice had even faded, Chen Yan had already crossed several yards in an instant. His right hand curved into a claw, slicing through the air with a sharp whistle as he lunged straight for Chen Yue’s throat.

The strike was as fast as lightning and exceptionally vicious. It was the Ghost Shadow Claw, a rather sinister grappling technique of the Chen Family designed specifically to break through Protective Qi. Those hit by it were either killed or crippled.

In Chen Yan’s eyes, even if Chen Yue had a treasure that could resist the Seductive Fragrance, his own Cultivation was merely at the Skin Refining Realm. There was no way he could block this claw strike!

He just had to capture him, and then he could torture the truth out of him!