Chapter 121: Lin Tomb

“Since I answered the second question correctly too, what's the third one? Let's hear it!”

Seeing the opponent concede, Zhang Xuan wasn't in the mood to waste any more time.

“I give up! These were already the two hardest questions I could come up with. Any more questions would only make me look more foolish!”

Alchemist Jin Chen shook his head. The fact that the other party recited so many book titles in one breath completely crushed his confidence. He knew that continuing to ask questions would only embarrass himself further, so it was better to retreat and at least save some face.

“No more questions?”

Zhang Xuan was startled, then realized. Since he had easily answered even the most difficult questions Jin Chen could conceive, asking more would indeed only lead to greater humiliation for Jin Chen. One had to admit, Alchemist Jin Chen was quite decisive.

“Your turn!”

He turned to look at Lin Mu.

Seeing Zhang Xuan look his way, Alchemist Lin Mu gritted his teeth and said, “To be honest, I don't even have a conclusion for this question myself. If you can't answer it, it won't count as a loss! Of course, if you *can* answer it, there's no need to ask the remaining two questions, because I'll know that asking any more would be useless!”

In an alchemy debate, the questioner must ask a question for which they themselves know the answer. Otherwise, if you don't understand it yourself, how can you judge whether the other party's answer is correct? Alchemist Lin Mu directly stated that he couldn't answer the question himself, which, by convention, went beyond the scope of an alchemy debate. Zhang Xuan could choose to refuse to answer. Doing so would not count as a loss.

“Go on, then!”

Zhang Xuan said casually. Refuse? He was joking; if it meant answering two fewer questions, he would of course agree.

“I've recently been researching the Marrow Expansion Pill. I've prepared everything thoroughly—techniques, materials, and cauldrons—with no issues whatsoever. Yet, I haven't been able to successfully produce the pill. I hope you can tell me what's going wrong!”

After a moment of hesitation, Alchemist Lin Mu slowly spoke.

“What kind of question is that?”

“Isn't that a bit unreasonable?”

“Yeah, if you can't produce the pill yourself, you should find the reason. How can someone else answer that question when you bring it up now?”

Hearing Lin Mu's words, everyone was stunned, and then their expressions turned peculiar. In an alchemy debate, questions should be answerable by the opponent. It's like asking someone, “How many moles do I have on my body?” or “How many meals did I eat yesterday?” Even a god couldn't answer that! Alchemist Lin Mu's question was precisely like that; by directly stating he couldn't produce the Marrow Expansion Pill, how could he expect someone else to answer?

“Ahem, Alchemist Lin Mu, questions should be well-founded. This question isn't appropriate; please ask a different one...”

Ouyang Cheng, who was presiding over the debate, also couldn't bear to watch and couldn't help but interject.

“I was rash...”

Hearing everyone's comments, Lin Mu also realized he had been somewhat imprudent. He shook his head and was about to speak when he heard Zhang Xuan across from him say, “It's not necessarily rash. How about this: you try to refine the Marrow Expansion Pill for me to observe now. Without seeing the actual alchemy, I can't do anything just by you recounting it!”

“Alright!”

Unexpectedly, the other party agreed. Lin Mu nodded and walked toward the alchemy furnace.

Actually, posing this question was a spur-of-the-moment decision. Recently, he had been trying to refine the Marrow Expansion Pill but had consistently failed. He had researched various books, tried different techniques, and exhausted all methods to no avail! Just now, seeing Zhang Xuan casually point out the flaws in other people's alchemy, he couldn't help but speak up. As long as he could identify the flaw, he believed that with his alchemy skills, he would surely succeed in refining it. He had originally thought this request was indeed rude and that the other party would refuse, but to his surprise, Zhang Xuan agreed.

The furnace fire blazed, and various medicinal herbs tumbled and swirled.

Lin Mu's ten fingers danced incessantly, like plucking strings of a zither. From a distance, it looked less like alchemy and more like an enchanting musical performance. With just a glance, Zhang Xuan knew that the person before him had immersed himself in alchemy for many years, and his techniques were already perfected. With such refined techniques and a flawless sequence of steps, yet still failing to produce the pill, it was indeed perplexing and left him bewildered.

“There isn't a single mistake!”

“With his technique, he could even successfully refine Strength Enhancement Pills, so how could he fail with a Marrow Expansion Pill?”

“Yeah, it's really strange...”

As Alchemist Lin Mu began refining the pill, everyone focused their attention. The more they watched, the more perplexed they became. Just as he had said, there were no mistakes in his herbs, techniques, or any other aspect. Under normal circumstances, this should have resulted in a successful pill, perhaps even a full-bodied one! Failure to produce a pill... that seemed impossible!

Yet, the evidence was right before their eyes. Soon, the furnace fire died down, the cauldron lid opened, and a pile of black medicinal residue appeared before everyone. Failure!

“That makes no sense!”

Ouyang Cheng, standing to the side, also furrowed his brow. As the Guild Master and the most skilled One-Star Intermediate Alchemist, he had the sharpest eye. After watching for a long time, he shared everyone else's conviction that the pill would surely be successful. The actual outcome left him with a strange expression, utterly bewildered.

“Sigh!”

Gazing at the utterly black medicinal residue in the alchemy furnace, Alchemist Lin Mu sighed and shook his head. He looked up at the young man before him. “This is my problem. If you can answer it, I'll concede immediately! If you can't, I'll ask a different question; it won't affect the debate.”

“Can't answer it?”

Zhang Xuan chuckled, walked up to the cauldron, circled it, and carefully examined the medicinal residue within. He then looked up at Alchemist Lin Mu, a peculiar expression on his face. “Alchemist Lin, you're still vigorous in your old age; that's something I didn't expect!”

“Vigorous in my old age?”

Lin Mu was bewildered. He thought, *My alchemy failed, why are you talking about me being vigorous in my old age? What does that have to do with anything?*

The other alchemists also looked over, puzzled. Previously, they would have started questioning and scolding, but having witnessed Zhang Xuan's extensive knowledge and abilities earlier, they knew there must be a deeper meaning behind his words.

“Yes, as I walked over, I noticed a scent on Alchemist Lin that is unique to women. And, the aura is fresh and pure, full of vitality. If I'm not mistaken, she should be under eighteen, right?” Zhang Xuan said.

“Yes, I recently took a concubine; she's not even eighteen yet this year!”

Alchemist Lin Mu's face turned red. He was already in his sixties or seventies, nearing the grave, yet he had taken a concubine who was only seventeen or eighteen. Although this wasn't unusual in this world, being mentioned in front of so many alchemists still made him feel somewhat embarrassed.

“Could it be... that my inability to refine the Marrow Expansion Pill is related to me taking a concubine?”

Soon, Lin Mu looked over, puzzled. If there was no connection, based on Zhang Xuan's previous actions, he wouldn't have elaborated. But... what connection could taking a concubine have with alchemy? They were completely unrelated!

“Precisely... if I'm not mistaken, your concubine... is no good!” Zhang Xuan thought for a moment and said lightly.

“No good?”

Lin Mu was first stunned, then frowned, slightly angered, his face full of displeasure. “How dare you insult her?”