Master Gu Ni's Shock!

The next day.

In a quiet courtyard of the Mittel Auction House.

Inside the alchemy room, Master Gu Ni looked at the crimson pill in his hand and could not help raising it to his nose for a sniff.

At once, a familiar, exotic fragrance wafted out, jolting Master Gu Ni's mind. An unconscious, satisfied smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

He had refined this Second-grade Foundation Building Pill several times before.

This batch was the most perfect one yet.

It showed that his alchemy had improved considerably, bringing him another step closer to becoming a third-grade alchemist.

At that thought, a trace of excitement appeared on Master Gu Ni's aged face.

His talent for alchemy was limited. Breaking through to become a third-grade alchemist was his greatest wish in this life.

Now that he saw a glimmer of hope, how could he not be delighted?

After admiring it for a while longer, Master Gu Ni slowly placed the Foundation Building Pill into a jade bottle, treating it like a treasure.

"Master Gu Ni... are you free right now?"

"Ya Fei has a pill that needs your appraisal."

At that moment, a pleasant voice came from outside the alchemy room. It was Ya Fei.

Ya Fei?

Hearing Ya Fei's voice, Master Gu Ni paused slightly before a kindly smile appeared on his face.

That girl had come at just the right time. The pill had just finished refining.

Holding the jade bottle containing the Foundation Building Pill, Master Gu Ni left the alchemy room with a chuckle.

Creak!

As he slowly pushed open the alchemy room door, Master Gu Ni saw Ya Fei, dressed in red, waiting outside.

"Ya Fei, you came at the perfect time. The pill you wanted has already been refined." Master Gu Ni cheerfully waved the jade bottle in his hand.

"Perfect. The auction is about to begin as well."

Hearing this, delight appeared on Ya Fei's face. She hurried forward and accepted the jade bottle from Master Gu Ni.

"Master Gu Ni, you've truly worked hard during this time." Ya Fei sincerely thanked him.

She also understood that Master Gu Ni had agreed to refine this Foundation Building Pill entirely for her sake.

"It's nothing, it's nothing..."

Perhaps because his alchemy had improved, Master Gu Ni was in an exceptionally good mood and showed no displeasure at all.

"By the way, you said the auction is about to begin. What about the auction items? How has that boy Flowing Cloud prepared them?" Master Gu Ni suddenly thought of the auction and could not help asking.

"Didn't he promise that he would gather the remaining auction items himself? Tell me, what exactly did he find?"

At the mention of Flowing Cloud, Master Gu Ni's expression immediately soured.

In Master Gu Ni's eyes, this so-called Young Master was nothing but a dandy who understood nothing.

Reducing a monthly auction to one held every half month—wasn't that sheer nonsense?

Young people only knew how to chase quick profits. Their vision was far too shallow!

Master Gu Ni believed that Flowing Cloud could only reap temporary windfalls by doing this.

If the auction could not maintain the quality of its items over the long term, its reputation would sooner or later be ruined.

And if that happened, the Mittel Auction House would be finished.

He and Ya Fei had built up the Mittel Auction House with their own hands. Naturally, Master Gu Ni did not wish to see it destroyed in the hands of a "dandy" like Flowing Cloud.

Ya Fei also understood that Master Gu Ni had issues with Flowing Cloud. She did not say much, merely taking out a transparent bottle and handing it to him.

"Master, this pill was given to me by the Young Master. Please appraise it." Ya Fei parted her red lips as she looked at the transparent bottle in her hand.

She was also somewhat curious about what effect the pill Flowing Cloud had given her possessed.

"Just one pill? This is what gives that boy the confidence to hold an auction every half month?"

Looking at the pill bottle Ya Fei handed over, Master Gu Ni's face turned cold. He assumed that Flowing Cloud had merely given her a first-grade pill.

"Hm?"

At that moment, when Master Gu Ni saw the pill inside the transparent bottle clearly, he let out a soft cry of surprise.

As the appraiser specifically responsible for identifying pills at the Mittel Auction House, Master Gu Ni naturally possessed excellent discernment.

With just one glance, he could tell that the pill inside the transparent bottle was definitely not a first-grade pill.

"Master, what is it?"

Seeing something strange in Master Gu Ni's expression, Ya Fei could not help asking.

Master Gu Ni said nothing. He simply opened the cap and lightly took a sniff.

"What a rich pill fragrance. This is not a first-grade pill."

A trace of surprise appeared in Master Gu Ni's eyes. This pill's fragrance was far richer than that of the Foundation Building Pill he had just refined.

Ya Fei was not particularly surprised by this.

From their interactions over this period, she had gained some understanding of this Young Master. He was certainly not a dandy who only knew how to make trouble, much less someone who would use a first-grade pill to brush her off.

"Master, then what is this pill called? What effect does it have?" Ya Fei asked in confusion.

Even if it was a second-grade pill, this auction would have two second-grade pills anchoring it.

In terms of quality, it might not compare with the previous auction, but compared with past auctions, it was already quite good.

Time had been tight. Ya Fei was already very satisfied that they had managed to reach this level of quality.

"I'll only know its effects after testing it."

As he spoke, a silver needle suddenly appeared in Master Gu Ni's hand.

Then, Master Gu Ni tilted the transparent pill bottle slightly. A Green Pill immediately slid out and came to rest in his palm.

Staring intently at the Green Pill in his palm, Gu Ni pinched the silver needle between two fingers.

A faint fluctuation of battle qi flickered over the fine silver needle as it quietly entered the green pill, then gently stirred...

As the needle moved, Gu Ni's expression gradually changed from calm to grave.

A moment later, Master Gu Ni's face was still filled with shock.

"This..."

"A Third-grade Pill!"

"This... this is actually a Third-grade Pill!"

After the test, Master Gu Ni could no longer maintain his usual composure. His eyes were filled with disbelief.

"What?"

"A Third-grade Pill!"

Hearing Master Gu Ni's words, Ya Fei froze briefly before shock appeared on her beautiful face.

She stared wide-eyed at the Green Pill in Master Gu Ni's hand, her face full of disbelief.

The pill the Young Master had brought out was actually a Third-grade Pill!

How was that possible?

Thinking of the confident smile on Flowing Cloud's face when he had handed her the pill that day, Ya Fei seemed to understand something.

"Ya Fei, you're saying this Third-grade Pill was given to you by that boy Flowing Cloud?"

After a moment, Master Gu Ni finally came back to his senses and looked at Ya Fei skeptically.

He simply could not believe that a dandy like Flowing Cloud had the ability to produce a Third-grade Pill.

"It was indeed personally given to me by the Young Master." Ya Fei nodded with certainty, though her expression remained somewhat dazed.

While Ya Fei was still lost in thought, a scroll had already appeared in Master Gu Ni's hand. He held it close, seemingly searching for something.

"Qi Gathering Pill!"

"This is the Third-grade Pill, the Qi Gathering Pill!"

A moment later, Master Gu Ni's delighted voice rang through the courtyard.