Super God Potion Shop

"Super God Potions?"

Following the address Li Shuyi had given him, Bai Xiaowen found the potion shop. The moment he saw the towering building beneath its massive gilded sign, he froze for a second.

It was far too grand!

The shop, called Super God Potions, stood on prime real estate at a major intersection. The tiers of steps were spotless, and two poker-faced guards stood ramrod straight on either side of the imposing entrance, radiating a fierce air.

The two intimidating guards alone spoke volumes about Super God Potion Shop's status. This was no ordinary storefront like Li Shuyi had described, but a major potion merchant, comparable to a top-tier jewelry house in another world.

Bai Xiaowen walked up the steps toward the entrance. Though the guards eyed his unbuttoned shirt and worn jeans with some suspicion, neither stopped him from entering. Their duty was to deal with thieves and troublemakers, not to judge every customer's purchasing power.

The spacious hall gleamed with gold and splendor. Vials of liquid potions in all sorts of colors sat behind transparent display cases, reflecting gorgeous, intoxicating light beneath the lamps.

"It's laid out a bit like a large jewelry mall. But potions cost far more than ordinary gold and silver jewelry, so this level of grandeur isn't surprising." Bai Xiaowen browsed the displays as he walked.

"Hello, how may I help you?"

The saleswoman behind the display case asked routinely, her manner polite. Anyone qualified to work sales in a shop of this caliber had surely received strict training. The sort of behavior where one sneered at customers dressed in cheap street-market clothes simply did not exist here.

"I'm here to apply for a part-time job. Here's my student ID." Bai Xiaowen handed over his card. He did not immediately mention Li Shuyi's name. That would have been too shallow. Bai Xiaowen considered himself a man of depth.

The saleswoman accepted the ID, then could not help glancing at Bai Xiaowen a few more times. "Supervisor Fan handles the shop's daily affairs. I'll take you to his office."

Bai Xiaowen thanked her repeatedly. He took a look at her name tag and saw that her name was Xu Ling. The reason she had volunteered to lead the way was, of course, Bai Xiaowen's handsome face. Sometimes, a good-looking face was an excellent calling card.

Supervisor Fan's name was Fan Jianwei. He was a young man in his twenties, wearing gold-rimmed glasses that made him look refined and scholarly.

After learning why Bai Xiaowen had come, he gestured for him to sit.

"You're a senior high school student? What skills do you have?" Fan Jianwei stroked his chin. "Every position at Super God Potion Shop requires someone with a specialized skill."

"I can identify medicinal herbs," Bai Xiaowen said. With his Insight Talent, identifying herbs was naturally no problem for him.

"Heh, identifying medicinal herbs..." A trace of unreadable meaning flashed through Fan Jianwei's eyes. He shook his head and smiled. "Junior Bai, I graduated from Chihuo No. 1 High School too. Since you're my junior, let me give you some advice. Identifying medicinal herbs isn't something you can just casually claim. I studied in Jinghai University's botany department for four years, and even I wouldn't dare say I could identify basic medicinal herbs with a hundred percent accuracy. A single basic herb costs several thousand yuan. If you misidentify one and cause the shop a loss, who will compensate for it? Your little part-time wage wouldn't be nearly enough."

When he saw that Bai Xiaowen was about to speak, Fan Jianwei raised a hand to stop him and continued, "Still, you're my junior, and the fact that you came to me is fate. I'll help you out. Here are the certificates for two potions. Fill out their price tags, and I'll see how your handwriting is."

As he spoke, Fan Jianwei took a safe from a small cabinet on his left and entered the password to open it.

The safe had upper and lower compartments. Each held a potion bottle and an A4 sheet of paper—the potion identification certificate.

Both potions were pale black, crystal clear, and gleamed like crystals.

Fan Jianwei handed Bai Xiaowen two soft cards and a black gel pen. "Here. Copy the potion names and prices from the identification certificates onto the labels, then stick them on. If your handwriting is decent, I'll make the call and keep you on as a clerk."

Bai Xiaowen took the pen and glanced over the two potion identification certificates. With his Super Brain, he understood everything written on both certificates after just one look.

"The upper one is Stone Skin Potion, and the lower one is Gargoyle's Might Potion. Hmm, their prices are actually so far apart!" Bai Xiaowen picked up the price labels and copied the information neatly. His handwriting was fairly decent.

Soon, Bai Xiaowen had filled out the price tags. After peeling off the thin film on the back, he stuck the labels onto the outside of the potion bottles.

The backs of the labels were coated with specially made industrial-strength adhesive, normally covered by a protective film. Once the film was peeled away and the label stuck to a potion bottle, it was very difficult to remove.

"Mm, your handwriting is quite good." Fan Jianwei's smile grew noticeably warmer as he handed Bai Xiaowen an empty carrying case. "Take these two potions and their identification certificates to the sales hall, give them to Xu Ling, then come back and we'll discuss your job... Hm? What's wrong? Why are you just standing there?"

Bai Xiaowen stared fixedly at the two potion bottles, then at the potion names on the labels, and finally at the vastly different prices.

Stone Skin Potion: 98,000 yuan. Gargoyle's Might Potion: 1.28 million yuan.

But! Under Bai Xiaowen's Insight, the information displayed for the potion bearing the "Stone Skin Potion" label was:

[Enhancement Potion: Gargoyle's Might]

[Grade: Tier 1, Level 7]

[Purity: 82% (Excellent)]

[Ingredients: Briarthorn 5.96%, Demon Moss 4.26%, Moon-Wheel Leaf 2.41%, Blood-Fang Bat Wingbone Powder 3.47%, Water 83.90%]

[Effect: Permanently increases Strength by 3.]

The potion below it, bearing the "Gargoyle's Might Potion" label, displayed:

[Stone Skin Potion]

[Grade: Tier 1, Level 2]

[Purity: 78% (Good)]

[Ingredients: Stonewoot 7.42%, Dead-Leaf Grass 3.81%, Green-Ivy Flower Powder 5.79%, Water 82.98%]

[Effect: Makes the skin as hard as stone, increases Defense by 10 points, reduces bleeding effects by 66.7%, lasts 120 seconds.]

Bai Xiaowen's expression turned strange. The labels on these two potions had actually been switched!

Bai Xiaowen had copied every word from the identification certificates exactly. That meant the documents Fan Jianwei had given him were themselves wrong. The two identification certificates had been deliberately swapped!

Bai Xiaowen had filled out the labels. If anything went wrong later, he would definitely be left holding the bag.

"Why did Fan Jianwei switch the identification certificates?" Bai Xiaowen's mind raced at incredible speed. Several possibilities appeared in an instant, but he ruled them out one by one until only four words remained—embezzling for personal gain!

The Gargoyle's Might Enhancement Potion, originally priced at 1.28 million, was being sold as a Stone Skin Potion for 98,000. Bai Xiaowen was almost certain that once the potion was placed on the shelves, Fan Jianwei's accomplice would quickly buy it.

Why had Fan Jianwei made Bai Xiaowen fill out the price tags? The reason was simple. Bai Xiaowen was a temporary worker, rootless and alone. If the shop discovered the problem, Fan Jianwei would directly push Bai Xiaowen out to take the blame. A loss of over a million would be pinned on Bai Xiaowen. Having his property confiscated would be the least of it; he might even end up in prison.

Now that he understood the full chain of events, it was time to think about how to break the deadlock.

Expose Fan Jianwei's scheme to his face? That was the stupidest possible choice. Fan Jianwei's office contained only the two of them, and Bai Xiaowen had no solid evidence that Fan Jianwei had switched the identification certificates. Fan Jianwei could instead turn the tables and accuse Bai Xiaowen of putting on the wrong labels himself. One was an experienced affairs supervisor who had graduated from a prestigious university, while the other was a newcomer who was merely a senior high school student. Who would the shop manager believe? The answer was obvious.

"Junior Bai, what are you spacing out for? You've been standing there like an idiot for ages." Fan Jianwei smiled amiably.

Bai Xiaowen looked up at Fan Jianwei. If not for his Insight Talent, he truly would never have imagined that this seemingly enthusiastic senior harbored such malicious intentions and wanted to use him as a scapegoat. In that instant, a bold idea came to Bai Xiaowen.

He slipped his hand into his pocket, gripped his phone, and double-clicked the volume button to activate the recording function.

Bai Xiaowen smiled. "Supervisor, these two potions look too similar. Shouldn't you double-check them? It would be bad if there were a mistake."

A flicker of discomfort crossed Fan Jianwei's face. After pausing for a second, he resumed his smile. "Junior Bai, you're being overly cautious. Since you filled out the labels according to the identification certificates, there definitely won't be a problem. Don't worry. I watched you apply the labels the whole time, so nothing could have gone wrong."

Bai Xiaowen sighed inwardly. Since you insist on remaining stubborn, don't blame me. He had actually left Fan Jianwei a way out by subtly suggesting that the potions might have been mixed up. If Fan Jianwei had felt guilty and taken the hint, he could have retrieved the potions, had them identified again, and relabeled them.

As a newcomer who had yet to gauge the depth of the waters here, Bai Xiaowen did not want to confront the affairs supervisor head-on. It would have been best if everyone could remain at peace.

But Fan Jianwei was bold. He had never considered the possibility that Bai Xiaowen could identify the two potions. Of course, Fan Jianwei's contempt for Bai Xiaowen was understandable. Bai Xiaowen was only a high school student who probably could not recognize more than a few basic herbs, so how could he possibly recognize high-end Tiered potions?

"Then I'll take them over." Bai Xiaowen placed the two potion bottles and identification certificates into the carrying case and left Fan Jianwei's office.

After leaving Fan Jianwei's sight, Bai Xiaowen did not go to the sales hall. Instead, he followed the internal employee passageway and headed straight toward the depths of the potion shop.

At the end of the passageway was an iron door bearing the words: "Potion-Making Area. Unauthorized Personnel Keep Out."

Bai Xiaowen curled his lips. Precisely because it was an important area, he could find one of the potion shop's big shots there. He strode onward and pushed open the iron door, entering the rear courtyard.

"What are you doing here?"

Before Bai Xiaowen could clearly make out the courtyard's layout, two guards strode over and blocked his path.

Bai Xiaowen calmly said, "I'm a new employee. There's a problem with two potions, and Supervisor Fan sent me to find the shop manager."

The guards examined Bai Xiaowen, obvious suspicion on their faces. Bai Xiaowen hurriedly opened the carrying case, revealing the two potion bottles and identification certificates.

The two guards' expressions eased considerably. One of them said, "The shop manager is resting. Come with me, and keep your voice down."