chapter 6 Pulvis hallucinosae===

The matter of cooperation was discussed very pleasantly. In the first month, Elixirs were refined by Verdantius Liu himself, and he went to the Xu family every five days to collect it.
The profit was divided fifty-fifty for the first month. After one month, the method of refining was handed over to the Pill Treasure cockloft. The profit was then divided seventy-thirty, with the Pill Treasure cockloft taking seventy percent and Verdantius Liu taking thirty percent. The contract had a three-year term, and after three years, the ownership of the Spirit Elixir would belong to the Pill Treasure cockloft.
"These are some of the medicinal materials I need. When you gather them, give them to me. The required gold coins, you can advance first and deduct them from the profits."
He took out a pre-written list and placed it on the table. Arboreus Lei picked it up, his brows slightly furrowed.
After some negotiations, Arboreus Lei's attitude towards Verdantius Liu greatly improved. He began to doubt the authenticity of the rumors outside; that aura of a higher-ranking person was undoubtedly real. Only a powerful figure with the authority over life and death could emit such an aura.
"We can gather all these spirit medicines in the Pill Treasure cockloft, except for the Ninth sun fruit and the Red Spirit Grass. Those need to be transported from the imperial city, and it will take at least five days."
Arboreus Lei put down the list, sounding a bit displeased.
"Then I'll come back in five days." These two medicinal ingredients were crucial for refining the Prolonging Elixir. With his purpose achieved, Verdantius Liu stood up and walked towards the exit.
Both of them stood up, especially Master Huo, whose attitude completely changed. He followed behind with a respectful expression.
His life was still in Verdantius Liu's hands, and he had to be careful and attentive.
"Master Huo, are you sure the prescription is genuine? If this cooperation fails, it will have a huge impact on our Pill Treasure cockloft. When the Cockloft master returns, he will surely blame us."
Throughout the negotiations, Arboreus Lei didn't participate. Many matters in the Pill Treasure cockloft were presided over by Master Huo, and Arboreus Lei was only responsible for sales.
"I have deduced it several times. The prescription is most likely genuine. Once it comes out, our Pill Treasure cockloft's status in the Yan Dynasty will greatly improve. Go and send him off. If there are any other requests, fulfill them. Whether it's true or false, we will know in five days."
After the last sentence, Master Huo's eyes revealed a hint of cunning. If they couldn't produce the Spirit Elixir in five days, he would personally go to the Xu family and eliminate Verdantius Liu.
Stepping out of the inner hall, it had only been half an hour, but the hall was crowded. The broken counter had already been replaced. When the green-clad servants who were beaten saw Verdantius Liu, they gritted their teeth in hatred.
"Kid, you actually came out alive. Die!"
The man in purple suddenly attacked, and the moment Verdantius Liu appeared, he swung the ruler in his hand down.
The sound of breaking air came straight at them, catching everyone off guard. Who would have expected that after entering the inner hall, Verdantius Liu could walk out unscathed? It didn't make sense.
"Lei Manager, is this your way of treating guests?"
Verdantius Liu didn't make a move. With a slight movement of his divine sense, Arboreus Lei deliberately hid behind the door curtain, trying to test Verdantius Liu's true abilities. At this point, they couldn't continue hiding; they still had cooperation.
"Dorothy Zhou, stop!"
A firm and swift figure appeared in the hall, a cold shout interrupting Dorothy Zhou. The ruler in his hand paused in midair, and the innate momentum released by Arboreus Lei almost sent him flying.
The powerful force pushed Dorothy Zhou back, his hair scattered, his face ferocious. He didn't understand why Arboreus Lei would stop him from killing Verdantius Liu.
"Manager Lei, I'll add one more condition. I don't want to see this person in the Pill Treasure cockloft again. If you can't do that, the cooperation—ends!"
After saying this, Verdantius Liu walked towards the exit, and the crowd automatically made way for him.
Leaving behind a silhouette and countless mysteries, he disappeared from everyone's sight.
"Dorothy Zhou, pack up and leave the Pill Treasure cockloft. I'll pay you three months' salary. From now on, you have no relationship with the Pill Treasure cockloft."
Arboreus Lei said expressionlessly, shocking everyone present. What had happened between them for him to expel Dorothy Zhou just for the Xu family's son-in-law? What kind of situation had arisen?
"No..."
Dorothy Zhou roared to the sky, sitting on the ground. The salary from the Pill Treasure cockloft was very generous. Over the years, relying on becoming a small leader in the Pill Treasure cockloft, he had lived a prosperous life. Losing the Pill Treasure cockloft as a support meant he was nothing, cutting off his future.
"It's all because of this useless person. I'm going to kill him!"
Dorothy Zhou stood up, his eyes crimson. He didn't even take the salary and left the Pill Treasure cockloft.
Arboreus Lei didn't stop him, letting him go, "Organize all the needed medicinal materials and send them to the Xu family." He took out the list left by Verdantius Liu, instructing the head of the medicinal materials to prepare them quickly.
"Yes!"
The head in charge of the medicinal materials sensed that something was wrong and quickly grabbed the list to prepare the herbs. As for Dorothy Zhou's roar, it had long been ignored. Everyone was curious about what Verdantius Liu had done to cause such a drastic change in the Pill Treasure cockloft's attitude towards him.
Leaving the Pill Treasure cockloft, Verdantius Liu did not directly return to the Xu family but walked towards West Street.
The few companions who had invited him last night were staying here. He needed to investigate who wanted to kill him and clarify this matter.
Just turning the street corner, two servants from the Xu family happened to pass by and witnessed Verdantius Liu heading towards West Street.
"Hurry back and inform the master. That useless person is going to find his fox and dog friends again."
In secret, the Xu family servants referred to Verdantius Liu as useless, and this was no longer a secret.
Passing through two narrow alleys, a courtyard appeared in front. During normal times, Verdantius Liu liked to come here to hang out with his three friends.
However, today, the place was empty. Stepping into the house, all the furnishings had disappeared overnight, and they had left Canglan City.
His gaze swept over the hall and suddenly fixed on a corner of the wall, where a seemingly inconspicuous small sachet was discarded, about the size of a baby's palm.
Picking it up, he brought it to his nose for a sniff. Based on his understanding of his three friends, they never wore such sachets. So, who left it?
"Pulvis hallucinosae!"
His eyes narrowed. The sachet released the scent of Pulvis hallucinosae, which, when inhaled, could cause confusion and irrational behavior.
"As expected. Someone bribed them last night, lured me to the brothel, and secretly struck a fatal blow, causing the entire brothel to collapse, creating the illusion of being crushed to death."
Putting away the sachet, Pulvis hallucinosae was extremely difficult to refine, and no one in Canglan City could produce it. Who was trying to kill him?
With no other clues, he turned and left the house, quickly returning to the Xu family. Many servants were gathered around the main hall, craning their necks to see inside. What had happened?
Mr. Xu was frowning. Several baskets of weapons, including knives, swords, and halberds, were arranged neatly in front of him. The weapons made by the Xu family were well-known in Canglan City, in high demand, and a major source of income for the family.
The mother-in-law, Sleeth Yang, was also present. Valerrie Xu sat quietly, her brows slightly furrowed, exuding a hint of worry.
"I heard that our family's master blacksmiths were poached by the Tian family, taking away our unique forging techniques. This is a huge blow to our Xu family."
Outside the main hall, there was a murmur of quiet discussions. Verdantius Liu passed through the crowd, clearly hearing their words.
Of the four major families in Canglan City, the Xu family made a living through forging, holding about seventy percent of the city's market share. The remaining thirty percent was controlled by the Tian family.
While the Tian family's forging skills were not as good as the Xu family's, in recent years, they had hired a master blacksmith from an unknown place. Gradually, they were catching up with the Xu family, but their market share was still dominated by the Xu family.
The two families were in a constant struggle. The Xu family was conservative and didn't actively provoke, while the Tian family was aggressive, having already poached several master blacksmiths from the Xu family.
These master blacksmiths were personally trained by Xu Yilin, akin to apprentices. It was unexpected and a betrayal for them to leave the Xu family.
The scattered weapons on the ground were quite rough. Xu Yilin picked up a long knife and lightly tapped it with his right index finger. A notch appeared on the blade, revealing obvious quality issues.
Putting down the weapon, he glanced outside and locked eyes with Verdantius Liu. Forced to swallow his pride, he walked in. Everyone in the room wore expressions of schadenfreude.
"You went to West Street again."
Xu Yilin's face darkened. It hadn't been long since the incident yesterday, and now Verdantius Liu was back in West Street, making him furious. The family's affairs were already at a critical point, and he still had the audacity to go out and have fun.
"You useless person, if not for you, the reputation of our Xu family wouldn't have plummeted."
Sleeth Yang stepped forward, pointing at Verdantius Liu and shifting all the blame onto him.
The high-ranking members of the Xu family were all in the main hall, concealing their laughter, showing a disdainful expression. This useless person had tarnished the Xu family's reputation.
"Mother, let's deal with the weapon issue first."
Valerrie Xu stood up, interrupting the conversation between them. Mocking Verdantius Liu was like mocking her.
With a fierce glare at Verdantius Liu, not bothering to engage with him, she stepped aside, quietly watching.
"Deacon Lan, how many of these defective products were sold?"
Xu Yilin's brow furrowed deeper as he asked Deacon Lan, who was in charge of weapon sales and all the accounts.
"About five hundred pieces. Once we discovered it, we immediately cut off the supply. These are all defective products that were recovered. There aren't many left in the market."
Deacon Lan answered truthfully. Luckily, they discovered it in time, preventing a large batch from circulating.
Verdantius Liu picked up a long knife, lightly tapping it. The blade produced a discordant sound. With good materials, the Xu family's weapons should have demonstrated better quality. The forging technique, however, was too unfamiliar, and his brain quickly analyzed the issue.
"Young Master, someone claiming to be from the Pill Treasure cockloft has sent a large batch of medicinal materials. You should go and receive it."
The steward walked in. The Pill Treasure cockloft's medicinal materials had been delivered. After greeting his father-in-law, he left the main hall.