Chapter 3324 — Overturning Common Sense

But the scene unfolding before his eyes struck Kang Jingming like a thunderbolt from the heavens, leaving him dumbstruck and speechless.

What? Once these thirty second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons were sold, they would no longer be sold? An improved model was coming? But the technical difficulties had not yet been overcome? What did that mean? Release date unknown? In other words, whether it could even be released was uncertain?

If that technical difficulty was never overcome, then no more second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons would be sold? How could that be? What about the three hundred–odd second-grade medicinal cauldrons his family had just manufactured? What were they to do with those? Who were they supposed to sell them to?

Little One's breathing was likewise rapid and shallow; he well knew the principle that he and Ancestor Xuanchen prospered together and fell together. If Ancestor Xuanchen and Kang Jingming could not sell those second-grade medicinal cauldrons, then what were they to do?

"Brother Kang, we..." Little One drew a deep breath and turned to look at Kang Jingming.

"Don't panic!" Kang Jingming forced himself to calm down, then said, "Wei Zhao cannot possibly not need second-grade medicinal cauldrons—otherwise, why would he bother calling the hidden You family to inquire? As for the second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons he is manufacturing, though there are technical difficulties to overcome, the raw material is still second-grade medicinal cauldrons, and Wei Zhao is no fool. If the technical difficulties truly could not be overcome, would he be foolish enough to abandon this market? Obviously not—I don't believe Wei Zhao could be that stupid. He will certainly keep manufacturing the current second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons, so those cauldrons of ours will not go unsold no matter what; it is only a matter of time!"

"Brother Kang truly has great talent—to analyze Wei Zhao's thinking in an instant like that. No wonder the Master thinks so highly of you!" After hearing Kang Jingming's words, Little One felt as if he had swallowed a calming pill and instantly breathed a sigh of relief.

In his eyes now, Kang Jingming was still a man of some ability—no wonder Ancestor Xuanchen had married Little Eleven to him. His cultivation strength might not be high, but his intelligence was considerable. Was the Five Luminaries Sect not short of exactly such a person right now?

The two of them set their minds at ease and returned to the Five Luminaries Sect. Kang Jingming related his analysis to Ancestor Xuanchen as well, and Ancestor Xuanchen was likewise reassured—after all, Kang Jingming's analysis made very good sense.

What they did not know, in fact, was that this second-grade automatic medicinal cauldron was merely a temporary substitute proposed by Wei Zhao, its sole purpose to trap Kang Jingming; Han Jingyi had already found a material that could replace the second-grade medicinal cauldron.

And the so-called technical difficulty was simply Han Jingyi's wish to further refine the second-grade automatic medicinal cauldron—after all, with the current design, the number of people who could operate it was limited. Only a second-grade alchemist could use it, and among the entire Upper Ancient stratum there were but a scant few second-grade alchemists. If you produced so many second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons, who on earth were you going to sell them to?

Nor would the things break down anytime soon; barring improper operation that caused the cauldron to explode, a single medicinal cauldron could last several years or even a decade or more. Keep producing such cauldrons, and they simply would not sell.

During this period, Wei Zhao had remained in the Night Palace cultivating. The third layer of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art was on the verge of breaking through to the Grand Perfection stage, and Wei Zhao meant to charge straight through in one sustained effort. Yet Wei Zhao knew in truth that such things were not the work of a single day or night; whether the breakthrough would come smoothly was up to fate.

Just as the Grand Supreme Elder returned to the Night Palace in high spirits, carrying the three second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons, Wei Zhao received a call from Han Jingyi—or rather, from Liu Jinghan.

Although many sect masters and elders had tried to exchange high prices or other cultivation resources with the Grand Supreme Elder for the second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons, the Grand Supreme Elder had refused them all. She was now quite clear about her position within the Night Palace, and intended to let Gu Mengyao make the decision once she returned.

Still, she had recorded the terms each family offered, so that Gu Mengyao might weigh them and decide which family the two surplus second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons should be sold to.

"Jingjing, this is about the second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons, isn't it?" Wei Zhao asked as he picked up the phone.

"Yes, Brother Wei Zhao, you truly foresee things like a god—you already know!" Han Jingyi said in surprise.

"Liu Jinghan, stop flattering me... I'm not used to it..." Wei Zhao broke into a sweat; Han Jingyi's praise always made him feel somewhat awkward.

"I'm Han Jingyi!" she protested. "Could it be that Brother Wei Zhao prefers a business-genius girl like Liu Jinghan?"

"Then it had better be Han Jingyi," Wei Zhao said with a wry smile. "Is there some new plan? Actually, you can decide these things yourself—there's no need to consult me on every little thing."

"Well, it's like this: the second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons made with the substitute material can be put on the market at any time. We found a solution to the cauldron material problem long ago; only, if it were merely a second-grade automatic medicinal cauldron with substituted materials, even if the quality were slightly better, it could not possibly boost sales," Han Jingyi said. "The current second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons use medicinal cauldrons from the Xuandan Sect as raw material and can last several years or even a decade or more, while our substitute material can last several decades. In essence there is a difference, but not a great one, and we cannot wait ten-some years before selling."

"Oh? So what is the situation now?" Wei Zhao asked. The second-grade automatic medicinal cauldrons had been selling well lately, and Wei Zhao had obtained a large sum of money from the Overseas Cultivators' Association; it was still sitting in the jade pendant space, and he had not yet found time to give it to Yu Xiaoke. Add to that the other transfer, and the orphanage truly had no shortage of money—it had already gotten onto its feet, which lifted a weight from Wei Zhao's heart.

So Wei Zhao's need for money was not especially great. But Wei Zhao knew that the company's operations had already grown to a considerable scale and had become the enterprise on which the Liu family, Fatty Lai, Kang Xiaofeng, and the others depended for their livelihood; it could not be allowed to stagnate or simply shut down. So for their sakes, Wei Zhao had to keep helping out.

"The situation now is that Jingjing has invented a medicinal cauldron that allows a first-grade alchemist to refine second-grade pills." Han Jingyi's words were truly earth-shattering, giving Wei Zhao a great fright!

"What?! A first-grade alchemist can refine second-grade pills?" No wonder Wei Zhao was astonished—this simply overturned the laws and rules that had held sway over the entire cultivation world for a thousand years. If a first-grade alchemist could refine second-grade pills, then the status of second-grade alchemists would plummet!

It could be said that for most people this was a blessing from the heavens, but a small minority would be utterly miserable: second-grade alchemists, once lofty and exalted, would now be no different from first-grade alchemists. RS