Da Feng: From copying golden entries to becoming an immortal in the mortal world

"This is a metal called sodium, which has a unique silvery-white metallic luster and looks similar to silver at first glance."

"Several years ago, the astronomers of the Imperial Observatory began to mass-produce them specifically for small-scale experiments."

Upon hearing Luo Chen's words, Chu Caiwei immediately thought of Senior Brother Song Qing and the alchemy practice that had resulted in an explosion.

She put down the pastry she was holding and began to recall, "I remember now, this thing explodes when it comes into contact with water!"

"My senior brother Song Qing did an experiment before, putting sodium at the back of a small paper boat in an attempt to replace human labor."

"It was somewhat effective at first and could solve the problem of controlling the direction, but after a large amount of sodium was added, a violent explosion occurred."

"Junior brother, am I right, senior sister?!"

Chu Caiwei looked at Luo Chen with a smile on her pure and beautiful face, feeling a little happy inside.

[Turns out, after leaving the Imperial Observatory, I'm actually quite clever!]

Luo Chen looked down at Chu Caiwei, a gentle and refined smile on his lips, and gave her a thumbs-up, praising, "Junior Sister is truly intelligent!"

Upon hearing this, Prefect Chen exclaimed with gratitude, "I see. Thank you both for clearing up my doubts."

Suddenly, his pupils contracted, as if he had thought of something, and he voiced his guess in a somewhat tactful tone:

"Could there be a traitor within the Imperial Observatory who provided the method for refining metallic sodium?"

Upon hearing this, Chu Caiwei wondered why the suspicion had fallen on the Imperial Observatory.

She pursed her red lips, her face showing a hint of unhappiness, and the pastries in her hands no longer tasted appetizing.

Seeing this, Luo Chen pinched her soft, rosy cheeks, offering some comfort.

He looked at Chen Hanguang and said slowly, "The Imperial Observatory once calculated that it takes at least two taels of silver to produce one tael of sodium. The cost of counterfeiting is more than the amount of real silver spent."

"Furthermore, alchemical artifacts capable of producing large quantities of metallic sodium are strictly controlled by Senior Brother Song Qing."

"Even if the method for refining metallic sodium were to spread, without the Imperial Observatory's sophisticated alchemical equipment, the cost of refining one tael of metallic sodium could reach an astonishing five taels of silver!"

Luo Chen subtly reminded him: "The real intention is not in the wine, but in the scenery."

"Tell me, what was the culprit after, willing to spend hundreds of thousands of taels of silver?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yuchun and Chen Hanguang's expressions turned solemn. They both understood that this matter was not simple.

But for now, let's solve the case first, and then think about the true intentions of the person behind it all.

Prefect Chen praised:

"What a clever trick! Young Brother Luo Chen, you have such talent at such a young age."

He slowly cupped his hands in apology: "I admit that I underestimated you before, and I sincerely apologize for that."

Luo Chen returned the greeting with a cupped hand: "Prefect Chen, you are too kind."

"My junior brother is amazing!"

Seeing this, Chu Caiwei smiled again and said proudly, "He is not only a sorcerer, but also a Confucian scholar at the ninth level."

"He loved reading since he was little. While I was eating snacks, he was engrossed in reading."

Upon hearing Chu Caiwei's words, Li Yuchun was immediately taken aback and cast a suspicious glance at Luo Chen.

It's as if I'm watching a walking, talking genius!

Addicted to reading?

As a crude and uncouth warrior, Li Yuchun found it hard to imagine that these two words could be combined together!

If he hadn't been able to tell at a glance that Chu Caiwei was an innocent, sweet, and adorable foodie whose mind was always filled with snacks.

Otherwise, one would suspect that the two people were in cahoots.

"Cough cough."

Luo Chen coughed twice and took out a cake to cover Chu Caiwei's mouth.

"Now that we've made a breakthrough in the case of the 150,000 taels of tax silver, you two must act quickly."

"If we could figure out the intentions of the person behind the scenes, that would be a truly great achievement."

After saying this, Luo Chen led Chu Caiwei away from the inner hall of the Jingzhao Prefecture.

The two walked out of the Jingzhao Prefecture.

"Junior brother, the palace chefs are first-rate, and with the spices you invented, it's even more delicious."

Chu Caiwei pulled Luo Chen along, and they headed towards the imperial city.

"Come on! Senior sister, I'll treat you to dinner at the palace!"

Luo Chen subconsciously said, "Senior Sister, are you taking me to Huaiqing's place for a free meal again?"

Chu Caiwei rolled her eyes, crossed her small arms, and complained, "How could you think of your senior sister like that?"

"I'm just seeing that you're at the peak of the ninth rank of martial arts, and you need a master at the Refining Spirit Realm or above to help you open the Heavenly Gate."

"That's why I'm taking you to Huaiqing's place for a meal. I'll have her go to the night watchman's office and find a fourth-rank martial artist named Jin Gong to help you open the Heavenly Gate."

Chu Caiwei's beautiful eyes suddenly sparkled, and she said with a smile, "Besides, Huaiqing and I are best friends."

"This way we can save on the cost of opening the Heavenly Gate, and then you can buy me a cake!"

Luo Chen: "..."

As expected, all the disciples accepted by the supervisor were talented individuals.

……

The Imperial City, within Huaiqing Prefecture.

Princess Huaiqing was dressed in palace attire. Her oval face had soft lines, her phoenix eyes were deep and clear, and her cherry lips, naturally red without any makeup, exuded nobility.

Her skin was as white as jade, and her smooth black hair fell beside her cheeks, further highlighting her stunning beauty.

She was tall and graceful, with a chest three times the size of Chu Caiwei's, and possessed an extraordinary temperament, like a snow lotus atop a cold mountain peak.

"So, the 150,000 taels of tax silver were not lost, but were switched with metallic sodium during recent transport."

Chu Caiwei nodded, happily enjoying her food while commenting:

"That's right, the person behind this is wasting too much money. How many snacks could that money buy? To produce just one ounce of sodium, they've consumed at least several ounces of silver."

"It's one thing to waste hundreds of thousands of taels of silver, but the worst part is that it failed. Just as Junior Brother said, their real intention was not what they thought."

Upon hearing this, Huaiqing seemed to be deep in thought. She looked at Luo Chen, her red lips slightly parted like a clear mountain spring:

"Luo Chen, what do you think the person behind this is plotting?"

Even if Luo Chen knew the truth, he couldn't possibly reveal it rashly in response to Huai Qing's question.

Xu Pingfeng was a second-grade Qi Refiner, and had long since concealed his own existence.

If he were to reveal it rashly, it would surely backfire, but if he were to guide it, there would be no problem.

"If the tax evasion case remains unsolved, who will be secretly profiting?"

"If no one profits and everyone is a victim, then perhaps the value of the victims' deaths is higher than the mere few hundred thousand taels of silver consumed."

"Unfortunately, there aren't many clues in this case; the above is just my speculation."

After speaking, Luo Chen took the tea that the maid had prepared and savored it slowly.

Huaiqing was an extremely intelligent and perceptive woman, so naturally she also guessed in this direction.

However, from Luo Chen's tone of voice, she sensed a confidence that made her subconsciously believe that this was not a guess but a fact!

However, Huaiqing was not in a hurry to get information out of her. Instead, he changed the subject and continued the conversation, using what Chu Caiwei had said before.

"I heard from Caiwei that Luo Chen, you are still a ninth-rank martial artist. You have already reached the peak of the Essence Refinement stage and are ready to open the Heavenly Gate at any time."

"good."

Luo Chen put down his teacup and said calmly, "Now, all that's left is to open the Heavenly Gate."

Upon hearing this, Huaiqing's alluring lips curled up slightly as he teased, "So, your martial arts cultivation is actually higher than your sorcerer's."

"I wonder what the Chief Inspector would think if he knew?"

Luo Chen immediately pictured an old man in a white robe, with white hair and a withered face, as if he had experienced countless years of vicissitudes.

"Perhaps Professor Jianzheng is lamenting right now that life is not worth living."