Pill King Jilang had been building up hype for so long, all for this very moment. The other Pill Kings, such as Pill King Qingfeng and the rest, were all watching Pill King Jilang with narrowed eyes.
They wanted to see just what trick Pill King Jilang had up his sleeve. When it came to these veteran Pill Kings, none of them were actually lacking — not a single one would lose to Pill King Jilang in ability.
It was just that Pill King Jilang was young, and had the added advantage of being hand-picked by the Great Emperor Pill as his successor. That was why his airs were a bit grander, his posturing a bit more exaggerated.
These annoying habits — they could hold their noses and tolerate them.
But if Pill King Jilang couldn't produce any real skill, they wouldn't stand for it.
Time trickled by, second by second. Pill King Jilang's expression grew increasingly grave. At the start, he had still been spirited and brimming with confidence.
But after exhausting every technique he had ever learned and still failing to pinpoint where the problem with the Moon God's Treasure Tree lay, genuine panic began to set in.
He had worked so hard to build up this massive spectacle. He had been certain this would be the occasion to make a name for himself — a grand display to catch the beautiful lady's eye.
If he actually flopped, then all that hype-building would look downright ridiculous. He might even become everyone's laughingstock.
Before long, sweat began trickling down Pill King Jilang's back. Gritting his teeth, he conducted yet another round of examination, but the result was exactly the same as before — nothing at all.
One hour passed. An hour and a half passed.
The three Grand Priestesses of the Moon God Sect, who had originally placed tremendous expectations on him, watched with expressions that grew ever more somber. Occasionally, a fleeting trace of disappointment would flicker through their eyes.
In their hearts, while they hadn't quite branded Pill King Jilang as all flash and no substance, their regard for him had certainly plummeted.
Everyone had been raving about how extraordinary Pill King Jilang was — but what was the reality? His performance was middling at best, no different from anyone else's.
The most irritating part was that this fellow had put on such a grand show beforehand, acting as though he were the headlining act. And yet, for all the dramatic buildup of a grand finale, the delivery was like severe constipation — nothing came out.
First he had inflated everyone's expectations to dizzying heights, then he kicked them right back down to earth. This kind of behavior was truly infuriating.
Two hours passed, and everyone's patience had been completely exhausted.
If not for the sake of saving face for Pill Fire City, every single member of the Moon God Sect present would have wanted to declare the proceedings over right then and there.
After all, nobody wanted to keep watching Pill King Jilang make a fool of himself.
Pill King Jilang gave a dry cough, but still wore that insufferably smug expression as he said languidly, "Esteemed Grand Priestesses, I have just exhausted the full extent of my knowledge. Although I was unable to identify the root cause, I did uncover several suspicious leads. This is not something that can be deduced in a single day. I will take these leads back to Pill Fire City, consult relevant materials, and verify them one by one. Sooner or later, results will come."
These words sounded impressive enough on the surface. But if you chewed on them carefully, they were utterly hollow — saying them was no different from saying nothing.
They appeared to contain substance, yet not a single thing in them was precise or concrete.
The so-called leads were "suspicious." The so-called deductions required returning to Pill Fire City to consult reference materials. And the so-called results were promised for "sooner or later."
"Sooner or later" — who knew which day that would be?
Perhaps by the time every last leaf had fallen from the Moon God Treasure Tree, that day still would not have arrived.
However, out of deference to Pill Fire City's reputation, the several leaders of the Moon God Sect kept their tone perfectly courteous. One after another, they said, "Then we look forward to Grandmaster Jilang demonstrating his great skill and bringing us word of success at the earliest opportunity."
"Of course, of course — whatever the root cause of this matter may be, Jilang will spare no effort to uncover the source of the problem," Grandmaster Jilang declared in turn.
But Grandmaster Qingfeng could not help himself. "Grandmaster Jilang, I am rather curious — these few points of suspicion you claim to have found, where exactly are they? If there are leads worth investigating, perhaps we could cross-reference them with our own findings. Pool our collective wisdom, exchange insights. That kind of collision of minds often produces unexpected inspiration."
It had to be said — Grandmaster Qingfeng's move was a sharp one.
Grandmaster Jilang felt a prickle of irritation. He could not tell whether Qingfeng was deliberately undermining him, but the remark had certainly put him in an awkward position.
Truth be told, Grandmaster Jilang's earlier words had been nothing more than polite filler — a way to give himself an opportunity to bow out gracefully.
Yet Grandmaster Qingfeng had just yanked that very staircase out from under him.
"Heh heh, this involves a great deal of specialized knowledge — it is not something that can be explained in a few short minutes. If Grandmaster Qingfeng has the time, when we return to Pill Fire City, we can sit down together and examine the matter in detail."
That, frankly, was a shameless thing to say.
Fortunately, Grandmaster Qingfeng did not press the matter further. He offered a faint smile and said nothing more.
The Grand Elder of the Moon God Sect sighed. "I never imagined the Moon God Treasure Tree's condition would prove this intractable. If even all of you are at wit's end, then who in this world could possibly resolve it? Sigh — if any of the Grandmasters know of someone suitable, I beg you, do make a recommendation."