Chapter 503 - 503: This Is a True Great God

"Not only that, but it caused a huge commotion."

Ying Ji chattered on, filling Zhao Yuan in on all the subsequent events he had missed.

It turned out that after the moderator pinned Zhao Yuan's correction post—drawing a torrent of mockery and scorn—it happened to be seen by none other than the grandfather of Shan Han, the famous Pill Master on the forum known as 'Cold Mountain Elder'.

The Shan Family was an Elixir Family, and Shan Han's grandfather had spent decades immersed in Alchemy and Medicine Making, possessing profound knowledge and vast experience.

At the time, Grandpa Shan merely thought Zhao Yuan's explanations and analysis were quite novel. He couldn't be certain if they were correct or valuable, but he copied them down anyway and gathered a few of his old friends to study them.

At first, they didn't take the analysis very seriously. However, as they delved deeper into their research, they were astonished to discover that the content Zhao Yuan had posted was actually correct! What they had previously believed to be right was, in fact, wrong, or at least flawed!

This discovery left them utterly stunned.

After all, while the points Zhao Yuan had corrected weren't particularly advanced, they were all critical foundational concepts.

They were like the fundamental theories in any field of study!

And now they had discovered that these fundamental theories contained errors and omissions!

'If the foundation is wrong, how can anything built upon it be right?'

No wonder their progress in the Alchemy Dao had become increasingly difficult and fraught with obstacles the further they went. They even felt that many concepts seemed to contradict one another. Previously, they had always assumed that the path of the Alchemy Dao naturally grew more difficult. They thought the contradictions and obscurities were simply due to their own insufficient level of mastery.

But now, it seemed that while that might have been part of the reason, the most critical, fundamental problem likely lay in the errors and omissions within the foundational theories themselves!

It was like building a house. If the foundation was crooked, how could the house be built properly? They were lucky it hadn't collapsed entirely.

Beyond their shock, the attitude of Grandpa Shan and his friends shifted from 'a fun little research project to pass the time' to one of extreme importance.

His friends immediately asked Grandpa Shan which great master of the Alchemy Dao was responsible for this analysis. But how could Grandpa Shan know? He told them the truth: he had copied it from a Cultivator Forum his granddaughter frequented.

While these old masters didn't frequent the Cultivator Forum themselves, their juniors did. They immediately found their children and grandchildren who had accounts and ordered them to get on the forum at once and consult the original poster about other concepts.

In the eyes of Grandpa Shan and his peers, the errors in the foundational theories of the Alchemy Dao surely weren't limited to just these few. 'Since the poster could spot these flaws, they can definitely find more!'

'If we can find and correct these flaws under their guidance, our own attainments in the Alchemy Dao will surely reach a new level! And even if not for our own sakes, for the good of our families and our descendants, we must seek their teachings. No price is too high!'

After all, the foundation is what matters most!

As it happened, Shan Han's ID on the Cultivator Forum was Cold Mountain Elder. And as luck would have it, the juniors of Grandpa Shan's friends were also well-known Pill Masters on the forum, such as Elder Weng, Medicine Boy, and Lady Hundred Herbs.

And these very people, just like Shan Han, had been the ones posting scornful and mocking replies in Zhao Yuan's correction thread.

So when they heard the demands of their fathers and grandfathers, they were all dumbstruck.

'We just finished flaming him for not knowing a damn thing and spouting nonsense, and now you want us to go praise his analysis and beg him for more? Aren't you just telling us to go slap ourselves in the face?'

Their reactions astonished their fathers and grandfathers. After finding out the reason, these renowned Elder Alchemists all flew into a rage, pointing at their noses and letting loose a tirade. "You dared to mock him for knowing nothing and spouting nonsense? Are you trying to kill us with anger? Have all the years you've spent studying the Alchemy Dao gone to the dogs? Get back on there right now and post an apology! Your attitude had better be respectful, and your words sincere!"

Of course, they were unwilling. They were Great Gods on the Cultivator Forum, after all. If they did something like that, wouldn't they become a laughingstock? Wouldn't it be a huge loss of face?

However, the words had barely left their mouths before they were met with the furious roars of the Elder Alchemists.

"A laughingstock? A loss of face?"

"Are your brains full of water? How can that nonsense even compare to correct theoretical knowledge? If we can obtain the right theories and correct our mistakes, our families will avoid countless detours and dead ends in Alchemy and Medicine Making! What's a little loss of face compared to that?"

After being berated relentlessly, these "Great God" Pill Masters on the forum finally saw the light. They all went to Zhao Yuan's correction thread, deleted their previous mocking comments, and replaced them with apologies and humble requests for guidance, adopting an extremely deferential attitude.

They had no choice but to be deferential.

According to the guesses of their fathers and grandfathers, the person who made this correction post was definitely no ordinary Pill Master! His age, attainments, and even his seniority had to be incredibly high! Towards such an expert, no amount of deference or respect could be considered excessive.

Their complete reversal in attitude, from arrogant to deferential, left everyone on the Cultivator Forum dumbfounded. Nobody could understand what was going on.

For a while, speculation ran rampant, with theories like 'their accounts were hacked,' 'they've lost their minds,' and 'this is some kind of ironic trolling' popping up everywhere.

Even the forum's moderators and founders were startled by the commotion. One of the founders happened to know Elder Weng, so he quickly gave him a call to ask what was going on.

Elder Weng didn't hide anything. He recounted the whole story, emphasizing that his own father and several of his good friends had, after thorough research and discussion, unanimously concluded that the correction post by 'I Just Love to Eat' was incredibly accurate and insightful. They were the ones who were wrong, as was the commonly accepted foundational knowledge of the Alchemy Dao.

The founder was stunned silent by this revelation.

He was well aware of the status Elder Weng's father held in the world of the Alchemy Dao. His friends were undoubtedly Great Gods of the Alchemy Dao as well. With several of these Great Gods now speaking with one voice, he had no choice but to believe it, however incredible it seemed.

Still in shock, the founder rushed to post an apology thread on the forum. The moderator who had pinned Zhao Yuan's thread for public ridicule also panicked and posted a long, sincere apology of his own.

Seeing this turn of events, the gawking masses on the forum finally realized that the person they had been flaming was actually a genuine Great God! The content of his correction post wasn't fabricated nonsense but the real deal! It wasn't just solid information; it was priceless, solid information!

And so, everyone's minds were blown.