The moment Grey added the Scattering of Herbs flower, there was no visible reaction.
The dense substance within the bronze basin continued to bubble steadily, releasing faint wisps of black vapor that curled lazily into the air before dispersing. The reaction was calm... too calm. There was no sudden surge of corrosive energy, no violent eruption, not even a fluctuation in the rhythm of the bubbling liquid.
Seeing this, Grey frowned.
This was not what he had expected.
He had already prepared himself for the worst. Long before adding the flower, he had calculated multiple possible outcomes and prepared countermeasures for each. If the poison erupted violently, he would suppress it. If the corrosive substance surged beyond control, he would neutralize it immediately. He had even accounted for the possibility of a chain reaction that might force him to abandon the refinement entirely.
Yet none of that happened.
