Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 71 Level 7 Mandragora Vines (3336)

One week later, in the city of Ashgra.

Lord Ashgra led the city's residents and his people to gather in front of the villa where Locke and Gabi were temporarily staying, wanting to express their gratitude.

Lord Ashgra bowed to Gabi as he exited, saying, "Honorable wizards, we have come on behalf of all the residents of the city to thank you."

"No new cases have been reported this week, and those civilians who were previously infected are gradually recovering."

"It was as if everyone had woken up from a nightmare and found that it was just a dream. Ashgra has come back to life."

Gabby nodded slightly and then said, "Okay... but Senior Locke doesn't want to be disturbed right now... please go back."

"Senior Locke said he appreciates your kindness."

Chief Ashgra opened his mouth as if to speak but then stopped. He looked at the villa and, seeing that Locke hadn't come out, reluctantly gave up. He then turned to persuade those who had already recovered from their milder symptoms not to disturb the wizards at Lilith's Hut.

A little girl holding a bouquet of flowers suddenly shouted at the villa where Locke was staying, "Thank you, Wizard, may the God of Light bless you forever."

She jogged all the way to Lord Ashgra's side, where he stopped her. She then placed a bouquet of flowers on the ground.

Locke saw this scene from the villa's window. He waved to the little girl through the window as a greeting.

The little girl giggled.

It wasn't that Locke was so busy that he didn't have time to meet with these civilians; rather, it was unnecessary, and there was also a very serious problem.

Having just become a first-class wizard apprentice, he constantly releases magical pressure outwards. If he comes into contact with mortals, and if he's unlucky, he might kill a few mortals with hidden heart ailments.

The little girl called out to the villa, "Thank you, Wizard Augustine."

The common people of Ashgra also joined in the gratitude. "Thanks to you, Wizard Augustine."

"In critical moments, we still have to rely on the wizards. Those monks in the city are of no use at all."

"We can't blame the monks, after all, the doctors in the city were also helpless against the plague, but Lord Augustine only stayed here for a few days, and all of us were cured."

"We feel especially at ease when the wizards are around."

In the afternoon, Locke finally managed to sort out his chaotic magical power in the reception room of the villa where he was temporarily staying. He regulated the surge of magical power and restored it to order.

This is also why he stayed in Ashgra for a week.

Apart from the decrease in mana stability caused by the Crimson Echo Potion, all the mana that had surged due to the advancement had been readjusted by himself.

Locke placed his palm on the amethyst matrix he had brought with him, which displayed the number [220].

Locke couldn't help but sigh. Sophia was indeed a first-level potion master. The Crimson Echo potion she made herself actually increased his mana by a full 25 points.

Not all Crimson Echoes are of such high quality. The Crimson Echoes brewed by first-class wizard apprentices, that is, potion master assistants, may only have about half the potency of those they take themselves.

High-quality Crimson Echo potions naturally result in a sufficiently high chance of advancement.

At the same time, Locke looked at his right hand and saw that of the three mandala vines that were originally on his right hand, only one remained.

That's because, during the week he spent organizing his mana, he simply combined his three level 6 mandrake vines into one level 7 mandrake vine.

Moreover, I was quite lucky; this time, a special crafting recipe appeared—[Ominous Level 7 Mandragora Vine, a special mutated variety of Mandragora Vine that feeds on hostile thoughts. It can sense subtle hostility within a 100-meter radius and possesses the unique ability to follow hostile intent, automatically lock onto targets, and attack. It also retains all the abilities of the Invisible Mandragora Vine.]

In addition, the overall performance of the Ominous Mandragora Vines is twice that of the Stealth Mandragora Vines.

In its natural environment, the probability of this mandrake vine mutating is only one in ten thousand.

To synthesize a level 7 item, the Horadric Cube, it takes 3 days to synthesize.

This makes testing the synthesis recipes more difficult for Locke.

Fortunately, compared to becoming a first-class wizard apprentice and having a lifespan that almost doubles, resulting in a lifespan of at least 200 years, this increase in synthesis time is negligible.

Locke looked at the Ominous Mandragora Vine on his right hand. The appearance of the level 7 Mandragora Vine had changed considerably. First of all, the thickness and size of all the leaves of the vine had increased significantly, and each leaf looked about the size of a baby's palm.

Many dark purple veins appeared on the surface of the leaves and vines.

Unlike the light purple patterns on the surface of the invisible mandala vine, the deep purple patterns on the level 7 mandala vine are so purple that they are almost black.

The main body of the vine is thicker.

The number of poison berries produced by the Mandrake vines has also increased several times. Using this more powerful magical plant, the Poison Berry Launch spell can now fire more than twenty berries at a time instead of the original five. During this week, Locke also used the complex wild magical plants within the Ashgra Mountains to reconfigure the accompanying poison for the Poison Berry Launch spell.

The original spell toxin used in Poison Berry Catapult was a mixture of poison dart frogs, castor beans, and blue-ringed octopuses, but that was only a spell toxin used by second-class wizard apprentices.

Locke, now a first-class wizard apprentice, has temporarily created a new combination of toxins for the [Poison Berry Cataclysm] spell model using fungi from the Rotten Arum, a laughing belladonna obtained from the Ashgra Mountains, and a mixture of spasmodic gray mushrooms.

Furthermore, using a synthetic Rubik's Cube, this hybrid toxin specifically targeting the nerves was upgraded to level 7.

A first-class wizard apprentice and a level 7 mandrake can withstand more powerful spell poisons, which is why Locke temporarily upgraded the spell poison he was using.

Although this temporary upgraded toxin was only concocted by Locke himself based on some potion-related knowledge he learned from the witch Sophia, it was not very reliable and did not bring out the best effect of the three original toxins.

Firstly, the fungal toxin of the Rotten Amorphophallus is already of a very high level. Secondly, Locke synthesized this mixed magical toxin to level 7, enhancing it several times out of thin air, making this magical toxin barely passable among first-class wizard apprentices.

Locke named this self-constructed magical poison "Laughing Toxin".

This magical poison attacks the enemy's nerves, preventing their muscles from contracting and relaxing properly. They laugh uncontrollably and become unable to move normally. In severe cases, the excessive muscle contraction combined with the laughter can cause them to suffocate and die.

In any case, this kind of magical poison would likely produce the same effect if applied to an ordinary second-class wizard apprentice.

Locke looked at the level 7 Mandrake vine on his right hand and said, "It's almost fully integrated. When I return to Lilith's Hut, I'll systematically upgrade the spell poison again and learn a higher-level advanced trick model of Poison Berry Launch. Only in this way can I maximize the magic power of a first-class wizard apprentice."

"Similarly, the level 7 Mandela Vines will also need to be gradually replenished after returning to the Lilith Hut headquarters."

"After I go back, I can learn all the trick models in the Vine Frenzy series directly."

“When I get back, I’ll also have to sign a new contract with Lilith’s Hut,” Locke thought. “The relationship between a first-class wizard apprentice and the academy is more complicated, so the academy will sign more contracts with me.”

"Similarly, the academy also offers a whole host of benefits exclusive to first-class wizard apprentices. These include independent laboratories, independent positions, and academy rewards for becoming a first-class wizard apprentice within two years, and so on..."

“It can be said that only by becoming a first-class wizard apprentice can one truly be considered a backbone of the academy.” Locke calmed himself down. “After returning, the Iron Wire Goosegrass can be sold to Lijin Secret Words immediately.”

"Now that I'm a first-class wizard apprentice, I no longer need to use my teacher's name to publish my work."

"Even if it attracts some attention, I have enough strength to protect myself, and a first-class wizard apprentice can try to obtain a breeder certificate and become an independent breeder."

Locke murmured, "Independent genius breeders invent new magical plants at the apprentice level. Although they are still outstanding, they no longer attract special attention."

"Once I get my breeder certificate, I might be able to sell the Invisible Mandela Vine to Lijin Secret Words. Anyway, it's an obsolete magical plant."

Locke walked out of the room and called Gabi over. He said to Gabi, "Junior, I'm going back to the academy."

"Do you want to come along?"

Gabi hesitated for a moment, thinking that she was alone in the Ashgra Mountains and had nothing to do. The only reason she stayed here was to take the opportunity to get to know Locke, who had become a first-class wizard apprentice at such a young age.

So she said, "Of course, sure. Senior Locke."

……

After bidding farewell to the mortals of Ashgra who were thanking them, Locke and Gabby boarded their respective hired carriages and headed back towards Lilith's Hut.

After about two days, the two left the remote mountainous area and entered the flat coastal plain in the southeast corner of the region.

After passing through a mortal town, Waterwheel Town, Locke sat in a carriage pulled by three centaur drivers and looked at his right hand. He saw the ominous mandrake vine wrapped around his right hand, which had turned from blackish-purple to deep red.

It was so red it looked almost black.

That was... a warning.

It is the Ominous Mandragora Vine. As a rare magical plant, it possesses a special superpower: it can sense hostility within a 100-meter radius and feeds on hostility.

Locke frowned and looked indifferently out of the carriage. Ahead lay a deserted country road, seemingly without anything unusual.

If it weren't for the level 7 Mandragora vines' prompting, Locke wouldn't have realized it so quickly.

"Does someone harbor serious hostility towards me?" Locke quickly considered whether he had offended anyone while in Lilith's Hut. "I shouldn't have any enemies in Lilith's Hut."

"That foolish wizarding family is just gossiping about me behind my back. Because I became a breeder's assistant, I've been laughed at behind my back for the past year, but they can't possibly have such a deep grudge against me."

"Forget it, whoever it is, just kill them. I've been so careful, and people are still targeting me, so I might as well kill them all."

(End of this chapter)