Cornflower Witch

Chapter 226 A Tiny Spark

Lantern Town, Alchemy Laboratory.

Under the watchful eyes of the trainees, Dorothy strolled leisurely in front of various alchemical instruments. She deftly adjusted and started up the glass instruments, in which various materials reacted and were then fed into the next reaction step in an orderly manner.

Despite the seemingly busy laboratory, everything was being meticulously monitored in Dorothy's mind, proceeding in an orderly manner.

Unlike his usual languid demeanor, this blond genius alchemist was exceptionally focused when he got to work, with numerous symbols flowing in his eyes as he continuously manipulated the potion, applying various runes and markings to adjust the reaction.

About forty minutes later, a small test tube of pale purple powder appeared in her hand. She gently shook it, and the powder inside floated up like a light mist.

As she finished preparing, the students who had been waiting for a long time watched her with curiosity.

"Is this the finished product?" They wanted to know if it was a success or not.

“That’s right, but we still need to test the effect.” Dorothy turned around and walked to the side of the trainee. There were glass cages for restraining ‘plaster’, some containing ‘plaster’ and others empty.

The trainees carefully opened the glass lid, while Dorothy put on special identification glasses, then opened the test tube stopper and carefully spilled the contents slightly.

The wispy, dust-like powder drifted into the glass box. Some of it did not react at all, while others cast shimmering light spots on the inner wall of the glass, indicating the presence of tiny 'plaster' organisms in those areas.

"The effect is good, but it still needs improvement." Dorothy held a pen in one hand, constantly writing down the thoughts that were passing through her mind.

"The color of the reaction is too light and not conspicuous enough. If it is not in a closed environment, it will be easily blown away by the wind. It needs a certain concentration, otherwise it will not produce any effect..." She noted down these shortcomings.

Over the next two days, Dorothy continued to refine the design until a suitable sample was finally produced.

"Tiya, you test this one." She summoned Hiltiya and had her test the effects of the newly prepared medicine powder.

Because Sylvia is currently the only person in the camp who can discover all the traces of 'plaster' on her own, and only she can truly compare the effects of the 'revealing powder'.

“Okay,” Hiltiya replied.

After receiving the powder, she first memorized the 'plaster' marks scattered on the large piece of glass in front of her, then opened the bottle, sprinkled out the powder, and let it spread and drift.

Soon, the hidden 'plaster' on the glass revealed a faint silver-blue gradient, a color rarely seen in nature, making it particularly striking.

Guided by the gradient silver-blue sheen, the other trainees used special alchemical powder to burn away the 'ash' on the glass. After doing this several times, they sprinkled the powder again, and this time no longer any trace of silver-blue appeared.

"That's fine." Hiltiya nodded in satisfaction.

"Can we expand production?" Hiltia asked, looking at Dorothy beside her.

“Yes, but we don’t have enough raw materials to afford to waste, and it’s too slow for me to make it by myself. I need a skilled helper.” As she said this, Dorothy’s eyes were fixed on the girl in front of her.

"Okay, I understand. You need my help, right?" Hiltiya could easily see through what the other person was thinking.

"Hehe, it's good that Xiaotiya knows."

……

The fierce winds continued to howl across the wilderness, and the small team sent from the town to contact the association headquarters only managed to return with difficulty six days later.

"How are things?" Hiltiya asked, seeing the exhausted students.

"The message has been sent out, but according to the response from the contact, the association will need another week or two to mobilize personnel and find a solution." "That's about what I expected."

Hilti was already aware of the Forestry Society's slow pace of work. Although they could do it, it was difficult to be fast because it took time to notify, coordinate, and communicate with the staff of various branches and organizations.

For the past two days, she and Dorothy have been working in the alchemy lab to create the newly developed revealing powder. It will take another two days to complete the expected quantity.

Three days later, the storm subsided, and Siltia and Dorothy led a group of elite students from the town to 'Iron Cliff'. Twelve days had passed since they sent the message.

Riding their well-trained warhorses, the group galloped through the harsh weather, traversing the complex mountains and valleys of the Dark Mist Mountains, and finally arrived at their destination.

"Is this the 'Iron Wall and High Cliff'?"

Hiltiya stopped her warhorse and looked up into the distance. On the gray iron-like mountain walls, there were gray buildings of the same color as the mountain walls. Some of them flickered with faint lights at night, appearing and disappearing intermittently.

“That’s right. Those high cliff buildings on both sides of the canyon were the bases here. It is said that nearly 1600 people were originally stationed here, distributed on both sides of the long cliff,” a student replied.

"let's go."

The group continued on horseback, ascending the steep plank road along the side of the canyon, until they reached the ridge on the cliff. They then traversed the undulating road resembling the Great Wall, finally arriving at the high cliff camp they had seen the day before, a day later.

"Who are you?" a soldier guarding the garrison's boardwalk asked, raising a torch. His voice was weak.

Hilti stepped forward, removed her hood, revealing her beautiful face and long, silver hair, and then took out a badge to prove her identity.

"I am a representative from the town of Tilan Town. I came here to provide assistance after receiving your request for help."

"Support?" He roughly understood what was going on, but shook his head at this moment.

“The situation inside the Iron Cliff base is dire. More than half of the members are already seriously ill and unable to move. The rest are just struggling to hold on. If you go there, you will probably get infected quickly and add to the burden inside.”

"Don't let our seemingly good condition fool you. In reality, we are among the few soldiers in the garrison who can still maintain their alertness and energy to guard this place." He replied from the tower, with several other men appearing beside him, all looking utterly exhausted.

“Every day before we sleep, we scorch the interior and exterior buildings with flames. In addition, we are all extraordinary beings with the ‘blazing sun’ nature, which allows us to use a special breathing method to raise our body temperature and maintain our resistance to this special plague.”

“If you come in, you won’t have the same conditions as us; you’ll just be a nuisance.”

“I know. I discovered the special properties of this ‘plaster’ after I rescued that knight,” Hilti explained, then, as if remembering something, she took out a letter.

"This is a letter from Sir Zalia, along with the 'revealing powder' we brought. He has written down the situation inside. Please pass it on to the commander at the garrison; he will understand."

Hilti threw the item out, where it was caught by soldiers on the tower. They examined the letter and the powder, tested it a few times, and seemed to confirm its effectiveness. They then relayed the information to Hilti below.

“We will report to the commander as soon as possible, but we still cannot let you in now. This is actually for your own good. Please go to the corner on the east side of the mountain road. There will be an abandoned camp there. You can take shelter there for the time being. I will notify you as soon as I have any news.”

"Okay, please do it as soon as possible."

Hiltiya led her team away temporarily, while the soldiers guarding the plank road sent a few men on horseback to the nearby fortress.

They carried torches high as they marched forward in the harsh environment. The flames were tiny dots in the swirling snow, giving the illusion that they might go out at any moment.

(End of this chapter)