Above the mage

Chapter 20 Unexpected News

While the three were stunned by the freezing ray, Gao De once again activated the spell model to release a spell.

The next moment, he flung out a small ball of emerald green liquid from his left hand, like a malicious comet streaking through the air, heading straight for the leader, whose movements were slowed by the freezing rays.

After spinning briefly in the air, the ball created a large cloud of mist-like spray before landing precisely on the leading man.

As soon as the acid came into contact with the man, his clothes and skin began to hiss and corrode, emitting thick smoke and a pungent sulfur smell.

The fabric of the clothes began to melt, and so did the skin, leaving behind a greenish, corrosive stain.

The acid only lasted for about three seconds before disappearing, but those three seconds were enough to cause the man excruciating pain, causing him to collapse to the ground, writhing and struggling, constantly emitting painful howls.

In the dark alley, the acid quickly disappeared, leaving only corrosive blue smoke lingering in the air.

The man lay on the ground, still convulsing violently. His body was a gruesome sight, covered in burn marks, and there was no trace of his ferocious appearance from just moments before.

The other two were so frightened they went mad.

They had some understanding of the monks, but not a deep understanding; in the end, they were just "small-time hoodlums" with a few connections.

Therefore, neither of them realized that a mage apprentice like Gao De, without any background, at this age, would most likely only be a first-class apprentice, with limited magical power, and the number of spells he could cast would not exceed five.

"Master, Master, spare us! Spare us! We didn't know you were a master. We offended you, we'll never do it again!"

The second of the three kept begging for mercy. In his eyes, the boy with the still childish face was even more terrifying than the top henchman of the city's gang.

"You are a venerable mage, please don't stoop to the level of us scum, please don't attack us anymore." He said in a trembling voice as he watched the spiritual light reappear at Gao De's fingertips.

With his boss's miserable state right before his eyes, he had absolutely no courage to resist.

He was afraid of ending up like the boss.

Gao De silently lowered his right hand, suppressing his anger, and coldly asked, "Who are you? Why did you attack me!"

They answered the same question as before, but this time they answered honestly.

"We are miners from the Nottingham coal mine."

Seeing that Gao De's anger seemed to have subsided a little, he was like a drowning person breathing oxygen, and hurriedly poured out everything, "Since the Nottingham mines dried up, the three of us have lost our jobs and can only do odd jobs in the city, working day to day."

"We knew things couldn't go on like this. A few days ago, while we were drinking, we heard some news that a new mine was starting up in Bremen and urgently needed miners. So we were planning to go there and continue our old business, but..."

"You guys usually spend all your money in taverns, so now that you need money, you can't even afford the travel expenses, right?" Gao De said knowingly and coldly.

Miners in this era typically don't have a concept of saving; they're all "living paycheck to paycheck."

As soon as they received their wages, they would indulge in pleasure first, spending all their money on drinking or seeking pleasure.

Therefore, the time when wages are settled at the beginning of each month is the busiest and most profitable time for the taverns in the city.

The second man was somewhat embarrassed, but he kept begging for mercy, "It was our lack of ambition, it was our wicked thoughts, please don't hold such scum against us, Master."

"Why did you choose me as your target? Do I look like a rich person?" Gao De didn't intend to let the three off the hook and pressed for answers.

The second brother was extremely nervous. He glanced cautiously at Gao De and explained, "It was the eldest brother. A while ago, Phil's Potion Shop was hiring temporary herb gatherers, and the three of us went. We went up the mountain with the shop assistants to gather thorns and worked as herb gatherers for a few days..."

Gaode even remembered what this person said.

When he and Amy first went to Phil's Potion Shop, they did see a sign at the entrance that said they were recruiting temporary herb gatherers, which matched perfectly.

"During a break from gathering herbs, the boss was chatting with his shop assistants when one of them shared an interesting story:"

Of the four herb gardens that their pharmacy partners with, your herb garden's potion master is the most prone to causing trouble. On one hand, he supplies them with low-level potions, and on the other hand, he keeps buying high-level herbs from them, giving most of the profits back to them.

"Then the lead pharmacist reprimanded him for disrespecting Pharmacist Seda."

He added that the apothecary Seda was in seclusion researching advanced potions, never leaving his house, and even had his apprentices handle the shipping and purchasing, which showed his dedication. Once he successfully concocted an advanced potion, it would be extraordinary.”

"It was after hearing those words that the boss started having wicked thoughts."

"Then the boss found out that the apprentice in charge of purchasing and shipping medicinal herbs at your herb garden had recently been replaced by someone much younger like you. We figured the younger one would be easier to work with."

After hearing the whole story, Gao De remained silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Have you found out when our herb garden will next purchase medicinal herbs?"

"If you can answer that, I'll let you go this time," he added.

"I know, I know," the third brother, who had been trembling all the time, quickly spoke up. "The clerk said that your medicine shop just placed an order last month, and this month they urgently placed another order for the same product."

However, they have all the other medicinal herbs in stock, but the herbs you purchased are rare and will only be available when the store receives its next shipment.

He also boasted, "The apothecary at your herb garden is very anxious, but there's nothing he can do, because the medicinal herbs he needs are only available through Phil's Pharmacy in the entire city of Hogan."

"The three of us have been staking out outside the herb garden for several days. Today we saw you leave for town empty-handed, so we figured you must have gone to the pharmacy to get more medicine, and you took the money to pick it up, so..."

Having obtained some crucial information, Gao De's attention shifted, and his anger gradually subsided. He waved his hand impatiently and said, "Get lost."

The other party was only after money and did not intend to kill, and had already been punished enough. Under these circumstances, he really couldn't bring himself to kill these three people.

Although God dared to draw his sword and splatter blood when faced with Yilan's threat, he was ultimately not a violent and bloodthirsty person.

"Thank you so much, Venerable Master! Thank you so much, Venerable Master! We'll be going now!"

Upon seeing Gao De relent, the two nodded vigorously, not daring to think or linger any longer. They hurriedly helped up their eldest brother, who was still lying on the ground in great pain, and ran away.

Watching the three leave, Gao De could still feel a burning pain in his back.

That blow was incredibly powerful.

Even if it's just a blunt object like a wooden stick, getting hit like that is still quite painful.

But the anxiety and fervor in his heart made him temporarily ignore the pain.

The anxiety stemmed from learning from the three people that their time was truly running out.

The fervor stemmed from the fact that this was the first time Gaode had fully unleashed a spell.

Even though he had cast spells after successfully building the spell model, he still didn't expect the spells to be so powerful in actual combat.

This is just a trick; what if it were a first-level spell?

I'm afraid one spell could send all three of them to see their great-grandmother.

Horn City, commercial district.

Phil's Potion Shop.

Gao De glanced around at the entrance and then casually stepped into the store.

"What do you need?"

The clerk at the potion shop greeted him, quickly recognizing Gao De and asking, "Is the interval between your two deliveries from the herb garden shorter than before?"

"I'm not here to ship goods today."

As Gao De spoke, he browsed the magic potions on the counter. There was a dazzling array of them, but most of them were ordinary, low-level auxiliary potions.

"Our master specifically asked me to inquire whether the medicinal herbs he requested have arrived."

"As you know, we always get our supplies on the last day of the month."

"We know that Master Seda is very anxious, but the goods will not arrive until the end of the month. Please tell Master Seda to be patient." The shop assistant said with a smile, without the slightest impatience.

"I understand, I will pass on the message to the Master." Gao De nodded calmly and turned to leave the pharmacy.

(End of this chapter)