Above the mage

Chapter 377 Three Drops of Spiritual Essence

In terms of sheer volume, the list of items eligible for second-class merit awards is actually quite similar to that of the list of items eligible for third-class merit awards.

This indicates that the two are not significantly different in quantity; the difference lies only in quality.

Gaode Maps still focuses primarily on the category of spell recipes.

He first went through the table of contents and quickly noticed the differences:

The spell recipes on the Third-Class Merit Exchange List are all ordinary spells, and the highest level of the spells is only the third ring.

The Second-Class Merit Exchange List allows you to exchange for spell recipes for the fourth and fifth rings.

In addition, the first-level and second-level spells listed on the second-class merit list are both rare spells.

By doing this, Gaode can basically determine the level of the spell recipes on the first-class merit redemption list:

Rare spell recipes for the fourth and fifth rings.

The spell he needs most, [Spell Stabilization], will most likely appear on the list of items that can be redeemed for first-class merit.

As for whether there are recipes for sixth-circle spells, that's hard to say.

This level is too high. According to Gao De's guess, there might not be a sixth-ring mage in the entire Sea Sentinel, and even if there are, there won't be many.

His thoughts raced, and Gao De had already flipped to the spell page, carefully browsing the list of rare first-level spells:

[Know Yourself and Know Your Enemy], [Legend of the Sharpshooter], [Long-Range Shooting], [Grain Abstinence Technique].

There were actually more than a dozen in total, and the military merit required for redemption was uniformly 1 second-class merit.

This is the terrifying foundation of the Sea Sentinels, or rather, the Plantagenet Dynasty.

Gao De's primary target was definitely attack spells, but plans can't keep up with changes. The appearance of a special non-attack spell caught his eye.

【Divine Berry Technique [Rare]】(Alteration, 1st Ring):

Up to 10 berries will appear in your hand. The berries are imbued with magic for the duration of the spell, and each transformed berry can provide the nutrition of a normal meal for a medium-sized creature.

While consuming berries, you will also receive a minor healing effect, with a maximum of 8 healing effects gained through the Divine Berry spell taking effect within any 24-hour period.

The created berries will lose their power if they are not eaten within 24 hours of the spell being cast.

[Military Merit Required for Exchange: 2 Second-Class Merits]

This logistics spell is virtually unbeatable. When combined with the [Water Creation] spell, it enables true self-sufficiency.

In addition to its unparalleled nutritional and economic value, it also has the added benefit of slight therapeutic effects.

A first-ring spell that could be considered flawless.

Similarly, the military merits required to exchange for the [Divine Berry Spell] are twice that of other rare spells.

But there's not much to say. Even if it's five or ten times the amount, we must get our hands on this spell.

Call ~

Gao De closed the list of military merits redemption.

His biggest feeling right now is that the Sea Sentinels have so many good things, and they want even more. Military merits are simply not enough!

No wonder Melia told him that the Sea Sentinel Mages were very eager to accept quests, so in most cases, quests had to be "snatched up" and were very competitive.

Having such an exchange list here is like a powerful stimulant, enough to get everyone working like crazy.

For example, Gaode Maps is now feeling the urge to take on tasks and earn credits.

Slightly calming his restless patience, he had already selected the treasures he wanted to exchange.

[Divine Berry Technique] (Second-class merit *2), [Magic Missile] (Third-class merit *4), [Heavy Blade] (Third-class merit *3), [Relentless Pursuit] (Third-class merit *2).

There are four spell recipes in total, which together require: 2 second-class merits and 9 third-class merits.

He possesses: three second-class merits and two third-class merits.

Ten third-class merits cannot be combined into one second-class merit, but one second-class merit can be broken down into ten third-class merits.

Of course, once it's broken down, there's no longer the idea of ​​collecting ten third-class merits later and then recombining them into the original second-class merit.

Once disassembled, items cannot be returned or exchanged.

After exchanging them, you will have 3 third-class merits left.

After thinking for a moment, Gao De selected an attack spell from the list of third-class merits that required exactly three third-class merits.

[Witch Bolt] (Evocation, Level 1):

A blue energy spear, wreathed in shattered magic, shot towards a creature within casting range, delivering a ranged spell attack.

If it hits, the target takes lightning damage and a persistent arc of lightning is created between you and the target. During the spell's duration (one minute), you can deal the same amount of lightning damage to the target again every 6 seconds through this arc of lightning.

If you do anything else, the spell will immediately end.

Furthermore, if the target leaves the spell's casting range or is completely covered relative to you, the spell will terminate immediately.

A very special attack spell; theoretically, the total damage that a single spell can cause can reach 11 times that of a normal first-level spell.

Of course, this is just theory.

In most cases, no one will stand still and give you a continuous electric shock.

A total of 5 spell recipes were obtained, which was just enough to use up all the military merits earned this time.

White Pagoda in the Abyss, Supply Depot.

"Master Gaode, are you sure? Second-class merits are rare. Among our Sea Sentinels, I have never seen anyone break it open and use it as a third-class merit."

After hearing Gaode's exchange request, the mage Neil couldn't help but offer a reminder.

The Second-Class Merit is hard to come by; besides ability, it also requires a bit of luck. It's not something you can just get by wishing for it.

This was the first time he had ever seen Gao De use military merits in this way.

If you don't have enough military merits right now, everyone's choice is to hurry up and work hard for another month or two, doing missions well to earn merits.

To "break" a second-class merit into a third-class merit is something only a spendthrift would do.

"I think what you want to change is the spell recipe. Mastering a spell takes at least half a year. Even if you're exceptionally talented, it will still take at least two or three months, right?"

"So why are you in such a hurry? Why not exchange for one of the [Divine Berry Spell] and [Relentless Pursuit] first? You can exchange for the remaining three spell recipes later when you have enough merit points," Mage Neil suggested.

Under normal circumstances, his proposal would be reasonable.

Unfortunately, Gaode Maps is not exactly "normal".

"No need, let's leave it like this," Gao De insisted.

He wasn't unaware of the value of a second-class merit, but he simply didn't care.

In his view, the best choice is to first convert military merits into his own combat power.

Improving combat strength will also help me achieve greater merits.

"I'll get another second-class merit soon." Facing the questioning gaze of Mage Neil, God grinned, explaining his reasons for doing so.

The mage Neil had originally wanted to say something to persuade God, but upon hearing what he said, all his words were stuck in his throat.

He wanted to say that a second-class merit award isn't that easy to obtain.

But then he remembered that Gao Decai had been a sentry at sea for more than three months, and this was his first mission, yet he had already received three second-class merit awards.

For Gaode Maps, it seems that it might not be that difficult after all?

"You're the one." After a moment of silence, Old Neil gave Gao De a thumbs up and said earnestly, "I look forward to your future performance."

He meticulously recorded Gaode's redemption request.

"It takes time to source things like magical plants, but spell recipes aren't that complicated," he said, pushing the exchange slip to Gao De. "Take a look and see if there are any problems. If there aren't, just sign it."

After Gaode glanced at it and confirmed that everything was correct, he signed his name.

"Please wait a moment." Mage Neil took back the exchange slip, reached out and pressed a "button" on the table. A moment later, another staff member hurriedly walked in.

"Mage NieR".

"Please send it for review, thank you." Master Neil handed the redemption form, which had been signed by Gaode, to the staff member.

About twenty minutes later, the staff member re-entered the room with the redemption slip.

This time, there was another stamp in the bottom right corner of the redemption slip.

"Mage Neil, Captain Merrick has stamped and confirmed it."

Master Neil accepted the exchange slip, thanked him, and carefully put it into a drawer before getting up, opening the hidden door, and walking into the treasure vault at the back.

Before long, he came out with the five spell formulas that Gaode needed and handed them to Gaode.

Having obtained the spell recipe, Gao De immediately went to various magic supply stores in the city to purchase the main and auxiliary materials needed for the spell potion.

"A pinch of moonstone powder, a portion of rootless water, a section of purple berry root, a sprig of mistletoe, a section of lightning-struck wood, a fragment of white crystal, a pinch of refined iron stone powder, and a portion of earth crystal liquid."

The five spell recipes together require a total of twenty-one different materials.

Even though Dorne is so prosperous and has a wide variety of resources, Gaode still had to visit three magic supply stores to gather them all.

Lightning-struck wood and Earth Crystal Liquid are both relatively rare and scarce Tier 1 materials, and their prices were increased by 30% to 40%, resulting in a total of 226 Golden Bird Coins being spent.

He then went to buy a small pot before returning to his "dormitory"—the dormitory provided by the sea sentinels did not include a kitchen.

Using the small pot, Gao De "cooked" all five portions of magical potions and drank them all in one gulp.

Lifespan: 15/335

Mental Power: 200

Mana: 40 drops of liquid

The origin of the first ring: 4】

This is Gaode's current "basic data".

A very awkward point:

The original source of the first ring is not enough.

Thanks to the help of the Phoenix hunter mage, Gaode quickly gained nearly twenty points of the first ring of origin.

With such a "huge sum" in his hands, he couldn't help but spend it extravagantly.

Any spell, once mastered, boils down to one word:

"add!"

Then, we are now in a predicament of a fundamental deficit.

"I'll take a short break to reflect and then get back to work. I can't just lie around doing nothing," Gao De decided.

He told others that the main purpose of doing the mission was to earn military merits.

But for Gaode, while earning military merits, it is also accumulating its core strength. The two combined make it a winning proposition.

The more you do, the more you win!

Upon entering the meditation room, Gao De first began his daily practice of building a magical energy network (taking drugs).

After finishing these activities, it was lunchtime. After having a meal at the "canteen," Gaode made a detour and headed straight for the Collinwood Art Museum.

Going out on missions is a great opportunity for practical experience and training.

At the same time, it can also help identify one's shortcomings or areas that need improvement, allowing for the filling of gaps and the refinement of one's combat system.

What Gaode needs to improve most right now is its "sword skills".

He doesn't need to have very advanced sword skills; just reaching the "beginner" level will be enough to significantly boost his combat power.

For sword skills, getting started isn't too difficult.

The price is very high.

Collingwood Academy is naturally staffed with swordsmanship instructors.

Swordsmanship is considered by most people to be a relatively high-end social activity and skill training.

But that applies to ordinary people.

Sword skills are ultimately just supernatural power, so the tuition fee won't be too expensive, only 5 silver dragons per lesson, which lasts 1-2 hours.

According to the swordsmanship instructor, mages possess precise perception and have far superior control over their bodies. Learning this mundane skill is considered exceptionally gifted, and under normal circumstances, it takes about a hundred lessons to get started.

One hundred lessons, at most only 50 Golden Bird Coins, is such a good deal.

There's not much to say, just learn it!

Half a month passed quickly.

With Gao De diligently "refining" his work, the construction of Leo Meng's Magic Network is already more than halfway complete.

The spell models corresponding to the five newly acquired spells were also constructed long ago, given the user's extraordinary mental strength.

However, due to a current shortage of resources, Gaode could only return to his frugal lifestyle and temporarily only added points to the most valued [Divine Berry Technique] and [Magic Missile].

[Divine Berry Technique+]:

Additional: Berries created by this spell will have a strong attraction to animals.

【Magic Missile+】：

Additional: If all three darts hit the same target, it will cause a force field tremor, and the target will be knocked back a short distance.

The Magic Missile now has an added control effect, while the Divine Berry spell further expands its applicability; both are extremely practical improvements.

With two points of essence remaining, Gaode will store them in advance for rare spells he may master in the future.

Always keep some reserves.

To avoid encountering the spell you most want to level up when you're at your most vulnerable, leaving you with only regret.

On the other hand, amidst his busy cultivation, Gao De also renovated the old Harlin General Store, recruited employees, and finally opened his long-planned magic material store yesterday.

This was his first property in Dorne, and also the first property he openly owned in the Plantagenet dynasty.

A small magic supplies store.

"Walmart Magic Supplies Store".

This is the name that Gaode Maps gave it.

It wasn't meant as a prank.

That's just how people are. If you go to a strange place and it's hard to go back to your hometown, you'll always want to create some familiar things in this strange place and add some shadows of your hometown.

However, Gaode doesn't have many connections in Dorne City and doesn't have a channel to obtain stable and preferential magic materials.

Therefore, Walmart's Magic Materials Store is currently only in a trial operation state, mainly focusing on purchasing magic materials, especially tree species and magic tree species.

In addition, it was a new store with no regular customers, so business was very poor.

Of course, Gaode Maps is not in a hurry.

This magical material shop has already achieved its goal as long as it can help him acquire tree seeds.

The rest are just extras.

If it can grow into a large-scale enterprise, that would be a pleasant surprise; if not, it doesn't matter.

Let's leave it at that for now; losing money is fine.

When he returns to the North next time, he'll bring a large batch of magical materials. He can then focus on polar magical materials, which could be considered a new market segment and might become very successful.

bang bang.

As usual, after finishing his training for the day, Gao De was about to go to the martial arts school for his swordsmanship class when there was a sudden knock on the door.

Gao De opened the door.

Standing outside the door was a mage dressed in a sea sentinel uniform. He was older and looked quite serious.

"Sir, you came to see me?" Gao De asked.

He is now a second-class apprentice monk, at the very bottom of the hierarchy, and everyone is his superior.

"Master Gaode, I am Sergeant Lupin. I have come to see you on the orders of Captain Merrick, mainly for one matter."

As he spoke, he took out an extremely exquisite crystal bottle from his pocket and handed it to Gao De.

Through the transparent bottle, Gaode can see that it contains three drops of viscous, silvery-blue gelatinous substance.

"This is.?"

Gao De reached out and took the crystal bottle, puzzled.

"This is spiritual essence... Master Gaode, you made great contributions in the Marco Water Beast incident. According to the rules, after the Sea Sentinels raided the Embroidered Nail Gang and confiscated all their property, they will take a small portion of it and bestow it upon you as an extra reward," Master Lupin patiently explained.

(End of this chapter)