Above the mage

Chapter 424 Is it difficult to concoct potions?

Three rare spells, costing three second-class merits.

Gao De chose to split the remaining two second-class merits into third-class merits, and combined them with the original third-class merits, he exchanged them for 13 ordinary first-level spell recipes:

【Craftsman's Blessing】(Change Series, Ring 1):

The recipient will be more fortunate in the next stage of the procedure when luck is required.

[Sensory Sharpening] (Change System, First Ring):

The patient's sensory abilities are enhanced.

[Despair Spell] (Enchantment, 1st Ring):

Centered on you, a 50-foot radius area of ​​effect is created. The Despair spell fills your enemies within the area with fear and confusion.

Despair can counter and remove Blessing spells.

[Rainbow Jet] (Illusionist, Level 1):

A dazzling, colorful beam of light radiates from your hand in a cone shape, stunning any creatures within it. This could cause them to go blind, or even lose consciousness and collapse.

Each creature within the cone-shaped area will be affected to varying degrees according to its level of mental strength.

Creatures without sight are unaffected by the rainbow spray.

[Detection Trap] (Prophecy, Level 1):

You can detect simple pitfalls, traps, snares, as well as mechanical traps made of natural materials;

It can also detect certain natural hazards—quicksand (like a trap), rock pits (like a sinkhole), or a stone wall on the verge of collapse (like a falling object trap).

The amount of information you can obtain depends on how much time you spend studying a particular area.

[Entropy Light Shield] (Protection type, level 1):

A magical field of various chaotic colors appears around you.

This magical field can deflect arrows, rays, and other ranged attacks.

Note that this is achieved by manipulating light and shadow to create a similar effect to concealment, but it does not work against spells without a path.

[Floating Disc] (Evocation, Level 1):

You created a slightly concave force field disk that will follow you and carry your cargo.

The disc always floats at a height of about 3 feet above the ground and remains horizontal.

It floats horizontally within spell range and will follow you, with a maximum speed equal to your normal speed.

Without other guidance, it will keep a 5-foot distance from you.

If the spell's duration ends, the floating disc will dissipate.

Similarly, if you move out of the spell's range, or try to make the distance between the floating disc and the nearest ground exceed the range limit, the floating disc will also dissipate.

When the floating disc dissipates, everything on it will fall to the ground below.

[Animal Ignore Technique] (Protection System, Level 1):

Animals are unable to recognize the protected creature, even if they possess extraordinary sensory abilities such as blindness, blindness, keen sense of smell, and tremor perception, they are unable to detect or locate the subject.

The animal will act as if the subject does not exist at all.

If the recipient touches or attacks any animal or creature, even if it is done through magic, the Animal Ignore spell will lose its effect.

[Decompose Corpses] (Necromancer, First Ring):

Through this spell, the caster can rapidly dissect the flesh of a corpse, whether it is enormous or smaller, leaving behind a perfectly clean skeleton.

[Disease Diagnosis] (Prophecy System, First Ring):

You can determine whether a creature, an object, or an area carries a disease or infection (such as mold, slime mold, or other similar hazards), or any illness or nauseating effect caused by special or supernatural abilities.

If a disease exists, you can identify what it is and what its effects are. If the target is a living organism, it will be easier to cure the target disease.

[Frostbite] (Change type, first ring):

Your melee attacks deal additional cold damage and fatigue the target.

[Rallying Call] (Energistic System, First Ring):

You create the sound of a giant hunting horn, which can produce three notes and a volume like the roar of a dragon.

The sound can travel up to 4 kilometers under typical outdoor conditions.

You can freely control the movement of these three sounds during the spell's duration, emitting them at any rhythm, for varying lengths, to convey brief messages.

[Burning in Flames] (Enchantment, First Ring):

You make the target extremely sexually attracted to another creature or object that you specified when you cast the spell.

The creature or object must also be within the spell's range and be perceived by the target.

With 13+3, plus the 35 first-level spells already mastered, Gaode's final first-level spell repertoire will reach 51.

This number of first-ring spells is enough to ensure that the feat he awakens when advancing to the second ring is a "gold" super feat.

Undoubtedly, Gao De's drastic actions caught the attention of the mage in the supply department.

"Are you sure you want to exchange for so many spell recipes?" Old Neil looked at God with suspicion.

He had never seen any sea sentinel mage use such a "crazy" and "extreme" exchange method.

Gaode nodded naturally, but didn't explain further.

Since no reasonable explanation can be found, it's better to remain silent and let others guess.

Compared to exchanging for the fifth-circle spell recipe, his behavior was merely strange and wouldn't arouse suspicion.

After Gaode confirmed the deal, Old Neil, being very mindful of boundaries, didn't ask any more questions and quickly arranged for the goods to be delivered to Gaode.

First, the Spirit Spring Dew Tree seed is placed in a transparent crystal bottle.

The bottle also contained clear spring water, and the tree seed was immersed in it.

The tree's exterior is crystal clear, resembling a water droplet, while inside, a drop of golden liquid flows slowly, like a living spring.

The surface of the seed still has fine ripples, as if it could turn into water at any moment.

If you listen quietly, you can hear the babbling of water and faint singing coming from within the seeds.

In addition to the tree itself, a cultivation manual for the Spirit Spring Dew Tree and a bottle of special soil collected from the original Spirit Spring Dew Tree are also included.

After flipping through the cultivation manual, Gao De finally understood why the notes stated that the Lingquan Ganlu tree species was extremely delicate.

This thing has very high requirements for soil.

It needs to be planted in a special soil mixture made of moss ground into powder, mixed with fertile silt from the bottom of the lake, and ice chips from glaciers over a thousand years old, in a 1:2:1 ratio, in order to germinate and grow normally.

During the subsequent cultivation process, it needs to be watered daily with fresh dew picked that day.

But it's okay, it's Flora's problem anyway.

Gaode said he had a good mindset.

Next is the Ring-Up Elixir, [Green Vine Dew].

Its liquid is a translucent green color with tiny golden specks floating on the surface, and it makes a crisp tinkling sound when shaken.

It looks extremely extraordinary.

Finally, there are sixteen spell recipes.

Gao De left the supply depot with great satisfaction and a huge harvest.

After watching Gao De leave, Old Neil unconsciously fell into deep thought in his seat, muttering to himself:

"Are you about to advance to the second ring so soon, or did you exchange it for someone else?"

Gao De chose to exchange for the Ring-Up Potion, his purpose was definitely one of these two.

The latter is manageable, but if it's the former, it's beyond Neil's comprehension.

The selection and assessment information is not considered confidential.

Therefore, Old Neil knew that during the assessment, Gao De's mage level had clearly only just broken through to the mid-stage of the first ring.

His outstanding feature is his spiritual power, which far surpasses that of ordinary mages, and he possesses the potential to break through limits.

It's only been six months since the selection process, and Gaode has already started offering Ascension Ring Potions?!

What kind of cultivation progress is this?

Could it be that a hidden dragon has finally leaped out of the sea?

While Old Neil was lost in thought, Goddard was already wandering around the various magical supplies stores in the Dorne commercial district.

Sixteen new spell recipes are sixteen spell potions, requiring a total of seventy or eighty kinds of main and auxiliary ingredients.

To gather all these materials, you'll have to visit several magic material shops, and some of them might even require waiting for restocking.

But this time Gaode was very lucky. After visiting several magic material shops, he easily gathered all the main and auxiliary materials.

Sixteen magical potions were made, and the raw materials cost nearly 650 Goldfinch coins.

The huge sum of money that Gaode obtained by exchanging fifty Ice Jade Wutong Leaves has now shrunk to 2657 Golden Bird Flower Coins.

It still looks like a lot, but Gaode knows it can't withstand much use.

Firstly, the upgrade to the second ring is imminent, and the market price for a second-ring spell recipe is as high as 120 gold coins, while the cost of a second-ring spell potion is close to 200 gold coins.

In other words, these 2657 Goldfinch coins are not even enough for him to learn ten second-level spells.

Leaving aside the equipment upgrades after the second ring upgrade, Marquis Drake has just bestowed upon me a shop in the Vandroren district, and opening it would be another major expense.

However, Gaode Maps doesn't seem particularly anxious.

They spent a large sum of Poecilis in Lagos to establish shipyards and shipping routes in order to solve their economic problems.

Although most of the money earned there is now being invested in shipyards to purchase and add more fixed assets.

However, since it's a business with no initial investment, the return on investment will be incredibly fast, and profits will inevitably follow soon.

After completing his shopping spree, Gao De did not return to his dormitory, but instead went to Walmart's Magic Supplies store.

Because the sea sentry barracks do not have kitchens or cooking utensils.

He first went upstairs to the second floor to "cook" and brew, then "mixed" sixteen portions of magical potions in sequence.

Then, as if pouring water, he gulped down all the potions into his stomach.

Sixteen doses of the magic potion were swallowed, which completely satiated Gao De.

Even for him, it would take several days to construct all the spell models for such a large number of new spells.

For the rest of the time, he was like a child who had just received a new batch of toys, focusing intently on building the spell model, ignoring everything else outside the window.

However, some things won't happen just because Gaode doesn't care.

Normally, if he makes a great contribution, it might not cause much of a stir. After all, if he doesn't actively show off or publicize it, not many people will know about it.

This time, however, it was a collective mission, and the military merits were announced in public. So, after the event, his feat of winning three first-class merits as a first-class apprentice mage spread rapidly within a day.

Moreover, it wasn't just circulating within the Sea Sentinels; it had also been heard about among the noble circles of Dorne.

With three first-class merit awards, the phrase "a bright future" has become practically synonymous with Gaode Maps.

This young mage was still a "wild mage," with no powerful faction behind him.

It's undoubtedly a hot commodity.

Of course, this kind of "hot commodity" perspective can be tinged with goodwill or malice.

Goodwill stems from the belief that investing in Gaode is worthwhile, while malice arises from the perception that Gaode is powerless and lacks support, yet possesses such significant merit, and the desire to exchange money for Gaode's first-class merit.

A large forest has all kinds of birds, and naturally, all kinds of people and ideas will exist there.

But none of this concerns Gaode Maps.

After four days of seclusion, having completed the construction of all sixteen spell models, Gao De began packing his belongings and preparing to return to the North.

It must be said that although only a month and a half has passed since I left the North and am now preparing to return, the gains have far exceeded my expectations:

Blood Crystal Wheat Seeds from the Holy Empire, Fourth-Order Spirit Spring Dew Demon Tree Seeds, a Strange Fox Egg, a Precious Demon Plant Dragon Bird Blood Fungus, and an Unexpectedly Discovered Bee-Singing Tree Seed.

These were all unexpected gains.

In addition, there are local tree species acquired by Gaode when he went out on missions, and tree species acquired by Walmart Magic Material Store over a long period of time, totaling more than forty new tree species and two first-tier magic tree species.

It has a bit of the feel of a hamster bringing good stuff home.

After sorting through all the spoils, Gao De, as agreed, "pulled" Flora, who was still in the North, to the Plantagenet Dynasty by canceling the spellcasting combo.

"The wheat in this plot is growing the best. Hmm?"

Flora looked around, somewhat lost, as if searching for her wheat, and then she saw Gaode with a smile on his face.

"It was I who disturbed Lady Flora's work," Gao De apologized.

He can bring Flora to the Plantagenets at any time, but there is a drawback: he cannot know what Flora is doing in the North at that moment, which is a "blind pull".

Judging from Flora's inertia, she was clearly "working" just now.

Flora frowned instinctively.

She has always been a responsible adult, so she felt a little upset when her work was interrupted.

However, it was only a brief frown before he immediately broke into a smile.

She's also a playful little person.

Flora knew that being brought here by Godra would be quite a fun experience.

"Master, Lady Flora doesn't blame you," she said earnestly.

"That's good."

Flora stared at him without saying a word.

Gao De chuckled, "If I remember correctly, today is Pentecost in Dorne. There will be events in the city tonight. I'll take Lady Flora for a stroll."

"Is it fun?"

"It's very lively, there are a lot of people, and there are all kinds of activities."

"If the mage goes, Lady Flora will go."

"Of course I'll go."

"Lady Flora is going too!"

After going outside, there were indeed many more pedestrians on the street than usual.

This magnificent scene reminded Gaode of certain festivals from his past life.

"Lady Flora, please don't fly around too much later, lest you get lost," Gao De reminded her.

"Lady Flora is very clever."

Smart people won't get lost.

"Too."

Gao De smiled and followed the flow of people in one direction.

Pentecost, also known as the Sea Festival, is a festival dedicated to worshipping the sea, praying for its protection, and seeking abundant catches.

This is a festival unique to coastal cities.

In addition to setting up altars by the sea during the festival, there will also be lively markets and various performances in the evenings.

There is one market in each district.

Walmart's Magic Supplies store is located in the East District, and Gao De took Flora to the East District market.

The pedestrians on the street were all heading there.

Gaode followed the crowd, while Flora sat on Gaode's shoulders, looking around.

Looking down from this height, all she could see were all sorts of faces and heads. Flora peered through the gaps between the densely packed heads at the street scene.

The sky was getting dark.

The streetlights on both sides were already lit, creating a beautiful night scene.

The closer you get to the market, the more lively it becomes.

Vendors selling snacks, seashell crafts, fishing nets, and ship models, along with performers, create a unique festive atmosphere amidst exclamations and haggling.

Suddenly, Flora's eyes widened as she looked into the distance.

A huge crowd had gathered there, so tightly packed that there wasn't a single gap for Flora to see what was happening inside.

She tugged at Gaode's collar.

"Let's go take a look." Gao De immediately understood.

"Master, are you curious too?"

"Yes."

"Then Lady Flora will accompany the mage to take a look."

"Thank you so much, Lady Flora," God said softly.

An adult and a child went to the edge of the crowd, but still couldn't see anything.

Gao De smiled slightly, took a step forward, and without him making any move, the crowd that had been surrounding him strangely parted to make way for him.

【The Mage's Hand】.

Some of those who were pushed back a little felt a bit resentful and wanted to find the culprit, but they couldn't find him at all and could only give up.

After squeezing into the inner circle, I discovered that it was actually a potion master demonstrating how to concoct potions, while simultaneously giving up on his own potion shop.

To be honest, potion brewing isn't very entertaining; it's certainly not as captivating as the street performance I just glimpsed on the roadside.

The reason it attracts so many onlookers is that after concocting the potion, the potion maker will randomly give the finished product to the onlookers.

For example, the one he is currently concocting is a "cooling and heat-clearing potion," a zero-level potion that, after being consumed, can make the drinker feel cool all over and eliminate all heat within a day, making it a rare and precious item for summer.

The potion master was skilled, pouring the prepared ingredients into the potion bottle one by one. Then, like a flair bartender, his hands moved like butterflies flitting among flowers, swaying left and right, adding more ingredients from time to time.

Throughout this process, he was able to maintain extremely stable observation and preparation of the medicine's properties.

As he moved, the liquid in the medicine bottle began to change color, and a sweet fragrance and herbal aroma instantly intertwined and spread.

After a series of steps, the pale green potion took shape.

The potion master went to a small cup on the side, divided the light green, refreshing, and heat-clearing potion into smaller portions, and then randomly handed them to the curious onlookers in the front row.

Those who received the potion took a sip and their eyes widened instantly, clearly finding it quite delicious.

Immediately afterwards, the potion master began to vigorously promote his potion shop.

Upon seeing this, Gao De shook his head and silently withdrew.

After he squeezed out of the crowd, he realized something was wrong.

Flora, who is usually "noisy," remained completely silent throughout the entire event.

Gao De turned his head and saw that the little guy was staring at the crowd that had been regrouped, looking thoughtful.

"What is Lady Flora thinking about?" God asked.

"Master, what was that person doing just now?"

The little one tilts his head, looking curious.

"What's wrong with mixing potions?"

"What is a magic potion?"

"It is a medicine with magical effects, made by mixing various materials."

Are potions valuable?

"valuable."

"Then why is it that out of so many people, only he concocts potions, and why don't the others do it?"

"Because brewing potions is very difficult; it requires advanced skills and knowledge, and not everyone can do it."

"It's difficult." Flora frowned, puzzled. "What makes it difficult?"

(End of this chapter)