Above the mage

Chapter 430 Spell Enhancement

"This shouldn't be too difficult for Lady Flora, right?" Gao De smiled gently as he looked at the little Flora and felt a challenge. His competitive spirit was aroused, and he immediately flew forward to stroke one of the blood crystal wheat grains.

"Hibernation Awakening, Rusty Iron, Barren Life Ceases." The next moment, Flora released her hand and uttered three words.

This is the secret of cultivating Blood Crystal Wheat, which has puzzled the world for so long and is firmly held in the hands of the Holy Empire.

After asking in detail, Gaode finally learned all the details.

To be honest, both the name "Blood Crystal Wheat" and its appearance and function are very misleading, making people immediately think of blood, such as being nourished by blood.

Even Gaode Maps thinks so.

In the Holy Empire, there have also been some rumors that Blood Crystal Wheat needs to be planted in crimson soil that flows with blood.

This led countless people who wanted to steal the seed to frantically try to irrigate the Blood Crystal Wheat with all sorts of blood.

Alternatively, they could search for various types of red soil resembling volcanic rock to cultivate Blood Crystal Wheat.

The result, naturally, was failure.

But the truth is that the cultivation method of Blood Crystal Wheat has nothing to do with blood, let alone the so-called red soil.

Its blood-red color comes from the fact that it can synthesize a substance similar to "heme" after it matures, which causes its color to change.

What it truly needs for its cultivation and growth is a high concentration of iron.

Blood crystal wheat needs to be grown and mature in soil rich in iron to grow properly.

Creating iron-rich soil is not difficult.

Simply bury the rusted ironware, iron filings, or even iron ore in the soil.

The iron released during the rusting process of ironware will be absorbed by the blood crystal wheat seeds.

The cost of growing blood crystal wheat is much lower than one might imagine.

Gao De hadn't considered this possibility before Flora mentioned it, but after she did, he couldn't help but slap his forehead.

Replenishing blood often boils down to replenishing iron!

That makes perfect sense.

Gao De even suspected that neither the name "Blood Crystal Wheat" nor the secrets of its cultivation circulating within the Holy Empire were reliable indicators.

It's highly likely that this is a smokescreen deliberately released by the Holy Empire to mislead those who steal the seeds.

As for hibernation and awakening, it refers to the fact that Blood Crystal Wheat itself has the characteristic of hibernation.

This characteristic allows it to be stored for a longer period of time.

However, this also means that blood crystal wheat must be soaked in an acidic liquid for at least three hours before planting to break its dormancy.

Without this step, it would be impossible for the blood crystal wheat seeds to germinate if they were sown directly.

The final phrase, "barren land yields fertile soil," is even more "abstract."

In short, Blood Crystal Wheat can only grow in barren soil; it cannot be grown in fertile soil.

Of course, this is only the surface appearance; the fundamental reason is that fertile land has always nurtured a wide variety of plants.

As they grow, they leave traces in the soil, and even if you remove all of these plants, it will take a long time for these traces to disappear completely.

Blood Crystal Wheat is like a picky young master; it simply won't accept land that bears traces of other plants.

On barren land, nothing grows, and there is no trace of other plants growing. As long as the iron requirement is met, along with some basic nutrients, it can thrive.

Such a unique personality led to the peculiar phenomenon of barren lands and fertile fields.

If it weren't for Flora's extremely domineering talent, who would have thought that Blood Crystal Wheat would have to be planted on wasteland?

Those who steal the seeds must all want to provide the best conditions for Blood Crystal Wheat, but such actions are completely contrary to the correct way to grow Blood Crystal Wheat.

With such triple protection and triple unexpectedness, it's no wonder that the Holy Empire did not prohibit the trade and circulation of Blood Crystal Wheat. Yet, over the years, no other force has ever cultivated Blood Crystal Wheat.

"None of these are difficult to achieve..." Gao De's eyes gradually lit up after hearing what Flora said.

"Awakening from hibernation only requires an acidic liquid; it's that simple. Whether it's animal gastric juice or whey separated from fermented dairy products, both are highly acidic and fast-acting..."

'

The people of the North are a nomadic people with a strong hunting and pastoral culture.

"Furthermore, Phoenix is ​​right next to a volcano, and if all else fails, there is acidic sulfide water underground in the volcanic area."

The first point is not difficult to solve.

The same applies to the second point.

Iron ore exists around Phoenix, and in their more primitive way of life, the various tribes had a great many rusted iron tools.

The third key point:

The tundra and permafrost of the North are known for their barrenness; apart from a few mosses and lichens, there is practically no green to be seen.

Looking for barren land in the North is like looking for water in the ocean.

"We should immediately begin hybridization breeding of blood crystal wheat and cold-resistant wheat, and strive to cultivate the Northwest Barley No. 2 variety as soon as possible," Gao De thought to himself. After confirming that there were no problems, he solemnly clasped his hands in a fist and said to Flora, "Then we will have to rely on Lady Flora."

"Lady Flora, you've worked hard. If you successfully cultivate the Northwest Barley No. 2 variety, I imagine the people of Phoenix will respect you even more." Sunefa, who had been "aloof" throughout, suddenly chimed in.

With the same solemn expression, and the same clasped hands.

"!" Flora, who had been somewhat nonchalant, suddenly became serious.

This feeling of everyone eagerly anticipating every word I say, this sense of carrying a heavy burden...

"I'll leave it to Lady Flora!" Her tone unconsciously rose a notch, her joy impossible to hide.

Gao De had complete confidence in her abilities.

Despite her innocent and naive appearance, she is unparalleled in her reliability in her field of expertise.

"Lady Flora is in charge of cultivating Northwest Barley No. 2, while you are to start setting up a new farm specifically for growing Northwest Barley No. 2," Gao De said to Sunefa.

In highly developed agriculture, zoning is a fundamental but necessary element.

It's also said that Blood Crystal Wheat has the "Barren Life" buff.

"Let's call the new farm Flora's Abundant Farm," Gao De said with a smile, glancing at the little boy's excited face.

"Flora's Abundant Farm?" Upon hearing her name, Flora immediately perked up her long, pointed ears.

"This is to demonstrate Lady Flora's significant contributions to agriculture in the North."

"A major contribution~~"

Elsa, who had been silent until now, also spoke up: "Lady Flora's contributions to the North are unparalleled."

I truly admire that.

This statement was half sincere and half just for fun.

"Unmatched by anyone~" Flora once again grasped the key point.

The Jinhui Farm, which is used to grow Northwest Barley No. 1, has already reclaimed 600,000 mu of land a month and a half ago.

During the time that Gaode was away from the North, Sunafa stopped the expansion of the Golden Radiance Farm and instead focused on planting all the reclaimed land with Northwest Barley No. 1.

The Northwest Barley No. 1 variety is originally harvested in April. Thanks to Flora's efforts, the yield per mu has stabilized at 180 kilograms and is now striving towards 200 kilograms per mu.

If all 600,000 mu of land were planted with Northwest Barley No. 1, the daily yield could reach 900,000 kilograms.

This production volume is sufficient to supply 1.5 million people.

As for Flora's Abundant Farm, the first phase target set by Gaode is only 100,000 mu for the time being.

This was not a difficult task for Phoenix, who already had experience building Golden Farm, so once it was decided, they quickly skipped the topic.

"My king, I have sold a large quantity of Northwest Barley No. 1 to the Frostwolf Clan as you instructed," Sunefa reported.

"Did they notice anything was wrong?" Gao De asked.

Although the North is backward, it doesn't mean that the people of the North are unintelligent. He dared not underestimate these people.

"No, their only reaction was that they thought the price was too high, and they kept negotiating with us, demanding that we lower the price given their large-scale purchases." Sunafa pursed her lips slightly.

Although their idea was to control the Frostwolf Clan through Northwest Barley No. 1, they hoped that the proportion of Northwest Barley No. 1 in the Frostwolf Clan's food supply would be as high as possible.

However, in order not to arouse the suspicion and vigilance of the Frostwolf Clan, Sunefah set extremely high conditions for the sale of Northwest Barley No. 1.

Firstly, the quantity is limited; it's not possible to sell as much as the other party wants. Secondly, the price is not low, and they only accept purchases of "ice marrow".

This was naturally very difficult for the Frostwolf Clan, but it also prevented them from questioning Phoenix's true purpose in selling grain, and they focused all their attention on bargaining.

That's just how people are; they tend to be suspicious of things that are too cheap, but when it comes to expensive things, they only care about the price.

Gao De smiled upon hearing this, "Let's stall them for a while longer, and then lower the price for them a bit."

Given the current situation, they could take over the Frostwolf Clan without bloodshed within a few years by controlling food supplies.

"Although the Winterhammer is also buying Northwest Barley No. 1 from us, their dependence on Northwest Barley No. 1 is certainly not as high as that of the Frostwolf Clan. It is unlikely that they can take over the Winterhammer with just this."

"No rush. Let's take down the Frostwolf Clan first and break the current three-way power struggle," Gaode said casually, waving his hand.

In fact, given Phoenix's current rate of development, the three-way balance of power will naturally collapse in just ten years, transforming into a situation with one dominant power and several strong contenders.

Of course, if Phoenix could subdue the Frostwolf Clan and Winterhammer before that, it would definitely accelerate Phoenix's development. But if that's not possible, there's no need to force it.

Again:

Development is the only way forward.

Although it has only been a month and a half since I left, Phoenix is ​​changing rapidly, and there are already many issues and directions that require Gaode's advice and decisions.

Especially in the areas of administrative system, education, and Phoenix construction.

Since these were all new things introduced by Gaode based on his past life's experience and knowledge, not to mention Sunafa, even Aisha, who had some "governing" experience, was confused about many aspects and needed Gaode to clarify them.

Therefore, the three-person meeting lasted from dusk until the moonlight soaked through the windowpanes.

After leaving the city hall, Gao De turned and headed to the place where the tribe's hunters raised the creatures of the ley lines.

When he last left the North, he ordered the mission to capture ley line creatures to be restarted.

Now, a month and a half has passed, and it's harvest time.

Of course, the same problem remains: the Tier 1 ley line creatures commonly found around Phoenix have already been harvested, and very few have escaped.

Furthermore, Gaode needs a total of seven creatures of the same kind to obtain a complete Origin Point.

Therefore, after a "Bloody Hand Beast Slaughter" session, Gaode's first ring origin points only increased from 3 to 6.

This time, he didn't try to save money.

With the Ring Ascension imminent and the awakening of special abilities at the forefront, why hold onto the Origin?

It is uncertain whether the spells after adding points will affect the strength of awakened feats.

But it's better to make a mistake than to miss an opportunity. Before upgrading your ring, you must do your best.

Six points in the first ring of origin, and three newly mastered rare spells, are definitely the highest priority; I'll put all the points into them first.

[Long-Range Shot [Rare]+] (Change Type, Level 1):

This spell increases your range by 20 feet when you make ranged attacks.

Additional: Your ranged attacks can ignore energy loss within 20 feet.

【Know Yourself and Know Your Enemy [Rare]+】(Prophecy System, First Ring):

Think back to the creatures you encountered in a single day...

...you will be able to gain some knowledge about this creature.

Bonus: You will gain more knowledge about this creature, including information about its population.

【Miracle Elixir [Rare]+】(Change type, Level 1):

You can choose a fun effect related to health, happiness, and joy for a bottle of water, creating a secret elixir with no side effects...

Bonus: The elixirs you create will have two more interesting effects to choose from:

[Hyper Memory]: Within an hour, you gain the ability of hyper memory, which greatly increases your memory and allows you to instantly remember text, maps, or biological features.

However, it should be noted that the hyper-memory state is extremely physically demanding. Taking the hyper-memory drug will lead to a state of mental exhaustion, and continuous use of the hyper-memory drug may even cause harm to the body.

[Sensory Harmony]: Within half an hour of drinking, you can actively adjust the sensitivity of your five senses, such as enhancing your vision, but at the cost of dulling other senses such as hearing and hearing; you can also actively dull your sensory sensitivity without paying a price.

In addition, when you create a panacea, you can choose the "Multi-effect Harmony" and "Aftertaste Residue" properties.

Multi-effect Harmony: Consumes multiple times the power of magic, giving the secret medicine multiple effects.

Aftereffect: Consumes additional mana to extend the duration of the main effect of the elixir.