Above the mage

Chapter 49 Ring-Up Potions

"And what are these pages?"

As Gao De picked up the small stack of yellowed pages placed under the potion recipe, he pondered.

His spirits soared because of the enormous gains.

Spell recipes and potion formulas are all here.

He couldn't think of any other piece of paper that would warrant such a solemn placement by the mage Seda in a spell-locked wooden box.

Gao De casually flipped through a few pages, glanced at them briefly, and was taken aback.

It turned out to be a stack of letters.

Most of the letters came from Bremen.

One of the letters was written by Master Seda, which must have been a letter he had written and was preparing to send somewhere, but he died at the hands of God before he could send it.

In Gao De's mind, Master Seda was an evil sorcerer with no relatives or friends and a reclusive personality. It was precisely because of this that he dared to take over the medicine garden with peace of mind.

How could such a person have so many correspondences?

Who is this letter addressed to?

Some worries arose in his heart.

Could it be that Master Seda has other mage friends?

If that's the case, this person might notice that Master Seda has suddenly stopped corresponding with him, find it strange, and then come to his door.

He had no confidence that he could kill another senior mage apprentice.

Gao De felt a little uneasy, but at the same time, his curiosity was piqued, so he quickly read through the small stack of letters in detail.

After watching it, Gaode breathed a sigh of relief.

It wasn't a letter to a close friend; it should be called a family letter.

So you're not all alone after all.

Gao De couldn't help but sigh.

This small stack of letters turned out to be entirely from the wife of the monk Seda, who lived far away in Bremen.

The wife of the monk Seda has been sending him a letter every six months or so for the past ten years.

It lasted for ten years and consisted of twenty letters.

From the contents of these twenty letters, Gao De roughly pieced together the past of Master Seda.

It turns out that Master Seda was born into a family of mages in Bremen, making him a second-generation mage.

His family was once very prosperous.

At its peak, the family had one second-ring mage and nearly ten first-ring mages, making it a considerable mage force in Bremen.

However, after several generations, his family began to experience a decline in quality, and in the last four generations, no one has produced a first-level mage, thus gradually declining.

By the time of Master Seda's generation, he was the only male heir left in what was once a large family.

However, his talent as a mage was actually quite ordinary.

Despite relying on the wealth left by his family and consuming a lot of magic potions, he only managed to reach the third-level apprentice realm at the age of thirty-five, making it almost impossible for him to become a first-level mage.

Originally, Master Seda was quite resigned to his fate.

Although he didn't have much talent for cultivation, he unexpectedly achieved some success in the field of potion-making, successfully mastering the potion recipes he obtained during the prosperity of his family.

Making a living this way, although life is not as prosperous as when the family was at its peak, it is still manageable, at least enough to ensure that one has enough to eat and drink in Bremen.

However, for some reason, a rumor inexplicably began to circulate in a small circle, saying that Master Seda's ancestors had passed down several precious and extraordinary items.

Every husband is not guilty, and he is guilty of his crime.

Master Seda noticed some mysterious spying people starting to appear near his house and also heard the rumor.

Although he was not particularly talented, he had lived to this age and was quite shrewd. He keenly sensed that there must be a hidden hand behind the scenes pushing this matter.

Left with no other choice, Master Seda had to risk attempting "ring ascension" without any certainty or adequate preparation.

What is "ring raising"?

It is the process of a mage apprentice advancing to the first level of mage.

A more common and easier-to-understand translation is "foundation building".

Only by advancing to the first-ring mage level can one possibly scare away these ill-intentioned prying eyes and deter the mastermind behind them.

As expected, the promotion attempt failed.

Master Seda also suffered a severe blow to his health due to his failed ascension, resulting in a sharp decrease in his lifespan and premature aging.

Those prying eyes were already eager to act, and his failure to advance his career and his extreme weakness only emboldened those villains who were secretly coveting his family's property.

Master Seda also understood this principle.

Left with no other choice, he explained everything to his wife, then left his hometown and fled, quietly settling down in Hogan.

However, when he fled, in order to avoid being discovered by others and to cover his tracks, Master Seda had no choice but to leave his wife and children in Bremen and escape alone.

Furthermore, to ensure that he could not be traced, Master Seda did not contact his wife for three whole years.

Three years later, it was expected that the mastermind hiding in the shadows would have lost patience and would have concluded that he had abandoned his wife and children with his family property and would no longer pay much attention to his wife. Only then did Master Seda reconnect with his wife in the way they had agreed upon when they separated.

The monk Seda was forced to live in seclusion in Hogan, separated from his wife and children, and was filled with resentment.

Not to mention that his failure to advance to the first-ring mage level also led to a decline in his lifespan and a rapid decrease in the vitality within his body.

In order to reunite with his family and return to Bremen openly, and also to prolong his life and avoid premature death, Master Seda must try to "ascend the ring" again and become a first-ring master.

However, how difficult it is for a mage of mediocre talent like Seda to advance to the first level of mage.

Especially since he has already failed once, damaging his core essence, it will be even more difficult for him to upgrade his ring.

Unless one drinks a potion that raises the rings, there might still be a sliver of hope.

What is the Ring-Ascending Potion?

If "Ring Ascension" is equivalent to "Foundation Building," then "Ring Ascension Potion" is essentially the same as "Foundation Building Pill."

The problem is:

The "Ring-Up Elixir" is just as precious as the "Foundation-Building Pill".

The common potion for raising chakra in the Duchy of Sien is called "Water of Ascension".

Because one of its main ingredients, "Water of Ascension," is produced in extremely limited quantities, the entire country produces very little "Water of Ascension" per year.

The "Water of Ascension" produced each year must first undergo a round of internal consumption before a small amount flows out to the market, which is not something that Master Seda can buy.

Fortunately, his ancestors left behind a fragmented recipe for a psychic potion.

This is said to be an ancient potion from the ancient Misr dynasty.

This gave the monk Seda hope.

Once he completes the Spirit Potion recipe and successfully concocts the Spirit Potion, he can exchange the recipe for "Spirit Ascension Water."

No matter how precious and rare "Water of Ascension" is, it can never compare to the recipe for a Tier 1 magic potion.

After drinking the "Water of Ascension," try "Ring Ascension" again. If you can successfully advance to the first ring mage, the problem of lifespan will be solved, and you can return to Bremen City openly and honestly to reunite with your family.

Holding onto this belief, Master Seda began to devote himself to completing the "spiritual potion" formula without regard for anything else, almost to the point of becoming possessed.

Since reconnecting with his wife, every year the monk Seda would entrust a caravan to send a letter to his wife in Bremen, informing her of the year's events.

Although Master Seda still owned some properties in Bremen, he couldn't take them with him when he left, so he left them to his wife.

The wife earns enough from renting out these properties to support her daily life.

But as a husband and father, Master Saida was always worried that his wife and children were not eating or dressing well, so every year when he sent them a letter, he would also enclose 50 gold coins.

This is also the origin of the 50 Sean gold coins that Gaode seized from the wooden box.

"My dearest Misu, I know it hasn't been easy for you to raise Sel alone all these years. Your resilience and wisdom have always been my greatest pride."

"Please continue to manage the property according to our plan and make proper arrangements for household expenses."

"As in previous years, I have arranged to send 50 Sean gold coins with this letter, hoping it will be enough to support my family and make up for my shortcomings a little."

"Having lived in seclusion until now, the concoction of the psychic potion is finally nearing completion."

"If all goes well, perhaps I can go home this year and reunite with you, return to your warm embrace, and we will never be separated again;

When I left, Sel was only a little over a month old and couldn't call me father yet. Now he's thirteen and a little adult. He must have inherited your beauty and my wisdom.

Hearing in your letter that Sel's magical talent far surpasses mine makes me incredibly happy. Once I return home, we'll send Sel to a magic academy, and everything will be alright.

"During these days of separation, though we cannot meet, our hearts are closely connected, just like the two wisteria vines in front of our window, their roots forever intertwined."

"Eternal love".

"Sedda".

(End of this chapter)