From Alchemy Apprentice to All-Powerful God King

Outside the town of Val, Matthew spent most of the day wandering around the border to avoid being followed by people from the jade gambling market.

As the sun set and the afterglow faded, he found a secluded spot to change his clothes and headed back towards the town.

He even made a point of passing by the mass grave to take a look at the coffin, which had not been disturbed.

"It's a pity we didn't encounter any other demonic insects."

Back in town, Matthew kept turning back every few steps, but no suspicious people appeared.

After spending half a gold coin to buy a large amount of rice and flour, Matthew went straight home.

"I still have four and a half gold coins, enough to live on for the next six months."

Matthew estimated his net worth. Although he was rich, if he wanted to buy materials to refine a first-tier magical insect, he probably couldn't even afford one of the materials in the recipe.

Not to mention potions that enhance the restoration of one's own magic power.

"I'm still too poor. It seems I need to find a way to make money first."

Matthew shook his head, his gaze slowly falling on the three magic stones he had brought back from the jade gambling market.

At first glance, it looks no different from the gravel picked up from the roadside, with no special features and uneven surface.

But as soon as you hold it, you can feel a faint, almost imperceptible magic.

Ordinary people might not be able to sense it, but anyone who frequently comes into contact with alchemical insects or similar creatures can feel it as soon as they touch them.

Especially alchemy apprentices like them, not to mention those with special abilities.

At this moment, Matthew could see the magic power constantly emanating from the magic stone without even touching it.

"Although gray whetstone is not as good as starstone, it's worth a try."

Matthew sat up straight, picked up one of the gray whetstones, and played with it in his hand for a while.

The prompt from the Chronicles of Another World did not appear in my mind.

Then, using his hands to control magic, he peeled away the outer shell of the gray whetstone little by little.

The process of cutting the stone must be done with utmost care, since no one knows where the demonic insect might be inside the stone.

So even if there are no insects inside, we can only do it little by little.

As time passed, the stones gradually fell off and became smaller, and Matthew's forehead gradually became covered in sweat.

Manipulating magic is a delicate skill, and Matthew, who was trying it for the first time, was clearly a bit clumsy.

"As expected, there was nothing there."

After the stone was cut open, Matthew looked at the broken pieces of stone in his hand without any surprise.

He then picked up the second piece.

Same operation, same result.

It was still completely empty, not even a single insect egg.

Matthew, who felt something was off, picked up a piece of gravel and his expression gradually became serious.

"How come only the outer fragments have magic?"

After studying it for a moment, he suddenly realized.

These stones are not gray whetstone at all, but ordinary stones that have been soaked in magic potions and then processed to look like gray whetstone.

"No wonder they say nine out of ten gamblers lose; what a jerk!"

Matthew felt his intelligence had been insulted.

If I hadn't been in regular contact with magic potions and hadn't become an ability user, I probably wouldn't have been able to tell.

No wonder he took three gray whetstones that usually cost one gold coin each.

Feelings are worthless!

Somewhat speechless, Matthew looked at the last piece of gray whetstone, his emotions complex.

If I keep cutting the stone, I feel like a fool; if I don't, I feel like there's a thorn in my side.

What if?

This scene reminded Matthew of a famous quote.

"Since we've already done it, we might as well finish it."

Having said that, Matthew picked up the last piece of gray whetstone and began to cut it.

Having learned from the previous two experiences, I was exceptionally fast this time, and since I didn't have much hope, my technique was rather rough and casual.

However, after a piece of gravel fell off, the Chronicles of Another World suddenly started turning pages, and several prompts popped up in my mind.

[Demon insect detected - New recipe captured]

[Dung Beetle Lv.1: The purest power-type low-level magical insect, abandoning all redundant abilities and piling all its talents into its physical body.]

When you choose power, power will respond to you!

Upon seeing the sudden notification, Matthew's hands, which had been moving with great force, froze instantly.

Then, he carefully lifted the loosened rubble.

At this moment, an oval-shaped, sturdy demonic insect is quietly sleeping in the gray whetstone.

It looked ordinary, but its carapace was covered with a layer of fine bone patterns. Matthew tapped it lightly, and it made a sound like armor.

The most striking feature is its six limbs, which have very distinct muscle lines.

"Just a demonic insect, yet its figure is better than mine?"

Matthew was not overwhelmed by this sudden joy and remained vigilant at all times.

Although it is a demonic insect that emerges from gray whetstone, it is still wild, and it is easy to be ambushed if you are not careful.

Fortunately, this dung beetle was completely asleep and wouldn't wake up without magical watering.

After carefully reviewing the recipes and abilities in the Otherworld Chronicles, Matthew made no hesitation.

First, soak the dung beetle in fresh blood, then use magic to control it to absorb all of its own blood.

He then used a knife to make a bloody incision on his left forearm and put the half-awake dung beetle into it.

The next moment, a large amount of magic power gathered here from all parts of the body.

The wound healed rapidly, and at the same time, the dung beetles inside the body absorbed a large amount of magic power and gradually awakened.

At this moment, it was too weak to resist and was completely refined by Matthew, eventually merging into its forearm.

【Dung Beetle lv.1】

[Bomb Bug lv.1]

Alchemy Maniac Lv.1: 300/2000 experience points, 15% success rate

[Do a good deed every day: 20/100 experience points, +2 luck]

"Refining demonic insects can also increase experience points?"

Looking at the two labels in the Otherworld Chronicle, Matthew's expression was satisfied, especially the "Do a good deed every day" label.

These tags that increase luck are practically magical artifacts from those online games of my past life.

Matthew did a simple test, holding the remaining half of the gray whetstone in his hand and gently squeezing it.

As magic surged from his forearm, before he could even exert any force, the gray whetstone had already shattered into a pile of fragments, slipping through his fingers.

"Wow, that's pretty intense."

If you suddenly deliver this attack during a fight, it will definitely catch your opponent off guard.

Moreover, he focused on strengthening his left hand. Who would fight with their left hand?

After the initial excitement subsided, Matthew forced himself to calm down, tidied up the room again, and prepared to act as if nothing had happened.

The fact that a random gray whetstone yielded a demonic insect must never be known to the people at the jade gambling market.

But as the surroundings gradually quieted down, two faint footsteps suddenly came from outside the window.

Upon hearing the noise, Matthew immediately became alert.

When the moon is high in the sky and the night is dark and windy, who would be sneaking around outside?

The answer is self-evident.

Matthew immediately leaped up, using his left hand to hang his entire body from the roof beam, waiting for the other person to enter the room.

As the window was slowly pushed open, a monstrous insect that looked like a mosquito but was the size of a fist crawled in from the edge.

After looking around, it quietly flew to the bedside, and at the same time, a white gas emanated from its mouthparts, gradually filling the entire room.