Unable to repay my student loans, I had no choice but to work part-time as a demon hunter.

Chapter 115 Source Material Exchange

The Earl looked at Charlotte, Charlotte looked at Gordon, and Gordon looked at him.

"Because you seem too unconventional. In this country, traditional morality is the best —" he said slowly.

Perhaps, within a few years, something extremely contrary to traditional morality will happen to the Monford family.

This always bothered the Earl.

"The world changes very quickly, sir."

"That's something spendthrifts and opportunists always say," the count thought for a moment, then added, "—When was the last time you successfully concocted a potion of pure gold quality?"

"It was also a week or two ago that I helped Arthur Gray brew the potion. He's currently undergoing fusion at the Hunter Academy, and I did all of it."

"No wonder he's never been in town." With that thought, the Earl's attitude toward Gordon softened slightly.

Arthur Grey is very arrogant and doesn't easily trust others.

The fact that he was willing to let Gordon help him shows that Gordon is indeed quite capable.

After breakfast, they rode in the Montfort family's black carriage to Place de Mayo to purchase Source Essence. Due to the monopoly of larger extraordinary families, Source Essence was not only scarce but also required luck to order. This time, the Earl secured four pieces of Source Essence.

The Source Exchange is magnificent, with rows of stone pillars supporting a spectacular dome that casts huge shadows in the sunlight.

This place is arguably the most heavily guarded in Lundenim, with a level of security that surpasses even the entire archives management office that Gordon has visited. Imperial Army soldiers wearing bearskin hats and red uniforms are stationed here, along with squads of Royal Church Knights patrolling the area.

Before entering, they went through a series of security checks and went through countless procedures before slowly approaching the VIP room.

The staff brought several documents, each with a clear source registration, risk statement, and various insurance policies to ensure that if a citizen or noble died suddenly after consuming the source, their family would still have enough money for a grand funeral.

"This is practically a cathedral of primordial matter," Gordon exclaimed.

"The Source—is just as worthy of awe as Saint John himself," said Earl Montfort.

After completing all these procedures, the staff finally placed the four specially made gift boxes on an ebony tray and brought them to...

Before them.

The gift boxes were all wrapped in anti-fouling wax paper, with silver buckles at the four corners and sealed with tape.

"They're all yours," said Earl Montfort.

"So generous. These are worth at least a thousand pounds."

"I cannot leave behind a reputation for the Monford family's ignorance or lack of investment acumen. Take it with you," Earl Monford said calmly. "But you must still forge one yourself in front of me."

"clear."

Gordon conducted a thorough review.

Upon opening the first gift box, Gordon immediately felt a burning sensation on his face, his blood vessels began to heat up, and the tide of destiny throughout his body was slightly disturbed, clearly indicating that he did not like this source essence.

[The small, accumulated heat source from melting can be used for rapid heating and heat accumulation, and also makes a person's temperament more cheerful and outgoing. Finally, someone has managed to accumulate the heat.]

This source material—Gordon recalled Eve's ability to heat up, making the rats dance in seconds; her source material ability seemed to be related to that.

It would probably be very suitable if used to make a deal with Eve.

When the second gift box was opened, Gordon felt as if his five senses had been stripped away for a moment.

The world lost its sound, its color, and its distance. Gordon could neither see nor hear, and it took him several seconds to come to his senses.

[A small, shadowy Source Material called the "Low-Profile Hunter," used to minimize the noise, airflow, and presence it generates during movement. Polite attackers will always greet you.]

Gordon's eyes lit up.

It seems to be a potion that Vera can use. She wouldn't reject it, and Vera's attack style is naturally ambush-oriented, so she would definitely like it.

She can already approach her assassination targets with ease, and with this source material, her first strike could end her opponent.

Gordon opened the third gift box.

His breath was filled with the fragrance of earth, as if he had been buried five meters deep in the soil, his nasal cavity filled with moist roots and humus.

The parasitic, weak source material, the "air-seeking rhizome," can be used to promote rapid root growth. Soil, where?

"Cough—" Gordon wasn't sure if refining this would actually help him grow his root system.

But he felt that this stuff was suitable for use as fertilizer to cultivate all sorts of amazing plants or crops.

Upon opening the fourth gift box, Gordon immediately felt his vision deteriorate significantly, his vision becoming blurry. He turned to Earl Monford, who appeared to have an extra layer of rough edges.

The faint, illusory elemental substance, "Hidden Mosquitoes Flying Before Your Eyes," can be used to reduce one's vision. They truly exist.

"Very good—" Gordon closed all the gift boxes. The exchange had packaged these source materials very well, so well that the boxes were too big to fit into the Deep Bottle. They would have to be taken out individually and resealed later.

He sat on the sofa in the VIP room and let out a long sigh.

Gordon's ability has a side effect: when he sees Source, he usually experiences a lot of additional sensations. The intense heat, darkness, dirt, and blurred vision intertwine, like having four bizarre dreams in one go.

Seeing so much source matter in such a short time naturally makes one feel dizzy and disoriented.

Gordon picked up the lemonade from the VIP lounge and gulped it down. But he still felt like there were mosquitoes in front of him that weren't there, and a lingering heat in his veins.

"The conclusion?" Earl Monford observed him.

"It's alright, thank you very much." Gordon looked up. "Does the Montfort family have an alchemy lab?"

"Yes, of course. It's just that no one has used it in a long time." The Earl of Montfort leaned on his cane and stepped forward. "Where's your cane?"

"Still under repair."

Golden Lion Avenue, Montfort Mansion.

The alchemy laboratory is located in the basement on the west side of the mansion.

Gordon descended the stairs covered with a pale purple carpet. A servant opened the door, and the laboratory appeared before Gordon.

The spiritual reaction vessel was spotless, cleaned by the servants, with not a speck of dust on its exterior. But Gordon could tell it hadn't been used in a long time; the distillation apparatus, glass tubes, and pressure gauge were all brand new.

"Not bad, not bad." Gordon patted it.

"It's not just 'good,' this equipment is quite valuable, and you'd better know how to use it." Count Montfort stared at the reactor.

"Don't worry, sir. The reactor is bought to be used; leaving it unused will only cause it to depreciate."

Charlotte stood in the doorway, peering out anxiously.

If Gordon doesn't produce potions of sufficient quality, Earl Montfort won't put him in charge of Charlotte's potion-making.

How terrible would that be? In an extreme case, she might even consider giving up attending the event.

"It's alright," Gordon reassured her. "Go outside. Source matter can't fly, and I won't run away."

"But----"

"Trust me," Gordon said gently.

Charlotte managed to calm herself down and started walking up the stairs. She believed Gordon could do it, so she didn't look back along the way.

Gao Deng observed it carefully.

He has used a lot of refining equipment.

At the beginning, in college, he used makeshift, substandard equipment. In the basement of Golden Oak Manor, he had to refine his materials while listening to the sounds of battle. At Hunter School, he used a hunter-specific reaction vessel.

And now, in the Montfort family mansion, processing is done in high-end reactors selected by the nobility, entirely under his control.

It's hard to imagine how large and luxurious the equipment they'll prepare for Gordon at the summer celebration seven days later.

Origin, Origin—

The more Source matter Gordon saw, the more he felt they were proof that some powerful being was trying to invade reality.

It's like folding paper with your hands; even when you let go, the paper still has quite a complex crease.

The same may be true of the source matter. In a certain moment, something incredible briefly swept across the world, and what was left behind was the source matter.

Gordon began processing.

In the sedimentation chamber, sediment salts are used to separate the source substance from its physical carrier, fully exposing the source substance, and then it is searched for its preferred temperature.

As soon as he fired, the "Low-Key Hunter's" light dimmed quickly, clearly indicating that it preferred low temperatures.

Any alchemist who acts on experience would have destroyed it within seconds of igniting the fire. Gordon turned off the fire, let it cool enough, and then filtered out the inert carrier and impurities.

After about fifteen minutes, the source material had become more ethereal and clear, and was in dire need of pairing with a suitable solution.

The dark, small source substance corresponds to a solution of vinegar. Gordon added concentrated vinegar, and "Low Profile Hunter" was incorporated into it, quickly turning into a bottle of grayish-black potion.

[Elemental Potion. Please consume within 24 hours.]

"It's done." Gordon invited Earl Monford in to see.

The count skillfully picked up a test strip, held it above the bottle opening, and sensed its radiating power. The test strip quickly changed from pale to shimmering silver, and finally to clear gold, the color of which lingered for several breaths.

He breathed a sigh of relief.

"Very good." His words carried a heavy weight. He had witnessed the refining of source material many times in his life, but...

The record of winning a single gold medal is quite remarkable.

Gordon is not only skilled in refining, but also in preserving the valuable source material to the maximum extent possible.

"Not good enough, just a little bit short."

"Isn't the refined gold enough?"

"The limit of the test strip is gold, but that doesn't mean my limit should stop there."

"————" The Earl felt that this was neither arrogance nor confidence, but rather a kind of profound understanding. Did Gordon really intend to use some kind of refining method to make the source potion surpass its original vitality? That was terrifying.

"This is the potion," Charlotte exclaimed incredulously. "It's smaller than I imagined."

"It's cute even though it's small; it just compresses its power." Gordon carefully stored it away.

The count stood beside him, inspecting the used reaction vessel once more.

Everything was exquisite, simple, and impeccable. Those alchemists always made the preparation of potions sound incredibly mysterious and always charged exorbitant fees at every step.

Gordon made a top-quality potion so easily and effortlessly.

A strange sense of anticipation quickly arose in his heart.

If Gordon were to concoct the Pure Gold Potion at the Summer Festival in full view of everyone, transforming medium-sized source matter into power, and Charlotte were to drink the potion and embark on the path to transcendence—

That scene must have been incredibly moving.

He could already imagine countless lights beneath the dome, illuminating nobles and newspaper reporters alike.

They might treat this as headline news, or record it as a historical event?

Gordon's identity and fame will be fully established, and the Monford family will be able to proudly show the world that they have not been defeated by the tides of time.

"At that time, you will demonstrate your worth to the entire city," Earl Montfort said solemnly.

"Hmm." Gordon said briefly, then turned to Charlotte, "—On July 13th, you will make the most important decision of your life. I will tell you what power those three source materials have, and then you will exercise—your right of first choice."

"I understand." Charlotte nodded gently. "I will make the choice, and I will bear the consequences."

This summer vacation was much more exciting and dangerous than she had imagined.

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