Chapter 26: Starting Attempts
The fatty Woox took out a black coloured box from a shelf behind him and placed it on the table. He also took out a sheet of parchment from under the sales counter. It seemed to be extremely old, with the ends a little torn.
“One copy of the strength potion formula, one magic crystal!”
“One set of ingredients, enough for ten tries, one magic crystal!”
Leylin opened the black coloured box. Inside were ten crimson-coloured fruits arranged neatly, which seemed to have traces of cracks on their surface, and beside them was a root of some green plant, and a bottle of black powder.
Putting the box away and picking up the faint yellowish parchment paper, he saw a formula written in black ink, which even included the areas to note. Although the handwriting was a little faded, it was still legible as a whole.
Leylin nodded his head and tucked the parchment paper into his robes. He took out the last 2 magic crystals he had in his waist pouch and handed it to Woox, then left the hut without turning back.
He only had 4 magic crystals and had spent them all on this small amount of ingredients. This terrifying expenditure for potion brewing was not something the average acolyte could bear.
What followed next was that Leylin’s daily routine had taken a similar route to how he had been in his previous world.
Every day, he was shuttling to and fro between five places: the dorm, the dining hall, the Academic Area, the experiment lab and the library.
Another month passed unknowingly.
Sitting on one side of a long table in the library, Leylin closed the book he was holding in his hands.
Apart from attending classes and aiding his mentor with his experiments, the majority of his time was spent in the library. Almost every book that could be read for free was browsed through, and the A.I. Chip finished accumulating more data.
“Whew…… I have finally understood the formulation of potions!” Leylin exhaled loudly.
Although Kroft had provided some elementary information about Potioneering, there were many things that he still did not understand. He learnt things like the terminology and vocabulary by himself in the library. If he wanted a professor’s explanation he would have had to pay a fee. However, it was a pity that Leylin had turned into a peasant with 0 magic crystals.
Many acolytes who were embarrassingly short of magic crystals did the same thing, browsing through the variety of free information in the library. However, they did not have Leylin’s A.I. Chip, so they usually needed a dozen days to a month to find what they wanted in the library.
As for Leylin, he had now recorded all the information that was available to him in the library already. He even made a search function for it, so the information would be at his perusal if he met with any questions in the future.
However, even Elementary Potioneering was considered higher-tiered information. Even with the constant analyses from the A.I. Chip, Leylin only knew about one-third of it, but that was already extremely useful to him.
At least now, when he looked back at the basics of Potioneering, it was like looking down at the tiles from the roof of a tall building.
As for the elementary potion brewing and the strength Potion formula, they had been fully analysed, so it was time to put them into practice.
“My accumulation of knowledge is already enough, I’ll begin brewing the strength Potion today!”
Leylin placed the books back on the shelves and left the library.
A female acolyte with brunette hair raised her head and glanced at Leylin, before returning her attention to the black book in her hands.
The library had many acolytes, and yet they were all well behaved and extremely quiet. It was very suitable for reading, and one of Leylin’s favourite hangouts.
“Hey! Leylin!”
When he walked out of the library, an acolyte greeted him. Leylin raised his head, “Ryan! Kaliweir!”
Kaliweir wore the grey robes of an acolyte, and his original haughtiness had lessened, “Congratulations on becoming a level 1 acolyte!”
“Thank you, congratulations to you too!” Leylin replied with a smile.
He too had sensed that Kaliweir had turned into a level 1 acolyte.
“The few of us in the clique have already turned into level 1 acolytes!” Kaliweir stressed the first few words and seemed to have automatically excluded Guricha and the others.
“We have taken up a few missions recently, do you have any interest in joining us?” Kaliweir asked.
Kaliweir seemed to be trying hard to maintain the previous group of friends.
“Do a mission now?” Leylin’s brows furrowed, “From what I know, the area outside the academy has been getting dangerous lately, especially for those level 1 acolytes who do not even know any spells……”
“There’s no choice, any high-tiered information here has to be bought, and magic crystals are the only form of currency! The magic crystals that we brought have already been spent!” Kaliweir smiled bitterly.
“If you want to be a Potions Master, the expenditure of resources will be extremely great……”
“About taking up missions, I’ll consider it again when I have become a level 2 acolyte! Take care of yourselves!” Leylin eventually declined. The rewards for completing missions were extremely alluring, but one needed to risk their life to claim them.
“Alright then! I heard that you are earning magic crystals by giving tuition to others. Could you also teach us, it can be in accordance with your rates!”
After hearing that Leylin was unwilling to go, Kaliweir felt a little dejected, but he continued to ask.
“Definitely, it’ll be my pleasure. I can even give you guys favourable rates!” Leylin smiled lightly, exchanging benefits was always the norm for Magi.
Both sides decided on the location and date, and then Kaliweir and his party left after that.
Seeing their departing figures, Leylin’s eyes flashed, “He is still roping people in? What a pity, Kaliweir has still not understood that in the world of Magi, one’s own strength holds the most importance!”
Shaking his head, he returned to his dorm.
Every acolyte in the Abyssal Bone Forest Academy had a dorm of their own, so secrecy and safety were not an issue.
Leylin locked the door and hung up a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign, only then did he return to the room beside the bedroom.
A large black coloured table occupied the room, and Leylin’s previously bought apparatus set had been placed on it.
“After a few attempts at practicing, I am now a little more familiar with these apparatus, and I finished analysing the formula for the strength Potion today, so it’s about time to start!”
Leylin muttered to himself and took out the black box containing the ingredients. He placed it on the table and opened it.
The crimson fruit, green stem and bottle of black powder appeared before his eyes.
Leylin’s fingers stroked the surfaces of these 3 items, “A.I. Chip! Measure the activity within and establish a model!”
“Begin the simulation of the experiment!” Seeing the A.I. Chip complete its task, Leylin gave it another command.
“As expected, it’s possible!” Leylin smiled jubilantly.
Even for identical ingredients, the slightest deviation would result in different results when making the potion.
As for qualified Potions Masters, they must make use of their experience and put the theory into practice, then make adjustments to obtain the desired properties of the potion.
This field only relied on raw talent and the future accumulation of experience.
As for the A.I. Chip, it was able to scan and produce simulations, resulting in a success rate that was much higher than for many other acolytes.
Leylin patiently waited for some time, and then heard the A.I. Chip’s voice, [The simulation of the model is completed, success rate: 23.6%]
“A success rate close to one-quarter?” Leylin was in ecstasy.
“A regular acolyte will always fail on their first attempt at brewing potions. As for me, I’ll be able to have a one in four chance of success if I follow the A.I. Chip’s instructions?”
“Begin transmitting the process for the experiment!”
“It’s time to start!”
Leylin’s expression turned solemn, and he picked up a crimson fruit, “This is a Blood vitality Fruit and it contains a huge amount of nourishment if it was prepared in an antidote……”
Leylin placed the Blood vitality Fruit into a white basin. He picked up a pounding tool and smashed the fruit into a pulp. The red juices flowed out, and an alcoholic scent was emitted from it.
After filtering out the mashed Blood vitality Fruit, Leylin poured the red juice into a beaker.
After the black candlestick had been lit, light blue flames continuously lapped at the bottom of the beaker. Within minutes, the red juice in the beaker started to boil, and a few flecks of black powder constantly jumped about in the bubbles.
Leylin picked up the glass rod beside him, and stirred the contents of the beaker.
“Marliwoosha!” Leylin chanted.
A thread of spiritual force travelled through the glass rod and entered the bubbling liquid, and a few wisps of black gas continued to be produced. It was the poison inside the Blood vitality Fruit.
This was why only a level 1 acolyte and above could start to practice making potions, as a few steps required the usage of energy particles.
After all of the black gaseous substance were expelled, Leylin placed the liquid, which was even more crimson than before, into a test tube.
“The first step is completed! The degree of purification isn’t bad!”
“The next part should be the stem of the Silk Fruit……”
What Leylin did next was to prepare the rest of the Blood vitality Fruit and Silk Fruit together. He failed somewhere in the middle for a few times and finally succeeded after making the 8th batch of the crimson liquid and the 7th batch of the frozen green substance.
“The next step should be the final blending process!”
Leylin placed the contents of the frozen green substance onto a petri dish, took out the black powder from the glass bottle, and sprinkled it on top.
The black powder caused a strong reaction after coming into contact with the frozen green substance. The frozen green substance continued to swell and let out a humming noise.
“Ice!” Leylin muttered an incantation in the Byrn language.
White mist suddenly appeared from the petri dish, condensing into a layer of ice and solidifying the frozen green substance yet again.
“It is time!” Leylin placed the frozen lump into a beaker, where a flame blazed continuously underneath the beaker.
“The final step!” Leylin’s eyes widened, and he poured the purified crimson liquid into the beaker.
A thread of his spiritual force also continuously extended into the beaker.
“Pa!” A sound suddenly came from the beaker, the frozen lump and the red liquid suddenly turned black, and a sickening stench emitted from it.
“Have I failed?” Leylin was indifferent.
“A.I. Chip, analyse the reason!”
The A.I. Chip replayed Leylin’s earlier actions and revealed the reason for failure.
Chapter 27: Successful Potion Brewing
Leylin dumped the failed experiment residue into the bin and inhaled deeply.
“Again!”
The same process was repeated, and finally, the purified crimson liquid from the Blood Vitality Fruit was poured into the beaker.
This time, Leylin shifted all his concentration onto the beaker and continued to adjust the temperature of the flame below it.
The red liquid and the frozen green substance continued to merge together, turning a faint yellowish colour.
“Green life, blood red vitality. Under the interference of the willpower from the depths of the abyss, you shall fuse! Furikesha Keleyahsan……”
Leylin chanted the final phase of the incantation.
The various colours in the beaker continued to fuse together as he chanted. The substance finally turned into a faint blue colour liquid and emitted a fragrant and alluring scent.
“It’s completed! I successfully brewed the strength potion!”
Leylin smiled lightly and poured the light blue liquid into a tiny test tube.
“The liquid in this finger-length test tube can provide the nourishment that a person needs for 7 days, and also ensure that the person’s physical body and mental energy will be vigorous. It is a favourite for people who work on long experiments and adventurers! The normal price is 5 magic crystals!”
Leylin shook the test tube, and the potion inside glowed enchantingly under the light.
One night passed, Leylin looked at the three light blue test tubes that he held absentmindedly.
“With ten sets of ingredients, I succeeded three times and obtained three potions!
“This news definitely cannot be leaked out; otherwise, I will not be able to explain myself!” Leylin resolved, and destroyed the three test tubes containing the potions.
“What a pity!” Leylin was a little heartbroken.
“These 3 potions are worth 15 magic crystals, but the production cost is only 1 magic crystal. This potion industry has a crazy profit margin of over a dozen times its cost!!!”
“But I’m unable to sell them now! Aaarghhh!!” Leylin was rather exasperated.
“Not only can I not sell the potions, I still need to earn money to buy ingredients to continue my experiments and put on a façade of failure. I can only sell the most basic of potions after half a year!”
This estimate was based on Merlin’s success rate. He did not want to stand out and attract too much attention. Hence, he had to perform a little worse than Merlin. Merlin had a huge amount of ingredients and continuously practiced brewing back then. Only after a month did he manage to brew his first potion. Leylin did not have many magic crystals, so he could only show his talent in potion brewing after half a year.
He was, after all, an apprentice of the Potion’s Professor, and when he finally brewed his first potion successfully after half a year of failure, he would only be labelled as an ordinary talent as an apprentice of the Potion’s Professor, which was extremely logical.
“Potions absolutely cannot be sold in large quantities within the academy grounds, unless…… I am able to find a black market? But travelling outside the academy is too dangerous!”
Leylin shook his head, tidied up the experiment apparatus, and walked out of the room.
“This also proves that having such a high precision A.I. Chip gives me a huge edge over others in tasks with troublesome details! What’s next is to continue to focus and break through to a level 2 acolyte!”
“After I have the ability, I will abide by this cycle of selling potions, earning magic crystals, and gaining knowledge.”
Leylin still needed close to a year’s time to break through to a level 2 acolyte, according to the calculations from the A.I. Chip.
After all, it would get increasingly harder to construct the 24 mind runes as the runes multiplied, and he also needed to accumulate more knowledge.
“In this period, I can constantly gather data and finish compiling the information on spiritual force. This will be very useful to me in the future!”
Unknowingly, another half a year passed just like that.
A brown-haired youth lowered his head as he walked on the black tiled pavement as if he was deep in thought.
This youth looked to be only thirteen or fourteen years of age and had brown hair. His face was unusually pale if it had not seen the sun for a long time.
This youth was naturally Leylin. At this moment, his right hand was hidden inside his sleeves, holding on to a test tube, and he appeared to be making some kind of choice.
“It has already been half a year since the first time I successfully brewed a potion,!” Leylin looked at the acolytes walking past him and thought to himself.
In this half a year, many things had happened within the academy. For instance, Fayle achieved some great accomplishments, and Merlin managed to brew a new potion. The fame of these geniuses only increased.
However, Leylin was more concerned with the fact that Jayden had already advanced to a level 2 acolyte.
He recalled that when Kaliweir spoke of this news, he could not hide the fear and envy in his eyes despite trying his best to conceal it.
The aptitude, as well as advancement, of a fifth-grade acolyte, was extremely startling.
As a fellow acolyte who came from the same area as him, Leylin did not have much thoughts towards it. He buried himself with the work he had to do, and to an outsider, he was just an ordinary level 1 acolyte.
In this half year, Leylin had bought many of the strength potion ingredients and conducted many potion-brewing sessions. He also invested all of the profit he earned from giving tuition into this potion making. He also put up a front to conceal the A.I. Chip and tried to brew a potion without the A.I. Chip’s help most of the time, which had a success rate of zero. So far, he had spent a dozen odd magic crystals on this.
Of course, he also he also brought forward the problems he encountered to his mentor, Kroft, at times and asked other questions about the basics and brewing techniques. This was greatly beneficial for his Potioneering.
Secretly, Leylin could already affirm that with the help of the A.I. Chip, his Potioneering skills had already surpassed Merlin, only being a little inferior to his mentor, Kroft.
Today, it would be the day he ‘accidentally’ succeeded in brewing a potion and let his mentor evaluate it.
This time, the successful product was controlled by him through the A.I. Chip. He purposely made some minute errors, making it seem like an inferior product that was made by an acolyte, but it would still be considered decent for a new acolyte.
Leylin’s palm, which was gripping the potion, uncontrollably tightened.
“Only after today, can I start to sell a few potions in broad daylight and earn some magic crystals! Yesterday, I heard Raynor say that he already felt close to advancing. Therefore, my progress can’t lag behind too much!”
Leylin hurriedly walked into Kroft’s experiment lab.
“Leylin, do you have more problems with the brewing of the strength potion?” Kroft could clearly feel that his apprentice was different today.
“No, Sir!” Leylin inhaled deeply, “I have already succeeded once last night!”
“What?” The beaker in Kroft’s hands trembled, “Although your talent in Potioneering has exceeded my expectations, the brewing of a strength potion is not that easy!”
After half a year, Kroft was able to sense his apprentice’s frightening improvement after being questioned so much. However, he still felt that Leylin was still lacking in regards to brewing the strength potion successfully.
Hearing this, Merlin’s hand shook while he was concentrating on lowering a red crystal bead into a test tube. Black smoke emitted from the test tube and Merlin sighed, turning his attention over here.
As for Bicky, she just leaned over directly.
“Did you bring the completed potion?” Kroft asked.
“It’s in here!” Leylin took out a blue-coloured test tube and handed it to the professor.
Kroft unplugged the wooden stopper and took a sniff. His face revealed a startled expression.
He then poured a drop on his finger. A fine, milky-white light extended from between his brows and directly pierced the droplet, making it shake.
Kroft closed his eyes, his brows furrowed and soon relaxed.
“The purification of the Blood vitality Fruit was not bad, but too much was added at the end. There was also some problem with your usage of spiritual force, which damaged the chemical properties……All in all, there are quite a few problems, but you have succeeded as a whole! Congratulations!”
Kroft smiled jubilantly.
Hearing this, Leylin also smiled, and Bicky even cheered, giving Leylin a warm hug.
The fiery hot curves of this girl attached themselves onto Leylin’s chest, which gave rise to a peculiar feeling in his heart.
“Congratulations!” Merlin walked over too.
“Compared to Senior Merlin, I still have much to learn!” Leylin let go of Bicky and hurriedly said.
“You don’t have to be too humble, compared to Merlin, your resources are lacking. I guarantee that you would have been able to brew your first potion in 3 to 4 months otherwise. In Abyssal Bone Forest Academy, this talent can already be considered excellent!” Kroft exclaimed.
“Thinking back now, I am really lucky. First, I accepted Merlin, who has talent in Potioneering, as my apprentice. And now, I have you!” Kroft exclaimed.
“Sir, I will also work hard!” Bicky clenched her small fists and returned to her experiment table.
“Finish preparing the Monkey Headed Mushrooms in your hands first, before you say anything else!” Kroft’s face turned stiff.
After that, he returned the strength potion to Leylin, “This time, luck played an important factor in brewing the strength potion. What you have to do next is to remember how it felt when you first succeeded, and then practice more. This test tube can also be sold and exchanged for more resources!”
Kroft seemed to be reminding him, “Leylin, you must remember. Different potions have different challenges for Potions masters. Although you are able to brew this strength potion right now, you would most likely revert back to a newbie if you were to replace it with a hemostatic potion. Therefore, do not be arrogant. From now on, focus on practicing your potion brewing!”
“I will!” Leylin pocketed the strength potion well and promised solemnly.
After he finished his tasks in the experiment lab, Leylin left together with Bicky.
“Shall we go to the second level dining hall to feast, to commemorate your first success?” Bicky ran in front and twirled around a few times as if she was a lively butterfly.
“Of course! It is my honour to invite a beautiful lady to a meal!” Leylin bowed slightly, a gentleman’s propriety.
“Hehe!” Bicky covered her mouth and laughed adorably, and then her expression darkened, “If only……If only he was like you……”
“What’s wrong? Your Senior Fayle is ignoring you again?”
Leylin knew a little about this matter. In this half year, Bicky gradually got closer to Fayle and finally became friends with him, but they were only normal friends.
As for Fayle, he was constantly studying and practicing, and taking risks outside the academy. He was always surrounded by beautiful girls, so he did not think much of Bicky and was a little standoffish.
“It’s not that! Fayle just has a very important experiment coming up and is in the midst of collecting resources, so he’s very busy……” Bicky lowered her head and kicked a pebble off the sidewalk.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
27 Power
stone 
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