Chapter 351: Act 115 – The Alchemy Treasury (3)
‘The Erluin Military Swordsmanship skill has unlocked an additional level.’
The young man of course understood what this extra level implied; it meant after reaching master level, one could invest an additional level of experience, allowing the Erluin Military Swordsmanship skill to securely advance to level sixteen.
However, from levels thirteen to fifteen, each level only required two thousand skill experience points, whereas from fifteen to sixteen, it necessitated a full five thousand skill experience points.
This represented practically all of the spare skill experience that Brandel had at the time; he had decisively chosen to level Erluin Military Swordsmanship to sixteen, but he would soon face the consequences of that choice.
That reality was the current lack of any skill experience, leaving him reliant solely on skill proficiency to upgrade, a situation that would prove inconvenient.
Fortunately, materials in the Black Forest were abundant; the strategy of using superior alchemical techniques to waste materials in order to increase skill proficiency proved quite effective. After acquiring the “fragmented but intact aura of fortune,” Brandel noticed his alchemy level advanced just a small step, firmly entering level seven.
Level seven alchemy unlocks advanced potion crafting and synthesis arrays, with the former being the foundational technique for creating alchemical potions, a category of high-grade potions that possess potent effects yet require rare and difficult-to-obtain materials.
Brandel glanced at the young people not far away; he had several formulas that could enhance their capabilities, even benefiting himself.
For instance, an elemental affinity potion that increases the reservoir of fire elements by five bars.
Unfortunately, he currently lacked the main ingredients.
“It would be good to have some dragon’s blood moss,” Brandel murmured to himself.
“What’s that?” Flour asked.
“According to legend, where a dragon falls, its blood flows forth in a foul, crimson stream, eventually forming ancient ponds. Around these ponds grow thick, crimson mosses called dragon’s blood moss,” Brandel explained.
“Dragon’s blood moss can be used to create Dragon Strength Potions,” Brandel added.
The young Wild Elf understood, Dragon Strength Potions were almost as renowned as the dragons themselves, especially to swordsmen, as it could tangibly increase someone’s strength equivalent to two to three years of physical training for an ordinary person.
Of course, she didn’t know that according to Brandel’s explanation, a Dragon Strength Potion could directly increase approximately 5 tiers of strength and constitution, almost instantly pushing an ordinary person into the Black Iron realm.
This substance had always been used in army cultivation, and nobles were also fiercely attracted, with its black market price being quite high, a bottle costing about ten thousand Thor.
In fact, using ten thousand Thor to train a single Black Iron-level soldier wouldn’t be cost-effective, but considering the time saved, Dragon Strength Potions were indeed worth the price.
However, Brandel didn’t plan to make a fortune by trading these potions. Firstly, dragon’s blood moss wasn’t abundant in southern Erluin or the Black Forest. Secondly, a magical power surge was impending, which would cause all sorts of potions and magical items to drastically drop in price. If he got involved in such trades now, it would only lead to unnecessary trouble.
He even warned Romaine, advising the merchant Miss to avoid goods related to magic as much as possible. Unexpectedly, the Business Lady somehow knew about the magical power surge—much to Brandel’s relief, she was unaware that the impending surge might be the biggest one Erluin had ever seen, otherwise, Brandel would’ve seriously doubted the identity of her aunt.
“Would the Lord create that kind of item?” Flour asked.
“Level seven alchemy, just barely meets the requirements, but the success rate won’t be high…” Brandel looked in that direction. The youth had just repelled twelve stone leopards—they had earned a brief rest, but soon the red-haired maiden and Kuran would teach them new things.
The old swordsman mainly lectured on the key points of Erluin Military Swordsmanship, whereas Xi took a more direct approach. She simply knocked down each of the two groups she was responsible for, then let the young people figure out where they fell short on their own.
“Level seven alchemy?” The elder sister of the Wild Elves furrowed her brows, wondering if all wizards or their students spoke so strangely.
Nevertheless, since the other party was her Lord, she refrained from voicing these thoughts outright.
“I refer to the stage of alchemy.” Brandel seemed to have become accustomed to correcting his wording, subtly revising his statement.
“In my hometown, at Lubis Port, few people can craft such things,” Flour furrowed her brow. “Dragon Strength Potion could fetch over three thousand Lubis gold coins at the auction, something us mercenaries can only dream of.”
The value of three thousand Lubis gold coins exceeded fifteen thousand Thor. Brandel was astonished by the incredibly high cost of living in Lubis Port, then casually replied, “…but I really would like to hear your adventure stories.”
“Master knows well that they are fabricated memories.”
“But they can also be considered real, embodying the memories of countless Lubis mercenaries, yet forming an independent whole which is you all. You, in my heart, are truly existent.” The young man turned around, looking at the expressionless maid.
“Thank you, my Lord.” Flour responded indifferently, “We adventure for profit, both to improve ourselves and to make a living. But mercenaries’ earnings can’t purchase these luxuries.”
“Actually, Dragon Strength Potions are not high-level potions,” Brandel commented.
But he knew that what this Wild Elf girl said was true. Although Dragon Strength Potion wasn’t a high-level concoction, Brandel was aware that during this period in the Amber Sword game, a single formula for Dragon Strength Potion could be worth at least three million Thor.
This is the game’s first chapter, the empire in its infancy, and five years before the second chapter, War and Chaos begin—the last era before the strongest magical tide in history arrives.
In the game, this period is called the era of Withered Magic.
But this time is not far away.
Flour looked at him without responding.
“We have to deliberate repeatedly when buying a proper weapon, patching our own armors again and again,” she continued, her eyes gazing quietly ahead, “The life of mercenaries is hard. It’s dangerous to live by the blade, but it doesn’t necessarily mean living recklessly.”
“Anyone can understand it.” Brandel responded.
“Whether nobles, kings, or merchants, no one holds a superior right simply because of their high status or vast wealth. No one feels satisfied for long. Happiness is fleeting, pain and worry accompany one for life.”
Neither of them continued further. Why people live, each has their own answers.
At this moment, Brandel heard heavy footsteps behind him. Turning around, he saw the enormous shadow of the fire claw lizard man leader Repal partially obscured by a red tree. Its dark red skin and spotted dark scales blended seamlessly with the red tree barks, forming a natural camouflage.
But Brandel noticed the alert expressions in the cold, pale yellow, facet-shaped pupils of this lizard creature—cautious and tinged with inquiry. The young man paused for a moment before asking, “Is there something wrong, Repal?”
Brandel summoned this lizard tribe leader on the second day of entering the forest. It wasn’t easy to explain his presence at the estate, so it was more appropriate to temporarily keep him by his side.
Not only had Brandel summoned Repal, but also a squadron of fire claw spear handlers, thirty in number. Originally, their power was only at the peak of the Black Iron level. However, Repal’s special ability in the field provided an additional combat indicator when the Fire Claw Lord is present, turning this unit into ‘Fire Claw Assault Spear Handlers.’
Fire Claw Assault Spear Handlers possessed the strength of the lower tier of silver, thirty-two combat ratings, almost matching the strength of Lubis mercenaries enchanted with ‘Myriad Forests.’
The Fire Claw Lizard Tribe—Repal and his thirty subordinates—were mainly responsible for exterior alert duties in this adventure. Occasionally, Brandel would instruct them to let a few beasts in to test the youngsters’ responses.
So far, they seemed to be doing fine.
Repal looked at this young lord without speaking. Bending down, it placed a stone in Brandel’s hand. It was hard to imagine how massive this nearly two and half meter tall, two-thirds wide creature was. Even when it bent down, Brandel could feel the overwhelming pressure it emitted.
However, as Brandel took the stone, he was surprised.
It looked like a crystal, completely transparent, with lattice-like patterns emitting a faint glow. It seemed to be absorbing light, turning into an impure black, with the crystal feeling icy to the touch.
Brandel was astonished, “Where did you find this?” This was no crystal, but a scale from a war basilisk.
“A pond,” Repal remained silent, but he gestured with three fingers, enabling Brandel to understand his meaning. He told Brandel that Antinna and Diya found that water pond and discovered small pieces of scales within.
This indicated the presence of basilisks nearby.
The basilisk, offspring of the hydra sea monster, once proliferated widely on land before being driven by humans into the wilderness. There are many variants of basilisks: the shadow hydra nine-headed basilisk domesticated by the dark elves as war beasts, those living in the swamps of semi-civilized regions beyond the Karanjar Mountains worshipped the five-headed proto-basilisk as deities.
However, three-headed basilisks are generally equivalent to the lower golden tier, five heads possess the strength of the upper golden tier, nine-headed ones have enlightenment elements, and reportedly the strongest twelve-headed basilisk has a bronze body.
Brandel’s interest was piqued; the legend claims that the scales on the chests of basilisks are blessed by the sea monster hydra, making them extremely valuable alchemical materials. Moreover, while basilisk blood does not match dragon blood, it is still higher in quality than dragon blood moss irrigated by dragon blood; it can also be used to make Dragon Strength Potions with even better effects.
With that in mind, the young man stood up. He beckoned Kuran, Xi, Julian, and the group of young people from afar, drawing their attention.
“There’s work to do!”
…
(PS: Regarding the query, yes, skill levels 15-25 are in the divine domain. Levels above 25 reach the godly domain. However, no one has achieved it yet.
Also, Brandel’s level 16 plus two does not equate to level 18; the +2 is an additional bonus. It can be considered one level during the lower stages, but after master level, each +1 adds about 10% enhancement.)
