Chapter 366: Attempts Related to Fool Dream Drink
“Indeed… it’s really amazing.”
I squatted down and looked at these sprouted plants. The extraordinary energy within them surged, and it seemed that Sofiry had added some elemental polymers to the soil, allowing the seeds to quickly absorb extraordinary energy, which triggered germination under its guidance.
Rather than saying extraordinary plants grow naturally, it is more accurate to say that their internal structure guides the extraordinary energy. The direction of energy flow and dissipation is the direction of plant growth. No wonder extraordinary plants grow so strangely; it’s also because of this that many extraordinary plants grow in ways that defy intuition.
After observing for a while, I decided not to waste any more time. My knowledge about planting was limited to the important contents I had exchanged in the notebooks from earlier; aside from that, I was a complete novice.
However, Sofiry was quietly explaining things nearby, seemingly teaching Dongli Yiren.
After getting up, I didn’t want to interrupt their lesson, but it appeared that Sofiry quite enjoyed explaining things to others.
Of course, even more importantly, there was Dongli Yiren’s humble attitude toward learning, along with her little notebook in hand jotting down notes.
Who wouldn’t feel a sense of accomplishment looking at such a serious student?
“Are you done looking?” At this moment, Sofiry noticed that I had stood up and wasn’t doing anything, so she took the opportunity to stop her explanation and look over at me.
“Yes, I just came to check on the progress. I don’t really know much about this area, so if possible, please share more knowledge with Yiren; she has quite the ambition regarding this.”
“Yiren is indeed very eager to learn about this. I’m happy to teach her because, aside from discussing professional knowledge with my instructor, I don’t have any other friends…”
“I understand~”
I genuinely got the meaning behind her words; after all, discussing professional knowledge with an instructor can be a considerable mental burden for some introverted individuals. Now having a humble first-year student to teach means she can say anything without fear of rebuttal—how comforting is that?
“By the way… just curious, is it possible to grow these plants on a large scale around here? Or do you have any channels for large-scale cultivation…?”
“Um… I’m not quite sure what you mean. Are you looking to sell these fruits? Although these fruits are extraordinary, theoretically speaking, their utilization rate of extraordinary energy is similar to regular extraordinary fruits. There are already many similar fruits on the market, so selling them would be a thankless task,” Sofiry advised gently.
“Oh, do you remember that these fruits are what I brought out of that secret realm? They are actually a type of ingredient for a blended juice called Fool Dream Drink.”
“Fool Dream Drink… Fool Dream? Wait…”
“You know about Fool Dream?” I was a bit surprised; I remembered that Fool Dream had just recently come to Witch Academy.
“Of course I know! I saw a cute catgirl that just started working at the Witch Cat Café while browsing videos! Wait! Hold on… let me sort this out…”
“Uh-huh~” I nodded, letting her figure it out herself.
“The seeds you brought from the secret realm, they are the ingredients for Fool Dream Drink, so this Fool Dream… it can’t be a coincidence, right?”
“No.” I smiled and shook my head.
“So you made that secret realm go haywire, and that’s why these Fool Dreams ended up working at the Witch Academy?”
“Um… that seems to be the logic…” While it sounded a bit strange coming from Sofiry, it did make sense.
Moreover, what does it mean that I ‘made the secret realm go haywire’?
Did you forget all of my previous explanations?!
“But wait… that secret realm was destroyed some time ago… why are they only showing up at the Witch Cat Café now?”
“How should I put it? Actually, when that secret realm collapsed, those Fool Dreams… they can’t really be considered dead, but they almost lost their original forms. I heard that the Academy Head intervened to reconstruct their bodies. You know that the Academy Head was also involved when that secret realm fell apart, right?”
“That’s true; I heard the Academy Head took this matter very seriously.”
“Actually, that secret realm was set up by the Academy Head, so it’s not surprising that she paid so much attention to these little fellows. As for why they are back now, I think it has to do with the Sleeping Curse, since those little ones were rescued by me from the Sleeping Curse in Ninglan New City—they only showed up now.”
“Wait? Those Fool Dreams were also under the Sleeping Curse?!”
“I’m not sure; how would I know about that? I only know I rescued them from there, so I have some familiarity with those Fool Dreams.”
“That makes sense… Thank you for sharing this with me. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have known there were so many connections.” She looked satisfied with the juicy gossip.
“Just don’t spread it around; it’s best not to make a big deal about it, especially since it involves so many unexpected incidents in Witch Academy. It’s better to be cautious.”
“Don’t worry; honestly, I don’t really have many friends to tell this to anyway. I can keep a secret,” Sofiry assured me. “So… are you looking to collaborate with the Witch Cat Café to release a Fool Dream flavored Fool Dream Drink?”
“That’s more or less the idea… so I wanted to ask if there are any channels for large-scale cultivation.”
“Channels… actually, there are many plantations in this area. You can just find any of them; they should be very willing to collaborate. Or… you could also work with me! My plantation is quite large…”
Sofiry bravely suggested.
She could clearly see the profit potential here. To maintain the plantation she inherited from her instructor, she needed to learn how to earn money. Rather than planting a few rare plants to find buyers, it would be better to establish a steady channel like this.
Moreover, these plants weren’t considered rare extraordinary items, and they were easy to care for. The most they’d need help with would be during harvest time, but you could always hire temporary workers.
The only concern was the risk—whether Fool Dream Drink would take off. After all, many drinks offered by the Witch Cat Café are also quite tasty; if it flops, it could turn into a loss.
Furthermore, the popularity of Fool Dreams had only just begun to rise recently, much like a viral sensation; once they planted the seeds and grew them to where Fool Dream Drink could be produced on a large scale, the hype might have already passed.
So… Sofiry was a bit worried. She had never been involved in such a collaboration and naturally was concerned about many things.
“But you’re still cultivating many plants you’ve collected here, right?”
“I can open up some space specifically for this. You saw I have a lot of empty areas. I don’t know what else to plant… maybe I can give it a try? After all, I’ve been involved in the entire breeding process. Once the seeds are set, I’ve also accumulated a round of planting experience, and if you truly want to promote Fool Dream Drink, you’ll need to conduct some small-scale tests, right? If the market response is not good, we can stop early.”
“That makes sense.”
I nodded in agreement; what she said was reasonable.
After all, even if I had money, I wouldn’t squander it this way. If I were to have Sofiry plant for me and take the harvest, I couldn’t just take it for free, could I?
What kind of person would that make me?
A freeloader?
I wouldn’t do such a thing.
“Then… when you need to set the seeds, can you leave behind some fruits? I’d like to treat you to sample Fool Dream Drink later and see how it tastes.” I spoke up.
After all, I personally thought Fool Dream Drink tasted fantastic, with balanced nutrition and great texture, providing a temporary increase in extraordinary affinity and some other effects, along with offering a glimpse into the flow of energy.
It felt like this drink was perfect for doing research while enjoying a cup!
Moreover, the ability to enhance extraordinary affinity was indeed very good. The more affinity one has with elements, the more joy it can bring, not to mention enhancing extraordinary affinity can increase the power of the corresponding molding spells.
“That’s absolutely possible; I’m looking forward to its flavor as well.”
“Oh, by the way, since you’ve already planted all these seeds, I don’t need to keep the remaining ones. Why don’t you also plant them? Maybe we can try using breeding magic to create a control group?” I recalled the spare seeds I had kept just in case breeding failed, and thinking about it now, they were just taking up space; it would be better to give them away.
“Wait? This is a good idea. I actually want to study these plants. The more I understand them, the better I can plant them,” Sofiry replied, her joyous expression evident.
Of course, she had her own little ideas as well. For professional planters, simply growing extraordinary plants no longer satisfied their needs; only by improving and mutating the native plants, among other skills, could they pursue higher goals.
Due to the internal extraordinary energy of extraordinary plants, regular grafting and inducement techniques were no longer the main methods; the focus was on harmonizing the balance of the internal extraordinary powers within the plants.
After that, I chatted with Sofiry a bit more, and she also asked me about some interesting matters regarding the Sleeping Curse and Ninglan New City.
During this time, Sofiry was also hands-on teaching Dongli Yiren how to plant extraordinary plants, explaining that it wasn’t as simple as just burying the seeds in the soil.
And I was merely observing Dongli Yiren’s operations, wondering if my presence was making her nervous; her hands and feet seemed a bit unnatural.
“According to the state of the seeds and the internal elemental crystal constants in the soil, you should calculate the optimal water element ratio for irrigation… Precise cultivation is this tedious. Take it slow; seeds won’t sprout just by being planted. Only the fluctuation of environmental elements will trigger the energy resonance within the seeds…”
Sofiry systematically taught Dongli Yiren. Just planting a single seed, I had lost count of how many pages Dongli Yiren had flipped through in her little notebook.
This truly was precise cultivation…
But it also made me realize the difficulties ordinary students face when learning about the extraordinary. They must rely on constantly summarizing those laws and formulas to deduce things that seem so obvious to me.
Simply because they can’t see it, they have to expend countless times their own effort and the experience of those before them to barely achieve the same results as me…
Is this the real form of the extraordinary in the eyes of ordinary people?
Thinking of this, I felt goosebumps rise; I sensed the gap between me and them—not just in terms of effort, but also in perseverance when facing complexity and difficulties.
And I was just an incredibly lucky guy.
In the end, I shook my head, trying to rid myself of such thoughts. Negative thinking wouldn’t benefit me; I had no need to downplay my strengths or compete my shortcomings against others’ strengths. The idea “if you don’t take what is offered, you’ll suffer the consequences” probably captured this principle succinctly.
“Hey… Xiao Han, I see you don’t seem to have anything to do. How about you head back with Yiren? There isn’t much going on here; I can handle it alone.”
At this point, Sofiry had more or less finished planting all the seeds, and the most time-consuming part during this period was teaching Dongli Yiren and explaining why she should do things a certain way.
“I can stay and help,” Dongli Yiren spoke up at this moment.
“Yiren, you new students are about to have the monthly exam. If you hadn’t mentioned it just now, I wouldn’t have noticed. Go back and review properly; the theory courses from the first few years are quite important. You shouldn’t neglect them because of this. The basics are crucial; don’t lose focus,” Sofiry admonished, hands on her hips in an instructive tone.
“Oh…” Dongli Yiren lowered her head, simply responding with an “oh,” appearing somewhat reluctant.
“That seems to be the case; I’ve disturbed you for so long, so it truly is time to leave.” I checked the time, realizing a good bit had passed, then turned my gaze toward Dongli Yiren.
“Alright…”
In the end, Dongli Yiren nodded and prepared to head back.
After saying goodbye to Sofiry, we walked out of her plantation.
“If you want to laugh, go ahead…”
At this point, Dongli Yiren suddenly spoke up.
“What’s so funny?” I looked at her suspiciously. What ridiculous notion was she concocting this time? Am I someone who enjoys watching her make a fool of herself?
“About my coming here…”
“Is there a funny point? Pursuing knowledge and loving learning shouldn’t be things to mock. I only mock those who mock you because they are the real fools.”
“I—I’m not talking about that. You have to make me…”
“Then don’t talk about it. So there’s no need for you to make yourself uncomfortable. By the way, are you suddenly looking for a part-time job because you need money?”
“I earn enough for my expenses…” Dongli Yiren stubbornly replied.
“Alright, I won’t ask anymore. By the way, while I’ve been away, has anything happened with those dorm mates?”
“What could happen? It’s just the same old mundane days.”
“That’s good; as long as nothing’s happened, let’s head back. How about it? Do we take a car back or fly back on a broom?”
“Let’s take the car; I’ll take the car back anyway.”
After all, the ride was free. Dongli Yiren thought to herself, taking the opportunity to review today’s findings during the ride back.
More importantly, she didn’t have a flight license or a flying broom, and she couldn’t bring herself to let Xiao Han take her flying.
“I can take you back.”
“I’m used to taking the car. I’m very familiar with the road back. Hurry up… the bus is arriving,” Dongli Yiren suddenly raised her voice, looking at her phone and starting to run towards the nearby bus stop.
When we arrived at the bus station, the bus had just pulled in. There weren’t many seniors on board, and as soon as Dongli Yiren got on, she avoided the areas where there were a lot of seniors, sitting at the very back by the window. It seemed the shadows left from her initial enrollment still lingered.
Once she sat down, she opened her notebook and began reviewing, the brilliance of her effort practically blinding me.
Wow, the tides have turned, and now it’s Dongli Yiren’s turn to put pressure on me directly?
