One Month Later

Time flowed by, and in the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

In the somewhat dim basement, a single magic lamp burned on the table, but it was enough for Roland to clearly see the potion he was refining.

Under Nuwa's control, with the final trace of mental energy injected, a Level 3 Spirit Agility Potion successfully appeared before Roland.

"Whew... finally done," Roland let out a long, deep breath.

This Level 3 Spirit Agility Potion was already the 88th he had completed this month.

That's right, Roland had been working at a pace of nearly three potions a day for an entire month.

Aside from going to the Apothecary Guild twice to replenish raw materials, he hadn't stepped outside his door.

This made Roland feel like he might as well die on the spot. He hadn't expected that after transmigrating, his workload would be even higher than in his previous life. Compared to that, his previous life's 996 work hours could be considered happiness.

However, even so, he still didn't dare to slack off in the slightest.

Although through his month of hard work, he had successfully accumulated a considerable sum of gold coins.

It was still far from the amount Nuwa had calculated he needed to establish his territory.

Moreover, Roland suddenly found himself in a very awkward situation.

He couldn't find a market for the potions he refined.

This was because he didn't dare to reveal his refining success rate of over ninety percent.

Such a terrifying success rate, even for basic potions, would attract the attention of countless people.

After all, even a master apothecary would have a similar success rate when refining basic potions.

But Roland was currently just a novice apothecary; how could he achieve this?

Once his potion refining success rate was exposed, he would inevitably attract countless covetous gazes, plunging him into an abyss of eternal damnation. Not to mention the Solomon Family, perhaps even the Terra Kingdom wouldn't be able to protect him.

Furthermore, Roland believed that if such a situation occurred, the Solomon Family or the Terra Kingdom would be the first to move against him, seeking the secret he possessed.

Therefore, over this past month, Roland had refined 88 bottles of Level 3 potions, but he didn't dare to sell them all. He could only sell about forty percent of them.

He maintained his potion refining success rate at around forty percent externally. But even so, his reputation had already spread within this small circle.

It was fortunate that he also held the identity of a Pioneer Knight, so no one tried to recruit or harass him.

However, this also meant that the potions Roland had on hand could not be converted into the resources he needed in a short period.

Roland hadn't considered hiding his identity and selling in the black market of Highland City, but with his current strength, he was not enough to hide from high-level mages. It was highly likely that his identity would be seen through.

Especially for magical potions, which were almost strategic materials, they would inevitably attract the attention of those with ulterior motives.

According to Nuwa's calculations, once or twice might be acceptable, but the more potions he sold in the black market, the greater the probability of Roland's identity being exposed.

So Roland didn't dare to act rashly.

"Nuwa, how much more gold do I need to gather to purchase what's required for establishing the territory?" Roland asked, his mood somewhat dejected.

"Master, another two thousand eight hundred gold coins are needed," Nuwa's mechanical voice replied.

Upon hearing this, Roland's expression became even more distressed.

After Jonathan reported the prices of various materials to Roland, Roland immediately had Nuwa analyze them and create a progress tracking chart.

But after a month, Roland's progress was less than ten percent.

In this month, after deducting the cost of materials, Roland, who could only sell about 35 bottles of Level 3 potions, only earned a little over three hundred gold coins.

Although this amount was considered extremely generous income even for an Intermediate Mage, it was still far from Roland's goal.

This meant that in three months, Roland would not be able to accumulate enough to establish his territory.

"Nuwa, can we reduce the various requirements for establishing the territory and cut down on expenses?" Roland said with some annoyance.

"Master, after analyzing the requirements, a ten percent reduction will increase your risk by twenty percent."

"A twenty percent reduction in various requirements will increase your risk by fifty percent."

"It increases incrementally?" Roland was surprised.

"Yes, Master. The fewer supplies you prepare, the weaker your ability to resist risks will be, making it extremely easy to trigger a domino effect where one collapse leads to total failure."

When Roland heard the mention of a domino effect, he immediately abandoned the idea of reducing supplies.

"Nuwa, since we can't reduce, do you have any other solutions?"

"Borrowing or refining Intermediate Potions."

As soon as Nuwa said this, Roland fell into contemplation.

The two methods Nuwa proposed were not particularly good ones.

First, borrowing. In fact, with Roland's identity as an apothecary, he could obtain a considerable loan from any faction, and the interest rates wouldn't be too high.

But the problem was that Roland also had the identity of a Pioneer Knight. This identity caused the risk for any faction providing him with a loan to far exceed their estimations.

After all, no one could guarantee Roland's survival in the dangerous and complex Sea of Ten Thousand Islands. If territorial wars broke out, his opponents wouldn't care if Roland was still an apothecary.

Therefore, if Roland were to die, their loans would all turn to dust.

So, the path of borrowing was basically unfeasible. Even if someone was willing to lend, the interest rates would inevitably be so high that Roland couldn't accept them.

Nuwa's second suggestion, refining intermediate potions, carried too much risk.

According to the grading of alchemy, the higher the level of the potion, the more difficult it was to refine.

Although intermediate potions were only one level higher than basic potions, the required materials doubled, and the refining difficulty tripled.

Even so, with the help of the chip, Roland was confident he could refine them.

But what about the time required? He had less than two months left. Refining level three potions was a sure bet, and even if he didn't meet Nuwa's target, he would at least have a chance to struggle.

Once he started refining intermediate potions, Roland couldn't guarantee how long it would take. If he couldn't successfully refine an intermediate potion within two months, he'd truly be starting from scratch to develop his territory.

"Nuwa, have you finished analyzing the intermediate potion recipe?" Roland asked after a long silence.

In his current situation, borrowing money would mean exorbitant interest rates and endless trouble later. Even if he successfully opened up a territory, he'd be burdened with massive debt.

Therefore, Roland leaned more towards Nuwa's second method.

"Master, the analysis is complete. I've identified the most reasonable refining steps for you."

"Good, in that case, we'll start refining intermediate potions tomorrow." Roland gritted his teeth and made up his mind.

He would either refine an intermediate potion and head to the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands to develop his territory in grand style, or he'd find a small island to hide on. Even if he was wanted by the Human Alliance, it would be better than dying.

Having made up his mind, Roland immediately took out twelve bottles of potions and hurried out, heading to the Apothecary Guild to purchase materials for refining intermediate potions.

Returning to the Apothecary Guild, Roland was clearly very familiar with the place.

"Apothecary Roland?" As soon as Roland entered the hall, he was called out by a man in his forties wearing a white apothecary robe.

Roland stopped and turned his head.

Upon seeing the man, Roland bowed slightly and greeted him respectfully, "Esteemed Apothecary Orson, Roland greets you."

Orson Claire was not only a High-level Mage but also an Intermediate Apothecary. He was kind, talkative, and very willing to mentor younger generations, earning him an excellent reputation and the respect of many beginner apothecaries.

Roland had met him during his last material purchase, and they had exchanged some experiences in potion refining.

What was called an exchange was, in reality, a lesson. With Orson's skill in potion refining, he was undoubtedly superior to Roland, and Roland had benefited greatly from their interactions. Roland's respectful attitude now was a token of his gratitude for Orson's previous guidance.

"Apothecary Roland, just call me Orson. No need to be so formal," Rice said with a chuckle.

"Then please, call me Roland. In front of you, my alchemy is nothing to speak of," Roland said earnestly.

"No, no, if your alchemy is nothing to speak of, then others truly have no right to call themselves apothecaries."

"After all, not everyone can achieve a 40% success rate in refining basic potions as a beginner apothecary," Orson said with admiration.

"Apothecary Orson, you flatter me," Roland said humbly.

"Roland, you're still so modest."

"I don't have the right to be arrogant in front of you," Roland replied with a smile.

"Haha, it's always a pleasure chatting with you," Orson's face lit up with a smile, his mood seeming to improve.

"I'm speaking from the heart."

Hearing Roland's reply, Orson's smile widened. He then said, "Roland, in a month, I'll be hosting an exchange for beginner and intermediate apothecaries here. Would you have time to share your potion refining experiences?"

Roland did not refuse Orson's invitation. Although such an exchange would not involve the core techniques of each apothecary, such as their personal refining methods or spirit energy infusion skills, it would still be very valuable to Roland. For example, it could allow Roland to learn about the precautions other apothecaries took when handling materials or broaden his knowledge.

Therefore, Roland readily agreed.

Seeing Roland's answer, Orson also appeared very happy. He patted Roland's shoulder firmly before bidding him farewell and leaving.

After parting ways with Orson, Roland went straight to the Kingdom Apothecary Service Center.

"Apothecary Roland, good day," Chiard's face immediately lit up with joy upon seeing Roland.

"Good day," Roland nodded in reply.

"Are you here to sell potions again?"

"Yes," Roland said, placing the box in his hands on the counter.

Chiard's smile became even more pronounced.

Over the past month, he had earned quite a bit in commissions thanks to Roland. Not only did Roland sell potions to him, but he also bought materials from him, allowing Chiard to earn commission twice on each transaction. Furthermore, Roland's efficiency was extremely high. In just one month, he had sold potions four times, each time with over a dozen bottles, nearly double the output of apothecaries at the same level.