Financial Crisis

Five days later, the small settlement on Rising Light Island was finally completed.

Roland immediately ordered all the supplies from the merchant ship unloaded. After dispatching everyone to build the dock, he promptly resumed potion brewing.

He had no choice but to start. Nearly half a month had been wasted at sea, so his trading volume with Leslie would have to decrease this month as well.

Although he still had plenty of potions in reserve, he could not take them out to sell for his own safety.

As a result, Roland's income for the month was cut in half.

However, his expenses had increased considerably. According to Nuwa's calculations, even if he publicly raised his success rate for brewing intermediate potions to just over thirty percent, his maximum earnings this month would only be six or seven hundred gold coins.

Such income would absolutely not be considered small for an individual. It could even be called terrifyingly high.

But before the bottomless pit of developing a territory, it still seemed insufficient.

Roland now had to pay the Loyal Lion Mercenary Group one thousand gold coins every month.

Feeding over two hundred people cost one hundred and five gold coins per month.

And that was not all. Although building the dock did not require much, many of the necessary materials were not available on Rising Light Island and had to be purchased in Highland City.

According to Fili's calculations, that expense alone would require more than three hundred gold coins.

Thus, Roland's income this month was six or seven hundred gold coins, while his expenses had reached fifteen hundred gold coins.

As a result, Roland, who had only just begun developing his territory, encountered its first financial crisis and was on the verge of bankruptcy.

Yet he could not avoid paying these gold coins. Not a single coin could be withheld.

Whether it was the Loyal Lion Mercenary Group or food supplies, both concerned the stability of the entire territory. The dock, meanwhile, affected all of the territory's construction work.

Therefore, the most urgent matter before Roland was making gold.

On the eastern coast of Rising Light Island, inside a wooden house noticeably larger than the others.

Roland first sorted and arranged the Magic Materials in his hands, then began familiarizing himself with the brewing process for Level 5 Potions.

Since he still had Tier 4 Potions in reserve, enough for his next transaction with Leslie, Roland decided to directly brew Level 5 Potions.

That would increase his actual income while allowing him to continue taking Level 5 Potions to strengthen himself.

The materials required for the Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potion and the Level 5 Fire Element Resonance Potion had not changed from those needed for Tier 4 Potions.

Only the quality of the materials had risen by another level.

For example, the main ingredient for a Tier 4 Spirit Agility Potion was Dream Grass that had grown for three years, while a Level 5 Potion required Dream Grass that had grown for five years.

The difference between the two multiplied the brewing difficulty, but the price of Level 5 Potions also doubled.

The market price of one Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potion was roughly over 140 gold coins.

A set of materials supplied by Leslie cost around 22 gold coins, meaning the profit had already exceeded six times the cost.

Of course, Roland's current brewing success rate could not possibly reach one hundred percent. But as long as he could reach his current success rate for Tier 4 Potions, his earnings would double.

Five-year Dream Grass had changed greatly as well. Not only did it contain more spiritual energy, but every leaf and every vein was more exquisite and distinct, filled with a mysterious aura.

Roland did not rush into brewing. Because the materials for Level 5 Potions were so expensive, he only had ten sets on hand. If he failed, then given his current income and expenses, he would have to wait another two months before he could buy more.

Thus, Roland spent the entire morning studying the analytical procedures provided by Nuwa. Only after thoroughly mastering them did he begin his first attempt at brewing a Level 5 Potion.

"Nuwa, record this..."

"Received, Master."

With three months of potion-brewing experience, Roland's movements had become incomparably skilled and precise.

There was not the slightest unnecessary motion in any of his actions. They could even be called elegant.

Under the scorching Magic Flame, wisps of smoke-like mist slowly rose from the Dream Grass until they finally condensed into a stream of nearly tangible spiritual energy.

Although this spiritual energy was undoubtedly much greater than that of three-year Dream Grass.

Roland did not feel the slightest bit nervous and calmly followed the steps provided by Nuwa with strict precision.

He slowly pushed the spiritual energy condensed from the Dream Grass into the powdered Moonstone.

Then... there was no then.

The moment Roland added the Moonstone mixed with Dream Grass essence into a portion of Level 5 Elemental Water, his hand faltered. The fragile balance between the three materials was instantly broken.

A loud bang followed, and a powerful shockwave blasted Roland hard into the wooden wall.

"Pfft." Roland spat out a mouthful of thick smoke and irritably straightened his clothes.

This potion-brewing attempt had clearly failed, and the losses were considerable. The three most expensive materials for brewing a Level 5 Potion had all been destroyed, which was nearly equivalent to losing twenty gold coins.

"Again." Roland condensed a pale red magic shield before himself once more and threw himself back into potion brewing.

As the potion grade increased, so did the power of the explosions caused by failure. They had already become a serious threat to Roland, so he now had no choice but to keep a magic shield around himself at all times while brewing potions.

No wonder every high-level potion brewer was also necessarily a powerful mage. Even a failed Level 5 Potion had this much power. Wouldn't explosions from failed high-level potions rival high-level spells? Roland inwardly clicked his tongue as his movements became even more careful.

Over the following period, several more failures occurred for various reasons, but after wasting three sets of materials, Roland finally succeeded in brewing a Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potion.

After all, the only difference between Level 5 Potions and Tier 4 Potions was the energy they contained, not the number of materials required.

With his experience successfully brewing Tier 4 Potions, the difficulty of Level 5 Potions would not obstruct Roland for long.

Looking at the shimmering Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potion in his hand, a trace of excitement flashed across Roland's face.

Because he had consumed too much Mental Power while brewing the potion, Roland stopped his work.

After recovering his Mental Power to above three points, Roland immediately poured a Tier 5 Potion worth 140 gold coins into his mouth.

Even though he was facing a financial crisis, Roland had no intention of depriving himself.

Not to mention that Roland had no plans to reveal to Leslie that he could brew Level 5 Potions anytime soon.

After all, only one month had passed since Roland had successfully brewed a Tier 4 Potion. It was too fast.

So fast that it was already beyond common sense, and anything beyond common sense would inevitably attract attention.

Roland had not forgotten that Elizabeth was still watching him covetously.

If she learned that Roland could brew Level 5 Potions so quickly, who knew what extreme reaction she might have.

"Nuwa, record the process and effects of taking the Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potion."

"Received, Master."

After receiving the response, Roland slowly closed his eyes and skillfully entered a meditative state.

As the Fire Element Meditation Method began to circulate, the Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potion Roland had just consumed immediately transformed into a massive surge of Mental Power that rushed into his mind.

Feeling the effects far surpassing those of a Tier 4 Potion, a smile could not help appearing on Roland's lips as he meditated.

Time slowly passed, and only after more than an hour did Roland absorb all the energy from the Tier 5 Potion.

The moment Roland opened his eyes, he impatiently asked Nuwa, "Nuwa, how much Mental Power did I gain this time?"

"Master, you gained a total of 0.18 points of Mental Power from this meditation."

"0.18? Why is that so much less than the gap between Tier 3 and Tier 4 Potions?" Roland frowned in confusion.

After all, when he first took a Tier 4 Spirit Agility Potion, he had gained 0.14 points of Mental Power, double the effect of a Tier 3 Potion.

But compared to a Tier 4 Potion, a Tier 5 Potion only increased it by 0.04.

"Master, based on the current data, Nuwa believes that Tier 3 Potions are low-grade potions, while Tier 4 Potions are intermediate potions. That is why there was such a significant difference in their effects."

"Tier 4 and Tier 5 Potions are both intermediate potions, so there will not be such a vast difference between their effects."

"Perhaps there are other reasons, but the available data is insufficient to provide you with an accurate analysis," Nuwa said.

"Mm." Although Roland was somewhat disappointed, he accepted Nuwa's analysis.

"Nuwa, based on the previous decline in potion effectiveness, calculate how long it will take for me to advance to a Level 6 Mage if I keep taking Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potions."

"Beep! Analysis complete. Master will advance to a Level 6 Mage in two months."

"However, Master, you do not have that many Tier 5 Potions."

Nuwa's answer made Roland's expression fall, leaving him extremely helpless.

Indeed, Roland currently had only ten sets of materials for Level 5 Potions.

And five of those sets were materials for brewing Level 5 Fire Element Resonance Potions.

In other words, Roland only had one set of materials remaining for brewing Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potions. If his luck was poor, he might not even have a single Tier 5 Spirit Agility Potion left afterward.

But then Roland remembered that it had been less than two months since he had just broken through to become a Level 5 Mage. If he advanced to a Level 6 Mage at his current speed.

Would that not indirectly reveal that he had concealed his true potion-brewing success rate?

After all, such a rapid advancement in level would undoubtedly require the support of a large number of potions.

Combined with the potions Roland sold publicly, outsiders could easily calculate his true brewing success rate.

At that thought, Roland immediately broke out in a cold sweat and stopped agonizing over the matter of Level 5 Potions.