Being the Master Is No Easy Task

Gao De gave Emil a meaningful look, then reached out and took the box.

As for whether Emil had failed to open the box, or whether things were truly as he had said, Gao De did not care.

As long as the final result was the same, that was enough.

Gao De also understood that if he had not agreed to become the Garden Master, then even if the box could never be opened, Emil would most likely have taken it away rather than offered it to him.

As he thought, Gao De tried to open the box—although Emil had already said it could not be opened, there was no harm in trying again.

The facts proved that Emil had not lied to him.

The box looked perfectly ordinary, but when he tried to open it, it was as if it had been welded shut. No matter how hard he pulled, it would not budge an inch.

After trying from every angle for a while, Gao De gave up on opening the box by ordinary means.

Clearly, there was an invisible, unseen lock on the box.

Without unlocking it, the box could not be opened.

Isn't this basically a safe in the world of mages? Gao De muttered inwardly, feeling somewhat frustrated, yet also finding it perfectly reasonable.

He had already glimpsed the wonders of spells. In a world like this, even the most fantastical things could truly exist.

"The urgent matters are recovering from my injuries and getting the herb garden running again."

"Once those two matters are settled, I'll look for a way to open the box."

Gao De knew that whatever was inside the box had to be extremely valuable. There was even a strong chance it contained the spell formulas and potion recipes he needed most.

Still, he knew very well that there was no use rushing certain things. He quickly adjusted his mindset and put the box away.

Gao De glanced at the apprentices still crowded inside the room. The narrow space felt so packed that even the air seemed unable to circulate.

He yawned and said to them, "I'm a little tired and need to rest. Everyone, go back for now. We'll discuss the herb garden in detail after I wake up."

Gao De truly was tired. A whole month of constant mental strain had already left him exhausted, and with his physical injuries on top of that, he was even more worn out.

The apprentices were tactful as well. One after another, they rose and withdrew. Even Emil, who had originally been Gao De's roommate, left with the others.

"If you need anything, just call out. I'll come right away," Emil said.

"Alright," Gao De said to Emil.

With a low creak, the door closed.

This place is too small. It's uncomfortable to sleep here. I need to change rooms. Gao De thought. Mage Seda's bedroom, for instance, was quite nice.

"It's good to be alive," he finally told himself.

Gao De reclined sideways on the bed.

The sun was high in the sky.

Warm sunlight streamed in through the open window and spilled over Gao De's body, making him narrow his eyes comfortably as he continued recovering from his injuries.

His own cramped bedroom had only a tiny air window. Naturally, it could never offer a sight like this.

This was Mage Seda's bedroom.

A spacious room with excellent lighting.

Now, it was his.

As the victor, Gao De claimed it without the slightest hesitation.

This was spoils of war!

Noisy voices came from outside the door, mixed with the squeaks of objects scraping across the floor.

Gao De knew that the apprentices were clearing away the rubble.

Because of that violent explosion, Mage Seda's workroom—his study—had been completely reduced to ruins.

Fortunately, the blast had not affected the other parts of the herb garden, or the losses would have been even greater.

Cleaning up the wreckage scattered everywhere after the explosion was no easy task.

The apprentices had spent two days on it and still had not completely finished dealing with the aftermath.

Mage Seda's corpse, however, had been carried away while Gao De was still unconscious and buried in the back mountain.

They buried him together with the apprentices who had previously died from testing potions.

Teacher and apprentices, harmonious in death, sharing one grave in blissful reunion.

As for all the items in Mage Seda's room, aside from that unopened Arcane Wooden Box, everything had been blown into fragments and turned into useless trash.

Even the magical robe Mage Seda had been wearing had been blasted into strips and scraps by the sheer force of the explosion.

Damage of that degree had clearly exceeded the scope of Repair. It was absolutely impossible to restore, and in the end, it could only be disposed of as garbage.

This pained Gao De greatly. After all, a first-circle Mystic Item was worth sixty or seventy gold coins.

But with the vast gulf in strength between him and Mage Seda, what right did he have to think about spoils of war?

As long as he was alive, there would always be bread.

That was all Gao De could do—comfort himself with those words.

Although it still could not stop the ache in his heart, he did feel a tiny bit better.

Gao De shifted his body lightly and changed into a more comfortable position, considering what he needed to do next.

The foremost task was undoubtedly to get the herb garden running again and back on track, ensuring its income.

He could also continue maintaining contact with Pierre's Odds and Ends.

The business of repairing Mystic Items was not as steady as selling elixirs, but it could still serve as an additional source of income.

Next, he needed to find a way to open the Arcane Wooden Box left behind by Mage Seda.

Finally, he needed to focus on his own cultivation. This was an even higher priority than learning new spells or using Wind Spirit Moon Shadow to strengthen his spells.

After all, no matter how many powerful spells one mastered, without sufficient mana, they would be castles in the air, with no practical meaning.

Budding Month, fifth day.

All traces of Mage Seda in the herb garden had been thoroughly cleared away.

Gao De's injuries had also recovered considerably—after all, they were only external wounds, with no damage to his muscles or bones. Moreover, because of the existence of mana, the medicinal effects of the herbs in this world were remarkably potent compared with those of his previous life.

During his recovery over the past few days, Gao De had also sorted through the herb garden's current situation:

Before he came to this world, there had been twelve people in the herb garden, making it one of the periods when its numbers were at their highest.

After his arrival, he had killed Ilan and Mage Seda in succession.

Then, two more apprentices had left after last month's nighttime raid by Leyline Creatures.

In other words, including Gao De, there were currently eight people in the herb garden.

His roommate Emil, Lamos, who was both an apprentice and the cook, and Ai Qi and Lei Meng, the only two people in the herb garden besides Gao De who could prepare elixirs.

The other seven were all First-Order Apprentices.

But even among First-Order Apprentices, there were differences.

They had only barely mastered a single cantrip, either Mage Hand or Repair. Calling them Mage Apprentices was almost giving them too much credit.

Even more awkwardly, although Ai Qi and Lei Meng could prepare elixirs, their success rate was low. On average, they needed two portions of materials to make one potion.

One had to know that Tier 0 elixirs themselves did not have high profit margins. They were essentially "low-end" products, their advantage lying in output and success rate.

Once Elixirists became proficient with elixirs of this tier, they could basically guarantee a 100% success rate.

In fact, low-level Elixirists who could not guarantee that success rate simply could not survive.

Moreover, the elixir Ai Qi and Lei Meng had mastered was not Novice Spider Venom, but Restful Slumber Potion.

This elixir rapidly guided the drinker into a brief yet deep sleep, leaving them refreshed upon waking.

However, it could not be used long-term. Otherwise, it would lose its effect, and symptoms of sleep disturbance would appear.

Its users were generally cargo haulers, who used it for emergencies while traveling.

It was useful enough, but its applicability was limited. Coupled with the fact that it could not be used long-term, its market was small.

Phil's Herb Shop did not have much demand for Restful Slumber Potion. They only placed orders occasionally when they needed it, rather than purchasing it continuously and without limit like Novice Spider Venom and Novice Stamina Potion.

In other words, Ai Qi and Lei Meng were two unqualified Elixirists. They could not be counted as productive labor at all.

Looking at it this way, Gao De was actually the only person in the herb garden who could steadily generate income.

No wonder the apprentices in the herb garden had insisted on electing Gao De as the Garden Master. He truly was the only one with the ability.

The new book has entered its first round of recommendations, good brothers. Please keep reading during the new book period—it's very important to me!

My previous Sword Cultivator got knocked out after the first round of PK. This is already my second book; no matter what, you've got to let Bro make it into the second round!