Chapter Summaries

After becoming Garden Master, Gao De enjoyed a rare morning free from routine work before taking on a repair job from Pierre. He left with the Beast Speech Ring to repair within ten days and finished the chapter eager to open Mage Seda’s wooden box, which might contain the Novice Stamina Potion formula.

• Gao De returned to Seda's Herb Garden, ordered the apprentices to prepare potato stew with meat, and enjoyed the meal despite its bland taste.
• Gao De found his new free mornings boring and left the herb garden with two batches of Novice Spider Venom to meet Pierre.
• Pierre explained that a client searching for a suspected high-tier magical plant had agreed to pay eight Sien Gold Coins for the repair and entrusted Gao De with the corroded Beast Speech Ring.
• Gao De accepted Pierre's request to repair the Beast Speech Ring, which held the 1st-ring spell Animal Communication, within ten days.
• Gao De sold Pierre two batches of Novice Spider Venom, then spent the proceeds on five one-year Green Spider Sacs at the herb shop.
• Gao De failed to buy herb cultivation or identification books and grew more eager to open Mage Seda's wooden box for the possible Novice Stamina Potion formula.

Gao De repaired the Beast Speech Ring and learned that it could cast Animal Communication once per day, then continued brewing potions and training. His Meditation Art advanced to its seventh petal, and his growing exercise and appetite increased his daily expenses.

• Gao De sold five batches of Novice Spider Venom to Phil's Herb Shop and bought fifteen Green Spider Sacs despite their rising price.
• Gao De completed the repair of the Beast Speech Ring and discovered that it restored the ring's magic and granted a daily free casting of Animal Communication.
• Gao De showed the repaired ring to Pierre, who praised his work and paid him eight gold coins before leaving for Bremen City.
• Gao De advanced his Meditation Art and manifested the seventh petal of his lotus on Budding Month, Day Nineteen.
• Gao De kept delivering potions, began a strict physical training routine, and spent more on food as his strength and appetite grew.

Gao De explored Hogan City and bought four books that revealed how vast and sparsely developed the Bremen Region was, along with a little information about Leyline Creatures. He learned that no new leyline had appeared there for two hundred years and hoped to keep his peaceful life while he grew stronger.

• Gao De noticed unfamiliar people in Hogan City while exploring and became wary that trouble might be approaching.
• Gao De found Dairich, an elderly former monk who copied and sold books, and bought four travel and geography books for two gold coins.
• Gao De read the Bremen Gazetteer and discovered that the Bremen Region covered over three hundred thousand square kilometers, most of it undeveloped wilderness.
• Gao De learned that leylines and Leyline Creatures had proliferated after the convergence of planes, but no new leyline had appeared in Bremen for two hundred years.
• Gao De felt relieved and resolved to quietly grow stronger rather than risk having his peaceful life disrupted.

Gao De bought a rare Knock Spell Scroll from Pierre and learned that the increasing number of Leyline Creatures might signal danger near the city. Pierre advised him to stockpile food and revealed he was preparing to flee to Bremen City if things worsened.

• Gao De delivered five batches of Novice Spider Venom to Phil's Herb Shop and bought enough Green Spider Sacs for another half month.
• Gao De visited Pierre's Odds and Ends, where Pierre sold him a Knock Spell Scroll for seven gold coins.
• Gao De examined the scroll and reflected on his dwindling savings and the costs of maintaining his herb garden.
• Pierre warned Gao De that the growing number of Leyline Creatures had an unknown cause and urged him to stockpile food.
• Pierre told Gao De he had arranged a possible escape to Bremen City, and Gao De thanked him for the warning.

Gao De used the Knock Spell Scroll to suppress the Arcane Lock on Mage Seda’s wooden box and retrieved its contents. After discovering fifty Sien Gold Coins and several books and documents, he refilled the box with scrap paper before the lock reactivated, then began examining his spoils.

• Gao De returned to his workshop, prepared himself, and used the Knock Spell Scroll on the Arcane Wooden Box.
• Gao De used Mage Hand to open the box and remove its books, papers, scroll, and other contents.
• Gao De discovered fifty Sien Gold Coins and celebrated his sudden wealth.
• Gao De put scrap paper into the box and closed it just as the Arcane Lock took effect again.
• Gao De began examining the rest of his spoils.

Gao De read an apprentice handbook that explained the Three Tenets of Mages, spell rings, and basic spell rules. He memorized the tenets but remained puzzled by the third as he continued studying how spells worked.

• Gao De checked the cultivation booklets and confirmed they matched the methods he already knew.
• Gao De opened the Mage Apprentice Handbook and read the Three Tenets of Mages, reflecting on how knowledge of spells had helped him defeat Mage Seda.
• Gao De struggled to understand the tenet that spells were both omnipotent and not omnipotent, then memorized all three tenets.
• Gao De learned about spell rings and wondered whether Ninth Circle mages existed, before setting the thought aside.
• Gao De read the rules governing spell casting time, range, and duration.

Gao De studied the eight schools of magic and realized how broad spells were compared with his limited spell collection. He began reading five spell formulas left behind by Mage Seda, expanding the range of spells he could learn.

• Gao De read the Mage Apprentice Handbook's descriptions of the eight schools of magic and learned that mages should study spells from all of them.
• Gao De reconsidered spells as more than a source of power and concluded that magic could accomplish what other supernatural abilities could.
• Gao De reviewed his spell repository and recognized that he lacked spells from several schools.
• Gao De excitedly read Mage Seda's formulas for Tracking Mark, Color Spray, Touch of Fatigue, Detect Magic, and Flame Arrow.

Gao De examined five spell scrolls and three elixir formulas, finding the valuable Spirit-Linking Potion formula Mage Seda had pursued for ten years. Though he recognized its potential to improve Spell Model construction, he set it aside because key ingredients were missing and Seda’s experiments had proved dangerous.

• Gao De recognized the five spell scrolls as familiar cantrips and decided he could learn all of them.
• Gao De read the Novice Spider Venom Potion formula and set it aside.
• Gao De studied the Novice Stamina Potion formula and resolved to master it for its value to Phil's Herb Shop.
• Gao De discovered the Spirit-Linking Potion formula could increase the chance of successfully constructing a Spell Model.
• Gao De saw that three supplementary ingredients had been erased and that Mage Seda had written uncertain replacements, then put the formula aside rather than risk costly experiments.

Gao De discovered Mage Seda’s family letters and learned that Seda had fled Bremen City after a failed attempt to advance to First Circle, leaving his wife and son behind. Seda had been trying to complete the Spirit-Linking Potion formula so he could trade it for Spirit Ascension Water and reunite with his family, and his latest letter said the potion was nearly finished.

• Gao De found a stack of letters beneath the elixir formula and learned they had been sent by Mage Seda’s wife, Misu.
• The letters revealed that Seda came from a declining mage family in Bremen City and had fled after a failed circle advancement left him weakened and threatened by people coveting his family’s property.
• Seda had left Misu and their infant son, Serl, behind and later resumed contact through letters and yearly payments of fifty Sien Gold Coins.
• Seda had pursued the Spirit-Linking Potion formula, hoping to trade it for Spirit Ascension Water and make another attempt to become a First Circle Mage.
• In his latest letter, Seda told Misu that brewing the potion was nearly successful and hoped to return to Bremen City to reunite with her and Serl.

Gao De sorted through Mage Seda’s inheritance, weighed his conflicting feelings about killing him, and secured the valuable items, including an unidentified scroll. He finished brewing Novice Spider Venom, planned improvements for the herb garden, and chose to study Flame Arrow.

• Gao De accepted that killing Mage Seda had been necessary even though he still pitied Mage Seda’s family and felt reluctant about his death.
• Gao De examined a finely made scroll written in magical script, but could not identify its writing, seal, origin, or purpose.
• Gao De inventoried Mage Seda’s inheritance and hid the elixir formulas, gold coins, and mysterious scroll while storing the other materials in the wooden box.
• Gao De finished brewing Novice Spider Venom and planned to improve the apprentices’ meals and stockpile food for emergencies.
• Gao De chose the Flame Arrow spell formula to study, recalling its destructive power and its role in Mage Seda’s attack on the Leyline Wolf Rats.

Over nine days, Gao De mastered all five of Mage Seda’s remaining spells, expanding his spell library while deciding it was too dangerous to venture beyond Hogan City for Origin. As more outsiders arrived amid the ongoing anomaly, Gao De sold potions and asked Pierre to contact Mr. Yom about buying more spell formulas.

• Gao De mastered the Flame Arrow spell and reviewed his expanded library of ten spells, but lacked Origin to improve them.
• Gao De rejected the idea of hunting Leyline Creatures in the wilderness because the risks were too great.
• Gao De sold Novice Spider Venom at Phil's Herb Shop and concealed Mage Seda’s absence by claiming the mage was busy outside the herb garden.
• Gao De visited Pierre’s shop, where Pierre said the growing influx of outsiders had brought more customers but made him uneasy.
• Gao De asked Pierre to contact Mr. Yom about buying the two remaining spell formulas and offered a higher price if necessary.

Gao De arranged for Pierre to contact Yom about buying the spell formulas he had previously passed up, then visited Rose Elixir Shop to buy Basic Mana Potions for his cultivation. He left with two sets after learning their price had risen to 6 gold and 10 silver each.

• Gao De realized that his earlier talk with Pierre might have revealed too much, then arranged a time to hear whether Pierre could reconnect him with Yom.
• Gao De explained to himself that he wanted Blade Ward for protection and Read Magic to decipher a mysterious scroll from Mage Seda's inheritance.
• Gao De went to Rose Elixir Shop instead of Phil's Herb Shop to avoid drawing further suspicion while buying Basic Mana Potions.
• A clerk showed Gao De a set of Basic Mana Potions and explained that Leyline Creature activity and the arrival of Mage Apprentices had raised the price to 6 gold and 10 silver per set.
• Gao De bought two sets and paid the clerk thirteen gold coins.

Gao De used Basic Mana Potion to speed up his Guiding Method cultivation, weighed the cost of relying on elixirs, and considered making the potion himself. Three days later, his magical power broke through to the level needed to cast six cantrips.

• Gao De drank a bottle of Basic Mana Potion and found that it greatly accelerated his Guiding Method cultivation.
• Gao De calculated how long it might take to reach Third-Order Apprentice, estimating that potions could reduce the process to under two years but cost about 1,306 gold.
• Gao De considered obtaining the Basic Mana Potion formula so he could lower the cost, but knew elixirists would not sell it.
• On the thirteenth day of Verdant Sprout Month, Gao De's Guiding Method broke through, increasing his magical power enough to cast six cantrips.

Gao De bought two spell formulas and herb seedlings, then reflected on his failed attempts to brew Novice Stamina Potion and the costs of learning it. He remained determined to keep practicing, despite the losses.

• Gao De negotiated with Yom and bought the Read Magic and Blade Ward spell formulas for four gold coins.
• Gao De bought herb seedlings and fertilizer for the herb garden, then ate Lamos's improved meat soup.
• Gao De noted that his exercise and fuller meals had made him stronger and more energetic.
• Gao De reviewed his failed attempts to brew Novice Stamina Potion and the expense of buying Wild Wolf Glandular Fluid.
• Gao De recalled Mage Seda's support for his predecessor's potion-making practice, while acknowledging the harm caused by forced drug testing.

Gao De mastered Read Magic and deciphered Mage Seda’s scroll, discovering it was a powerful admission recommendation for Ceres Academy of Magic. He set the scroll aside for possible future use and wondered why Mage Seda had never used it himself.

• Gao De drank his last Basic Mana Potion, completed a cultivation session, and tried again to construct Read Magic’s Spell Model.
• Gao De successfully learned Read Magic and used it to decipher Mage Seda’s scroll.
• Gao De discovered the scroll was a recommendation from Gavin Hogg granting its bearer admission to Ceres Academy of Magic without an entrance examination.
• Gao De judged the recommendation too impractical to pursue for now, stored the scroll carefully, and planned to ask Pierre about the academy.
• Gao De wondered why Mage Seda had left the recommendation unused if Ceres Academy of Magic was in the Sien Duchy.

After buying more Basic Mana Potions, Gao De learned that dozens of people from multiple households had vanished in Hogan City, and the City Guards were investigating. He also asked Pierre about Ceres Academy of Magic and learned that its rare admissions offered a path to becoming a Second Circle Mage, though it was thousands of kilometers away in Saint Sien City.

• Gao De bought six batches of Basic Mana Potions at Rose Elixir Shop, leaving himself with only twenty-four gold.
• Gao De learned from the shop clerk that people had been disappearing in Hogan City and saw the City Guards patrolling in force.
• Pierre told Gao De that more than a dozen households had vanished overnight over the past half month, with City Guards finding only unknown slime at the scenes.
• Gao De asked Pierre about Ceres Academy of Magic and learned that it admitted few outside applicants and that most successful students became Second Circle Mages.
• Pierre told Gao De that Ceres Academy of Magic was in Saint Sien City, thousands of kilometers from Hogan City.

After another nine people disappeared despite the City Guard’s patrols, Gao De feared the danger might spread and hoped the city would stop the culprit. Hogan City’s leaders concluded that a Leyline Creature was likely responsible and planned to use a Hound Tracking spell to follow slime left at the scenes.

• Gao De returned to the herb garden and decided to arrange night watches after worrying that the disappearances could reach more parts of the city.
• Pierre told Gao De that two households, totaling nine people, had vanished overnight despite the lockdown and increased patrols.
• Marlan told Viscount Charles and Hogan City’s leaders that the City Guard could not solve the disappearances and urged them to involve the Mage Lord.
• Greenstone Mage argued that a Leyline Creature had likely taken the victims and suggested tracking the slime left at the scenes.
• Greenstone Mage admitted he had not mastered Hound Tracking, so Viscount Charles ordered someone to buy its Spell Scroll in Bremen City.

Gao De brewed his first Novice Stamina Potion after months of careful practice. Soon afterward, Oliver from Phil's Herb Shop arrived with several men and proposed acquiring Seda's Herb Garden and hiring Mage Seda.

• Gao De learned that Hogan City's disappearances had been resolved after Mage Lord captured the forbidden-spell user responsible.
• Gao De successfully brewed a Novice Stamina Potion for the first time.
• Emil told Gao De that five or six people were waiting outside the herb garden.
• Oliver introduced himself as Phil's Herb Shop's manager and asked Gao De to pass a message to Mage Seda.
• Oliver offered to acquire Seda's Herb Garden and hire Mage Seda as Phil's Herb Shop's Elixirist.

Oliver tried to pressure Gao De into selling Seda's Herb Garden, but Gao De stalled him by claiming he had mastered Seda's Herbology. Oliver then reported to the Baron that Seda was likely dead and planned to secure the garden and recruit Gao De.

• Oliver offered Gao De two hundred gold coins for Seda's Herb Garden and urged him to join Phil's Herb Shop, but Gao De refused to decide before Seda returned.
• After Oliver left, Gao De told Emil not to reveal Seda's absence and said he needed time to think.
• Oliver told the Baron that Seda had probably died and that the apprentices were concealing it to keep control of the garden.
• Oliver explained that Gao De claimed to have inherited Seda's Herbology knowledge, so he had postponed seizing the garden and chose to pursue a peaceful acquisition.
• The Baron ordered Oliver to settle the matter quickly, and Oliver promised that Gao De would sell the garden and become an Elixirist at the shop.

Gao De struggled with Phil's Herb Shop's pressure to surrender his herb garden and join them, then visited Pierre's shop and learned that the city's disappearances continued and new leylines might be forming near Hogan City. The chapter left Gao De facing the possibility that unfamiliar Leyline Creatures had entered the city.

• Phil's Herb Shop stopped buying Gao De's Novice Spider Venom and Novice Stamina Potion, while men watched his herb garden to pressure him into joining the shop.
• Gao De weighed selling the herb garden for 200 gold but refused to accept the insult, then counted his remaining money and decided he needed to act soon.
• Gao De went to Pierre's Odds and Ends and discovered Pierre planned to close the shop and retire in Bremen City.
• Pierre told Gao De that people were still disappearing from their homes in Hogan City, and that he suspected a Leyline Creature was responsible.
• Pierre explained that Leyline Creatures had appeared in numbers exceeding the region's expected limit, suggesting a new leyline was forming; Gao De realized new creatures might have invaded Hogan City.