Lesser Activity Potion

Sunan had never been particularly interested in banquets to begin with. Now that he knew the thing he had been longing for had been found, he had even less desire to stay.

After exchanging a few words with Kei, he left the banquet hall early and returned to the courtyard where he lived.

The moment he entered, Sunan saw the two boxes placed in the courtyard.

He used Mage Hand to move the two boxes into the study before opening them for a careful inspection.

One of the boxes contained more than a dozen books.

On their dark, hard covers, intricate and irregular lines formed writing that only Wizard Apprentices could understand.

"Touch of Fatigue," "Detect Poison," "Open Lock," "Charm Human," "Shield Spell," "Analysis of Alien Life," "Necromantic Rebirth," "Negative Energy Principles."

Of the twelve books, aside from the five spell model books, the rest were various types of specialized knowledge.

Among those five spells, Charm Human and Shield Spell were both First-Circle Spells.

First-Circle Spells?

Sunan's eyes burned with desire.

Charm Human and Shield Spell were both highly practical First-Circle Spells.

Shield Spell in particular was a life-saving spell that almost every Wizard Apprentice was required to learn.

Unfortunately, learning a First-Circle Spell required Spirit Power of at least 10 points.

He was still far from that.

Although the wizards abandoned this world, they left behind many texts, Magical Items, and even inheritances.

These things are useless to ordinary people, who cannot even understand them, but to Wizard Apprentices, they are precious treasures.

A smile appeared on Sunan's face.

As long as they were willing to spend enough time and had sufficient wealth, any Wizard Apprentice could gather enough knowledge in this world to advance to a formal wizard.

Of course, resources were another matter altogether.

Though he could not learn the two First-Circle Spells for now, the three Zero-Circle Spells posed no problem.

Sunan put away the spellbooks, intending to study them slowly later.

He then leafed through the remaining books on specialized knowledge one by one, but unfortunately, none triggered a corresponding Skill.

Clearly, this knowledge was not categorized as Skills.

I'll keep them and read them when I have time. It'll be good to broaden my horizons.

Sunan was slightly disappointed. He put the books away, then opened the other box.

The box was densely packed with small boxes of various sizes.

Sunan opened them one by one.

As expected, the boxes contained all kinds of preserved materials.

"Plain Heart Grass, Dragon Eye Mint, and Black-Spotted Python Bone Powder are all materials for making Lesser Activity Potion!"

After taking stock of everything, he found that aside from Clarity Tree sap, all the materials needed to make Lesser Activity Potion were complete.

And there was quite a lot of it—enough for forty or fifty potion-making attempts.

With this much material, it should be enough for me to develop a new version of Lesser Activity Potion.

Sunan immediately became impatient to begin. Taking the materials, he headed straight for the laboratory.

The progress bar for Star Ring Meditation was already over halfway full. With Lesser Activity Potion to assist him, it would not be long before he could construct his first star ring.

When he arrived at the laboratory, Sunan lit the candles and headed straight for the long table covered with beakers and test tubes.

Over the past three months or so, he had made Lesser Dragon Blood Potion at least two hundred times in total. Potion Making had long since reached Lv2, more than enough for Tier-Zero Potion experiments.

Thus, aside from meditation and spell study, Sunan added potion experimentation to his work.

He continuously synthesized Silver Moon Flower Essence of different purities and quantities, testing its compatibility with the other materials and searching for the ideal ratio as a substitute.

Starlight Calendar 1249, Month of Revival (February)

Because the Blackscale Lizardmen had completely withdrawn into their lair in the Redhorn Wilderness, Blackstone City, no longer under threat, became thoroughly tranquil.

Kei shifted his focus back to managing the territory.

Since Blackstone City was located in the south and had a warmer climate, the snow had begun showing signs of melting at the start of the month.

It was expected that planting and cultivation could begin by Spring Dawn Month (March).

Kei had ordered the militia to build irrigation channels throughout the territory early on, drawing in river water to prepare for the farming work of Spring Dawn Month.

With river water for irrigation, this year's harvest was sure to be a good one.

In addition, Kei encouraged the serfs in the territory to fish in the river during the agricultural off-season, adding a little income to the territory.

After the war with the Blackscale Lizardmen, Blackstone City's military strength had not diminished but instead increased.

Thanks to the Lesser Dragon Blood Potion, the number of knights had surged from nine to twenty-one.

And that number was expected to continue growing over the next two months, until the accumulated Blackscale Lizardmen blood was exhausted.

As a result, the territory's meat consumption soared sharply.

After all, if a knight ate his fill, he could consume thirty or forty catties of meat in a day. Blackstone City's beef and mutton alone could not support that demand, so they could only look to fishing for a solution.

But fishing could only slightly ease the food problem.

Kei had no choice but to spend money purchasing large quantities of meat from other cities.

Beyond that, his younger brother's research was also an enormous expense.

That batch of antiques and materials alone last month had cost several dozen Gold Coin, nearly equal to Blackstone City's monthly tax revenue.

It pained Kei so much that it felt as though his heart were bleeding.

But considering the territory's long-term development, Sunan's research funds could not possibly be cut off.

To increase income and reduce expenses, Kei, as the lord, had worried himself into losing who knew how many hairs lately.

Sunan, shut away in the laboratory and wholly focused on researching potions, knew nothing about any of this.

Mid-Month of Revival.

After relentless experimentation and research, Sunan finally produced the first bottle of Lesser Activity Potion.

Lesser Activity Potion (Tier-Zero/Low Grade): After consumption, increases mental activity for 15 days and 4 hours. Stacking has no effect.

It's finally done!

Looking at the beautiful silver-blue liquid in the potion bottle, Sunan let out a delighted breath.

With the Synthesis Cube, he could precisely regulate the invigorating effect of Silver Moon Flower Essence, allowing its effect to approach that of Clarity Tree sap without limit and making it viable as a substitute.

The entire experimental process had really just involved continuously adjusting the ratios of the materials, and it had gone exceptionally smoothly.

That was why Sunan had been able to create the new version of Lesser Activity Potion so quickly.

Without hesitation, he immediately drank the potion, then sat down on the spot and began meditating.

A mint-like coolness suddenly spread from his abdomen, swiftly flowing throughout his entire body.

For an instant, Sunan felt as if he were drifting through the depths of an icy lake, filled with an indescribable sense of tranquility.

After an unknown amount of time, he abruptly opened his eyes, looking utterly refreshed.

This was the positive effect brought about by a small, short-term increase in Spirit Power.

Sunan immediately opened his personal panel.

Sunan Arnester, human male, 16 years old

Spirit Power 2.82 / Physique 2.94

Skills

Star Ring Meditation Lv1 (750/1000)

Potion Making Lv2 (289/3000)

Spirit Power increased by 0.03, and Star Ring Meditation proficiency increased by 25 points.

Sunan was overjoyed.

That efficiency was roughly five times what it had been before!

As expected, the potion's effects are far better than plant essence alone!

Sunan was ecstatic.

At this rate, he would be able to construct his first star ring in ten days!