Chapter 40 - 39: Magic Potions, Runes, and Extraordinary Items

Chapter 40: Chapter 39: Magic Potions, Runes, and Extraordinary Items

Having figured out the secret of the wooden box and unexpectedly received help from Pierre, Gaode did not leave immediately.

Suppressing the complex emotions in his heart, he asked Pierre, "Boss, do you know of any external items that can assist a Mage’s cultivation?"

Practicing the Guiding Technique step by step progressed at an agonizingly slow pace. If possible, it was necessary to use external items to speed up his cultivation progress. Gaode knew very well that such items were definitely expensive and most likely beyond what he could afford, but there was no harm in understanding the market first.

Pierre was indeed extremely knowledgeable. He pondered for a moment, organized his words, and said, "A Mage’s cultivation relies on two things: the Guiding Technique and the Meditation Technique.

"The Meditation Technique cultivates one’s own Spiritual Power without the involvement of external Energy. Therefore, its cultivation depends more on oneself. Assisting items for it are extremely rare and highly precious, so we can ignore them for now. However, there are quite a few assisting items for the Cultivation Guiding Technique."

"Fortunately, my current progress in cultivating the Meditation Technique isn’t slow..." Gaode rejoiced inwardly.

Compared to his predecessor, his cultivation speed for the Guiding Technique hadn’t changed at all, but his progress with the Meditation Technique had significantly improved.

By now, Pierre had sat down behind the counter. "Although there are many items that assist in cultivating the Guiding Technique, they can actually be divided into three categories: Magic Potions, Runes, and Extraordinary Items.

"Essentially, they work in two ways. The first is to improve the Mage’s own efficiency in guiding Magic Power and converting it into Mana. The second is to increase the Magic Concentration in the cultivation environment.

"As for Magic Potions, the most common cultivation Magic Potion is the Magic Potion.

"The Magic Potion contains powerful Magic Power. After drinking it, a Mage can directly absorb the Magic Power within, replacing the Magic Power that should have been guided into the body through the Guiding Technique. This is equivalent to skipping the step of guiding Magic Power in the cultivation of the Guiding Technique. The Mage only needs to convert and refine this Magic Power into their own Mana.

"In this way, the cultivation speed naturally becomes faster.

"It’s just that the price of Magic Potions is too expensive. For example, the Basic Magic Potion used by Mage Apprentices costs up to 6 Gold Coins for a set of three small vials. And one set of Basic Magic Potion is only enough for a First-class Apprentice to cultivate for six days, while a Second-class Apprentice will consume a set in just three days.

"Therefore, Mage Apprentices usually only buy a set of Magic Potions to help break through bottlenecks when their Guiding Technique is on the verge of a breakthrough.

"Using them as a daily cultivation aid would be far too extravagant—something ordinary people simply cannot afford."

"Six Gold Coins for a set, consuming one set every six days means 360 Gold Coins a year. That’s equivalent to 360,000 in my previous life..." Gaode calculated inwardly, realizing that Pierre was not exaggerating.

How many people could afford an annual expense of 360,000? And this was only the Magic Potion expense for a First-class Apprentice. For a Second-class Apprentice, it would be 720 Gold Coins a year.

Of course, if one were truly willing to spend that much, they could likely push their Apprentice Guidance Technique to the Perfection Realm in a short period. There were bound to be many so-called geniuses who were spoon-fed this kind of "Magic Potion."

However, this was not a method Gaode could afford.

Pierre could naturally see this and quickly continued, "If the assisting method of Magic Potions leans towards the first type, then Runes lean towards the second—increasing the Magic Concentration in the cultivation environment.

"A combination of multiple Runes can construct a Magic Array to increase the Magic Concentration in a specific area. The two most well-known cultivation-assisting Magic Arrays are the Magic Crystal Matrix and the Magic Node Array.

"The former requires a continuous consumption of Magic Crystals, releasing the powerful Magic Power within them to raise the environment’s Magic Concentration. The latter gathers the surrounding Magic Power into a small area.

"Both have their pros and cons. The former provides a higher Magic Concentration, but because it constantly consumes Magic Crystals, the cost is high.

"The latter is the opposite. Although the Magic Concentration it provides is far inferior to the former, once the Magic Array is successfully constructed, it automatically gathers the surrounding Magic Power without any consumption. Since the world’s Magic Power is constantly regenerating and flowing, it’s essentially a one-time investment with endless returns, making it much more cost-effective.

"However, you don’t need to consider this method. There’s no such thing as a Zero Tier Magic Array; the lowest is One Tier. And the construction cost of a One Tier Magic Array is upwards of a thousand Gold Coins.

"Usually, Mages cultivate using Magic Arrays by renting them.

"The problem is, there are no Magic Arrays available for rent in our Hogan City," Pierre said, spreading his hands.

Hogan City was still too small, and the number of Mages was too few to support the operation of a Magic Array.

"Finally, there are Extraordinary Items," Pierre continued.

"Some Extraordinary Items are crafted specifically to aid cultivation. They can automatically absorb Magic Power to assist their master’s training.

"Of course, the effects of these Extraordinary Items are definitely nowhere near as obvious or direct as a Magic Array. However, their advantage lies in their portability. They can be carried around and function at all times. Unlike a Magic Array, which has a fixed location once established and cannot be moved, let alone carried.

"Obviously, the value of cultivation-assisting Extraordinary Items is far higher than other categories of Extraordinary Items.

"Even among 1st Ring Extraordinary Items, those meant for cultivation—even if their effects aren’t particularly significant—can often fetch high prices of several hundred Gold Coins, and they are always in high demand with no supply."

Pierre’s meaning was very straightforward. Regardless of whether Gaode had the financial resources, even if he did, there was nowhere to buy them.

After talking so much, there wasn’t a single thing he could use... Gaode felt very helpless.

Getting down to the root of it all, it was just one word:

Poor!

Leaving Pierre Grocery Store, Gaode, clutching his 1 Gold Coin and 15 Silver Coins, headed straight for a medicinal herb shop at the end of the street.

The preparation of the Basic Spider Venom Potion required three main ingredients: 1 stalk of Snake Tooth Grass, 1 stalk of Mountain Wormwood, and 1 Green Spider Sac.

Among them, the Snake Tooth Grass and Mountain Wormwood could be produced in his own Medicinal Garden. Only the Green Spider Sac needed to be purchased from a medicinal herb shop. Although Phil’s Magic Pharmacy primarily dealt in Magic Potion sales, they also sold medicinal herbs, including Green Spider Sacs, and their quality was guaranteed.

The problem was that in the past, when Mage Seda was still around, the purchasing volume was always meant for more than half a month. Now, Gaode was strapped for cash and could only buy one or two loose portions. In this situation, going to Phil’s Magic Pharmacy to purchase medicinal herbs was inappropriate and could easily arouse the suspicion of anyone paying attention.

Upholding the principle of caution above all, Gaode had no choice but to seek further afield, switching to a smaller medicinal herb shop for his purchases.

Inside the medicinal herb shop, facing the price stated by the clerk, Gaode subconsciously frowned and asked, "Twelve Silver Coins for a single Green Spider Sac over a year old?! Doesn’t Phil’s Magic Pharmacy sell them for ten Silver Coins each? How is yours twenty percent more expensive than theirs?"

Hearing Gaode’s skepticism, the owner of the medicinal herb shop stepped forward lightly. With an unquestionable yet sincere tone, he said, "Sir, our shop has been open on this street for decades. Our ability to stand strong for so long relies entirely on the word ’integrity.’ Regardless of status, anyone who enters our shop receives the same respect and fair treatment.

"Hogan City is only so big. If we ever cheated a customer, word would spread, and our business would be ruined. How could we be so short-sighted as to scam you?

"Recently, the number of people heading out of the city to hunt has noticeably increased, and the price of the Basic Spider Venom Potion has risen accordingly.

"As one of the main ingredients for the Basic Spider Venom Potion, Green Spider Sacs have also become highly sought after, naturally causing a price increase. It’s not just our shop; all medicinal herb shops are selling Green Spider Sacs at this price right now.

"If you don’t believe me, sir, you can go check the other medicinal herb shops in the city to see if what I’m saying is true."

"Alright... then I’ll take two portions," Gaode said, unable to hide the pinch he felt in his wallet.

Although this medicinal herb shop wasn’t particularly large in scale, it was indeed an old establishment that had been open for nearly twenty years. They couldn’t possibly tell a lie that would ruin their reputation.

The "Little Rooster" coin that hadn’t even warmed up in his pocket left Gaode once again. Enduring the heartache of paying, his savings shrank once more to 11 Silver Coins.