NOVEL NEXT 14: Three Gifts
The girl examined the supernatural jewel before putting it away.
“I’ll keep this jewel for now and give it to you in a few days.”
Pullman quickly expressed that he didn’t mind, as without Loranhil, he wouldn’t have been able to extract the supernatural essence from the dragon blood bat.
“I suppose you pass, barely. But don’t mention my name when you leave here. I’d be embarrassed.”
The girl was still somewhat dissatisfied; this student was a bit slow.
Pullman could only smile bitterly and agree, silently vowing to accomplish great things in the future to earn his teacher’s recognition.
After resolving Pullman’s doubts, Loranhil used all 5 draws, with decent results: 3 supernatural potion recipes, one armor forging manual, and one weapon crafting manual.
After the battle, Pullman rested for 2 days, while Loranhil stayed in the cottage in the maple forest, researching the supernatural potion recipes from the system’s rewards.
[Blood Vitalizing Potion] (Bronze grade): Replenishes blood loss, treats frostbite and cold poison, accelerates wound healing. A common and widely applicable potion.
To configure this potion, blood from high-sequence creatures or materials related to the Demon Sequence were needed. Previously lacking suitable materials, she now used the blood red jewel as the primary ingredient. The other two potions couldn’t be made yet due to insufficient materials.
Loranhil lit the fuel under the crucible, first adding some auxiliary herbs and continuously simmering them.
The greatest difficulty in making potions lay in the proportions and ratios, and adjusting the reactions at each stage of the process. The slightest inattention could ruin everything.
Among the ingredients, each herb varied in size, with effective components differing greatly due to growing environment, harvesting time, and preservation loss. Novices often needed extensive practice to grasp material selection and dosage.
In fact, whether in the Second Era or now, the vast majority of potion makers only excelled at a few recipes, sticking to what they knew best.
True masters who could brew multiple potions were rare, as this craft relied heavily on experience. A slight mistake could waste precious materials, yet potion makers had to practice to improve. Thus, talent in this field had always been scarce.
Many of the great potion makers in the Mercury Dynasty were witches, as their long lifespans made training more efficient. Moreover, if a witch brewed potions related to her own domain, the results could be miraculous.
This led to the image of witches as black-clad women stirring potions in huge cauldrons.
Loranhil, with her mythical talent boost, precisely and clearly perceived every component and change in the potion. After the first trial, she brewed a perfect quality potion on her second attempt.
In the test tube, an alluring red liquid rippled slightly. A [Blood Vitalizing Potion] now sat before her.
[Blood Vitalizing Potion] (Perfect Bronze grade): Brewed using the blood red jewel from the Demon Sequence as the main ingredient. The brewing process was flawless, resulting in excellent quality. Suitable as an educational specimen.
Making perfect use of the blood red jewel, Loranhil finally brewed 10 portions of the potion.
This commonly used battle potion wasn’t of much use to her at the moment, but Pullman would need it after leaving.
However, potions were easily damaged during transport. Thinking of this, the girl walked into the kitchen, opened a cabinet below, and took out a small jar.
Opening the clay seal, she poured out a bowl of viscous, semi-transparent golden liquid. Sunlight shining through the window made the pale golden liquid appear crystal clear, emitting a faint sweet fragrance.
The jar contained maple syrup harvested by Loranhil. Maple sugar wasn’t as cloyingly sweet as cane sugar or honey, and Loranhil preferred its taste. It was also very nutritious.
She occasionally used it in cooking or drank it directly with hot water. Humans instinctively like sweetness. In her previous life, whether in milk tea or soft drinks, sweetness was indispensable.
Returning to the alchemy lab, Loranhil carefully mixed the potion with maple syrup, then heated it slightly to evaporate excess moisture, forming a semi-transparent gel. She poured out this jelly-like substance and, after cooling it for a while, shaped it into small cubes.
On a clean plate sat 10 dark red transparent cubes. To prevent them from sticking together later, the girl sprinkled some flour on them. Finally, the ten portions of potion became 10 red gummy candies.
Done, mission accomplished!
The girl clapped her hands lightly, placed these gummies in a small wooden box to prevent crushing, and took them out.
She returned to her room to fetch three more items, then Loranhil left the maple forest and came to where Pullman was resting.
It was nearly dusk. Pullman was exercising his limbs, checking how his scars were healing, while several fish roasted by the campfire, filling the air with a fragrant aroma.
“How’s your recovery?”
“Not bad, nothing serious anymore.”
As expected of a youth with the Tenacity talent, he was indeed tough.
“Are you leaving tomorrow?”
“Yes, I’ve made up my mind.”
“Alright, it’s time to say goodbye.”
“I made the jewel from earlier into a potion.”
Loranhil took out the box of gummies and handed it to the young man.
“If you’re injured later, you can eat one. But there are only 10, so use them sparingly.”
“Thank you, teacher.”
The young man happily accepted, then Loranhil brought out a maple wood box from behind her.
“Lastly, I’m giving you three things. Though they’re objects, they also represent three pieces of advice from me.”
“First is power.”
The girl opened the first layer of the box, revealing a neat stack of wheat—the improved variety.
Pullman’s eyes showed confusion.
Loranhil picked up the wheat bundle and began to explain.
“Food is the most important thing. How many people you can feed determines how large an army you can have, how much labor force, and how grand an enterprise you can undertake.”
“Population is power.”
The young man seemed to understand something and nodded.
“Next is wisdom.”
The girl opened the second layer of the box, revealing a neat stack of books.
“Never stop thinking, constantly review and summarize experiences and lessons, continuously learn necessary knowledge, and use your brain to solve problems. If you have your own territory in the future, you must popularize education. It’s slow to take effect initially but can fundamentally change everything.”
The young man deeply agreed, realizing how naive and laughable many of his previous ideas had been after this period of learning.
“Lastly is luck.”
The girl opened the final layer of the box, revealing an orange transparent fruit.
“Luck, people often say they succeeded due to good fortune, but is it really just chance?”
“Why do some people always have good luck while others are constantly unfortunate? Is this really random?”
“It’s not like that. Even when presented with the same opportunities, some people still can’t seize them. When the tide is high, it’s not apparent, but once it recedes, the truth is revealed.”
“Never harbor a fluke mentality; it will only turn you into a gambler.”
“I believe good luck is the result of countless tireless attempts and efforts until final success—the miracle achieved.”
“If you put 99 black stones and 1 white stone in a pool, and you touch black stones 99 times before finally touching the white stone on the last try, as long as you hold up that white stone, everyone will think you’re lucky, chosen by heaven.”
“Why? Because people won’t care about your previous failures; those are as unremarkable as the masses. They’ll only see you reach into the pool and pull out a white stone, exclaiming it’s a miracle.”
“Most people give up and leave after two unsuccessful tries, but only you succeeded. Even if your previous experiences were miserable and tragic, people will beautify them, calling it a hero’s perseverance.”
“So-called luck isn’t chance, but the inevitable result of countless tireless struggles. I hope you understand this point.”