"What are you doing? Put me down right now!"
At that moment, changes were also occurring with the bound Lang Erfu.
The crazed look on his face vanished, replaced by clarity in his eyes. From his previously bald scalp, a thick growth of green hair was rapidly sprouting, quickly reaching down to his ankles.
"His hair has grown back — it looks like he's regained his senses," a girl's voice called out, and the green vines receded with a clatter.
"Lang Erfu! You couldn't even keep track of your own episodes of madness, and you went and violated the rules of the canyon, disturbing our guests! You'd better get the guest's forgiveness, or you'll be thrown out of this canyon!"
The two voices gradually faded. Throughout the entire confrontation, Leilin hadn't even caught a glimpse of the two Third-rank Apprentices' faces, and the interior of the cave had been preserved remarkably intact.
Lang Erfu seemed to realize what had happened and hurriedly bowed to Leilin in apology. "I'm sorry, sir! Due to some psychological issues, I sometimes can't fully control myself. I've caused you inconvenience, and I hope you'll give me the chance to make it up to you!"
After speaking, Lang Erfu looked rather dejected. "I had the timing all figured out before, but these episodes have been getting more frequent lately. Maybe I really will have to move out…"
Leilin wasn't sure how to respond, so he simply said, "First, please revive my servant. And on top of that, hurry up and deliver the materials I need!"
"Of course!" The elderly dwarf dragged his now-floor-length hair over to Gelin, pried open his eyelids and examined them. "Your servant merely fainted temporarily. He'll be fine after some rest!"
He then pulled some brown powder from inside his clothing and had Gelin swallow it. Before long, the big man woke up.
At that point, Lang Erfu handed a small box to Leilin. "As compensation for this incident, I can offer you a fifty percent discount!"
"…" Leilin was somewhat speechless, but he still paid the Magic Stones, handed the small box to Gelin to carry, and took his leave.
As they parted, Lang Erfu bowed deeply once more. "If you wish to trade with me again, please remember — I'm only at my most rational when my hair has grown past my ankles. At all other times, please stay away!"
Leilin nodded and left the canyon with Gelin.
He'd originally been in the mood to browse around, but after this incident, all desire had evaporated. Who knew what other twisted creatures lurked deep within the canyon.
The path of Wizards was filled with danger. A single failed advancement, an experimental accident, or magical radiation contamination could all cause irreversible harm to the practitioner — or even death outright!
Add to that their long lifespans and immense power, and over time, Wizards' personalities would inevitably become distorted to varying degrees, sometimes even developing psychological problems.
Leilin thought again of Lang Erfu and the two Third-rank Apprentices who had intervened. The impression they gave him was nothing like the few apprentices he'd encountered in Polar Night City.
To put it vividly, it was the difference between wolves and lambs.
"True Wizards rarely prefer to settle in human cities. Most live out in the wild."
The imposing presence of the two Third-rank Apprentices he'd witnessed today set Leilin's heart racing with ambition. "As long as I successfully brew the
……
In the laboratory, bathed in bright light, Leilin stared at a test tube on the table that was continuously producing blue bubbles.
His hand remained steady, shaking the tube in a precise, peculiar rhythm.
The blue foam inside the test tube generated and dissipated in an endless cycle, but never once overflowed past the rim.
"Potion activity stabilizing. Threshold estimated to appear in 3 minutes and 24 seconds!" The Chip's monitoring alert chimed.
Along with the notification, a countdown timer appeared below the corner of Leilin's eye.
The moment the timer hit zero, Leilin immediately recited the incantation in Ancient Byron Language: "Here is the vast azure sea — come, little ones!"
His other hand simultaneously dumped several blue crystals from beside him into the test tube.
Hummm! The test tube began to tremble.
Several streaks of blue light flew out from the mouth of the test tube, spiraling around it, and in the glow, transformed into several tiny blue mermaids.
These little mermaids were no larger than Leilin's thumb — upper bodies like girls, two shell necklaces adorning their chests, lower bodies ending in fish tails. Hand in hand, they danced and sang in circles around the test tube.
Their sweet, melodious singing echoed through the secret chamber, tugging at Leilin's heartstrings.
"The final step — resisting the mermaids' enchanting song!" Leilin's expression tensed.
Legend had it that mermaids' singing possessed terrifying enchantment power, often luring sailors on the open sea down into the depths to feed on them. They were often the culprit behind many ghost ships!
Leilin could feel an overwhelming impulse surging through his body — to abandon everything and plunge straight into the ocean.
"This is merely an illusion, bearing only one-tenth the power of the real thing. If it were actual mermaids — or even a mermaid
"Mans!" After another thirty seconds, Leilin suddenly uttered a single syllable.
Shk shk shk! Several tiny black needles materialized and pierced into the chests of the little mermaids.
Pain twisted their beautiful faces, and suddenly they melted, transforming into several drops of blue liquid that flowed back into the test tube.
Foam, crystals, and droplets mixed together at furious speed, and in an instant, the tube was half-filled with a deep blue potion.
Slosh! When Leilin gently shook the test tube, the sound of ocean waves came from within.
"Azure Potion successfully brewed!" The Chip's notification sounded.
"Chip, analyze what percentage of the original potion's effects this one possesses," Leilin issued the command.
"Ding! Collecting dissipated gas. Data comparison in progress… Estimated to achieve 33% of the original potion's effectiveness!"
Although the earlier estimate had been 35.4%, brewing potions always involved some fluctuation, and this was his first time doing it in practice. Thirty-three percent was more than satisfactory.
"The only pity is how heavily it draws on the Hofu Purple Leaf!" Leilin looked at the remains of the Hofu Purple Leaf to one side.
Out of an entire Hofu Purple Leaf, only the small essence at its very center was useful for the potion, and even then it required many complex procedures, consuming a great deal in the process.
He estimated that all the stockpile Walker had collected would only be enough for thirty to forty brewings at most.
"Now, let's see what kind of effect this ancient potion has!"
Anticipation flashed in Leilin's eyes as he walked over to an open area, sat cross-legged on the ground, and poured the Azure Potion into his mouth.
"Bitter! And a bit fishy!" The muscles on Leilin's face twitched. "The taste preferences of ancient Wizards were really something…"
"According to the Chip's calculations, combining a spiritual power growth potion with a Meditation Method during consumption yields the best results!"
Leilin's thoughts wandered briefly before he fully entered a meditative state.
This meditation was markedly different from before. In a hazy daze, Leilin found himself in a vast azure sea, countless blue-black waters pressing in on him from all sides, nearly suffocating him.
In reality, Leilin's handsome face was contorted, beads of transparent sweat streaming down continuously.
A full two hours passed before Leilin suddenly opened his eyes.
"Hah! This meditation was far more grueling than before!" Leilin shook his head.
A Wizard Apprentice's meditation typically only left one feeling extremely exhausted afterward, but right now, there wasn't a single part of Leilin's body that didn't ache. His head especially felt as though it had been smashed with a heavy iron hammer — he was still somewhat dizzy.
"Chip! Pull up the data from just now!" Leilin issued the command.
Instantly, a blue screen of light materialized before Leilin's eyes, scrolling through lines of data.
"Subject's spiritual attributes detected as changing, currently rising rapidly!"
"Subject affected by unknown influence, Spiritual Power increased by 0.01"
"Spiritual Power increased by 0.01"
"Deepened meditative state, effects optimized, Spiritual Power increased by 0.03"
"Spiritual Power increase reached threshold, increased by 0.05"
……
"Meditation Method concluded. Subject's physical attributes have changed. Strength: 3.1 Agility: 3.3 Constitution: 3.2 Spiritual Power: 4.9 Mana: 4.0 Condition: Healthy"
Scrolling through all the data, Leilin ultimately found that this meditation session had increased his Spiritual Power by a total of 0.2.
"These numbers!" Leilin's eyes widened. "If the original materials had been used, wouldn't a single dose increase Spiritual Power by nearly 0.7? Worthy of being an ancient potion — even for full-fledged Wizards, it would have remarkable effects!"
"If I had enough of the potion, Chip, calculate how long it would take for my Spiritual Power to reach 7," Leilin asked.
"Azure Potion effects inputted. Building subject's virtual model. Incorporating potion tolerance decay formula. Data calculation in progress…"
The Chip immediately began its computations. After several dozen seconds, the mechanical voice spoke.
"Based on the subject's drug tolerance and the degree of potion potency decay, the subject's Spiritual Power is projected to reach 7 in approximately two months!"
The prerequisite for advancing to Third-rank Apprentice was mastering at least two Spell Models, achieving a Spiritual Power of 7, and supplementing with a vitality potion.
Leilin already had the Spell Models and the vitality potion. The only bottleneck remaining was Spiritual Power.
"A pity! The brewing success rate for the Azure Potion is frighteningly low — even for me, I succeed at most once out of every ten attempts!"
"Hofu Purple Leaf! I need massive quantities of Hofu Purple Leaf! If that's not enough, I'll have to organize a merchant caravan to other cities and purchase more!"
Leilin gritted his teeth, a sharp desire burning in his eyes.
"Young Master!" As he stepped out of the laboratory,
"Pass down the order — effective immediately, our operations are to cease all other activities and focus entirely on procuring Hofu Purple Leaf for me. Also, send Fuleisa out to the nearby cities to make purchases!" Leilin's expression was severe.
"Yes!" Anna had never seen Leilin in this state before and quickly withdrew.