Chapter 40: Breathing Potion

Rayan found it hard to imagine that a phrase like "Medicine is always a poison to some extent" would come from someone who made their living through alchemical pharmaceutics. He looked at Morien's pale and frail face, along with his skinny, bony fingers, and gave up on asking about the mysterious potion.

There was a saying he agreed with—Potions are just supplements, never a shortcut.

To become a true legend, not only were potions not a shortcut, but the Twilight Blade wasn't either. Having lost the Twilight Blade, he felt more settled, starting from scratch, building a solid foundation step by step. Only by doing this, when he reclaimed the Twilight Blade, could he wield it with honor.

After Morien finished his professional advice, he turned back to the platform, carefully sprinkling the silver powder onto the blunt blade of the black giant sword. The black sword immediately emitted a scream like a ghost, followed by a thin wisp of green smoke rising from the blunt edge.

Morien quickly captured the green smoke in an empty bottle and swiftly corked it with a soft cork. Watching the essence of the spectral monster inside the bottle, his face broke into an uncontrollable smile, his normally sickly face flushing slightly.

"Job very well done!"

This wasn't the first time he had generously praised Rayan.

Rayan didn't mind; he had long suspected that Morien's request for him to kill the spectral monster wasn't for the sake of the villagers of Dusk Village. When he saw Morien extracting the essence of the spectral monster from the black giant sword, this thought became clearer.

"What do you need this stuff for?"

"Nothing, just some alchemical experiments."

Morien slipped the bottle containing the essence of the spectral monster into his brown-gray cloak, casually adding, "After Yin Lisha died, only continuous work can temporarily make me forget the pain."

Rayan indeed noticed that Morien was different when working, but the reason seemed a bit far-fetched. However, even if he pressed further, he wouldn't get the real answer from Morien.

"What's the next task?"

As Rayan asked, he slid the black giant sword back behind him.

"Are you sure you don't need a rest?" Morien blinked.

"No need, I want to finish everything here early and bring the Moon Demon Grass to the boss." Rayan replied.

"Well then."

Morien turned again to search on the shelf, pulling out a luminous algae leaf grass and a bottle of calm sea fish oil, pouring them both into a previously bubbling white solution, then placed the solution bottle into a bizarre glass distillation apparatus. The rising steam immediately turned the inside of the apparatus into a white blur.

"Once the steam cools down to form distilled water, we're done."

Rayan's lips twitched involuntarily, "What kind of poison is it this time?"

The terrifying effect of the Phantom Potion still haunted him; if something like that happened again, he wasn't sure he could endure it.

"Don't worry, this is definitely not a poison."

Morien explained, "Algae leaf grass is not poisonous at all and even provides its own bubbles. Fish oil is extracted from the calm sea shark and is very valuable, just those few drops are worth a dozen gold coins. Of course, for an alchemist, its efficacy isn't outstanding, just delaying fatigue and increasing endurance, but because of that, along with its exotic fragrance and lubricating effect, it's highly favored by noble gentlemen."

Rayan asked confusedly, "Do noble men smear themselves with perfume like women?"

"Well, cough cough, the fragrance isn't the main point, the focus is on delaying and lubrication..."

Morien's lips curved into a knowing smile. "You'll understand in time."

"Algae leaf grass, fish oil, and a mysterious solution, what exactly are you making?"

"Underwater breathing potion."

Morien stated, "It allows you to breathe freely underwater like a fish."

Although odd, it sounded better than the Phantom Potion. Rayan first relaxed, then turned to Morien and asked, "So, the next task is to go underwater?"

"Correct, but this task might be more challenging for you."

Rayan scoffed, "Is it harder than drinking poison and killing a spectral monster in limited time?"

"I keep forgetting to ask, what tier Fighter are you?"

The question stung Rayan like a needle, he swallowed and replied expressionlessly, "Fourth Tier."

A thoughtful look crossed Morien's face as he muttered, "Fourth Tier is going to be tough. Aside from the breathing potion, you'll need something else."

He lifted his eyelids, speaking seriously to Rayan, "Stay here, don't go anywhere."

Saying that, he walked out of the room, quickly heading to the room on the right.

Rayan hesitated whether to sneak into the central room to explore, but Morien returned to the room quickly, holding two already prepared potions.

"This red one is a strong recovery potion, no matter how severely you're injured, it will immediately restore you to optimal condition."

Morien explained while handing the strong recovery potion to Rayan. "Remember, if you drink this strong recovery potion, any similar potion will have no effect for two hours, so I've only prepared one for you."

Rayan nodded, putting the strong recovery potion into his bag. "And the purple potion?"

"I need you to deal with a Third Rank Feral Beast. Though in terms of Battle Qi level, Third Rank is only equivalent to Sixth Tier Battle Qi, but you'll be fighting underwater, where Fourth Tier Battle Qi's power will be reduced due to environmental disadvantages, while the opponent's will be enhanced. This purple potion is a weakening potion, specifically for dealing with this type of Feral Beast. If used correctly, you can reduce its size and strength by ten times."

Rayan's eyes brightened, "This potion sounds amazing, I wonder if it works on humans too."

Morien gave a wry smile, "Weakening potion only works on Feral Beasts, and it's very expensive to make. If it weren't for..."

He suddenly changed the subject, "Oh right, you must only use this weakening potion when the opponent is reluctant to fight and ready to flee, otherwise it won't have any effect."

"So I still have to win first."

Rayan gave a light smile, not necessarily a bad thing as it would at least let him practice his swordsmanship.

The black giant sword and the Twilight Blade required completely different sword techniques; the Twilight Blade only needed to be lifted and dropped to decapitate an opponent, while the black giant sword was blunt and cumbersome, requiring both hands to lift it high, and by the time it was finally raised, the enemy would likely have already prepared a defense. Thus, it was essential to use all his wits to gain the upper hand in combat.

This would be a near-masochistic exercise, the downside being that each confrontation was a matter of life and death, but the upside was that once he could swing the giant sword fluidly as mercury, even if the sword was replaced with a stick, it would be as swift as lightning, impossible to dodge.

"Alright, what's the target this time? Fish? Loach? River monster?"

"Lobster."

Morien said, "There's a dark river to the west of Dusk Village that leads to another village, Dusty Village, on the other side of Shadowcrest Ridge. At the narrow pass where the two villages meet, the river is at its widest and deepest, and that's where the lobster is—"

"You're not joking, are you?"

Rayan didn't wait for Morien to finish, interrupting eagerly, "Lobster? Like the kind that's dumb and tastes good when grilled?"

During his days wandering with Evan, lobster was their favorite food, easy to catch near any river. Rayan had never imagined what a Third Rank lobster would look like—dumber? Or tastier when grilled?

"I'm not joking."

Morien's face was serious as he continued, "This lobster is called Wrathclaw, it has killed three Fifth Tier Fighters who tried to capture it together, and is quite infamous in Shadowcrest Ridge. Its body is huge, its shell impregnable, and its pincers have astonishing strength. If you underestimate it, you will definitely suffer a great loss. Although your life or death doesn't concern me, I still hope you can complete the task."

Rayan put away his scorn and nodded earnestly.

"Alchemist, I will bring it to you."

"I want it alive."

Morien emphasized, "Wrathclaw hides in a cave at the riverbed. To lure it out, you must keep killing its kind. After a certain number have been killed, Wrathclaw will furiously swim out of the cave, attacking you relentlessly. You must withstand its fury, wear it down until it is exhausted and fearful. Only then, when it tries to escape, should you throw the weakening potion to shrink it and capture it alive. Only then will the task be considered complete."

"What if it dies?"

"Then your mission will fail, and you'll have to return empty-handed to your boss." Morien stated coldly.

Although the requirement wasn't excessive, it still made Rayan frown slightly.

"Alright, I understand."

The steam in the glass distillation tube had cooled, and Morien used an empty potion bottle to collect the clear liquid from the other end, then capped the bottle and handed it to Rayan.

"This is the underwater breathing potion. Although I've added a few drops of essence fish oil, the delaying effect is limited; it can only last half an hour. Remember to take it when you're about to go underwater."

Morien cautioned again, "Be sure not to mix up the colors: red is for recovery potion, purple is for weakening potion, and clear is for breathing potion."

"Don't worry, I won't mix them up."

Rayan took the underwater breathing potion and placed it in his bag, right next to the recovery potion and weakening potion.

"That's it then, I hope you complete the task smoothly."

Hope filled Morien's gray pupils.

Before leaving, Rayan asked, "After completing this task, how many more do I need to get the Moon Demon Grass?"

"One."

Morien answered without hesitation, "After this one, only the last one remains, and I promise it will be easier than the previous two."

Rayan made no further comment, turning and walking out of the room.

After completing this one, only one last task remains, alchemist, your secret is about to be revealed...