Chapter 426: Spirit Spring Dew Tree Seeds and Myriad Spirit Secret Potions

First-Class Merit Exchange List.

Gao De looked at the thin booklet he had just obtained, his heart stirred slightly.

The Sea Hai Shao Bing's military merit exchange list was somewhat similar to the compendiums in certain games from his past life; the corresponding lists would only unlock upon reaching the required rank.

Here at the Sea Hai Shao Bing, one could only unlock the exchange list for a specific tier after obtaining military merits of that corresponding tier.

Previously, Gao De had already unlocked the exchange lists for Third-Class and Second-Class Merits.

Now that the First-Class Merit was in his hands, he was finally able to unlock the Sea Hai Shao Bing's ultimate First-Class Merit exchange list.

Compared to the Second-Class and Third-Class Merit exchange lists, the booklet for the First-Class Merit list was significantly thinner.

This was quite logical; everything that could make it onto the First-Class Merit exchange list was top-tier.

Good things are inevitably rare.

Gao De opened the booklet, looking first at the section he cared about most: spell formulas.

Just as he had previously guessed, the spell formulas listed on the First-Class Merit exchange list were rare formulas of the Fourth and Fifth Circles.

An unexpected surprise was that, in addition to these rare Fourth and Fifth Circle spell formulas, there were even Sixth Circle spell formulas listed.

Although there were only a few, and they were all common spells, it was enough to demonstrate the profound foundation of the Sea Hai Shao Bing.

Among the rare Fifth Circle spell formulas, Gao De also saw the spell he was most concerned about: Spell Permanency.

【Spell Permanency 【Rare】】 (Transmutation, Fifth Circle):

This spell can make the duration of certain other spells permanent; you only need to cast the spell you wish to select, followed immediately by casting Spell Permanency.

Aside from oneself, Spell Permanency can also be cast on other creatures or objects, but casting it on others requires meeting specific conditions and requirements, as well as expending certain materials.

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *1】

According to Gao De's thoughts, he naturally wished he could exchange for 【Spell Permanency】 right now and bring it back to the northern realm.

After all, this spell was one of his primary goals for leaving the northern realm.

But for a First Circle magic user to use a precious First-Class Merit to exchange for a Fifth Circle spell formula—something he wouldn't be able to use for the next hundred years—was truly unreasonable and would appear far too suspicious.

Therefore, no matter how urgent he felt inside, Gao De could only suppress the urge for now.

After scanning through the spells above with a cursory glance, Gao De began to seriously examine the other treasures available for exchange on the list:

【Wind Feather Clear Brew】

【A rank-advancement potion concocted from Wind Feather Flowers as the raw material. The potion is clear and translucent with a cyan halo; drinking it can increase the success rate of a Second Circle magic user advancing to the Third Circle (by 40%).】

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *1】

【Silver Dragon Blood Extract】

【A rank-advancement potion concocted from the blood of a Silver Dragon-Avian as the raw material. Drinking it can increase the success rate of a Third Circle magic user advancing to the Fourth Circle (by 40%).】

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *2】

Among the treasure categories, the ones that could make it onto the First-Class Merit exchange list were rank-advancement potions.

Rank-advancement potions, as the name implies, are auxiliary potions that help magic users advance their circle.

For the advancement of a magic user's rank, rank-advancement potions are not a necessity.

There are certainly magic users who have successfully advanced without drinking one, and there are certainly magic users who have failed to advance even after drinking one.

But for the majority of magic users, when advancing, no matter the conditions, they will try every possible way to obtain a rank-advancement potion, even if the quality is somewhat inferior.

Firstly, the difficulty of advancing is extremely high; relying solely on one's own ability without any external aids might result in a success rate of less than 10%.

Secondly, the process of advancing is such that success leads to a vast horizon, but failure results in severe damage to one's vitality, requiring a long recovery period; if one is unlucky, it can even leave permanent hidden injuries and significantly reduce one's lifespan.

While a rank-advancement potion cannot guarantee success, it can protect the magic user to the greatest extent.

It minimizes the backlash and injuries suffered by the magic user after a failed advancement, allowing them to attempt the advancement again in the future without hindrance.

From a certain perspective, the existence of rank-advancement potions is a major reason why alchemy has consistently ranked among the "Big Three" of side professions.

After all, for magic users, rank-advancement potions are truly an absolute necessity.

And the rank-advancement potions provided by the Sea Hai Shao Bing are not only of the highest quality within the Jin Quehua Dynasty, but even looking across the entire Star Fall Continent, they are at the very top.

An increase of 40% in the success rate of advancement is something that inferior rank-advancement potions simply cannot compare to.

If a magic user can drink a rank-advancement potion of this quality to assist in their advancement, it is effectively equivalent to having one foot already stepped into the next circle.

It is just that the excellent quality also represents a high price.

However, on the First-Class Merit exchange list, there were no auxiliary potions for advancing from the First Circle to the Second Circle.

This is because the rank-advancement potion for the Second Circle is of a relatively lower tier, and its value is not sufficient to make it onto the First-Class Merit exchange list; it can be obtained by exchanging Second-Class Merits.

Looking further down.

The custom rune construct mentioned in the rumors Mei Liya spoke of earlier caught his eye.

【Custom Rune Construct】

【Exchange for a set of rune constructs tailored to your requirements, crafted by a Third-Rank or higher rune constructor.】

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *1 to no upper limit (assessed by the rune constructor)】

For other magic users, this was a very tempting exchange option, but Gao De only glanced at it before silently moving his gaze away.

Self-reliance is the true path!

【Anti-Magic Breastplate (Third-Rank to Fifth-Rank)】

【A breastplate crafted from anti-magic stone.】

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *1-5】

This was the treasure with the most concise introduction Gao De had seen, yet the price was not cheap.

But he didn't find it strange at all.

Because the three words "anti-magic stone" were enough to explain everything.

Anti-magic stone, the true symbol of the Jin Quehua Dynasty, more representative than the never-fading Jin Quehua, is the foundation of the dynasty and the only mineral discovered in the world capable of isolating magic power; it is also known as the bane of spells.

In the world of magic users, the value of the three words "anti-magic stone" requires no further elaboration.

Gao De was naturally interested in this magical object recorded in "textbooks."

But since it wasn't an absolute necessity, and the price was truly exorbitant, he just kept it in mind and continued to skip over it.

Looking further down, it was the materials category, among which the most eye-catching was 【Anti-Magic Stone (Third-Rank to Fifth-Rank)】.

Similarly, Gao De's current demand for materials wasn't very high, so he just scanned it roughly and continued flipping.

The color scheme of the entire page changed, and a note about a limited-time exchange appeared in the upper left corner.

The First-Class Merit exchange list was extremely special; the treasures available for long-term supply to Sea Hai Shao Bing magic users were extremely limited.

Because treasures are inevitably rare, there were generally only a few pieces, and once exchanged, they would be removed from the list.

Only things like spell formulas and potions could be supplied in large quantities.

The bulk of the First-Class Merit exchange list was actually occupied by non-fixed items that were constantly changing, and the quantities were limited; some even had only one piece—first come, first served.

These non-fixed items were no longer classified in detail, but were arranged from high to low according to the military merits required for exchange.

【Ancient Siren Bloodline Crystal】

【A crystal formed by an ancient siren condensing its powerful magic power at the moment of death, containing pure and powerful siren magic power as well as parts of the ancient siren's memories and instincts.

Communicating with and refining this bloodline crystal can increase one's magic user rank and provides a chance to comprehend the mysteries of ancient siren spells.

Note: The danger coefficient of refining a siren bloodline crystal is extremely high.】

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *10】

The first treasure that caught his eye gave Gao De quite a shock.

Ancient siren spells—this was yet another new school of magic, which should be somewhat similar to Enduring Zhenbing spells.

Of course, Enduring Zhenbing spells were a broad category, while ancient siren spells could only be considered a minor path.

He was very tempted, but lacked the strength, so he could only consider it a way to broaden his horizons.

【Rejuvenating Mandrake】

【A magical plant growing in the Singing Forest; its flowers boiled with spring water into an ointment, applied to the chest and kept for three days and three nights, will increase the user's lifespan by thirty years.】

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *5】

A magical plant that increases lifespan!

For Gao De now, he certainly didn't value this thing much.

But for those magic users nearing their lifespan limit who still had hope for a breakthrough, this was an object that defied heaven and changed fate; to borrow thirty more years from heaven, let alone five First-Class Merits, they would be willing to exhaust their entire fortune.

Of course, this had nothing to do with Gao De.

He was both young and long-lived; a magic user practicing the 《Qingmu Changsheng Jing》 was the least worried about lifespan.

Flipping further down, besides various supernatural objects, there were also earth-vein creature eggs, spell research manuals of ancient magic users, and other strange things; there was even a shop in the Kensington District, which could be exchanged for two First-Class Merits.

But no matter how strange these things looked, as long as they could make it onto the First-Class Merit exchange list, they undoubtedly possessed extremely high value and were extremely rare, making them hard to buy even with money.

Gao De was very tempted by most of the items, but it was limited to just being tempted.

The only thing that could truly be called an absolute necessity was 【Spell Permanency】, yet he couldn't exchange for it directly.

With limited First-Class Merits on hand, he chose to be a miser, lest he encounter a treasure he truly wanted later but have no merits to exchange for it.

Just like that, flipping the First-Class Merit exchange list to the last page, the "miser" Gao De's eyes suddenly lit up, and he stopped the action of flipping the booklet.

【Spirit Spring Dew Tree Seed】

【A Fourth-Rank magical tree seed; after the Spirit Spring Dew Tree enters the mature stage, a stream of spirit spring water will gush out from the roots. Consuming the spirit spring water can quickly restore magic power in a short time;

The spirit spring water has a powerful healing effect on general diseases and toxins;

In addition, using spirit spring water to irrigate other plants allows them to grow quickly and better, making it easier for them to grow into high-quality plants.】

【Note: This type of magical tree is extremely delicate and extremely difficult to plant.】

【Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *1】

A magical tree seed, and a Fourth-Rank one at that.

Even if it had no effects at all, this Fourth-Rank status alone would be enough for Gao De to spend one military merit to exchange for it.

Because a Fourth-Rank magical tree could increase the growth progress of Yujia Te Xila by a full 2797 months, which is 233 years!

Not to mention that the Spirit Spring Dew Tree was also a magical tree with extremely powerful functions.

Spirit spring water capable of healing diseases and toxins was like heaven-sent dew for the northern realm, where medical conditions were still not satisfactory.

The effect of accelerating plant growth was even more of an absolute necessity among absolute necessities.

Such a Fourth-Rank magical tree seed only required one First-Class Merit?

Although Gao De knew this was because the Spirit Spring Dew Tree was difficult to plant and the magical tree's growth period was too long.

Compared to other treasures that could exert effects immediately upon exchange, a magical tree seed required waiting a hundred or eighty years to start exerting effects, making its appeal much weaker, which led to its lower value; but in his heart, he still felt he had picked up a huge bargain.

Nothing more to say.

Good steel must be used on the blade; Gao De directly selected the Spirit Spring Dew Tree seed.

Subsequently, he opened the Second-Class Merit exchange list.

Compared to the cursory glance at the First-Class Merit exchange list, his goal was much clearer now.

First was the Second Circle rank-advancement potion.

There were two types of Second Circle rank-advancement potions available for Gao De to choose from on the exchange list: 【Green Vine Spirit Dew】 and 【Sea Firefly Marrow Liquid】.

The former could increase the advancement success rate by 40%, while the latter was only 20%.

Correspondingly, the former required five Second-Class Merits to exchange, while the latter only required two.

It was the same principle: good steel must be used on the blade; being stingy in this aspect was a very unwise behavior.

Gao De selected 【Green Vine Spirit Dew】, and with the remaining five Second-Class Merits and ten Third-Class Merits, he aimed directly at spell formulas.

First, he selected three rare spells from the Second-Class Merit exchange list:

【Long-Distance Shooting 【Rare】】 (Transmutation, First Circle):

This spell allows you to increase the range increment of your ranged attacks by 20 feet.

【Know Yourself, Know Your Enemy 【Rare】】 (Divination, First Circle):

You recall a creature you encountered within a day; after the spell is completed, you will be able to obtain some knowledge about that creature.

【Myriad Spirit Secret Potion 【Rare】】 (Transmutation, First Circle):

You can choose an interesting effect related to health, happiness, and joy for a bottle of water, creating it into a secret potion, and the secret potion has no side effects.

Pain Relief: You can ignore minor pain for one hour, such as arthritis, a cold, or a hangover. During this time, you gain additional resistance against pain-effect spells.

Clarity: You gain better performance in a single attack or skill usage within one minute; you can choose when to trigger it yourself, as long as it is applicable.

Hallucination: You can see various interesting illusions for one hour, such as wandering lights, music, cute surreal small animals, etc.

You can tell yourself these are not real, but they will distract you.

Intoxication: Makes you feel ethereal, lasting for one hour, just as if you had consumed some alcoholic beverage. (But it will not cause a hangover.)

Lucid Dream: If you use this secret potion within one hour before going to sleep, you will have a lucid dream completely under your control, lasting for one hour.

Resistance: You gain additional weak resistance to all types of spells.

Sleep: You enter a pleasant and comfortable sleep, lasting at least one hour, unless awakened.

If this is the time you usually sleep, you will continue to sleep normally after the secret potion effect ends.

Sobriety: You are completely sober within one hour; your actions ignore any negative effects of being drunk, but magic and alchemy effects (such as detection potions) will still detect that you are in a drunken state.

The duration of this secret potion does not count toward the time you need to sober up (because it only delays it).

Resilience: You gain a temporarily stronger physique, lasting for 1 minute.

- Awakening: You remain awake and without sleepiness for 2 hours, and there are no side effects like neurasthenia. You gain additional resistance against sleep effects, such as lullabies and sleep spells.

The way this secret potion is used only delays your sleep time and is not counted toward your rest and sleep duration.

You can use this secret potion multiple times, but whenever the secret potion effect ends, you will still fall into a state of fatigue as if you hadn't used the secret potion.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 427 =====