Chapter 185: World Item [Emerald Tablet]

There was no other way.

The items gifted by the world's will were all stored inside the Magic Desk.

If she wanted to see exactly what had been given, she would have to wait until she got back, and she had to return within twenty-four hours.

The incident from a few months ago, when she received a warning for failing to retrieve her beginner weapon in time, was still fresh in her mind.

Thus, after waking up the next day, Lan Qingyou took one last stroll around this Utopia. After stowing away the massive crystal cluster and ensuring she hadn't left anything behind, she hurriedly began the journey back with the two little ones in tow.

However, she didn't take her original route this time.

Instead, she followed the tunnel.

She did not even pause when she passed the crater she had blown open earlier.

It was for no other reason than wanting to see what the original entrance looked like.

She still had over a dozen hours left, which was more than enough time to make it back.

Along the way, she encountered quite a few monsters, even entire monster packs. But the current Lan Qingyou was a far cry from what she used to be; she completely ignored these small fries.

She simply flew right past them.

Yet, when Lan Qingyou dashed out of the tunnel, she felt completely exasperated.

It wasn't because dawn had yet to break, nor was it because the world before her remained a freezing wasteland battered by howling winds.

That was to be expected, as such conditions were normal high up in the mountains. But below her—or rather, directly beneath the tunnel—was a recessed haven shielded from the wind.

That spot was exactly where Lan Qingyou had stayed when she was first teleported here.

Back then, if she had just flown upward and paid a little more attention, she would have noticed the artificially carved stone steps leading from bottom to top, allowing her to smoothly enter the tunnel.

"Alright, I admit that sometimes people only find motivation out of sheer boredom."

Pretending she hadn't seen anything, Lan Qingyou curled her lips and flew southward at full speed.

As she flew, she gradually lowered her altitude.

While descending, she kept calculating her elevation.

Finally, when she returned to the familiar height of two hundred meters, she realized that she had previously been at an altitude of 6,800 meters.

Even she had not expected to be teleported to such a staggering height.

No wonder the wind and snow were so fierce up there.

However, Lan Qingyou did not care in the slightest as to why she hadn't experienced any altitude sickness.

After all, she was a clan leader now with incredibly high Mana Points; it wouldn't do to act like she hadn't seen the world.

Flying with complete focus and at maximum speed, Lan Qingyou arrived back at her loyal Shelter just past one in the afternoon.

Yet, the moment she stepped through the door, she was startled by the chaotic mess before her.

'Wait.'

'Could it be that because the Shelter was empty, it ended up looking like a typhoon had...'

'Uh...'

'Oh no!'

Lan Qingyou abruptly clutched her head with both hands.

Despite all her careful calculations, the thrill of the cave exploration had caused her to forget the most important thing.

The Shelter's Magic Shield required manual recharging!

A period of three days was neither long nor short, but it wasn't something a level-five Shelter could simply survive unscathed without upkeep...

"Sigh..."

Lan Qingyou let out a long sigh, then flew up to the third floor to take a look.

Fortunately, the Tree Hole Shelter would not be blown down by the fierce winds. Although it was a bit messy, she could continue living there as long as she tidied up a little.

Of course, that was assuming the core of the Magic Shield had not been destroyed.

Fortunately, since she was still alive, the Magic Desk remained functional.

That was perhaps her only consolation.

"Sigh..."

Sighing once more, Lan Qingyou first went to the top floor to inspect the core. Only after discovering that there were no issues and replenishing its energy did she finally relax and begin cleaning up the mess.

Well, there wasn't actually much to clean up.

For one, Lan Qingyou had practically taken everything she could carry when she left.

Even the books she had left behind hadn't suffered much damage; they were merely covered with a layer of snow and ice.

The Spring of Rest in the water tank was also perfectly fine.

Only the glass windows and doors had taken a beating.

As for the rest, aside from the medicinal field on the first floor being slightly chaotic, not only were the herbs unharmed, but even the Elf Butterflies had safely retreated into their crystal nest to hibernate.

"It's just a bit of wind and frost."

Lan Qingyou muttered dismissively as she cleaned.

However, she hadn't yet figured out how she was going to continue ignoring the damage.

After all, the Shelter relied entirely on upgrades. She couldn't exactly order new glass windows and doors as replacements, and even if she could, she wouldn't know how to install them.

By the time she finished cleaning, it was almost noon.

After relighting the hearth, Lan Qingyou pondered for a moment before placing an order with Shang Chuan for a large pane of glass.

Naturally, this glass wasn't for repairing the floor-to-ceiling windows on the second floor; it was meant to seal the small window on the fifth floor.

Since the window was small, wouldn't it be fine to just cover the outside with a layer of glass for lighting?

Since the window was small, wouldn't it be fine to just cover the outside with a layer of glass for lighting?

'I really am a little genius.'

As for the fifth floor.

With the door closed and the window sealed, wouldn't it become a warm little room?

It wasn't as if she hadn't lived in one before, anyway.

As for the lower floors, she would just leave them be for now. She could deal with them once she figured out a repair method, or simply wait until she upgraded directly to level six.

Moving the Magic Desk to the fifth floor, Lan Qingyou effectively set up her workspace there.

Opening the package gifted by the world's will, Lan Qingyou found a slightly ancient-looking, unevenly edged stone tablet that resembled green emerald. Carved upon it were numerous texts in the language of the Kalim Continent.

Lan Qingyou inspected it; engraved upon its surface were thirteen concise maxims.

Looking closer, she couldn't help but feel they looked incredibly familiar.

Lines like [Alchemy is omnipotent] and [Remember Equivalent Exchange; those who fail to comply shall meet with destruction]...

Weren't these all the words of her great teacher, Albert?

'Wait, Great Teacher, did you plagiarize?'

Well, it couldn't really be called plagiarism. After all, the Emerald Tablet was the sacred relic of Alchemists. It was perfectly normal for the teachings recorded on it to be regarded as the golden rule by Alchemists.

Aside from those few lines that appeared with extremely high frequency in Albert's personal notes, there were also phrases like: [Truth cannot be forged, lies cannot become truth], [All things are inherently one; follow the rules to reach the destination], and [The sun is its father, the moon its mother; carried by the wind, nursed by the earth].

Even though each line was so cryptic it gave Lan Qingyou a slight headache.

She nonetheless felt that these maxims had to be deeply connected to Alchemy.

She then activated her Analysis Magic Eye to appraise the Emerald Tablet.

[Emerald Tablet (World-Class)]

[Effects: Alchemy Level +1, Potioneering Level +1, Herbology Level +1, Spirit +50, Alchemy Crafting Success Rate +80%]

[Description: This is the ultimate treasure of the entire alchemical world. All Alchemists strive to obtain it, but your efforts have gained the recognition of Kalim's will. Now, it is yours. Perhaps you can comprehend something from within it.]

'Good heavens.'

With this thing, her Alchemy level directly skyrocketed to S-Rank.