Chapter 82: A Rare Opportunity

"Lord Lord Kuku." In Li En's low voice was an excitement he could hardly suppress.

"Uh?" Lord Lord Kuku responded instinctively.

"If I trust you again, I'm an idiot, a damn idiot!"

While furiously cursing Lord Lord Kuku in the mental link, Li En hid cautiously behind a trash can in a narrow alley.

Outside the alley, many passersby held weapons, moving like a storm, furious and raging.

"." Lord Lord Kuku, whose temper was obviously not good either, did not fire back on the spot, clearly feeling a bit guilty.

"Strange! There's no problem! My formula! There's no reason! It's been so many years." He was simply baffled, unable to figure out where the problem lay.

As a Master Alchemist, Lord Lord Kuku was very confident.

These past few days, he had casually "collected" some materials, prepared some simple potions and alchemical elixirs, and trial tests showed basically no issues.

So, he confidently brought Li En and set up a stall in a corner of the Mage Street.

"Master Alchemist On-Site Potion Making, Processing with Your Own Materials, Only 15% Service Fee." Behind the sign stood Lord Lord Kuku, hands on hips in triumph, waiting to collect money.

He had already checked; currently, alchemy and potion-making charged at least twenty percent for labor, and the higher the potion's grade, the harsher the fee.

Although his current state was not great, he could not prepare many high-grade potions requiring spells, special techniques, or specific environmental conditions.

But even just mass-producing mid-to-low-grade potions and alchemical elixirs should have made a fortune.

And the development of events initially seemed to prove Lord Lord Kuku's expectations.

After the first few bottles of low-grade alchemical elixirs (Lord Lord Kuku: Big Sale, Half Price!) were swept away, someone, with a try-it-out mindset, asked this "automatic potion-making golem" to try.

The result? He received a high-quality potion far exceeding the average!

Instantly, the onlookers erupted.

Adventurers and warriors are always short on logistical supplies; even if it's just 5% or 10% less in service fees, the accumulated surplus is huge.

Soon, Lord Lord Kuku's front was crowded with customers, including adventurers who had crossed districts specifically to come.

At the very beginning, he did make money, and quite a lot of it.

"Boom!"

Until a mid-grade potion simply exploded right in the pot.

A foul, herb-and-blood-scented medicinal fog spread out, causing people to rush away, yet still choking them into frantic coughing, while some unlucky souls vomited on the spot.

This obviously made people feel uneasy... Someone tried the potion they had just prepared!

"The smell seems a bit off." He frowned, unsure himself.

"The smell is right, the effect seems right too... uh, why is hair growing on my hands!" Apparently, no feeling was needed.

"What nonsense are you spouting? The smell and effect are both right; do you know how many potions and alchemical elixirs I've consumed?" But the unlucky soul who had commissioned a dozen potions at once suddenly panicked.

"Ahhh, what are you still saying? You're burning! You're on fire!" The surrounding people hurriedly moved away from the unlucky soul whose hair was already burning!

Chaos began to spread; when the first batch of people who bought the potions arrived with weapons, the scene completely descended into disorder.

On the boiling street, there were those with growing hair, those turning blue or green, those with burning hair; the fog from the exploding pot had not yet dissipated, and the scene suddenly became very absurd.

"The wind is tight, let's scram!" Facing this situation, Lord Lord Kuku was also extremely experienced.

The situation seemed about to turn bad; run first!

Grease, rotten eggs, and smoke—the three-piece set; he slipped away on greased feet, running like the wind.

If Li En had not reacted in time, taking advantage of the undissipated smoke to slip away early, he might have ended up going to prison three times... or four times.

But now, he was also blocked in the alley, forced to wait for the angry crowd to disperse on their own.

"This was an accident! A small accident."

Inside another trash can, Lord Lord Kuku was still being stubborn; a dog-headed man always retains confidence.

Lord Lord Kuku pondered repeatedly, where exactly had the problem occurred...

"I know! The materials! I made no mistake! The materials have gone bad!"

Lord Lord Kuku finally found the answer.

This did not mean the people bringing materials for processing had brought fake ones; they were not that stupid.

Rather, all the materials of this era, for Lord Lord Kuku from the past, could potentially be spoiled.

"A thousand years? Several thousand years? Or even longer..."

Some medicinal herbs and monster materials had not changed much, but some materials' properties had changed alongside the long passage of time.

Some were natural evolution, some were deliberate cultivation by professionals; the appearance and smell might not have changed, but the interior was completely different.

Thus, it meant that if one still used past formulas and preparation methods, some materials would be ineffective, while others would have effects several times stronger or unknown mutations.

At the same time, the same medicine might have different effects.

The beastmen taking the medicine were actually different too; with the evolution of races, allergies, drug tolerance, and endurance were constantly changing, requiring massive clinical trials to adjust the same type of medicine.

The formulas and the alchemist's abilities were not invalid, but they needed testing and adjustment.

And Lord Lord Kuku obviously did not have this time.

"The plan is ruined."

Originally, Lord Lord Kuku hadn't intended to keep doing processing with customers' materials; no matter how hard a worker toils, how much can they earn?

He couldn't make high-grade potions or high-grade alchemical elixirs now; only high-tech processing could earn big money; mid-to-low grades were always just earning a labor fee.

He originally planned to build a reputation first, then attract professional alchemists to come look... He wasn't there to smash the shop, but to make a deal.

At that time, he would put on the air of an expert veteran and sell some potion secret formulas to peers; "intellectual property" was the real premium; a secret formula for a mid-grade potion could sell for hundreds or even thousands of gold coins.

But now, it was no longer a question of whether he could scam money; rather, these past formulas were likely all unexploded bombs.

Lord Lord Kuku needed time to verify the gold content of the treasure trove from the past, but the current Lord Lord Kuku didn't even have the ability to verify the most valuable high-grade formulas.

He also knew the solution: the materials had changed, the users had changed, so naturally the formulas had to change.

Having figured all this out, Lord Lord Kuku sighed; it seemed he couldn't make money using this.

Even more than that, his past "knowledge" must be carefully considered before being used again.

At this moment, Kukku, looking at Li En who was cautiously hiding behind the trash bin, felt something new.

"He didn't even die! Tough life! We can raise the stakes!" Expecting a dog-headed man to reflect? Impossible.

He will only ignore failure and feel even more proud and arrogant over occasional, slight successes!

Kukku vaguely sensed the root of Li En's problems these past few days, but apparently there was no time to adjust.

Fortunately, the most dangerous procedure had been toughed out, accompanied by Li En's tough life and Kukku's improvisation.

At least "Dragon Vein Awakening" has been verified as still feasible. Uh, recalling Li En's massive nosebleed, Kukku decided to adjust the medicine dosage.

"Don't rush! I still have Plan B! Make big money! Us!"

Kukku suddenly spoke from inside the trash bin, while Li En behind the trash bin slowly turned his head.

Those eyes silently stared at him, saying nothing. Figure it out yourself.

You think I would still believe you?

"Gaga! Don't rush! This time the technique is mature! And we only sell once! Selling to the poor is worse than selling to the rich; selling to the rich is worse than selling to nobles; selling to nobles is worse than selling to royalty."

At this, Li En suddenly understood: Kukku intended to eat a wealthy fool in one go, stuffing himself full.

"You mean Dai Niya?!" When mentioning royalty, who else could it be?

"She craves power. And I can provide it!"

Li En fell silent. Was this appropriate? Hadn't he just offended her?

Just after making a fierce threat, running over to pitch "Want goods? Top quality," was that not a bit shameless?

"Tuition!" Kukku directly used his ultimate move.

Li En hesitated. Student loans were something he really couldn't afford; this wasn't a one-time thing. Future studies would cost money too.

He didn't want to reach middle age still paying high student loans on schedule, regretting how stupid he was to "take out loans for school" when young.

"Equipment! Can't even afford armor! What kind of stinky can (knight) are you!"

Li En sighed; this was also a heavy blow.

Whether one was a heavily armored paladin or not truly made two different professions; these past two days, walking the streets, he felt no sense of security.

"Spellcasters need money! A lot, very much! An endless pit!"

This too had been verified; 130 gold coins were merely a starter pack.

If one truly walked this path, a second-circle spell might start at dozens of gold coins; many high-level spell components used gold coins as their unit.

Compared to other spellcasting professions, mages were already disadvantaged in casting ability; their signature was preparing more spells adaptable to various environments, all of which required a spellbook to support.

This didn't even touch on mage equipment. Many say spellcasters don't rely on equipment, or at least aren't useless without it like warriors; that's only because magical equipment capable of aiding spellcasters is rare and expensive.

"Toys! Food! Lana wants them!"

You can't be poor when it comes to your daughter, right? The house needs renovation; little Lana's room can't be empty either.

"Um, your goods... are they really no problem?" Li En finally spoke.

"No problem! Already verified!" Kukku stared fiercely at Li En; who it was verified on probably needed no further explanation.

Kukku didn't worry at all that Li En would refuse; after all, he understood "Li En Sudar" better than anyone.

"Uh, how should I open my mouth for her to believe?" Sure enough, Li En was as "flexible" as ever.

"Hero Soul. Idiot, you are the spokesperson! The Hero Soul's spokesperson!"

After pondering, it was indeed logical; he had clearly shown prior private contact with the Hero Soul, so having some inside information was normal.

If he revealed his special connection with the Hero Soul Hall, he could elevate his standing among the candidates and strengthen his struggle for influence against Dai Niya.

"Revealing your existence?" This was both a bargaining chip and proof.

As long as the next Hero Soul was mentioned in connection with dragons, he could naturally sell dragon-type abilities to Dai Niya.

"Agreed. But don't say everything! Dangle it, let her guess, let her come proactively to raise the price and beg to buy!" Kukku, having switched his train of thought again, wore a triumphant expression.

Watching Kukku's smug appearance, Li En estimated he was also an outstanding merchant (a veteran scammer).

But the problem arose: how to contact Her Highness the Princess? Would she really take the bait?

"What you intend to sell should be Dragon Tongue spells, right? She, a princess..."

"Dragon Tongue is never common merchandise. I said, Dragon Tongue and Dragon-Script Magic focus on the user's qualification. This isn't something ordinary dragons can use. Most importantly, it requires a trustworthy Dragonborn to initiate..."

The princess has always regarded it as a curse and probably hasn't seriously developed it.

And she clearly didn't know her dragon blood concentration qualified her to use Dragon-Script Magic.

Nature does indeed have some mixed-blood dragons and Dragonborn who can awaken and use fragments of Dragon Tongue or Dragon Runes, but often without a system and with completely random effects, utterly unreliable.

Kukku didn't make everything clear; the best Dragon Vein initiators are often blood relatives of the same origin.

The best catalyst is often the dragon blood of a blood relative.

"... I'll try." Li En pondered; it seemed this deal could be done.

Not long after, before the Sudar Manor in the same Radiant District stood a young man with a helpless expression.

He thought he wouldn't be coming here for a long time.

"Young Master Li En?! Please come in! Welcome home!"

The maid at the door, upon seeing Li En, hurried forward to greet him.

They were very enthusiastic; some helped Li En remove his clothes, some brought water and changed his shoes, some quickly closed the door... This was probably fearing Li En would really run away.

"Uh, I... is Miss Shaliman here?"

With no other choice, to contact Her Highness the Princess, Li En seemed to have no option but to seek out Miss Shaliman.

"The head of the house is here; she has always been here. Just wait a moment; she is receiving a guest."

Li En didn't wait long before Miss Shaliman saw off her guest.

"Eh? Isn't this Young Brother Li En?" Before Li En could react, a familiar fragrance swept over him.

The soft embrace was right before him; Li En had no time to react before he was wrapped in the arms of a snake-like woman.

"Purple rose?" That floral scent—Li En suddenly remembered.

"Mm, it's me, it's me. I really didn't expect that coming to see a friend, I'd actually run into you. Is this the principle of fate-guided destiny?"

The sweet-smiling magical girl beamed like a flower, and behind her, Miss Shaliman was looking over with a cold gaze.

"Auntie! Let him go, let go of my fiancé!" Uh, Li En seemed to have heard some very delicate words.

(End of chapter)