BXBX NOVEL Chapter 485 - 485
Master Feng had free time only before going to bed. He remembered about the fat problematic student and took out the pill of "Enzymes", which he handed to him, then took out devices for analyzing the quality of medicine.
«Oooh… Medicine of "Enzymes" for the royal phase! Only an alchemist of the fourth and higher rank can do this. Also, the proportions are verified accurately… Not bad, not bad.» – the alchemist nodded approvingly.
All medicine is divided into ranks from "F" to "S", where "S" is the best of the best. The higher the rank, the more difficult it is to make. So, for example, the medicine of "Enzymes" for practitioners of the base phase is "E" rank, while for royal phasers is "B" rank, that is, 3 phases higher.
Master Feng held up another medicine analysis device and froze dumbfounded: «G-grandiose quality?! Eighty six percent?! Impossible!»
A successfully manufactured medicine always has a certain percentage of purity: low, medium, high, magnificent and grandiose. Accordingly, the skill of the alchemist directly affects the final purity.
Pure medicine is valuable because its effectiveness grows exponentially. So, for example, any pill with a purity of 80% is twice as effective as one with a purity of 60%. This applies to any medicine: "Enzymes", treatment, transformation, breakthrough, acceleration of development, conception of a unique body (for a chance of success), etc.
Just now Baker provided the pill with 86% purity of "B" rank. Master Feng himself, at best, will make it with a purity of 65%, whereas the legendary alchemists of the 1st rank usually reach 90-95%. It is inconceivable that the young man could achieve such a result on his own!
«Maybe he bought it? But what\'s the point of deceiving me, because I\'ll immediately reveal the truth and punish him… I have to make sure!» – master Feng\'s eyes sparkled with excitement. He took a piece of paper with the frequency of Baker\'s sound transmitter out of his pocket and invited him to the upcoming lesson.
…
The next day, after the end of the lessons, young people gathered near the house at number 3, where Feng Russell lives: Elsa with 50 fans and nine more students who signed up to study with the master.
Finally, the appointed time arrived.
A long-haired man in a white master\'s robe approached the entrance and opened the gate.
«Hello, master Feng.» … «Greetings, master!» … «I can\'t wait for a lesson from the great master of alchemy!» – the students bowed respectfully.
Master Feng smiled and nodded, glancing across the crowd in an attempt to find someone specific there.
«Hello!» – Kyon shouted loudly.
The sharp voice of the fat man who suddenly came out of invisibility scared everyone. The alchemist shuddered, and Elsa froze as thunderstruck, stupidly flapping her eyelashes. She would rather believe that she saw a ghost than a living Baker in front of her.
«Oh, hello, hello. Come in, my boy.» – master Feng smiled paternally, gesturing for the newcomer to go inside with the rest of the students enrolled in classes.
Young people could not understand why Dick is still safe and sound after insulting Rose Valentine. And anyway, what is he doing here, and why was he allowed inside, although yesterday the master definitely refused to enroll him in classes?..
«Master, why is he here…» – Elsa began.
«You\'ll find out later, and now everyone follow me, I\'ll give you a short tour.»
Kyon gave Elsa a cheeky wink. Her reaction is a delight for the soul: the girl\'s eye twitched and her fists involuntarily clenched until her knuckles crunched. She is probably wondering how he got to the master\'s classes, despite her insistence not to take him as an apprentice.
Eleven young people listened attentively to the master as they walked through the territory of his dwelling. It was much larger than the others: there was a flower garden, a bench, and even a small vegetable garden with rare herbs. Everyone was especially interested in a strange tree: a thick, long-dried oak of a yellowish color. A pleasant aroma of flower nectar emanated from him. In the center was a hollow, or rather, a small hole, covered with a shiny liquid, apparently honey. Bees were crawling there, not ordinary, but translucent ones, with a light amber color. The angular shape of their abdomen looked like a processed citrine crystal, because of this they literally attracted curious glances.
«Does any of the newcomers know why the oak is yellow and transparent bees are flying around?» – master Feng asked with pride in his voice.
Kyon raised his hand and, having received the man\'s permission, spoke: «The oak has turned yellow due to the amber honey inside, which is made by amber bees! As far as I know, there is no dessert better than amber honey. Any cake filled with it turns into food for the gods. It also cleanses the body of poisons, toxins, toxins and cholesterol…»
«Amber bees are incredibly valuable and rare insects… They live for a hundred years, and the whole essence of their existence boils down to creating amber honey for their queen. It takes a ten-year cycle to create this delicacy, and judging by the fact that honey is already oozing out of the hole, the cycle will soon come to an end. You need to harvest it, otherwise the queen will eat everything by her awakening, in order to leave more offspring.»
«Excellent awareness, young man!» – the master praised the disciple.
Elsa crossed her arms. On the first such excursion, even she told less.
«But isn\'t it too dangerous to breed amber bees right on the territory of the order, sir? Despite the fact that they are peaceful, they are very poisonous…» – Kyon added tentatively.
«Amber bees are really very poisonous, but they would be able to bite to death the lord phasers at the beginning stage at best, that is, they are practically safe for local students. Besides, as you said, they are peaceful, which cannot be said about the infernal poisonous tentaculipedes! The master of hunting Ziz Hunter has one of these creatures. He has fattened the beast so much that it is now able to devour even the royal phaser at the middle phase! You could hear its roar in the morning. That\'s who you should be afraid of.»
Some of those present shivered in fright.
«As for breeding, you\'re wrong here. It is impossible to breed amber bees artificially. They choose their own habitat, where they live and work until the end of their days, collecting nectar throughout the empire. This yellow oak tree grew here before the foundation of the order. I had to try hard to privatize it. Amber bees are my pride! My treasure! Therefore, I highly recommend that you stay away from them.» – the master finished sternly.
As Kyon and the others understood, this whole conversation pursued one single purpose: to warn the students not to try to approach the master\'s favorite bees.
After assurances from all those present not to approach the tree, the man said matter-of-factly: «One of my students still hasn\'t paid for tuition… Ough ough.» – he coughed dryly, looking at the fat man.
{Miser? No… An experienced pragmatist! He knows that people psychologically value more what they have already had to pay for.} – Lovr realized this and, approaching the teacher, reluctantly transferred 15 thousand points. At the moment, he has less than a thousand left on his balance sheet. Too few.
«Great, now let\'s go to the lab!»
The master converted one of the basements into a small alchemical laboratory: he installed a high-quality ventilation system and put up barriers to ensure safety in case of something. The walls were completely filled with racks with cells, each of which contained different ingredients. There were 11 tables and chairs for students in the room.
«So, first, I\'ll introduce myself. My name is Feng Russell. Three years ago, I qualified as a third-rank alchemist. I am far from three legendary masters of the first rank, but this should not confuse you. Such people take students strictly on the recommendation, besides, only geniuses among geniuses. For example, Miss Elsa will definitely surpass me in the coming years, and she will have a chance to become their student.. My task is to unlock your potential, and then you decide for yourself which way you will go.»
The newcomers present were in awe.
An alchemist of the 3rd rank is an incredibly honorable title. To officially receive such a rank, it is necessary to pass an extremely difficult exam in Saturn: to produce at least 10 different medicines of "B" rank of at least medium purity. But in order to get the 1st rank, you will need to make a medicine of "S" rank, which in itself is incredible.
In order to master at least one recipe, you need to have sufficient knowledge, skills and experience, but even so, a certain number of first attempts will fail, after which medicine many times in a row will turn out to be of extremely low purity, that is, almost useless. And for every attempt, ingredients, keys and money are irretrievably spent! In addition, during a failure, expensive alchemy kits also deteriorate, or even explode.
The result is this: to become a high-ranking alchemist, you need to come from a very rich family or become a disciple of a rich master, and also have a noticeable talent, because they will not waste resources on a mediocre person. Unprofitable.
Moreover, the preparation of medicine is, in fact, the ability to combine ingredients in such a way that they do not conflict with each other, and for this it is important to have extensive knowledge of various techniques that require high grades of elements (mastering elements).
The situation with Kyon was different. Being in Juno\'s mansion, he discovered the method of «the cycle of the universe», thanks to which it is possible to combine together any ingredients, even opposite to each other, having only the basic grades of the elements. However, this technique requires the participation of all 9 elements, so no one in the world will be able to use it.
In contrast to all these strict requirements, alchemy almost does not depend on the development of the practitioner, since almost all medicine requires a careful and responsible approach. Any sudden burst of energy can ruin everything.
«To begin with, show your equipment.» – the master commanded.
The disciples took out their alchemy kits. Beautiful, clean and well maintained. Everyone had about a "С" rank, and only Elsa had a "B" rank: a competent device, crystal clear vessels and test tubes. Everything is made of crystal with the highest compatibility with elemental energy. It\'s hard to fail with a kit like this.
When master Feng saw Dick\'s equipment, he almost had a stroke: «This is… Baker, just don\'t tell me that you are preparing medicine on… "This"?!»
The alchemical kit, which the young man took out, terrified in all respects: a disgusting device, dirty vessels and test tubes. The tubes were made of some kind of cracked, worn rubber. The compatibility with elemental energy was the worst! This kit cannot be higher than an "F" rank, which is no good even for a novice alchemist from a poor family.
Everyone present laughed mockingly. Elsa covered her smiling lips with her palm, when suddenly a strange premonition came to her: something\'s not right!
Kyon lowered his gaze guiltily: «Sorry, master, but I have been using this kit since childhood… I\'m used to it as much as I am to my limbs, so I can\'t part with it.»
{What does it mean since childhood?!} – everyone had the same question. It can\'t be that the alchemist\'s kit has never gone bad or exploded.
Master Feng sighed convulsively: «Okay, let\'s start our lesson with a little assessment of your abilities. On this shelf you will find almost all the standard ingredients for a wide range of applications. In one hour, you should make any medicine you are capable of with them. Well, for motivation, I will add a competitive element: the student with the most outstanding result will receive from me a token that allows you to purchase any alchemical kit on the order market for free! And also one pill created by a great… A very great alchemist.»
The disciples perked up noticeably for a second, but in the end each of them came to a disappointing conclusion: they have no chance of defeating a rank 4 alchemist… Genius Elsa Stone.
The blonde shifted her worried gaze from Dick to the master and could not help feeling that the reward was not meant for her. But the fat man can\'t cook medicine better than she, especially on his decrepit alchemy kit, right?!
Kyon smiled shyly: he had deliberately found the worst alchemy kit. Thus, he provoked the master to make him a valuable gift, that is, he forced him to invest in a promising young man. This is a great advantage for building further relationships.
Before turning the hourglass over, master Feng offered his best student to make medicine of "Enzymes" for practitioners of the royal phase. The girl just knows how to make it well. This medicine will fully reveal her alchemist skills.
Elsa agreed.
Kyon caught the hint of the master and decided to prepare the same medicine.
The countdown has begun.
(Author\'s note.. citrine: https://ibb.co/QYxKzjs )