Chapter Twenty-One: The Alchemist

All the Red Beauty Flowers on the mountain were quest items; once he completed the task, there was no way to gather more. Staying at Eaglefall Cliff had lost its purpose, so Ye Chen bid farewell to the hunter whose face was twisted in indecision and descended from the cliff. He carefully avoided the roaming savage gorillas and soon left the Scorching Sun Mountains.

Upon returning to Scorching Sun City, Ye Chen headed straight for the Alchemist Guild. He went up to the second floor and submitted the trial quest—thirty Red Beauty Flowers—directly to Guildmaster Kynos.

Kynos accepted the thirty flowers from Ye Chen, his face showing a hint of emotion. “Young man, I didn’t expect you to finish the task so quickly. You’ve exceeded my expectations. Very well, from this moment on, you are a noble alchemist. Soon enough, you’ll understand just how esteemed this profession is—every adventurer will go mad for your skills…”

He patted Ye Chen’s shoulder, and his right hand released a stream of golden light. The light circled Ye Chen, and instantly, the words “Alchemist” appeared beneath Ye Chen’s name in the secondary profession column. Simultaneously, two new skills appeared in the life skills column—Alchemy and Gathering.

“Ding! You have completed the quest [Collect Red Beauty Flowers]. You receive 18,600 experience points and ten Red Beauty Pills.”

[Red Beauty Pill]: Special elixir. Upon consumption, grants 50,000 experience points. Maximum one pill per day.

Ye Chen gazed at the crimson pill in his hand, unable to suppress a joyful smile. He breathed a gentle sigh and carefully stowed away the Red Beauty Pills.

“Young man, now that you’re an alchemist, it’s my duty as your guide to point you in the right direction. An alchemist without recipes is pitiable, so to become a true alchemist, you must first collect some recipes. I happen to have some exclusive alchemist recipes here. If you’re willing to pay the price, you can obtain them.” Kynos chuckled, his expression reminiscent of a sly old fox.

“Recipes?” Ye Chen was momentarily stunned, a sense of foreboding rising within him.

Kynos stroked his white beard and nodded. “Precisely—recipes. An alchemist without recipes is like a chef without a pot. Any kind of elixir requires a recipe to concoct.”

Ye Chen frowned and asked cautiously, “How do you sell your recipes? What are the prices?”

“Heh, just take a look for yourself.” Kynos smiled and pulled a recipe price list from his pocket, placing it before Ye Chen.

Ye Chen glanced at the list, and his expression changed dramatically. His mouth dropped open in shock. Damn, the cheapest recipe was fifty gold coins! Was this robbery? Was this murder?

“Guildmaster, you might as well just rob people!” Ye Chen’s face darkened to the point of dripping water.

Kynos seemed unfazed by Ye Chen’s reaction. He laughed softly and shook his head. “Robbery? As a grand mage and master alchemist, I wouldn’t stoop to something so lacking in skill, would I? Don’t be hasty, young man—look carefully at those recipes. They’re well worth the price. Take, for example, the lowest-tier Power Pill recipe, just fifty gold coins. Power Pills are bestsellers! You’d make a killing. Then there’s the Wisdom Pill, only one hundred gold coins, and it’s excellent. But the best is the White Tiger Pill recipe—using it grants 1.5 times experience. You’re sure to get rich with it.”

White Tiger Pill experience! Ye Chen was instantly energized and hurriedly asked, “Are there any restrictions? How long does one pill last?”

“Usable below level 25. One pill lasts an hour, and you can take up to three a day. The ingredients are cheap, so you’re guaranteed to profit,” Kynos explained patiently.

Level 25 and below was the current mainstream. Three pills a day meant three full hours of 1.5 times experience—a fantastic item, indeed. Ye Chen was ecstatic. He could already foresee the White Tiger Pill becoming wildly popular; with the right operation, he could earn a fortune. Even if he didn’t sell them, they’d be invaluable for leveling up himself. With these, his upgrade speed would soar.

“How much for the White Tiger Pill recipe?” Ye Chen’s eyes shone as he asked Kynos.

Kynos calmly extended three fingers. “Three hundred gold coins. No discounts.”

Ye Chen’s lips twitched, and he gritted his teeth fiercely. “I’ll buy it. I’ll buy it.”

This time, Ye Chen was making a hefty investment, but he was confident it would pay off. With such a great product and exclusive rights, it would be his own fault if he didn’t make money.

“Good, you have true courage,” Kynos nodded, smiling. “However, the White Tiger Pill is a tier-three recipe, requiring level three alchemy to craft. So you’ll need to buy a tier-one recipe and a tier-two recipe first. For tier one, I recommend the Power Pill; for tier two, the Wisdom Pill. Both are popular and should bring you some pocket money.”

Ye Chen’s face darkened further. He was starting to wonder if the alchemist profession was a money pit. He hadn’t even seen any finished products yet and already had to spend over five hundred gold coins on recipes. Damn, it really felt like robbery. Still, since he’d chosen this secondary profession, he had to stick with it. Judging from the White Tiger Pill, the profession promised wealth, and early investments could be accepted.

Unfortunately, the five hundred gold coins from Dragon Slashing Star had already been listed on the trading platform; the items were in transaction status and couldn’t be retrieved. Ye Chen couldn’t afford the Wisdom Pill or White Tiger Pill recipes, so he settled for the tier-one Power Pill recipe, since he’d need to level up his alchemy first anyway.

[Power Pill] (Tier-One Recipe): Increases strength by ten points, duration ten minutes. Required materials: five Red Blood Grass, one tier-one alchemy furnace, a cluster of tier-one alchemy flame.

An increase of ten strength meant ten points of physical attack. The Power Pill’s attributes seemed decent—it could probably sell well, especially since it was a consumable. With reasonable pricing, demand should be good.

But when he looked at the ingredients, Ye Chen’s expression changed again. Both the alchemy furnace and flame were consumables, and Kynos sold them here. Checking the prices—a tier-one alchemy furnace cost twenty silver coins, a cluster of alchemy flame thirty silver coins. Damn, the minimum cost per Power Pill was fifty silver coins, not counting the five Red Blood Grass. In total, a single Power Pill would have to sell for at least one gold coin to make a profit. But would anyone buy it for that price? Ye Chen was genuinely uncertain.