Potions Class 2

Teacher Yan stared at the vial in his hand, his expression one of pure astonishment. Inside, the liquid was a pale, sky-like blue, clear and luminous.

Without even needing to use testing instruments, he could sense that this low-level stamina recovery potion was far more perfect than anything he had brewed himself. The fusion of the herbs was exceptional, and the purity of the potion reached an astonishing ninety-nine percent.

"You... how did you do this?" Teacher Yan looked at Wen Jiu, his hands trembling, his heart filled with profound amazement.

"I simply changed the mixing sequence and the ratio of the herbs," Wen Jiu explained her process with refreshing candor. "Ice grass is cold by nature, but most of the other herbs in this formula are warm. If you add the ice grass halfway through, it disrupts its inherent chill, preventing the medicinal properties from being fully realized."

"Then there are the Puff-ball Mushrooms and the Cloud-mist Grass. Although Cloud-mist Grass is categorized as a warm herb, its leaves possess a fire attribute. Once ground into powder, this fire attribute is triggered, which directly conflicts with the water attribute of the Puff-ball Mushrooms. By swapping their order and adding a gram of Silk-flower between them, the medicinal properties fuse much better."

Wen Jiu spoke with clear logic and sound reasoning, leaving Teacher Yan pleasantly surprised. He had thought about trying to improve the formula, but these recipes had been passed down through generations in the Federation, and finding areas for improvement was no easy feat. He never expected Wen Jiu to discover such an effective method.

Although it was only a simple low-level stamina recovery potion, the improved version was purer, and its medicinal efficacy was far more perfect. This suggested that Wen Jiu possessed an incredibly high talent for potion making.

"What is your name?" Teacher Yan looked at the sweet-faced young girl with great admiration. She blinked her almond-shaped eyes in naive confusion, seemingly unaware of the magnitude of her contribution.

"Wen Jiu."

Wen Jiu did not intend to hide her abilities. She had once possessed both fire and wood spiritual roots, giving her an indescribable affinity for all plants and an innate ability to perceive the properties of vegetation instantly. After arriving here and becoming a dual-element fire and wood ability user, she had struggled to awaken her wood-based powers. It was only today, upon touching the herbs, that she suddenly sensed that dormant energy of the wood element within her.

In truth, the original formula had already blended the properties quite well, but Wen Jiu’s perception of plants was far beyond that of an ordinary person. Thus, after brewing the potion according to Teacher Yan’s recipe once, she quickly identified the subtle flaws within it.

"Wen Jiu, you are a good child," Teacher Yan praised her incessantly. "I would like to record this formula of yours for experimentation. Would that be alright with you?"

"That is fine, Teacher." Wen Jiu thought for a moment and agreed.

They exchanged contact information, with the teacher telling her to wait for the results of the experiments. He promised that if the formula for the low-level stamina recovery potion was truly improved, there would certainly be a scholarship in it for her. Wen Jiu accepted readily; she was currently short on funds, and a scholarship would be ideal.

By the time class ended, it was nearing noon. When Wen Jiu reached the cafeteria, Qiao Shishi had not yet finished her class, so Wen Jiu began preparing the ingredients for lunch on her own. Because the vendor from whom she rented her equipment had not yet delivered the second-generation "Little Bee" drone, Wen Jiu decided to forgo streaming that afternoon.

She looked through the vegetable crate that had arrived. Like the previous night, it was filled with thorny fish and white radishes, with the addition of a plant that looked remarkably like wormwood. Having browsed the biological encyclopedia the day before, Wen Jiu was now roughly familiar with the flora and fauna of the Interstellar Era, and she quickly identified it as a plant called "Clear-dream Leaf."

It had a fragrant scent but a bitter taste, and its leaves were oval-shaped. Although it looked like wormwood, it could not be consumed in the same way. However, she clearly remembered that the book described its properties as hemostatic and pain-relieving, which meant it should theoretically be usable as a medicinal herb.

Unfortunately, the Clear-dream Leaf also carried a trace of the ice attribute. While its medicinal benefits were good, the human body struggled to absorb this ice element, and excessive use resulted in a numbing side effect. Consequently, the Clear-dream Leaf was excluded from standard medicinal brewing. Only a few profit-driven pharmaceutical companies bought it to use in cheap styptic agents.

To Wen Jiu, however, this was not a problem. Intent on collecting as many herbs as possible, she set the bundle of Clear-dream Leaves aside, planning to take them to her dormitory after business hours.

Just as Wen Jiu was peeling the potatoes, she heard a series of knocks on the door.

"Come in."

She assumed it was Qiao Shishi, but when she looked up, she saw a boy standing at the door with a flushed face.

"Fei Qingyu?"

The moment he saw Wen Jiu, Fei Qingyu guiltily lowered his head to stare at the floor.

"Is there something you need?" Wen Jiu asked, puzzled. Was he here to seek revenge for yesterday?

Her guess was not far from the truth. After being defeated by Wen Jiu yesterday, Fei Qingyu had felt deeply humiliated. He couldn't believe he had been beaten to tears by her in front of so many people. Yet, he had to admit that Wen Jiu’s combat techniques were superior to his—she had utterly dominated him. Thinking that one must know oneself and the enemy to be victorious, he had seen the recruitment notice for Window 18 on the 3047 Academy’s student bulletin and immediately contacted the faculty member in charge to take the job.

"I... I am here to report for duty," Fei Qingyu said, his voice faint—a far cry from the arrogant little cat he had been before.

Contrary to his expectations, where he thought Wen Jiu might give him a hard time, she merely raised an eyebrow and said, "Oh, then come peel the potatoes first."

Fei Qingyu stammered an acknowledgment, walked over to Wen Jiu, picked up a peeler, and held a potato, watching her intently.

"Why are you looking at me?" Wen Jiu asked, confused. "Look at the potato."

As she spoke, she resumed peeling. Fei Qingyu carefully observed her movements, clumsily imitating her as he peeled the potato bit by bit. While he was observing Wen Jiu, she was quietly observing him in return.

In all fairness, despite their brief encounters in class, the boy had no major issues other than being a bit arrogant and obsessed with saving face. Overall, he seemed like a decent person.

Wen Jiu patiently continued peeling until Fei Qingyu was able to peel a potato cleanly in just a few seconds. Only then did she turn to the counter to knead the dough.

"Jiu Jiu, I'm here!" Qiao Shishi pushed the door open with a beaming smile. "I successfully awakened my ability today in the 'Ability Usage and Practice' class! Quick, congratulate me!"

As she walked in, she saw the young boy standing there peeling potatoes.

"Eh?"