Chapter 116 - 115: Kuli Cliff

Chapter 116: Chapter 115: Kuli Cliff

A 1st Ring Magic Formula clearly contained far more content than a 0th Ring Magic Formula.

Consequently, the parchment booklet itself was much thicker than the previous one.

This was primarily because the nodes of the Magic Model had increased, making its overall structure much more complex. Naturally, this required more exploded diagrams and detailed explanations.

When Gaode flipped to the end of the Magic Formula, a corresponding Magic Potion formula caught his eye.

This was something absent from the 0th Ring Magic Formula.

Thus, even though Gaode already had a ready-made Magic Potion, he still examined it with great interest.

[Acquire Magic Pet] Magic Potion (One Tier Magic Potion): Prerequisite Magic Potion for learning the [Acquire Magic Pet] Magic.

Main Ingredients: 2 drops of Enchanting Thorn Juice, 1/4 Gusi of Deepwater Octopus Brain Fluid.

Supplementary Ingredients: 2 ounces of Rootless Pure Water, 5 Silver Bell Grass Magic Leaves, 1 pair of Blue Butterfly Wings.

Gaode’s gaze continued downward, only to abruptly realize that the Magic Potion formula ended right there.

Where were the preparation steps?!

A complete Magic Potion formula should include at least three basic sections: "Potion Effects," "Main and Supplementary Ingredients," and "Preparation Steps." Some formulas even included additional sections like "Usage Instructions" and "Precautions." Yet, the Magic Potion formula before him only contained "Potion Effects" and "Ingredients."

Logically speaking, this had to be an incomplete Magic Potion formula.

Did Mage Lael give him an incomplete Magic Formula?

He shouldn’t have. He was, after all, a high-ranking official of the academy. Doing so would be beneath his dignity, and there was simply no reason for him to do such a thing.

Ruling out the possibility of an issue with the formula itself, the only explanation was... Magic Potions had their own unique traits, making their preparation methods fundamentally different from other types of Magic Potions.

"I still lack too much knowledge... No, it shouldn’t be called knowledge. To Mages born into Mage families, this should be common sense," Gaode noted silently. Fortunately, he had now joined the Cyrus Magic Academy. Soon enough, he would master all this common sense. "Going through all that trouble to reach Saint Sean City was definitely the absolute right decision," Gaode sighed with emotion once again.

...

Gaode only stayed in Building Thirty for a short while. After tidying up his belongings slightly, he left the building.

As with any new student starting school, the top two concerns were inevitably "dormitories" and "cafeterias." Having checked out the "dormitory," Gaode’s next destination was the "cafeteria."

It happened to be mealtime, so by the time he arrived at the dining hall, it was already bustling with activity. The dining hall offered a rich variety of food, catering to all budgets—from a modest "Rye Bread and Pea Soup" combo for 2 Copper Coins to an extravagant "Honey-Roasted Spring Chicken and Hyrule Mushroom Soup" for 2 Gold Coins.

At the entrance of the dining hall stood a conspicuous chalkboard that read:

Today’s Special: Charcoal-roasted Bird Spider, 10 Silver Coins per portion.

"Hiss—a Bird Spider? That should be a type of spider. Eating spiders... Do Mages really have such bizarre tastes? And it’s so expensive! Ten Silver Coins for a portion? I could eat anything else with that money, yet here I am contemplating a lousy spider," Gaode curled his lips, silently roasting the idea with a hint of disgust.

Five minutes later.

"Sir, your Charcoal-roasted Bird Spider. Please enjoy!" A server placed a large plate bearing the Charcoal-roasted Bird Spider on Gaode’s table.

His rationality temporarily suppressed by morbid curiosity, Gaode inspected this specialty dish. The Bird Spider was several sizes larger than his hand. Heaven knew what it had eaten to grow this big. The roasting technique was incredibly delicate; it only roasted the surface, making the exoskeleton crispy while perfectly preserving the Bird Spider’s form, presenting it to him as an intact "corpse."

"That really wasn’t necessary..." Gaode felt his scalp tingle.

Beside the Charcoal-roasted Bird Spider lay a unique set of utensils meant for enjoying this delicacy. Toothpicks—made by extracting the Bird Spider’s own fangs. Literal toothpicks.

"I already spent the money..." Ultimately, the weight of ten Silver Coins overwhelmingly conquered Gaode’s rationality. He tore off a crispy, charred spider leg. Then, much like eating crab, he used the toothpick to pick out the Bird Spider’s leg meat hidden beneath the shell.

Unlike its hideous exterior, the Bird Spider meat bore a faint golden hue, making it look quite appetizing. When Gaode braced himself and popped the Bird Spider’s leg meat into his mouth, chewing cautiously, he was surprised to find that the taste wasn’t nearly as "cursed" as he had imagined.

On the contrary, it could even be described as exceptionally delicious.

The meat was tender and bouncy, carrying a faint smoky aroma and an almost imperceptible hint of sweetness. It was as if it were the perfect fusion of Nature and fire. Gaode’s eyes lit up, and the movements of his hands and mouth simultaneously sped up. The meat in the Bird Spider’s legs was firm and elastic, while the meat in its abdomen was soft and succulent, providing him with two completely different culinary experiences.

After Gaode tore off the last Bird Spider leg, picked out the meat, and swallowed it, he even felt his body grow slightly warm. This was a special effect inherent to the ingredient itself—it could nourish one’s vitality and blood. This finally cured Gaode’s heartache over the "massive fortune" of ten Silver Coins he had just spent.

A unique dish, great taste, and the ability to nourish vitality—with these three traits, even in his previous life where the culinary industry was highly developed, charging five hundred bucks a portion wouldn’t have been considered outrageous.

...

The next day.

Darknight Day 4.

Gaode had an early breakfast. Half an hour before eight o’clock, carrying all the tools issued by the academy on his back, he navigated his way to the reporting location instructed by Commissioner Rachel: Kuli Cliff.

Kuli Cliff, located to the west of the Cyrus Magic Academy, was a steep precipice soaring over a hundred meters high. Directly below the cliff flowed the Naga River, the mighty river with the largest volume and widest basin in the entire Sean Duchy. On one side of Kuli Cliff, a Mage had used Magic to construct a winding, spiraling stepped path set at a forty-five-degree angle, connecting the base of the cliff to its summit.

Despite arriving half an hour early, Gaode was still not the first one there.

The first to arrive was a brawny man with a physique as sturdy as an iron tower. He was shirtless, his highly developed pectoral muscles bulging prominently. He didn’t look like a Mage; rather, he resembled a brawny martial artist with more muscle than brains. Of course, the martial artist profession did not exist in this world, so the man was evidently a Mage.

With his hands clasped behind his back, the burly man simply glanced at Gaode and said expressionlessly, "You’re here quite early."

Seeing that the man had no intention of speaking further, Gaode refrained from initiating any conversation and stood off to the side to wait.

It wasn’t until there were barely five minutes left before eight o’clock that the remaining five new students arrived one after another. The five new students consisted of three men and two women. One of the women was none other than Gaode’s "old acquaintance," Jelica. She was the last to arrive, showing up just in the nick of time.

Today, Jelica had shed her usual attire of a lady of the Nobility, opting instead for a tight-fitting top and culottes that made her look exceedingly neat and agile. This outfit paired much more harmoniously with the wicker basket on her back and the tools inside it.

Unlike the other female student, who seemingly hadn’t grasped the nature of the enrollment tasks when she received her tools, showing up to report in an exquisite, expensive silk dress. Coupled with the tools she was carrying, her attire gave off the jarring impression of a wealthy heiress roughing it in the countryside for a taste of peasant life.

The belated Jelica’s jaw instinctively dropped the moment she spotted Gaode. She stood stunned for a full second before snapping back to her senses, realizing that her reaction was terribly "unladylike."

She quickly reined in her emotions, returned to her normal demeanor, and joined the group of new students. However, the way she kept shooting glances at Gaode from the corner of her eye betrayed that her inner state had not returned to the calm her expression suggested.