Witch's Kitchen, Table No.5.
Locke pondered for a moment. He could divide the Crystal Palmfire Lotus into three batches for delivery.
First, he could cultivate a hundred acres of Magical Field and plant the initial batch of Crystal Palmfire Lotus. With the Magic Stones provided by the academy, he could easily maximize the use of his Botanical Garden.
Established Magical Fields required continuous resource maintenance, or they would gradually degrade into barren land.
But these were matters for later.
Locke nodded. "Alright, Senior Zach, I can sign this contract. However, I'll only be able to do so after the academy delivers the full 20,000 Magic Stones to me."
"Please don't take offense—I'm just being cautious."
This precaution was to prevent the academy from potentially reneging on their agreement.
Sudden delays could trap him, forcing him into breach of contract.
Though the likelihood was small, it was better to be safe than sorry.
Expanding the Botanical Garden required Magic Stones, and he also needed them to sustain his consumption during the beginner's grace period of the Advanced Meditation Technique.
Zach smiled understandingly. "Of course."
"Thorough consideration is a good trait." He stood up. "I'll bring both the Magic Stones and the contract tomorrow. For now, I have other matters to attend to."
After exchanging farewells, the three left the Witch's Kitchen together.
In the afternoon, Locke visited the Healing Hand Clinic, where he, Angulo, and Essie treated several patients afflicted with particularly troublesome curses.
That evening, he returned to his residence, consumed a bottle of Tears of Stars Potion and a bottle of Bleeding Dragon Potion, then lit Four Seasons Fruit Kernel Incense in his censer.
Next, Locke sat on his bed and drank an Energy Potion.
He sighed. "Meditation sure requires a lot of potions."
"The more you take, the stronger you become. Though you still need the Deep Purple Jade to purify your Mana, or your head will start feeling sharp."
Cross-legged on the bed, his breathing slowed as his Mana fluctuations gradually synchronized with the World Tree, entering a profound, meditative state.
...
The next morning, Zach arrived early with the 20,000 Magic Stones delivered via the Astral Ring, along with the contract.
After both parties signed the agreement, Locke officially secured a Magic Plant procurement contract with Lilith's Cottage Academy.
Both were pleased—Locke obtained the resources he desperately needed, while Zach earned Contribution Points for the deal.
If Locke's Magic Plants performed exceptionally well, Zach could even receive additional rewards later.
After all, he was the one who discovered and facilitated the procurement of Locke's unique Magic Plants.
With the contract signed, their interests became aligned, and Zach grew noticeably friendlier. "Breeder Locke, I'll take my leave now," he said warmly.
Locke nodded. "Alright."
Once Zach departed, Locke gazed at the hefty pile of Magic Stones in his Astral Ring.
He immediately headed to the Chimera Market, where he spent 7,200 Magic Stones—along with all his savings—at a Potion Shop to purchase all the magical resources required for his remaining month of the beginner's grace period.
A Second-Class Wizard Apprentice serving at the Potion Shop seemed rarely accustomed to customers purchasing such large quantities of potions at once, spending over ten thousand Magic Stones.
At the moment, his mind was slightly dazed as he ordered two half-elf slaves in the shop to push a small cart and load all the potions onto it.
"Master Augustine, these are all the potions you purchased."
"And the Four Seasons Fruit Kernel Incense."
Locke gave a slight nod and replied indifferently, "Mm, help me store them all in my Astral Ring."
After leaving the Potion Shop, he headed to Lijin Secret Language and, using his Platinum Star membership privileges, spent 4,000 Magic Stones to purchase an Advanced Breeder's Package sufficient for a hundred acres of Magical Field.
The same quantity in a Basic Breeder's Package would only cost 2,000 Magic Stones, but the basic package only included Basic Nutrient Solution, Basic Nutrient Soil, and Ordinary Speed Element Gel—none of which could meet Locke's current needs anymore.
The Crystal Palmfire Lotus was already a relatively high-tier Magic Plant, and mass production couldn't be achieved with such rudimentary supplies.
The Advanced Breeder's Three-Piece Package, on the other hand, consisted of Advanced Nutrient Soil, Advanced Nutrient Solution, and Advanced Growth Serum Gel.
Similarly, Locke also spent 100 Magic Stones to purchase a large quantity of farming tools, all of which he stored in his Astral Ring.
As for the Nutrient Soil, Nutrient Solution, and other bulk materials, they wouldn't fit in the Astral Ring, so he arranged for the shop to deliver them that afternoon.
With all this buying spree, Locke effortlessly spent 11,300 Magic Stones.
The 20,000 Magic Stones he had just obtained hadn't even warmed in his hands for long before more than half were already gone.
In exchange, however, he had acquired a vast amount of magical resources.
Inside Lijin Secret Language, Yuli carefully helped Locke check for any oversights. "Dear Locke, you're still missing Sulfur Crystals. The Palm Fire Lotus requires a certain amount of Sulfur Crystal fragments mixed into the soil for sprouting. Not too much, but definitely some."
Locke was even more familiar with the requirements than she was. "Mm, I'll need about one ton."
Yuli smiled. "One ton of Sulfur Crystals would cost around 300 Magic Stones. I'll just give them to you. You're a valued guest of our shop now, and I'm sure Madam Ilina would agree to this courtesy."
Locke grinned at her. "Thank you, then."
Another expense saved.
Three hundred Magic Stones was still a considerable sum—enough to craft three medium-quality Enchanted Items.
After a moment of thought, Locke added, "Yuli, I also need to rent one of your shop's small Weather Control Devices."
"The rental fee is 1,000 per month, right?"
The Weather Control Device was a piece of equipment jointly developed by Weather Manipulators from the Shaping School and wizards from the Alchemy School. It could fully control the weather within a large enclosed space, precisely manipulating every detail of its climate.
The artificial sky on the Wizard Ships was created using this type of device—though those were large-scale models. For Locke's plantation, a small Weather Control Device would suffice for now.
The sprouting of Palm Fire Lotus required a constant temperature of just over 40 degrees Celsius, so the cultivation of Crystal Palmfire Lotus necessitated the use of interdisciplinary methods, including the Weather Control Device.
Yuli nodded. "Understood. I'll arrange it for you right away."
Just like that, Locke spent another thousand Magic Stones.
This was because, as a Potionology Assistant, he couldn't be bothered to directly purchase simple weed-killing potions, insecticide potions, or antifungal potions.
Unlike the Advanced Growth Serum Gel, these items didn't require frequent or large-scale use. A single bottle diluted with water could treat over a dozen acres of Magical Field.
At his current level, he could casually brew these basic disease-prevention potions for such low-grade Magic Plants—the difficulty was minimal.
Far simpler than formulating Advanced Growth Serum Gel.
However, mass-producing Advanced Growth Serum Gel would require a Pharmaceutical Room and large-scale preparation techniques.
Locke silently calculated his expenses, realizing he still hadn't accounted for the major cost of purchasing slaves.
"Focus on this month first. Next month's expenses can wait until next month. With proper cost control, the funds should suffice."
"The problem is I have too many expenditures elsewhere. If spending exceeds income, that would be troublesome."
"7,700 Magic Stones remain—still a considerable amount."
"I've already submitted the Crystal Palmfire Lotus for the White Wizard Association Breeder Competition preliminaries. Results are pending. If I advance, I'll need to immediately prepare Magic Plants for the finals—another expense."
"The Pharmaceutical Room will require funds too. Learning to brew the Lesser Emerald Potion also costs money." Locke mentally tabulated. "I initially thought this windfall would allow extravagant spending, but it's still not enough."
"Later, I'll just buy one high-grade Enchanted Item armor for protection. Everything else can wait."
Locke thought of the archaeologists at Chimera Market and the Catwoman in his possession. Researching Ancient Bloodlines would require funding too.
Yet Locke felt continuing research in this field might yield significant breakthroughs.
He needed to invest resources here.
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