One month later, in Locke's study.
Locke pressed his palm against the Amethyst Matrix.
Instantly, immense Magic Pressure descended upon it, causing ripples to surge across the Amethyst Matrix. A number emerged amidst the turbulence:
446!
A flash of delight crossed Locke's eyes. "As expected of the beginner's benefit period from the Full Resource Utilization Meditation Method, which cost me over twelve thousand Magic Stones to obtain."
"When I first became a First Class Wizard Apprentice, my Mana was at 220. After practicing with an ordinary Meditation Method for over two months, it barely increased by a single point. This means that during the beginner's benefit period of the Advanced Meditation Technique, my Mana has surged by a total of 225 points."
"Without this beginner's benefit period, how could I have doubled my Mana in just one month? My current Mana depth is equivalent to someone who's been a First Class Wizard Apprentice for several years."
This was a full doubling of his Mana. Moreover, the greater the total Mana, the purer and higher-quality it became.
Thus, his strength had improved exponentially.
Now, when Locke cast Cantrip models like "All Plants as Soldiers," "Mayfly Firecracker," or the "Vine Frenzy" series of Spells, their power would inherently increase. His reaction speed, casting speed, and overall efficiency had also improved significantly, along with the number of times he could use them.
Locke's Magic Pressure and Physical Magic Resistance were now more than double what they had been, allowing him to withstand stronger Spell attacks and external radiation pressure.
This kind of comprehensive strength improvement stemmed primarily from the increase in Mana.
Suppressing his excitement, Locke pondered, "However, now that the beginner's benefit period is over, my Mana growth rate won't be this fast anymore. It's unlikely I'll see an increase of eight or nine Mana points in a single night. Instead, it might take two or three nights of meditation to gain just one point."
"And the further I progress, the harder it becomes to increase Mana."
"According to Angulo and Essie, once Mana exceeds 600, further growth becomes extremely difficult. Even with an Advanced Meditation Technique, it requires grueling effort or the use of large quantities of mid-to-high-tier magical resources to accelerate progress."
"And after Mana surpasses 800, it becomes even more exaggerated," Locke mused. "Angulo told me that beyond 800, only exceptionally high-quality magical resources can speed up growth."
"That's why wizards in the Southeast Corner Domain start attempting to use an Advancement Potion to directly break through to Formal Wizard once their Mana exceeds 800."
"Because after 800, improving Mana becomes awkward—the quality is so high that it demands vast amounts of advanced resources to accelerate growth. But wizard apprentices, not being Formal Wizards, can't access that many high-tier resources."
"At that stage, a wizard apprentice's Mana isn't like a Formal Wizard's—its quality isn't high enough to directly draw more Plane Energy from the void, making progress through meditation painfully slow."
"The mental energy is of relatively high quality, yet not high enough, stuck in a slow-progressing trough period," Locke observed his reflection in the study mirror. "Countless wizard apprentices in the Southeast Corner Domain who can't obtain Advancement Potions end up wasting away in this trough."
"Lifetimes stalled between eight hundred to one thousand."
"But with an Advancement Potion, it seems possible to leverage the power of Potionology to break through this stage forcibly." Locke frowned. "Yet after spending so much time with those Potionology assistants, I still haven't uncovered what exactly an Advancement Potion is."
"Apparently, such things—like Advanced Meditation Techniques—are strictly information-controlled by the White Wizard Association in the Southeast Corner Domain."
"Unless I reach that stage, I won't have access. And I'll likely only be able to obtain such magical resources through the academy."
Locke thought of the Wizard Seeds in the academy—Angron, Mary, Albert—did they have the privilege to access Advancement Potions?
Leaving the study, Locke felt the Magic Pressure around him forming a protective layer over his skin, enhancing his Magic Resistance.
Now, his Mana could rival that of seasoned First Class Wizard Apprentiles, eliminating another of his shortcomings.
He ordered the Catwoman maid to tidy up while directing the Gray Dwarf servant to open the lab door.
Over the past month, through relentless practice and wasting 400 Magic Stones on low-grade practice materials and later actual ingredients, Locke had finally mastered the brewing of the Lesser Emerald Potion.
Truthfully, had he not freeloaded Sophia the Witch's formula and sought her guidance, he would've had to spend over 500 Magic Stones on a course—likely with even costlier material fees.
Moreover, such private potion formula courses weren't available in public offerings; similar open formula courses typically ranged from 800 to 1,000 Magic Stones.
Locke swiftly separated three portions of Dryad Bloodline, extracted the active components, and spent an hour and a half brewing three vials of Lesser Emerald Potion using other materials.
The most expensive ingredient in the Lesser Emerald Potion was Dryad blood. Sophia had omitted other costly materials and complex procedures, leaving only the Dryad blood as the primary ingredient and some auxiliary components.
This reduced both the potion's efficacy and the brewing difficulty.
Still, as a simplified derivative of a Magic Potion, the Lesser Emerald Potion wasn't exactly easy to brew.
With it, Locke had firmly established himself at the Healing Hand Clinic.
Now, even without Andrew and Essie's help, he could cure most curse-afflicted patients.
Locke examined the three vials in his hand. The emerald-green liquid inside shimmered with countless flawless transparent bubbles, resembling some kind of gemstone.
The increase in Mana was undoubtedly key to his rapid mastery of the Lesser Emerald Potion. The higher his Mana, the lower the learning difficulty and cost for such high-complexity potions.
"Brewing a single vial of the Lesser Emerald Potion takes half an hour," Locke rubbed his temples.
"And it's quite mentally taxing. I should establish a production line in my Personal Pharmaceutical Room as soon as possible, using assistants to save my energy—let them handle the repetitive tasks in the preparation process."
"Three vials of the Lesser Emerald Potion... I can try synthesizing them to see what happens." Locke placed the three vials directly into his Synthetic Magic Cube. "Hopefully, it'll give me a pleasant surprise."
Locke glanced at the Botanical Garden documents on his lab bench. Over the past month, he had urgently cleared a hundred acres of Magical Field and, by cultivating the Crystal Palmfire Lotus synthesized in his possession, had already delivered a thousand flowers to Zach's side.
He needed to deliver 4,000 plants to Zach within three months, in three batches.
This month, only a thousand had been delivered.
But it didn't matter. The first month was just about establishing the Magical Field, forcibly accelerating the growth of the Crystal Palmfire Lotus with Advanced Growth Accelerator. Normally requiring at least a year to mature, the plants had yielded a thousand qualified specimens in just one month.
Going forward, production would only increase. The remaining two months would easily allow the hundred-acre Magical Field to produce another three thousand, possibly even more—estimated at around two thousand per month.
As for the surplus, Locke decided he could trade it directly through the Lijin Secret Language. After all, it wasn't just the academy that would be interested in purchasing this Magic Plant; individual wizards from botanical factions would likely be keen as well.
In the same month, he had also mastered the 0.5-ring [Scorched Earth Bomb]. The spell model wasn't particularly complex for his current level, and with plenty of Crystal Palmfire Lotus on hand, practicing it didn't impose any cost pressure.
However, Locke had recently been contemplating the surveillance of his Botanical Garden and Pharmaceutical Room.
The Alchemy Cabin housing both had its own security functions, making it difficult for an average First Class Wizard Apprentice to break in.
Still, he ought to install some magical monitoring devices in both areas. That way, he could keep track of work progress and the growth status of the Magic Plants at all times, allowing him to address any emergencies promptly.
Lost in thought at the workbench, Locke mused,
"I should visit the Chimera Market. There must be shops there that can solve this problem. Besides surveillance, I could also buy some magical locks and set up Barriers to enhance security."
(End of Chapter)