That's right. The way Alchemists distinguish true potions is by examining their composition.
If anything other than plants is added during the refining process—whether insects, other living creatures, or the blood of magical beasts—then there is no doubt. That is one hundred percent a magical potion.
Arya had collected these earthworms a few days ago when she had gone out to gather herbs.
Aside from centipedes, she had gathered many other useful creatures as well: green-eyed frogs, amplifier bats, centipedes, red stone rats, withered wood snakes, stone salt leeches, fiery red ants, and grass saw insects.
To be honest, Arya had felt disgusted at first.
But as a beginner Alchemist, she had no right to be picky. What she lacked most were proper Alchemy materials. Since fate had put these things in her path, she had to collect them.
Refusing to collect them would be letting down Great Teacher Albert and would be nothing short of blasphemy against the art of Alchemy.
All of these specimens were currently drying on the second-floor terrace. In about two more days, they would be dried well enough to be ground into powder and preserved.
Because of the "Supreme Rule," she had always been collecting them secretly and had not taken them out in the open.
But now that she needed to make magical potions, she had no choice but to bring them out.
There were two primary methods for using centipedes in Alchemy. One was to use the whole centipede as a live ingredient, like she was doing now. The other was to let it die and then grind it into powder.
The effects and uses of these two methods were entirely different, and the potions created would also vary significantly.
This time, Arya's focus was on reducing the attributes of her opponents.
Pay attention. Mark the key points. Great Teacher Albert might test this.
Working nonstop like this until the afternoon, Arya finally finished making today's potions.
Since she did not have any of those expensive enamel pots, today's workload was not as exhausting as the previous day.
After the mixtures cooled down and completely settled, Arya began to bottle them carefully.
[Apprentice-level Magical Potion · Slowness (E)]
Effect: When it hits an enemy, the magical potion bursts into a mist that sticks to the enemy's skin and reduces their agility by 3 points for 10 seconds.
Description: Three points of agility is not a small amount. Six points is not much. Let the enemy experience the feeling of an instant emergency brake!
Arya nodded with satisfaction as she looked at the potion's attributes.
With this potion, she finally had a decent chance of escaping in dangerous environments.
Do not underestimate the effect of reducing agility by just three points.
To most people, it might not seem like much, but Arya understood the real implications.
The limit for normal Blue Star humans was only ten points of agility.
Even if she was unlucky enough to meet a superhuman who had reached the maximum agility limit, losing three points would be enough to make them stumble or fall flat on their face.
Just imagine it.
A person who was used to moving at high speed would always need a moment to adapt if their speed suddenly dropped uncontrollably.
Even if that moment lasted only a few short seconds, those seconds would be critical.
Those few seconds of adjustment time would be the perfect window for her to escape or launch a counterattack.
Of course, all of this depended on one simple condition.
She had to hit the target.
However, Arya was not worried about that at all.
She had brewed two hundred bottles in a single batch. If she threw them all at once, at least one would hit.
And she would not feel sorry for it either.
These were for saving her life. There was no reason to hesitate.
By the time she needed to use these, any so-called companions would probably already be dead.
As for the danger to the person using the potion, she could not speak for others.
But as far as Arya herself was concerned, she was confident that she would be fine.
To be honest, Arya felt that her materials were still far too limited.
Those snakes, insects, rats, and ants she had collected could actually produce potions that were even more useful to her than earthworms.
No—more useful than the Slowness Potion itself.
Unfortunately, the quantities she had were not enough to refine a complete batch of those more advanced potions.
Brewing tiny individual doses was also a waste of time and resources without the right tools.
That was why Arya had chosen the Slowness Potion.
It was a type of potion that could be produced in large quantities at once.
This was not a random decision. She had thought about it carefully.
She knew her limitations.
She could not expect to dominate with quality.
So she had to win by quantity.
After bottling all of these life-saving potions, Arya began cleaning her tools.
She washed every pot, wiped every ladle, and carefully stored her remaining ingredients.
Once everything was clean and put away, she started filtering and bottling the Healing Potions.
[Crude Healing Potion (E-)]
Effect: Restores 3 health points per second for 10 seconds.
Description: A barely usable Healing Potion. Would anyone really need such a thing?
Yes, people would need it. Of course they would.
Arya scoffed when she saw the evaluation text.
Although it only restored a little over thirty health points over ten seconds, it was still better than nothing.
It was about twenty points weaker than an Apprentice-level Healing Potion, but that did not mean it was useless.
Arya was certain that many people would need it.
In the past, some people had complained that a potion which restored fifty magic points was useless.
By the same logic, a potion that restored fifty health points would not necessarily be as popular as one that restored thirty.
For someone like Arya, who only had twenty health points in total, drinking a potion that restored thirty would even feel a bit wasteful.
That was why she was not worried about selling these potions at all.
She now had:
Two hundred crude Healing Potions that restored thirty health points.
Two hundred crude Magic Potions that restored thirty magic points.
Arya kept only ten Healing Potions for herself.
After that, she contacted Roy.
The time was already past five in the afternoon.
This was usually when people returned to the Shelter after hunting and gathering.
This time period was also Roy's busiest time.
Some people occasionally returned at noon.
But most preferred to stay out all day, fighting and exploring.
If they gathered too many materials, they would return only to drop them off, and then head back out again.
Very few people had the leisure to browse the exchange unless they had obtained something especially valuable.
Arya did not know about other districts.
But in District 666, because she had linked basic materials to magic points, prices had remained relatively stable.
Even prices on the black market were stable.
For merchants, this was excellent news.
It allowed them to predict market trends more accurately and reduce risks.
However, today Roy felt unusually restless.
He sat behind his Magic Desk, both hands rapidly operating the exchange interface projected on the panel.
On the surface, everything seemed normal.
But his repeated glances at his friend list, and the way his leg kept trembling under the desk, showed that his heart was anything but calm.
It was almost six o'clock.
There was still no message from Arya.
He did not truly believe Arya would run away.
But the amount of resources involved was enormous.
Thousands of materials.
Plus the hundred potions he had offered as payment.
As time dragged on, his anxiety grew heavier.
Then suddenly—
Beep. Beep. Beep.
His friend list rang sharply.
Roy's facial muscles twitched.
With a practiced motion, he swiped his hand and opened the friend list.
Arya: "[Crude Healing Potion (E-)]"
The moment he saw the effect of the Healing Potion, Roy's heart began to pound violently.
One hundred percent.
No, absolutely one hundred percent profit.
His throat went dry.
He grabbed the nearby cup of Master Shu Jasmine Honey Tea and quickly swallowed two large mouthfuls.
Arya: "How many do you want?"
Roy's answer formed instantly in his mind.
All of them.