I really want to go.
I really want to check whether there are more good things hidden inside that basement.
I want to see if Albert can drop more gold coins for me, allowing me to inherit more of his legacy.
But she couldn't go.
At least, not right now.
The medicine was still brewing inside the crucible.
It was just past one in the afternoon, and she would need to wait until after four o'clock for the brewing process to finish before she could leave.
Just endure a little longer. It was only three more hours.
With that thought in mind, Arya took a deep breath and forcibly calmed herself down. She stood before the crucible and continued stirring the bubbling potion.
Although she looked calm on the surface, the corners of her mouth twitched uncontrollably, betraying the excitement she was trying so hard to hide.
Even so, while brewing the medicine, her thoughts were not scattered or useless.
For example, the appraisal glasses resting firmly on her face.
Although the glasses could only appraise the most basic information and could not compare to the small screen's advanced functions, there was no denying that they were genuinely useful—extremely useful.
From the comparison between the two appraisal results of the mortar she had used earlier, Arya had already noticed something important.
The glasses were better at identifying basic attributes.
Things such as the materials used to craft an item.
For someone like Arya, an Alchemist, this ability was nothing short of a priceless treasure.
Three hours was not a long time, but to Arya, it felt like pure torment.
Ding-a-ling-a-ling—
The moment the alarm clock rang on the table, Arya moved with practiced speed. She shut down the Alchemy Array controlling the five cauldrons in a clean, smooth motion.
Under the astonished gaze of Gang Emima, she snatched up the herb bags from the bucket and grabbed the moonstone dagger before rushing straight out of the Shelter toward Albert's basement.
The time was already past four in the afternoon.
There were only a little more than two hours left before nightfall at seven o'clock.
For someone who needed to search and explore, time was painfully tight.
Arya, now visiting for the fourth time and already familiar with the route, quickly arrived at Albert's basement and immediately began a thorough search.
Her eyes, protected and enhanced by the appraisal glasses, scanned the area back and forth.
Soon, a useful description panel appeared before her.
It was a wooden rod, about one meter long. It looked old and was covered with patches of moss.
At least, that was how it appeared to Arya's naked eye.
Through the "eyes" of the appraisal glasses, however, the truth was very different.
[Wooden Stirring Rod (Unknown)]
[Function: Unknown]
[Description: A stirring rod made from a branch of the World Tree.]
A stirring rod?
This was the same type of item as the stone rod she had ordered from Li Huai.
Albert… Albert…
Should she call him daring, or selfless?
The World Tree.
She had read about it before in the extracurricular books she had studied.
Although the records were not very detailed, she knew one thing for certain—this was a sacred existence for the High Elf race, revered as the "Mother Tree."
Yet Albert had actually used something like this as an Alchemy stirring rod.
This was completely beyond Arya's understanding of this world.
Then again, her overall understanding of this world had never been very deep to begin with.
At that moment, Arya recalled a passage from Albert's Alchemy Handbook.
"Magic power, materials, money, stamina, spirit—everything an Alchemist possesses exists for Alchemy.
And Alchemy will surely reward this dedication.
Remember, Alchemy is omnipotent!"
— Albert
Alright.
Alright.
So this was what he meant by dedication?
She loved it.
Absolutely loved it.
After picking up the stirring rod, Arya continued searching. She even used the rod itself to dig through the soil and debris.
After half an hour of hard work, Arya found two more items.
The first was a set of metal parts—two iron rods about forty centimeters long and a hollow, arc-shaped piece of iron.
The second was a glass jar that contained several irregularly hexagonal transparent crystals, wide on one end and narrow on the other.
[Damaged Thorium Compass (Unknown)]
[Function: Unknown]
[Description: A compass made using thorium]
[Butterfly Pupa (Unknown)]
[Function: Unknown]
[Description: Unknown]
Although she didn't know their exact uses, the fact that they could be appraised at all meant they were definitely above E-rank items.
In any case, it would never hurt to store them away first.
After digging almost three feet deep and collecting these three items, Arya finally climbed out of the basement, feeling deeply satisfied.
When she checked the time, she realized it was still relatively early.
So, she simply adjusted her glasses and began to wander around the surrounding area.
Her thinking was very simple.
Albert definitely wasn't some ordinary minor character.
For a man like him to build his residence and Workshop in a place like this, there had to be something special about the area.
There was still some time before nightfall.
Searching a bit more and exploring wouldn't hurt at all.
Especially the areas covered by thick vines, bushes, and weeds.
After all, Albert's house itself had been completely hidden by overgrowth. If she hadn't had a sudden flash of inspiration that day, she might never have found it.
Sure enough.
While randomly pulling weeds aside with the stirring rod, Arya discovered a stone well hidden within a mass of vines.
She pulled the vines away and saw a wooden cover resting over the well.
Unfortunately, it had already rotted badly. Only part of the wooden framework remained.
Floating carefully in the air, Arya leaned forward and looked down into the well.
She saw a pool of clear, transparent water.
However, under the appraisal of the glasses, this ordinary-looking water revealed something extraordinary.
[Spring Water (Unknown)]
[Function: Unknown]
[Description: Seems usable directly as base water for Alchemy]
Usable directly as base water?
As a novice Alchemist, Arya knew very well what base water meant.
Normally, magic water always had to be neutralized with one's own magical power before it could be used safely.
But this well water could be used directly.
No wonder Albert had chosen to live in this kind of place.
For an Alchemist, water that required no preprocessing was unbelievably valuable.
Arya felt a flash of envy.
Unfortunately, her Shelter was far away, so she couldn't easily transport much of this water.
Feeling a little regretful, she pulled her head back, preparing to continue searching elsewhere.
But at that moment, another description box suddenly appeared in the frame of her glasses.
[Water Elemental Essence (Unknown)]
[Function: Unknown]
[Description: The purest collection of Water Element energy, birthed from the long-term entanglement of Water-type magic power]
Elemental Essence?
Just the name alone sounded like something extraordinary.
That sounded like very good stuff.
Without another thought, Arya floated down into the well.
The well wasn't very deep. The bottom was only about fifty centimeters below the surface.
But even so, for someone like Arya, who was naturally not very strong, it was still a risky situation.
She lowered herself into the well, sitting down as the icy water rose up to her neck.
The bone-chilling cold made her shiver, but she endured it.
Reaching down with both hands, she fished out a Water Elemental Essence from the bottom of the well.
It looked like a transparent sphere of water.
And there were many more of these spheres scattered across the bottom of the well.
After admiring them for a short moment, Arya quickly gathered all of the Water Elemental Essences that were hiding in the well.
[Unknown (Unknown)]
[Function: Unknown]
[Description: Unknown]
The moment she collected the last sphere, another window popped up inside her field of vision.
The multiple lines of "Unknown" stunned her completely.
She froze in place, staring in disbelief.
Something was definitely wrong.
Something far beyond her expectations.
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