She had made her fortune through potions, and since herbology was a sub-discipline of alchemy, it would definitely offer her the greatest improvement. That was the one.
The others... the others could wait for later.
Looking at the book 《Basic Potions》, Lan Qingyou took a deep breath, her finger trembling as it approached the screen.
Finally, she gritted her teeth and pressed down.
"Phew—"
Watching a leather-bound book appear on the small screen, Lan Qingyou exhaled a long breath of turbid air.
Once the choice was made, there was no more need to worry about choosing.
Setting the screen aside, Lan Qingyou picked up the book, flipped through it briefly, and then closed it.
She had made the right choice. This thing was very practical and would be a great help to her alchemy. She would study it properly in a bit.
She floated over to the desk, wanting to check the requirements for the Level 3 upgrade.
She noticed the words (Please Name) displayed over the Level 2 Tree Hole Shelter.
【Note: Once named, it cannot be changed. Please consider carefully.】
What was there to consider? Did she even need to think about this? Without a second thought, Lan Qingyou filled in the name: "High Tower."
Yes, even though it only had two floors right now, its name was High Tower.
It was clear how obsessed Lan Qingyou was with tall buildings.
Or perhaps it was a reflection of the psychological shadow those three days had cast on her.
After completing the naming, Lan Qingyou looked at the Level 3 upgrade requirements.
【Tree Hole Shelter (Level 3) Upgrade Requirements: wood25,000, stone1,000, vines5,000, E-grade magic creature core100】
Good grief, it had increased by a full ten times.
At this rate, would Level 4 require 250,000 units of wood?
The Tree Hole Shelter was clearly expanding; so much wood was being removed from the inside of the giant tree that it was almost nonsensical that it didn't yield wood, yet it kept demanding more and more.
Where did all these materials go?
Forget it, forget it. Time to check the alchemy workshop.
Pushing aside her internal complaints, Lan Qingyou drifted toward the workshop.
The workshop was partitioned off with wooden boards. The room was small, about ten square meters.
Inside was a sturdy-looking wooden table with several wooden platforms on top, presumably for easy placement of items. Next to it was a circular window identical to the ones outside, and beneath the window sat an iron pedestal.
There was nothing else in the room.
【Apprentice-level Alchemy Circle Base (E)】
【Effect: You can use magic to engrave your own unique alchemy circle onto it and place your cauldron on top.】
【Description: Apprentices are a curious bunch; they always manage to draw alchemy circles that reach new heights of failure. Therefore, an iron base is sufficient. After all, no one will mourn if this thing gets destroyed, right?】
...
So that's why I needed iron. It was for making the alchemy circle base.
According to the description, novice apprentices aren't very well-regarded.
Then again, engraving one's own alchemy circle was indeed no simple task.
New alchemists who had just started studying symbology and drafting would have plenty to say on that matter.
After checking the alchemy workshop, Lan Qingyou quickly headed over to the nearby bathroom to take a peek.
It was a combined bath and toilet.
A squat toilet, a vanity, a showerhead, and even a mirror.
A squat toilet?
Is this a joke? Do I look like I’m built for squatting?
Forget it, forget it. It's better than nothing.
Lan Qingyou sighed and turned to go upstairs.
The room that originally had no windows now featured a large, semi-circular glass sliding door.
Since sand was used, it was made of glass. That was logical.
Outside the door was an even larger semi-circular terrace.
Lan Qingyou gently pushed the door open and drifted out. She discovered that on the edge of the terrace, there was an A-frame awning woven from vines, occupying about a third of the terrace's area.
Now she not only had a place to dry herbs but also a spot to relax and read in her spare time. She just wondered if it was sturdy.
Lan Qingyou drifted up to inspect it and found that the vines had grown directly into the tree trunk.
It seemed she didn't have to worry about them withering and ruining such a nice awning.
Afterward, Lan Qingyou drifted around the exterior. Looking diagonally downward, she saw the window of the alchemy workshop, and next to the window was a square wooden box.
If she wasn't mistaken, that should be the bathroom's water tank.
Lan Qingyou drifted over and opened it to check. It was indeed the tank, but it was empty. It seemed she would have to fill it herself.
Moving further along, she could see the light shining from the window of the shelter's entrance.
With a proper entrance now, Lan Qingyou went in through the door and moved all her bedding next to the fireplace.
Then she moved all her books and the magic lanterns upstairs.
Originally, she had planned to brew potions tonight. However, for one, she didn't have enough test tubes, and the potions she brewed last night hadn't all sold yet. Secondly, having acquired so many new books, it would be a waste not to read them and gain some knowledge.
Of course, the most important thing was: now that she had a bathroom, how could she not take a proper bath?
Even though it was still cold water, Lan Qingyou found it very refreshing.
Once finished, she lay on the bed, quietly absorbing the knowledge from the books.
She turned a deaf ear to the outside world.
Those waiting at their desks for Lan Qingyou to give an explanation stared intently at their screens, but after half an hour, there wasn't a single word from her.
"Break it up, break it up. She’s a busy person; why would she reply to your messages?"
"Exactly. She sucks our blood and then acts like she's some big shot. I despise people like that the most."
"Anyway, I’m never buying her stuff again. I won't contribute to her wealth."
"You clowns. You don't actually think saying this will subtly influence everyone's opinion of Lan Qingyou, do you?"
"'I'm not buying anymore'—if you can actually resist buying mana potions, then I'll call you impressive."
"Heh, what are these people made of? Do they think we're all college students who haven't entered society yet?"
"Hey now, Elu'er, what's wrong with college students? I'm one too, but that doesn't mean I'm stupid."
"In all likelihood, they were paid in dog food to come out and bark."
"Let the bullets fly for a while. Based on my years of experience as an undercover agent, the mastermind behind this probably wants to use public opinion to pressure Lan Qingyou into helping him achieve something."
"Ivan, you were actually an undercover agent!?"
"What else would I be?"
"Fine, fine. I didn't expect you to hold out until Karim to reveal yourself. I will avenge our fallen comrades."
Anyone who spent a lot of time surfing the internet knew that when a new topic suddenly appeared under another, the previous topic would often lose everyone's attention.
As the two of them began discussing the undercover agent topic, the tone of the conversation gradually shifted.
No one cared anymore about what Lan Qingyou's shelter looked like after the upgrade.
If they had that kind of free time, they might as well worry about how much longer it would take to upgrade their own shelters.
Who knew what it would be like once the newbie period ended? Only by raising the level of their shelters did they have any hope of continued survival.
Someone had once calculated that seven days was just barely enough time for people like them to reach the limit for a Level 2 shelter upgrade.
That was right.
Even for those without mana-infused axes, seven days was barely enough to scrape together several thousand units of basic materials.
However, it would truly require an extreme schedule of 'working from sunrise to sunset,' without a single day of slacking off.
And that was just for the materials.
Magic creature cores were a different story.
Rate on N.U.
