Although these herbs were meant for alchemy, she didn't know their specific medicinal properties.
Unlike the E-rank ones, these D-rank herbs weren't labeled with which potion they were used for.
Even the identification glasses' interface provided no snarky commentary or useful tips.
It simply stated in a very general way: "Might be useful for potion crafting."
There was nothing for it but to conduct experiments one by one.
This was a long-term task, arguably manual labor, but there was no other way.
Most of the knowledge she possessed was only at the basic level.
So, the next day, Lan Qingyou began her research using the stone slabs and enamel mugs she had ordered from Li Huai.
As before, she used the method of exhaustion, recording every single attempt.
It took four days for Lan Qingyou to finally clarify the medicinal properties and ratios for those dozen or so herbs.
Indeed, although it took four days, the process was remarkably smooth.
Truth be mind, Lan Qingyou hadn't come from a medical family back on Blue Star, nor did she have any relevant prior knowledge.
Yet, her research into these herbs had been incredibly successful.
It could only be said that after reaching D-rank in both Alchemy and Potion-making, her understanding and cognition of everything related to medicine had been significantly enhanced.
Reading books was easier than before, and she could even apply the concepts to other areas.
It felt as if her horizons had been broadened.
Because of this, Lan Qingyou didn't find the research painful at all; she even found it somewhat enjoyable.
At the very least, she hummed little tunes while she worked every day.
Of course...
Lan Qingyou wasn't just doing research during these days. Shang Chuan sent her numerous herb samples almost every day.
They were all D-rank, which made Lan Qingyou even happier.
The more samples she had, the more combinations she could try, increasing the success rate for both D-rank mana potions and healing potions.
Originally, she had intended to use the talent ascension potion as her flagship product.
However, due to the limitations of the talent ascension potion, she eventually decided to focus her efforts on mana and healing potions.
Fortunately, hard work paid off.
By the time the second mana turbulence arrived, Lan Qingyou had finally developed the recipe for a Basic Mana Potion.
【Basic Mana Potion (D)】
【Effect: Restores 10 mana per second for 10 seconds.】
【Description: A fairly decent basic potion that can help you quickly recover your mana.】
Holding a vial of the light blue liquid, Lan Qingyou adjusted her glasses.
She had successfully made it.
But Lan Qingyou felt like something was off.
She looked at her notebook, then at the potion, then back at the notebook. She did this several times, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong.
She decided to record the thought in another vintage notebook with a cowhide cover.
She had purchased this notebook specifically for this purpose.
As a self-proclaimed student of Albert, she had already developed the 【Lightness Potion】 and the 【talent ascension potion】. Naturally, she felt the need to follow in her teacher's footsteps and start her own 《Lan Qingyou's Alchemy Journal》.
However, as she picked up her charcoal pencil to write, she suddenly froze.
She snatched up the Basic Mana Potion from the side and scrutinized it.
She hadn't noticed earlier, but in a flash of inspiration, she finally realized the problem.
An Apprentice Potion gave +50, while a Basic Potion gave +100—a full double increase.
Because of her 'Witch of the High Tower' title, her Spirit had soared to 18, and her mana had reached 180.
This meant that two Basic Mana Potions were enough for her needs.
But what about everyone else?
What about those without titles?
At most, they probably had 10 Spirit and 100 mana, right?
In that case, a single potion would completely refill their mana in ten seconds.
What did that mean?
Didn't it mean that a single potion was already at the point of diminishing returns?
To put it bluntly, one potion was more than enough to handle their needs.
If she worked harder and managed to produce a C-rank potion...
Would it double again to 200 mana?
There would be no market for such a thing at all, would there?
No.
It would still be useful as a reserve for the mana tide, but as for regular use, she doubted anyone would be that extravagant.
With that thought, Lan Qingyou put down her charcoal pencil, wiped the black dust from her hands, and began bottling the potions.
She didn't plan on selling this batch. In fact, based on her calculations, she only needed to stockpile 2,600 potions to be ready for the next mana tide.
She didn't even consider selling the '+70' 'substandard' batches she had brewed in the stockpots.
After all, Shang Chuan still owed her quite a bit.
Besides, selling them now wouldn't be nearly as profitable as waiting for the mana tide.
After finishing the bottling, Lan Qingyou contacted Shang Chuan.
It wasn't to sell anything; on the contrary, it was to buy.
Storing so many potions was a logistical nightmare, and she currently only had about a thousand empty test tubes.
Lan Qingyou: "How many test tubes do you have left?"
Shang Chuan: "I have about a thousand being cleaned right now."
Lan Qingyou: "Send them to me once they're ready."
Shang Chuan: "No problem. But there's something I need to tell you."
Lan Qingyou: "What?"
Shang Chuan: "We probably won't be able to acquire large batches of test tubes anymore."
Lan Qingyou: "Why not?"
Shang Chuan: "Have you forgotten? There are no more supply chests."
...
Right, she really had forgotten.
Upon seeing Shang Chuan's message, Lan Qingyou suddenly remembered that all those test tubes had come from supply chests.
Now that the chests were gone and the test tubes were almost used up, she would have to reconsider her container options.
However, if it wasn't for drinking and just for storage, she didn't have to be so particular.
Lan Qingyou: "Then get me another hundred stockpots."
Shang Chuan: "I still have a few stockpots, but getting more will become increasingly difficult. To be honest, almost no one is selling items from the chests anymore. You should know why."
"Sigh..."
Lan Qingyou sighed.
She knew. How could she not?
Before, because chests could yield all sorts of things and people could find at least two or three a day, they didn't think much of it.
If they could sell some materials, they would.
But now that the chests were gone and wouldn't refresh, the items inside had become precious.
No.
It wasn't even a matter of money anymore.
Since these were all daily necessities that everyone needed, very few people were willing to sell these 'products of civilization' anymore.
"Achoo!"
Lan Qingyou, who had just been sighing, suddenly sneezed.
"Why does it feel a bit cold?"
Rubbing her nose with her finger, Lan Qingyou muttered to herself as she looked out the window.
Rate on N.U.
