Chapter 174: Duskfire
Heh heh, I’m just here to visit an old friend. No need to get so worked up, right?
Watching Joey act this way, Leon couldn’t help but wonder if the Star Sage was somehow being blackmailed by this old man. Otherwise, as a dignified Title Archmage at his peak, why would he stoop so low, grinning like a fool?
Visiting an old friend? Turns out Leon’s guess was spot on. The moment Joey said those words, Oswald’s reaction was immediate—his beard bristled and his eyes bulged: "You tell me, how many alchemical potions have you swiped from me over the years? Last time, it was a bottle of Dragonforce Elixir. The time before that, two bottles of Chrono Elixir. And before that… Joey, are you treating my place like your personal alchemy lab? Get out! Don’t even think about taking another glass vial from me!"
...Leon couldn’t help but glance at Joey. The Star Sage’s record was certainly impressive...
Two bottles of Chrono Elixir—those aren’t something just any Grandmaster can make. It’s like when Leon produced the Spectral Elixir back then; anyone capable of crafting a Chrono Elixir is basically standing at the threshold of becoming a Worldshaper. In the entire Andalusia Kingdom, you could count the Grandmasters who can make Chrono Elixir on one hand.
And that’s just the technical side of things...
The Chrono Elixir requires five magical ingredients. Four of them are easy enough to find in the alchemy market, but the last one went extinct in Northend as early as the middle of the Third Dynasty.
That last one is Frosttear...
Legend says it’s a miraculous fruit that only grows in the harshest frozen lands, and it takes centuries to mature. A single Frosttear needs at least several hundred years to ripen, and it naturally contains a fragment of frost magic. Several transcendent forbidden spells require Frosttear as a casting material.
To make matters worse, Frosttear is incredibly scarce. Forget Northend—of all the known planes, only the Glacier Plane controlled by the Blackhorn Consortium produces any Frosttear at all, and even then, the few that do appear are immediately consumed by the Consortium itself. Not a single Frosttear has ever made it to the alchemy market.
As for Chrono Elixir made with Frosttear, Leon hadn’t even heard of such a thing before...
Who would’ve thought, in this little cabin in Nightsong Forest, Leon would hear such shocking news—Star Sage Joey had walked away with three bottles of Chrono Elixir. No wonder Oswald was so wary of him; it’s not stinginess. If Leon were in Oswald’s shoes, he’d have let the dogs loose at the mere sight of Joey, never mind letting him ramble on.
Now, when Leon looked at Joey, there was a hint of genuine admiration in his eyes.
Unfortunately, Joey didn’t have time to bask in that admiration—he was far too busy apologizing...
It took a great deal of effort before Oswald was finally calmed down.
"So, tell me. What brings you here this time?"
"Heh heh, nothing much, nothing much. I mainly wanted to ask if you’ll be joining me for the Order of the Arcane Hand gathering the day after tomorrow."
"Since when are you so considerate?"
"Well..." Joey glanced nervously at Oswald, awkwardly rubbing his hands. "Also, I wanted to ask if you still have any Sanctuary Elixir left?"
...
At this point, even Oswald wasn’t the only one...
Even Leon felt that the Star Sage had truly reached new heights of shamelessness. Sanctuary Elixir is a Grandmaster-level potion, even more valuable than Chrono Elixir. Just one bottle could be traded for a Soulbound Relic. But when Joey asks about it, it’s as casual as asking if there’s any cabbage left.
"No, I don’t have anything left!"
"Liar! I can smell Flameflower in here..."
"That’s for brewing Ascension Elixir!" Oswald was so agitated, he nearly spat in Joey’s face.
Joey’s eyes lit up at those words: "Ha! I knew you had Ascension Elixir..."
Leon almost burst out laughing when he heard that...
No wonder the Star Sage tossed his dignity aside the moment he entered the cabin—it was all for the Ascension Elixir...
That makes sense, though. Ascension Elixir is reserved for Worldshapers. For someone like Joey, a peak Title Archmage, one dose and he could fight as a Sky Rank mage for a whole day. That kind of power boost is enough to break the balance.
For Joey, who’s already touched the edge of transcendence, a single day with the power of a Sky Rank mage would be almost incalculable in its impact...
Let’s put it in terms of walking a path...
Right now, Joey is like someone walking an unfamiliar road. He doesn’t know how long it is, where it leads, or even if he’s taken a wrong turn. But the moment he drinks the Ascension Elixir, he’ll instantly gain the power of a Sky Rank mage. Then, he’ll know exactly where the road ends and how to get there with the least effort.
In other words, just one bottle of Ascension Elixir would cut Joey’s difficulty in reaching Sky Rank by at least half.
"Damn..." Oswald stared at Joey for a long moment, finally cursing under his breath.
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At this point, Oswald couldn’t possibly mistake Joey’s intentions. It wasn’t Sanctuary Elixir he was after—it was the Ascension Elixir Oswald was brewing. The bastard clearly knew from the start that a direct request would get him nowhere, so he circled around the issue.
Damn it, in the end, I still got played by that bastard...
"You know, Oswald, that’s a bit much..." Joey was perfectly calm now, smiling as he needled Oswald. "Back when we found Duskfire together, I handed it over without a second thought. My only request was to occasionally get some potions from you. Who knew, Oswald, that you’d turn out to be such a fair-weather friend? Duskfire made you a Saint Alchemist, and now you won’t even spare me a few bottles of Ascension Elixir..."
"A few bottles!" Oswald nearly jumped out of his seat, as if someone had stepped on his tail. "Let me tell you, not even one bottle!"
"You definitely have some..."
While the two old men argued, a look of shock appeared on Leon’s face.
Leon finally remembered who Oswald really was...
The famous Saint Oswald—one of the few Saint Alchemists in Northend history who achieved sainthood during the Plane Colonization Era.
It’s said Saint Oswald brewed countless potions in his lifetime, making him the most prolific Saint Alchemist in Northend’s history. Many believe it’s thanks to a true artifact he possesses—a Relic Spirit called Duskfire.
Duskfire is practically tailor-made for alchemists. It doesn’t have overwhelming power, but its spirit form is a magical flame sprite, naturally gifted at manipulating all kinds of magical fire. When used for potion crafting, it halves the effort required.
In fact, Oswald’s rise to Saint Alchemist during the Plane Colonization Era was largely thanks to Duskfire, that miraculous Relic Spirit.
But right now, Duskfire’s spirit probably hasn’t awakened yet...
Leon remembered clearly—less than three hundred years after Duskfire’s awakening, Oswald was canonized. Which meant, maybe, he could work with this future Saint Alchemist...
To Leon, this looked like a truly win-win partnership.
If everything went smoothly, Oswald could achieve sainthood centuries ahead of schedule—and Leon would gain a second, incredibly prosperous private plane.
Of course, that would require Oswald’s cooperation...
While Leon was quietly plotting, Oswald was already at his wit’s end thanks to the Star Sage’s shamelessness. After a curt "Follow me," he led all three of them into his alchemy lab.
"Here’s your Ascension Elixir!" Oswald pointed at a beaker on the alchemy table, his voice frazzled and annoyed.
Uh... Even Joey, who wasn’t much of an alchemist, looked awkward when he saw the beaker.
Inside the beaker was a shimmering golden liquid, dazzling and ornate. The sharp scent of Flameflower wafted out, and everything matched the textbook description of Ascension Elixir perfectly.
The only difference was, the golden liquid in the beaker gave off no magical aura at all...
Ascension Elixir is meant to unlock latent potential, and every magical ingredient it uses is packed with power. If there’s no magical aura, there’s only one explanation—Oswald’s brew had failed...
"Well? Want to try a sip?"
"Uh, no need to be so generous..." Joey may have been desperate for Ascension Elixir, but he wasn’t about to risk drinking a failed potion. If he got poisoned, there’d be nowhere to cry about it.
"Lord Oswald, it’s not necessarily a failure..."