The Value of Dragon Drool

‘I never realized Elaine and Erza were so valuable!’

Hearing the young woman’s words, Ai Ou’s understanding of dragons deepened considerably. So many magical materials yielded only a few academic credits, yet a single drop of dragon saliva was enough to exchange for a vast quantity of ingredients. ‘If I ever run out of money, I’ll just sell Erza’s and Elaine’s drool!’

Ai Ou couldn’t help but fantasize.

“Hello, Ai Ou. May I ask if you intend to exchange your academic credits for materials for an Intermediate Mental Power Potion?”

Dragging a hand across his chin, Ai Ou pondered the flaxen-haired girl’s question before responding.

“I’d like to ask, if the pseudo-dragon saliva and pseudo-dragon blood were removed from the Dragon Blood Potion formula, how many academic credits would it cost then?”

“Removed the saliva and blood!”

The girl was stunned.

The Dragon Blood Potion, as its name suggested, required dragon saliva and blood as its primary ingredients, which were then refined with other magical materials. Due to the disappearance of true dragons, alchemists could only utilize the blood of pseudo-dragons and wyverns, extracting as much draconic power as possible.

Without these crucial main ingredients, the Dragon Blood Potion could not be successfully concocted. To put it another way, without pseudo-dragon blood, the key component, the Dragon Blood Potion would remain nothing more than a fleeting illusion.

“Yes, please remove them. After excluding the pseudo-dragon blood and pseudo-dragon saliva, how many academic credits would an Elementary Dragon Blood Potion roughly cost?”

Despite her confusion, the girl answered Ai Ou.

“The magical materials for an Elementary Dragon Blood Potion typically cost around 150 academic credits. Removing the pseudo-dragon blood, valued at 100 credits, and the pseudo-dragon saliva, at 30 credits, leaves the remaining materials at just 20 credits. For the Intermediate version, it would be approximately 30 credits.”

“Why is there such a small difference in academic credits between the Elementary and Intermediate Dragon Blood Potions?”

“Because the Dragon Blood Potion primarily relies on dragon blood, specifically the bloodline extracted from pseudo-dragon blood to unleash draconic power. These materials aren’t what differentiates Elementary from Intermediate.

The main distinction between an Elementary Dragon Blood Potion and an Intermediate Dragon Blood Potion lies in the quantity of pseudo-dragon blood and saliva, with the Intermediate version requiring about three times more than the Elementary.”

Ai Ou calculated internally. One set of materials for an Intermediate Mental Power Potion cost five academic credits. The materials for an Elementary Dragon Blood Potion were twenty credits, and the Intermediate version was thirty credits. If he took one of everything, it would be fifty-five credits. So…

“Hello. I’d like to exchange for three sets of Intermediate Dragon Blood Potion materials, with the pseudo-dragon blood and saliva removed. Also, one set of Elementary Dragon Blood Potion materials, also without the pseudo-dragon blood and saliva, and four sets of Intermediate Mental Power Potion materials. Thank you.”

“But, Ai Ou, if you exchange like this, you won’t have a single academic credit left. This will be very detrimental to your advancement.”

Seeing Ai Ou about to spend all his academic credits, the flaxen-haired girl couldn’t bear to watch him stray and instinctively reminded him.

“I know.”

“If you have no academic credits, you’ll be expelled if you have issues with your final exam. To advance to the next grade, each year requires a minimum of thirty academic credits…”

“I’m well aware. Can you please hurry and process my exchange?”

Ai Ou impatiently tapped on the table, the rhythmic drumming creating significant pressure for the girl.

The girl opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but ultimately held back. She then proceeded into the Student Union’s interior to retrieve the materials.

She shouldn’t have spoken out, but for some reason, she couldn’t resist reminding Ai Ou.

However, to be frank, in all her time at the Student Union, this was the first time she had witnessed such extravagance. Over a hundred academic credits, all exchanged in one go. Most students in this academy meticulously collected their credits, fearing they wouldn’t graduate.

****

After receiving the exchanged materials, Ai Ou returned home.

In the house allocated by the academy, there was a basement, provided for students to conduct experiments.

A mage’s path wasn’t merely about casting spells and incantations. It also involved conducting various magical experiments, exploring different magical principles, and continuously developing new magic. This was the healthy progression of the magical arts.

Therefore, experimentation was a core skill that mages needed to master.

“First, let’s test if there are any issues with concocting the Elementary Mental Power Potion.”

Ai Ou stared at the raw ingredients for the Elementary Mental Power Potion, muttering to himself.

Although Ai Ou had already elevated his proficiency in concocting elementary potions to a very high level, he still felt a slight lack of confidence. ‘What if this Dragon Island System has tricked me?’ So, it was best to first experiment and ensure there were no problems with concocting the Elementary Mental Power Potion.

Having mastered elementary potion knowledge, Ai Ou understood the difference between Elementary and Intermediate Mental Power Potions. Aside from a few ingredients absent in the elementary version, one Intermediate Mental Power Potion could be converted into four Elementary Mental Power Potions.

“The key to concocting potions lies in the precise quantity of each ingredient, the timing of their addition, and most crucially, a steady hand!”

Ai Ou’s hands remained perfectly steady as he meticulously dropped each ingredient into the test tube. He didn’t need measuring tools; a mere touch was enough for him to gauge the approximate quantity. He then watched the potion react, adding new materials at the precise moment required.

If the timing was off, even slightly, failure was almost guaranteed.

Yet, Ai Ou’s movements bore no resemblance to someone who had just begun learning potion concoction. His practiced technique was like that of a master who had immersed himself in potion lore for years, needing no tools, only a glance to know the exact measurements.

As the materials on the experimental table gradually diminished, the liquid in the test tube progressively clarified. Finally, it transformed into the exact appearance Ai Ou had concocted under Vivian’s guidance at the very beginning.

“For the Elementary Mental Power Potion, simply adding ten grams more of twisted vine and reducing three grams of Wudan flower, then adding constant water – an ingredient not listed in the original recipe – can double its efficiency and yield, and boost the potion’s mental power effect by thirty percent…”

Shaking the completed potion, Ai Ou murmured to himself.

“Based on the knowledge gained from increasing my proficiency, I’ve discovered that the original Mental Power Potion formula wasn’t optimal. The optimized plan, which took ten minutes to devise, seems to be a success. It has reduced the formation time from the initial half-hour to seventeen minutes, and the volume of liquid has increased from 500 milliliters to 980, with an error margin of less than ten percent.”

Next, Ai Ou swallowed the freshly concocted Mental Power Potion in one gulp, then closed his eyes and began to meditate.

After a considerable while, Ai Ou finally opened his eyes and declared.

“The efficiency of meditation has significantly improved compared to the Mental Power Potion I tried before, by about twenty-eight percent. It hasn’t reached the ideal level yet, so I estimate it can be optimized further. However, this already proves that the information in my mind is correct.”

Ai Ou was experimenting with his skills.

After elevating his elementary potion knowledge to a very high level, Ai Ou found numerous flaws and areas for optimization in the potion formulas he received from the academy. He spent about ten minutes modifying the Elementary Mental Power Potion formula, finding that it largely matched his calculated data, with an error margin of less than ten percent.

This meant he had updated and optimized a formula that hadn’t seen revision in thousands of years. If Vivian knew, she would undoubtedly be speechless with astonishment.

The formula, the culmination of generations of mages’ repeated research and the crystallization of their efforts, was already considered optimal in the eyes of many. Yet, Ai Ou had taken a formula passed down for millennia and innovated it in just ten minutes. Many potion masters in the magical world believed that the Elementary Mental Power Potion formula could no longer be optimized.

If this were known to outsiders, Ai Ou would surely become famous.

Next, Ai Ou concocted the remaining three sets of Elementary Mental Power Potion materials, then experimented. He found that within these four batches, the meditation efficiency continuously improved, from an initial twenty-eight percent to thirty-one percent by the fourth batch. The effect was increasingly potent.

“Alright, experiments complete. It seems the knowledge in my mind is indeed usable. I’m a little rusty from just starting, but concocting according to the calculated formula can achieve the expected results.”

Having finished, Ai Ou opened the Dragon Island and entered.

His next plan was to concoct the Elementary Dragon Blood Potion!

This time, he had spent an hour calculating and re-optimizing the original Dragon Blood Potion formula. Now, it could be concocted with only half the original materials, and its effect would be twice as potent. The only caveat was that it required a bit more of the crucial dragon saliva and blood.

The reason previous materials used pseudo-dragon saliva and blood was merely because they contained a thin dragon bloodline. With some extraction, they could barely substitute for dragon’s blood, with higher bloodline concentration yielding better effects.

However, while Ai Ou lacked pseudo-dragon blood and saliva, he possessed two actual dragons! Not mere pseudo-dragons or wyverns, but pure-blooded dragons. Just a tiny bit of their blood and saliva could achieve what a vast amount of pseudo-dragon blood could.

All of this was within his calculations. Now, Erza and Elaine were as large as elephants. Drawing a little blood wouldn’t affect them. In fact, some bloodletting was beneficial for blood circulation and a healthy practice.

With these thoughts, Ai Ou felt no psychological burden.

“Yoo-hoo, my darlings, Erza, Elaine, did you miss me?”

Ai Ou flashed a ‘creepy uncle’ smile at Erza and Elaine.

“Eeyah! Eeyah!”

Erza and Elaine were incredibly excited by Ai Ou’s appearance, completely unaware of the moral depravity and twisted humanity that awaited them.