The next day, workers from the Reeves family indeed brought a set of medium-quality seed screening equipment and a set of column chromatography separation equipment.
There was also a middle-aged second-class wizard apprentice with a complex expression who moved one of Lilith's Cottage's unique alchemical huts next to Locke's three-piece wooden house and small botanical garden alchemical hut.
Locke inspected this alchemical hut and confirmed that this medium-small scale planting garden contained a hundred-acre magical field inside.
The magical field was somewhat barren, showing signs of overplanting and soil degradation due to over-development, but considering this planting garden had been rented long-term, such occurrences were perfectly normal.
After all, people were just renting it, so naturally they wouldn't cherish the botanical garden itself like true owners would.
However, this problem was easy to solve. By spreading large amounts of nutrient soil and nutrient solution within the hundred-acre magical field, the soil's magical power degradation could be resolved within a few days.
The cost was just rather expensive. The nutrient soil and nutrient solution needed for five acres of magical field for half a year required a hundred magic stones. This hundred acres would probably need two thousand magic stones.
That was an enormous figure.
Of course, he only needed to develop a few dozen acres of magical field for now, so he wouldn't need that many magic stones temporarily.
"Not to mention there will definitely be more miscellaneous expenses in the future. When I learn advanced meditation methods in the future, I'll definitely need to consume more expensive resources that complement the meditation methods."
"The world of first-class wizard apprentices truly leaves you unable to move without money."
"Fortunately, I no longer need to rent the Focus Ointment monocle." Locke thought, "To pass the potion master assistant exam, I still need to purchase a complete set of potion master assistant-level equipment."
"I also need to spend five hundred magic stones at the public classrooms to purchase the Focus Ointment brewing course."
"Calculating carefully, my monthly consumption is already approaching three thousand magic stones, and it will definitely increase in the near future. As long as I want to continue progressing, I need to spend more magic stones."
Locke's current savings, after various miscellaneous expenses, were only two thousand eight hundred magic stones left.
His main source of income was the five-acre Super Mandrake Vine magical field, which could earn about one thousand magic stones monthly.
The recently established ten acres of Wiregrass Bull Sinew should be able to earn two thousand five hundred magic stones monthly in the future.
Combined, that was three thousand five hundred magic stones, barely achieving income-expense balance, but this income could only barely maintain his current lifestyle and was difficult to advance further.
Fortunately, because Super Mandrake Vines and Wiregrass Bull Sinew were both revolutionary new varieties of magical plants, there was no worry about sales.
Current production could be consumed through Lijin Secret Language, so income was relatively stable.
Later, when demand decreased or when wizards cracked his magic and obtained seeds of the two magical plants to start selling pirated versions, he should be able to develop more new varieties of magical plants.
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After inspection, Locke nodded to the middle-aged second-class wizard apprentice from the Reeves family. "That's fine. I've checked it."
This second-class wizard apprentice bowed slightly to Locke. "Lord Augustine, then I'll take my leave."
"The Reeves family will always be your friend."
"Our family greatly treasures our friendship with you."
Considering how much the other party had paid, Locke nodded. "I understand."
After all the Reeves family people had left, Locke entered this medium-small planting garden again and began carefully inspecting to confirm nothing had been tampered with.
Then, Locke began planning in his mind how to plant. First was to transplant his ten acres of Wiregrass Bull Sinew from his teacher's botanical garden.
Second was to start considering his third "work."
After all, only by expanding the scale of the planting garden could he earn more magic stones, but he couldn't expand carelessly.
Careless expansion with too much production that wizard apprentices throughout the southeastern quadrant couldn't digest, leading to inability to sell, would create a very bad situation.
Fortunately, with the Horadric Synthesis Cube, he could continuously create new varieties of magical plants.
"I can research Palm Fire Lotus." Locke showed thoughtful expression. "Palm Fire Lotus is only palm-sized, belonging to medium-low level common magical plants, but it has complementary effects with many spells."
"For example, botanical spells like [Fingertip Fire Spray], [Minor Plant Fire Tongue], [Minor Plant Heating], and the most classic 0.5-circle [Scorched Earth Bomb]!"
Scorched Earth Bomb was a spell that many second-class wizard apprentices and first-class wizard apprentices would learn.
This spell was very special, existing as a dedicated complementary spell for Palm Fire Lotus, generally not used with other magical plants.
This spell had high energy level, using one Palm Fire Lotus as the cost to create an explosion.
The casting speed was very fast, requiring almost no additional incantations and could be nearly instant cast. With sufficient damage, fast activation, and difficulty to dodge, it was the most popular cantrip model for combat-oriented botanical wizards.
For second-class wizard apprentices, it was sufficient as a trump card.
For first-class wizard apprentices, Palm Fire Lotus was relatively cheap for them, making it very useful as a means to exhaust opponents and probe their abilities.
This thing's position in the southeastern quadrant was as magical bombs that could be used in quantity.
Relatively low-level and simple, but absolutely useful.
Locke made up his mind. "One Palm Fire Lotus costs only 5 magic stones, but synthesis requires at least several hundred plants to test synthesis formulas."
"That's several thousand magic stones again, but this money is worth spending."
"I can use the new variety Palm Fire Lotus upgraded through synthesis to participate in the White Wizard Association's breeder competition, and it can serve as one of my trump cards to better deal with possible assassinations from the Blood Curse Court."
Locke thought, "Moreover, Palm Fire Lotus is a magical flower. I should use Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method and hybridization cultivation method to breed Palm Fire Lotus."
"Wait a moment." Locke's eyes lit up. "If I synthesize Palm Fire Lotus that I've changed the plant essence of using Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method, will the synthesized item description that comes with the synthesized Palm Fire Lotus include the optimal mana resonance frequency because I've directed the synthesis direction?"
"If this guess is correct, then I can solve the speed problem of learning Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method." Locke's eyes burned with intensity. "My learning speed for the three major cultivation methods isn't very fast, even when maxing out resources."
"After all, even using Weeping Blood Nightshade to improve my wizard aptitude level, I only have Level 4."
"But if my thinking works, then I'm equivalent to using the Horadric Synthesis Cube to obtain optimal mana resonance frequencies for various synthesized plants, equivalent to learning code by observing top programmers' code thinking every day."
"My learning speed will increase dozens of times!"
"My learning speed in Mana Resonance Cultivation Method may very likely exceed the three major cultivation methods."
Having determined the development direction for his third magical plant, Locke walked out of this medium-small botanical garden.
At the same time, he unexpectedly saw two third-class wizard apprentices standing outside his alchemical wooden house complex.
They were also his old friends.
The two were currently standing at the edge of the wooden house complex, appearing somewhat hesitant and not daring to raise their heads.
Seeing Locke walk out, both their eyes immediately brightened.
Locke asked puzzledly, "Lorne, Pierre, what do you two want with me? How are you two still third-class wizard apprentices?"
The light that had just risen in Pierre and Lorne's eyes instantly dimmed.
Both their expressions cracked.