Chapter 10
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Chapter 010: Choosing the Collection Location
Even though during his two years in Stormwind, every time he looked to the west of the city, he could see this tall and mysterious tower. Sometimes, he even saw purple or pale white magical lights emanating from the top. But it was the first time he actually walked up to the stairs at the base of the tower.
At the entrance, a mage wearing a short robe, a wide-brimmed mage hat to shield the sun, but also carrying a long sword at his waist.
This person was checking the badges of people coming in and out. He should be a mage guard from the Wizard’s Sanctum, a so-called battle mage.
It is said that in the early stages of the war, many experienced mages were killed due to their lack of experience in fighting Orc Warlocks, weakening the power to resist the Horde’s spellcasters.
Dalaran united the magic organizations of various kingdoms, and began recruiting people with magical talents from ordinary soldiers, training them to be skilled battle mages proficient in combat and magic assistance, similar to the training Paladins receive from the Holy Light Church.
These battle mages became a quite powerful new school of combatants after the war.
However, Jesse was hoping for more impressive testing methods, like an Arcane film that would keep out anyone without a mark or with a fake mark.
Showing the ring, passing smoothly, going higher and higher on the spiraling staircase around the huge tower that leads straight to the top, soon passing over the treetops of the greenery in the Mage Quarter.
Looking into the distance, only the purple roofs of the Mage Quarter and the blue roofs outside remain in sight, the sharp spire of the Cathedral of Light in the center of the city to the east, and layers of residential buildings and high-rises stacked around it. In the other direction to the north, on a hill above the docks, stands Stormwind Keep, surrounded like a parent leading their children, overlooking the sea.
Like cracks on a white wall, the pathways are bustling with groups of workers, merchants, horse-drawn carts transporting goods and construction materials flowing between the new and old parts of the city, extending all the way to the main road outside the city.
Looking outward, beyond the city walls is the endless Elwynn Plains, with the river Nazferiti running through it, and forests stretching to the distant Redridge Mountains.
Eastvale, which used to take almost half a day to reach, now seems close enough to touch.
The view here is completely different from the game, although the general layout is similar. The realistic appearance and the awe-inspiring light and shadow effects are far beyond the blocks and polygons in the game.
In Lordaeron, Jesse didn’t have the same strong feeling, as the game didn’t show him Lordaeron before its destruction, which left him without a comparison to experience.
But here, the impact of reality mixing with unreality is incredibly strong.
Walking through the doorway, Jesse entered the upper floor of the Wizard’s Sanctum, where the library was located.
Following the guidance of a librarian, Jesse walked down two levels along the spiral staircase in the library, arriving at the section with books on alchemy.
It was only here that he realized that he had been worrying unnecessarily about his attire.
The apprentices and mages browsing books in the library might not care at all about what was happening around them or consider someone dressed shabbily as a thief. It could be that only those idling outside enjoyed gossiping about others’ clothing and appearance.
Thinking about this, he relaxed and openly began reading the relevant books.
Fortunately, his mother, being a farmer’s daughter, had given him a proper education in reading and writing during his childhood. Besides, his past life education had equipped him with a good ability to acquire new knowledge, enabling him to understand the specialized books here.
However, matching the complex herbs here with the names in the game also required the assistance of pictures.
"Shadow Protection Potion… Shadow Protection Potion…"
Despite searching through various indexes, he couldn’t find any relevant entries. He was so used to the convenience of search engines that provided a plethora of related and unrelated things by simply entering a keyword. Now, reverting to this classical method of searching made him a bit flustered.
After searching for a while, he realized he was looking in the wrong area. In fact, many things related to Shadow Magic were in the protected cabinet of Black Magic, including various types of potions and magic to fight against shadows.
In a heavily annotated book called "Laurel’s Shadow Protection Techniques," he found a relatively easy Shadow Protection Potion recipe and brewing process.
"Laurel’s Lesser Shadow Protection Potion" is an improved version by Master Laurel Ha’Gai based on the conventional Shadow Protection Potion, suitable for emergencies.
It is easy to make, materials are easily found, the brewing process is not long, yet it still helps the user with some level of shadow protection, reducing the impact of shadow damage.
Recipe
First, Grave Moss, the base ingredient of Shadow Protection Potion, is the fastest way to obtain Shadow Power. This terrifying plant absorbs the power of the dead in graveyards and is somewhat poisonous.
Second, Kingsblood, an important medium that converts harmful effects into enhancing effects. Kingsblood can transform the Shadow Power of Grave Moss to absorb shadow damage.
Third, Wicked Claw, claws of beasts that have attacked and killed humanoid creatures. Claws taken from elder fierce beasts near humanoid settlements can weaken the potion’s effect while shortening the brewing time.
Fourth, clear spring water far from any source of magic.
Making steps:
1. Place the crucible on the stand without turning on the fire, pour in clear water from a spring.
2. Pour Grave Moss into the water.
3. Turn on the fire and boil the water.
4. When the water turns light purple and a fishy smell is detected, gently stir for 20 minutes.
5. As the water gradually turns dark purple, pour powdered Kingsblood that has been dried and ground into the pot.
6. Turn off the fire and wait for the murky Shadow Power to become semi-transparent and stable.
7. Turn on the fire again and bring to a boil.
8. Add powdered Wicked Claw, which should be as fine as dust with no particles larger than grains of sand.
9. Stir gently for at least 10 minutes, then turn off the heat and let it cool.
Note: Use a lead bottle or a specially made magic crystal bottle to store the potion. Small bottles are for two uses, lasting one hour each time, or immediately losing effect after enough shadow damage. In the last 10 minutes of the potion’s effect, it will gradually weaken.
Note 2: The finished product should be a reddish purple color, clearer than the regular Shadow Protection Potion. It has a sharp taste, slightly sour, causing dizziness at first taste, then a warming sensation on the face and teary eyes as the effect fades, all of which are normal reactions.
After reading, Jesse felt it was quite troublesome. In the game, the usual Shadow Protection Potion only requires two ingredients and a bottle bought from a vendor, but here, there are so many steps involved.
In fact, he had already seen the recipe for the regular Shadow Protection Potion, which was as easy as reading the instructions on a medicine box, much simpler than this formula.
When it comes to collecting materials, even though Grave Moss grows in most places with dead people, it is impossible to find near the graveyard close to Stormwind as all Herbalists and mages have likely already picked them clean.
The graveyard in Stormwind is regularly cleaned by specific people, since this potion is poisonous and its toxins can affect innocent grave diggers who are unaware of its presence.
To allow room for trial and error, extra materials must be prepared in case the potion fails and everything needs to be redone, so he needs to find a lot of places to gather Grave Moss.
The ideal collection point is just one — Duskwood.
When Jesse thinks about Duskwood, he feels a shiver down his spine.
It was when Jesse first arrived in Stormwind. One time, he went to a small dock by a tributary of the Nazferiti River to help with loading goods. They worked until evening, and Jesse saw a person standing on the other side of the river in Duskwood.
The person stood there for almost an hour, even when they were getting ready to go back to Stormwind. He didn’t move at all, except for occasionally swaying to keep his balance.
When Jesse asked some guards who often patrolled near the Nazferiti River, they said it was a zombie from South Elwynn running along the river to this place, and they were no longer surprised by it.
A few years ago, a big explosion towards Stranglethorn had a terrible impact on the southern part of Elwynn Forest. A huge Shadow Power engulfed a large area of the forest, including Grand Town and Raven Hill, plunging them into darkness, and even affecting a region in Westfall.
Many people in Stormwind still mention that event. Those who fled from Grand Town and Raven Hill to Stormwind prefer to remain silent. In any case, the event cast a shadow over the residents of the entire Elwynn region.
Some believe it was Dark Energy blown in from the Orc homeland of Draenor through the Dark Portal. This speculation has some basis, as the direction of Stranglethorn is roughly towards the Dark Portal, and the timing coincided with the Orcs launching a massive invasion.
The issue is, Orcs also try to avoid entering Duskwood when marching. If this Dark Energy comes from their homeland, doesn’t that seem contradictory?
The real reason, as Jesse is well aware, is the malevolent resonance caused by an ancient magical tower called Karazhan, located in the valley between the Dark Portal and Duskwood.
The owner of Karazhan, a great archmage named Medivh, was controlled by Sargeras and guided the Orcs to open the Dark Portal.
Heroes Lothar, mage Khadgar, and Orc assassin Garona, after learning the truth, planned and successfully assassinated Medivh. When Medivh died, a terrible power within him went out of control, causing an explosion that completely changed the landscape within a hundred miles of Karazhan.
This is also the main plot of the World of Warcraft movie.
Since then, the previously sunny and warm South Elwynn, like North Elwynn, has turned into a terrifying land filled with evil thorns and dark twisted trees. Only two human towns offer some protection to the civilians who once lived there.
Many residents of Stormwind now refer to that area as Duskwood, and Grand Town as Darkshire.
Near Raven Hill is a large cemetery, the largest in the entire Kingdom of Stormwind, where many nameless soldiers and nobles who died in the Gnoll and troll wars are buried.
If one could enter it, surely they could find Grave Moss. The challenge is how to enter and leave alive.
Entering Duskwood would also solve the problem of the Wicked Claws, where countless beasts have feasted on human corpses. Some have gone mad from absorbing too much necromantic energy, attacking anything in sight. What could be more sinister than that?
As for Kingsblood, it grows in flat areas around Lakeshire in Redridge, or in Westfall. It might also be found in Elwynn, but this plant is rare, so one can only hope to stumble upon it by chance.
Thinking about this, Jesse even considered it might be better to go directly to The Slaughtered Lamb and physically resist dark magic spells, rather than adventuring in Duskwood and resisting warlock magic – it was hard to say which was more dangerous.
The important difference is that the consequences of resisting warlock magic are unavoidable and hard to predict, while going out, some risks can be avoided.
He briefly wrote down his rough travel plans and relevant materials with a borrowed feather pen on a scroll. He felt he needed to ask for Greed’s opinion on this matter since he was the professional survival expert in Hinterlands.
However, he needed to first go to "The Need of Alchemists" to ask the apothecary in Mage Quarter if they bought herbs, how much they paid, roughly figure out a suitable price, and then discuss with Greed. This way, there would be some visible profit in front of him, and the dwarf would be more motivated.
The alchemy shop "The Need of Alchemists" was very close to Wizard’s Sanctum. Many people thought it was just an Alchemy Room, but for most mages, it was a small shop that integrated buying and selling herbs, appraisal, grinding, and researching medicinal effects.
Most senior mages had their own alchemical laboratories, or at least a small pharmacy. Their apprentices also used their masters’ alchemy rooms. Thus, the main purpose of this alchemy shop, originally intended to be a public alchemy space, was often overlooked, and the herb-related business became increasingly busy.
Upon entering the Alchemy Room, Jesse smelled a strong scent of Chinese herbs. The middle-aged blonde lady behind the counter turned to look at Jesse and said, "Are you a newcomer to Mage Quarter? I am Ruth Lumere, the shopkeeper here. If you need to buy herbs, go further in, my daughter will assist you. I have some work to do at the moment."
"I am not here to buy herbs, ma’am," Jesse asked, "Do you buy herbs here?"
"Of course," Ruth Lumere asked, "Are you an Herbalist?"
"I… yes." Jesse said, "I am from Lordaeron, I just arrived here recently and am not familiar with the market prices yet. But I have a team that can go out to collect herbs, so I came here to see the purchasing prices."
"For the commonly seen herbs in Elwynn area, the prices are roughly 2 silver for Peacebloom per pound, 2 silver and 50 copper for Silverleaf, 1 silver for Earthroot per plant, and 2 silver for Briarthorn per plant."
"Excuse me, do you have Kingsblood in Elwynn?"
"If you count South Elwynn, then yes, but it’s rare and hard to find. However, the Herbalists don’t go there anymore, they call it Duskwood now, and it’s considered unlucky to go there. Because of this issue, Grave Moss supply has stopped."
"If I can gather Grave Moss, how much would you pay for it?"
"7 silver per pound, how does that sound? There are also some other rare herbs, like Bruiseweed, Liferoot… we can negotiate the prices for those."
After saying thank you, he left "The Need of Alchemists" and started to feel conflicted.
Should he sell the Grave Moss or use it to make Shadow Protection Potion?
Should he find a way to study magic, or first earn some money to live?
Standing under the tall tower of the Wizard’s Sanctum, watching the mages coming and going, Jesse slowly felt that it would be better to learn some skills that could save his life or even cause harm as soon as possible.
After all, having stronger abilities would make gathering outside safer, and in the future, he might be able to collect harder-to-find herbs or other rare things.
If he abandoned the opportunity to grow just for a small benefit now, he might spend his whole life living in fear whenever he left the city.
7 silver coins, a small benefit?
He gave a bitter smile, surprised by his own greed.
He hadn’t even known the difficulty of collecting Grave Moss yet, but he was already thinking so much. Judging from the price of 7 silver coins, it definitely wasn’t an easy job.
However, he would never know if he didn’t try.
