Chapter 20: Give Up, Your Intelligence Isn't Good Enough
Inside the underground base at Shabondy Archipelago, Red Tree Zone 72.
Su Xiao was focusing intently on mixing a potion in his hand when a sudden knock at the door interrupted his work. The energy particles in the solution turned white, and fine ice crystals formed on the test tube wall—the mixing failed.
Bubu Wang opened the door, and as expected, the visitor was Koala. She was carrying a large tray laden with various delicacies.
"Hey, what's with this production volume? How long have you been resting?"
Seeing the Stigmata Potions lined up on the metal table, Koala quickly walked into the room.
Hearing this, Su Xiao picked up the timer on the table, which showed 49 hours and 26 minutes. In other words, he hadn't slept for two days. This was perhaps the only drawback of Alchemy—once you got absorbed in research, it was easy to lose yourself in it.
"About two days."
"..."
Koala was momentarily speechless, and a sense of guilt welled up inside her. She had been suspecting Su Xiao had ulterior motives, but now he was helping the Revolutionary Army produce Stigmata Potions day and night, which stung her conscience.
"If there's nothing else, take these potions and you can leave."
"Uh..."
Koala's guilt vanished instantly, and she was even choked into silence by Su Xiao's words. She could only pack up the Stigmata Potions on the metal table and leave the room.
Bang!
The door slammed shut. Outside, Koala's lips moved, but in the end, she could only walk away looking somewhat frustrated.
Su Xiao sat on the wooden bed in the room, opened the Alchemy skill tree, and checked the Plant Harmony chapter.
[Plant Harmony Lv.8 (Proficiency: 304/80)]
Lv.1 Unlocked Recipe: Vitality Potion (Permanently increases Stamina attribute by 2 points after drinking; this effect applies when attribute is below 20 points).
Lv.3 Unlocked Recipe: Stigmata Potion (Permanently increases Strength attribute by 1 point, Agility attribute by 1 point, and Health Points by 100 after drinking; this effect applies when attributes are below 20 points).
Lv.8 Unlocked Recipe: Ancient Magic Potion (Permanently increases Intelligence attribute by 2 points after drinking; this effect applies when attribute is below 50 points).
...
Su Xiao attempted to upgrade Plant Harmony. Knowledge-type skills could be improved within derivative worlds—he had verified this many times. Upgrading Plant Harmony didn't require many Paradise Coins, a constant 10,000 per level, but the required proficiency was the hardest to accumulate.
[Plant Harmony has been upgraded to Lv.9.]
[Plant Harmony has been upgraded to Lv.10.]
[Plant Harmony has been upgraded to Lv.11.]
[New Recipe Unlocked: Dawn Flame.]
[Dawn Flame: Each production requires 480 Mana Points, consumes materials: Soul Essence, Source-less Spring, Dawn Crystal, Power Genesis, Life Polymer H, Life Polymer C, Crystal Vial.]
[Effect: After drinking/injecting, permanently increases Strength attribute by 3 points and Stamina attribute by 3 points (this potion applies when attributes are below 50 points; repeated use may be fatal).]
...
Su Xiao scrolled up to check the prompts. He couldn't quite understand why the recipe unlocked after raising Plant Harmony to Lv.10 had such an explosive improvement.
A flood of new knowledge merged into his mind, combined with the long hours of potion mixing, leaving his head somewhat groggy. After initially understanding the new knowledge, he realized why the recipe had such a leap.
If he could raise Plant Harmony to Lv.20, he could mix permanent enhancement potions usable for attributes below 80 points. If he reached Lv.30, he would unlock recipes usable for True Attributes above 80 points, and then he could use them himself.
Raising Plant Harmony to Lv.20 in the near future was already quite good. As for Lv.30, the possibility wasn't too high, and whether a single set of materials for that tier of potion could be gathered in the One Piece world was unknown.
Su Xiao lay down on the bed. Seeing this, Amu sat by the door to block it, while Bubu Wang merged into the environment, passed through the wall, and went to the ground above the base to stand guard, in case enemies attacked.
After sleeping for over eight hours, the ring on Su Xiao's little finger vibrated. He immediately opened his eyes. In a derivative world, he never completely relaxed his mental rest.
"Amu, go inform Koala. Tell her the previous materials don't need to be prepared anymore."
Not long after Amu informed Koala, she hurried over, wearing a green short dress. She had light makeup on, and her appearance had changed—she seemed to have been on an infiltration mission.
"Is there a problem?"
Koala looked seriously at Su Xiao. The headquarters now placed great importance on the Stigmata Potion, so there could be no issues.
"You've tested those potions, right?"
"Yeah, the effects are great."
Koala was still reserved, but the news from headquarters was far more than just "great effects."
"Since there's initial trust, we can start mixing potions suitable for long-term supply."
As Su Xiao spoke, he touched his chin and smiled. He had already given the Revolutionary Army a taste of sweetness. Now it was time to let them know how expensive Plant Harmony was. For this reason, he hadn't even chosen to mix the more costly Ancient Magic Potion at the start. After all, the higher the potion's quality, the more proficiency gained upon successful mixing. If he had been mixing Ancient Magic Potion earlier, he would have gained over three times the proficiency in the same time.
Su Xiao's two days and nights without sleep were to show the Revolutionary Army how important his potions were. Now that he had just mastered the Dawn Flame potion recipe, his success rate was bound to be low. If he used his own Paradise Coins to cover the losses, it would be a terrifying figure.
"What?"
Koala looked somewhat confused. She could tell from Su Xiao's tone that the Stigmata Potion was clearly a very weak potion, only meant to establish initial trust with them.
"I told you before, Stigmata is a recipe I developed a long time ago. Its effects aren't strong. For long-term mixing, Dawn Flame is a better choice. If you want me to keep mixing Stigmata long-term, I'll consider leaving the Revolutionary Army. Mixing that kind of initial potion for a long time is boring."
"Wait, let me sort this out."
Koala rubbed her forehead. She felt things were getting difficult, and that ominous premonition grew stronger.
"This is the list of materials for Dawn Flame. If there are any issues with the materials, have headquarters contact me directly."
Koala took the list, but this time she showed no change in expression, because most of the materials on it were unfamiliar to her, which also meant they were rare.
"I'll report this to headquarters. But the third batch of Stigmata materials has already been sent. How about..."
Su Xiao didn't speak, just smiled and met Koala's gaze.
"We can't just send them back, right? Ha, haha."
"Send them back."
"Can we discuss this? These materials were transported through special channels, the cost is very high~"
Koala looked pitiful, but...
"I have no interest in continuing to make those defective products. So send them back."
Su Xiao didn't want to exhaust himself half to death again, so he decisively refused.
"You probably... don't have much luck with women, do you?"
Koala was so angry she almost stomped her foot.
"..."
"Since you insist, I guess we have to send them back. By the way, are you interested in taking on a disciple? I'm very talented."
Koala changed her strategy, trying to solve the problem at its root.
"1476 × 48334 + 1573459 + 4347762. Give me the answer in ten seconds."
"?"
Koala looked at Su Xiao blankly. She hadn't even remembered how many numbers he said, but then she thought of something and retorted, "Then you tell me, what's the answer?"
"77,262,205. Calculation ability is the most basic discipline of Alchemy."
"This..."
Koala was astonished to find that she couldn't even determine if Su Xiao's answer was correct.
"Go inform headquarters. Your intelligence doesn't allow you to learn Alchemy."
As Su Xiao spoke, he closed the calculator on his tablet. In reality, Alchemy didn't have a direct relationship with mathematics.
Koala took a few deep breaths to calm herself. This person was an important researcher, so she couldn't have a conflict with him. Besides, the fact that she couldn't beat him was also a death sentence, so she had to endure it. When you can't win, backing down isn't shameful.
That afternoon, the materials Su Xiao needed arrived, and he began attempting to mix the new potion.
Three hours later, with a crisp crack, the test tube burst in Su Xiao's hand—mixing failed. He wasn't discouraged; the materials weren't his money, so he didn't feel any pain.
Mixing failed, mixing failed, mixing failed...
After more than ten consecutive failures, Su Xiao's Mana Points were down to just over 400. He sat cross-legged on the bed and meditated for over three hours until his Mana Points were fully restored.
Time passed quickly, and before he knew it, it was two days before the Summit War began.
Su Xiao shook the test tube in his hand. The orange potion swirled inside, with flames seeming to burn within the liquid—this was the Dawn Flame potion.
He glanced at the 49 bottles of Dawn Flame potion on the table. From nearly 270 sets of materials, only 49 finished products were produced. If Su Xiao had to bear the material losses himself, it would be like cutting flesh.
Mixing Stigmata Potion only gave 1 proficiency point per successful batch, but Dawn Flame was different—each successful bottle increased proficiency by 15 points, giving Su Xiao a total of 735 proficiency points.
Not only that, among these 49 bottles, he had completed one perfect mix, and the resulting potion's attributes were exceptionally impressive.
[Dawn Flame (Perfect)]
Quality: Purple·Rare
Effect: After drinking/injecting, permanently increases Strength attribute by 5 points and Stamina attribute by 5 points (usable when Strength and Stamina attributes are below 50 points).
Rating: 150+
Selling Price: 37,000 Paradise Coins (No ownership, cannot be sold).
...
Su Xiao put down the potion in his hand. Just now, the Whitebeard Pirates had contacted him—the Moby Dick had entered the second half of the Grand Line.