"Blue leaves?"
The youths snapped out of their surprise and began murmuring among themselves when they realized what Finn wanted them to search for. They were puzzled why he would ask for that particular leaf from the Azure Wood Trees.
After all, they had all grown up in the Azure Wood Family, and since they visited the Azure Wood Trees every day, they naturally knew about the blue leaf. They were familiar with it—but none of them understood the secret it hid.
The normal leaves of the Azure Wood Trees were green. But sometimes, a strange blue leaf would grow among the branches. Still, the members of the Azure Wood Family had always ignored this. They assumed it was perfectly normal for blue leaves to grow and simply mixed them in with the green ones to feed to their livestock.
When Finn remembered that this was what they used to do, he couldn't help but grimace. What a waste! A tremendous waste of such a rare and mysterious material.
Since there were thousands of Azure Wood Trees, it was impossible for Finn to search all of them in a single day. So when he had seen Sig and Damian earlier, he immediately thought of asking for their help.
"The more Azure Wood Trees' blue leaf you find, the bigger the reward. But of course, we all know it isn't easy to find a blue leaf, which is why the reward is as big as I promised," Finn explained seriously. He swept his gaze over the group before continuing, "But first, you must all promise me that news of these rewards will not leave this place."
Everyone nodded. They already understood what the consequences would be if word got out that Finn possessed such wealth.
They all pledged to him.
When Sig and Damian looked like they were about to join the search, Finn stopped them at once.
"Sig, Damian, since you helped me gather all the young Adventurers of our clan, you no longer need to take part in the search yourselves. All I ask is that you distribute the rewards fairly to everyone who participates and finds the leaves I'm looking for. As your compensation, you may each choose any Common Armament you like," Finn said, stopping them gently.
He handed the ring to Sig.
The two still couldn't believe what they were hearing. They were being entrusted with the easiest job—and yet the reward was enormous.
"But you may only take six Rank 1, four Rank 2, and one Rank 3 soul-enhancing pills," Finn reminded them.
The two nodded quickly. Even if Finn had offered them the smallest reward, they would have agreed without hesitation. Not even the children of an Aristocrat Clan would receive such a privilege.
While over a hundred young Adventurers scoured the Azure Wood Trees for blue leaves, Finn sat in deep meditation atop a large rock a short distance away from Sig and Damian. As his consciousness sank inward, an invisible energy began to surround his entire body once again.
The two watched him. When they felt Finn's aura, a chilling cold seeped through their bodies. They stepped further back to distance themselves from the terrifying presence.
The sun was nearly setting by the time the young Adventurers returned. Some wore smiles, while others looked disappointed. The youths quickly approached Sig and Damian to hand over the blue leaves they'd found.
Three lucky Adventurers had managed to find two blue leaves each. More than thirty others had found one. The majority, however, had found none, and could only look on enviously at those who had succeeded.
Each participant received their promised rewards. All of them were overjoyed.
Now they had weapons and pills that could help them grow stronger! For them, it was like a dream come true—and all thanks to Finn.
When all the rewards had been distributed, the young Adventurers could hardly wait to return to their homes to try out the treasures they had received. Before leaving, everyone expressed their gratitude to Finn through Sig and Damian.
The two remained behind, waiting patiently for Finn to finish meditating.
A while later, the young man finally opened his eyes.
Finn noticed that the sun was nearly down—and aside from himself, only Sig and Damian were still there.
He scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed as he apologized, "I think I lost track of time with my training."
Sig and Damian exchanged a look, then hurried over to him. They handed him back the interspatial ring.
"Finn, our companions found only forty-one Azure Wood blue leaves in total. We distributed all the rewards exactly as you instructed," Damian reported.
"Forty-one?" Finn asked, surprised.
The two began sweating nervously at his reaction.
"A-are they… too few? S—"
Finn shook his head quickly and interrupted Sig, "That's more than enough! Thank you both so much for your help. May I ask another favor of you?"
"Of course! Anything!" Damian said eagerly.
To Finn, distributing treasures that others would never even dream of owning was nothing. Naturally, the two would agree to help him again without question.
"Next year, I will need your help collecting more blue leaves. I hope you will be willing to help me again," Finn said.
"Yes! Of course! It's no trouble at all," Sig replied.
Autumn and spring would pass, and new blue leaves would sprout again.
It took three years for an Azure Wood Tree to fully mature, and from what Finn knew, the trees here were only about a year old, since they weren't yet that tall or broad.
"In that case, thank you very much. It's getting dark, so I should be going," Finn said with a small smile as he bade them goodbye.
The two smiled back, excitement shining on their faces.
Finn turned and quickly walked away from the grove. He returned straight to his little hut and slipped once more into the Myriad World Mirror.
He took out the interspatial ring Sig and Damian had handed him and poured out the forty-one blue leaves it contained.
The leaves floated around him as he carefully picked one up.
[Azure Wood Leaf]
Item Grade: Unique
The reason other Adventurers couldn't sense anything unusual from an Azure Wood Leaf was because its aura was almost identical to that of an ordinary leaf. All truly unique materials had a plain aura that couldn't be easily detected.
There were none of these leaves inside his Myriad World Mirror, since in the game Rise of Gods, they were worthless. But in this world, they were priceless. This was because they were the main ingredient in crafting a Longevity Pill!
The Longevity Pill was a medicine that defied the laws of the heavens with its miraculous properties.
Its effect? Whoever consumed it would extend their lifespan by one hundred years.
One hundred years!
If the elder Adventurers learned of this, they would do anything to obtain it. Whatever the cost, they would stop at nothing to get their hands on a pill capable of prolonging their lives.
With another century of life, they could further strengthen their clans. And when they took it, their appearance would even become more youthful, as all the impurities embedded in their bones and muscles would be purged.
Throughout the entire Sacred Dragon Kingdom—and even across other parts of the continent—no such pill could be found, for it was truly extraordinary.
The primary reason there were so few Sky Rank Adventurers in the Sacred Dragon Kingdom was that most died of old age before ever breaking through. A Sky Rank Adventurer could only live about three hundred years.
With just one Azure Wood Leaf and the other necessary materials, Finn Doria could produce five Longevity Pills—enough for five people.
But nothing was perfect in this world—everything had its limits. This pill could be consumed only once. Eating a second would have no effect.
He planned to create Longevity Pills for his parents and save the rest for more important purposes.
He quickly gathered the remaining ingredients. Then he took out a Mid-tier Excellent Armament cauldron. The ordinary cauldron he'd bought from Green's shop would no longer be sufficient for refining a Longevity Pill.
The reason he chose a Mid-tier Excellent Armament cauldron, even though he owned higher-quality ones in the Myriad World Mirror, was simply that this was the best he could handle at his current level.
He picked one he felt was suitable, then took it out:
[Diamond Cauldron]
Effect: Use to Refine Higher Rank Pills
Item Grade: Excellent
Quality: Mid-tier
Defense: 4923
It was slightly larger than his old ordinary cauldron. Before Kurt Bautista ever acquired the Heavenly Divine Cauldron, he had used many others—this Diamond Cauldron among them.
Finn set the cauldron down and sat cross-legged on the grass. He rubbed his hands together and placed them on top of the cauldron. Closing his eyes, he began channeling his soulforce to imprint his mark on it.
To control a cauldron, he first had to leave his own mark with his soulforce. If someone else ever stole it and tried to erase the original mark, it would have dire consequences for the prior owner.
Hours passed, and sweat beaded on Finn's forehead. At last, a familiar voice echoed in his mind:
[Host successfully obtained a Mid-tier Excellent Armament]
Finn exhaled deeply, gazing at the glowing Diamond Cauldron. He smiled, prepared the necessary materials, and began crafting the Longevity Pill!
--
A month and a half flew by.
The entire Azure Wood Family remained silent and calm. As of now, no one outside knew the true reason why none of them were leaving their territory.
Even the townspeople in Aurora were clueless about what lay behind the mysterious behavior of the Azure Wood Family's members. Some rumors spread, suggesting they were simply afraid of the Nine Ice Family.
But of course, those were just baseless speculations.
If anyone had known how rapidly the Azure Wood Family's overall strength was rising, they would have been stunned.
Though they still couldn't compare to the Golden Lion Family in total power, they were already approaching the level of the weakest Aristocrat Clans. In just a short time, most of the Azure Wood Family's younger generation had reached Silver Rank, with a few—including Sig and Damian—already breaking into Gold Rank.
When two Elders from the Golden Lion Family noticed the changes, they themselves couldn't believe it.
Caesar, too, had finally emerged from seclusion, a brilliant smile lighting his face—he had at last become a 1st Level Profound Rank!
But when he saw the transformations sweeping the Azure Wood Family, his smile gave way to an expression of utter disbelief.
In only a month and a half since Finn's return, his clan's power was already comparable to an Aristocrat Clan!
When the Elders of the Azure Wood Family visited Caesar, he could sense that all of them had grown stronger. Their auras had changed drastically. For example, Neleos and Creed were now both at 7th Level Scarlet Gold Rank. When Caesar first met them, they'd only been 5th and 4th Level Scarlet Gold Rank, respectively. Their breakthrough speed was simply astonishing.
As the Elders chatted among themselves, a guard came rushing in with a shocking report.
"Family Head! Family Head! An Elder from the Alchemist Association is here to visit!"