In the laboratory, Thilan sat carefully manipulating instruments at the workbench, dressed in a white coat. Before her, in a vacuum flask, a turquoise substance was boiling and slowly crystallizing into fine particles.
Generally speaking, the number of experiments conducted at the high school level is limited. The substances Thilan was working with were typically introduced at the university level. However, such scenes were not unusual at Edess Academy.
High school curricula across the Federation vary slightly by star region but are generally designed based on the average standard, aiming to accommodate the majority of students. While this approach works well, it can feel overly simplistic for particularly bright or highly talented students. Spending four years learning only basic material would undoubtedly be a waste of time.
As a result, at first- and second-tier high schools within the star regions, it is not uncommon for students to begin exploring university-level knowledge ahead of schedule. Even so, it was rare for someone like Thilan, who had already started attempting advanced experiments in her first year. Most students at Edess Academy would complete basic high school courses in their first year before gradually exploring higher-level subjects based on their interests.
“Add Kran-8174 mineral, then use its high temperature and the differing activity levels of various substances under magical infusion to purify and separate…” Thilan murmured to herself, watching the crystalline particles slowly condense on the other side of the iridescent flask.
If elementary school knowledge were rated at levels 0-3, middle school knowledge at levels 4-6, and high school knowledge at levels 7-9, then the experiment Thilan was conducting was equivalent to level 11, typical of university courses. The process was relatively complex, requiring an understanding of reaction formulas and the ability to handle unexpected situations during the experiment.
Magical materials differ significantly from natural substances. Due to environmental factors during their formation, their properties exhibit subtle variances. Unlike standard chemical reactions, they are far less stable and often require manual fine-tuning during processing. This complexity makes large-scale automated production challenging and brings the process closer to ancient alchemy in nature.
As such, even in today’s industrial field, many processes still require assistance from transcendents. Machines alone cannot fully replace human involvement. Fortunately, with AI and mechanical aids, the workload has become lighter. Transcendents usually only need to infuse magic and operate based on instrument readings, making the process less labor-intensive.
While crude industrial production follows this model, high-grade elixirs and magical potions still demand the meticulous touch of masters to achieve quality. Otherwise, the materials may go to waste, and the results would often be mediocre.
The blue flame burned steadily as the substance in the vacuum flask gradually transformed. Through the addition of a series of new materials and reactions, impurities were filtered out bit by bit, with the substance undergoing repeated transformations.
Finally, after five stages of transformation, the end product began to take shape.
A thumb-sized drop of liquid fell, solidifying instantly into a transparent, pale-red gemstone.
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Ignition Potion (Nature Sequence) [Rare Gold-Grade]
Allows lifeforms to easily construct “high-level flame” imprint patterns during advancement, simplifying the advancement process.
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During sequence advancement, constructing the necessary imprint patterns within the transcendent core is essential to acquire the abilities associated with specific roles. Forming such patterns often requires refined, specialized magic power. Relying solely on the automatic condensation of the core is not only time-consuming but may also be impossible for certain unique types of magic power.
In past eras, people often needed specific external resources to aid in their advancement, especially from Sequence 5 onward.
Such resources might include fruits from certain magical plants, gemstones, magical beast horns, eyes, blood, or self-prepared products, among others. In the modern era, these are collectively referred to as “elixir“—special substances required to aid sequence advancement.
Elixir can take various forms, such as potions, gemstones, or feathers, depending on the requirements of the sequence pathway.
The elixir Thilan prepared today was an elixir for advancing in Sequence 4, specifically for pathways related to “flames.”
For others, refining magic power is a lengthy and intricate process. However, for Thilan, it took far less time—her innate abilities allowed her to refine magic power nearly 30 times faster than ordinary individuals.
After advancing to Sequence 4 some time ago, Thilan found herself with surplus resources. Upon researching the subject, she decided to attempt the preparation of such an elixir.
The most valuable catalyst was a material capable of providing refined “high-level flame” magic power. Common raw materials included Red Strontium Flame Stone (Gold-Grade), Three-Leaf Red Lotus (Gold-Grade), and Bloodflame Serpent Venom (Gold-Grade). Thilan had previously obtained an Extreme Flame Bird Feather (Gold-Grade) from Swallow Garden Academy, which could serve a similar purpose—though typically, three feathers were required.
By carefully adding her refined magic power during the elixir’s preparation, Thilan managed to meet the requirements with just one feather. Although some incidents occurred during the process, she promptly adjusted, slowing the reaction’s time flow to give herself enough time for complex operations. Even in cases where magical conflicts nearly triggered explosions, she could quickly freeze the reaction, halting any further escalation.
After completing the experiment, she placed the small glass vial containing the red gemstone into the pocket of her white coat.
“Surprisingly smooth,” Thilan thought, though she attributed the success more to her innate advantages than sheer luck.
For others, a single error or misstep during the process would mean failure. For her, even if mistakes or unexpected situations arose, she could forcibly pause the reaction and restore it to its normal trajectory without it ending in failure.
“I guess I was born for the lab,” she mused. If it were ancient times, opening an alchemy workshop would have been a great choice. As for the present, there seemed to be too many things she needed to accomplish.
After shutting down the instruments and cleaning up her tools, Thilan left the laboratory. By then, it was already evening, with the silhouettes of trees outside the corridor windows casting shadows inside. The amber glow of dusk painted the cold floors with its warm light.
Despite achieving something remarkable, her mood remained light but not overly proud. After all, in this highly advanced civilization, who knew whether geniuses just like her—or even more brilliant—might be emerging in some distant corner of the galaxy?
“If I ever get the chance, I must visit the Central Star Region someday. I really want to see just how far the Federation’s cutting-edge technology and magical creations have progressed,” Thilan thought as she walked away.