The First Cultivator - Changing Existence

Skymender quickly looked over it and could tell at a glance that it was different from a usual poison recipe. Both the materials used to create it and the methods used to concoct it were abnormal and very specific.

He looked up at the Imperial Scholar. 

"This particular poison is only useful on the common weeds in this area. Our gardeners use it, though it is created elsewhere. It is not particularly useful, but it is extremely valuable. Many would pay a lot of money for it, not just to get rid of weeds, but because it could give them or those who work for them an insight on how to create similar poison recipes."

Skymender nodded. "Thank you."

"Of course. Anything to further the knowledge of such a talented individual."

Although his words were spoken normally, Skymender imagined that deep inside, it was just empty words.

"Now, let me begin to teach you about some of the unusual components in the concoction process."

The Imperial Scholar began to describe, explain, and suggest. His focus was on the unusual concoction method included in the recipe. 

It was more complicated than a normal poison recipe, requiring the heat to be skillfully manipulated and the timing to be nearly perfect.

The Imperial Scholar finished up exactly as the hour ended. 

"Alright. Good luck with your concocting."

Skymender thanked him again and left. He headed directly to the herb shop. He had already been told about the few materials on the list he hadn't known. None were nearly as valuable as the Yellow Lightning Thorn, and neither were they restricted or classified. 

The uniqueness of the recipe lay in the concoction process, not the materials.

Leaving the herb shop with a large bag on his back, Skymender headed over to Master Chef Garb's restaurant. He entered, and Master Chef Garb looked at him.

"Using the poison room." Skymender said.

Master Chef Garb nodded.

As Skymender walked towards the door, he paused. "Is it safe to have a poison room so close to food?"

Master Chef Garb looked back at him. "Is it safe to have a poison room anywhere?"

Skymender nodded in agreement and headed down the stairs once again. In the same room, he took out everything and began. He mixed materials, timed additions perfectly, and manipulated the heat, though he struggled to do so.

He failed his first attempt, as well as his second. However, after the first, his skill had clearly grown. As he began his third, there was an obvious difference. Still, it was not enough. 

He failed on his third attempt and his fourth attempt, finally succeeding on his fifth attempt.

He produced a few vials of the poison. He didn't value the poison itself that much. Instead, he valued the practice and experience he had gained, as well as his new insights on different types of poisons.

Skymender cleaned up and headed upstairs to test the poison out. As he walked outside, he looked at one of the boards. On it was a test date. The next time that they met with the Imperial Scholar, they would be tested on what they learned through his methods, and be given points as a result.

Skymender noted it in his head and walked over to the grass. After looking around for a little bit, he found a patch of the common weeds in the Imperial Capital. Although there were many different types of weeds, these were the most common species around. 

Skymender uncapped a vial and dripped a few drops on the weeds. He also intentionally got some on the grass. He watched as the poison that touched the weeds was sucked inside of it, but the poison that touched the grass simply slid off, not affecting it.

Moments later, he saw the weeds shriveling up at a speed visible to the naked eye. After five minutes, all that remained of the weed patch was a bunch of dry, dead weeds.

Skymender was impressed by the effectiveness of the poison. The normal grass and ground was completely untouched, while the weeds were completely eradicated. It did what it needed to do and it did it perfectly.

Since he had a test in two days, he decided to head to the library and study.

Clearly, everybody had gotten the memo, as the library was just as full as when it first opened. Skymender made his way to the medical section and began to study. Unlike usual, he actually began to study medicine and healing. He had been intending to do so for a long time, but had always focused on poison. 

Now, he decided it was the right time. 

As expected, medicine was very similar to poison. From the methods to create a medicine or a cure, to the materials used. All of it was eerily similar. For the first time, Skymender truly understood the saying, "A master of medicine is a master of poison".

Even just by accident, it seemed possible to make poison from a few of the medicine recipes. Just a single additional material or one missing could make a concoction go from healing to killing.

Skymender stayed inside of the library for more than sixteen hours before leaving and falling asleep. He made sure he got plenty of sleep and went to the library as soon as he woke up.

When he arrived it was around 10 PM, or 14 hours before his test with the Imperial Scholar. He would spend all of the time before that studying.

In the library, he perused various sections, even stepping out of the medicine section to look at how broken bones were healed. He became curious as to how doctors actually worked, but staved off his curiosity for the sake of the test.

It felt like the blink of an eye, but 11 AM arrived. Skymender had an hour before his test. To say he was not a little tired would be a lie. 

Therefore, he left a bit early and stopped at a cafe, picking up the most energizing coffee that they gave out.