The Cornflower Witch

Book 2: Chapter 100: A Faint Spark of Flame

Vol 2 Chapter 100: A Faint Spark of Flame

Lantern Town, Alchemy Laboratory.

Under the watchful eyes of a group of apprentices, Dorothy strolled leisurely before various alchemical instruments. She deftly adjusted and activated numerous glass apparatuses. Many materials reacted within, then flowed in an orderly manner to be input into the next stage of the reaction process.

The seemingly busy laboratory was operating methodically, every step under Dorothy's meticulous mental supervision.

Unlike her usual lazy demeanor, this golden-haired genius alchemist was exceptionally focused when in work mode. Various symbols swirled in her pupils as she continuously manipulated potions, applying various Runic Imprints to regulate the reactions.

About forty minutes later, a small test tube containing a light purple powder appeared in her hand. As Dorothy gently shook it, the powder inside floated up like a light mist.

Seeing she had finished the preparation, the apprentices who had been waiting for a long time watched with curious eyes.

"Is this the finished product?" they wanted to know if it was successful or not.

"That's right, but we still need to test its effectiveness." Dorothy turned around and walked over to the apprentices. Here, glass cages used to restrain the 'Gray Sludge' were placed, some containing the 'Gray Sludge', others empty.

The apprentices carefully opened the glass lids. Dorothy then put on special identification goggles, opened the test tube stopper, and carefully sprinkled a tiny amount inside.The powder, like a hazy smoke and dust, drifted into the glass boxes. Some showed no reaction, while others left shimmering light dot traces on the inner glass walls, indicating the presence of minute 'Gray Sludge' organisms in those spots.

"The effect is good, but it still needs improvement." Dorothy held a pen in one hand, constantly jotting down thoughts flashing through her mind.

"The reaction color is too faint, not eye-catching enough. If not in a sealed environment, it's easily blown away by the wind. A certain concentration is needed, otherwise it won't produce an effect either..." She noted these shortcomings.

Over the next two days, Dorothy continued making improvements until a suitable sample was finally born.

"Tia, you test this one." She called for Sylutia, asking her to test the effectiveness of the newly made medicinal powder.

Because Sylutia was currently the only person in the garrison who could detect all traces of 'Gray Sludge' by her own ability. Only she could truly compare and determine the effectiveness of the 'Revealing Powder'.

"Alright." Sylutia agreed.

After receiving the powder, she first mentally noted the scattered 'Gray Sludge' traces on the large piece of glass in front of her. Then she opened the bottle stopper, sprinkled out the powder, letting it diffuse and float.

Soon, these hidden 'Gray Sludge' on the glass revealed faint silver-blue gradient traces. This color was rare in nature and particularly eye-catching.

Guided by these silver-blue gradient glows, the other apprentices used special alchemical powder to burn and eliminate the 'Gray Sludge' on the glass. After repeating this a few times, they sprinkled the powder again. This time, no more silver-blue traces appeared.

"That will do." Sylutia nodded with satisfaction.

"Can it be mass-produced?" Sylutia looked towards Dorothy beside her.

"Possible, but the raw materials are limited and can't withstand waste. Also, me making it alone is too slow. I need a skilled helper." As she said this, Dorothy's eyes stared directly at the young girl before her.

"Fine, I understand. You want my help, right?" Sylutia could easily see what this one was thinking.

"Hehe, Little Tia understands, that's good."

...

The fierce winds on the wilderness continued. The team dispatched from the town to contact the association headquarters only managed to return with great difficulty after six days.

"How is the situation?" Seeing these exhausted apprentices, Sylutia inquired.

"We managed to get the message out. But according to the contact response, the association side still needs one or two weeks to mobilize personnel and find a solution."

"About what I expected."

Sylutia was already familiar with the Hidden Grove association's pace of handling matters. They would act, but the speed was hard to accelerate because notifying, coordinating, and communicating with personnel from various branches and organizations all took time.

Over these two days, she had been working with Dorothy in the alchemy lab to produce the newly developed revealing powder. They still needed two more days to complete the planned quantity.

Three days later, the Storm gradually subsided. Sylutia and Dorothy led a group of elite apprentices, setting out from the town towards 'Ironwall Precipice'. By now, twelve days had passed since they sent the message.

Riding well-trained warhorses, the group galloped forward through the harsh weather, traversing the complex mountainous terrain and canyons within the Darkmist Mountains, finally reaching their destination.

Sylutia halted her warhorse, looking up into the distance. Far ahead, on mountain walls resembling gray iron, structures of the same gray color as the cliff face were dotted. Some flickered with faint lamplight at night, appearing and disappearing intermittently.

"That's right. Those tall cliff-face buildings on both sides of the canyon are the garrison here. It's said originally nearly 1,600 people were stationed here, distributed along the lengthy cliff sides." One apprentice answered.

"Let's go."

The group continued urging their horses forward, ascending along the steep plank roads on the canyon's side. They reached the ridge atop the cliff, then traveled along a road winding like a Great Wall across the undulating terrain. Only after a full day did they arrive at the high cliff garrison they had seen from afar the previous day.

Sylutia stepped forward, lowered her hood, revealing her beautiful features and silver-snow hair, then took out the Badge proving her identity.

"I am the representative from the Lantern Town garrison. Having received your call for aid, I've come specifically to provide support."

"Support?" He seemed to roughly understand the situation, but at this moment, he shook his head.

"The situation inside the Ironwall Precipice garrison is dire now. Over half the members are already seriously ill and can hardly move. The remaining are just barely holding on. If you go in, you'll likely get quickly infected too, adding to the burden inside."

"Don't think we look okay. Actually, the few of us are practically the only ones left in the entire garrison who can still stay conscious and have enough energy to stand guard here." He replied from the watchtower, a few other people appearing beside him, all looking utterly exhausted.

"If you come in without conditions like ours, you'd only cause trouble."

"I understand. After rescuing that knight, I discovered the peculiarities of these 'Gray Sludge'." Sylutia explained, then remembered something and took out a letter.

"This is a letter from Knight Zaria, along with the 'Revealing Powder' we brought. He detailed the situation inside. Please deliver it to the garrison's Commander. He will understand."

Sylutia tossed the items over. They were caught by the soldiers on the watchtower. They examined the letter and powder, tested it a few times, seemingly confirming it was effective, then relayed a message to Sylutia below.

"We will report this to the Commander as soon as possible. But we still cannot let you in now. This is actually for your own good. Please go to the bend on the eastern side of the mountain path. Head that way, there's an abandoned small camp. You can take shelter and camp there for now to avoid the wind. If there's any news, I will notify you as soon as possible."

Sylutia led the team away for the time being. The soldiers guarding the plank road dispatched a few men who spurred their horses, galloping at full speed towards the garrison fortress not far away.

They advanced through the harsh environment holding their torches high. The flames resembled tiny, faint dots amidst the swirling snowstorm, giving the illusion they could be extinguished at any moment.