A month later, Locke gazed at the Rot Soil Konjac resting on the white workbench in his small laboratory.
This Rot Soil Konjac was a Level 7 synthetic plant he had created by combining three ordinary Rot Soil Konjacs using the Synthetic Magic Cube.
The entire plant was a dull green, with eight thick, crimson petals (actually modified leaf structures resembling petals), all covered in blue-purple spots—parasitic fungi.
This was also the means by which the Rot Soil Konjac manipulated living creatures, created large-scale plagues, and propagated.
Unlike ordinary variants, the Level 7 Rot Soil Konjac was not only significantly larger in size but also bore a dark green Green Leaf Crown at its apex. Additionally, the tips of its eight thick, deep-red petals had sprouted enormous spikes.
Locke examined the description of this Level 7 Rot Soil Konjac:
[Level 7 Synthetic Item: A mutated product among ordinary Rot Soil Konjacs, with a probability of one in ten thousand. All traits are approximately twice as potent as the common variety.]
[Capable of secreting extremely dangerous neurotoxic fungi. These fungi not only disrupt neural transmission but can also temporarily manipulate an opponent's sensory cognition through fungal spore parasitism, distorting their senses and reversing their cognitive abilities.]
The most formidable aspect of the Rot Soil Konjac was its ability to disperse these neural-disrupting fungi into the air.
The Level 7 Rot Soil Konjac King greatly enhanced this neural interference, even capable of distorting a creature's senses and creating false perceptions.
This upgrade alone had more than doubled the Rot Soil Konjac's inherent value.
A specimen of this quality would have been nearly impossible to find on the previous reward list.
Seasoned First Class Wizard Apprentices would be scrambling for it—how could it ever fall into the hands of newly promoted apprentices?
Locke reviewed all the steps of the Mayfly Firecracker cantrip model before carefully placing an oak wood board on the workbench, engraved with 49 Ogham Tree Runes.
Ogham Tree Runes were the foundation of plant magic.
The Poison Berry Catapult had used only 21 Ogham Tree Runes, Multiple Manipulation required 30, and the simpler Vine Hand cantrip had needed just 16.
But this Mayfly Firecracker required a staggering 49 Ogham Tree Runes!
This was because it was an advanced 0.8-level Spell—a magic only First Class Wizard Apprentices could learn and wield. Its complexity far surpassed that of the Vine Hand series, even the Vine Frenzy series of Spells.
Locke double-checked to ensure none of the Ogham Tree Runes were misaligned or incorrectly carved.
If even one rune was wrong, transplanting the Mayfly Firecracker into his Mana—transforming his Mana into a Magical Field to cultivate the Rot Soil Konjac King—would be extremely perilous.
At best, he would suffer backlash from the Rot Soil Konjac King, severely damaging his Mana. At worst, an unpredictable reaction between him and the Rot Soil Konjac King could leave him gravely injured—or even dead.
"Ochraige~" Locke began chanting the intricate incantation, his Mana continuously flowing into the Corpse Soil Konjac.
Sensing Locke's Mana, the Rot Soil Konjac King reacted. Its thick petals and crown-like green leaves trembled slightly while its roots began writhing with insatiable greed, even attempting to directly attack Locke to drain his Mana.
The rotting, foul-smelling roots of the Rot Soil Konjac King coiled around Locke's back, creeping through his collar and cuffs toward the skin beneath his clothes.
Locke's gaze remained indifferent—this was exactly what he had anticipated.
This was one of the major dangers of the Mayfly firecracker technique.
Overly powerful Magic Plants could actively turn against their wizards.
Thus, transplanting a Rot Soil Konjac King was far more perilous than transplanting an ordinary Corpse Soil Konjac.
Locke continued his chant, and his Mana transformed into a crushing pressure that bore down on the Rot Soil Konjac King, forcing it into submission.
The roots of the Rot Soil Konjac King struggled violently, as if unwilling to yield.
From within its flower came a sound resembling the whimper of an animal.
Yet its roots still clung greedily to Locke's skin, absorbing his Mana in a fierce tug-of-war.
The Berserk Rhino Magic Resistance Leather Armor Locke wore as an underlayer—a mid-grade Enchanted Item—was soon torn to shreds, riddled with holes.
Thankfully, the armor had protected his body from harm.
During this struggle, a belt adorned with thirty pieces of Cyan Jade—synthesized over this period—hung at Locke's waist.
The belt was discreetly concealed, and since Locke rarely wore it openly, other wizards seldom noticed he possessed so much Cyan Jade.
Each piece could store ten points of Mana, totaling three hundred. With this reserve flooding back into him, Locke's Mana surged dramatically.
Thus, at the critical moment of the tug-of-war, the scales tipped in Locke's favor. His Mana overwhelmed the Rot Soil Konjac King completely.
One by one, the Ogham Tree Runes on the worktable vanished, while the dark green surface of the Rot Soil Konjac King's body lit up with Runes.
After about half an hour, forty-nine Ogham Tree Runes had manifested across its surface, sinking in to form an intricate cantrip model.
The roots of the Rot Soil Konjac King fused entirely with Locke's Mana, linking them together. The plant then levitated midair behind Locke, rotating slowly like a Ferris wheel.
It traced a perfect circle as it turned behind him.
The Mayfly firecracker technique involved using a cantrip model to modify the Corpse Soil Konjac, transplanting it and connecting it to the caster's Mana. This Mana sustained the plant while also enhancing it, granting it levitation capabilities and allowing it to launch forward like a spore cannonball.
Locke poured the Ephemera Flower Cannon Energy Modification Fluid he had prepared in advance onto the Rot Soil Konjac King floating behind him, completing the final step. During this last modification, he noticed the appearance of a rune image representing the Mayfly Firecracker within his mental sea.
With this, the Rot Soil Konjac King's spell potential would be fully unleashed by the [Mayfly Firecracker], enabling it to launch powerful fungal spore spells at enemies during combat—far faster and several times more potent than the fungi naturally produced by the Rot Soil Konjac King itself.
The difference between a mid-to-high-level Magic Plant controlled by a First Class Wizard Apprentice and one without such control was immense.
The level of threat they posed was entirely incomparable.
Locke let out a soft sigh of relief. "Finally done."
"If I hadn't used a large amount of Cyan Jade to assist me, I wouldn't have been able to complete the Mayfly Firecracker with my current Mana reserves."
"Thanks to my foundation in Potionology and a decent grasp of botanical spells, I could learn the spell model for the Mayfly Firecracker relatively quickly. But insufficient Mana is a hard limitation that can't be overcome in the short term."
"However, the Cyan Jade effectively compensated for this weakness of mine."
Locke chuckled. "By mastering this spell, my understanding of plant-based magic has deepened. I should aim to obtain my Breeder Certificate as soon as possible—then I can sell some higher-grade synthetic plants for profit."
"I need to lift myself out of poverty quickly."
"Let's test the Mayfly Firecracker's power first."
The Mayfly Firecracker on Locke's back fired a shot at one of the laboratory walls. Instantly, the Rot Soil Konjac King's eight thick petals spread open like a gaping mouth, revealing a dark interior densely packed with fungal spores.