The Trade District was southwest of the Old Town, less than a 10-minute walk away. A few minutes later, Zhou Ning, having arrived at the Trade District, began searching for a suitable Alchemy shop.
In his previous life's game, the Trade District was probably the most familiar place for players, as it was where they learned life skills and traded. In the game, you could always see a large number of players setting up stalls and engaging in PK there. Now, it was empty, and he felt a little unaccustomed to it.
He inquired at several Alchemy shops; either the Alchemy Laboratory was too rudimentary and didn't meet Zhou Ning's requirements, or the price was simply too expensive.
He had considered checking out the Vester Family's Alchemy shop before, but the Vester Family only operated high-end stores. He looked at the prices, and even after discounts, they were more expensive than others' undiscounted prices. He couldn't afford it, he couldn't afford it.
After visiting multiple Alchemy shops, Zhou Ning unexpectedly ran into a familiar face, survivor A, Richard Pesa, who had escaped Jason Nats Haunted House with him.
After a few days, Richard Pesa's complexion had become somewhat pale, though being Caucasian, it wasn't too noticeable.
He was walking quickly down the street when he saw Zhou Ning. He paused for a moment, then a warm smile appeared on his face: "Hello, Wayne, thank you for your help last time. I had wanted to visit Vik University to thank you in person, but you know, the school gates were closed for the past few days."
"You're welcome. Actually, I was just trying to protect myself," Zhou Ning said with a smile.
"For you, it might have been self-preservation, but for me, it was a genuine life-saving grace," Richard Pesa looked at Zhou Ning and asked, "Are you looking for something? I know this area well, so perhaps I can help."
Zhou Ning didn't stand on ceremony with him and nodded, "I need to buy a batch of herbs, and I also need to rent an Alchemy Laboratory."
Richard Pesa's eyes lit up immediately. He quickly said, "Herbs? Just come to me! I can give you a discount. As for an Alchemy Laboratory... I have a few spare ones at home; you can use them anytime."
Zhou Ning:...A few spare Alchemy Laboratories? Does your family own a mine?
Wait, what is that?
Zhou Ning looked curiously at a building under construction in the distance; it had a rather strange shape.
"This looks like a Poorhouse. They're in many places. People can exchange work for food and lodging here," Richard Pesa said.
"I see!" Zhou Ning nodded. Unbeknownst to him, he had followed the canal to Richard Pesa's family herb shop.
This sign is very familiar! Golden Oak Herb Shop. Wait, isn't this the shop of the Herbalism trainer in the game?
In the game, the owners of this shop were an elderly couple, who must be Richard Pesa's parents.
Zhou Ning looked at Richard Pesa with some surprise. This guy seemed unremarkable, but he was surprisingly well-connected.
By the steps of the herb shop, a few chuunibyou teenagers were gathered, playing a game called "Who is the weather child." In his previous life's game, "Apocalypse," there was also a group of such NPCs. He hadn't expected reality to be so faithful to the original.
Richard's mouth twitched slightly. He walked up to the teenagers and raised his voice: "Leandro, if I'm not mistaken, it should be time for you to study Alchemy!"
"No, Alchemy is boring! I'm a man who's going to be the weather child!" one black-haired teenager with a scar on his face clearly retorted, sticking out his neck.
Listening to this familiar chuunibyou line, Zhou Ning's heart skipped a beat. He recognized this person.
It was him, Leandro de Pesa! One of the children of the world who spanned four versions!
More importantly, Leandro was also the core character of the future Level 60 main storyline. Only through him could one accept the main quest. He was a definite golden opportunity.
Furthermore, the future Leandro also had several top-tier universal skills that all professions could learn. Befriending him would definitely not be a bad thing.
He hadn't expected that the random person he had inadvertently saved was actually Leandro's older brother.
At this moment, the future child of the plane, despite his displeasure, met someone who specialized in dealing with disobedience. After some education, his fate was seized by the throat, and he obediently followed home.
"Who is he?" Although Leandro was annoyed, he quickly perked up and asked, looking at Zhou Ning.
"He is my lifesaver, Wayne Strowell. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have made it back."
"Oh, thank you very much!" Leandro bowed to Zhou Ning.
[Leandro de Pesa's favorability towards you has greatly increased.]
It was not bad; it was a fortunate coincidence, at least he didn't have to grovel.
The subsequent process also went smoothly. As a not-so-small chain herb shop, supplying Zhou Ning's individual needs was just a drop in the bucket. But considering the need for a long-term supply, Zhou Ning still insisted on paying, and finally got a discounted price, 20% off, which benefited both parties.
As for the Alchemy Laboratory, Richard Pesa hadn't exaggerated; he really did have several idle Alchemy Laboratories at home.
One of them was truly suitable for Zhou Ning, located near Vik University, making it convenient to go to the Alchemy Laboratory before and after classes.
Secondly, the facilities were complete, almost as good as the Alchemy Laboratories in the school's Alchemy Building. There was even a small bed in the laboratory for resting, so he could occasionally sleep there instead of returning to the dorm.
Of course, the most crucial thing was the incredibly cheap price. Ordinary laboratories cost about 2 currency per hour, which would be at least 4 vikta a day. Now, Zhou Ning only needed to pay 30 vikta a month, which was perfect for a poor person like Zhou Ning with limited funds.
The trade-off was that Zhou Ning had to look after Leandro more at Vik University.
Back and forth, Zhou Ning was shamelessly tempted.
As for the cost... Does a world protagonist like Leandro need me to look after him? It's more likely the other way around!
Finally, the rent was settled at 30 vikta a month, with a one-month deposit and one-month payment upfront. Herbs would be delivered periodically.
Zhou Ning thanked him, chatted with Richard for a few more minutes, until a manservant brought out the lease agreement and placed it on the table.
After they both signed, Zhou Ning, barely concealing his heartache, counted out 60 vikta in cash and pushed it to Richard.
Richard took the cash without counting it, and then suddenly asked with some concern:
"Wayne, have you had any nightmares or heard any strange sounds these past few days?"
Just as he thought.
Zhou Ning, who had already suspected as much, replied, "Yes, I had a nightmare just last night."
Richard's expression was heavy: "Even you are like this? Alas..."
Looking at the dejected Richard, Zhou Ning thought for a moment, carefully choosing his words: "As far as I know, many people have experienced this phenomenon after the sacrifice. The Ascetic Church and the Sun Keepers should both have ways to alleviate, or even solve, this problem."
"The Ascetic Church?" Richard's eyes first lit up, then he shook his head with a bitter smile, "No, I worship the Nature Goddess. The Ascetic Church won't allow a heretic to enter. As for the Sun Keepers... let's talk about that later."
The two chatted for a while longer, then Richard, preoccupied with his thoughts, bid farewell and left.
After dealing with the Alchemy Laboratory, it was almost dinner time.
Indeed, just as the Weather forecast stick predicted, a heavy downpour began outside. Oddly, it was still sunny less than two hundred meters away.
Zhou Ning quickly filled his stomach and began busily tidying up the Alchemy Laboratory.
Although it truly pained him, he at least had a small base of his own in the game world, no matter what.
To celebrate, he wouldn't go back to sleep tonight... After tidying up the laboratory, Zhou Ning sat at the table and began trying to decipher the set of Alchemy books he had just bought.
The deciphering method was simple; the forum in his previous life had explained the steps: just convert the Ruins language into ancient faric language, then combine the 2nd, 4th, 6th, and 8th characters of each line to form new sentences.
In his previous life, that person had quest prompts throughout, and translation only required a progress bar. Now, Zhou Ning had to translate word by word.
Deciphering the Alchemy books took a full four hours.
"Done!" Zhou Ning rubbed his sore wrists.
These four hours of translation not only completed the deciphering but also gave him 4000 experience points, which was an unexpected bonus.
He reread the deciphered material, and sure enough, a panel notification appeared in his vision:
"You have obtained the Epic Skill Book: Windegun's Alchemy Insights."