The Primal Hunter's
The Ceilings of Malefic Viper

Jake focused as he sensed the mana flowing through his body and into the reddish mixture in the bowl in front of him. He felt that this would be one. After nearly twenty failed attempts, this must have been the first.

For almost an entire day, he tried to make a health potion. He was initially very positive, believing that it would be a cakewalk given his experience with mana potions. But my goodness, is he wrong.

Most of the process became much easier than his first attempt at concocting potions. But the mana injection still left him confused. He had to do it in a way that would bring out the natural healing properties in red lavender and successfully combine it with Evergreen Grass.

It changes the properties of mana by filtering it through a bowl and becoming herbal. The normal mana is relatively easy to control, but becomes more problematic when Jake has to change it. Plants and mosses serve as catalysts for mana, binding themselves to them.

The main goal is to make the liquid in batches resemble the energy that is the health point. Also known as vital energy. The potion itself already contained a lot of this energy, but he had to take it out and make it into an actual herb.

To be honest, Jake is still not entirely sure how everything works; he just follows what the book says and what feels right at the time. He has long learned that a lot of crafting is 'feeling' what to do more than just following a few step-by-step guidelines. As long as your basic methodology can be used, chances are you won't be wrong. At least with a low rarity potion.

Fortunately, this time, he did not fail. With a final push, the liquid gave off a refreshing smell, and he could barely contain his excitement as the system message appeared.

*You have successfully created [Health Potion (Inferior)] – New types of creations have been created. Experience bonus gained.

*'DING!' Profession: [Alchemist of the Malefic Viper] has reached level 5 - Allotted stat points, +2 free points*

*'DING!' Race: [Human (G)] has reached level 7 - Allotted stat points, +1 free points*

He did a small cheer as he bottled the health potion. He only produced three of the entire batch, but success was success. One of the main reasons why the amount of the herb varies is the pure water that evaporates during brewing.

According to the book, in a perfect scenario, almost no water would be lost. This will, in turn, cause more of the energy contained in the herbs not to be wasted. Jake is currently wasting a lot of valuable energy, especially since he honestly still sucks.

But then again, he had only been an alchemist for less than two days. He couldn't be expected to become a potion master instantly. Next to the note, his free points were once again thrown into discretion.

Apropos became a master of alchemy. After reaching level 5 in his profession, another message appeared along with the level rise. One he had been waiting for.

*Alchemist skills available from Malefic Viper*

Jake opened the menu. The first thing he noticed was that there were far fewer skills to choose from compared to his archer class. But it's not a bad thing. All those skills could be said to be 'fillers'. Passive weapon skills were useless especially, all of which he was not interested in at all, and each of them was extremely rare. The alchemy profession had none of that. Instead, it only gave him six options. He started to pass them one by one.

[Pill Consolidation (Inferior)] – Alchemy pathways are diverse and methods are myriad, potion making but one of the main lines, the other is pill consolidation. Pills come in many forms, but most have the goal of empowering the person who consumes them, both temporarily and for good. Must have the appropriate ingredients and equipment to make the pill. Adding a slight improvement to the effectiveness of pills produced based on discretion.

Reading everything, Jake had to scratch his chin a little. Consolidating pills seemed to be useful; however, Jake was not interested at all right now. He had enough trouble making potions, and he still had poison to make according to his schedule. Moreover, he was still somewhat unclear about the difference between pills and potions. The description does offer a hint, mentioning permanent benefits. But it also compares two similar 'paths.

While the promise of a permanent buff is very tempting, unless those permanent benefits include not dying in less than a month, she is not that interested. So, learning about the miracle of the alchemy pill was something for later, if ever. For now, he went on to check out the next skill.

[Geology (Inferior)] – Provides knowledge of minerals and other similar natural riches found throughout the multiverse. These natural treasures can be combined with other ingredients to amplify or bring out powerful magical effects. After all, an alchemist should be able to distinguish magic stones from ordinary pebbles.

[Metallurgy (Inferior)] – Provides knowledge of metal materials and substances found throughout the multiverse. Many types of rare and powerful metals are found throughout the multiverse and can be combined with other materials to amplify or produce powerful magical effects, not limited to just alchemical products.

Jake decides to group these together because they are somewhat similar. They were like Herbology and Toxicology skills, only for stones and metals. Or well, geology does include things that cannot be strictly defined as stone, but to be honest, he doesn't really care. He had always regarded geologists as a strange group, and there was no way he would spend his days searching for, or studying, rocks.

Therefore, he moved quickly.

[Sense Herb (Common)] – Provides a passive ability to detect herbs and a rough feeling of their properties. After all, an alchemist should be able to find ingredients to make his product. Adding a slight increase in the effectiveness of Herb Sense based on perception.

[Sense Poison (Rare)] – Provides passive ability to detect toxic substances and their toxicity levels. After all, an alchemist should be able to find ingredients to make his product. Adding a slight increase to the effectiveness of the Poison Sense based on perception.

Both of these skills, in his honest opinion, are indispensable. That would be great in the forest or anywhere else, as finding plants and toxic materials that he could create was likely not only found lying. Or perhaps it was so, he would not have known without the skills to help him find them. Or he would be forced to explore the bushes constantly. But while he considered it important, finding the ingredients was not a challenge in his current situation.

He must need them. But the latter skill made it very clear that he would not choose any of them.

[Palate of the Malefic Viper (Rare)] – Malefic Viper has honed its venom by devouring the myriad toxins found throughout the multiverse. In a similar vein, the Alchemist of the Malefic Viper can consume poisons to study their effects and properties. Provides immunity or alchemist resistance to most low-grade poisons. Through consumption, may your strength grow, through gluttony may your Records flourish.

Okeyy. is the first thought after reading it. Most of the descriptions are rather straightforward, but this one is a little more flavorful, especially in the latter part.

Based on its name, this one was clearly related to its alchemist variant. Thinking about the effects of the skill, the prospect of eating blue mushrooms came as both fun and horrible at the same time. He did hate those damn things, so the thought of eating those bastards was fun, but on the other hand, they were blue magic mushrooms.

Shaking his head, he picked the skill. Surprisingly, he felt nothing despite obtaining other rare ranked skills. He had to open his status screen and check to make sure that he did have the skill.

Confirming that he did, he walked into the cave and saw a mushroom. He decided to choose Flyeater. He took it because it became a lesser rarity. He assumed that even if his skill did not work as he believed, it would not kill him.

[Flytrap Mushroom (Inferior)] – Carnivorous and poisonous mushrooms that eat insects to accelerate their growth.

Taking the mushroom, he examined it closely. Calling it taste would be a direct lie. Instead of Jake being the best judge, he hated mushrooms even before the tutorial. Just thinking about people who are willing to add it to salads is one of the biggest mysteries of life.

He never used it for .. 'leisure' purposes as well, although he knew some who did it during his college days. And yes, he has been offered a lot, even though he hardly ever participates in social gatherings. A man even knocked on his door at 4am, randomly offering him a bag. Although he was pretty sure the man was looking for Andrew, his roommate at the time.

Oh well, there's no better time to make mushrooms than when stuck in a dungeon with a life time of less than a month , jake thought as he threw his first Flyeater Mushroom into his mouth.

The first thing that hit him was the taste. Or rather, a lack of taste. It's a bit chewy, but it doesn't have much flavor, honestly. He half wished it tasted like chicken. The liquid coming out of the shroom let out a hissing sound when it came into contact with his saliva. It is not painful or uncomfortable in any way; it is more akin to drinking a carbonated drink.

However, Jake has no time to think too much about it as strange feelings about consciousness engulf him. Similar to if someone has been struggling with a math problem for hours, and then suddenly, something clicks, and the solution comes to you.

He now knew a lot, not about the mushroom itself, but the poison it had. It feels familiar to him now. But he also knew that knowledge was incomplete. A single mushroom is not enough to really get used to its properties, far from it. And so, the party began.

The cave is big. Very large. Same with the park. Jake knew it was impossible for him to use all the ingredients found here in 30 days, even if he was several times faster at performing alchemy.

But now he started to worry a little as he ate the Flyeater for the sake of the Flyeater. He had to be true to himself; that sense grew on him. Or maybe it's just a feeling of actually eating himself up for the knowledge and understanding he finds so intoxicating.

After eating too much, he finally stopped. First of all, because his stomach started to hurt from the satiety. Second, the diminishing results have kicked in hard. The first few mushrooms give the most, but the last ones hardly help.

Now, he felt very familiar with those little troublemakers. Although he did not intend to confirm it at this time, he felt this familiarity would be of great help when concocting poison later.

Feeling full, he decided to return to the laboratory. She felt a little tired earlier from trying to make a health potion, but now she felt refreshed. Seeing this stamina, he noticed that it had actually increased due to his eating frenzy. It was only two very few points, but it had already gone up. But even more surprising is where it is. It had been replenished, he had recovered over 100 points.

But thinking about it further, it does make sense. Although it does not contain much, mushrooms definitely store some mana. And he ate it with skill definitely meant that he instantly devoured the mana within it.

Feeling renewed, he began trying to make a second successful health potion. He wanted to immediately try making poison, considering that it was the focus of his profession and so on. But he decided not to do it before he got the chance to eat the moss.

She also tried lavender. They felt like trash and did not give him any knowledge. So the skill was indeed only working on poison.

After cleaning the mixing bowl, he poured some water into it, before adding some Green Grass. The flowers only come later after the grass is completely saturated with mana. Part of the process went relatively easy, much easier than before, and he quickly got to the point where he put in red lavender.

This is the part that often makes him confused. You have to inject mana into the herb rather quickly, or it will spoil the mixture. But too soon, or done incorrectly, otherwise, the batch will also break down. But again, the ease of the process surprised him.

A few minutes later, he stood up with another successful batch, even producing four bottles. Without a doubt, he started another round and once again met with success, producing only three potions this time around. But it does confirm it's not a coincidence.

Two or more hours later, and a large amount of potions, he was once again greeted with another level.

*'DING!' Profession: [Alchemist of the Malefic Viper] has reached level 6 - Allotted stat points, +2 free points*

As usual, he put free points into wisdom. At this point, his wisdom had become the second highest status, only behind vitality.

He opened his stat page, feeling somewhat pleased. He thought about how much fun it would be to see his skills on the menu, which surprisingly just.

Status

Name: Jake Thayne

Race: [Human (G) – lvl 7]

Grade: [Harmer – lvl 9]

Profession: [Alchemist of the Malefic Viper – lvl 6]

Health Points (HP): 510/510

Which Points (MP): 324/480

Durability: 247/270

Statisticians

Power: 30

Agility: 33

Durability: 27

Vitality: 51

Toughness: 23

Wisdom: 48

Intelligence: 18

Perception: 46

Willingness: 32

Free points: 0

Title: [New World Predecessor], [Bloodline Patriarch]

Skill Class: [Basic One-handed Weapon (Inferior], [Basic Stealth (Inferior)], [Advanced Land (General)], [Archer's Eye (General)]

Professional Expertise: [Herbology (General)], [Brew Banquet (General)], [Toxic Poison (General)], [Toxicology (Rare)], [Viper Male Poison (Range)], [Toxicology (Rare)], [Malefic Viper Poison (Rare) )]

Race Skills: [Identification (General)], [Undless Tongue of the Myriad Race (Unique)]

Bloodline: [Primal Hunter Bloodline (Blood Line Capability - Unique)]

He's gained more skills since he entered the tutorial, and it's strangely satisfying to see his growth laid out in front of him like that. He was still doubtful whether throwing everything into wisdom was the right decision. Perhaps it was in this dungeon, but assuming he survived the challenge, he would barely grow in his strength, agility, and perception.

But again, it's still early days. The poison is bound to increase Jake's offensive prowess significantly.

As he contemplated the future, he felt a rumble in his stomach. A rumble that quickly got worse. This is when Jake learns why this dungeon has a toilet.

It turns out that eating a little over a hundred mushrooms and making them your only food for two days is not the healthiest diet. What follows is Jake spending more than an hour stuck in the toilet, contemplating the madness of eating mushrooms earlier. He hoped the moss would be softer in his intestines.

After a less pleasant experience, she also learned why the bathroom was equipped with a shower. Because he must need it most.

Before the tutorial, he was the type of person who took a shower almost every day. If he goes to the gym or has done a lot of archery, it often results in those two days. During the holidays he can be a little lazy about it, but he doubts he has ever been dirtier than these past few days.

The positive part of her toilet tour, however, was that her stomach felt less full. He wasn't ready to eat the moss yet, but he was already there. Mental fatigue also began to approach him. His need for sleep had been significantly reduced, but he still had to rest occasionally.

With that in mind, he picked up the book Poisons: The Elementary, and went to sleep. When he woke up again, he would concoct potions again, eat moss, and finally start concocting poison.