Reincarnated as a blue dragon, he collided head-on with a wizarding civilization.

The next morning, as dawn broke, Motu found Qiuye by the small river on the east side of the camp.

She sat on that familiar rock, facing the river, her legs crossed, the hem of her dark blue robe spread out on the rock. In her hand she held a herbal scroll, mostly burned, with grayish-white ash hanging precariously from the end.

Motu walked a short distance behind her, stopped, and squatted down to make sure his height didn't create a sense of oppression.

"Akino-senpai."

Akino turned his head to the side.

Her deep brown, vertical pupils appeared clear in the morning light. She looked Mo Tu up and down, a habitual slight smile curving her lips.

"Hey, you don't look too good. Didn't you sleep well last night? Or did you have another argument with that girl Green Tile?"

"The alchemy attempt failed."

Motu didn't beat around the bush and spoke directly, his voice carrying a hint of frustration and confusion.

"I tried five times."

Akino didn't respond immediately. She first tapped the ash that was about to fall off the edge of the rock, then took a deep drag and slowly exhaled a cloud of bluish-white smoke.

The smoke rose in the cool morning light, only to be quickly torn apart and carried away by the breeze blowing from the river.

"Five times..."

She pondered the number, her tone devoid of blame, yet carrying a sense of understanding.

"You haven't even opened a single page of 'Basic Knowledge of Potions,' have you? And you dare to start brewing directly according to the recipe?"

Her question hit the nail on the head.

"I looked at the recipe and steps in the booklet and thought I could just follow them," Motu admitted.

Akino shook his head slightly, a hint of "I knew it" flashing in his deep brown vertical pupils.

"Potion making is not as simple as just putting the ingredients in order."

She put the cigarette back in her mouth, held up her fingers, and counted them one by one, as if listing the most basic points.

"Each material has its unique medicinal properties. At what temperature is it most active? Which materials does it synergize with? Which materials does it antagonize? How does the rhythm guided by magic match the reaction cycle of the materials?"

These things won't be written in the recipe or the manual. You'll have to look for them in a specialized book.

She lowered her hand, her gaze returning to Motu's face with the insightful scrutiny of a senior examining a junior.

"What you lack right now is not the ability to manipulate magic or execute steps, but the most fundamental knowledge that underpins all of this."

She lowered her hand and looked at Motu.

What you lack right now is not talent, but knowledge.

Motu remained silent for a moment.

The morning breeze blows across the river, bringing with it moist air and the scent of earth.

He looked up, his golden, vertical pupils staring directly at Akino: "Where can I get this book?"

Akino took one last drag on the nearly burnt-out cigarette in her hand, then skillfully stubbed it out on the rock, casually stuffing the remaining bit into her large sleeve pocket.

She leaped lightly off the rock, brushing off the dew and stone chips clinging to the hem of her robe.

"The Fundamentals of Potions... a certified version from the official Wizarding Guild, available in the market. You might find it at the stalls in Blackwood Market along your patrol route, which sell both general merchandise and information, if you're lucky."

She paused, her gaze seemingly piercing through the trees and landing on the north.

"But to get there, you'll need currency—common gold or silver coins—or barter—something that will tempt the vendors. And..."

She turned her gaze away from Motu, her tone now carrying a more realistic consideration:

"Entering such a chaotic place as someone of dragon bloodline inherently means attracting extra attention and causing inconvenience. If you've ever been to a market before, you should already understand that."

Motu's mind flashed before his eyes the short spears of the two guards, and deeper still, the cold, appraising gaze of the blood-robed wizard as if he were inspecting goods.

He really doesn't want to go to that kind of place again anytime soon.

Akino seemed to sense Motu's resistance from the subtle changes in his expression.

The habitual curve of her lips deepened slightly, as if she had expected it.

"However, you don't need to worry too much."

She changed the subject, and the confidence and composure that belonged to the deputy captain of the border defense team returned to her tone.

"The Dragon's Nest Legion has been operating in this border region for so many years. From fighting day and night with the Kingdom of Shane to now gaining a foothold, they have finally accumulated some connections and resources of their own."

The legion has its own exchange system.

Motu raised his head, his golden vertical pupils staring intently at her.

Akino slowly took something out of her large, dark blue sleeve pocket.

A palm-sized, two-finger-thick, dark gray slice.

It looks like a slate, but its texture is finer, and its surface is polished smooth, giving it a metallic or jade-like luster.

On the surface of the thin sheet, a few lines of concise information are engraved with a kind of black line that will not fade.

She handed over the thin slice.

"The military merit book. That girl Green Tile must have mentioned it to you a bit, right?"

Motu took the cool, smooth slice.

It is clearly engraved on it:

【Motu Blue Scales】

[Affiliation: 7th Border Defense Squad]

[Cumulative Military Merits: 45]

"Routine patrols earn 3 basic military merit points per day. You've been in the team for five days, totaling 15 points."

Akino's voice explained clearly from the side.

"Confirmed enemy unit kills are calculated based on level and type. Blood Desert Eagle, a Tier 1 reconnaissance unit, can be exchanged for 10 military merits for each kill with a specific marker. You submitted two complete eagle beaks yesterday, +20."

She reached out and took the thin sheet back, then gently pressed her finger on a spot on the back. The sheet, which originally only contained information on the front, began to ripple with a faint light, revealing a more detailed list and a categorized index of redeemable items. Although the entries were extremely simple, they were enough to show how broad the scope was.

"Military merit is a valuable asset in our border defense teams."

Akino pointed at the appearing entries with his finger as he spoke.

"It can be exchanged for many things."

Specialties from the Dragon's Nest controlled territory, such as dragon blood crystals of varying purity, rare materials from certain high-level magical beasts, and the output of certain mineral veins;

It can also be used to exchange for valuable items from the Tower of Holy Blood, including finished potions, engraved rune tools, and... scrolls and books of wizarding knowledge at various levels.

Her gaze shifted from the thin film back to Motu's face.

"The standard version of 'Basic Knowledge of Potions' from the Tower of Holy Blood requires 20 military merits to apply through internal channels."

I can help you submit the application; the process will be much faster and safer than trying your luck on the black market.

Motu nodded almost without hesitation: "Change."

Akino didn't seem surprised by his decisiveness. He simply nodded slightly, manipulated the thin sheet with his fingers again, and then put it back into his sleeve.

"The application has been submitted. If all goes well, the items should arrive here by tomorrow evening."

The next day, around dusk.

As expected, Akino found Motu stretching his muscles at the edge of the camp.

Without saying much, she took a rectangular object wrapped in thick oilcloth from behind her back and handed it over.

Motu took it.

Unwrapping the thick oilcloth revealed not the old, worn-out manuscript I had expected, but a brand-new book that exuded a faint scent of ink and paper.

The cover is a solid, dark blue hard shell with a dark gold trim around the edge, and it feels smooth and slightly cool to the touch.

The spine of the book is sturdy, and it also has a dark blue background with the words "Basic Potions (Standard Edition)" printed in striking silver-white lettering.

Below, there is a line of small print indicating the publisher: "The Seventh Publishing Bureau of the Tower of Holy Blood".

The book was perfectly wrapped in a thin, transparent wax paper, with a special institution's emblem seal affixed to the opening—a complex pattern composed of test tubes, crucibles, and abstract magical runes.

The seal was intact, indicating that the book was a brand new, unread, and officially published book.

Motu carefully removed the seal and peeled off the wax paper.

The pages are clean and crisp, with neatly cut edges, and they smell pleasantly of pulp and ink.

Turning to the inner pages, the font is a clear and uniform printed typeface, neat and easy to read.

The illustrations are not hand-drawn, but rather exquisite prints reproduced using some kind of alchemy or printing technique. The lines are clear, the details are accurate, and the color markings are extremely standardized.

Each chapter is neatly formatted, from the most basic definition and historical development of potion-making to material taxonomy, potion theory, reaction principles, basic operating procedures, and the use of common tools...

The content is systematic and comprehensive, with standardized entries for each type of material, detailing its scientific name, alternative names, morphological characteristics, magical attributes, main medicinal properties, key points for collection and processing, common compatibility and contraindications, etc.

The whole book exudes a cold, precise, and systematic official air, which is completely different from the crude and casual nature of Qiuye's previous animal skin manual.

This is precisely the standardized way of knowledge transmission advocated by large wizarding organizations like the Tower of Holy Blood.

"Standard teaching material for the Tower of Holy Blood".

Akino's voice rang out from the side, carrying a hint of barely perceptible emotion.

"Although it is only the most basic part, the system is complete and the expression is rigorous, which is much more reliable than those miscellaneous handwritten copies circulating on the market."

"Read carefully and thoroughly understand the principles behind it; it will be more effective than blindly trying ten times."

Motu nodded solemnly, his fingers tracing the smooth pages. He could feel the immense weight of knowledge this book carried.

"I will study it carefully," he said, his voice filled with determination.

"Um."

Akino said no more, simply waving his hand.

"Go ahead. If there's anything you really can't chew, come ask again."

"it is good."

Motu turned around and went back to his stone house.

This time, he intends to truly calm down and understand the details that had caused him to fail repeatedly from the root.