A Beekeeper in a Magical World

Hua Mi opened the blood-sucking bee box and found something unexpected falling out of it.

"Whoa, what's this?"

Fixing his gaze, Hua Mi noticed an irregular crystal, merely two or three inches long. The crystal, overall, had a faint bluish hue with faint streaks of red inside, resembling strands of blood.

He probed it with his spiritual power but gleaned no useful information. At least it didn't harbor the unstable magical energy like the Thunderfire Beads did.

As a flower spirit born from the Gifted Flower, Hua Mi lacked any perception abilities regarding the by-products related to the Thunder Blossom.

But there was the universal identification skill among the pseudo-flower spirits.

After some identification and discussion, they unanimously agreed that this item was harmless to humans. It was as stable as the ore produced in Heishi Town, devoid of radioactivity, and wouldn't cause any magical effects on the human body upon mere contact.

However, similar to the blood honey, it harbored some unfathomable magical elements inside. Hence, not recommended for consumption.

"..." Hua Mi pondered. "Not recommended for consumption? Who would even try eating this thing? It doesn't look edible; you'd risk breaking your teeth."

Without the pseudo-flower spirits' reminder and given its origin from the blood honey box, Hua Mi wouldn't dare put this thing in his mouth.

Examining the crystal in his hand, he sensed its smooth surface and hard texture, resembling more of a material—precisely a mineral.

Perhaps it held some special function? He needed a way to identify its properties to fully utilize it.

Yet, as a by-product of the blood-sucking bee honey, just like the honey itself, it didn't exist in this world. Most people here wouldn't be able to identify it.

He wondered if there was a super identification skill that could provide detailed information about the item, akin to an interface in a game. That would be much more convenient.

"Speaking of minerals and materials, the blacksmiths should be familiar," he mused.

Thinking of the blacksmiths, Hua Mi immediately recalled the room akin to a lava cave, where the towering figure of War Hammer tirelessly hammered materials.

Setting aside anything else, in terms of forging, few rivaled War Hammer's expertise, especially as the forger of the Demonslaying Sword.

Conveniently, he could head there.

As the Guardian of the Brass City, highly respected by War Hammer, it was easy for him to seek their identification. When he had time, he'd ask Alyss to open a portal, and off to the Brass City he'd go!

However, he wasn't sure if Alyss had any materials left to create the portal. If not, he might need to provide them himself. Masters didn't supply materials.

After contemplating his subsequent plans, Hua Mi relaxed. Storing the unknown material in his storage ring, he resumed bottling the honey.

This time, he harvested a total of 527 bottles of Thunder Blossom honey and 16 bottles of blood honey. With the honey collection done, it was already evening.

It was harvest day, and Hua Mi was in high spirits, albeit a bit tired. After consuming a bit of Thunder Blossom honey and recharging at the power outlet, he felt rejuvenated, the fatigue evaporating instantly.

Full of energy, he finally implemented an idea he had long considered.

He controlled the bees to secrete beeswax, enveloping the honey and forming honey pills—each containing about a spoonful of honey.

This method primarily catered to the Thunder Blossom and Gifted Flower honey, often in use.

It made consumption convenient; one could simply take it out from the ring and pop it in their mouth. Beeswax was also edible, combining it with honey added a unique flavor.

Otherwise, extracting honey from a bottle was too troublesome, especially in battles or emergencies where there wasn't time to savor it—the honey bottles could shatter.

One bottle of honey could yield around twenty to thirty honey pills. Since they didn't occupy much space, Hua Mi stayed up late crafting more, storing them in categorized sections within his ring.

This way, it became much more convenient.

Extending his spiritual power into the ring, he conjured an exquisite Gifted Flower honey pill. He tossed it into his mouth, chewing.

The beeswax, with its chewy texture, blended with the honey, filling his mouth with a sweet fragrance. Strangely, beeswax itself had no distinct taste, yet combined with honey, it became much more delicious than consuming honey directly. It added an element of amusement to the consumption, akin to some snacks' design philosophy.

Decided, Hua Mi planned to craft these honey pills for frequently used honey types—easy to carry and consume.

While others used medicine, he'd opt for honey pills.

---

Days passed.

Near the outskirts of Heishi Town, Carter and Hillar discussed the location selection for the alchemy workshop.

Suddenly, Col, with his booming voice, interrupted them.

"Hey, Carter, can you come over for a moment?"

Col stood downhill, waving at him, looking somewhat unusual.

Carter swiftly exchanged a few words with Hillar before heading towards Col.

"What's up, causing trouble again?"

"Not this time. It's about my friend…" Col looked worried. "That troubadour, seems like he's in trouble."

Carter knew who he referred to—the troubadour named Jimmy. They had met a few times before, visited taverns together.

Overall, Jimmy was an honest person, but like most troubadours, he had a somewhat reckless character that Hillar didn't appreciate.

However, being a troubadour, he had mastered the "Whispers on the Wind" ability, extracting secret intelligence from the wind.

At times, he shared useful information with them, equivalent to money for adventurers.

However, he was duly paid for his services.

"Seems like?"

"I couldn't grasp the full message, but I just received a fragmented 'Whisper' from him via Mordu. The information is partially destroyed, only catching a few words like 'abyss', 'association', 'curse' or something. I can't make head or tail of what he meant. Any ideas?"

At the mention of the abyss, Carter's expression turned serious. Linking it to the word "association" naturally led him to the Abyss Research Association. Adding the word curse didn't bode well.

Could the troubadour have misused his ability and stumbled upon some secret he shouldn't have known?

Considering the recent controversies, many countries and organizations were deliberating whether to send delegations to supervise the secretive Abyss Research Association.

In such sensitive times, what more could this association stir up?

Carter contemplated and asked, "Any other hints? Even if it's a partial sound, try imitating it."

Col rubbed his head in frustration. "There were some incomplete sounds that I couldn't understand or remember. I've tried contacting him through our connection, but I can't reach him. It means he must be in danger."

"Regardless, I need to visit Mordu."

"Have you considered that he might already be…"

"Even if he's dead, I need to find his body!" Col interrupted, then added hesitantly, scratching his head. "When I'm there, where should I start?"

Carter pondered for a moment, not answering his question directly but remarking, "So, this mission is about finding someone or gathering information, right?"

Col nodded. "That's right."

Carter shrugged. "That complicates things. Finding people and gathering information isn't your forte; it requires wit and adaptability."

"You're not wrong." Col wanted to retort but found himself agreeing, shrugging. "I'll try to be careful."

"Let me handle this. It's my forte."

"I can't ask you to do this. You might encounter danger…"

"I'm usually good at avoiding it, quite the opposite of you," Carter smiled. Changing the subject, he continued, "But let me clarify something beforehand. I'll only look for living people. If he's alive, I'll find him and get him out of trouble. But if I receive intelligence that he's dead, I'll immediately end the mission without risking anything to retrieve his body. Agreed?"

After a few seconds of contemplation, Col nodded firmly.

"Thank you, Carter."

"Don't thank me too soon. If I'm doing this for you, I might need your help with something. We'll talk about it later."

Carter glanced towards Hillar, saying, "Let's keep this from her. I'll tell her I'm going to Mordu to meet an old friend, will be away for some time. Be cautious not to spill the beans."

Col had no objections. "Sure thing."

Carter glanced at the sky, his thoughts drifting.

"Mordu… It's been a while."