Chapter 32: A Silver Reward, The Critical Point

[The Lumos Shrooms you cultivated have undergone an unknown mutation]

Seeing this line of text, Ciel's eyes held a hint of solemnity. He had encountered many instances of plant trait mutations in both his past and present lives. But it wasn't like most people thought that a plant mutation automatically meant it was amazing. In fact, most plant varieties that could be cultivated were already quite excellent. Mutations occurring on this basis… in most cases, they didn't improve the plant's performance. Instead, they degraded its traits.

It was precisely for this reason that Ciel's expression became solemn as soon as he saw the Lumos Shrooms undergoing an unknown mutation. He needed to determine exactly what factor caused this mutation in the Lumos Shrooms. If it was a random occurrence during proliferation or development, that was normal and nothing to worry about excessively. But if it was caused by external conditions, he needed to investigate quickly. Otherwise, the Lumos Shrooms in the entire experimental plot might mutate in this direction.

While this situation might cause a Herbologist who hadn't published a paper in a long time to be ecstatic, for Ciel, however, he only wanted the rewards from cultivating Lumos Shrooms!

Next, Ciel immediately inspected the experimental plot carefully.

"The soil shows no obvious change."

"The water source hasn't changed either."

"The duration of Lumos Charm exposure has been basically consistent during this period..."

"I haven't experienced any strong emotional fluctuations either..."

After eliminating various possibilities that could lead to the mutation, one by one, Ciel returned to the vicinity of the Lumos Shroom mycelium that had turned red.

"No other Lumos Shroom mycelium shows this situation," he murmured. "Then the last possible scenario is that there's something nearby."

He paused, a thought flickering in his mind. A week ago, after washing the blood off his hands, he seemed to have dripped a few drops in this exact area.

"Is it related to blood?" he wondered aloud. "Could blood cause Lumos Shrooms to undergo an unknown mutation?"

Ciel frowned. Professor Sprout hadn't told him about this. Perhaps it was also because there had been very little research done on Lumos Shrooms in the magical world. After all, this magical plant had no value for potions other than providing light. Herbologists would naturally focus their energy on more valuable magical herbs.

After a moment of hesitation, Ciel decided to test this hypothesis. He picked up a small, sterile knife and, with a grimace of concentration, drew it across his palm. After a strong sense of resistance, the knife finally managed to cut through Ciel's skin with difficulty, a testament to his fortified body. Ciel squeezed out a few drops of blood, letting it fall onto the mutated Lumos Shrooms in front of him and the surrounding area.

Ciel's gaze first fell on the Lumos Shrooms that had not yet mutated. After the blood fell on them, these Lumos Shrooms showed no reaction. The blood was simply absorbed by the soil. Ciel frowned. He didn't see anything special about the Lumos Shrooms after coming into contact with blood. Could he have guessed wrong?

But then, he looked at the mutated mycelium that had turned red. He saw the blood that landed on them being absorbed at an extremely fast rate. At the same time, these mycelia seemed to have taken a powerful tonic, growing thicker at a visible speed. The bright red color on them was also spreading rapidly. In the blink of an eye, they no longer resembled Lumos Shroom mycelium at all, but rather a completely new type of magical plant.

Ciel exhaled softly. "It seems this mutation is indeed related to blood. But blood is just a trigger; it doesn't necessarily cause Lumos Shrooms to mutate. There might be other conditions, or it could simply be a matter of chance, depending on luck." He mused for a moment, observing the strange, vibrant growth. "But regardless, I've inadvertently cultivated the first mutated plant variety in the magical world."

He thought for a moment, looking at the translucent, bright red mycelium in front of him. "Since this new variety is related to blood and has a translucent, jade-like appearance… let's name it Blood Jade."

At this moment, a line of text appeared above the Blood Jade mycelium.

[You have named the unknown mutated variety of Lumos Shrooms—Blood Jade.]

[You have successfully cultivated Blood Jade, you can obtain a reward—Unknown (Bronze Tier, Developing)]

[After Blood Jade matures, the reward will be upgraded to—Unknown (Silver Tier), Unknown (Iron Tier)]

Ciel's expression suddenly froze. Then his breathing quickened for a moment. Lumos Shrooms only provided Iron Tier rewards after maturing. But after mutating into Blood Jade, the reward could be upgraded to Silver Tier?! In terms of the richness of the reward, Blood Jade was already comparable to the Guardian Tree, which he'd been hoping to cultivate!

A thought flashed through Ciel's mind. Blood seemed to promote the growth of Blood Jade. Because he possessed Legendary-level Enhanced Vitality, the life force contained in his blood far exceeded that of ordinary people. Perhaps it could make Blood Jade mature faster.

Looking at the Blood Jade mycelium that had already absorbed all the blood he had just dripped, he reopened the wound that had healed in a short time and squeezed out more blood, dripping it onto the Blood Jade. Then, the Blood Jade indeed began to absorb the blood again. The mycelium danced joyfully and continued to grow thicker.

But soon, Ciel was disappointed to find that the Blood Jade's absorption of blood seemed to have reached a limit; it could no longer absorb any more blood. Moreover, its mycelium had already thickened to a certain extent. When other Lumos Shroom mycelium reached this thickness, they would have long since started forming caps and entered the final maturation phase. But the Blood Jade showed no such signs whatsoever. The reward light cluster above it also became stagnant.

Ciel sighed inwardly. As expected, plants with rewards on the same level as the Guardian Tree were not so easy to cultivate. It seemed that after Lumos Shrooms mutated into Blood Jade, the difficulty of cultivation also increased significantly. To make it mature, he probably needed to find some specific conditions. But with Ciel's Herbology skills, trying to figure out how to make Blood Jade mature without any prior knowledge… the difficulty was simply too high.

Therefore, Ciel decisively sought out Professor Sprout.

After hearing Ciel describe the situation with the Blood Jade, Professor Sprout first frowned and carefully checked Ciel's physical condition. Only after confirming that Ciel was not affected by dark magic or cursed did she finally relax and say seriously:

"Ciel." Her voice was stern, a rare display of true anger from his usually gentle aunt. "Many plants that require blood often give rise to dark magic. When you discovered this mutation, you shouldn't have continued dripping blood. You should have called me over immediately. You were lucky this time; this mutated plant didn't come with a curse. Otherwise, if you had been cursed and injured, what would I do? You're the only family I have left!"

Ciel quickly nodded, admitting his mistake. "Aunt," he said humbly, "I won't do it again next time."

Only then did Professor Sprout examine the Blood Jade. Astonishment also appeared in her eyes. It really was a magical plant she had never seen before. Professor Sprout clicked her tongue in wonder. "Amazing. Lumos Shrooms can actually undergo such a mutation. It's truly incredible. From the plant you call Blood Jade, I sense a vibrant magical energy. I think it's highly likely it can be used to brew some extremely effective healing potions." She paused, her gaze thoughtful. "However, looking at it, its maturation probably requires some specific conditions."

Ciel felt a surge of admiration. As expected of a Herbology Master. She could tell things he couldn't even detect with just a glance. "Aunt, you're amazing!" Ciel praised her sincerely.

Professor Sprout also smiled. "Alright, leave it to me to take care of. I'll figure out its characteristics and cultivation methods as soon as possible."

Ciel nodded, his eyes filled with anticipation. At this moment, Professor Sprout said with a smile, "Once this thing is researched, we should be able to publish a top Herbology paper. I'll be the corresponding author, and you, Ciel, will be the first author. An eleven-year-old first author on a top journal paper—that's an incredible achievement in the academic world! Adding fifty points to the House Cup wouldn't be an exaggeration!"

A moment later, Professor Sprout sighed. "Alright, even with these fifty points, it probably won't be enough. It hasn't been long, and the lead we Hufflepuffs had at the start of the year is already close to being overtaken. Severus is truly resorting to every possible means for the House Cup. Although he's been like this in previous years, it's worse this year. We can't do things like that."

Her expression grew resigned as she considered the broader politics of the House Cup. "As for Gryffindor…" Professor Sprout raised her eyebrows, fully aware of the situation. When the House Cup scores were finalized, even if Gryffindor was far behind, Dumbledore would undoubtedly find a thousand reasons for them to gain points. After all, Dumbledore could even create a special obstacle just to train the Savior, Harry Potter. How could Professor Sprout, who had participated in setting up the obstacles, not understand his intentions?

"Never mind," she sighed. "It's already quite good that we Hufflepuffs were able to lead for two weeks."

When Ciel heard Professor Sprout's words, his heart stirred. He said earnestly:

"There's Charms class tomorrow, Friday. Professor Flitwick said, There's a small Lumos Charm quiz tomorrow, and the first place gets ten points." He continued, his voice filled with a quiet determination, "And if I get first place in the final Lumos Charm test in two weeks, besides the reward of a spell tailored by Professor Flitwick, there are also twenty-five points. There are also points from Quidditch matches. This year, we Hufflepuffs might not be without a chance to contend for the House Cup."

Professor Sprout showed a gentle smile. "The House Cup is too difficult this year, we probably won't get it. But Ciel, I'm so happy that you have this mindset. We'll do our best. If we don't get first, getting second or even third is good. It's better than being last for the past few years."

Immediately, Professor Sprout left the greenhouse. After walking out, she turned back to look inside the greenhouse, seeming to still see Ciel's Lumos Charm flashing again. Professor Sprout sighed inwardly with a hint of bitterness. Ciel's effort was, of course, unparalleled throughout Hogwarts. It was no exaggeration to say that in all the years Professor Sprout had been teaching, she had never seen a young wizard work harder than Ciel.

But sometimes she had to admit, talent had a really big impact. Ciel seemed to have high hopes for the Charms class test. But this was a test set by the Ravenclaws' own Head of House. Even if the Ravenclaws weren't competitive, they probably wouldn't let other Houses easily take first place. Charms was also the subject Ravenclaws were best at. Professor Sprout was very worried that Ciel would be discouraged in the Lumos Charm test. She clenched her hand, a sense of urgency growing in her heart. I need to speed up my search for the ingredients for the Talent Enhancement Potion.

Meanwhile, Ciel, still in the greenhouse, didn't notice the worry in Professor Sprout's heart. He simply maintained his usual expression, continuing to cast Lumos Charms in the Lumos Shroom field. On the system panel, the bronze luster on the words "Lumos Charm" grew thicker and thicker. Until it reached a critical point.

(End of Chapter)

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