Chapter 52
Nick was taken aback due to my resolution, he said "Good, very good . Perfect all the arts and then show the world what I taught you . Show them what you are made of!" . Nick then continued "I shall now show you how the Cloud Haze Poison is made . Watch carefully as each step has to be taken very seriously" . I nodded my head and watched Nick"s actions .
First, Nick took out some Poison Gra.s.s . It was a common herb that could poison insects and small animals but would have no effect on humans . Only if it was consumed in very large quant.i.ties then would a human being suffer from diarrhea but not more than that . Nick placed the herb inside a big pot and added some water . He said "The amount of water you will need to add it quite precise . You will need about 200 millilitres of water for 1 batch . If there is too much water, the poison would lose a lot of its strength while if there is not enough water the herbs would burn" . Nick then continued "As for the Poison Gra.s.s, you will need about 60 grams of it . Weight it as accurately as you can . Too little and the poison will lose some effect and too much the poison will not be able to condense into a cloud" .
I nodded my head and continued watching . When the water and herbs came to a boiling point, Nick threw in another herb and said "This is the Cloud Mushroom . I"m sure you know the effects of this mushroom already . You will need to add specific quant.i.ty of the mushroom . I"d say, aim for about 40 grams of the Cloud Mushroom . If you have to then cut the mushroom to size or use two if the weight is too small" .
I nodded my head and still watched . Nick then said "You have to leave this mixture to boil for 5-6 minutes . When you see that the amount of water decreased by half, you will need to add the last ingredient" . I nodded my head and continued watching .
Nick waited for the water to evaporate and when he noticed that half of the water was gone, he said "Now it"s time to throw in the last herb . This is the Hazy Flower . I"m sure you know the properties of it, right?" . I responded "Yes, Hazy flower creates a mist when it rains, this flower doesn"t have any poison and is only capable of creating a mist when in contact with water" .
Nick waited for the water to evaporate and when he noticed that half of the water was gone, he said "Now it"s time to throw in the last herb . This is the Hazy Flower . I"m sure you know the properties of it, right?" . I responded "Yes, Hazy flower creates a mist when it rains, this flower doesn"t have any poison and is only capable of creating a mist when in contact with water" .
Nick said "That is correct . Now the last step . When you throw in the Hazy flower inside the pot, you will have to cover the pot with a lid . Then cook that for about 5 minutes and then extinguish the fire, leave the mixture to cool down for 10-15 minutes . The recipe states that about 30 grams of Hazy Flower should be enough but if you add a bit more, the poison cloud will get bigger a bit when you release it . There is a drawback to this as well . The poison in the cloud will become less potent" .
I noticed something was wrong with this method and so I asked the question "But how are we going to take it out? If the poison touches air now, it will automatically activate" . Nick smiled and said "That is true, that is also the reason why you have to use the lid at the last step . Not only does it completes the process but it also contains the poison and lets it become liquid . I will show you in a while how to extract the poison from the pot" .
I nodded my head and waited with Nick for the poison inside the pot to cool down . After about 10 minutes Nick said "Now I will show you how to extract the poison" . I then saw Nick taking out a vial with a cork and placed it next to the pot . He then took out some sort of putty and also placed it next to the pot . He then placed the vial with the cork inside the valve where the liquid would come out from the pot and poured the content .
I nodded my head and waited with Nick for the poison inside the pot to cool down . After about 10 minutes Nick said "Now I will show you how to extract the poison" . I then saw Nick taking out a vial with a cork and placed it next to the pot . He then took out some sort of putty and also placed it next to the pot . He then placed the vial with the cork inside the valve where the liquid would come out from the pot and poured the content .
I could guess that because of the cork, the vial and the release valve were sealed tightly . The poison filled almost a whole vial and stopped coming out . Nick then took the putty thing and placed it around the extracting valve . With a very swift and quick movement, Nick took out the vial from the extracting valve and immediately sealed the vial with the putty .
Nick then turned around towards me and said "That is how you will need to extract it . You will need very fast movements but because you"ve learned the art of hidden weapons as well as practiced in art of stealth, this should not pose too much of a problem for you" . He then continued "This putty is a modified clay . If you used normal soft clay it would crack after a while when it was dry . You need to mix the clay with coal powder . This way the clay will not crack after drying and will stay flexible all the time" .
Something clicked in my mind and so I asked Nick about it "You only added one poison herb which is very weak, so how is it possible to create such effect in humans when even if it consumed in large quant.i.ties, it will only produce diarrhea?" . Nick smiled a bit and said "It"s all due to the process of mixing certain herbs together, when we combine those herbs the Poison Gra.s.s will posses such effect . Alone, this herb is very weak but if you mix it in a way I just showed you and create a cloud of such poison, then even a small amount of this poison is very deadly" . I nodded my head in understanding and thought "So, sometimes herbs alone may not be dangerous but when combined with other herbs, the effects can be multiplied or changed" .
Nick then turned around towards me and said "That is how you will need to extract it . You will need very fast movements but because you"ve learned the art of hidden weapons as well as practiced in art of stealth, this should not pose too much of a problem for you" . He then continued "This putty is a modified clay . If you used normal soft clay it would crack after a while when it was dry . You need to mix the clay with coal powder . This way the clay will not crack after drying and will stay flexible all the time" .
Something clicked in my mind and so I asked Nick about it "You only added one poison herb which is very weak, so how is it possible to create such effect in humans when even if it consumed in large quant.i.ties, it will only produce diarrhea?" . Nick smiled a bit and said "It"s all due to the process of mixing certain herbs together, when we combine those herbs the Poison Gra.s.s will posses such effect . Alone, this herb is very weak but if you mix it in a way I just showed you and create a cloud of such poison, then even a small amount of this poison is very deadly" . I nodded my head in understanding and thought "So, sometimes herbs alone may not be dangerous but when combined with other herbs, the effects can be multiplied or changed" .
I then asked Nick "Can I give it a try?" to which Nick replied "Sure, I also want to see how you will handle that but as I said before, just to make sure you don"t make basic mistakes, you will need to practise some easy recipes first . I have the herbs for one such recipe and it will come in handy to you as well, when you create it" . With that Nick handed to me some herbs and waited for me to create my first recipe .Nick was taken aback due to my resolution, he said Good, very good . Perfect all the arts and then show the world what I taught you . Show them what you are made of! . Nick then continued I shall now show you how the Cloud Haze Poison is made . Watch carefully as each step has to be taken very seriously . I nodded my head and watched Nicks actions . First, Nick took out some Poison Gra.s.s . It was a common herb that could poison insects and small animals but would have no effect on humans . Only if it was consumed in very large quant.i.ties then would a human being suffer from diarrhea but not more than that . Nick placed the herb inside a big pot and added some water . He said The amount of water you will need to add it quite precise . You will need about 200 millilitres of water for 1 batch . If there is too much water, the poison would lose a lot of its strength while if there is not enough water the herbs would burn . Nick then continued As for the Poison Gra.s.s, you will need about 60 grams of it . Weight it as accurately as you can . Too little and the poison will lose some effect and too much the poison will not be able to condense into a cloud . I nodded my head and continued watching . When the water and herbs came to a boiling point, Nick threw in another herb and said This is the Cloud Mushroom . Im sure you know the effects of this mushroom already . You will need to add specific quant.i.ty of the mushroom . Id say, aim for about 40 grams of the Cloud Mushroom . If you have to then cut the mushroom to size or use two if the weight is too small . I nodded my head and still watched . Nick then said You have to leave this mixture to boil for 5-6 minutes . When you see that the amount of water decreased by half, you will need to add the last ingredient . I nodded my head and continued watching . Nick waited for the water to evaporate and when he noticed that half of the water was gone, he said Now its time to throw in the last herb . This is the Hazy Flower . Im sure you know the properties of it, right? . I responded Yes, Hazy flower creates a mist when it rains, this flower doesnt have any poison and is only capable of creating a mist when in contact with water . Nick said That is correct . Now the last step . When you throw in the Hazy flower inside the pot, you will have to cover the pot with a lid . Then cook that for about 5 minutes and then extinguish the fire, leave the mixture to cool down for 10-15 minutes . The recipe states that about 30 grams of Hazy Flower should be enough but if you add a bit more, the poison cloud will get bigger a bit when you release it . There is a drawback to this as well . The poison in the cloud will become less potent . I noticed something was wrong with this method and so I asked the question But how are we going to take it out? If the poison touches air now, it will automatically activate . Nick smiled and said That is true, that is also the reason why you have to use the lid at the last step . Not only does it completes the process but it also contains the poison and lets it become liquid . I will show you in a while how to extract the poison from the pot . I nodded my head and waited with Nick for the poison inside the pot to cool down . After about 10 minutes Nick said Now I will show you how to extract the poison . I then saw Nick taking out a vial with a cork and placed it next to the pot . He then took out some sort of putty and also placed it next to the pot . He then placed the vial with the cork inside the valve where the liquid would come out from the pot and poured the content . I could guess that because of the cork, the vial and the release valve were sealed tightly . The poison filled almost a whole vial and stopped coming out . Nick then took the putty thing and placed it around the extracting valve . With a very swift and quick movement, Nick took out the vial from the extracting valve and immediately sealed the vial with the putty . Nick then turned around towards me and said That is how you will need to extract it . You will need very fast movements but because youve learned the art of hidden weapons as well as practiced in art of stealth, this should not pose too much of a problem for you . He then continued This putty is a modified clay . If you used normal soft clay it would crack after a while when it was dry . You need to mix the clay with coal powder . This way the clay will not crack after drying and will stay flexible all the time . Something clicked in my mind and so I asked Nick about it You only added one poison herb which is very weak, so how is it possible to create such effect in humans when even if it consumed in large quant.i.ties, it will only produce diarrhea? . Nick smiled a bit and said Its all due to the process of mixing certain herbs together, when we combine those herbs the Poison Gra.s.s will posses such effect . Alone, this herb is very weak but if you mix it in a way I just showed you and create a cloud of such poison, then even a small amount of this poison is very deadly . I nodded my head in understanding and thought So, sometimes herbs alone may not be dangerous but when combined with other herbs, the effects can be multiplied or changed . I then asked Nick Can I give it a try? to which Nick replied Sure, I also want to see how you will handle that but as I said before, just to make sure you dont make basic mistakes, you will need to practise some easy recipes first . I have the herbs for one such recipe and it will come in handy to you as well, when you create it . With that Nick handed to me some herbs and waited for me to create my first recipe .