Farming in a Parallel World and Becoming a God
Chapter 447 - 385 Ghost Index_1

Chapter 447: Chapter 385 Ghost Index_1

The somewhat unsettling aspect was that the spells which could use Ghost Grape Wine as an alternative casting material were usually related to illusion, control, or the dark arts of the Undead, since what they required was Negative Energy after all.

No spell of the light system would make use of Negative Energy.

But that was it, Gaven and his team couldn’t possibly cease selling and producing Ghost Grape Wine just because of its potential applications.

The series of traits that Ghost Grape Wine later revealed, such as being hard to replicate and having many uses, meant that even with significant flaws like storage difficulties and easy dissipation, the market price kept soaring. The current retail price had hit two hundred and thirty, and it was usually difficult to come by.

Originally, at the Ghost Grape Wine themed auction, ten thousand bottles of Ghost Grape Wine were sold.

At first glance, that seemed like a lot.

But across the entire Sea of Fallen Stars region, to say nothing of all of Felen,

ten thousand bottles of Ghost Grape Wine, spread among dozens of merchant caravans, was actually pitifully few. Many large cities could, at most, get their hands on several dozen bottles.

As for those who came to Gaven to accuse him because of the dissipation issue, there wasn’t even one.

Don’t underestimate the power of these merchants.

Not to mention whether the money in their hands could make a ghost push a millstone, but many of the merchants held impressive Professional Levels themselves.

Sealing the flow of energy wasn’t a particularly difficult feat for Spellcasters.

And if all else failed, there were small steel bottles of Healing Potion.

These were very common in the market, albeit pricey.

Poured into those, at least they could reduce losses!

At worst, they’d spread out the cost into the sales price of Ghost Grape Wine. To these crafty traders, this tactic was second nature.

A merchant who couldn’t even think of such a clumsy method would have been weeded out by the brutal nature of commercial competition long ago.

"It’s a success, a success indeed, congratulations Mr. Duke, we’ve found the optimal concentration and the best table for Negative Energy growth," Daphne said, nearly running to Gaven with an expression she could hardly conceal her joy.

After the Midsummer Festival and the dance with the Fairies,

it seemed that the Shadows of Weizemay Manor had undergone some sort of qualitative transformation.

The situation was very similar to what Estelle and her daughter experienced; it was as if a force of life had been injected into their bodies, and they began to exhibit more characteristics of the living.

Especially the Earthbound Wraith transformation of Estelle and her daughter, and the Soul Prison of Black Nanmu.

Their transformants weren’t simply the Undead; they were a combination of life and death.

They possessed the traits of life yet wielded the power of death.

Originally, they only lacked the core essence of life, which now had been injected into them.

At first glance, it seemed to have been given by the Fairies.

But, tracing down to the root cause, it all came down to the Dragon Oak Mother Tree.

That night, the Dragon Oak Mother Tree and Weizemay Manor had connected in a true sense.

The two completed an exchange of energy and essence to a certain degree.

Weizemay Manor infused the Dragon Oak Mother Tree with the power of death – just like Gaven, this power was not in the main body but in the shadow; within the shadow of the Dragon Oak Mother Tree.

Don’t think the Dragon Oak Mother Tree is only associated with life; death is also closely connected to it. It needs to draw energy, especially from decaying matter, and given its massive size, its energy needs are quite terrifying. When the power of death merged into the shadows and roots, it could enhance this aspect of its ability, helping it to absorb rapidly.

In return, the Dragon Oak Mother infused Weizemay Manor with a force of life.

This force directly linked Weizemay Manor and the Vineyard together, making the Vineyard a part of Weizemay Manor.

The most direct manifestation: the Shadows, previously confined to Weizemay Manor, could now extend their range into the Vineyard, and as long as an area was under the shadow of the Vineyard, they could roam freely.

The vineyards, tangled and as tall as a person, were particularly suitable for their presence, even during broad daylight.

However, aside from a few privileged individuals like Estelle, her daughter, and Daphne, this feature wasn’t very useful to the other Shadows.

For they were merely a group of unfortunate Shadow laborers working tirelessly twenty-four hours a day, with a jam-packed work schedule. Who had time to wander around?

The one who benefited the most was Daphne; she had directly unlocked the Phasing Transformation ability, just like Estelle and her daughter, allowing her two forms.

It was related to her Transcendent Professional Level – other Shadows, even if more closely resembling humans, did not gain this ability.

The specifics would need to be verified later on.

Compared to her physical form, Daphne spent most of her time as a Shadow because this state was more convenient for everyday life, as well as when conducting research related to Negative Energy.

Especially the latter, her Shadow form had an unparalleled advantage.

"That’s wonderful, we finally have a result. Had it been delayed a few more days, we would have had to start making a batch of ordinary wine first. We can wait, but the grapes cannot," Gaven said, his expression also betraying his joy.

As the saying goes, farm work does not wait for anyone.

Especially with the scale of Weizemay Vineyard being so large, once the grapes ripen, they tend to do so in vast quantities all at once.

Precisely when Ghost Grape Wine’s brewing process hit a snag, it inevitably created some panic.

"Lord, why not try our very own first batch of Ghost Grape Wine? I find it to be more unique than the previous batch, it’s not only imbued with Negative Energy but also mixed with Life Force, which is very beneficial to my other form," Daphne said, handing a bottle of Ghost Grape Wine to Gaven.

The speaker hadn’t intended to imply much, but the listener might find significance in it.

Gaven’s thoughts moved instinctively.

Could this be related to the Fairy Midsummer Night? Had the grapes from this Vineyard of Weizemay Manor become a bit different? Tainted with the essence of Fairies? Or perhaps the Life Force of the Dragon Oak Mother Tree?

Should he use these grapes to make a batch of ordinary wine and see what unique effects might emerge?

No, that’s not right.

This approach fundamentally misses the mark.

The grapes here, even if they are rich in life energy, are merely affected by a single night under the Fairy Wilderness and the Dragon Oak Mother Tree.

They cannot possibly compare to the grapes produced by the Fairy Wilderness, let alone those planted directly beneath the Dragon Oak Mother Tree or within its shade.

Brewing fairy grape wine is the business of the Fairy Wilderness. To try to brew it oneself is putting the cart before the horse.

To continue to delve into the value of Ghost Grape Wine and turn it into Weizemay Manor’s unique signature product—that is the correct path.

As he swirled the wine bottle in his hand, the liquid inside was not merely black but also contained an indelible, rich green shade that hovered and settled within.

Yes.

That was indeed the life force of the Dragon Oak Mother Tree, though extremely diluted.

With a thought from Gaven, the green color immediately gathered in the bottle, forming the likeness of a towering tree—who else could it be but the Dragon Oak Mother Tree.

It hovered and settled behind the black phantom of Weizemay Manor, and the two complemented each other, elevating its class once again.

He opened the bottle and took a direct sip from it.

It still had that familiar cool and refreshing taste. Just as he had anticipated, the flavor was indeed outstanding in the height of summer, dispelling much of the heat instantly.

After swallowing, there was a sweet sensation lingering in the mouth.

Only after reaching the stomach could he discern the difference between the new and old wine.

The old wine was simply cold, the kind that slowly draws the warmth from your body.

The new wine, in addition to being cold, also contained a vigor that followed the currents, hovering persistently on the weakest part of the body, nourishing and repairing it continuously.

If used for nefarious purposes,

the new wine certainly couldn’t compare to the old wine in purity, for the old wine was pure negative energy; the new wine was like having impurities mixed in.

But if used for legitimate purposes, such as a supplement for Holy Warriors during their cultivation, it would be even more valuable.

That strand of life force would assist in the process and even help them identify their own weaknesses and flaws.

Daphne added from the side, "The greatest use of this life force is not just that, it can act as a balance within, allowing a bottle of wine to contain more negative energy."

"Increasing the capacity for containment? By how much?" The amount of negative energy that Ghost Grape Wine can contain also has a limit.

"The negative energy index can be raised by 5%," Daphne answered.

Negative energy index is a standard devised by Gaven and his team to measure the amount of negative energy in Ghost Grape Wine.

This standard is essentially similar to alcohol content.

One hundred percent is the limit—equivalent to pure alcohol.

A 5% negative energy index means that in 100ml of wine, there are 5ml of negative energy.

Don’t think that 5% is low; it’s an invisible and intangible energy, not a substance converted like alcohol.

It’s impossible to reach one hundred percent, as that would be purely negative energy, not Ghost Grape Wine any longer.

The bottles of Ghost Grape Wine sold at the auction contained about 0.1% negative energy.

Even when previously filled to the brink, the negative energy index reached only about 3%. Now, having nearly doubled on that basis, the increase is quite astonishing.

"Very good!" Gaven nodded in satisfaction, "How is the renovation work going for the cellars with different negative energy indices?"

The final negative energy index of Ghost Grape Wine depends on the level of negative energy in the external environment.

The higher the negative energy index, the higher the negative energy index of the resulting Ghost Grape Wine.

Currently, the negative energy index at Weizemay Manor is around 0.2%. If nothing is done, at most the wine produced will have this level of negative energy.

This index can also be known as the Ghost Index.

As long as this index reaches 0.05 or above, the probability of ghosts appearing in this area significantly increases, and the higher the index, the greater the possibility.

The index of Weizemay Manor before it was reclaimed was 0.1; now it is 0.2, skyrocketing by a hundred percent.

If one wishes to produce Ghost Grape Wine with higher concentration,

sending people in to guide is one method, but it has the downsides of incorporating the guide’s emotions, with inefficiency being the second issue.

It pales in comparison to mass self-injection.

The method isn’t difficult—it’s about setting up sealed cellars and laying Soul Gathering Arrays within them.

Amass enough negative energy to maintain a set Ghost Index year-round, and that’s enough.

For Daphne, this task fell within her professional capabilities, something she was particularly adept at, especially in a special environment like Weizemay Manor, which naturally made it simpler.

"The first set of Spirit Gathering Cellars for indices of 0.5, 1, and 2 have been completed. The second set along with index 3 will be ready in ten days. But any higher than that far exceeds the capacity of the Soul Gathering Array. The rate of accumulating negative energy can’t keep up with the rate of dissipation; in fact, maintaining index 3 is already consuming a lot. I treated it as the core cellar, placing it at the very center of other cellars, flanked by two index 2s, to barely achieve the target. Each cellar can accommodate one large Fermentation Barrel, and a single barrel can fill two thousand bottles of Ghost Grape Wine," Daphne reported.

The level of negative energy pervading Weizemay Manor had already surpassed the outer areas of the Shadow Plane and was nearing the central region.

Now the Spirit Gathering Cellars are even more intense with a Ghost Index of 3, reaching the concentration of the core areas of the Shadow Plane.

An ordinary person spending one night in there would directly turn into a ghost.

"A total capacity of fourteen thousand bottles will barely suffice if it’s completed before the Fairy Midsummer Night’s festivities; much more is needed now—at least another set," Gaven commented.

Based on the initial estimate, the grapes produced by Weizemay Manor this year could be turned into twenty thousand bottles of Ghost Grape Wine at most.

But judging by the current trend, it seems unlikely that they will produce less than thirty thousand bottles.