At that moment, Narvim wished he could just find a cave to hide in.
He did not pay enough attention to realize sooner that Vaan's question was directed at his man tool and not the precious Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma.
Of course, the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma was nice to look at. It was something even dragon lords would find useful to some degree.
Alas, Vaan wasn't asking about the Bloodvein Ganoderma. Thus, he created a great misunderstanding.
Even if he could clear the misunderstanding, his wife's strange gaze felt more penetrative than any glare he had received in the past few hundred years.
It was a blow to his psyche.
"It's alright. I won't question your taste, Lord Narvim. Everyone is bound to have one or two unique traits," Vaan said with an understanding look.
"Pft!" Narvim spurted blood and passed out after taking critical damage from Vaan's remark.
As if Vaan hadn't dealt enough mental blows to Narvim, he glanced at Narvim's body on the ground and added with a surprised look, "Passed out from shock? I suppose some unwanted realizations can do that to people and dragons."
Narvim's body trembled.
"Alright, that's enough joking around, Vahn. That mouth of yours could really kill him, you know? More importantly, what do you plan to do with the Bloodvein Ganoderma?" Khaleesi changed the topic. "Do you want me to refine it into a potion, or will you consume it as is?"
When Khaleesi glanced at the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma, her eyes revealed a hint of envy.
The Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma was something she had been saving for herself. She didn't expect Vahn to find it.
Nevertheless, she had given her word, and her pride wouldn't allow her to go back on it.
It seemed fate had other plans.
"Unless you can refine a Rank 5 potion that can enhance the effects of this Bloodvein Ganoderma, I do plan to consume it as is," Vaan answered after some thought.
Although the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma was just a single magical herb, he speculated its effects wouldn't be inferior to half the Stalactite Milk Pond.
And considering the system could help him completely absorb the Bloodvein Ganoderma's efficacy, it didn't matter if it was a Peak-Rank 4 magical herb of Peak-Rank 4 potion.
The effect would be the same.
That's why he required at least a Rank 5 potion if he wanted to receive more benefits out of the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma.
"Rank 5 potion, huh?" Khaleesi muttered thoughtfully before saying, "I can indeed refine Rank 5 potions. Unfortunately, I lack quality supplementary ingredients for the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma."
"Still, a Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma Potion is not bad, you know? It will tame the Bloodvein Ganoderma's fiery properties and allow you to absorb its efficacy smoothly," Khaleesi mentioned shortly after.
"If you can't handle the Bloodvein Ganoderma's fiery properties, consuming it raw is akin to suicide. Your life would be lost, and a precious magical herb would be wasted."
"You don't have to worry about that, Khaleesi," Vaan assured before acknowledging, "I am aware of the risks. However, I have complete confidence."
"Since you already said as much, I won't continue to persuade you. If you're ready, you can just take it here. I will watch over you," Khaleesi coolly promised.
She was secretly curious and wanted to find out why Vahn chose the Bloodvein Ganoderma when there were better herbs for strengthening the physique and enhancing strength.
Perhaps he was still interested in raising his fire affinity to challenge the Trial by Fire.
"Thank you, Khaleesi."
With the eighth dragon lord's guarantee to watch over him, Vaan didn't hesitate to sit down on the spot and chomp on the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma.
In that instant, the heavily concentrated fiery energy within the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma flooded into his body like air escaping from an overly-inflated balloon.
Whether it was his meridian or veins, the fiery energy rushed through every channel and burned everything in its path.
Although extreme pain coursed through Vaan's body, he still found it tolerable.
Thus, he continued to chomp down on the remaining Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma and absorb the rest of its properties.
As a result of his action, the additional surges of fiery energy caused his skin to glow red before his body inflated like a balloon.
Fortunately, he possessed the Earth Spirit Body and 21% fire affinity, which allowed him to avoid being burned to death from the inside out and combusting into flames.
As Vaan's body absorbed the magical properties of the Peak-Rank 4 Bloodvein Ganoderma, his physique swiftly improved to the point that Khaleesi found it alarming.
She didn't expect to witness such explosive growth. The effect didn't seem much different from a Rank 5 potion.
'Perfect fire compatibility?' Khaleesi's eyes flickered as she speculated.
Unless Vahn's body was completely absorbing all of the Bloodvein Ganoderma's magical properties, she couldn't think of any other reason.
However, it didn't make sense either.
'Vahn's fire affinity shouldn't be that high… How is this possible?' Khaleesi wondered.
Seconds turned into minutes, and minutes turned into hours.
As time passed, the momentum of Vaan's bodily improvement and strengthening slowed down drastically.
Eventually, the Bloodvein Ganoderma's efficacy was exhausted after Vaan gained 200 points of strength and hit an incredible 60% absorption and affinity to the fire attribute.