Wound cleaning fluid
Mortal tier recipe. No cultivation requirements.
Maybe the oldest known recipe in existence, and something anyone dabbling in alchemy tries out. Some scholars record primitive species using this liquid; therefore it may originate from a random animal. Not unique, but certainly symbolic to alchemists. The recipe given has been refined and optimised, unlike its rudimentary form created so many eons ago.
INGREDIENTS AND RECIPE
* Broad-leafed fern, 2 leaves – non magical plant
* Bloodied nightshade, 1 flower – non magical poisonous flower
* Freshwater, 500 ml – non magical fluid
Broad-leafed fern is normally distinguishable by its overwhelmingly large leaves which are covered in a thick, waxy cuticle. Aside from this they have no obvious traits, so harvesting them is purely dependent on your familiarity with them.
Bloodied nightshade is an insanely powerful hemotoxin, and advising children to not even touch the things is important. The flowers are pretty distinct as their pure white petals hold crimson red streaks, giving the source of their name away pretty easily. Capable of forming massive clots in mere minutes, it is not a flower you ever want to be near. However, like any poison it holds a lot of medicinal value.
Freshwater is water with little to no salt content. Whether or not it is mineral water doesn’t matter, even if people continue to ask year after year.
Heat the freshwater until boiling, easily noticeable when heavily bubbling. Stir occasionally to aid heating up of water. With a mortar and pestle (or even a rock) grind down the two large leaves. Proper method can be ignored here, simply focus on completing the balm. The water should be adequately boiled after this grinding.
With the water boiled, remove the stamens from the Bloodied nightshade before dropping it into the water. This step is not entirely necessary, but the stamens may induce symptoms in people with hay fever. Leaving the water over your flame will not ruin the medicine, but lowering the flame can reduce the chances of self-inflicted harm. After half a minute of soaking in the boiling water, use a wooden spoon to remove the nightshade.
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DO NOT TOUCH THE WET FLOWER DIRECTLY!
Currently, touching it will coat your finger in its highly toxic poison which will kill on consumption. Drops of Bloodied nightshade poison can kill elephants, let alone a weak human without cultivation.
Grind the flower down exactly like the leaves and properly mix the two together. Drop this back into the hot water and allow the mixture to continue boiling. Occasionally stir the mixture to allow the potent poison to mix with the fern’s resistive effect. However, these effects combined will only clean the wound of any possible diseases, this does not remove the rest of the flower’s effect.
Unlike regular belladonna, mainly called deadly nightshade, bloodied nightshade causes intense blood clots. This gives a straightforward way of removing the remnant poison from the nearly complete fluid. A small nick is made on your finger to drip blood into the mixture, these droplets will visibly coagulate into a sort of slimy solid. Once again, do not lower your finger into this poison-filled liquid. Continue doing this until your blood disperses in the fluid and drain the resultant liquid into another bowl.
In a perfect scenario no extra blood would mix into the fluid, but humans can only do so much. Remove the coagulated blood from the heated bowl, if concerned over any remnant poison then fill the container with any water and some more blood. If more slimy coagulant forms then you know that some poison is leftover.
You have completed the production of the oldest known recipe!
USAGE
With the exceptions of allergies, Wound cleaning fluid can be used by anyone in any number of ways. The most common is soaking less grievous cuts directly, and then leaving them to heal.
More serious wounds may be washed in boiled water and then have bandages applied. The bandages are soaked in Wound cleaning fluid to further reduce infection chances.
As a final example, some richer human nobles will bath in wound cleaning fluid after a battle. Although the fluid contains no restorative properties, the residual numbing effect from a strong poison reduces some of the pain felt by the noble.
Overall, it’s a competent fluid for mortal fighters. Best used in tandem with simple regenerative ointments to clean and heal the wound. Drinking the fluid has no reported effect, although some claim it aids in removing stomach ulcers.