I am sure you know this, but still... Every update, a previous step becomes easier. I'm sure the drop rate will go up drastically soon enough. It is without a doubt the next step after the increased Light bonus. And remember you will be rewarded with a very easy phase after that (40 minutes x 12 Mahatma).

I have done 30 Aurum Vale's for my Relic item drop. Yes, it made me go crazy at the time. It can take up to 50 minutes and you don't have all your skills yet (lvl 49 cap), making big pulls impossible. Time-wise, that's worse than 50 Haukke Manors (which usually take 15 to 20 minutes). xD My friends had Aurum Vale after approximately three times. But I know some of them got stuck in Brayflox, Copperbell or Pharos Sirius instead. I don't think anybody had a near-perfect Zodiac grind. ^^;

But it is so rewarding when you finally get that drop. People know you "worked" hard for it. It is a challenging way of getting a high-level weapon that requires dedication (while easy and good alternatives are Shiva Extreme or the IronWorks i130 weapon).