A few days later. Within Everwood Palace’s underground facility.
Aksai reached a critical juncture in his recent batch of experiments.
In the dimly lit chamber, Aksai stood amidst a few stone platforms, each adorned with mysterious Essence Equations.
Upon these platforms rested prisoners, their bodies tense with anticipation and fear as they awaited the experiment’s commencement.
In their vulnerable state, stripped of clothing, the prisoners exchanged nervous glances, sweat beading on their foreheads in frustration and fear.
“What… What are you going to do to us? ANSWER ME!” screamed one prisoner, a scar-faced middle-aged martial artist apprehended by the city guards a few months ago for his heinous crimes against women.
With a bright smile, Aksai casually replied, “I want to use your bodies for science and my cultivation path.”
The scar-faced martial artist’s face paled at Aksai’s response, the familiar sense of dread creeping over him. The dread was familiar to him because it was the same form of dread that he had seen in his victims’ eyes. This was his first time feeling the same dread within his heart.
“You f**king bastard, we… We are not your playthings. Find someone who shares your interests and kinks,” he retorted, futilely struggling against his restraints.
Aksai’s irritation surfaced momentarily, a twitch in his eye and a vein pulsing on his forehead before he composed himself.
“I… I believe you’ve misunderstood me,” he remarked, his tone chillingly calm.
“But correcting you seems unnecessary for someone whose time may be running out.” With a chuckle, he proceeded with his experiments.
Psch. Pop!
Aksai carefully uncorked a few glass vials, each containing a distinct experimental spirit bloodline sample.
[ Wind Control Levitation ]
A simple Spirit spell cast by Aksai caused all of the glass vials to hover in the air. The prisoners’ dread intensified at the sight, as they had never witnessed a human using the Spirit spell before.
“You… what are you?”
“This power… This is not qi. This is…”
“Devil! You are one of those vile devils!”
“Aaaaaa! Someone help me! The devils have infiltrated Serenity Peak and are experimenting on innocent citizens!”
“Are we… Are we really innocent?”
“Shut the f**k up! Look at that vile devil. Compared to him, we are truly innocent.”
“Help us!”
“Stay… stay away from me.”
“I… I curse you that–”
“Aaaargh! I… I challenge you to–”
“Aaaah!”
Aksai paid no heed to the cacophony of noises, curses, and pleas from the shackled prisoners.
Instead, he focused on the task at hand, advancing step by step in his experiment using his Spirit Sense and Spirit spells. He activated the Essence Equations etched over the stone platforms that served as operation tables for the prisoners.
The stone platforms exuded peculiar light when the Essence Equations were activated. The Spirit essence in the Martial World Sharang was a bit sparse.
Thankfully, Aksai had made prior arrangements and used the power of the spirit stones by employing a simple Array Formation.
The prisoners bore multiple lacerations and wounds from Aksai’s scalpel, deep enough to administer the experimental bloodline-infused solutions without risking their lives.
Aksai had spent the last six months honing his understanding of human anatomy through his experiments, mastering the art of inflicting injuries strategically, sparing lives while achieving his objectives.
This might sound simple but was anything but. Killing someone using brute force was a simpler task compared to injuring them according to one’s “requirements.”
One could say that Aksai’s martial arts skills had improved by a notch just by understanding human anatomy a bit.
Swoosh. Swoosh. Swoosh.
The glass vials obeyed Aksai’s Spirit Sense control, moving with precision.
With meticulous movements, Aksai administered the concoctions to the prisoners, some were ingested orally and others applied to open wounds, ensuring the spirit bloodline flowed through their veins.
As the assimilation process started, the prisoners’ bodies reacted dramatically, each displaying unique manifestations of the Spirit bloodline’s influence.
Some turned an alarming crimson, blood pulsing through torn skin and open pores. Others paled, drained of vitality, while a few underwent grotesque transformations.
Limbs twisted into gnarled branches, torsos morphed into tree trunks, and skin adopted a woody texture as if nature itself claimed them.
[ Subject 03’s condition is critical. Expected to expire within 13 seconds if stabilization measures are not implemented. ]
[ Subject 02 exhibits abnormal vital signs. Expected cardiac arrest within 6 seconds if the Spirit bloodline infusion is not halted. ]
[ Subject 07’s vital signs are unstable. Expected unwanted mutation if the Spirit bloodline process is not regulated manually within 16 seconds. ]
Through many notifications, the neural link fabric obediently displayed the subjects’ vital signs on a Spectral Screen. It recorded the experiment’s progress and enriched its database at the same time.
One could say that Aksai avoided many pitfalls by utilizing the neural link fabric for his Spirit bloodline experiments.
“I hope at least one of them survives this time,” Aksai muttered to himself, his expression void of emotion as he monitored the progress of his experiment. He showed no signs of stopping even as some of the prisoners neared death.
With the Spirit bloodlines infused, it would take considerable effort to cleanse the subjects of residual bloodline energy for future use. Yet, why would Aksai invest time and effort in saving them? Why risk contaminating future experiments with the same subjects?
To Aksai, using “new guinea pigs” for subsequent trials was a much better choice. He watched dispassionately as one after another, the subjects succumbed to their circumstances.
Thankfully, amidst the chaos, a few prisoners remained stable, their bodies seamlessly integrating with the Spirit bloodline.
“Have I finally reached this point?” Aksai’s expression brightened as he observed those who fared better than their peers, though their faces betrayed the pain they endured, and their vital signs wavered.
However, it was too soon to celebrate. Aksai left the subjects to their fate, awaiting the inevitable conclusion.
With unwavering focus, Aksai monitored the prisoners’ conditions with his Spirit Sense, witnessing muscles bulge and bodies surge with newfound vitality.
He controlled the Essence Equations etched over the platform in the meantime to increase the chances of success for each of the subjects.
Yet, as the experiment reached its climax, the inevitable occurred.
With a fleshly sound, bodies erupted, flesh and blood scattering in a gruesome display of transformation and destruction.
Yet amidst the mess, one prisoner managed to survive, a testament to Aksai’s research success and his relentless pursuit.
===
AN: The concepts of the Spirit bloodline and druids were first discussed in chapter 07.