Chapter 88: People Should Believe In Science Even More!
The first half of his life, Yuan Zhu received higher education on Earth, and now he still retains the most basic scientific literacy. His logical way of thinking about problems is different from that of the local residents of Du Ling.
After a brief moment of thought, he decided to conduct a controlled experiment in groups!
Since he had no experience in refining Ghost Companions, he might as well try multiple different approaches at the same time, explore a path, and screen out the most reliable refinement method.
His gaze swept over the four Eggplant Head Ghosts that kept kowtowing nonstop, and suddenly inspiration struck: “First, group every 6 Goblins into groups, dividing them into [Shadow] and [Disease] two pollution experiment squads!”
Since he wanted to cultivate super ‘Polluted Goblins’, he could use his own shadow pollution to create a batch of ‘Shadow Goblins’ with higher controllability and affinity. They would have lower backlash and rejection when refined into Ghost Companions, and the possibility might be higher, but it would require massive consumption of his own power (Shadow Power).
At the same time, he could use the high-concentration ‘Disease Pollution’ in the garden to create Disease Goblins. This kind of Polluted Goblin costs nothing, but has huge mutability, is uncontrollable, and carries the risk of going out of control. But the advantage is no cost, huge potential, and as long as there are enough Goblins, they can be mass-produced indefinitely.
After determining the preliminary plan, he kicked six Goblins to the left side and marked them as Group A.
“Within Group A, there still needs to be controlled differentiation. First pick two out to directly receive the Tiger Demon’s shadow pollution, making them pure Shadow Goblins; then select two more to eat the ‘Shadow Tomatoes’ grown on the Eggplant Head Ghosts. That stuff is the pollution essence of Shadow Ghost Companions, belonging to ‘Tomato System. Shadow Goblin’; the last two… just let the Eggplant Head Ghosts perform parasitic cultivation on them directly!”
Yuan Zhu thought of the ‘Eggplant Head Monks’ and ‘Mad Tomato People’ from the Little Xihong Realm, both of which were products of attempting to plant the bloodline of Star Realm Tomato People using humans as cultivation base (flowerpots) before achieving enlightenment (repentance) into Buddha Tomatoes.
Yuan Zhu didn’t know how Buddha Tomatoes did it? But since there were numerous successful examples, and he didn’t care about the Goblins’ lives. So… ‘Eggplant Head Ghost Companions’, did they inherit the Tomato Race’s abilities, treating Goblins as flowerpots, disregarding human life, planting a ‘Shadow Eggplant Seedling’ on their heads.
What if it succeeded? Ultimately [One Body], giving birth to something as surprisingly bizarre as a ‘Essence Eggplant Captain’ crop?!
Huh? Doesn’t this count as the most primitive ‘Shadow Rogue Immortal’ experiment? Planting a ‘Shadow Eggplant Dao Seed’ into the cranial top, reversing the bloodline, refining essence to qi?
For a moment, the ‘soul of learning from dogs’ from his previous life on Earth suddenly came back from the dead, burning fiercely. Before completely giving up and lying flat, he, Su Nuo, had also stayed up nights grinding away in the laboratory!
Recalling his glorious past, Yuan Zhu immediately activated Tiger Demon Stance and issued orders to the two Eggplant Head Ghosts on the left: “You two, stand to the left, condense [Shadow Tomatoes], and feed them to these two Goblins. You two, stand to the right, plant Eggplant Seedlings on the heads of these two Goblins, and continuously input nutrients to nourish the Shadow Eggplant to grow, expand, and fuse inside them, keep their dog lives intact, don’t suck dry their vitality!”
The four Eggplant Head Ghosts were dazed and confused, unable to understand at all, still frantically ‘Eggplant eggplant eggplant—!’ to please their master.
Fortunately, [Tiger Demon] innately possesses the ability to command Ghost Companions, and after optimization by the [Great Desolation Immortal Scripture], these Ghost Companions also have the characteristic of ‘dataized soul archiving’.
The Tiger Demon didn’t need to clearly teach these Ghost Companions how to divide labor scientifically; Little Spicy Stick naturally transformed into a soul programming expert, inputting a hastily made [Artificial Stupidity Feeding Program] into the dataized souls of the Ghost Companions, guiding them to rigidly irrigate the Goblins with instructions.
This is the unique ‘Soul Program’ advantage of the [Great Desolation System], a Ghost Companion version of numerical control programming. It can’t be used in freewheeling, flexible, and ever-changing battlefield duels, but it can be used in daily rigid mechanized repetitive labor.
Huh…?!
Yuan Zhu suddenly smelled the scent of a Capitalist; using these Ghost Companions to work in a factory screwing screws would be perfect! He didn’t dare to form a cult, but he had the guts to open a sweatshop with Ghost Companions, and quite a lot of it!
The dream of his previous self to become a [Factory Owner] wasn’t impossible to realize. Especially after learning that Du Ling had something as bizarre as the [Industrial God System].
For a moment, the Tiger Demon’s mind was filled with wild ideas again. These days were becoming more and more promising (doomed)!
It first picked out two Goblins and stuffed them full with [Shadow Manipulation (Supernatural Ability 1)]. Then it inputted the [Soul Stupidity Program] ghostwritten by Little Spicy Stick into the four Ghost Companions. The four Ghost Companions immediately became much more spirited, knowing how to work.
Next, Yuan Zhu, switching back to Human Stance, picked up the 6 Goblins of Group B again and entered the [Disease Garden] hidden in the Dressing Mirror.
…
Entering the Disease Garden, the environment changed again.
The Haunted House had been marinated with shadow pollution, and he felt no discomfort in it, instead feeling very comfortable. Plus, the shadow pollution in the room wasn’t dense enough, so the 12 Goblins all appeared normal without anomalies.
It was only after the six in Group A were each fiercely stuffed with pollution by the Tiger Demon, fed Tomatoes by the Eggplant Head Ghosts, or had a flower gathered on top, that they successively woke up in pain, crying, screaming, struggling… gradually undergoing distortion and alienation bit by bit.
But the six in Group B were completely different; even without Yuan Zhu making a move, they merely passively inhaled the viral air ubiquitous in the Disease Garden, and they all showed pained expressions, like an asthma attack, on the verge of suffocation, accompanied by symptoms of constant coughing blood.
The ‘pollution concentration’ of the Disease Garden was too high; with his [Holy Mark] + [Boss Template], he might not feel it, but these weak Goblins couldn’t even breathe a mouthful of diseased air. It looked like before the experiment even started, they were all about to croak one after another.
How could he tolerate this?
These worthless things were ones he had painstakingly spent half a day enduring the stench to crawl into the Sewer to catch; how could they just die in vain like this?
His brain operated at high speed, quickly coming up with a solution.
Only to see the Holy Marks on both wrists burning fiercely, shining with blinding milky white light. Divine power wrapped his fists; he sank his waist and rooted his stance, aiming at the six ‘I can’t breathe’ coughing blood Goblins, unleashing six consecutive [Holy Cough Meteor Fists].
Boom boom boom…!
Six punches in a row, blasting deep fist prints shining with white holy light on the chests of the successively flattened Goblins from afar. He hammered his comprehended [Holy Cough] along with exclusive holy light into the Goblins’ chest cavities.
The [Holy Light] altered by seal casting exhibited the characteristics of an attaching parasitic pathogen, able to briefly exist after detaching from Yuan Zhu. If the holy light successfully parasitized inside the target, it could even exhibit ‘disease’ characteristics, sustaining its existence without fading by continuously tormenting, exploiting, and igniting the host’s vitality, and entering a latent period (Holy Cough).
Yuan Zhu had repeatedly studied [Holy Cough] last night, continuously writing his inspirations and ideas into the holy light. This absolutely idealistic power of [Holy Light] miraculously adjusted and changed around his will and thoughts.
Now, Yuan Zhu could not only punch [Holy Cough] into the target’s body, but also manually adjust the expansion intensity and outbreak time of [Holy Cough].
If detonated at extreme speed in a short time, [Holy Cough] would treat the target as a Meat Battery for exploitation and life-burning, turning them into a Holy Light Bomb, instantly transforming into light, redeeming a lifetime of sin, ascending in broad daylight to the holy light paradise of bliss.
But conversely, suppressing the lethality of [Holy Cough] to the minimum and extending the latency time, then [Holy Cough] would no longer be a disease, but instead a blessing that cures and saves lives!
The weakened version of [Holy Cough] still burned life, but the amplitude was very small; Yuan Zhu could suppress it to 1/20. That is, for every 19 days you live, [Holy Cough] only burns 1 day of your lifespan. Over a lifetime, it only continuously burns a mere 1/20 of your lifespan, very cost-effective.
So… what is the price of all this?
The price is naturally that the vitality burned by [Holy Cough] is fed back and stacked onto your body in the form of Holy Light Blessing. Keeping you in a state of weakly burning life year-round, gaining positive buffs: excited, healthy, full of vitality, faster wound self-healing, less prone to catching colds or getting sick… etc. (Infinitely weakened Heavenly Demon Disintegration Great Law, long-term positive buff state, even cell division speed is faster.)
Additionally, the [Holy Cough] burning long-term in your body radiates weak Holy Light Pollution, able to resist external pollution erosion at all times, without further increasing deviation. (After all, your [deviation] has already been long-term contracted by [Holy Cough] and rapidly increased.)
Therefore, with one shot of [Holy Cough], your life is mine, not heaven’s! This is not a curse or attack, but the pity and grace of Venerable Yuan.
The Venerable often laments that the beings of Du Ling endure much hardship and peril, with crises lurking everywhere and countless pollutions in this turbid evil world of five corruptions. Thus, after racking his brains, he created [Holy Cough]. Named as disease, but actually life-saving. Exchanging one-twentieth lifespan for health, safety, and joy.
“Praise the Immeasurable Holy Light Demon-Refining Great Heavenly Venerable!”
Compared to the various benefits of [Holy Cough], Yuan Zhu’s ‘holy light’ was even more tempered and upgraded in the Disease Garden. Refining countless Disease Ashes, smelting Holy Seals. Therefore, his holy light has super strong resistance and restraint against Disease Pollution.
It can be understood as breathing disease and targeted antibodies. His holy light is the antibody, smashing the Goblins’ chests in the [Holy Cough] stance; not only did they not spit blood and die quickly, but it took immediate effect, their breathing becoming unobstructed.
With the ‘Holy Cough antibody’ blessing, they quickly withstood the erosion of the Disease Garden, and under the pollution’s twisting erosion, their collapsed chests gradually recovered health. Neutralized by ‘Holy Cough’, they slowly accepted the transformation of Disease Pollution.
…
Yuan Zhu watched the Goblins’ conditions improving and fell into deep thought. Compared to pairing ‘Shadow Pollution’ with ‘Disease Pollution’, the [Holy Light] in his hands seemed even more compatible with the garden?
His current holy light has extremely strong disease resistance. Goblins receiving [Holy Cough] grace immediately adapt better to the Disease Garden’s pollution environment; the longer they live, the more thoroughly marinated by pollution, the higher the quality.
Therefore, any and all things sent to the garden only need one shot of [Holy Cough], like taking Special Effect Medicine. Burning life on one side to intensify [Holy Cough], while resisting Disease Pollution, reversely absorbing pollution to enhance physique, then further igniting [Holy Cough] to combat distortion and alienation.
Then step left foot on right foot, spiraling to the heavens, infinitely getting stronger?!
In this process, he needed to pay nothing himself, just wait for the Goblins to mutate successfully and swallow them to refine into Ghost Companions. But… is it really that simple and crude?
Harboring some unrealistic fantasies, Yuan Zhu punched again, violently saving this group of Goblins, beating them from the brink of death back to life again and again.
Next, Yuan Zhu continued the group experiments, regardless, using prepared iron dog chains to divide the 6 Goblins into pairs.
One group could eat the widespread mutated flowers and grasses, as well as the fatty meat chunks oozing from the soil; Group Two could only drink the blood rain puddles on the ground, at most gnaw a bite of soil; the final three groups had nothing around them, belonging to the fasting squad. But they could dine on wind and sip dew, absorbing the ubiquitous polluted aura in the air.
His Group B ‘Disease Pollution Squad’ could not only test Disease Pollution effects under different states, but also observe the influence and changes of different degrees of pollution on the [Holy Cough Blessing] inside the Goblins’ bodies.
After completing all this, looking at the different fates of the 12 Goblins in Groups A and B, he suddenly recaptured some of the happiness from his university days in his previous life.
That ‘curiosity’ and ‘anticipation’ for the different outcomes and fates of experimental subjects. It was one of his few pleasures, and also the motivation that supported his studies and efforts.
Yuan Zhu suddenly pondered: “I seem able to rediscover this happiness in Du Ling too. Fuse cultivation and fun into one body, create a ‘scientific joyful cultivation method’ of my own? This world has too dense supernatural elements; people are more willing to believe in metaphysics, deities, supernatural power, rather than science. As an Earthling, I have the duty to raise the ‘scientific banner’, let people realize that when facing difficulties, you can also choose to believe in science!”
After pondering, he realized a problem. To do science in Du Ling, a god-demon chaotic world full of fantasy and superstition, he needed even stronger strength to uphold and spread his ‘scientific ideals’.
Get stronger, get stronger by any means, to realize great life ideals. Like those traverser Seniors, leave his own mark in Du Ling!
Thus he turned toward the vast flourishing ‘Disease Flower Field’. Then his whole body erupted with holy light again, releasing dazzling radiance, dyeing the entire person into a ‘holy Saiyan’, launching holy light attacks at the vast mutated plants.
Shielding Force Field erupted, Holy Light Cage sealed, light pollution internally detonated, burning down everything, refining everything, absorbing pollution ashes to cast Holy Seals… then proceeding to the second wave of harvest, skillfully manipulating holy light, burn burn burn—destroy destroy destroy—! Ravaging the Disease Garden wantonly.
Even like a child, converting his [Shielding Force Field] from shield form to a planar cutting blade, performing a horizontal slash at the dense Disease Flower Field. Like a kid holding a straight Wooden Stick, standing in a rapeseed flower field, how joyful? How refreshing?!
“Holy Light Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash!”
His every action and movement directly stunned the six Goblins behind him, scaring them into trembling and curling up into a ball, not even daring to eat dirt. Fearing that if they moved a bit more, they would displease that Holy Light demonic creature, and it would turn around and send them flying.
