"What's the next magic plant you plan to improve?" Rhett asked casually as he put away the leaf.
"I've been thinking for a while, and I want to try modifying Frost Sunflower," Manu replied thoughtfully.
"Frost Sunflower?"
Hearing this familiar name, Rhett was slightly taken aback and asked curiously, "Why do you want to modify this plant?"
"It's also for the sake of Blood Energy Crystals," Manu explained. "As we both know, Hypast's original experiment was far from perfect. In theory, there's still much room for improvement. Aside from perfecting Dark Blade Grass, which could improve efficiency by 20%, the Blood Energy Crystals still contain impurities that are harmful to extraordinary individuals. These impurities affect the number of crystals a person can take, the frequency, and the overall quality of the crystals. I've been pondering how to further optimize the process, and after numerous experiments, I discovered that while Frost Sunflower may not be particularly friendly to extraordinary individuals, it has a higher compatibility with magical beast blood. If we can modify its freezing properties and incorporate them into the Blood Energy Crystal refinement process, we might be able to freeze the impurities and make them easier to remove."
Manu had tried to explain it as clearly as possible, and Rhett slowly nodded, grasping the general idea. He encouraged, "You've put a lot of thought into this, Manu. Go ahead and pursue it. I'll give you all the support you need!"
After a brief conversation, Manu returned to the alchemical research, while Rhett went back to his room to continue his cultivation.
The next morning, at dawn.
Janka rushed back, carrying the corpse of a wind-elemental magical beast.
Seeing Rhett in the room, Janka looked surprised. "Rhett, it's great that you're here. I've gathered all the materials to make the signal whistle you asked for, except for a wind-elemental Saint-level magical beast. I searched everywhere but couldn't find one. Instead, I brought back this Gale Blue Feather Sparrow with high-level bloodline potential. However, while it'll still produce a functioning signal whistle, the range might be limited. If it reaches 10,000 miles, you'll be lucky. So, don't get your hopes up too high."
"Lacking a Saint-level wind-elemental beast, huh?" Rhett frowned slightly. "Well, that's understandable."
"How long will it take to complete the signal whistle?"
"Three days will suffice," Janka replied confidently.
Rhett nodded as he watched Janka head to his workbench, ready to leave.
But suddenly, Janka turned around as if remembering something important. "By the way, it's been years since we last spoke, and I haven't asked—how does one master Elemental Fusion? I've been working diligently for over a decade on the tasks you assigned me, so isn't it about time you upheld your end of the bargain?"
There was a hint of guilt in Janka's voice.
He had indeed agreed to help Rhett with the alchemical research, but after working with Manu, he quickly realized that Manu's skill level was nearly equal to his own, if not superior. In fact, Manu's terrifying talent in alchemy had allowed him to surpass Janka in just a few short years, leaving him feeling overshadowed.
Throughout this time, Janka hadn't played much of a leading role. Instead, he had gained a great deal from the collaboration, learning valuable insights into Alchemical Fusion and plant modification. These discoveries would make any Saint-level alchemist go mad with desire.
If word got out, many would be willing to pay exorbitant prices or even give anything just to participate in these projects.
In other words... Janka had benefited greatly from this partnership.
Fortunately, Rhett had no intention of going back on his promise. While his initial intent in making the deal was indeed to keep Janka busy and ensure his cooperation, as well as access to his top-tier alchemy lab, Rhett didn't mind fulfilling his end of the agreement now.
After all, this was a simulation. Rhett wasn't worried that Janka would truly master Elemental Fusion. If Janka actually succeeded, Rhett might even seek his guidance.
Thankfully, Rhett's decade-long efforts hadn't been in vain.
Now, meeting Janka's expectant gaze, Rhett thought for a moment before extending one finger.
Under Janka's focused watch, a stream of energy gathered at Rhett's fingertip.
The stream was as thick as a chopstick, glowing a fiery red, like flowing flames.
As soon as the fiery stream formed, the fire element in the room seemed to come alive, dancing around the stream as if welcoming its king.
"What is this?"
Janka exclaimed, unable to believe what he was seeing. The small stream of fire wasn't releasing any elemental energy that he could detect, yet the room's temperature had spiked, and the fire elements reacted in a way that left him stunned.
Something about the tiny stream was off.
For any Saint-level expert, anything related to elements should be detectable by their spiritual senses.
But at that moment, it felt as though his senses were blocked. The flame stream, visible to the naked eye, seemed like nothing more than pure spiritual energy in his perception.
"Huff, huff…"
Rhett's forehead was already beaded with sweat. Just displaying the stream had drained him significantly. With his face tight with concentration, Rhett carefully retracted the stream into his body and let out a deep breath.
"This is the first step of Elemental Fusion that you wanted to know about," Rhett said softly, feeling the toll on his spiritual energy.
"The first step? Isn't the first step to comprehend another elemental profound force?" Janka asked in confusion.
Rhett shook his head. "Yes, but to comprehend the profound forces of other elements, an ordinary Saint's spiritual energy won't be enough. You need to make some changes."
"Changes?" Janka muttered, his heart racing as he sensed they were nearing the critical point. He lowered his posture, ready to listen closely.
Rhett extended another finger, this time conjuring a stream of earthy brown energy, like a piece of rock.
Staring at the glowing energy in his hand, Rhett spoke in a trance-like tone:
"It's common knowledge that every extraordinary individual can only wield the power of a single element. There are no exceptions. I've speculated that this might be due to some kind of flaw in the world's primal essence, preventing the elements from fusing."
"I've considered many possibilities, but only one seems plausible."
"What possibility?" Janka's heart pounded in anticipation, feeling he was close to the truth.
Rhett hesitated briefly before saying, "It's that the profound forces of each element have inherent differences in strength. Because of this, the world's primal essence prevents them from fusing to avoid the risk of 'elemental imbalance.'"
"Elemental imbalance?" Janka asked, hearing the term for the first time. "What happens if the elements become imbalanced?"
Rhett smiled faintly. "In the worst case, immediate death. In the best case, a significant reduction in lifespan."
"Hiss!"
Janka sucked in a breath of cold air, his eyes wide. "Why are the consequences so severe?"
Why were they so severe?
Rhett wondered the same thing!
Although he didn't fully understand why elemental imbalance was so dangerous, it didn't surprise him.
He hadn't forgotten his time as the master of his homeland, when he had observed the projection of the world's primal essence. No matter how intricate the elemental patterns were, there had never been any indication of multiple elements combining.
It was likely because elemental imbalance was too destructive.
Three years ago, Rhett had his first breakthrough in attempting to fuse the elements.
That attempt had nearly cost him his life and introduced him to the concept of 'elemental imbalance.'
After years of fruitless exploration, Rhett had tried to internalize the elements, a task that seemed impossible. After all, how could you combine something physical with something spiritual?
But by chance, when Rhett deliberately cut his own spiritual energy, he noticed that the scattered energy was absorbed by the elements.
The elements absorbed the spiritual energy without changing, but during the absorption process, they entered a semi-real, semi-spiritual state.
This state lasted only briefly, but it was enough for Rhett to react.
That was how Rhett managed to draw the elements into his spiritual sea.
Though the elements couldn't remain in the spiritual sea for long, after repeated attempts, Rhett discovered that his spiritual energy could enter the elements themselves, following the profound patterns he had already comprehended. With enough repetitions, the spiritual energy gradually took on an elemental nature, transforming in quality.
Though this description sounded simple, the process was incredibly difficult, with a great deal of luck involved.
The act of cutting one's spiritual energy was excruciating, like a blade slicing through the soul.
The portion of spiritual energy cut off had to be as small as possible—too much would cause irreversible damage, and it would be wasted.
Rhett found that the best approach was to draw only a few grains of elemental energy at a time. Any more would dissipate quickly and become useless.
Once the elements were inside his spiritual sea, Rhett's spiritual energy had to quickly enter them and follow the profound patterns before the elements vanished. This was a process of slow accumulation, requiring constant practice.
Eventually, Rhett's spiritual energy began to resemble the world's primal essence.
Yes, the two streams of energy in Rhett's mind now felt very similar to the primal essence of the elements.
And only after transforming his spiritual energy into elemental essence could Rhett attempt to fuse them.
Though he had not yet succeeded.
Three years ago, his initial attempt at fusion had failed, forcing Rhett to reflect. The failure had occurred because the two elements hadn't reached an equilibrium in strength.
If the elements weren't balanced, forcing a fusion would cause a chaotic reaction that would destroy the essence of life.
Rhett understood this well, recalling the violet crystal shard from the Fishman Artifact that had wreaked havoc on his body by attacking the very essence of life.
Even as a Saint, Rhett had been powerless to stop it.
It was akin to a genetic weapon, attacking from within and dismantling the body before the individual even realized it.
That first attempt at elemental fusion had left Rhett unconscious for an entire day, and when he awoke, he realized he had lost 300 years of his lifespan.
Fortunately, it was just a simulation. Otherwise, Rhett would have been devastated.
In the three years since, Rhett had been biding his time, preparing thoroughly for his next attempt.
He believed that if his next fusion attempt succeeded, it would be like establishing a "seal" in his spiritual sea, making the elements his subjects. Under the command of the world's primal essence, the elements would have no choice but to obey his will.
Reflecting on that near-death experience, Rhett still felt a lingering sense of fear. After explaining the process and his analysis to Janka, Janka's expression became solemn, and he bowed deeply to Rhett.
"Thank you for making such a great sacrifice in the pursuit of humanity's future!" Janka said sincerely.
Before Rhett could respond, Janka knelt on one knee. "And thank you even more for guiding me on the path of Elemental Fusion. With this method, there's now limitless potential beyond the Saint realm. At the very least... there's hope to contend with the Netherworld."
"This path isn't easy. Have you really thought it through?" Rhett asked softly.
"If you're not afraid of death, then why should I be? Besides, I have to fulfill my promise to Shaman, even if it means dying for it!" Janka's gaze was resolute, filled with the madness of a fanatic.
Rhett said nothing more.
They were not the same. Rhett could experiment freely in the simulation, knowing that even death wouldn't erase the progress he made in Elemental Fusion.
"Well…"
Remembering that this was just a simulation and that he wouldn't live long enough to see Janka reach the strength to challenge the Blood Demon, Rhett waved his hand, suddenly feeling disinterested.
"Alright, I'll be making another attempt at Elemental Fusion soon. I hope it succeeds this time…"
"Good luck will find you," Janka said with a soft smile, offering his blessing.
Three days later.
With the signal whistle in hand, Rhett smiled faintly.
"The task I asked you to complete is done. From now on, you don't need to follow Manu's instructions."
At the workbench, just before Rhett left, he gave Janka a parting instruction.
"Heh, Manu doesn't need my help anymore…" Janka chuckled wryly. It was true—at this point, he was little more than Manu's assistant, no longer capable of surpassing him in terms of knowledge.
The only area where Janka still felt competent was in his research on the human body.
But after expelling the Blood Demon fragment from his body, he had lost the desire to pursue any world-destroying plans, fully immersing himself in his research.
He had also abandoned the Blood God Cult entirely.
Most of its members had either reformed or, in the case of those too far gone, had been wiped out by Rhett, with their souls fed to Manu, who had grown even stronger.
"One last piece of advice—Elemental Fusion is fraught with danger. It's not like the ordinary path of transcendence, where even those with limited talent can eventually hit a bottleneck and live out their lives. The path of fusion is full of unknowns. If you take a wrong step, there's no coming back."
For some reason, Rhett felt compelled to offer Janka this warning, staring directly into his eyes.
Janka's expression turned serious. "I am ready to face death without fear."
Seeing Janka's unwavering determination, Rhett looked at him one last time before turning and leaving.