Locke placed his palm on the Amethyst Matrix. Inside the purple crystal, waves surged like a turbulent sea, one after another, as the numbers climbed from 462 all the way up to 470.
Over the course of this month, due to consuming the Eye Demon Potion, Locke's meditation speed had increased, raising his Mana from 454 at the beginning of the month to 462.
But now, his mental energy was ascending rapidly due to the Ancient Bloodline Modification—so rapidly that it even surpassed the growth rate achieved by consuming various potions, including the Eye Demon Potion.
Locke could feel the consciousness of the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat constantly roaring in his ears, relentlessly assaulting his mind.
The Bloodline Modification Potion crafted by the Archaeological Scholar contained elements derived from the Gray Mushroom Bacillus, which carried information extracted from a Negative Energy Particle Field tens of thousands of years old.
This was the final vision seen by the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat before its death, hundreds of millennia ago.
These fragmented scenes repeatedly bombarded Locke. Though he couldn't see exactly what the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat had witnessed, he could sense its fury, terror, despair, and its solitary defiance.
In its last moments, it had still attempted to resist the continent-level geological catastrophe, only to be swallowed by the tides of time.
A deep sense of mystery lingered in Locke's heart, much like it did in the hearts of all Archaeological Scholars.
What had truly happened back then?
Was it a global disaster, or merely a regional one?
Why were all Negative Energy Particles related to that catastrophe unable to be preserved, as if they had been utterly destroyed?
To analyze that calamity, Archaeological Scholars could only extract reactions from other fossils of that era, indirectly piecing together the existence of that colossal geological upheaval.
Locke intended to research and explore these mysteries in the future. After all, unraveling this enigma could yield numerous academic publications.
Most importantly, Ancient Creature Bloodlines could indeed enhance his physique in many ways.
Of course, these were likely not problems an apprentice could solve. It would be better to wait until he became a Formal Wizard before delving deeper.
By now, Locke had gained some understanding of what an Archaeological Scholar truly was.
Spanning hundreds of thousands of years, they used magic and knowledge to unlock secrets buried in history—secrets so ancient that no one today remembers or cares about them—recreating the mysteries and glories of that era, bringing long-extinct ancient creatures back into this age.
This was the work of an Archaeological Scholar.
Locke steadied his mind and suppressed the violent restlessness brought on by the Bloodline Modification. His pupils transformed into golden vertical slits, within which another pupil became even more distinct.
Locke gazed into the mirror. "Indeed, this Bloodline Modification has triggered a reaction from the mysterious bloodline within me. The changes in my pupils are now even more refined."
Locke activated the True Sight Crystal Ball beside him, recording the image of his golden double-pupiled eyes within the crystal sphere.
He could investigate the origin and source of this golden iris pattern later.
Perhaps this would help trace the lineage of this Bloodline and uncover the identity of this body's mother.
Locke watched as his pupils in the mirror quickly reverted to those of a normal human. "Has the chain reaction ended? How unsettling."
"I need to figure out what's happening to my own body as soon as possible. Although, so far, the chain reactions have only benefited me, unpredictability means instability."
"As a Wizard, how can I tolerate such instability born from the unknown?"
At the same time, Locke's body officially entered the transformation phase of the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat Bloodline. Without hesitation, he grabbed five bottles of Cell Accelerated Division Potion from the shelf and drank them all.
This was a small trick.
The Cell Accelerated Division Potion was merely a functional Potion of assistant-level difficulty. It accelerated cell division speed, making it suitable for experiments requiring rapid generational turnover.
Similarly, it was ideal for consumption during Bloodline modification—by increasing cell division cycles, the transformation could be completed more efficiently.
Locke felt his entire body burning, his temperature soaring as if he were in a perpetual high fever. Prepared for this, he quickly leaped into a large barrel of cold water placed inside the laboratory.
Soon, the water began to boil, bubbles rising one after another.
Locke raised his right arm, watching as veins bulged across its surface. In the water's reflection, a mysterious eye pattern faintly appeared between his brows.
"The intensity of this Bloodline modification far exceeds my initial expectations," Locke muttered. "It's likely reached a 0.9-ring modification strength—very close to a first-ring level."
"Completing a modification of this caliber at this stage means I could publish quite a few papers. Wait, what am I thinking? I'm not a paper-producing machine—how have I objectified myself?"
Steadying his mind, Locke focused. "Just hold on a little longer. The modification will be done soon."
"My targeting of the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat Bloodline was extremely precise. After synthesis, it ascended another level. This was only possible after cultivating Gray Mushroom Bacillus for three years and studying Archaeological Spells for another three."
"Therefore, the side effects of this Bloodline Modification Potion shouldn't be too severe."
An hour later, the water in the barrel had calmed. Locke picked up a mirror to examine his face.
He was now in the activation phase of the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat Bloodline.
First, his Mana had increased from 462 before the modification to 500—a jump of 38 points!
This was equivalent to the Mana growth Locke would have achieved only after two years of rigorous meditation, spending over 400 Magic Stones daily and consuming three Eye Demon Potions monthly.
Yet this single modification had propelled his Mana to 500, making his foundational Mana far stronger and more stable.
Moreover, the Mana obtained through this method was surprisingly purer in quality.
This was likely due to the inherent strength of the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat Bloodline.
At the same time, Locke, in his Bloodline-activated state, was constantly consuming Mana. A Magic Eye had appeared on his forehead—this was an Innate Magic Eye naturally possessed by the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat.
The Magic Eyes crafted by Alchemists were modeled after the Innate Magic Eyes found on modern Magical Creatures.
Additionally, Locke's entire body was covered in the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat's distinctive white tiger stripes, and his hands had transformed into a hybrid state between tiger claws and human hands.
Locke could feel that his physique had been enhanced to an extreme degree during this Bloodline transformation.
After all, the Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat was renowned for its astonishing physical prowess.
However, maintaining this Bloodline-activated state required a continuous expenditure of massive amounts of Mana, as Locke was not a natural-born Three-Eyed Tiger Eye Cat but merely a Bloodline-modified individual.
He estimated that with his current Mana reserves, he could only sustain this state for about ten minutes—roughly consuming 50 points of Mana per minute.
(End of Chapter)