The following morning, Lin Ke submitted his mission report via the Guild's internal network. As planned, his report was brief and professional. He detailed the location of the nest, the description of the "mutated" creature he had eliminated, and confirmed that the abnormal energy fluctuations in Zone 3 had ceased. He deliberately omitted the creature's clear signs of Abyssal Corruption and, of course, made no mention of the Corrupted Gene Essence he had absorbed.
His report was quickly approved, and the 3,000 credit reward was transferred to his account. More importantly, his first official D-rank mission was now marked as 'Complete' in his Tamer profile, a small but significant step in building his professional career.
With the formalities out of the way, he headed towards the Guild's library and research division. He presented his champion's medal and the special permission slip given to him by Chief Proctor Magnus.
The librarian, an elderly woman with glasses perched on her nose, looked at the slip and then at Lin Ke with wide eyes. "The Archive of Forgotten Species? It has been years since anyone was granted access. Follow me, Champion."
She led him away from the public library, through several security checkpoints, and into a temperature-controlled, dust-free section of the building. They stopped in front of a heavy, vault-like door, similar to the one that guarded the prize eggs.
"This is it," the librarian said, keying in a long, complex password. "You have three hours. No data recording devices are permitted. You may only bring in a pen and a notebook. Do not touch any of the original specimens without authorization. Good luck."
The door hissed open, and Lin Ke stepped into a room that smelled of old parchment and preservation chemicals.
His jaw nearly dropped.
The Archive was a scholar's paradise. It was a vast, circular room lined with floor-to-ceiling shelves. But instead of ordinary books, these shelves held ancient stone tablets, delicate scrolls stored in protective casings, fossilized remains of unknown creatures, and countless leather-bound journals penned by long-dead researchers.
This was a repository of lost knowledge, a library of secrets.
Lin Ke took a moment to savor the atmosphere, then immediately got to work. He didn't have time to browse aimlessly. He went straight to the archive's central terminal to search the catalog.
He typed in his keywords: "Astral Energy," "Star," "Cosmic."
The system returned dozens of files. Most were ancient myths or philosophical texts. He quickly filtered through them, looking for anything with a biological or genetic basis. He found a journal entry from a researcher three hundred years ago, hypothesizing about a 'symbiotic relationship between certain ancient pets and celestial bodies.' It was a start.
Next, he searched for "Abyssal Corruption."
This search yielded far more results, but most of them were heavily redacted or classified above his security clearance. However, he did find what he was looking for: early, uncensored reports from when the phenomenon was first discovered.
He cross-referenced the data, his mind working furiously. The early reports described the corruption as "a parasitic, information-devouring plague that rewrites genetic code." This matched his own observations far better than the modern textbooks, which simply called it a "chaotic energy."
Then, he found the crucial link. An old, almost forgotten research paper titled 'On Symbiotic Energy Phenomena and Parasitic Opposites'.
The paper theorized that for every fundamental energy in nature, a parasitic "anti-energy" might exist. It hypothesized that if "Astral Energy" represented creation and order, then a dark, chaotic energy might exist that represented consumption and decay.
Lin Ke's eyes widened. The pieces were clicking into place.
The Abyssal Corruption was the 'anti-energy' to the Astral Energy his egg needed. This explained why his Gene Editor, a tool designed to manipulate the very code of life, could 'purify' the corruption. It wasn't just destroying it; it was inverting it, turning the negative energy back into its positive, raw state.
This meant the "Corrupted Gene Essence" he had absorbed was, in its purest form, a type of raw life and astral energy!
The implications were staggering. It meant he didn't necessarily need to find a 'Stardust Core' worth millions. He could, theoretically, hunt corrupted creatures and refine enough essence himself to awaken his dormant egg.
He furiously scribbled notes, his mind racing. He had found it. He had found the path.
His three hours were up all too quickly. As he left the archive, his notebook was filled with cryptic notes and half-formed theories. He looked like the same calm young man who had walked in, but his mind was on fire with new knowledge.
He now had a viable plan to awaken his mythical pet. But first, he had a tournament to win.