"A semi-finished product?"
Officer Ch'en, Swire, and even the trio from Yan all stared at Nian.
The Yan trio hadn't expected this. They were supposed to be here to carry out a mission, but they had ended up as students on the sidelines. Officer Ch'en and Swire, on the other hand, were shocked that this substance, which the L.G.D. had been unable to figure out after days of investigation, had been analyzed by these few people in an instant. And they hadn't used any equipment, just... looking, touching... and tasting?
And... why did this girl, who had dragon horns just like her, eat such a big mouthful and have absolutely nothing happen to her?
There were too many things to question, so many that Officer Ch'en didn't even know where to begin.
"It's just that the two internal forces haven't perfectly fused," Lucas Reeve explained to everyone.
"This powder isn't a single substance, but a forced combination of two powers: the power of the deep sea and the power of Originium. These are two completely different energies. It would take a Seaborn at least a hundred years to fully adapt to the Originium power on land, let alone just these two forces."
"If I'm not mistaken, the creator of this powder was attempting to create 'Super-Soldiers' by fusing these two disparate powers, something you can think of as similar to Abyssal Hunters. However, how could technology on land possibly compare to Aegir's? This crude fusion method is incapable of making these two forces truly merge. If the fusion were successful, when this dust enters a person's body, it wouldn't destroy their brain and nerves; it would grant them immense power."
"Of course, a theory that perfect implies practical impossibility."
"Even the Seaborn, with their collective evolution capability, need over a hundred years to adapt to Originium. This thing, which only has the power of the deep sea, completely lacks that evolutionary trait. Without the evolutionary trait, it can never truly fuse, unless human technology reaches that level. But, unfortunately, even Aegir probably isn't at that level right now. If they were, the Abyssal Hunters would be perfect individuals, not the flawed versions they are now."
"Therefore... this semi-finished product can basically never become a finished product."
Lucas Reeve sighed.
"How boring. I originally thought some powerful Seaborn enemy was invading Lungmen, but it turned out to be this uninteresting stuff. The idea is low-level, and the technical skill is shoddy."
Officer Ch'en hadn't expected that this dark blue powder, which they had analyzed for days without getting any results, would be criticized as utterly worthless by him. Didn't that just make the L.G.D. look lame?
How lame indeed.
"I'm taking the last bag."
After Nian ate one bag, Lucas Reeve announced he was taking the last one. He didn't bother waiting for permission, just stuffed it into his pocket.
Officer Ch'en desperately wanted to object, but the words died in her throat. She could only watch as this man pocketed the L.G.D.'s evidence. This was the first time in her many years as an officer that Officer Ch'en had felt so aggrieved.
Someone else was dominating the entire situation, and she was more like a student, just listening obediently.
Lin Qingyan spoke up. "So, Mr. Reeve, Miss Nian, are you able to track the person who escaped?"
"Simple."
If it were a real Seaborn, they could rely on the blood connection Skadi and Laurentina shared with the Seaborn. However, this thing couldn't even be called a Seaborn, so there was no blood connection to speak of. They'd have to use another method.
"Can you take us to where the medical examiner is?"
"Yes." Officer Ch'en nodded and led Lucas Reeve and the others out of the building and toward the detention center on the other side.
Along the way, Officer Ch'en explained that because they were afraid the medical examiner would run around biting people, he had been bound and locked in a special cage after they subdued him.
The group arrived at the detention center. Fearing the medical examiner might escape, the defenses at the center were incredibly tight. Officers surrounded the entire building in three concentric layers. Not even a fly could hope to escape. Seeing their superior officer arrive, the officer in charge of security immediately bowed to Officer Ch'en. He didn't recognize the others, but anyone with Officer Ch'en had to be important.
With Officer Ch'en as their human VIP pass, they proceeded without any obstruction.
Arriving at the top-floor cell, Officer Ch'en stopped.
Inside the cell, the medical examiner who had been bitten and turned into a monster was tightly bound. Seeing people approach, a craving, insane smile spread across his ferocious face.
Upon seeing the medical examiner's current state, Lin Qingyan couldn't help but frown.
The medical examiner's condition was truly horrifying, even more frightening than Officer Ch'en had described.
They hadn't even gotten close, but it was as if he could smell the living. They could clearly hear the low, monstrous growl rumbling from his throat.
He was the only one imprisoned on this entire floor, and he wasn't just normally imprisoned.
Inside the cell, the medical examiner's hands and feet were locked in incredibly thick iron shackles.
Seeing the group approach, the man who had turned into a monster instantly went berserk, struggling violently, trying to break free from the shackles on his limbs. Every one of his struggles looked as if it might bring the surrounding walls crashing down. It was terrifying.
The medical examiner's physical state was also terrible. His entire body was covered in sharp Originium spines. These spines didn't seem to be growing *on* his skin, but rather as if they had been inside his body and were forced out from beneath the skin by some catalyst. You could even see blood that hadn't completely dried. In addition, there was a flower on his chest that looked like it was made of fangs, with a single crimson eye in its center.
Magallan, after an initial fright, began to observe him with great interest.
"Oh ho! This reminds me of a sci-fi movie from Columbia."
After seeing the medical examiner, Lucas Reeve was clearly disappointed. He had thought there might be something different, but it was exactly as he had imagined.
Lucas Reeve explained, "If I'm not mistaken, the only reason this medical examiner ended up like this is because the Originium in his body was activated and then went rampant."
"Activated?"
Officer Ch'en and Lin Qingyan looked at Lucas Reeve, confused. It seemed there were many terms Lucas Reeve used that they didn't understand at all.
"Basically, when this medical examiner was bitten by that first-batch monster, a portion of the deep sea power and Originium power entered his body through the wound. As you know, in the bodies of you Terra-ns, even in the blood vessels of those without Oripathy, there is a certain purity of Originium dust. If there's no Oripathy, this dust presents as 'negative'. However, after this medical examiner was bitten, a portion of external Originium power entered his body, instantly destroying his internal Originium balance. This is also the mechanism and cause of Oripathy formation."
"If it were only Originium power, he might not have lost his sanity, just become an Infected at worst."
"But the entry of the deep sea power was not a good thing. The deep sea power and Originium power are natural enemies, incapable of mixing. Sensing its enemy's arrival, the Originium in his body reacted just like white blood cells encountering bacteria or a virus, triggering an intense acute reaction. The Originium grew wildly, turning him into this form that is neither human nor monster."
Officer Ch'en sighed, her gaze toward Lucas Reeve becoming more respectful.
Putting all else aside, the amount of knowledge this Mr. Reeve held in his mind was truly astonishing. These were things they had never even heard of, yet Mr. Reeve could analyze it all clearly just by glancing at it. He was truly worthy of being sent by Yan's Grand Tutor, truly brilliant. Sometimes, you just had to admit, if they had relied only on the L.G.D., they would have struggled to even understand the cause, let alone anything else.
"So... Mr. Reeve, is there any way to restore him to his normal human appearance?"
Even as Officer Ch'en asked this, she knew it was probably impossible, but she decided to ask anyway.
"Yes."
However, Lucas Reeve's single word made Officer Ch'en freeze.
*Huh?!!*
"But, unfortunately, I can only alleviate his current state. Even after alleviating it, his Oripathy cannot be cured. And because his brain was damaged by the Originium's acute reaction, even if he recovers, while he won't be an idiot... he probably won't be much better off."
"Sigh..."
Officer Ch'en sighed heavily.
"Thank you, Mr. Reeve. It's best if we can save his life. If he can recover, I will approve his honorable retirement for a work-related injury, and he will receive a monthly stipend."
"Mm."
Officer Ch'en opened the cell for Lucas Reeve. He slowly walked over. However, the mutated medical examiner didn't react violently as expected. In the presence of Lucas Reeve's divine aura, he was scared stiff, trembling, not even daring to make a sound.
Lucas Reeve placed one hand on his head.
A golden light radiated from his body, and in an instant, he looked like an immortal descended to the mortal realm. Officer Ch'en and Swire were stunned.
*Golden?*
*Golden?!!*
*Why is it golden? Isn't Originium energy crimson-black?*
The glow of divinity filled the entire cell. At this moment, Lucas Reeve seemed to have turned into a small sun. The holy radiance poured into the man's body. The tiny amount of Seaborn power inside him, sensing the descent of divine power, didn't even have a chance to react or flee before it was utterly annihilated.
Under the light's glow, the fang-like flower on the medical examiner's chest turned to black ash and dispersed. The central eye also vanished, leaving only a large scar on his chest.
Rule 'Originium'.
Golden, runic chains once again emerged from Lucas Reeve's body, swirling around him before adhering to his hand.
Under the control of the Rule, a massive amount of excess Originium energy was drawn out of the man's body. None of the extracted energy was wasted; it condensed in the air into a dark red orb. As the energy was pulled out, the terrifying spines on the medical examiner's body receded at a visible rate.
Finally, when the spines had completely disappeared, Lucas Reeve stopped. With a light squeeze of his hand, the Originium energy condensed in mid-air instantly became a crimson energy crystal.
"Done."
"However, the Oripathy can't be cured. But it's fine. When he wakes up, just have him go to the Rhodes Island branch office every week to buy Oripathy suppression medication."
Officer Ch'en's eyes were wide. If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she would have truly suspected this was divine intervention.
*Ah... This is completely unexplainable by medicine. It just... receded, just like that.*
It was simply incredible. Before, Officer Ch'en might not have believed it, but now she truly believed that the real talents were hidden among the people. They didn't care for power or status; they just wanted to live their own peaceful lives, because power and status were things they could obtain at will.
"Are there others? Anyone else he bit?"
Officer Ch'en nodded.
"Yes, but those who were bitten by him haven't shown many abnormalities yet. They are all being quarantined in the hospital."
This powder was really so boring. It had no real power, and its proliferation wasn't even as strong as the T-virus from Columbia's zombie movies. This thing, if you got bitten by a secondary host, probably wouldn't even have much effect. All you could say was, it was too lame.
Since the newly bitten group wasn't showing symptoms, Lucas Reeve didn't bother with them for now, choosing instead to find the first person who was directly infected by the powder.
Finding this person couldn't be done with ordinary methods; it required a special one.
With his Causality Vision activated, Lucas Reeve could easily see several special causal threads on the medical examiner. Based on the color of the threads, he could basically determine that among these red ones, one of them had to belong to the monster that bit him.
This mission was much simpler than he'd expected.
Originally, when Lucas Reeve heard from the Grand Tutor's email that Seaborn might have appeared in Lungmen, he thought there would be something big. Plus, he had coincidentally run into Magallan right after arriving in Lungmen. With several buffs stacked together, he was almost certain a major incident was about to occur.
However, the investigation seemed to be going far too smoothly. And what he thought was a Seaborn presence turned out to not be Seaborn at all, but just the product of some misguided experiment using Seaborn power.
The function of this product was so shoddy, it was unlikely to be the Church of the Deep. To put it bluntly, the Church of the Deep came from Aegir; they wouldn't be bored enough to create such a pathetically lame powder.
Well, if it wasn't the Church of the Deep, there was only one other possibility.
Some faction had started courting death....
In fact, Lucas Reeve should have thought of it sooner. After the Siesta incident was leaked, someone was bound to try and study the Seaborn. After all, human nature is greedy. According to all the movies, 90% of all disasters are caused by scientists courting death.