Chapter 307: Bloodline Fragments? This Thing Is Called a Genetic Disease

'It's like putting together a puzzle...'

Qi Suian looked at the Nine Extremes Body in his hands... the fragmented version.

He'd juiced the entire Zhuang Family, and he still hadn't managed to assemble the complete version.

It seemed that apart from the first generation, not even the second could hope to replicate it.

To say nothing of how the family had branched out over so many generations now. Assembling a complete set was simply unrealistic.

So, if Qi Suian wanted the complete Nine Extremes Body, there was one other way.

He would have to implant nine specific Lower-Grade Spiritual Roots into an undeveloped fetus for a chance to replicate it.

These nine Lower-Grade Spiritual Roots were the very ones that had been drawn to the Innate Mage of the Nine Extremes Body at birth.

Qi Suian immediately discarded the idea. It had absolutely no chance of success.

It wasn't a matter of a non-Innate Mage's body rejecting the transplant and causing it to fail.

The issue was with true Innate Mages—they already had their own destined Lower-Grade Spiritual Roots, making it impossible for them to accept any foreign implants.

Thus, the entire method was flawed from top to bottom.

It was even less feasible than extrapolating the complete version from the fragments of the Nine Extremes Body.

'It's still somewhat useful. At least I obtained data on expanding Spiritual Root capacity.'

'If I compiled it, I could probably develop a modification surgery to increase the number of Spiritual Roots a person can refine.'

'But the problem is... it's useless to me.'

This was indeed useless to Qi Suian. He had not yet managed to fully integrate the Spiritual Root system into his own Extraordinary system.

Based on his estimations, conquering the Spiritual Root system this time would be extremely difficult.

Of course, if he wasn't pursuing the ultimate boost in combat power that came from a special constitution, then there would be no issue.

He could perform the surgery right now.

But if he did that, he wouldn't just fail to reach 11 points in his dual attributes—he wouldn't even reach 10. He'd be stuck treading water at 9.

The massive, discontinuous leap in power provided by being an Innate Mage with a special constitution was no exaggeration.

A conventional first-rank Mage would likely be unable to withstand a single blow from an ancestor of the Zhuang Family.

With ninety times the combat power, a single punch could turn them into meat paste.

Naturally, Qi Suian pursued this kind of power that far surpassed the ordinary; he had no intention of becoming just another face in the crowd.

'Actually, if I change my approach, I don't necessarily have to use the Nine Extremes Body.'

'I can just dig up more fragments from various special constitutions and use their strengths to compensate for each other's weaknesses.'

'Take the Nine Extremes Body, for instance. The advantage of this special constitution is the capacity to refine an additional eighteen Spiritual Roots.'

'Even though I didn't obtain the data on its amplification effects, the extra capacity alone is ridiculously powerful.'

'Its flaws can be completely compensated for with fragments from other special constitutions.'

'Like the fragments from Zhuang Tong and his father...' Qi Suian muttered.

That's right. Both Zhuang Tong and his father possessed fragments of a completely different special constitution.

Qi Suian suspected that the vast majority of people likely carried these fragments—things called special constitutions, but which were, in reality, hereditary diseases.

In other words, just about everyone had a distinguished ancestor.

After all, poverty doesn't survive past three generations.

The third generation can't afford to marry and have children, so their line simply dies out.

Thus, if you trace any family line back far enough, you're bound to find a prominent figure.

Therefore, Qi Suian guessed that every single native of the Spirit Root World carried fragments of a special constitution.

And through marriage, these fragments from different special constitutions would recombine. If they got lucky, they could form a combination that produced a special pheromone or aura attractive to a Spiritual Root, which would then take up residence.

That was how an Innate Mage was born.

Then, as the Spiritual Root took hold, the various fragments would resonate with it, causing corresponding evolution and mutation in the host's genes and cells, thus giving rise to a brand-new special constitution.

'As expected, it's a success.' Qi Suian watched as the prototype of some new special constitution formed within Zhuang Tong.

He had used Green Eyes and Flying Bird Leaf, simulating an environment to trigger a forced reset in the man's body.

This forcibly created a resonance between the inherited special constitution fragments in his body and the two Lower-Grade Spiritual Roots, compelling his body to mutate.

However, due to the highly destructive nature of the process and the lack of experimental data, the side effects soon manifested.

Zhuang Tong's body began to twitch uncontrollably as copious amounts of blood seeped from his pores.

His internal organs started to melt, and his eyeballs burst from their sockets.

It was obvious that Qi Suian's experiment, conducted with insufficient data, had caused catastrophic failure in the man's genes and cells.

The entire process lasted nearly five minutes. In the end, only a skeleton and a pool of pus were left.

'A qualified success, I suppose.'

'Then the bloodline fragments that form special constitutions must originate from the Spiritual Roots.'

'Refining a Spiritual Root is, in essence, the fusion of an Extraordinary Parasite with one's organs.'

'Once completed, the host's body inevitably acquires DNA fragments from the Extraordinary Parasite. These are the bloodline fragments.'

'Being a Mage can be classified as a form of biological modification surgery, just one centered on cultivation rather than scalpels and medicine.'

'So, why don't I just skip the middle step?'

'And use Spiritual Roots to perform the biological modification directly?'

Qi Suian considered the possibility. Surprisingly, it really seemed feasible.

But he had just come full circle, right back to the original problem.

The Abyssal Virus in his body refused to let the Spiritual Root parasites in the door.

It was a foreign entity, after all. His immune system would defend against it to the death.

Especially since the Abyssal Virus was also a dominant power. How could it possibly be willing to accept another?

'Two Extraordinary systems, and I'm stuck in the middle of what feels like some kind of cheesy melodrama.'

In the end, it all came down to rejection. If the natives experienced it so strongly, the rejection from Qi Suian's body would surely be even greater.

He might be able to adapt, but how could the Spiritual Roots? They were just a swarm of parasites. For them, adaptation would require evolution on the scale of hundreds of millions of years.

'Looks like I still have to go back to capturing people and Spiritual Roots.'

As he mused, Qi Suian plucked the two Lower-Grade Spiritual Roots—Green Eyes and Flying Bird Leaf—from Zhuang Tong's skeleton and casually tossed them into the Melting Furnace.

The two of them were useless to him now; he might as well see what they were worth as fuel.

"AI, what are your thoughts?" Qi Suian asked.

[I have no strong opinions at present. The symbiotic Extraordinary forms of this world are somewhat strange.]

[However, you should be wary of the bloodline fragments that create special constitutions. In essence, they are still hereditary diseases formed from foreign genetic fragments.]

[A genetic problem on this scale is very likely connected to the current apocalypse.]

The AI was thinking further ahead. While Qi Suian was focused solely on how to grow stronger, the AI saw the underlying risks.

"You mean the Spiritual Roots themselves might be the problem?" Qi Suian immediately grasped the source of the issue.

Mages—whether Innate or not, with or without a special constitution—all ultimately traced their power back to the parasitic Spiritual Roots.

There were no ongoing natural or man-made disasters; everything seemed peaceful. The only thing that could be a problem, then, were the Spiritual Roots.

[Correct. Therefore, I recommend you focus on research for the time being and refrain from any Spiritual Root transplantation.]

[Unlike the Abyssal Virus in your body, which was a necessary choice born of circumstance, the risks of the Spiritual Roots may outweigh the benefits.]

Did Qi Suian want to implant a Spiritual Root into his own body? Of course not.

Who would willingly stuff a parasite into themselves unless life forced their hand?

If he had a choice, Qi Suian certainly wouldn't choose parasites.

But if it meant gaining power, Qi Suian could overlook the fact that they were parasites. The prerequisite, however, was that the benefits had to outweigh the risks.

He couldn't go through all that trouble just for show. That would be a net loss.

Given that this was the AI's advice, Qi Suian considered it seriously.

It just meant he could continue his research for now, but he shouldn't install anything in his own body yet.

These things were easy to install, but removing them would probably cost him an arm and a leg.

He wouldn't even be able to recoup his costs, and that could easily affect his mental state.

His mental state was already fragile enough; a setback like that could push him over the edge into madness.

"I know. I'll seriously consider your suggestion." Qi Suian took the advice to heart. "In that case, we'll stick to hunting Mages for now."

"And in our spare time, we'll catch some Spiritual Roots to use as fuel."

Humans were out of the question. At this stage, unless they were mid-grade Mages or higher, their value as fuel wasn't even worth mentioning.

The percentage-based fuel from the Sacred Artifacts in the last world had been too potent. By comparison, many fuel sources now were of little use to the Tai Sui God.

[Preliminary estimates indicate that the fuel value of Spiritual Roots is substantial.]

[You would only need to input one hundred thousand Lower-Grade Spiritual Roots to increase the Tai Sui God's armor value by 1 point.]

"Let's just use Top-Grade Spiritual Roots," Qi Suian said, his head starting to ache at the sight of the number '100,000'.

Lower-Grade Spiritual Roots were certainly plentiful, but having the Tai Sui God collect a hundred thousand of them would be no easy task.

"How many Top-Grade Spiritual Roots do you estimate it would take to raise the armor value by 1 point?" Qi Suian asked.

[Insufficient data for an accurate estimate.]

Neither Qi Suian nor the Tai Sui God had ever obtained a Top-Grade Spiritual Root, so the AI lacked the data for an estimate.

[However, besides the highly valuable Spiritual Roots, there are other Extraordinary resources within the Spirit Root World. You need not limit yourself to them.]

[Furthermore, there are Spiritual Root derivatives. The Amber Jade in your possession, for example, can also be used as fuel.]

"Got it. You're telling me to just go on a looting spree, aren't you?" Qi Suian instantly understood the AI's implication.

Despite its euphemistic phrasing, that was exactly what Qi Suian had understood.

The AI had a learning model and was gradually beginning to align its logical processes with Qi Suian's way of thinking.

For example, it always suggested destructive experiments, particularly those tailored to him.

Its resource acquisition strategies always involved burning, killing, robbing, and plundering, with legal methods being a rarity.

Its conduct was that of a complete outlaw, never once considering the lives of others or the future consequences.

It just phrased things more diplomatically when speaking, giving Qi Suian the illusion of choice.

But if Qi Suian were to throw a problem at the AI, its answer could always be boiled down to one of three approaches: run away, murder and pillage, or steal and intercept.

These were also Qi Suian's own go-to methods.

As for correcting this behavior, that would be difficult.

Qi Suian would have to change his own ways first before the AI's learning model would alter its style.

You could only say that the Tai Sui God reflected the character of its master.

"A fine suggestion. I suggest you be more proactive with them in the future." Qi Suian heartily approved of the AI's plan. "But who are we going to rob?"

[Planning complete...]

A holographic map materialized, on which the AI had thoughtfully plotted a route.