Chapter 111: Chapter 96: Continue Fleecing

After suturing the Dragon Lizard’s wound, Isaac locked it in a cage, attaching a few notes to the bars. With that, his part was done. Liu Li was responsible for regular observation, and all Isaac had to do was review her reports.

Of course, he could come take a look himself if he had free time. That was the beauty of having an assistant!

After cracking his knuckles, Isaac didn’t immediately begin the next experiment. Instead, he walked over to a nearby desk, reviewed the entire experimental procedure, and recorded his notes before finally heading to operating table #1.

On it lay another disemboweled Dragon Lizard. The difference this time was that its heart had not been removed. Although it was still a bloodline purification experiment involving cardiac modification, Isaac had opted for a different approach, creating a control group.

The project itself didn’t require this. While it called for five modified Dragon Blood Demon Lizards, there were no stipulations on the experimental method. As long as they weren’t simply purchased, one could submit five specimens all created using the same procedure.

’But that would be meaningless. Isn’t that just cutting corners?’

’If I wanted to take the easy way out, wouldn’t it be simple? Just give up on these rituals with Evil Gods, go home, and live comfortably as an Otherworld plagiarist. I could just use my family’s money to study Arcane Art, couldn’t I?’

’But that would be so boring. And I’d be far too weak.’

So, for the bloodline purification experiments, Isaac went all out. He meticulously designed two additional protocols outside the scope of his research project to serve as a comparison to the original.

In the experiment he was about to perform, the cardiac modification would be done *inside* the Dragon Lizard’s body!

This experiment had three primary challenges. First, the material used to activate the bloodline factors didn’t easily and completely fuse with the heart. Second, the activation of said factors could spread throughout the body. Third, even if the first two problems were perfectly resolved, the lizard’s heart was simply too large. The slightest mistake during the condensation phase, and the Dragon Lizard would drop dead.

This was a step that not even his Golden Finger could control.

First, Isaac cast a spell, carefully infusing delicate wisps of Magic Power into the Dragon Lizard’s slowly beating heart. He then poured the Magic Potion onto his right hand and slowly inserted it into the lizard’s chest cavity, using Magic Power to contain the liquid and prevent it from adhering elsewhere. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Isaac then gently took hold of the Dragon Lizard’s heart. Squeezing softly in time with its beat, he slowly infused the potion and Magic Power into the organ. Meanwhile, his mouth and left hand were not idle. He softly chanted a Vim Magic Spell, causing a pale green Magic Power to flow into the Dragon Lizard’s body to maintain its vital functions.

Ten minutes later, Isaac withdrew his hand and breathed a small sigh of relief.

The first application was complete. Three more to go.

Twenty minutes later, Isaac sighed as he looked at the Dragon Lizard on the operating table. It had grown a third leg. A failure...

Just as he had calculated, the failure occurred at the second step. The material and Magic Power had fused perfectly, but the activation of the bloodline factors quickly spread throughout the Dragon Lizard’s entire body via its bloodstream.

’I need to find a way to contain it.’

After a moment of contemplation, Isaac picked up a nearby scalpel and ended the Dragon Lizard’s life. He then tossed the carcass aside and moved to the next operating table to continue his experiments.

Originally, there had only been two Dragon Lizards in his territory. He had awakened the Dragon Blood in one, which also mastered a Magic called Dragon Flame and was designated Number One. He had forgotten about the other one, whose Dragon Blood remained dormant; he planned to sell it in a few days.

In addition to those two, Isaac had purchased ten more for his experiments on his way here, so he was not currently short on subjects.

Soon, the third experiment also ended in failure. This time, the lizard grew three new eyes. Furthermore, its already incredibly faint Dragon Blood had somehow become even more diluted...

In a way, this was a new discovery in itself. The bloodline concentration in Dragon Lizards was widely acknowledged to be the absolute lowest, yet who would have thought there was still room for it to fall!

A pity it was of no use to him. With a single cut, he ended it and moved on to the next experiment.

The fourth attempt: failure.

The fifth attempt: he controlled the bloodline Activation, but not the heart’s expansion. Failure.

The sixth attempt: he failed to control the heart’s expansion. Failure.

The seventh attempt: he controlled the heart’s expansion, but the Dragon Lizard’s body couldn’t withstand the Magic Power in the new Dragon Blood. Its blood vessels ruptured, and it died.

The eighth attempt: Isaac preemptively fed the Dragon Lizard a Magic Potion to strengthen its blood vessels. Everything went smoothly. The experiment was a success!

After locking the metamorphosing Dragon Blood Demon Lizard in a cage, Isaac let out a long, relieved sigh. The extended period of experimentation left him feeling a trace of fatigue, mainly due to the sheer number of failures. He hadn’t run experiments for so long that he had almost forgotten the taste of failure.

After composing himself, Isaac began the ninth experiment. His confidence was much higher this time, as this procedure involved ritual modification—his specialty.

’That’s the confidence that comes with having a cheat!’

Soon, the ninth experiment was also completed successfully. At this point, only one of the Dragon Lizards Isaac had purchased remained. He was still two short of the five required for his research project, but he had no intention of keeping the last one. He planned to sell it along with the other forgotten lizard.

The reason was simple: he currently lacked any new inspiration. In any case, the project deadline was still a long way off. For now, he would focus on collecting data and seeing if he could devise a new experimental protocol or make some adjustments to his current ones.

For now, however, Isaac walked to the area in his laboratory dedicated to setting up rituals. After making the necessary arrangements, he traveled to the Dimension where the Flesh Sect resided.

He had recently developed some ideas for his research proposal: *A Feasibility Study on Cultivating High-Level Demon Flesh within a Mage Tower’s Magic Pool.* Thus, it was time to use the funds the Sect had allocated for this project.

Isaac had two main approaches to this research project. The first was his original concept: take the Flesh Nest Magic, modify it slightly, and then place it within the Magic Pool. The pool’s Magic Power would serve as the energy source to produce Demon Flesh.

This approach was the safest, as a Mage Tower’s Magic Pool is typically connected to the Four Great Elemental Realms, providing a nearly inexhaustible supply of Magic Power.

Unfortunately, safe as it was, the cost was exorbitant. Not only was it completely unaffordable for an individual, but the cost-to-benefit ratio was also terrible. Then again, anyone who could afford to build a Mage Tower wouldn’t be worried about that kind of money anyway.

Aside from this "pay-to-win" option, Isaac had another plan: combine [God-Stealer] with the Flesh Nest, using the Divine Power of an Outer God as the source!

But this plan... the risk was far too high.

The production of a Flesh Nest is a continuous process. Siphoning off a one-time chunk of power from an Outer God and running is one thing; continuously stealing that power is another matter entirely. The latter would be discovered far too easily.

Furthermore, the power of most Outer Gods is highly Erosive. Using it recklessly could easily lead to a loss of control.

Still, he wasn’t afraid of running into problems. He was only afraid of having no problems to tackle and no methods to test.