Ethan observed the subject closely, without saying a word. The cultivator remained tied up, breathing deeply. The tension in his muscles indicated that something inside him had changed.
He didn't rush to begin the next experiment. Instead, he stood in front of Subject 3, watching in silence. With a slight movement, he took a series of steel tools: scalpel, forceps, specialized syringes.
During the next half hour, he carried out both basic and advanced tests, extracting blood, dermal and muscle tissue samples, as well as assessing reflexes, grip strength, and pain resistance. The subject, though visibly exhausted, no longer showed signs of physiological destabilization. On the contrary, he seemed stabilized... reinforced.
[Full analysis in progress]
The results appeared in a detailed holographic projection.
[Muscle: slow-twitch fibers +62% endurance, fast-twitch fibers +48% strength, oxygenation +51% capillaries and optimized hemoglobin]
[Bones +33% density and impact absorption x3.2]
[Circulation: reinforced vessels, +11% red blood cells, +17% platelets]
[Nervous system: +21% conduction speed, reflexes +32%.]
[Result: physical performance, endurance, and accuracy significantly improved.]
Ethan nodded slowly, narrowing his eyes as he observed the figure of the subject strapped to the gurney.
"Fascinating..." Ethan murmured, his voice low.
He closed his eyes for a moment, crossing his arms as AION's interface activated in his mind.
"Compare the vital parameters of Subject 1 with those of Subject 3. Identify key differences during the critical phase of the Blood Baptism."
[Comparison in progress.]
[Result: significant differences detected in energy absorption rate, cellular stability, and internal resonance capacity.]
Ethan frowned slightly.
"Internal resonance... explain that."
[During the ritual, when the liquid stirs and the energy begins to condense, a slight spinning pattern is observed in the substance, similar to a vortex.]
[In Subject 3's case, this vortex appeared to synchronize with his dantian. The energy flowed toward his spiritual center with increasing stability.]
[In Subject 1, that phenomenon did not occur. The energy was not properly distributed. It accumulated with no possible channeling, resulting in overheating collapse and organ failure.]
"In other words," Ethan murmured, "the cultivator could assimilate it... and the other couldn't."
[Confirmed. Probable hypothesis: the success of the Blood Baptism depends on the existence of functional spiritual roots and an active dantian. Elements absent in common humans.]
Ethan remained silent for a few seconds. His eyes fixed on the projected image of the dead subject, in contrast to the still-living cultivator. The result was clear: the common human body was not designed to receive that kind of power.
But then, an idea struck him like a fleeting flash.
"AION... when you say 'common humans', what exactly do you mean?"
[Biologically human individuals without conscious access to Qi. They lack internal energy structures such as spiritual roots or a spiritual core.]
[They are not compatible with methods that require spiritual assimilation.]
Ethan smiled sideways, a hint of sarcasm in his expression.
"And demonic beasts?" Ethan suddenly asked, his eyes fixed on the projection. "Aren't they also 'biological individuals' but with active energy structures?"
[Confirmed. Demonic beasts possess energy formations equivalent to a spiritual core. However, their capacity for spiritual assimilation stems from a unique internal agent, a bioactive structure present in their blood and tissue, currently classified as Compound D. This compound acts as a catalyst, allowing them to transform spiritual energy. Unlike human cultivators, who channel such energy through spiritual roots and the internal development of the dantian.]
Ethan smiled as he heard the response. Then, without looking away from the hologram, he gave the order to the Vespers.
"Prepare experimental subject number 2."
His eyes moved to the vial containing pure Compound D. As if the answer had always been there, simply waiting to be recognized.
"Then tell me, AION... if beasts can contain Compound D," he murmured, his gaze sharp behind golden glasses, "why can't we?"
His voice took on a cold tone, laden with expectation.
"Run a simulation. Interaction of Compound D with the Blood Baptism liquid in a human organism. Analyze compatibility, energy assimilation, and full cellular response."
[Simulation initiated]
[Modeling energy interaction between the molecular structures of Compound D and the ritual fluid...]
[Analyzing parameters of cellular homeostasis, tissue permeability, mitochondrial stability...]
Seconds later, a three-dimensional projection lit up the air in front of Ethan: altered DNA chains, energetic pulses radiating between tissues, muscle vibrating with heat and light.
[Result: without the presence of spiritual roots or a functional dantian, the Baptism fluid causes a lethal energy overload. The human body collapses due to its inability to absorb, channel, or redistribute the excess energy.]
[Turning point detected... prior introduction of Compound D: compatibility increased by 82%. Cells show anomalous activation with signs of structural reorganization.]
[Theoretical conclusion: exposure to Compound D enables stable assimilation of the ritual fluid.]
Ethan remained silent. The projection flickered, revealing a path that had seemed impossible until now. An open door.
"A catalyst," he finally murmured, a smile crossing his face.
He walked slowly toward the tank, as if observing it helped him see the process more clearly.
"Compound D absorbs spiritual energy. When we inject it into common humans, it tries to absorb it... that's why the anomaly appears in the D-Serum: it generates an energy demand the body cannot meet."
[Confirmed. The D-Serum anomaly generates an uncompensated energy demand in common humans.]
"But in the tank… the energy contained in the ritual fluid it's a passive body refinement technique: it penetrates the body directly. If we introduce Compound D beforehand, one acts from within... the other from outside."
[Affirmative. Theoretical compatibility high.]
"Of course..." Ethan narrowed his eyes, as if something far greater was forming behind his words. "Beasts don't cultivate. They grow stronger by instinct."
He looked back at the hologram.
"This isn't evolution. It's directed imitation."
He paused. The bluish light of the hologram reflected in his vision as he spoke, almost to himself.
"Humans weren't born with claws, or scales, or wings. We have no venom in our fangs, no strength in our bones. But we learned. We copied fire, ambush, flight, and the hunt. We took everything we didn't have… and made it ours. We are not the fastest nor the strongest species."
"We are the most dangerous. Not for what we are… but for what we imitate until perfection."
Ethan smiled, cold and lucid.
When everything was ready, he walked toward the second experimental subject. The man was near the tank, bound, struggling with terror in his eyes as his wrists strained against the chains.
Ethan said nothing at first. He just observed him.
Then, he lowered his gaze to the syringe of Compound D in his hand.
Unmoved by the screams and pleas, Ethan took the syringe and plunged the needle in with precision. The liquid Compound D slid into subject 2's vein. Thousands of particles dispersed through the bloodstream.
[Absorption levels accelerating. Compound D circulating in 98% of the vascular system.]
"Introduce the subject into the tank."
Two soldiers dragged him, still struggling. The metal restraints closed with a dull click around his limbs. The Baptism of Blood began.
On the projected screen, Ethan watched the subject's internal temperature climb to critical levels.
[Alert: extreme nervous system activity spikes. Heart rate: 184 bpm. Body temperature: 40.8… 40.9… stabilized at 41.0 °C.]
To his surprise, he did not collapse. He stabilized.
Minutes passed in expectant silence. The subject's breathing was labored, and his muscles throbbed beneath the skin as if some internal force were reorganizing them. His veins moved, repositioned themselves, almost with a will of their own.
Then it happened.
The ritual fluid reacted. It swirled around the body in increasingly tighter spirals, as if it recognized… or accepted something.
Inside the subject, Compound D glowed. As if a hidden code in human flesh had been activated. Rivers of shimmering particles coursed through the nervous system, spreading through muscles, bones, organs. Every cell seemed to open to the ritual, rewriting its function.
Spiritual energy was absorbed voraciously.
Minutes passed, Until the subject screamed once more, a cry that shattered the silence like glass, until his body fell limp.
But he was not dead.
[Status: stabilized. Preliminary integration completed. Vital signs stable. Subject has survived the Baptism.]
Ethan approached the tank, the reflection of his golden glasses distorted by the glass.
Not even the creator of the Blood Baptism ritual could have foreseen this scene. What lay before him was an impossible convergence of science and spiritual technique, of mortal flesh and spiritual essence.
"So it's possible…" he repeated, in a low, restrained voice. "We don't need spiritual roots."
"Only the will… to have what was never ours."