196. Greed and Power
Scientific Podcast- Interview with James Bolivar
(So, Dr. Bolivar, how long have you been studying Spatial Tear life forms?)
(Pretty much my entire life. My grandfather was a scientist so was my father and it is hard to not be interested in their studies especially if everyone around you all have scientific expertise.)
(Must have been difficult being pressured to have a doctorate.)
(Not entirely true and I’m sure it would have been fine had I chosen not to graduate.)
(Ha ha ha. There are rumors about your country that they will disown their children if they don’t have significant accomplishments….)
(That I honestly don’t know and to this day, I’m curious how that stereotype started. If we are talking solely about academic excellence, certainly our country, like every country there is, less than ten percent of the population have master’s degree and taking into account our current standards, I’m sure that in another decade or so, less than ten thousand will be called doctors.)
(He he he. I just want to bring that up early on as this question was brought up even before we started. So, to start, tell us more what exactly is E-X that you are ready exchange your life for it?)
(Well, E stands for energy and X stands for unknown and to be precise, I am studying a specific energy within unknown category which has been officially called E-X19 or Bolivar Frequency. Currently, there are 827 types of monsters spewed by Spatial Tears and that is not factoring bursts above Class C Spatial Tears and of the 827 monsters, one of them which is 428TH on the list and called Caudal Xenomorph, this monster when scanned by our sensors will only show as insignificant level of threat but when fought directly, one must be at least a 1ST Circle Mage or a Peak Warrior. Now, why is that?)
(Can you describe it to us without mentioning obscured science graphs and numbers. I’m sure you can tell I did not finish college.)
(He he he. Well, how should I say it? Let see… Well, you know that feeling when you are happy? That moment when you accomplish something and you feel great, or when you get a significant bonus you want to celebrate, or when that person you like says she likes you back, or when you are having a party, smoking, getting drunk, getting high, anything as long as you feel great, if we are to measure that feeling of happiness in terms of non-subjective criteria and is a measurable quantity, sad to say that these instances all rely on the level of dopamine or endorphins in our brain.
Now assuming that we can measure the level of happiness based on the amount of dopamine or endorphins in the brain, similarly, we can measure the strength of monsters spewed by Spatial Tear Outburst by the amount of Qi and energy frequencies released by their bodies.
The problem is, some of these monsters reflects low level of energies but when confronted, they could easily kill a low level Warrior and even resistant to runic guns so the question is, no matter how you look, the amount of energy within their bodies is very low and negligible so there must be something that is boosting their powers, right?)
(So are you implying it is an intangible energy and we just don’t have a way to measure it yet? I mean, any other properties you may have discovered that would tell us we are not imagining things?)
(That’s correct and this is why I referenced on measuring dopamine levels. We currently don’t have any accurate way of quantifying it but we know it’s the chemical behind our fuzzy feelings. Similarly with E-X19, we know it is there and we can prove its presence as this energy can be transferred. In fact, we have a holographic records from 80 years ago of the Tranquil Sarracenia Pitcher that ate one of the earlier specimens. To this day, it still is exhibiting this level of power although is it not as strong as it used to be.
The problem we have is that, of the thousands of specimens the scientific community managed to capture over the years, only one had an acceptable level of E-X19….)
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
*Tick!
Clay stopped the video and closed the laptop and stored it in his spatial ring. Yesterday after conducting the test, he flew towards a hill near a lake thirty kilometers from the guild.
Clay sat on a small boulder as he watched a boiling pot. Unlike his normal routine, he is cooking a normal prawn to improve his culinary skills.
Supposedly, he should already be moving with the team who passed his test yesterday but he instead instructed them to meet in three days. It is not like he likes to delay things and in fact, he would like them to start as soon as possible but he knew too well how predictable cultivators can be especially on a place where resources is limited.
After revealing the modified Mimic Ale and counting the fact that he is human, he most definitely look like a defenseless fat sheep.
From his estimate, someone will be sent out and secretly scout from afar before making a move but to his surprise, it seems they will be taking a more direct approach.
Just now, he sensed at least three powerful figures approaching his location that is why he hid his laptop to avoid it from being accidentally blasted.
“Greed oh greed!” Clay murmured as he stood up and turned towards an approaching figure.
Earlier he sensed three but the other two must have had already landed and from his guess, those two will stop Tarihk who had been concealing himself and secretly watching his move from afar.
Clay assessed the incoming mage. To be capable of flight, the other party must be at least a 3RD Circle but judging this person’s aura, it should be a 4TH Circle. Sadly though, this guy does not have any traces of Dao-like powers.
After a few seconds, Clay’s guest arrived with a murderous intent.
“Was it you who humiliated Atzali?”
“And if I was?” Clay looked at the figure who just landed on the grass. This person has yet to introduce himself yet he had already released an imposing and hostile aura.
“Surrender your spatial rings and cut off your arm.”
Clay scoffed in remark then slightly raised his right arm.
“I’m warning you, human. Don’t make me …” The mage was in the middle of his sentence when he felt dangerous fluctuations of energy coming from Clay’s fingers so he immediately formed a mana barrier.
BOOM!
The mage was surprised at how fast Clay’s modified Wind Blade Spell that the impact pushed him back.
“You think your tricks will work on me? Have a taste of ….” The mage moved his hands and was about to retaliate but the moment he was about to cast a spell, he felt a cold needle pierced at the back of his head causing his vision to blur and in the next second, everything around him went dark.
Thud!
Clay ignored the man’s body as it fell to the ground.
He could easily dominate his enemy by forming a huge mana hand but it might disrupt him from sensing something important so he chose a more restrained approach in killing. Just now, he felt a familiar burst of power rippling from afar and if he is correct, it should be Tarihk and the rest of the party.
Clay looked into the distance. Even from far away, he is still apprehensive of the Tarihk’s powers. He is confident the power brought to him by his 200,000TH Beast Essence can overpower Tarihk’s Dao-like power but he still feel like if it was him receiving those attacks, he felt like it would penetrate his defenses no matter what.
After a few more seconds, the energy ripples stopped and there was no need to guess who won.
Clay took out a ceramic bowl and scooped a slice of prawn meat from the boiling pot before taking a seat again.
Meanwhile, six kilometers from where Clay was having lunch, Tarihk is looking at a small rectangular wooden identity token. On his feet is a headless body lying on a pool of blood.
Yesterday, he thought that they would immediately be briefed of the mission and to his surprise, Clay actually wanted to delay their movements for three days. As a crippled 5TH Circle mage, he had his fair share of scheming and vengeful mages so he did not object.
Tarihk has yet to determine Clay’s real strength but to have the audacity to be left and targeted alone, it must mean that Clay has his secrets. He is not the type to poke his nose to places it does not belong but when he contacted the person who sent him the message regarding the mission, it was then he was advised of a potential threat of the country.
He did not take it to heart at first but when he heard the name of the person who perished within Clay’s hands, only then did he understood how serious it was. The mage who was killed was a student of a former 6TH Circle and like him, he had undergone Beast Essence Awakening.
Someone who had undergone Beast Essence Awakening is vastly more powerful and can even contend to someone two or three times higher than their level and to say that it was eliminated by an unknown wandering mage, it must mean that Clay is not simple.
Most mages don’t go past 5TH Circle but when they do, they will come to understand a new level of power which comes with awakening one’s Beast Spirit Essence. And it is for this reason that no matter how talented one is, they will not pass the entry test to pursue higher levels of cultivations and he is a good example of this. Had he not rushed and built a solid foundation instead, he should have been given the chance to breakthrough. After being crippled, he can only blame is carelessness and luck.
Upon confirming the identity of the 3RD Circle mage he just killed, Tarihk activated his wings so he could scan the perimeter better and seeing there was no more threat, he looked towards the hill where Clay was resting.