In San Francisco, within a year, a towering skyscraper rose from the ground. Its architectural style was heavily influenced by science fiction, boasting 128 floors just above the surface. Since its completion, it has been hailed as the tallest building in the world, referred to as the architectural miracle of the century.
As soon as the building was finished, numerous large companies moved in, quickly filling it to capacity. It became one of the hottest topics at the time. However, the first ten floors of the building remained empty. These floors were not for sale and were not being sold. Even inquiries by phone were met with responses that they had been sold, yet a month later, they still remained vacant.
A few days later, people were astonished to see an unknown pharmaceutical company moving into the first ten floors. In a short time, they transported a large amount of experimental equipment into the building. This moving operation lasted for three days, during which numerous strange and peculiar machines were brought in.
Due to the complete death of dragon cells and the lack of new cell sources, all research on dragons came to a standstill. Enormous research funds were wasted. Even the wealthiest corporations felt the sting of this loss.
The secrets of dragon life represented a huge fortune that could potentially change humanity, promoting human evolution, making people stronger and longer-lived. Naturally, the corporations weren’t altruists working for humanity’s benefit. The potential profits, wealth, and power involved made even the sharpest minds excited. Once the research succeeded, human order would undergo a new reshuffling, and the progress of human development would take a giant leap forward.
However, the greater the potential profits, the more cautious they had to be. With a 300% profit margin, people are willing to take risks. With such enormous, incalculable profits, without absolute strength, one would be courting disaster.
As some corporations had existed for hundreds of years, no one could claim to be powerful enough to ignore any coveters. Moreover, due to the isolated nature of individual research efforts, results couldn’t be shared, severely slowing progress to an unbearable pace for the corporations.
Given these considerations, the savvy corporations reached a consensus: this profit clearly couldn’t be monopolized by a single organization. Thus, some major corporations worldwide came together to form a giant pharmaceutical company.
The combined power of tens of thousands of researchers was enormous. Although the dragon cells were dead and their gene chains broken, there were still some genetic fragments within the cells.
Modern biology had reached incredible heights, delving into the realm of gods. Scientists had deciphered various life codes. Cloning life and creating new species were no longer rare or difficult tasks. Many scientists had secretly attempted human cloning, a fact widely acknowledged in the biological community.
However, genes still held an aura of mystery. With a vast number of genes, each chromosome pair contained astronomical numbers of genes. Particularly, dragons had 38 pairs of chromosomes. Gene research was a complex and mysterious endeavor.
Researchers grafted and transplanted some dragon genes into other cells. Through several generations of cultivation, they could gradually observe the effects of these genes.
Although the process was tedious and troublesome, it held promise. Scientists believed that it wouldn’t be long before they completely deciphered the life code of dragons. At that point, human lifespan would no longer be limited to a mere century.
……
In a small town in California, a farmer had just returned from his farm and, without changing his clothes, walked into a roadside bar. It's his habit to have a beer at the bar after a day's work.
The bar wasn't very crowded, with only a few people scattered around. Except for a few newcomers from other towns, he knew everyone there. Having lived here for decades, he was familiar with everyone in town.
"Oh! Old John, a beer?" The bartender, an elderly man, greeted him warmly as he came in.
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"The usual, a beer and a burger. I'm exhausted! How's business lately?" Old John took off his hat and sat at the bar.
"You can see for yourself, same as always," the bartender said as he poured John a draft beer and turned to make the burger.
John took a big gulp of his beer, sighed in relief, and felt his wrinkled skin relax as if his fatigue was melting away.
"There seem to be more outsiders around lately," John commented.
"Who could say otherwise? Many people have moved here. I heard their town was visited by demons, and many people disappeared," the bartender replied casually while making the burger.
"Here you go, I added an extra sausage," the bartender said, handing him the burger. He then started wiping the bar, which was noticeably worn with years of use, the black paint beginning to peel.
At this moment, a stranger from out of town came up and said, "It's getting unsafe here too. Who knows when the demons might strike. Aren't you planning to move?"
"Move? Oh, heavens! That's not funny at all. I've lived here for decades. Where would I go? To the city? That place isn't for an old man," the bartender stopped wiping the table, lowered his voice, and said mysteriously, "Do you know why the demons have never come here?"
"Why?" the middle-aged stranger asked curiously, leaning in.
"Have you seen the dragon statue at the town's entrance?" the bartender said mystically.
"That statue is seven or eight meters high, you can see it from anywhere," the stranger replied, suddenly realizing, "Is that why? Are demons afraid of the dragon?"
"Of course, the power of demons can't compare to that of a dragon. As soon as they see the dragon statue, they flee and don’t dare come near. Many nearby towns have started building them, so this place is absolutely safe," the bartender whispered.
He carefully took a pendant from his pocket, a miniature purple-gold dragon. "See this? The dragon is in my heart," he said mysteriously, not waiting for the stranger to take a closer look, and carefully put it back in his pocket as if it were a treasure.
"Ever since I started believing in the dragon, I feel much stronger and more energetic in my work," Old John said, coming over with his beer. He placed the beer on the bar, wiped his hands on his clothes, and pulled out a similar dragon pendant from his pocket. "Almost everyone in our town has one of these."
"Oh my God! You all believe in the dragon here?" the middle-aged man exclaimed in disbelief.
The next day, Brandon woke up to find it was already morning. His massive body climbed out of his lair, feeling the tangible energy within him, which greatly boosted his confidence. Today, he was going to explore the secrets of this mysterious island. Despite the potential dangers, he couldn’t rest easy without exploring.
He stepped out of his lair and looked around. In the hall, a few giant beasts and humans were gathered. Angela was still asleep, meditating with closed eyes. It seemed she was on the verge of breaking through to Earth Level strength. After consuming the legendary-grade flesh, all the beasts and humans, except for Kong, had advanced a level.
The three humans, four giant serpents, and Skyler had all reached level six. Although Kong hadn't advanced, he had reached the peak of Earth Level. Brandon estimated it wouldn't be long before Kong reached Lesser Heaven Level strength.
The little sub-dragon, always guarding the entrance, had also reached level five. Its pair of green wings had grown, though still small and not yet capable of flight. The little sub-dragon loved its new wings, often turning its head to nuzzle them. Now, apart from lacking dragon horns, it closely resembled a full-grown dragon.
Brandon exited the lair, spreading his leathery wings as he flew toward the underground crevice. A few minutes later, he arrived at the edge of the fissure. This time, no other creatures jumped out. With the Golden Bell, Brandon's strength had significantly increased. He believed that even a Great Heaven Level creature would struggle against its power. The formidable body of a dragon gave him the ability to challenge those above his level.
As he approached the crevice, a wave of cold air hit him. The crevice was vast, with a diameter of several hundred meters, pitch black below. But for a dragon's eyesight, the darkness posed no problem for Brandon. Below, there was no seawater, just a flat open area several hundred meters down.
Brandon harnessed his internal energy, causing his body to float and gently descend. In such a narrow space, flying was impractical, and vertical movement was quite challenging.
Slowly, Brandon began to drift downward. This place seemed to be the territory of the cyan-colored beast, as Brandon found no other creatures here.
The cliffs on either side were severely eroded, jagged with strange rock formations. The wind howled through, causing weathered rocks to fall and echo hollowly at the bottom, creating an eerie sound that made his heart race.
Upon reaching the bottom, Brandon felt a sudden sense of oppression, as if facing a colossal entity. The flow of energy within him began to stagnate. The terrain here created a wind tunnel in the vast ocean, with the sea breeze whistling through, producing a sharp, chilling noise that added to the sinister atmosphere.
The cliffs weren't perfectly vertical but had a slight arc. Over time, and due to erosion by the sea wind, they had become somewhat flattened. Brandon surmised that long ago, the sides might have been perfect arcs. The more he thought about it, the more anxious he became, his thoughts inadvertently drifting back to his arms.