'Why is this thing here?'

Archie found himself staring at a massive transparent cylindrical tank that stretched from the floor to the ceiling. It glowed with blue neon light, casting an eerie glow throughout the room.

"Come, follow me, let's commence the test," Justina beckoned, reaching out to take Archie's hand. But Archie recoiled, stepping back.

Archie recognized the purpose of the tank instantly and stammered in disbelief, "This is for... the screening of bloodline children."

Unlike Offshoots, who acquire E-Screen at the age of fifteen after manifesting Ethereal, Bloodlines are individuals born with unstable Ethereal.

Immediately after a bloodline child is born, their Ethereal is highly unstable. To stabilize them, doctors place them inside this colossal cylindrical tank, infuse Blue Egg stone in liquid form into their veins, and mix it with their blood. This process helps them gain E-Screen.

Archie realized that Justina and Max intended to infuse his veins with liquefied Blue Egg stone so that he could acquire E-Screen.

"I'm sorry, I can't go inside. I don't care if I don't get E-Screen. I'm not planning to attend the academy anyway. I don't…"

As Archie was voicing his refusal, Justina and Max seized Archie's hands and hauled him towards the tank.

"Please, I don't want to…" Archie implored, struggling to free himself, but his pleas fell on deaf ears.

Justina even remarked, "Archie, this is for your own benefit. You need E-Screen to lead in this society. Please understand."

While Max restrained Archie with one hand, he punched in the passcode on the tank to unlock it.

After Max input the code, the tank's transparent door slid open. The moment the door parted, Justina shoved Archie inside and Max promptly sealed it.

"Please, let me out." Archie cried out in terror, knowing they were going to infuse him with liquefied Blue Egg stone while he was fully conscious.

"THUMP!" "THUMP!"

Archie pounded on the tank, begging them to release him. The thought of needles piercing his body sent shivers down his spine and tears streamed down his face. His legs buckled, and he sank to his knees, his mind a whirlwind of fear.

Archie was no longer his usual composed self. From a young age, students were taught that the most excruciating experience in the world was the Bloodline Screening, which involved being injected with liquefied blue egg stone through needles all over their body.

Even when Bloodline children were infants during the injection of Blue Egg stone, they had to be awake. The pain they experienced was real. Their cries and tears could soften the hardest heart. Some infants even perished during this screening, all in the pursuit of gaining E-Screen and stabilizing Ethereal.

Archie wept inside the tank. Max retreated to his PC to initiate the procedure, while Justina watched Archie.

After a few moments, Max raised his right hand, giving a thumbs up to signal that everything was ready to proceed. He didn't want to alert Archie to the impending screening.

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Justina glanced at Archie. He was curled up on the floor of the tank, clutching his knees, tears pooling on the floor.

Justina felt a twinge of hesitation, but she reassured herself that this was all for Archie's benefit. She gave Max a nod to start the procedure.

Max hit the "Enter" button. Gradually, the blue light inside the tank shifted to a golden hue because,

"SPLASH!" "SPLASH!"

The gold, now in a liquid state, began to rain down on Archie from the top of the tank's tube opening.

Archie shielded his face from the cascading liquid gold. He didn't even bother to look at what was happening, as if he had resigned himself to whatever was to come.

Archie was always adept at escaping from situations before they spiraled out of control, but once things went beyond the point of no return, he would surrender to fate and let destiny take its course.

Steadily, the flow of the liquid gold increased. The gold began to envelop Archie.

Archie struggled for breath. He covered his mouth and nose to prevent the gold from entering.

Despite his struggle, Archie remained silent. He began to float amidst the gold.

The gold almost filled the entire tank. Archie couldn't hold his breath any longer. The thick liquid gold made it difficult for him to move.

"UWHH…" Archie finally removed his hand from his face, allowing the gold to enter his body, causing him to choke. He tried to twist and turn but all his efforts were futile.

Justina stood before Archie, observing everything that was happening, while Max monitored Archie's vitals on her PC.

[LIQUID GOLD FILLED][INITIATING INJECTING]

After the tank was filled with liquid gold, a few pop-ups appeared on the monitor screen. Max adjusted the settings to optimize the level of Blue Egg stone to be injected into Archie.

After making the necessary adjustments, Max clicked the "Okay" button on his monitor screen.

"TRRR…" A mechanical hum echoed inside the tank, above Archie, but Archie didn't hear any of it. He was slowly slipping into unconsciousness as the liquid gold, mixed with a sedative, began to numb the pain.

Liquid gold is one of the best conductors for Ethereal. When an unstable infant is placed inside the tank, the injecting needle might exacerbate their Ethereal's instability. So, they fill the tank with liquid gold mixed with a painkiller to keep the infant's Ethereal stable.

"TRR…" Justina watched as four golden plated tube rods descended from the top and extended until they reached the floor of the tank, surrounding Archie on all sides.

Archie was oblivious to all this, having lost consciousness.

Justina observed as nearly twenty small needles emerged from all four tube rods. The needles extended towards Archie. Max, on his monitor, was adjusting the needle positions on Archie's body.

Each of the twenty needles extended towards various parts of his body, from the Jugular Vein in his neck to the Dorsal Metatarsal veins in his foot.

"INJECT!" With a swift motion, all needles pierced his skin simultaneously. Archie didn't feel any pain at the initial injection but…

"MMMM…" Archie let out a muffled scream of agony as the needles began to infuse the Blue Egg stone, jolting him back to consciousness. His heartbeat quickened, pounding as if it would burst.

Archie tried to move his body, but he was paralyzed. The torment he felt from the injection was akin to a massive boulder crushing his bones one by one.

After a while, either the speed of the injection decreased or he became accustomed to the pain. It wasn't as unbearable.

Even with his eyes closed, Archie's senses were heightened. He could feel something swirling and slithering inside his veins and throughout his body. His heartbeat gradually returned to normal and began to resonate with a newfound rhythm, soothing him.

Archie could taste everything from the bland taste of the gold, akin to tasteless thick water, to the metallic taste of the needles.

Archie could sense his body absorbing the liquid gold that surrounded him, like a sponge soaking up water.

"How is his condition?" Archie could hear Justina's voice through the soundproof tank.

"Everything is fine. We can stop after an hour," Max responded, his tone laced with relief.

"TYPE!" "TYPE!"

Archie could even hear the sound of Max's keyboard typing. At the moment, Archie could hear and feel everything but he couldn't control his thoughts. It was as if his consciousness was present but in a vegetative state.

Justina's voice echoed in his ears as she conversed with Max.

"What did you find about Archie's family?"