Beastmaster King

Upon hearing the words "Chaos Dragon God's Blood," Lu Ran was utterly shocked.

Dr. Cheng Kong abruptly stopped the car and looked at Lu Ran, who quickly covered his mouth and said sheepishly, "Sorry, I was just too surprised. I didn't expect the research institute to have something like this. Then, since you have the Chaos Dragon God's blood, do you also have branches from the Divine Tree or something..."

Dr. Cheng Kong replied, "Why are you asking so much? These things are still far beyond your reach. You should focus on your own research path first. Traditional machinery, cyborgs, and cloning legends are all great and all, but I think you won't specialize in any of these fields. After all, as you've said yourself, the fusion of elemental lifeforms and mechanics will pioneer a whole new direction.

"You're right. Elemental lifeforms are the closest to the world's composition, the closest to its rules, and the most likely to achieve the status of innate deities. You're definitely going to specialize in researching elemental lifeforms, aren't you?"

Lu Ran nodded slightly.

Dr. Cheng Kong looked at Lu Ran. "Then, the Divine Research Institute is about to welcome its fourth research division. This is one of the reasons Director Lin En values you so much. Researching artificial deities can't be limited to just one direction. Multiple paths mean multiple hopes. Also, do you know why everyone at the institute holds you in such high regard?"

Lu Ran answered, "It definitely isn't because of elemental lifeforms. All of you have been deeply entrenched in your own research fields for years and wouldn't rashly switch directions to study elemental lifeforms. What most people want to understand is why that device can give birth to elemental lifeforms.

"To outsiders, elemental lifeforms haven't been born for a long time and are extremely rare. After all, the era of elemental gods has ended, and the world's rules no longer favor their birth. Legendary lifeforms are equally hard to come by, as their existence is akin to stealing power from the world itself.

"The birth of both challenges the current world's rules. So, the real focus is on how to draw inspiration from the group of elemental lifeforms and the Elemental Life Creation Device to find a way to create Legendary lifeforms."

Dr. Cheng Kong smiled. "Exactly. You're quite sharp. That's why your willingness to share this technology means every researcher here owes you a huge favor. Whether or not it leads to the desired inspiration, it's at least a new hope."

"I'll have #18 summarize the technology in detail as soon as possible. Actually..." Lu Ran hesitated. "Although the Elemental Life Creation Device is complex, I feel the most crucial part is the energy source.

"Right now, the device isn't perfect. The energy it uses is scarce, and I only obtained it by chance. So, luck played a big part in the development of this technology. If we don't find a substitute energy source, once the current energy runs out, the machine might stop working altogether. That's why I got so excited when you mentioned the divine blood earlier.

"The scarce resource I obtained seems to be the sap of some Legendary plant lifeform, also one of the resources left behind by my parents. So I was wondering—could the blood of a Primary Divine being replace this sap and directly create elemental lifeforms of Legendary ranks?

"After all, the sap I got seems pretty low grade. After dilution, it only reaches the Treasure grade when used as energy. The blood of a Primary Divine, a Legendary-grade resource, must be far superior to that sap, right? Professor, can I apply to use the Chaos Dragon God's blood to research potential alternative energy sources?"

You're scamming for resources, but why drag me down to hype it up?

Six-Path Flower nearly snapped Lu Ran's contract card from within.

"I should've realized it sooner," Dr. Cheng Kong muttered, rubbing her temples.

Lu Ran's explanation made things seem more plausible. Otherwise, it would've been too absurd for him to develop such an outrageous device in just over ten days. The fact that it relied on a scarce, Legendary-grade energy source—one that couldn't be replenished—meant the device's success was partly due to luck. It was still a semi-finished product that was far from perfect. This explanation made much more sense.

Lu Ran might've just stumbled upon it by sheer luck. Still, it was impressive. In research, luck was part of one's capability. Even the birth of the Mechanical attribute had an element of luck to it. There was nothing wrong with that.

"Now that you've joined the Divine Research Institute, your research funding is practically unlimited. Go ahead and research alternative energy sources to your heart's content. In fact, as long as it's for meaningful research and not personal use, even Legendary-grade resources can be allocated for study after approval. After all, these resources exist precisely for us to research.

"But, kid, asking for the Primary Divine's blood right off the bat? Are you out of your mind? Truly, the newborn calf fears no tiger. Although I've never seen the Primary Divine's blood myself, it is said to be overwhelmingly powerful. Just a single drop radiates divinity strong enough to shatter any non-Legendary lifeform below level 100. To seal and preserve that drop of blood, our human predecessors expended tremendous effort and resources.

"Carelessly researching it could bring unimaginable disaster. Listen, even if you want to study alternative energy sources, start with something milder, like resources left behind by ordinary Legendary creatures. Otherwise, I'm afraid you'll be scared to death by a single drop of blood."

A single drop of blood was truly stumping this hero.

Damn it! How on earth can I get my hands on the Chaos Dragon God's Blood?

Lu Ran was burning with impatience.

"Professor, why aren't we moving?"

"We've actually already arrived for quite some time. Get out."

***

Afterward, Dr. Cheng Kong led Lu Ran into his research facility. Once his living arrangements were settled, she handed him a list and introduced him to the other researchers at the Divine Research Institute one by one.

"Alright, rest here for now. I'll handle some matters for you. If you have any other questions, I'll come find you."

"Got it. Thank you, Dr. Cheng Kong."

With that, Dr. Cheng Kong bid Lu Ran farewell, leaving him slumped in his chair like a dazed little shark.

In this era, not only was there no Mechanical Primary Divine being, but even artificial gods hadn't been created yet. Lu Ran was disappointed. However, his disappointment lasted only a moment. Upon learning that the Divine Research Institute even had the Chaos Dragon God's blood, his disappointment turned into excitement.

He wanted that thing so badly. If he could purify it with the Divine Turtle's power and use it as an evolution resource for Sudden Death King, the latter would undoubtedly reach Legendary. His mind was so preoccupied with this that he barely paid attention when Dr. Cheng Kong introduced him to the institute and his seniors.

This was because, realistically, obtaining the Primary Divine's blood seemed nearly impossible. Even the Divine Research Institute currently lacked the capability to study it properly. Although Lu Ran had come up with a legitimate excuse earlier, he doubted it would be enough to secure the blood within just a few days.

After all, he was still a newcomer here. For safety reasons alone, the Divine Research Institute would never hand over the Primary Divine's blood to him.

"Six Flower, what do I do? What do I do?" Lu Ran asked desperately.

Six-Path Flower replied from within the card. "Let it go. Although I've never met the Chaos Dragon God, the blood of a Primary Divine is indeed overkill. Are you sure Sudden Death King can even handle it? He might really die suddenly!"

Lu Ran argued, "It's just a drop of ordinary blood, and not something like reverse-scale blood. As long as the Divine Turtle can purify it, Sudden Death King might be able to absorb it. But regardless of whether it can be purified or absorbed, missing this chance to obtain such a resource would be a huge waste. I have a plan..."

Suddenly, Lu Ran spoke in a low voice. "Six Flower, can you cooperate with me?"

Six-Path Flower was confused. "What are you planning?"

"Going through the normal application process to get the blood is as hard as climbing to the heavens. So, let's just scam them."

"Huh?"

Lu Ran explained seriously, "Think about it. In the original timeline, you were the Divine Tree's comrade-in-arms and the ancestor of the plant god lineage. When we return, you can disguise yourself and appear before the Divine Research Institute as the Six-Path Reincarnation God. Tell them the Divine Tree needs to reclaim the Chaos Dragon God's blood that it once spilled.

"Faced with a Primary Divine's demand, the Divine Research Institute wouldn't dare refuse, right? Besides, we don't necessarily have to force them to hand it over. We can dangle some carrots in front of them. Even if it fails, we can stall for time until we return, avoiding any cleanup. And if something happens to go wrong, with the Time Fruit and Limit Breaker, the power you unleash would be unstoppable. Plus, we can hide until we return with the Time Shield."

"You're serious? I'm Six-Path Flower, not Scam Flower."

Lu Ran pleaded with puppy eyes. "I can't think of any other way. It's not like we can just rob them. The Divine Research Institute definitely has the power to blast us to oblivion. Your identity as the Divine Tree's comrade, the Six-Path Reincarnation God, is our greatest weapon!

"Even though you're technically dead, as the Reincarnation God, coming back to life through reincarnation wouldn't be strange, right? Honestly, we don't even have to lie. We can weave a story with half-truths. After all, your identity is genuine..."

"Ugh, you do remember I'm the Six-Path Reincarnation God, yet you're making me do something so shady... Wait, shady? Perfect. This'll net me another wave of evil energy. Then it's settled!"

Lu Ran and Six-Path Flower reached an agreement, making this plan their final trump card.

***

Inside the research facility.

After finalizing their plan, Lu Ran immediately summoned #18.

#18 hovered in the air, hands on its hips. "To think my invention shocked an entire era. Compared to the previous 17 models, I'm clearly in a league of my own."

Lu Ran was speechless. He hadn't programmed any initial personality traits into #18.

How did it become so narcissistic over the past few days?

Then again, given its research achievements, perhaps it had earned the right to be this smug.

Lu Ran said, "Yep, you're definitely the best. Now, let's dissolve our contract."

"Huh?"