Chapter 28 Chapter 28 "People from Another World Raise Pigs from Another World"

"Director, do you remember where I brought that Star-Patterned Orchid back from last time?" Chen Ming leaned back on the lab table, his body in a relaxed posture, his eyes focused on the data tablet in his hand.

"Windwhispering Canyon." Director Bird said.

Chen Ming asked again: "What's underneath?"

Director Bird: "Wind, lots of wind, wind that can tear people apart."

Chen Ming didn't say anything.

After a while, Director Bird suddenly spread his wings and flew in front of the screen. His gray-green eyes stared at the data without blinking. After a long pause, he said, "There are also some emerald stars."

It is a mineral containing special energy. Its shape is like a green star. Its energy characteristics are similar to those of dark crystal, but its structure is more like a crystal cluster star, so it is called "Green Star".

Chen Ming shook his head: "It's 'Beast Core Power'."

"The Wind Whisper Canyon has been affected by the beast core power for a long time. The intensity of the energy storm in the core area is increasing year by year. It has now reached a level that is unsafe to approach." Chen Ming said to himself.

"In my previous research, I always thought the energy absorbed by Zhu Tianba's body was due to the Star Pattern Orchid." Chen Ming's expression suddenly became serious. "Now it seems that the real source is the Emerald Star."

She brought back those Star Orchids because she discovered that they had integrated some of the crystal-quenching power of the Emerald Star and wanted to bring them back for research and cultivation. Later, she found that these Star Orchids could not survive in the laboratory and the crystal-quenching power inside them dissipated completely. In a blink of an eye, only twelve of the twenty Star Orchids were left.

Unable to do so, she began to look for various places to cultivate it.

Xingwenlan finally chose a green belt under the dormitory building. Since she needed to feel the natural breeze at any time, she only sent one person and told him to take care of it like ordinary flowers and plants. But in order to prevent other students from accidentally picking it, she also put up a sign there.

In the following time, she almost forgot the existence of those star-patterned orchids.

Until... Zhu Tianba and Jiang Qing broke in.

The beast core power contained in the dark crystal and the Emerald Star all comes from the power outside the sky.

Combined with the data obtained previously showing that the genes of Zhu Tianba and the sow were not completely identical, Chen Ming came up with the guess that Zhu Tianba and KDOG came from the same place.

With a clear research direction, progress accelerated suddenly.

Chen Ming conducted an in-depth comparison of the alien gene sequence extracted from the dark crystal with the genetic map of Zhu Tianba.

On the main screen, two sets of complex genetic models are calculated, overlapped, and compared at high speed.

The result was no surprise and highly consistent with her guess.

On the afternoon of the second day, Jiang Qing was called to the laboratory.

"Teacher Chen Ming, you are looking for me so urgently, is it because Zhu Tianba has woken up?" Jiang Qing took the water handed to him by Zhou Qi, took a sip, and calmed down.

"Not awake yet." Chen Ming turned his gaze from the screen to her, his tone concise, "But there has been a key breakthrough in the genetic tracing of Zhu Tianba. As its contractor, I think it's necessary for you to know."

"Hmm?" Jiang Qing listened attentively.

After last night's gene sequencing and cross-comparison, we found that Zhu Tianba's genome sequence shares over 95% similarity with the core gene fragment of the 'Beast Core Source Power' unique to the Dark Crystal." Chen Ming pulled up the final comparison map from last night and highlighted the key matching areas.

"At the same time, we conducted a comprehensive comparison of its genetic profile with all known exotic animal samples in the database," Chen Ming said, switching screens to display another set of data. "The results show that no consistent genotype has been found in any of the existing samples."

She pointed to the conclusion column: "Zhu Tianba may come from another world."

Chen Ming's voice was particularly clear in the laboratory filled with the hum of precision instruments, but it was like a huge rock thrown into Jiang Qing's heart.

"Other...worlds?" Qing repeated subconsciously, each word filled with disbelief and surprise.

Chen Ming nodded, as if she remembered that the student in front of her was a poor student. She walked to the main screen and called up a vast simulated image of a star map, dotted with countless bright and dark light spots.

"Beyond the Beast Taming World we know, the universe is vast and boundless. There are countless planes of time and space with potentially different physical laws. These worlds are independent of each other, like bubbles suspended in the void, but they are not completely isolated. Powerful energy tides, spatial cracks, and even certain special "carriers" like that dark crystal fragment, or..."

Her words fell on Zhu Tianba: "...Life forms like it have the potential to become 'bridges' or 'fragments' that cross the barriers of the world."

Chen Ming pointed to the genetic similarity map on the screen, which showed over 95% of the results. "The Dark Crystal, or the KDOG core fragment, contains the 'Beast Core Source Power', which is the crystallized manifestation of energy from another world. And Zhu Tianba's genetic makeup is highly homologous to this source power. This means that it is either a life form born from that high-energy environment, or..."

She paused, her tone carrying the rigor and a hint of excitement characteristic of a researcher. "...during its embryonic stage, or even earlier at the 'source' stage, it experienced a profound fusion with this otherworldly energy, becoming a unique life form that carries this power."

Chen Ming changed the subject, "Considering the significant genetic differences between it and a sow, as well as its instinctive attraction to and efficient absorption of dark crystal energy, I'm more inclined to believe it's a visitor from another world."

"The power it unleashed when absorbing the dark crystal's energy, and the 'petrifying' effect your blood had on the dark crystal, are most likely stress reactions and conflicts caused by this alien energy under the rules of this world." Director Bird rarely made a noise, and added by tapping the sleeping image of Zhu Tianba with the tip of his wing.

Chen Ming and Director Bird said so much, but Jiang Qing was still immersed in the shock of the "other world theory".

No one knew better than her that she, Jiang Qing, or rather, half of the soul in Jiang Qing's body, also came from another world.

She originally thought this was an isolated case, but she didn't expect that Zhu Tianba also came from another world.

A person from another world contracted a pig from another world.

So it seems that she and Zhu Tianba have a strong connection.

Jiang Qing's gaze shifted back to Chen Ming, and the research enthusiasm and excitement that had not yet faded in the other's eyes were clearly visible.

This made her heart tighten subconsciously, and a keen intuition of potential threats arose.

Jiang Qing subconsciously frowned at the sight, and tension and a keen sense of threat followed.

Next...will they capture Zhu Tianba and conduct live experiments on him day and night?

The expression on Jiang Qing's face was easy to guess. Chen Ming saw through her thoughts at a glance and comforted her, "Don't be nervous. We won't interfere with the personal freedom of you and your spirit beast, nor will we conduct any dangerous, invasive research on your spirit beast."

"Will you report this to your superiors?" Jiang Qing's eyes showed more worry than ever.

"Of course." Chen Ming admitted frankly.

Jiang Qing pondered for a moment, the image of the evil researcher using rhetoric to deceive her flashing through her mind. But ultimately, her trust in Chen Ming prevailed, and she bluntly asked the key question: "After reporting... will other institutions or individuals take over the research on us?"

"No." Chen Ming said firmly, and what she said next seemed to give Jiang Qing a reassurance.

"No one or any organization will conduct any analysis or research on you or your spirit beast. You don't have to worry about that." Chen Ming said in a calm tone, "There are too many travelers from other worlds in Yuncang Continent. Even if there is a real research intention, you will not be given priority. There are more valuable or more powerful targets at the forefront, such as Principal Ji Changsu."

Chen Ming's words were a disguised way of saying that Zhu Tianba was not qualified, but Jiang Qing was concerned about another thing.

She heard the sound of her heart beating wildly in her chest, as if it was about to burst out of this body at any moment.

Ji Changsu is also a traveler from another world. There are many people in this world who come from another world like her!

The long-standing feeling of oppression was about to break free and bring her new hope, not fear, but the huge shock of a drowning man finally grabbing a piece of driftwood and seeing the sails of a ship after being stranded on a desert island for many years.

She always thought she was alone, but it seems not!

If these worlds can travel back and forth to each other, can she still return to her previous world?

Jiang Qing's excitement at this moment was beyond words.

Almost in the next second, she almost told Chen Ming that she was also a soul from another world.

But when the words came to my lips, I felt shy because I was homesick and couldn't say them.

Chen Ming obviously didn't want to continue this topic. She quickly brought the conversation back to Zhu Tianba: "Do you know why Zhu Tianba devoured the Star Pattern Orchid and was attracted to the Dark Crystal?"

Jiang Qing forced himself to suppress his surging emotions: "Because their energies are similar."

Forget it, I’ll talk to Chen Ming next time.

"Almost the same." Chen Ming nodded. "The world where Zhu Tianba lives has many similarities with our Yuncang Continent. The only difference is that world is not dominated by humans, but by beasts."

"Zhu Tianba felt the call of the beast core power contained in the dark crystal and star pattern orchid, so he ate them. After being baptized by the beast core power, Zhu Tianba was able to grow and evolve rapidly, and in turn, it prompted you to awaken your beast taming talent."

"That is to say, the Star Pattern Orchid is of no use to Zhu Tianba's upgrade. What really makes it evolve and grow is the beast core source power." Jiang Qing showed a look of sudden realization.

Fortunately, she had not bought the star orchid before because she was poor.

etc......

Jiang Qing suddenly realized a serious problem: "If I want Zhu Tianba to evolve again in the future, won't I have to look for the beast core source power?"

Is that thing so easy to find?

Chen Ming and Director Niao nodded at the same time and looked at Jiang Qing sympathetically.

Jiang Qing: died.

Suddenly I felt the future was bleak.

Chen Ming added, "But you can rest assured for now. According to observations, the Zhu Tianba Origin World seems to have undergone a drastic change. In the past decade or so, a large amount of fragments containing beast core source power have fallen into our world. Wind Whispering Canyon is just one of the contaminated areas. These scattered source power remnants are theoretically enough to support its growth to maturity."

Jiang Qing: Died again.

The future feels even bleaker.

One time in Dark Valley almost killed her. If it happened a few more times, she would be torn to pieces.

Zhou Qi, who was debugging the equipment nearby, couldn't help but laugh when he heard this and interjected, "If we gather seven beast cores, we might be able to summon a dragon... oh no, a pig."

Jiang Qing: Hehehe.

"Alright, take your spirit beast back." Chen Ming yawned and stretched. "There's nothing much to study. Once it finishes converting the beast core energy in its body, it will naturally wake up."

She pressed the switch beside her, and the device where Zhu Tianba was placed was turned on. Jiang Qing quickly walked over and picked up the sleeping Zhu Tianba.

"By the way." Just as he was about to leave, he was stopped by Chen Ming again. Chen Ming added, "Zhu Tianba's genetic results are out. If you have time, go to the Spirit Beast Platform for another test."

Jiang Qing had some free time now, so he asked someone about the closing time of the Spirit Beast Terrace, got on a car at the shuttle bus station, and headed to the Spirit Beast Terrace.

The spirit beast being tested does not need to be awake; Zhu Tianba can also be tested while he is asleep.

She arrived at the spirit beast platform in the last five minutes before the staff got off work.

He formed seals with his hands and summoned the phantom of Zhu Tianba.

Upon seeing the unsurprisingly sleeping figure, the staff member remarked, "I thought you were some fancy spirit beast. Turns out you're just a pig."

Jiang Qing blinked and pointed at the large characters posted below and asked, "What are these characters? It's too dark for me to see clearly."

The staff followed the direction of her finger and read out the words one by one: "Under the Spirit Beast Stage, all beasts are equal."

"Oh, so you can read. I thought you were blind." Jiang Qing deliberately dragged out the last word.

"......" The staff member was retorted and shut up in disappointment.

The incident started with his talking too much, and he knew he was in the wrong.

After waiting for more than ten seconds, Zhu Tianba's result came out.

[Spiritual Beast Name]: White Haired Pig

【Attribute】: Defense/Gold

[Potential Rating]: Ordinary Level 2

[Beast Taming Level]: Human Level 2

【Spirit】:90

【Characteristics】: Strong defense and large appetite.

Jiang Qing: "Who are you humiliating?"

She thought Chen Ming specifically reminded her to come to the Spirit Beast Arena because he had already introduced Zhu Tianba's extraordinary bloodline and talent into it, but who knew...

Looking at the string of data on the screen, isn't it obviously sow data?

Based on the sow's reaction, Zhu Tianba? What kind of logic is this!

The staff member didn't try to discriminate against you this time. He said, "Student, you've been standing here for three minutes. We're about to call it a day."

Jiang Qing didn't move, his eyes were a little dull and his expression was a little angry.

The staff member consoled him, "Don't worry about it. White-haired scaly pigs are still very good. At least they are a rare breed."

Yes, aren’t endangered species rare?

Ever since learning why the white-haired scaly pig had become a rare species, Jiang Qing felt like crying.

The group of classmates who had previously mocked Zhu Tianba as "reserve food" were not wrong. The white-haired and scaled pig was indeed the food for those exotic beasts and spiritual beasts because of its delicious meat.

The entire white-haired scaly pig population was eaten into an endangered species in this way!

At the staff's repeated urging, Jiang Qing left the spirit beast platform and walked back to the dormitory.

As soon as they entered the dormitory, Li Xiu came up to them, holding Lingtong and said, "Our story in Dark Valley has been known to other students in the school."

Jiang Qing took the Lingtong she handed over and looked carefully at the contents on it.

[Shocking! The truth behind the Dark Valley collapse! The new team encounters a celestial beast, and their core energy mysteriously disappears?!]

A team of first-year students encountered a far larger-than-expected number of Immortal-level Vine King giants in the Dark Valley, triggering a violent energy surge that caused a partial collapse of the canyon. Most notably, the KDOG core energy node, reportedly known to be unusually active deep within the canyon, mysteriously "drained" or "disappeared" during this incident! The author "reasonably speculates" that the core energy fluctuations may be directly related to this team or their spirit beast.

The content of the post was vivid and although it did not mention their names and information, the core information was surprisingly accurate.

The comments below were even more explosive:

1L: [What the hell? Immortal level?! Newborn? Can I make it out alive with this setup?]

4L: [The mutated phosphorescent moths and shadow leeches in the Dark Valley alone are enough to make them suffer. I can't imagine what would happen if they encountered immortal-level beasts. These people are really unlucky.]

7L: [The KDOG core disappeared? You must be kidding! The academy has been monitoring it for years and nothing has happened!]

16L: [I don't care about anything else. By the way, will the Dark Valley investigation mission be gone in the future?]

19L replied to 16L: [Even when the sky is falling, you still care about your job. 】

25L: [Does anyone care about who the freshmen are on this team? They all seem so talented, and I'd love to get to know some of the seniors, hehe~]

31L: [Regarding the disappearance of the KDOG core energy, a rational guess is that KDOG has been operating flawlessly for years, with no one even noticing the existence of a giant Immortal-level Vine King seal at the bottom of the pool. Yet, this team triggered it upon entering, suggesting they've tampered with what the Vine King seal was supposed to be protecting. What else could it possibly be guarding inside the cave? Only the Dark Crystal! Plus, the core disappeared, so this team must have tampered with the core itself. Generally, knowledgeable and elite teams know that the Dark Crystal in the center, while large, isn't counted as an anomaly node during an investigation mission, so even if they collect it, they won't be paid. Most people simply check in at the core, take photos, and leave. This team, however, did the opposite. Therefore, I suspect this team isn't a team of newbies with no knowledge of anything, but rather they're primarily after the core crystal.]

39L replied to 31L: [The above speculation is well-founded. I suspect the same thing as well. However, calling them a rookie team doesn't make sense. After all, they managed to escape from the siege of immortal-level monsters, so their target must be the core crystal.]

40L: [Correction again, it should be the beast core source power inside the core crystal.]

68L: [Ah, another classic jungle spot is permanently closed.]

73L: [Look, the pinned 'Dark Valley Investigation Post' has been removed by the academy, indirectly confirming the information provided by the original poster.]

78L: [Other people's weekends: speedrunning Dark Valley; my weekends: lying in the dorm like Ge You.]

【......】

Jiang Qing read it from beginning to end and found that the academy did not reveal their information. Although there were speculations about their identities, no specific answer was found after much discussion.

Jiang Qing relaxed.

She put Zhu Tianba back into the spirit beast dormitory and went into the bathroom to wash up.

Lingtong suddenly vibrated. It was a message from Meng Yanlang in the group chat: [The academy has just issued an announcement: Dark Valley is permanently closed, and all related missions have been terminated. In addition, the anomaly investigation team only found the remains of the Vine King Giant Seal at the collapse site. Preliminary judgment is that the energy core disappeared and the person died of exhaustion.]

Zhao Peng: [Good thing they died! My scalp goes numb every time I think of those tentacles. I dream about them every night!]

Jiang Qing also finished washing and walked out of the bathroom. She dried her hands and replied in the group: [So you, Zhao Peng, can also be afraid sometimes? ]

Zhao Peng: [Nonsense! Ever since I was little, seeing those software-related things has always given me... an indescribable discomfort.]

Li Xiu also saw the message. She looked up at Jiang Qing, who was drying her hair, and asked curiously, "Qingqing, you had the longest 'close contact' with that giant octopus. What did it feel like? Besides being scary."

"I feel..." Jiang Qing sat back on the bed. She thought carefully about Li Xiu's question: "It should be able to be eaten for a long time if it is made into grilled octopus."

Li Xiu's eyes widened instantly, and his face was filled with horror again: "??!"

"Just kidding." Jiang Qing smiled. "I think compared to this, those shadow leeches are more terrifying. It really hurts. I feel like half of the blood in my body has been sucked away."

Li Xiu rolled her eyes at her and said, "You were the one who let the dark crystal suck it away. Don't blame the shadow leech. It's saying it's innocent."

Jiang Qing shrugged.

Jiang Qing said: "I need to replenish my blood these two days, so I decided to eat a few more meals!"

Li Xiu: "So hot pot, barbecue, pork elbow, suckling pig, and braised pork can replenish blood?"

Jiang Qing chuckled: "Don't worry about these details. After eating, you won't feel dizzy at all."

Li Xiu: “…”

After a while.

"By the way, is your skill really that magical? Can it turn stone into gold?" Li Xiu changed the subject, a look of interest in her eyes, "Aren't we actually going to become wealthy ladies?!"

After saying that, she began to fantasize on her own.

Jiang Qing interrupted her smirk: "I can only transform high-value items. Low-value items can be transformed into gold. You can't get rich even if you drain me dry."

"Ah?" Li Xiu looked disappointed. "If I had that kind of money, why would I need Midas Touch to turn stone into gold?"

Jiang Qing remained silent.

She tilted her head, her eyes landing on Snowmelt Rabbit, and asked, "How's Rabbit?"

"Speaking of this, I was just about to share something with you!" Li Xiu's eyes lit up again. "After returning from the Dark Valley, I was surprised to find that Bunny's jumping ability seemed to have improved a bit. It used to be a double jump, but now it's a triple jump!"

Jiang Qing raised his eyebrows and praised generously, "Amazing!"

"Oh, right." Li Xiu seemed to suddenly remember something and picked up a hard card with flame patterns printed on it from the table. "You were not here just now, so Senior Sister Xu Weiran personally delivered it to you."

She handed the card to Jiang Qing, "Here, a letter of challenge. I'll meet you this Friday at 3pm in the Red Mansion's A-level training room. It's a one-on-one spirit beast battle."

Jiang Qing crossed himself up with his hands: "Reject!"

"The senior sister said that refusal is useless and she will come to find you. I told her that Zhu Tianba is still asleep, but she didn't listen. She said she would wait until Zhu Tianba wakes up. She also told you not to let Xiaozhu wear that ugly printed clothes anymore, as it will affect the opponent's impression." Li Xiu said.

Jiang Qing: “…”

Unexpectedly, this senior student was so persistent and insisted on competing with her.

But her words did remind Jiang Qing.

Zhu Tianba will definitely grow in size after he wakes up. After absorbing the beast core power this time, Zhu Tianba's size will definitely grow even larger, and he will definitely not be able to wear that little piggy clothes.

It seems she still has to go to Yuan Xiaogu.

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The author has something to say: Yuan Xiaogu: Welcome, junior sister, please come in, you are the VIP guest!