The Science of Cultivation-Chapter 255: Damaging Deoxyribonucleic Acid
Li Lang’s new poison was simple in theory. After observing how Qi was the cure-all wonder substance that could not only eliminate all toxins, but also cure wounds when processed into Recovery Pills, Li Lang began wondering just how that worked.
Normally, when the body healed, it used the genetic information stored in the DNA to guide cell repair and regeneration. The healing when employing Recovery Pills or specialized Qi arts was fast, but he believed it should follow the same rule. With that in mind, he began wondering what would happen if he created a poison that damaged the very foundation of this healing process, the DNA.
Unfortunately, Ruby couldn’t simulate the effects of these techniques on living samples. Nothing alive but him could exist in the artifact space. It was the same reason he couldn’t cultivate his techniques in the pocket realm, while he could test out various craft techniques.
With both his offensive power and time lacking, he ended up never having the chance to carry out the corresponding tests to test this theory. It was only now, during the anticipated Dark Sea Arena, that he would have a chance to test out all the poisons he had prepared.
While it took his full power to simply break the skin of powerful Qi beasts within his realm of cultivation, it was more than enough to apply his work. He carefully monitored the effects of the new types of poisons he employed, noting down the area of effect, severity, onset time, duration of actual damage, and other telling indicators.
At first, it surprised Li Lang that his idea had worked. The regenerative abilities of Qi beasts didn’t address the DNA damage of their cells, only speeding up the cell division process. This meant the newly divided cells copied over the damaged DNA. The body had its natural way of repairing DNA, but the Qi-empowered healing process didn’t seem to include those.
“Interesting. The wounds are still healing, but are leading to overgrowth and mutations. The areas closest to the wound are even showing signs of apoptosis. It’s causing this scorpion to lose balance and control of the affected area.”
With over a dozen different poisons to test, Li Lang actively searched out more test subjects. The Foundation Establishment level beasts were smart enough to escape when they felt the danger, so he never finished any of them off, but that didn’t matter that much to him. In fact, he would prefer for them to survive longer, so he could observe the duration and effectiveness of their bodies healing from the DNA damage.
This exercise inevitably served not to only test his poison, but also helped him get the hang of combating these higher-level beasts. The few times he had challenged them previously always ended up with either Ma Kong or Zhu Yi coming to assist him. Whether he knew it or not, Li Lang’s ability to solo these challenging targets began to rise at an increasing pace.
Having lost himself to his research, a day quickly passed without Li Lang realizing it. His vision suddenly warped, and he found himself within one of the nine platforms within the venue hosted by Sword Saint Isle.
He glanced around and found a few familiar faces in the same spot he had last seen them in, but many people were missing as well. Wei Ping and Sima Xue were still right next to him, but Long Yi was missing.
The group glanced around and, with their vantage point of being near the edge, they soon spotted a group of cultivators standing beside the platform, looking toward them with mixed expressions.
“Does t-this mean those of us still remaining on t-the platforms as those who passed?” Wei Ping muttered.
“Should be,” Sima Xue replied. “It seems you two passed while your friend, Long Yi, didn’t. I can’t say that was who I was expecting.”
“Luck p-played a big role in my case. I encountered an acquaintance who helped me survive the day.”
“Hmmm, then what about Li Lang here?”
The two turned to the man in question, who appeared as if he was in a world of his own. His eyes were closed, and he sported a serene expression. That didn’t stop the princess of Nightmoon Valley, though. She closed the distance and began shaking her target of questioning until she got her answers.
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“What? I was already in a poor mood when this test ended too fast, and now you’re on my case for what?”
“Ended too fast? We were trying to get you to tell us how you managed to survive in the first place!”
“Umm, nothing special, really? Qi beasts with the strength of the early stage of Foundation Establishment are not easy for me to defeat, but the reverse is true, too. Is it that surprising I didn’t lose to them?”
“Early stage?” Sima Xue parroted before turning to the man with the wooden mask.
Wei Ping shrugged, causing Sima Xue to get even more agitated as she narrowed her eyes at her interrogator.
“What?” Li Lang asked. He was genuinely confused about what she was getting at.
“How did you only encounter early-stage Qi beasts? Did you bribe the Sword Saint’s people or something? Your luck can’t possibly be that good!”
With her outburst, more and more of their fellow competitors began to turn an ear to their conversation. Many of them were already discreetly eavesdropping, having recognized Sima Xue, but their interest only grew.
“Were we brought to different places? All I encountered were early-stage Qi beasts, and I barely encountered any, too. I had to go out of my way to find more of them.”
“That can’t be possible. I encountered other competitors, so we should’ve all been brought to the same area. At least for those of us in our group. The more we fought, the more we were swarmed! Near the end of the day, I even had a group of mid-stage Qi beasts chasing after me!”
Li Lang glanced around and found many people, including Wei Ping, nodding along with her words. It was his turn to be confused this time, but he didn’t have an answer for them. The tension around their platform began to grow as Li Lang stayed silent. Many of the other contestants began to direct their gaze at the elder floating above them, as they were responsible for the formation that brought them elsewhere. However, none of them dared to question a Violet Core elder.
Thankfully, the Violet Core expert didn’t leave them without answers. Perhaps due to the presence of numerous dignitaries and other powerful cultivators, they projected their voice to give an explanation to the entire venue.
“The first round is completely fair. The illusionary realm you were brought to had Qi beasts that were particularly sensitive to Qi. The more you displayed your power, the more enemies you would attract.”
A few of the participants who had stayed silent until now sneered.
“You muscle heads need to start learning to use your brains more. Fighting head-on all the time is the sign of a barbarian. You’d do good to realize that.”
That comment earned a few glares, but the hostility quickly stopped. It wasn’t enough to provoke anyone more when demonic cultivators and righteous cultivators were already restraining themselves. It paled in comparison to the arguments they would otherwise get into.
With that, the first round for the early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators ended, and they got off their platforms.
A rowdy discussion began as the cultivators began to discuss their experiences. The point of this event was to conduct an exchange, so they did exactly that.
“Fellow Chu Lan, that Qi art you used earlier really opened my eyes. Will you humor me for a duel?”
“Sun Duo, show yourself! We have a score to settle! There’s no more excuses now that the first round is over.”
As for Li Lang’s group, they naturally went to rendezvous with Long Yi. With Sima Xue in tow, even Jian Beiyun and others began to congregate around them.
“You two—” Long Yi weakly muttered. “How did you both pass but I didn’t? I could deal with those desert slugs fine, but when three of them appeared at once—”
“Don’t w-worry about it,” Wei Ping comforted. “I got l-lucky. That brat I told y-you about back when I came—”
“Brat, you say?” a newcomer interrupted.
The trio turned to find a young girl glaring their way. Behind her was a middle-aged man with a clean-shaven face. His appearance made Jian Beiyun stop his conversation with his Junior Sister so he could greet the man. He had his usual friendly demeanor, but his eyes weren’t smiling at all.
“If it isn’t the Whispering Half Saint. To what do I owe the occasion to?”
“Don’t worry. I didn’t come to see you. I don’t dare to ask for an audience with the great Slithering Shadow so easily, after all.”
Sparks could be seen flying between their gaze. The young woman known as Wang Xiuying ignored the confrontation and walked over to Wei Ping and his companions.
“Senior Uncle, I must’ve misheard earlier. You wouldn’t ever call a charming lady like me a brat, right?”
Hearing this, Wei Ping’s two friends looked at him in amusement. He had been with them long enough that nothing good was to come of this. He wisely tried to change the subject.
“Anyway, t-this is Wang Xiuying. She was the one w-who helped me out in that illusionary realm.”
