Chapter 3: Under the Sea, Mental Beastification Has Over a 50% Chance of Death, Rather Than Becoming a Beast-Transformer, Plus the Terrifying Water Pressure Here Is Enough to Quickly Kill a Beast-Transformer.
Combining these three clues makes one suspect: Did the dynasty truly fall? The Royal Descendants once came to the seabed seeking a way to resolve the beast calamity. After discovering the special environment of the seabed, was the Main City established by them? Preparing to relocate to the Undersea City.
Thinking carefully, the seven Sanctuary Cities seem like experimental subjects. First, make small ones to see if they are stable underwater. Once confirmed, invest all resources into building an exceptionally large one.
After completing the largest Undersea City, the smaller ones also have their uses—for example, sending civilians on the verge of beastification there, stationing many strong individuals, and performing harmless disposal of the beastified civilians.
Thinking this way, it might indeed be the case. The problem is, Blazing Sun King, as a member of the Os clan, the direct descendant of the Royal Descendants, why is he in the Sand World instead of the Undersea Main City? There is no answer to this for now, lacking clues.
Whether in the Sand World or the Undersea World, many remnants show that the dynasty made desperate struggles as it was about to fall. The dynasty didn't struggle this tragically; the situation in the World of Paintings is much better than now.
"Kaisa, do any nobles here have relatives about to beastify, or are they themselves about to beastify?"
"Not a single one."
As Kaisa spoke, a sly grin appeared on his face. Indeed, not a single one. If someone here contracts beastification syndrome, their family receives a relief fund, and the mentally beastified person is taken away by the Divine Palace for treatment.
Calling it treatment, in modern terms, it's AK therapy—instant cure, within half an hour, even your ashes are scattered.
This is literal scattering, not a metaphor. At the innermost part of the treatment area, there is a massive pit filled with bone-white ash residue.
The commoners don't know this, but the nobles do, so they never contract beastification syndrome. Even if they do, they would rather take poison or end their lives in other ways than seek help from the Divine Palace.
This is undoubtedly troublesome. As someone who can suppress beastification syndrome, the nobles avoid Su Xiao like the plague, fearing that associating with him might make others think they are beginning to mentally beastify.
So-called beastification syndrome is the decline of sanity value. But sanity value can gradually recover. How does one determine if someone has contracted beastification syndrome?
First, the cause of sanity value decline is mostly being affected by "madness," the ubiquitous mental energy. If slightly eroded by this energy, it's fine; as sanity value gradually recovers, it can be resolved.
But if severely eroded, it causes a drop in the upper limit of sanity value. Once the upper limit decreases, recovery through rest becomes impossible. When the upper limit of sanity value drops to just a few points, a trivial matter can push that person into complete beastification.
After fully understanding this, the method to suppress beastification syndrome becomes clear: raise the upper limit of sanity value.
In this regard, the Ancient Castle doctors already have a solution. Su Xiao saw the Deep Sea Eye in the Ancient Castle ward and, by establishing contact with it, obtained a Mental Seal, raising his sanity value upper limit by 200 points.
The treatment method lies here. The Deep Sea Eye is a quasi-divine creature. The Ancient Castle doctors figured out a way to summon its branch bodies and then extract eye fluid.
By infusing the patient with the Deep Sea Eye's eye fluid, engraving a counterfeit "Mental Seal" on the patient's back, and finally making the "eye fluid" inside the patient resonate with the counterfeit "Mental Seal" on their back, the upper limit of sanity value is permanently increased.
This method allows the patient to permanently reduce their stamina attribute while increasing their sanity value upper limit by 25–30 points, depending on the patient's constitution and the doctor's technique. Each patient can only undergo this treatment once.
Unfortunately, this treatment method can only be used by the Ancient Castle doctors. The counterfeit "Mental Seal" is too difficult.
Don't think just anyone can become an Ancient Castle doctor. Those guys, in near-apocalyptic conditions, selected dozens of the best physicians from countless people. One of them helped the old knight become a seventh-stage beast-transformer and modified Lamp Sister.
The [Church Knight Helmet] and [Sun Helmet] from the Sun Set are actually another application of the "Mental Seal." The person who improved this is a super genius.
"No nobles have beastification syndrome? Forget it."
"Wait, my dear friend. They might not have it during the day, but at night, that's a different story."
Kaisa's implication was that nobles, after the curfew at night, would dare to seek help in suppressing beastification syndrome. No one wants to die, and no one wants to beastify.
"I only accept Divine Blood Crystals."
"No problem. I'll contact them now. Around eight in the evening, we should be able to meet the first client."
Kaisa left after saying this, starting to handle matters regarding potions and beastification syndrome clients. According to the agreement, it was still a 70-30 split. Su Xiao, holding the core technology, took 70%, while Kaisa, handling errands and channels, took 30%.
After Kaisa left, Su Xiao went to the master bedroom on the third floor. With Bubu Wang and Baha, he transformed it into an alchemy laboratory. Over 60 square meters was enough; windows and such were completely sealed.
As dusk fell, the alchemy lab was set up. Su Xiao sat on a round swivel chair, pondering one thing: the commoners in this world had sanity values between 40 and 60 points, mostly around 50.
If, through the Eye Seal therapy, the patient's sanity value upper limit could be restored to its original maximum, or even higher, could this person's beastification be completely cured? Preventing their sanity value upper limit from declining over time.
Normal Eye Seal therapy could increase the sanity value upper limit by 25–30 points. Su Xiao himself had a Mental Seal, the best reference. Additionally, as an alchemist, Su Xiao's engraving of arrays and seals was far superior to the Ancient Castle doctors—each has their specialty.
The first key point of Eye Seal therapy could be optimized. As for the remaining Deep Sea Eye fluid, Su Xiao planned to try increasing its concentration after obtaining it, to achieve better treatment effects.
Only better treatment effects would make mentally beastified individuals or their relatives flock to him, risking discovery by the Divine Palace to seek treatment.
This treatment method would certainly not save the beast calamity; the operational threshold was too high. With Su Xiao's Alchemy Lv.62, he could barely manage it.
Su Xiao picked up a bottle of seawater from the test bench and moved to an open area. He mixed his mental energy into the seawater, manipulating it to float out and form overlapping circular patterns on the ground—this was the base for summoning a branch body of the Deep Sea Eye.
After setting up the base, Su Xiao took out [Deep Sea Brain Fluid], obtained from killing the brain monster in the Ancient Castle ward. This was essential for obtaining eye fluid.
Su Xiao had 10 portions of [Deep Sea Brain Fluid]. He sprinkled one portion onto the summoning array base and began recalling the appearance of the Deep Sea Eye in his mind.
Su Xiao extended one arm forward, pointing his index finger ahead, maintaining this posture. Time passed minute by minute.
Drip~
A drop of seawater fell onto Su Xiao's hand. He opened his eyes, and a phantom of the Deep Sea Eye appeared before him.
Seeing this, Su Xiao tossed out a portion of [Deep Sea Brain Fluid]. The Deep Sea Eye phantom's optic nerve tentacles coiled, beginning to absorb the [Deep Sea Brain Fluid].
Su Xiao picked up a half-meter-tall, 20-centimeter-wide glass jar next to his foot, grabbed one of the Deep Sea Eye's optic nerves, broke off a section of its tip, and inserted it into the jar's mouth.
This optic nerve acted like a water pipe, flowing out pale blue liquid. Called eye fluid, it was actually ocean energy absorbed by the Deep Sea Eye, altered and stored by it into this liquid energy form.
The Deep Sea Eye continued absorbing the [Deep Sea Brain Fluid], ignoring its own liquid energy being drained. When one portion of [Deep Sea Brain Fluid] was nearly absorbed, the Deep Sea Eye moved to leave, but Su Xiao tossed out another portion.
After expending five portions of [Deep Sea Brain Fluid], the glass jar was full of liquid energy. Su Xiao stopped tossing out [Deep Sea Brain Fluid], and the Deep Sea Eye phantom swam away until it vanished.
Looking at the obtained jar of liquid energy, what the Ancient Castle doctors called eye fluid, Su Xiao abandoned the idea of purification. He had previously underestimated this liquid energy. Not to mention purification, even improvement carried huge risks, potentially rendering the eye fluid useless.
Su Xiao couldn't quite tell if this was a material or something else. He simply took out the Overlord-grade equipment [Golden Balance], placing the large jar of eye fluid on the left tray. As the saying goes, you can't catch a wolf without risking a child. He took out three Soul Crystals (Complete), crushed them, and placed them on the right tray.
With a hum, the [Golden Balance] activated, its power particularly strong this time.
A few minutes later, Su Xiao tapped the glass jar, looking at the pale golden liquid energy inside. The energy fluctuation was too intense. If this were directly infused, it would send one patient after another to their deaths. It needed to be diluted for use.
With the "Evolved Eye Fluid" and "Improved Mental Seal" ready, only mentally beastified patients were needed.
That night after curfew, just past 8 o'clock, Kaisa hurried over. He had contacted a super big client named Os·Guin.
This name, though bearing the Os surname, still felt unfamiliar. But his other title was not unfamiliar: Brother Donkey.