"Oh?"
Ma Heng’s position was not far from Chen Zhengze. Hearing this, he immediately waved at him:
"Staff Officer Chen, does the letter contain any information about Golden-Eyed Crimson-Scale Beast materials? Why can’t I smell a hint of blood?"
"Wait a moment, let me take a look…"
Chen Zhengze traced the letter with his fingernail, soon locating the entry for Golden-Eyed Crimson-Scale Beast, and read aloud:
"Golden-Eyed Crimson-Scale Beast, late second-rank, lives by absorbing cultivators’ qi and blood. Its flesh and blood are inedible. A stop-overflow talisman has been applied to its epidermis.
"Stop-overflow talismans are among the most common talisman papers in the Tianling Realm. They can isolate various odors from leaking out and have a certain preservative effect. Once torn off, they might be used for research…"
A stop-overflow talisman?
Academician Ma Heng was slightly taken aback, shifting his gaze back to this pile of flesh and blood.
Soon.
He found a small talisman similar to a Daoist charm on the surface of four or five pieces of flesh and blood.
Fine silver light flickered at the center of these small talismans, connecting and interacting with each other, forming a translucent small net covering the material surfaces.
If not carefully observed from a specific angle, this detail was indeed hard to discover.
Afterward, Academician Ma Heng put on gloves and touched the flesh and blood a couple of times, discovering that a special isolating sensation indeed existed between his fingers and the flesh and blood.
In other words.
Did the stop-overflow talisman rely on some optical-like effect to achieve an equivalent-to-physical-object result?
Was this something new in the field of cultivation?
Their first meeting had brought Ma Heng such a surprise.
"Little Chen!"
Seeing Ma Heng’s question successfully resolved, another old academician with a drinker’s nose and a Sichuan accent, not far away, couldn’t help but speak up:
"Little Chen, help me glance over—what is this thing?"
"Little Chen, don’t tell him—let this firecracker suffocate to death, that’s best!"
Before Chen Zhengze could speak, another academician with white hair jumped in to tease first:
"Anyway, this old guy is old; even if he really fights, he can’t beat you."
A round of good-natured laughter immediately rose among the expert team.
The old academician who spoke was named Xu Xiujie, eighty-one years old, a senior academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, mainly engaged in research on AM… that is, atomic, molecular, and optical physics.
Old Xu was also one of the few figures in the Republic’s scientific research community who had never touched military research but was nevertheless famous in the military.
Because he had once done a tremendously, immensely, incredibly awesome thing.
It was in the late 1970s. While executing a classified research mission, Xu Xiujie had stayed at the garrison of a fully trained Category A infantry division for several months.
During that time, the infantry division was holding a division-level competition. The always vigorous young Xu Xiujie found the division leadership and hoped he could join in the fun.
Finally, under his persistent coaxing and pleading, the division leadership approved his participation in individual comprehensive events excluding hand-to-hand combat and double bridge crossing.
At first, no one paid attention to Xu Xiujie.
But unexpectedly, during the competition, he performed as if using a cheat code, successively achieving thirteenth in the armed five-kilometer run in the entire division, fifth in grenade throwing, second in the entire division for semi-automatic rifle rapid fire, and first in the entire division for pull-ups—cheat-level results…
To this day.
Within a certain brigade reorganized from that infantry division, the legend of Xu Xiujie was still circulating.
A true master of the investigation of things.
Hmm, the “investigation” in hand-to-hand combat…
However, Xu Xiujie’s old colleagues dared to joke with him, but Chen Zhengze still respected these old academicians greatly.
So he quickly looked toward the item the other party was pointing at.
Xu Xiujie’s area was located to the right side of Platform Number Two. On the table sat an object similar to a small tower, simple and antique in appearance, about thirty centimeters tall.
The only special thing was that the top of this small tower was missing a section.
Combined with its sideways posture, at first glance it looked like Louis XVI.
“…”
Then Chen Zhengze compared it with Lin Yi’s letter for a moment, suddenly his expression tightened, and he said urgently:
"Academician Xu, please stay away from that thing. Whatever you do, don’t damage it! That’s a Spirit-Testing Platform!"
"A Spirit-Testing Platform?" Xu Xiujie looked at the small tower in utter confusion. Although his mind was full of question marks, he still obediently retreated two steps.
"Little Chen, what on earth is a Spirit-Testing Platform? Explain clearly."
Chen Zhengze saw that Xu Xiujie had moved away from the Spirit-Testing Platform, and only then did his expression relax slightly. He began to explain patiently:
"The Spirit-Testing Platform is one of the most common cultivation auxiliary tools in the Tianling Realm. It has only one purpose: to detect cultivation aptitude."
"According to the time conversion between the two realms, as long as one is eight years old by Earth age, one can use it to test their specific spiritual root aptitude."
Spiritual root?
Hearing these two words, the experts present fell silent for a moment, then immediately gathered around Xu Xiujie, keeping their distance as they observed the Spirit-Testing Platform:
"Yo, so spiritual root is detected by this thing?"
"It looks so ordinary…"
"Didn’t Comrade Lin Yi say this thing is very common in the Tianling Realm, definitely not expensive, so naturally the appearance isn’t too exquisite?"
"That’s right. The key is still its principle…"
"Old Guo, you stepped on my—!"
The crowd of experts chattered like this for a while. Finally, a relatively young expert turned around and said to Chen Zhengze:
"Staff Officer Chen, how is this Spirit-Testing Platform used?"
Chen Zhengze looked at Lin Yi’s letter paper again and quickly gave a reply:
"Comrade Lin Yi has already installed a spirit stone inside the Spirit-Testing Platform. Just place your palm over the top of the Spirit-Testing Platform, and after detecting the aptitude, it will give feedback through the base."
"It has seven base levels. Only one level lighting up represents seven spiritual roots; two levels represent six spiritual roots."
"In the same vein, all seven levels lighting up means a single spiritual root."
The experts exchanged glances. Almost everyone’s face showed a hint of eagerness.
After all, this was cultivation…
As long as they were Chinese—yellow-faced and red-hearted—who didn’t harbor some longing and anticipation for cultivation?
Whether age or industry…
Before the word cultivation, almost everyone was as powerless as sweet zongzi facing salty zongzi.
If there was anything different from ordinary people, it was that these expert academicians, while anticipating, still held a heart to analyze the deep principles.
Next, everyone discussed for a while and decided that Sun Lao would be the first to test his spiritual root.
Chen Zhengze and Pan Yongnian pushed Sun Lao’s wheelchair to the edge of the platform. Sun Guozhu didn’t hesitate, extending his withered hand and pressing it onto the Spirit-Testing Platform.
After a moment.
Chen Zhengze looked down for a few seconds, hesitated for a while, then spoke the result:
"Only… one level lit up."
Several members of the expert team who had originally still had some smiles on their faces were slightly stunned, their expressions gradually growing heavy.
One level—the standard seven spiritual roots.
The Republic’s only living Two Bombs hero actually had the most ordinary aptitude, almost no hope for cultivation…
However, Sun Guozhu’s eyes lit up instead. He said to the other silver-haired old expert sitting in a wheelchair not far away:
"Yuanyou, you try too?"
The old expert named Yuanyou nodded and signaled his assistant to push him beside Sun Guozhu.
This old expert’s full name was Qi Yuanyou, ninety-three years old, formerly the chief designer of the Shenzhou spacecraft, one of the eighteen heroes of Huaxia space satellites, and also Sun Guozhu’s old subordinate and comrade-in-arms.
Soon, Qi Yuanyou’s palm also covered the Spirit-Testing Platform.
And then…
The Spirit-Testing Platform lit up only one level again.
Academician Qi Yuanyou was also seven spiritual roots.
Everyone present fell silent.
But just as the atmosphere on site was becoming somewhat oppressive, Old Sun beside them let out a soft laugh, and the man actually seemed even happier:
"Ha, really seven spiritual roots…"
Qi Yuanyou beside him seemed to think of something too, and a smile also rose at the corner of his mouth.
Seeing this, Pan Yongnian beside them couldn’t help but step forward and ask with concern:
"Sun Lao, this is…"
"Don’t worry, we’re doing fine. We haven’t lost our minds."
Sun Guozhu saw through Pan Yongnian’s worry at a glance, shook his head at him, and the smile on his face grew even richer:
"Little Chen, Little Pan, I and Yuanyou are truly happy!"
Saying this, he turned around, exchanged a smile with Qi Yuanyou, and his tone showed no dejection at all:
"According to Comrade Lin Yi’s words, seven spiritual roots means no talent, a dead end for cultivation, truly the body of an ordinary mortal."
"But we have used this most ordinary body to create an unprecedented great undertaking. Isn’t this exactly proof of the great leader’s words—a single spark can start a prairie fire?"
"To ordinary people, seven spiritual roots aptitude might be bad news, but to us two old guys on the verge of death, it is an affirmation of our lifelong career and faith."
"To receive such good news at the end of our lives—this life is enough!"
Chapter 32