’The dragon scale... there’s only one, so I’m definitely keeping it for myself.’

’The corrupted flesh remnants and keratin are perfect for research, so I’ll give a portion to the Twelve Stars to make the most of it. The shed skin is too light and doesn’t weigh much, so I’ll keep that for myself.’

’As for the blood, I can give them 300 grams, which is about 22 milliliters.’

Shi Ming was in the captain’s cabin, portioning out the spoils he had taken from the Great Black Heaven Dragon.

The 1.2 liters of super-heavy blood was the most precious prize. Because it was incredibly dense, it weighed about 15 kilograms. The Infinite Brain had already consumed one kilogram for its evolution. This kind of strategic-grade item was exceptionally rare, and with Lighthouse having sealed off Fujing Mountain, there was no other way to obtain more. He needed to keep the rest in reserve as material, so he decided to give 300 grams to the Twelve Stars. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

He had no immediate use for the few kilograms of keratin and flesh remnants, so he allocated them 300 grams of keratin and 400 grams of flesh remnants.

That made up the 1000-gram quota.

This would allow for research on materials from different parts of the beast, which was quite reasonable.

With the plan for the spoils settled, Shi Ming turned his attention to the "Virus," the Awakened from Lighthouse still lying in his system inventory. A day had passed, and the Eye of the World’s daily opportunity to actively gather intelligence had refreshed. Shi Ming prepared to properly study this "Infinite Mother."

He didn’t take the "Virus" out, instead looking inward at his inventory.

’Eye of the World, acquire intelligence.’

[BEEP... BEEP...]

[Compiling intelligence...]

[Searching. Confirming detailed coordinates... Search successful. Summarizing intelligence... Intelligence has been generated.]

[Infinite Mother and the Infinite Virus.]

[The S-rank skill "Infinite Mother," ranked 19th, is not acquired by bathing in Sea Beast Blood. Instead, it is obtained through "infection" by the Infinite Virus.]

[An Awakened must willingly accept the infection, dropping all bodily defenses and opening the "cage of body and mind." By unconditionally accepting the Infinite Virus, they can borrow its power and gain the ability of infinite division. However, this power comes at a price. As the Infinite Virus resides within the body, the Awakened’s emotional threshold rises, leaving them unable to feel joy or sorrow, anger or grief—much like a human who has undergone a prefrontal lobotomy.]

[After the host body dies, the virus can no longer draw power. It will enter a dormant state and stop dividing.]

[In its dormant state, the Infinite Virus is extremely fragile. This makes it a prime food source for high-tier sea beasts. They do not need to open their bodies and minds; they can rely on their own power to forcibly devour the Infinite Mother virus and reap great benefits.]

So, this was a power that could only be obtained by willingly dropping one’s physical and mental defenses, submitting to being a host, and sacrificing a part of oneself.

’Sure enough, easy power always comes at a price.’

Looking at the corpse of "Virus" in his inventory, Shi Ming wondered, ’If I use the Right Arm Red Pattern, can I bypass the parasitic process and just devour its power to obtain the skill?’

’Time for a little experiment.’

He extended his right hand, tentatively reaching for a wound on the corpse, waiting for a potential warning from the Eye of the World.

The Eye of the World gave no warning.

When the Right Arm Red Pattern touched the wound, he felt it begin to rapidly absorb the power from the host body, causing some of his stats to increase.

But that was all.

[Attack Power +18, Attack Power 157]

[Physical Strength +23, Physical Strength 182]

[Endurance +21, Endurance 160]

[Defense Power +26, Defense Power 193]

[Spiritual Power +34, Spiritual Power Unknown]

...

He didn’t obtain the skill.

Shi Ming couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.

He blinked.

[You want to obtain its Origin Power without getting infected? The Infinite Virus isn’t even dead! It’s an intelligent virus, you know! Draining it for stats is already a fantastic result!]

[The Eye of the World will generously throw in a secret for you.]

[The essence of an S-rank awakening is to use the method of bathing in blood to seize and accept a highly abstract "Skill Origin" from within an S-rank sea beast. This process typically takes around 60 to 120 minutes.]

[A "Skill Origin" is unique. Once it is seized by a human, the sea beast will lose that ability permanently, even if it survives. Therefore, trying to steal a skill from an S-rank creature that can fight back will be met with its full resistance, making the task next to impossible.]

[That’s right! If the Black Tortoise ever wakes up, it’ll be shocked to find its "Black Tortoise Shield" and "Brink of Death" are gone.]

[Once a Skill Origin is transferred, it is digested and absorbed, and cannot be transferred again.]

...

No wonder after Jia Fang died, the Pharaoh crew, despite possessing the Netherworld Feathered Serpent’s enormous corpse and leftover blood, never produced another S-rank Awakened.

’So there’s only one Skill Origin.’

It wasn’t a resource that could be reused to create a new Awakened after the previous one died.

The Awakened codenamed "Virus" was dead, but the "Infinite Virus" itself was not inactive; it was still alive within its host. The Infinite Virus had no blood. To acquire its skill, one would have to open their body and mind, allowing it to take root and multiply inside them.

For Shi Ming, that was out of the question.

Shi Ming thought for a moment.

’I might as well...’

...use it to dangle a carrot in front of the Nameless Cocoon!

’After all, it’s sealed. It hasn’t broken out of its cocoon, so it can’t eat the carrot. It can only look.’

Shi Ming knew very well that for collaborators who were "not on a completely united front and could betray him at any moment," the carrot was for looking at, not for eating!

A carrot that can be eaten loses its purpose.

It was just like the fable of the wise man traveling, hanging a carrot in front of his donkey. If the donkey ate it in one bite, the carrot would no longer serve its purpose.

The Nameless Cocoon had given so much.

It was time to give it a little positive reinforcement.

’Look, I’ve prepared something so wonderful for you.’

’When you break free, I’ll give it to you.’

’One good turn deserves another.’

’Now, what should I ask for in return this time?’

...

Sailing discreetly, the Grand Fortune returned to the European Sea Region. Shi Ming didn’t head for the Twelve Stars’ headquarters; a clandestine commission required a clandestine delivery.

Just like last time, Shi Ming was the one to decide the delivery location.

An uninhabited area far from the Twelve Stars.

A small, seven-meter-long wooden boat bobbed on the water here.

Shi Ming arrived at the rendezvous alone, riding the Sunpiercer.

He confirmed that it was, indeed, just a wooden boat with no special functions. It was completely free of any mechanical, steel, or non-wood components, assembled using an improved mortise and tenon joinery. Its greatest value was artistic.

The Secretary-General of the Twelve Stars and a stiff-looking man were sitting there waiting for Shi Ming, just like last time.

The boat was an ordinary boat.

But the stiff-looking man was no ordinary person.

This was perfectly normal.

The Secretary-General would certainly need a bodyguard.

As Shi Ming came aboard, the surrounding light began to dim. This was the manifestation of a skill called the "Lightless Dark Box," which could physically block all forms of tracing—be it spying, audio recording, or video recording. It was an A-rank skill, though not the man’s primary one.

"Brother Shi, it’s a pleasure to see you again."

"This time, I come not only in a personal capacity, but also with the friendship of the Twelve Stars."