Chapter 316: Chapter 199: The Great Era of Zombie Refinement! The Chilling Foundation of Dragon Country! (Part 2)

As the saying goes, having many skills is never a burden; you never know when you might need them.

"Xiaoning, really, your appearance isn’t bad, so why is it just an appearance?"

"Elder Shi, I think..."

"Stupid! Foolish! Inconceivably foolish! You ’think,’ do you? Does calcium carbonate really react with water to form calcium hydroxide and carbonic acid? Can those two substances react? You’re just over there reacting for the sake of reacting!"

"Why can’t they react? Water is composed of hydrogen ions and hydroxide ions, hydroxide ions combine with calcium ions, and hydrogen ions combine with carbonate ions, it’s fine! Oh, oh, oh, I get it, Elder Shi, you were testing my confidence in the answer!"

"Confidence in what?! Who taught you chemistry in high school? I’ll immediately report to the higher-ups to have them fired for misleading students, absolutely misleading!"

Alright then!

Isn’t this roundabout way just scolding me?

Ning An, with a dark face, was thinking of a retort when he heard a "thump thump thump" knocking on the door.

"Who is it!"

Ning An stood up angrily, opened the door without turning around, and saw Quan Xiaobai standing outside.

His face was still corpse-like white; his black robe had been changed into a clean Taoist robe, obviously prepared in advance and quite fitting.

"Uh, you, is there something you need?" Ning An asked, a bit curious.

"Yes."

Quan Xiaobai squeezed out a word from his throat, the kind that would clap on the ground if dropped.

His facial expression fluctuated greatly, from puzzled to eager to confused, not bothering to hide his emotional shifts.

"Then come in."

Ning An stepped aside, gesturing invitingly, curiously asking, "Did you recognize me?"

"They showed me your video."

Quan Xiaobai followed him inside; his voice was hoarse but noticeably more fluent,

"I see."

At Qilian Mountain, Ning An and Lin Yanke didn’t just wear masks, they also deliberately changed their voices. He hadn’t heard that Corpse Cultivation Technique enhanced one’s sense of smell; that’s why he asked.

Elder Shi, perceptive as always, glanced at Ning An and then left with a map.

Both of them sat down; Ning An poured a cup of tea for him, pointing outside, "That?"

"Yes."

"Didn’t make new ones?"

"Too few numbers, and none as useful as this one."

Ning An’s curiosity was instantly piqued. He didn’t know much about Corpse Cultivation Technique, but he did have some understanding.

Spirit Communication Body and Land of Extreme Yin, these two conditions were extremely difficult to manage. Plus, there’s a natural reverence for corpses in Dragon Country; anyone disrespecting their family’s corpse would face the wrath of the entire village.

For that reason, it was quite an extraordinary stroke of luck for Quan Xiaobai to manage what he did with Mrs. Zhang — it was rarer than winning the lottery.

Even if Dragon Country intended to cultivate him, it’s likely hard to initiate anything immediately.

However, Ning An held no prejudice against him. At most, he considered him a pitiful young man.

As for any other feelings, Ning An had none.

Without the same experience, it’s hard to empathize. The notion of shared sentiments is just a lie.

Quan Xiaobai, holding a cup of tea, didn’t hurry to drink. He simply stared at Ning An.

Back at Qilian Mountain, Ning An and Lin Yanke had shattered his worldview.

Overpowering zombies? Just incredible!

Though he was recruited by the officials and assigned to a research base, he wasn’t oblivious to the world, always subtly paying attention to Changchun Temple.

When he heard about official negotiations with Changchun Temple, he wasn’t surprised — he was also an anomaly negotiating with the officials, just without the upper hand.

But when he heard that Changchun Temple managed to acquire a mountain range, even just nominally,

he was astounded.

But he had gone so long without human interaction, his conversational skills seriously deteriorated; he couldn’t initiate topics.

Ning An noticed this, smiled, and asked, "Regarding the simplified version of the Corpse Cultivation Technique a while ago, what do you think?"

Speaking of it, Quan Xiaobai’s eyes brightened: "How did you find that cultivation technique?"

"When I was a child, picked it up from the trash." Ning An joked, sipping his tea.

"Oh."

Quan Xiaobai fell silent again; his language skills might have regressed, but not his brain. Even a child wouldn’t be fooled by such nonsense.

No words for a while, just as Ning An thought he couldn’t initiate a conversation, that icy voice rang out again:

"That cultivation technique simplified the prerequisites for refining zombies. Whether considering refinement conditions or success rate, it’s significantly improved. Yet, these zombies can’t compare to Iron Corpses, so I named them White Corpses."

"Now, we can refine them steadily and distribute them discreetly to various bureaus as foundational assets."

"And that simplified version of the Human Emperor Banner, the officials are working hard on it, hoping to crack it soon."

"Hmm?" Ning An looked up in surprise, not at the official’s actions but at Quan Xiaobai’s ability to say so much at once.

Quan Xiaobai became more coherent as he spoke, like a rusty chain getting lubed up, saying in a low voice, "According to tests, White Corpses might not withstand direct bullet impacts, but unless hit in the heart, they aren’t affected."

Ning An was genuinely intrigued: "A weak point at the heart, that’s good. What about a headshot though?"