The Record of Unusual Creatures
chapter-514

Chapter 514: The Progenitor of Life

The so-called Divine Sarcophagus was not actually a coffin but a black box that was one meter in length and less than half a meter in height. The box was made of an unknown material and its surface was engraved with dark red ancient runes. Several straight nicks divided the top half of the box into several large and small polygons, making it look like it was made up of many pieces.

It was smaller than Hao Ren had expected.

The room where the Divine Sarcophagus was stored in was located at the center of the cave. Hundreds of knights and ascetics guarded the stone chamber. The stone chamber itself was created by the most powerful earthen magicians, guaranteeing its ability to withstand the attack from the First Born’s tentacles. The four corners of the stone chamber were equipped with powerful instruments that transmitted the magical energy of the monastery around the Divine Sarcophagus. There were also thick scripture blankets on the four walls of the stone chamber. Aside from offering protection, the setting could also amplify the bioelectric signals released by the Divine Sarcophagus: perhaps, the facilities in the stone chamber could still hold the suppression signal for a day or two after the primordial tissue in the box died.

The stone chamber was not large. Only Hao Ren, Vivian, Ophra, and Cardinal Orben went inside. Hao Ren looked at the black box curiously and placed his hand on it. It felt a little warm, not like cold rock or metal. Of course, it was also possible that the “creature” inside the box was heating up the device. He patted his pocket and called the MDT out. “Can you feel it?”

“There are complex signals being released inside the container, including electromagnetic waves of three different frequencies and some other types of clutter.” The MDT hovered around the Divine Sarcophagus. “It’s a signal transmitter. It’s constantly releasing a signal to calm the big guy down.”

Cardinal Orben looked curiously at the little blue brick, which was floating in the air. However, considering the incredible power and technology the foreigners had, he did not comment on this seemingly human “alchemy”. Ophra asked, “Can you clone this signal?”

“I would at least have to touch it, and get some tissue samples or something.” The MDT flickered. “It’s easy to simulate electromagnetic waves released by the Divine Sarcophagus with technology, but this thing involves occultism…. I think we should first examine it carefully.”

Hao Ren looked at Cardinal Orben. “Can you open it?” he asked.

The runes on Cardinal Orben’s forehead flickered. It was a sign of intense thought. But before he set off, the pope had personally instructed to him to cooperate in the “research activities” of the foreigners. After some thought, he nodded and said, “Of course, but please be careful. It is irreplaceable.”

The cardinal placed his hand on the top of the Divine Sarcophagus and whispered an ancient scripture. As his chanting continued, the runes and lines on the surface of the Divine Sarcophagus gradually lit up. Then, the lid of the container broke along those straight lines into a few pieces before slowly floating up and flying apart.

Inside the container was a big lump of… something that was hard to describe.

It was a weird, creature-like thing. It was dark red, but mixed with a plant-like green. This bizarre piece of tissue looked like animal embryos connected together from end to end, with a dim light flashing in them. One-third of the container was filled with a thick red fluid, the texture of which quite resembled the lifeblood. The weird living tissue was soaked in it.

However, despite the fact that the fluid and living tissue looked weird, they were not disgusting. They exuded an incredibly soothing vibe, even a sense of sacredness; this was the material from which life originated. It was even more ancient than the First Born.

“This is the ‘Progenitor of Life’,” Ophra whispered as though she was afraid of waking the thing up. “This is the first time I’m seeing it.”

“I was fortunate enough to have seen it once, 150 years ago.” Cardinal Orben knitted his brows together. “At that time, it was more active than it is now.”

“It’s dying,” the MDT quickly concluded. “This is an organ that has been cut off… or fallen off during its normal evolutionary process. In any case, it is an incomplete living tissue. The main body has disappeared and this part of the organ is slowly failing.”

Vivian frowned. “What is it supposed to be?”

The MDT scanned the physical makeup of the Progenitor of Life in more detail. “It may be the ganglion of the Seed of Origin, used to give orders and accept commands. I’ve found that it has powerful signal broadcast and reception capabilities, just like a powerful broadcasting antenna. At the same time, it also has a certain ability to think and judge… But, this part of its function has already been suppressed. The Seed of Origin is really wonderful. Its organs can still survive for so long after being shed from the main body…”

Hao Ren instantly caught a key phrase. “Accept commands? What kind of commands?”

“I don’t know. My job is to only scan. It has a structure similar to an antenna, and seems to be capable of superluminal communication.” The MDT descended back onto Hao Ren’s shoulder. “Perhaps it receives commands from the goddess of creation. You said that the Seed of Origin was sown by the goddess to observe space. So, this thing definitely has a communication function. Perhaps, it flew to its destination and sent back photos or videos or something to its maker.”

Hao Ren’s eyes were fixated on the lump of living tissue. He originally thought that this thing was just a simple suppressor. Little did he expect it to be the ganglion of the Seed of Origin, much less an antenna!

More likely than not, it was normal. If the illusion he once saw was true, then the purpose of the goddess sowing the Seed was to observe the starry sky. Therefore, the Seed of Origin had to have the ability to communicate. The antenna that was sealed in the Divine Sarcophagus was the antenna of the Seed!

But now was definitely not the time to bring this stuff back for studying. Hao Ren shook his head, trying to calm himself down. “First, let’s see if you can clone this thing, or figure out the mechanism that’s inhibiting the First Born.”

“Let’s make a comprehensive clone, not one that just duplicates the signals. We need a physical clone, and this requires a tissue sample,” the MDT said while it moved forward. The cardinal immediately stood in front of the Divine Sarcophagus, blocking the MDT. His facial muscles were tense. “You’re not allowed to damage it…”

“I’m just taking a few tissue samples. That won’t kill it.” The MDT went around Orben. “This thing is tougher than you think. Even though it’s dying, it’s still healthier than you.”

The MDT was hovering above the mass of tissue before it stopped and froze. Looking at it for a few seconds, Hao Ren could not help but ask, “Well? Is there a problem?”

The MDT flew back and stuttered, “D-Dang, I forgot I have no hands! I’m just a PDA. I have no probes!”

Hao Ren was speechless.

In the end, it was the autonomous robot that Hao Ren took out from his Dimensional Pocket who did the collecting of the samples. It then sealed it in a special container, which could keep the living tissues alive. Such containers were standard issue equipment for inspectors, used to capture carbon-based biological specimens in other worlds, or leftovers—well, there was no mention in the operation manual for the second function, but Hao Ren had developed this usage himself and it worked well.

Cardinal Orben was now accustomed to the unusual gadgets that Hao Ren used.

“The equipment on the Petrachelys should be able to clone this thing, but this won’t solve the fundamental problem.” With arms akimbo, Hao Ren looked at the giant tentacles by the side of the cave. “I still need to find a way to kill this thing. Once and for all, and—”

“And it’s better not to create too much movement.” Ophra pointed down at their feet. “This is the west side of the Volcano of Dusk. It’s only a few hundred meters away from the nearest magma column. Every mage-emperor used different techniques to suppress the First Born; in Dragonspine Ridge, the mountain range formed a cage and there were rock monsters; here, they used magma. There are huge magma columns around the First Born’s key organs. The world’s largest magma lake may be deep beneath our feet. A group of elemental flames in the crater of the Volcano of Dusk suppresses the underground fires to prevent them from accidentally erupting or waking up the First Born. If you do something similar like last time—”

“The orbital artillery will destroy the magma system, causing the continental shelf to collapse. At least half of Holletta will be destroyed, and if the volcanic vapor enters the atmosphere, more than one-third of life on the planet will be extinct,” the MDT chimed in. “She’s right. My radar shows that the area is completely covered by intricate magma flow. The magma columns and the magma river wrap the First Born like a net. Obviously, this is man-made.”

Hao Ren was wide-mouthed and he said, “Then, I shall use my brain.”