My Computer Leads to an Instance Dungeon-Chapter 129 - 104: Scientific Testing, Siyu Medical

Chapter 129: Chapter 104: Scientific Testing, Siyu Medical

"You want to do Alchemy, too?" Gwendolyn was a bit surprised.

A moment later, Gwendolyn seemed to realize something, her expression clearing.

"Oh, right. The fact that you could produce so many anti-infection Alchemy Pills means you must know a powerful Alchemist. It’s only natural that he would be interested in an Abnormal Ghost’s cerebrospinal fluid."

"That’s good, too. The legend of the great Alchemist I mentioned is famous across the entire continent. If the Alchemist backing you is that skilled, he’s surely heard of that legendary figure as well."

"Many Alchemists challenge themselves to replicate a toxin that’s highly effective against aberrations. If they succeed, it could elevate their renown as an Alchemist, so I understand the motivation."

Fang Zhen maintained a faint smile and nodded frequently.

He didn’t correct her.

In reality, he *was* backed by a great Alchemist—one by the name of Science.

An idea had sparked in Fang Zhen’s mind the moment he heard Gwendolyn wanted to use the Abnormal Ghost’s cerebrospinal fluid for an Alchemy experiment.

He had yet to witness Alchemy from the Curse Seal World, so he didn’t know how it worked or if it involved any Extraordinary Power.

But if it was a more traditional form of Alchemy, then it was essentially just proto-science—a precursor to chemistry.

If he wanted to find the Abnormal Ghost’s weaknesses, bringing a vial of its cerebrospinal fluid back to his world and having a research institute test it would be far more efficient than Gwendolyn experimenting by herself.

Modern medicine and chemistry were far beyond the empirical methods of this era.

His main concern before had been the potential danger of the Abnormal Ghost’s cerebrospinal fluid. It would be a huge problem if it turned out to be a viral agent that started some kind of G-Virus outbreak.

Now that Gwendolyn said the Abnormal Ghost’s cerebrospinal fluid was completely non-toxic, and even accidental ingestion would only cause nausea and vomiting, he was relieved.

"I’m taking it back to have some professionals conduct Alchemy experiments. Perhaps their work can complement yours, Master," Fang Zhen said.

Gwendolyn was intrigued by this.

"I would also like to see the unique insights of other Alchemists. If they make any breakthroughs, I would be happy to exchange ideas with a colleague and learn from them," Gwendolyn said. "Even if we can’t meet in person, I’m willing to trade our alchemical findings."

"Okay, I’ll pass on your message. If possible, I’ll bring back some Alchemy Items. And if the circumstances are right, I’d also like to learn some of your alchemical techniques, Master," Fang Zhen said.

Gwendolyn nodded. "Alchemy is a profound field of study, no less so than Curse Seals. Back in my day..."

Gwendolyn stopped mid-sentence. She seemed to recall Fang Zhen’s prodigious talent with Curse Seals and suddenly found herself unable to go on.

"In any case, if you get any results, come and tell me," Gwendolyn said.

"Okay, I need to leave for a while. I will be back tomorrow," Fang Zhen said.

After Fang Zhen finished talking with Gwendolyn, he went out, found Mark, and asked for a vial of the Abnormal Ghost’s cerebrospinal fluid.

When Mark heard it was on Gwendolyn’s orders, he handed it over without hesitation.

After the battle in the valley, Mark held a deep respect for Fang Zhen.

It was partly respect for his strength, but also an admiration for his character and how he handled things.

Fang Zhen took the cerebrospinal fluid and returned to the courtyard, glancing at the sky.

The overcast sky had grown even darker; night was about to fall.

Fang Zhen had no desire to challenge the instance’s monsters at night. The conditions weren’t in his favor.

He said goodbye to Gwendolyn and Mark, gathered his equipment and the cerebrospinal fluid, and mounted his Jue Ying motorcycle. He rode out of the small courtyard, gunning the engine as he left the town and headed toward the Light Gate.

In less than twenty minutes, he arrived at the Light Gate in the forest.

Fang Zhen slowed down, got off the bike in front of the Light Gate, and pushed the motorcycle into it.

A brief wave of dizziness washed over him.

Fang Zhen was back in his living room.

He parked the Jue Ying, quickly changed into his regular clothes, then walked over to the coffee table and picked up his phone.

He checked the time: 6:47 p.m.

It was the beginning of summer, so the days were longer and it wasn’t dark outside yet.

First, Fang Zhen shut down the external device for the "Instance Life" game. Then, he took the vial of Abnormal Ghost cerebrospinal fluid from his backpack and set it on the coffee table.

He sat on the sofa, wondering where he could get the Abnormal Ghost’s cerebrospinal fluid tested.

Logically, he couldn’t reveal the fluid’s true origin. He would have to say it was extracted from some kind of creature. In that case, there were only a few types of places that would test such an unknown sample.

University laboratories, local research institutes, labs in technology development zones, research centers for specific industry associations, or commercial laboratories. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

’Seven or eight years ago, I still had some contact with my old university advisor and some of the underclassmen. But I haven’t been in touch for years now and probably couldn’t find anyone to help. Besides, while the university I attended had a decent ranking, its research capabilities were pretty average. It was one of those schools with a good local reputation and strong government backing, but with very imbalanced academic specializations.’

’It wasn’t that I want to trash-talk my alma mater, but if I sent the cerebrospinal fluid there... setting aside the issue of efficiency, I wouldn’t even trust the results.’

’As for other universities, I have no connections and no idea about their capabilities.’

’I don’t know how to access any of the other channels either.’

After all, his profession had absolutely nothing to do with scientific research.

After thinking for a moment without coming up with any reliable leads, he decided to just stop racking his brain.

But he didn’t just give up.

Fang Zhen picked up his phone, opened his chat app, went to his feed, and composed a post.

"To my all-knowing friends list: Does anyone know a reliable place in Xiahai that does scientific analysis of animal fluids? Reliability is key, cost is no object. Need it fast and accurate.

Please DM me if you know a place. I’m willing to pay for the info."

After typing it out and giving it a quick once-over, Fang Zhen posted it.

Once the message was sent, he turned and went to the washroom.

Ever since he’d started running instances, he’d bought several bottles of gel hand sanitizer, and he made sure to use some every time he returned.

’It probably can’t kill any viruses from the instance world, but it’s a comfort, at least. And so far, nothing bad has happened.’

By the time he finished cleaning up and returned to the living room, he picked up his phone to see he already had several likes and replies.

Tang Xiaojuan from the gold shop had liked it and commented: "Bro, what are you up to? Planning to launch a tech startup?"

Several colleagues liked it but didn’t leave a comment.

Wang Donglai hadn’t liked it, but he posted a comment: "What? Did you eat something weird?"

A couple of his online friends, the type who liked everything he posted, also gave it their customary like.

Just as Fang Zhen was thinking that his social circle probably didn’t overlap with the scientific community, another comment popped up.

SummerBloom: "What kind of analysis are you looking to do? Medical, general testing, or something like gene sequencing?"

Seeing this comment, an image of Xia Siwei immediately surfaced in Fang Zhen’s mind.

"Just general medical analysis, to test the properties of this bodily fluid. It would be best to see what chemicals it reacts strongly to," Fang Zhen replied.

"Oh, in that case, I know a place. It’s very reliable, but it might be a little expensive," SummerBloom quickly commented again.

"DM me," Fang Zhen replied.

Not long after typing the two words, he received a message from Xia Siwei with a location pin.

Fang Zhen opened it and looked. It was the name of an institution called ’Siyu Medical and Biochemistry Laboratory’, located in the Xiahai High-tech Zone, about eight or nine kilometers from his home.

On the chat app, Xia Siwei sent a message.

SummerBloom: "If you’re doing a general test on a biological fluid, this place will work."

SummerBloom: "It’s a third-party medical lab. They offer all kinds of medical analyses and can do other research tests as well—blood work, urinalysis, genetic testing, you name it. They have a great reputation and are considered very authoritative."

Fang Zhen’s eyes lit up. He replied, "You know the place well?"

SummerBloom: "Yeah, my aunt is the head of this medical lab. I get my own tests done here."

"She seems to be working overtime tonight, and I was just thinking of visiting her. If you come, I can introduce you. It’ll make the process go faster and you might get a discount."

"Deal," Fang Zhen replied, then quickly typed another message. "Last time, the massage was on you, and now I owe you another favor. I feel a little bad."

"I’ve been a bit busy the past few days, but once I’m free, how about I treat you to a meal? What do you think of that Haiyue Seafood Buffet near the Outer Harbor?"

SummerBloom: "Huh? Isn’t that place super expensive? It’s over four digits per person."

"I don’t like owing favors. You treated me to a massage and now you’re helping me again. I’d feel terrible if I didn’t treat you to a nice meal in return. Besides, I said I’d pay for the help. A guy’s gotta have some principles, right?" Fang Zhen replied. "Today’s Monday. I should be free by the weekend. How about Sunday evening?"

SummerBloom: "Hahahahaha, okay, I’m also busy this week. Sunday is perfect."

"Great, it’s a plan."

Xia Siwei sent a location pin. She was already in the High-tech Zone, heading toward Siyu Medical.

Fang Zhen grabbed a bag, put the Abnormal Ghost’s cerebrospinal fluid inside, and went downstairs to head to the destination.

He stood downstairs for a while. It was hard to get a taxi at this hour; he tried to hail several but none stopped.

’Should I be thinking about buying a car?’

’He’d had his driver’s license for a long time. Back when he was freelancing, he didn’t have a fixed workplace and was always traveling for fun. He spent more than two hundred days a year running all over the country, so he never really needed a car.’

’Later, when he settled down, buying a house was the priority for his savings.’

’By the time he had money again and was thinking about a car, a good investment opportunity came up, so he put his money there instead.’

’And then came his brief personal financial crisis.’

Now, he wasn’t short on cash. Plus, a lot of his gear was highly sensitive; he really needed the privacy of his own car. ’After all, I can’t exactly take a taxi while carrying a Hunting Crossbow and Molotov cocktails, can I?’

Fang Zhen shook his head at the thought and hailed a car through a ride-sharing app.

「Twenty-something minutes later.」

The BYD ride-share that Fang Zhen had taken pulled up to the destination.

He got out of the car, closed the door, and looked around.

To his right was ’Siyu Medical’.

The Siyu Medical building had a modern design, with a glass curtain wall that reflected the distant neon glow of the city at night. A wide entrance with shimmering metal fixtures sat atop a dozen or so steps.

Xia Siwei was standing in front of the main entrance of Siyu Medical, waving at Fang Zhen.