Chapter 845: Gene Thinking

At this moment, Carolyn was conducting an experiment to research extraterrestrial life, and Xu Zhi was naturally observing. For him, this was an extremely important and meaningful experiment, as it was his first time truly researching a Tier 8 cosmic life form from outside the Zerg. It was also a significant exploration and discovery.

However, Xu Zhi was slightly stunned. Could the Zerg's backdoor gene lock really include this?

Xu Zhi, still stunned, wondered, "If an external extraordinary being integrates its genes into the Zerg, will the Zerg Sub-brain—the Zerg racial pillar god—detect it?"

The Zerg Sub-brain mechanically replied: "Naturally, it can be sensed and destroyed. However, powerful entities can also breach the Zerg's defensive barrier and steal the Zerg's evolved genes... The universe holds many incredible things."

Xu Zhi nodded. This meant that perhaps ultimate Tier 10 beings, or even more mysterious entities, could break through the Zerg Sub-brain's defensive mechanisms and plunder the Zerg's gene pool, provided their power vastly overwhelmed the Zerg's collective strength. Effectively seizing an entire civilization.

After all, what was the Zerg's greatest foundation? Their gene pool! Their greatest wealth lay in the extraordinary genes and cultivation systems the Zerg Mother Queen had painstakingly developed over countless eras. Knowledge is power. This was all wealth accumulated through knowledge. Evidently, the Zerg needed the most robust safeguards to prevent theft.

"The gene pool I've developed is the Zerg's greatest asset, its 'intellectual property' in a sense, and also the immense treasure most coveted by others!" Xu Zhi took a deep breath, fully grasping the terrifying implications. The accumulated wisdom of countless civilizations—their full racial genes, inner space genes—represented immense wealth. Other civilizations were not as inherently powerful as the Zerg. The Zerg, capable of deriving diverse genes independently, were a super race possessing "infinite gene types"! Furthermore, they could rapidly develop corresponding mature cultivation techniques.

Other cosmic civilizations? Their genes were necessarily fixed, lacking such variability. Only now, with the stark contrast of other civilizations, did Xu Zhi fully grasp the immense value of the gene pool he possessed, brimming with extraordinary genes. Xu Zhi felt that even the mightiest entities in the universe would covet the vast gene pool evolved by the Zerg, perhaps even hunting such beings to acquire it! While the Zerg's extraordinary power made them incredibly strong, this very power could also make them targets for countless terrifying, unknown entities in the universe.

"Perhaps the Zerg Mother Queen didn't die foolishly, but rather met an unexpected, tragic end—hunted down and beaten to death...." Xu Zhi murmured, his voice low, "Perhaps countless terrifying entities of equal power ganged up on her, or maybe she encountered an even more ineffable, higher-dimensional being who simply annihilated her. The goal would have been to plunder the gene pool she'd cultivated and all the foundations of her civilization, stripping her bare.... No wonder I didn't inherit any gene pool from the previous generation; I had to start from scratch myself..."

Xu Zhi was startled by this horrifying realization. He gathered his thoughts. Xu Zhi realized he had another theory about the Zerg Mother Queen's demise. The mystery surrounding the previous Zerg Mother Queen's death was becoming increasingly intriguing to Xu Zhi.

Looking at the brain worm deity's pained expression, Xu Zhi suddenly ordered, "Allow gene integration." Not only Carolyn, but Xu Zhi also wanted to conduct this experiment.

"Executing," the Zerg Sub-brain replied.

On the massive experimental platform, the brain worm deity began to disintegrate completely, its body collapsing into putrid, foul-smelling chunks of flesh. It was a truly wretched sight.

"The rejection is too severe!" Carolyn's expression remained calm, her eyes flickering as her divine sense permeated every corner. "If we force this integration any further, it will likely die."

With a swift, gentle motion, she immediately removed two-thirds of the brain worm deity's body, severing the most severely degraded sections, leaving only its chest and head. The creature screamed in agony.

"Don't move, I'll treat you," Carolyn said, her expression serene.

"Holy cow!" The players, witnessing this scene, were utterly horrified. It was like watching an experiment on a lab rat. Only now did they truly remember who Carolyn was. Back then, among the Ishidarians, she was a maverick human scientist, unaccepted by mainstream views. She was known for her radical gene modifications, biological research, human dissections, and gene pool analysis. Ultimately, she was the mad scientist who inscribed the "Law of Guilty Death" into genes, leading to the creation of a "perfect" society.

"That's horrifying."

"To be studied like that... I'm trembling."

"Only now do we realize that bringing Carolyn along was a peculiar choice; her personality practically guarantees she'll embark on mad research and biological gene experiments..."

Countless onlookers felt a chill seeing the deity's pitiable state, reduced to such a condition.

"However, Carolyn's expertise in life modification aligns well with us Asura Path warriors," one player remarked. "I'd be willing to be modified by her!"

Everyone turned to look at him, acknowledging his audacity. Immediately, someone patted the giant octopus, saying, "See? We're good to you. We never conduct all sorts of research; we're a group of peace-loving individuals."

The giant octopus shivered in fear.

Witnessing this, Xu Zhi again asked the Zerg Sub-brain, "Permissions have been granted, so why is integration still impossible?"

The Zerg Sub-brain replied: "Gene integration among members of our own race naturally boasts a very high success rate, given our shared lineage.... However, in the wider universe, the success rate for different races to integrate the genes of other species is inherently very low and arduous."

Xu Zhi was taken aback. So that was it. Although they appeared different, they were fundamentally Zerg, which naturally allowed for a relatively high gene integration rate. Yet, in the broader universe, for truly distinct races, integrating genes from other species to achieve life transcendence still carried a very high mortality rate.

"Viewed this way, the path of cultivation in the universe is far more arduous than one might imagine. No wonder powerful individuals are rare," Xu Zhi mused calmly. In the universe, deities faced the additional challenge of navigating the equally formidable Tier 8 high-dimensional spatiotemporal path. Moreover, most cultivation methods were crude, and gene integration rates were low. Some deities, while traversing the cosmos and exploring countless planets, couldn't find suitable genes for cultivation and simply integrated whatever they could, haphazardly completing the process. Most wandering powerhouses, lacking a proper foundation, were simply "wild cultivators" with high realms but no corresponding power. Finding even one gene among three with a suitable cultivation method was considered a significant achievement for them.

Powerful cosmic races, on the other hand, prided themselves on possessing mature bloodline cultivation methods unique to their species. They vehemently resisted any attempts to steal their lineage or leak their cultivation techniques. Concurrently, they would plunder the bloodlines and mature cultivation techniques of other races.

"It seems this brain worm deity's greatest opportunity was secretly eliminating a giant octopus, thereby stealing its Dyson Sphere gene bloodline and its species' crude cultivation methods," Xu Zhi mused.