"I don't need an apprentice. Just call me boss from now on."
Bai Yi waved his hand dismissively. "Stand up; kneeling isn't popular in this era."
"Thank you, boss." Yue Fang's voice trembled with fear as he rose and stepped behind Bai Yi, lowering his head in silence. His frightened eyes gradually calmed, and his racing heart slowed. Survival was his only desire; who he followed mattered little as long as he remained alive.
"Shall we begin?" Marku glanced at the two bewildered humans.
"Okay, you choose first," Bai Yi replied with a smile.
Marku nodded, his eye flashing scarlet, brighter than the dim light in the operating room. He surveyed the two humans, then selected the one on the left, a figure whose expression had morphed into sheer terror. The one with a higher level would likely endure pain better.
Without the screams of the patients, Marku felt something crucial was missing.
The chosen human's face lit up with joy as he hurried forward. "Sir, my name is Steel Snake. This year—"
"No need for introductions. Just lie down," Marku interrupted, pointing to the operating table still smeared with Minotaur flesh.
Steel Snake hesitated but then ran over, lying down among the body parts. The scent of blood filled his nostrils, yet he found it oddly intoxicating. Such was the plight of the weak: outside the three major federations and in this city of sin, the law of the jungle reigned supreme. Facing powerlessness was far more terrifying than the grotesque reality before him.
The other human cautiously raised his head. "Sir, my name is Feng Wuwu—"
Suddenly, his mind went blank, and he collapsed to the ground in a heap.
Bai Yi retracted his mental influence. "Yue Fang, support him. Raise his head and watch closely; learn as much as you can."
Yue Fang paused, surprise washing over him. He had never received such treatment under Marku. Usually, he only entered the operating room to deliver materials, spending the rest of his time cleaning the clinic or assisting with surgeries. He felt compelled to be useful, lest he become another experimental subject.
But now, the person determining his fate seemed entirely different from Marku, despite his vicious reputation.
"Explain the transformation increase for this operation," Bai Yi instructed.
Marku responded, "Self-created transformation, frenzy. With the current materials, we can achieve a medium gold-level increase in strength, endurance, and energy, but speed will remain lower gold, and sanity is untested."
He frowned. "I can push it further. Even with imperfect materials, I can make him reach mid-gold in all aspects except spirit. But he'll be in a rampage mode. Can you handle that?"
Bai Yi, experienced in suppressing the collapse of sanity during transformations, nodded. "Let's try our best. If we stabilize his sanity, we could form a golden army. It's a long shot, but there's potential."
"Alright, let's start," Marku declared, gesturing for the materials to be gathered.
The operating table soon overflowed with an array of components: three drops of Abyssal Power, flesh and blood of the Abyss Lord, the heart and eyes of the Violent Demon, the Tears of the Golden Wolf King, and the brain of the Honey Badger.
Zero chimed in: [Materials collected: 50% from angry creatures, 20% from resentful spirits, 10% from desires, and 20% as powerful foundations.]
As Marku prepared, he swiftly cut through the patient's spine and nerves with precision, avoiding any pain receptors. The patient's expression shifted from excitement to horror as a scream erupted from his vocal cords.
"Ahhhhhh!"
Bai Yi raised his scalpel slowly. "The Heart of the Violent Demon can drive creatures insane, but we can use a tranquilizer to temporarily suppress the rage."
He produced a crystal from the tranquilizing grass, compressing his mental power into its light blue form. With deft movements, he cut a hole in the demon's heart and inserted the crystal.
The heart's rapid beats slowed, and Marku watched, astonished.
Bai Yi continued, "This is just a temporary fix. Without further intervention, he'll revert to his original state after a year."
Marku nodded, still processing. "You've managed to create a powerful transformation despite the limitations."
Bai Yi smiled. "Yes, but have you considered how to perfect it? It's not even a living being yet. How can we control it?"
Marku frowned, contemplating. "All the materials used are gold-level. This is the current limit."
"Perhaps," Bai Yi replied, "but with more data and collaboration, we could achieve something stable and extraordinary."
Marku waved his hand dismissively, his aura darkening. "Not interested. I'll wait for my Madness to emerge. It won't be inferior to Evil Mind. We're simply not aligned philosophically."
Bai Yi remained silent for a moment before walking out. "Yue Fang, let's go."
After they left, Marku glanced at the notes Bai Yi had left behind, flipping through them thoughtfully. The dangerous aura around him dissipated as he considered the implications of their exchange.
He had anticipated a perfecter of evil thoughts to be equally idealistic, but instead, he encountered a pragmatist—one who valued stability over chaos.
In the world of alchemy, survival often hinged on embracing extremes. Bai Yi's approach, though stable, felt like a betrayal of the very essence of their craft.
Yet, as he pondered the potential of their collaboration, Marku couldn't help but feel a flicker of excitement. Perhaps this was a path to something even greater than madness.