The Stars Beyond

Chapter 30: Failure In Ascension

For many years, various organizations and departments from Terra Nova had continuously unearthed peculiar objects from the Old Earth. However, a golden bamboo with a diameter of one meter was an unprecedented discovery.

The massive bamboo was cut and converted into a small boat. Such an object was certainly considered a significant find, even in the Early Qin dynasty. In the past, the major organizations from Terra Nova had fought fiercely over a few golden bamboo slips. One could only imagine their reaction over the emergence of a bamboo filled with the breath of life.

A dozen branches, all adored with leaves, were still attached to the bamboo boat. Occasionally, a rain of golden light would cascade down from the branches, gently landing on the body of the female practitioner, who lay as still as a deep sleeper.

The female researcher from Terra Nova further explained that the smaller golden bamboo with leaves that they brought out earlier was plucked from this small boat.

“You’re saying that there’s a possibility she may come back to life?” Qian Lei, the man wearing black-rimmed glasses, cautiously sought to comprehend the situation.

The underground facility had attracted a great deal of attention from those above ground. In fact, anything connected to immortality was regarded as a major breakthrough, not just by the megacorporations from Terra Nova, but also by Old Earth.

“No. She’s been dead for several millennia. Her self-awareness, the most essential characteristic of humans, has long vanished. All bioelectrical activities in her brain have ceased.”

Zhou Yu, one of the project leaders, knew better than anyone that the female practitioner had been deceased for over three thousand years. The only perplexing aspect was that her physical body continued to exhibit signs of activity. After extensive testing and experiments, they concluded that it was somehow linked to the golden bamboo boat and her own supernatural abilities.

Qian Lei pressed for more details, as he needed a comprehensive understanding. The Old Earth would undoubtedly be involved in the subsequent research of this underground research facility.

Several researchers from Terra Nova elaborated on the discovery of the underground relic, the direction of their recent research, and the preliminary results they had obtained thus far. They provided a rough overview and Zhou Yu provided additional information, being well-informed about the interests of people from Old Earth.

“After the test, we determined that her biological age before her passing was around twenty-five years old.”

“That young?” Qian Lei was taken aback. Being part of a special department, he had extensive knowledge about the practitioners from the Early Qin dynasty. It was unheard of for someone to become an elite among the practitioners at such a young age.

“Not really. To be precise, it means that she was like someone in their twenties physically. Through multiple tests and analysis, we scientifically calculated that her actual age at the time of her death was around two hundred and thirty years old. It is truly astonishing. Her indicators, from the number of cell divisions to the depletion of telomeres, were far beyond the norm.”

Despite her age, she maintained a youthful appearance. Qian Lei’s expression grew serious at the revelation. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and asked, “Can we trust the accuracy of the data?”

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Zhou Yu quickly grasped the underlying interest of Qian Lei and those behind him. Throughout history, the pursuit of immortality had always been the most enigmatic subject. Countless people had dedicated themselves to unraveling its secrets, starting from the Early Qin dynasty and continuing to the present day. The megacorporations of this era took a more direct apoproach, investing massive resources and already making significant progress.

Zhou Yu continued, “The cause of her death is unknown, but it was definitely not natural. Based on her physical activity projection, she could theoretically live to at least seven hundred years old, with an upper limit of around nine hundred and fifty years old.”

Qian Lei felt unsettled. He knew what this meant. Once this information was reported, this underground facility would become one of the most important laboratories on Old Earth. Security would be upgraded to the highest level.

Several researchers from Old Earth were reviewing data reports, nodding constantly. Some of them were visibly excited. This underground lab had conducted numerous experiments using the blood, bone marrow, and muscle fibers of the female practitioner. The data was detailed and the conclusions were credible.

Wang Xuan paid close attention, observing and listening. The fact that the two hundred and thirty year old female practitioner still maintained the physical activity of a person in their twenties was truly remarkable. He knew that a practitioner with such great achievements must have visited the Inner Landscape.

“Her telomere length is far beyond normal, which theoretically increases the upper limit of her lifespan drastically drastically.”

The researchers from Old Earth were filled with enthusiasm, eager to be part of this project.

Zhou Yu added, “We have extracted a strange substance from her blood. It can extend the lifespan of ordinary people to a certain extent.”

“Do you have any milestones? I mean clinical trials or real cases showing how long a normal person’s lifespan can be extended?” Qian Lei asked with a serious expression.

“Yes, we do. One of our important clients from Terra Nova, who has also contributed thirty percent of the funds for this research facility, has received an injection of the active substance extracted from the female practitioner’s blood. After more than two years of tracking and observation, we found that he, despite having a short lifespan, can theoretically live for more than fifteen additional years.”

Zhou Yu’s words surprised the researchers from the Old Earth. Even Wang Xuan was secretly amazed. The female practitioner had been dead for more than three thousand years, yet her body still possessed some longevity attributes. It was truly extraordinary, almost like the flesh of a monk, which was believed to be a life extension agent.

Qian Lei’s expression immediately changed and he continued asking, “Do you have other similar clients? How much of such active substance have you extracted from the female practitioner’s blood?"

Zhou Yu replied, “We still some important clients waiting for our samples. However, we don't want to drain the pond just to get all the fish. We have been attempting to artificially cultivate her cells for years, but the results have not been ideal. For example, her blood contains supernatural force, but once it leaves her body, its traits become extremely unstable, leading to numerous laboratory explosions.”

“We also have an experiment in which we plan to upload the memories of one of volunteers from Terra Nova into the woman’s brain, in hopes of reactivating the bioelectrical activities in her brain. The goal is to verify if her immensely powerful body can give another person a second chance in life.”

“No way!” Qian Lei objected loudly, losing his composure. Wang Xuan was also dumbfounded. He could not believe such an experiment was even being considered.

“The technology on Terra Nova has reached a certain level. From the perspectives of our researchers, all people are essentially no different from automatons; we’re just more delicate. Human thoughts are merely a set of complex programs that can theoretically be replicated .”

“This experimental program you’re talking about must be suspended. You cannot proceed,” Qian Lei said firmly.

He then inquired, “Who is the volunteer?” He believed that ordinary people would never have such an opportunity. Their intention behind taking possession of the female practitioner’s body must be to increase their lifespan and live for hundreds of years without facing death.

“The founder of Origin, Miss. Zheng,” Zhou Yu answered, then calmly revealed that sixty percent of the funds used to build this underground facility came from Miss Zheng.

“If we’re going to cooperate, we need to come up with a more foolproof plan. This experiment of yours is too risky and should not be pursued at this stage.”

“I personally do not support the idea of reviving another person’s memories in her body. I prefer the alternative approach of fully dissecting the female practitioner’s body. That way, we can use the most advanced instruments available in Terra Nova to record and decode her genetic information. This will allow us to fully analyze and compile the microstructure of an individual who surpasses the limits of human life...”

Upon hearing this, Wang Xuan was left speechless. He mourned for the female practitioner, who had been dead for thousands of years and was not allowed to rest in peace. Her blood had been continuously drawn, and now she was even being considered for dissection.

Qian Lei was startled, he did not expect such an extreme suggestion coming from a gentle-looking woman. He quickly spoke up, “Hold on. Some experiments need to be put on hold. Let’s wait for our program to be finalized before discussing further. If we are going to cooperate, we need to ensure a win-win situation.”

......

“This particular bamboo possesses supernatural force and exhibits remarkable activity. After refining it, we discovered that the number of genomes in it is comparable to the number found in the body of the female practitioner.” Zhou Yu immediately regained her enthusiasm when the conversation returned to the small boat made of that massive bamboo.

Upon hearing this, Wang Xuan could not help ask the researcher next to him, “Have you found any other discoveries like bamboo slips in this underground cavern? It seems unlikely that such a powerful female practitioner would not have left behind anything else.”

The researcher shook his head and replied, “No, when we entered the cavern, it appeared as though there had been a massive explosion. Many areas were charred black. Even if there were bamboo slips, all of them would have been reduced to ashes.”

As the researcher described the scene, the expressions on the faces of Qing Mu, the two experts from the Old Earth military, and Qian Lei grew increasingly serious.

Qing Mu spoke in a deep voice, “Based on your description, this closely resembles what was recorded in the bamboo slips left behind by the another practitioners of the Early Qin dynasty.”

The expert from the Old Earth military nodded in agreement, “Indeed, it is very similar to the description of a large explosion that will occur during the failure of an ascension.”

Ascension had been a topic of debate in later generations. Some believed that it was a path to certain death, where individuals would burn themselves with the aid of supernatural forces. Others believed that ascension represented the imminent ascension to immortality, pushing the boundaries of life to its extreme.

Unfortunately, over the years, there had been no evidence of successful ascension, and all those associated with it were confirmed dead upon discovery. Even the “archaeological team” sent by megacorporations from Terra Nova had unearthed the ashes of these individuals on the Old Earth, revealing their undignified deaths.

The woman before them was mentioned in the other bamboo slips from Early Qin dynasty. She was considered the strongest among the practitioners, aspiring to achieve immortality. It was only natural that she had performed the ascension to in order to achieve immortality, but it seemed that she had also failed. This would explain why she died despite having a long physical lifespan ahead of her.

From a scientific standpoint, the cause of death remained unknown because no injuries could be detected. However, according to the beliefs of Old Arts, her spiritual consciousness had completely faded and ceased to exist. Such a person would never be able to return to life.

As Wang Xuan listened to this, he could not help but feel a sense of despair. It was yet another case of failure in ascension to immortality.