Lord: Starting with Biological Modification

Newly Town, Research Institute Number One. Underground Laboratory.

Tumo stood at the entrance, his palms drenched in sweat.

Yesterday, when the list of participants for the Strong Foundation Plan was posted, he had rushed over to see it at the first opportunity.

His own name, "Tumo," was right there on the list.

He knew why he had been selected—just like Barton, their accumulated merit points had always been among the highest.

Their selection was the most direct manifestation of Lord Velin’s promise that hard work pays off.

No one in the territory objected. There was only envy.

But Tumo still felt uneasy.

’I’m just a farmer, or at best a business owner now. Can I really endure a bloodline ritual that only Knights and old veterans can handle?’

CREAK. The sound of the laboratory door opening interrupted his anxious thoughts.

Barton walked out, his face ruddy and his steps steady.

"Hey, Tumo!" Barton grinned, noticing Tumo’s nervousness, and clapped him on the shoulder. "It’s fine. It’s just like taking a nap. You wake up, and it’s over."

Tumo looked at him skeptically. "Really?"

"Really! Why would I lie to you?" Barton pointed to his own chest. "Look, I feel full of energy right now. I’m countless times stronger than before."

Tumo nodded, half-convinced, took a deep breath, and pushed open the laboratory door.

The room inside was brightly lit, with all sorts of bottles and jars placed everywhere.

Lord Velin was standing by a stone table, mixing some concoction.

He looked up when he saw Tumo enter.

"Tumo," Velin’s voice was as calm as ever. "One last time, are you certain you want to participate in this ritual?"

"My lord, is it..." Tumo’s voice trembled slightly. "Am I... not suitable?"

Velin didn’t answer directly. Instead, he walked over and scrutinized him.

The feeling of being examined made Tumo extremely uncomfortable, as if he were standing naked in a cold wind.

"Your physical constitution is the worst of the ten," Velin’s words were like a bucket of cold water. "And you’re not young anymore. Your ability to endure pain will be much weaker than a younger person’s."

Tumo’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach.

Velin walked back to the stone table. "So I ask you again, are you sure you want to continue?"

Tumo thought of his son, Little Stone, and of Anna.

Finally, he thought of Barton, who had just encouraged him. ’If others can do it, so can I.’

"I’m sure," he replied.

Velin nodded and handed him a glass of dark red potion. "Drink this, then lie down on the stone table."

Tumo took the potion and sniffed it.

A cloying, coppery smell rushed straight to his head, almost making him gag.

’Barton said it would be just like falling asleep...’ he muttered to himself, then downed the potion in one gulp.

The moment the potion went down his throat, Tumo knew Barton had lied to him.

’If this was sleeping, then it was damn well sleeping in hell!’

A burning sensation seared from his throat to his stomach, then spread rapidly throughout his body.

He felt as if molten lava, not blood, was flowing through his veins.

"AHHH—!"

Tumo let out a bloodcurdling scream as his knees gave out, and he collapsed heavily to the ground.

’The stone table? I can’t even stand, let alone lie down on it.’

Velin didn’t help him up. He just observed quietly, occasionally jotting down a few notes in the notebook in his hand.

The pain grew even more intense.

Tumo felt his bones expanding, his muscles tearing, and his skin about to burst.

He lay prone on the floor, gasping for breath like a fish out of water.

’Barton... you... you son of a bitch...’ His consciousness narrowed to a single thought. ’You promised... it would be like sleeping...’

Worse, his mind began to cloud over, and various illusions appeared before his eyes.

Just as he was about to lose consciousness, a force suddenly surged into his mind.

The force was like a warm hand, gently stroking his chaotic consciousness.

"Hold on," Velin’s voice echoed in his mind. "The hardest part is over."

With the guidance of this power, Tumo gradually regained a sliver of his sanity.

He gritted his teeth, gave up resisting, and allowed the pain to reshape his body.

’Dammit, so what if it hurts? Is it scarier than being poor?’

’Go on, hurt me to death if you’ve got the guts!’

An unknown amount of time passed before the pain finally began to subside.

Tumo lay on the floor, completely drained, gasping for air.

"Get up and try," Velin’s voice called out.

Tumo struggled to sit up, surprised to find that he didn’t feel tired at all.

Not only was he not tired, but he felt a sense of ease he had never experienced before.

He stood up and moved his arms and legs. He could feel that some of his old aches and pains were gone, and he was much stronger than before!

"Congratulations, Tumo." Velin walked over and handed him a Blood Heart Stone. "Place your hand on it."

Tumo did as instructed, pressing his palm against the stone.

VMMMM—!

A pale blue light burst from the stone, coalescing into a blurry, humanoid phantom above his head.

The phantom held a book in its hands.

"[Deconstruction of Edicts], a bloodline that leans toward wisdom and knowledge. It’s a good fit for you."

Tumo stared blankly at the phantom above his head as tears streamed down his face uncontrollably.

’I’m just a farmer who can barely read, yet I’ve activated a scholar’s bloodline?’

"My lord, I..."

"Go back and get some rest," Velin interrupted him. "Keep up the good work. I have high hopes for you."

The man was too emotional to speak and could only nod repeatedly.

After Tumo left, Velin turned and walked toward another room in the depths of the laboratory.

All ten participants had successfully completed their bloodline activation.

The first step of the Strong Foundation Plan was complete.

Now, it was time for a more important experiment.

In the center of this laboratory room, two completely different plants were carefully placed in a special culture medium, receiving the highest standard of care.

The first plant, closer to Velin, was a new specimen of the [Blood-sucking Vine].

It had grown from a fruit that formed after devouring the flesh of a Gray Swamp Giant Crocodile and was nourished in a high-concentration aether environment. Its vines were already as thick as a child’s arm, their surface covered with a rock-like keratin layer—a manifestation of its increased earth-elemental affinity after absorbing the Gray Swamp Giant Crocodile’s bloodline.

The vine squirmed slightly in its culture medium, as if it had its own heartbeat.

Immediately, a data panel appeared in Velin’s field of vision.

[Blood-sucking Vine]

[Level: Level 3]

[Bloodline: Strangling Demon Vine (Golden Tier) 43%, Titan Earth Dragon (Golden Tier) 12%, Mixed Bloodline 45%]

[Abilities: Blood Siphon, Suffocating Coil, Rapid Growth, Rock Armor Hardening]

[Overall Assessment: An excellent hunting tool. Having absorbed a creature’s bloodline, it has gained powerful physical defense and earth-elemental affinity. A very resilient carnivorous plant.]

The other specimen, however, was a peculiar fruit covered entirely in spikes, its scale-like husk glinting with an orange-yellow luster under the light.

[Thorn-Crowned Dragon Scale Fruit].