Damon's Ascension-Chapter 126: Awakening Agents

Naturally, the mention of this particular topic made Damon pause and turn to face Godin with utter seriousness.

"The awakening agent? You can supply it?"

Godin nodded. "We do have a quota that we can tap into, but most importantly, it’s the acquisition of the raw materials needed that is a problem."

"How so?" Damon inquired with a raised eyebrow.

Godin chuckled. "I’m sure you have done your research on it, but how much do you know of the awakening agent?"

Damon glanced away. "The basics, it is a special reagent that is injected into the body that coalesces into a manifestation of - presumably - soul power that forms into a special power with varying growth limits."

"That’s right. The awakening agent was a miracle of technology back then and still is, allowing all organic creatures who fought with our hands and feet, or with weapons, to actually utilize power only thought of in dreams." Godin nodded with agreement.

"So, friend Damon, can you guess how this agent is produced and why its trade is so restricted? Along with why its price tag is so high?" Godin asked coyly.

Damon glanced at Godin and folded his arms behind his back. "It’s a deduction that will lead to a rabbit hole of thought without information. Firstly, the presence of abilities is rated so highly by both living beings and the Universe Will, meaning that their value transcends what can be given."

"In other words, abilities are not given nor are they even remotely related to the Universe Will. It’s just as much a speculator on what ability you would awaken as you yourself, which lends credence to the theory that awakened abilities have to do with the ethereal soul."

"But according to IUAS law, the private production and sale of the awakening agent is strictly banned unless it passes through official channels, meaning that it is a highly controlled resource. This means that either it poses some danger and has to be limited - whether to health or authority - or its materials cost something too valuable to make mainstream."

Damon shook his head. "No matter what, it is illogical that the Universe Will would allow the mere IUAS to dictate the rights of usage for the awakening agent. Even an F rank ability can significantly boost the survival rate of a creature in the Chaos Realm and make them more effective in harvesting Chaos Essence."

"There is no way the Universe Will would agree to limiting such a great production efficiency booster... unless it touches something related to its bottom line." Damon said as he rubbed his chin, thinking about the time he spoke to the Universe Will.

His expression became grim. "And there’s only one thing that severely pushes the bottom line of the Universe Will, and that is the existence of Chaos Essence!"

Glancing at the surprised Godin, Damon had a calm expression. "So the main ingredient for the awakening agent must be a portion of Chaos Essence!"

Godin began clapping with pleasant surprise. "Exactly correct, dear friend! It is not that the main ingredient of the awakening agent is Chaos Essence, but the entire awakening agent is made up of heavily diluted Chaos Essence."

"Huh? Why is that?" Felicia, who had been wondering why Damon stayed back, came over and heard the last bit, which piqued her interest.

"Because, from the moment we began to harvest Chaos Essence, our scientists at the IUAS R&D naturally began to study its effects on living beings. I won’t bore you with the history, but when they started out, Chaos Essence injected into living creatures caused them to either explode or be turned into soup."

"However, when they reached a certain diluted dosage, they realized that after a moment of extreme agony, the being remained alive and even gained special powers. After plenty of testing, the awakening agent was developed and the ’safe’ dosage was discovered, refined further and further till today." Godin explained to the duo.

Damon and Felicia shared a look instantly. No wonder that fellow Lopaz was so excited to hear of the existence of the human race and even personally came out to meet them. Our race’s high Mentality was just a smokescreen, the fellow was likely lusting after our bodies for research on awakening and abilities and their relation to the soul.

It was less likely that he wanted Felicia to be a fellow researcher and more likely he wanted to strap her to a testing table then slowly dissect.

"So let me guess, each race has a quota of awakening agents allocated by the IUAS depending on how much Chaos Essence is harvested per year?" Damon asked Godin.

"That’s right. Whether they are a species, a company or any other collective - even individuals - how much you get is dependent on how much you give. As you said, the Universe Will is extremely reluctant to give up even half a unit of Chaos Essence, so every awakening agent is like tearing a piece of flesh off from it."

Godin snapped a finger towards another goblin, who nodded and ran off. "So in the end, ability hiring became a thing, the companies would stock up quotas for awakening agents and then contract those who came based on their qualifications. If they awoke a special ability, they would then give good treatment to that person and have them do various activities on a long-term basis."

"If you awaken a bad ability, you would be worked like a dog in the Chaos Realm to earn back what was spent at the very least."

The goblin came running over with a vial of blue-green liquid, which Godin took. "That’s why everyone is drooling over your species. A guaranteed awakening of above the A rank? With high chances of being S rank and above?"

"Only one vial of awakening agent and you can have a worker who could potentially harvest enough Chaos Essence to make a hundred vials. That is the kind of peerless investment that any business can only have wet dreams of, but your kind made it reality."

Godin casually fondled the vial then handed it over to Damon. "Take this with you, it’s a sign of your friendship you just established."

Damon glanced at it but did not take it, rather asking Godin. "You mentioned a deal?"

Godin chuckled. "That’s right. Right now, what your human race needs is an endless vial of awakening agents, because if your people can awaken, your race’s competitiveness and value will soar by each individual. Not to mention, ability hiring companies will be made extremely passive by this."

Godin gave Damon a knowing look. "They might have lost to you in the negotiations and through the clever auction, but this quota thing is not something even you can bypass because you don’t have the exact formula for the agent. Not to mention that every Chaos Essence brought into the universe, the Universe Will is aware of it."

"In this particular regard, you are at the mercy of both bureaucracy and the power of company capital on the law. I can safely say that the various forces of the universe have planned a big gift for you when you go to ascertain your species’ allocation quota." Godin casually revealed, causing Felicia to feel a chill while Damon’s eyes narrowed.

"Your deal?" Damon prompted.

"Nothing complicated. Your species needs more quotas and we will supply you all of our own and halt our ability hiring department. In exchange, you become the affiliated backers of the Trust and Trades Company." Godin stated slowly, glancing at Damon seriously now that it came to this.

Damon’s eyebrows furrowed while Felicia’s rose. She felt like this was a great deal but kept quiet as she was not in the position to make the final decision here. As such, she only glanced at Damon to see him pondering this seriously.

"Cooperation is possible." Damon finally said faintly.

Godin’s heart skipped a beat as he didn’t expect this voracious fellow to agree so easily. "Great, then let’s-"

Damon raised a hand. "But now is not the time. We can discuss this another day, because I am in a hurry to finish a bit of business of my own. I hope you can understand, friend Godin."

Godin was anxious because he felt that when Damon returned from whatever he was out to do, this deal might never come to fruition, but he also knew that he couldn’t push too hard, otherwise, it would be killing the prospect with his own hands.

"Alright, friend Damon, I wish you the best for your endeavors and hope everything will go well." Godin responded wryly.

In the end, what else could he say but this?

Damon nodded to Godin and left with Felicia as they joined their crew in the Normandy, ready to start increasing their power as they traveled towards the Chaos Realm.

The excited crew gathered around in the war room and sat down in their allocated seats, opening their character panels and immediately beginning the process of upgrade!