Castle of Black Iron

Gazing at the last option for a while, Zhang Tie realized that he hadn’t touched it for over a year. After skimming over this option when he obtained the Castle of Black Iron at the beginning, which almost made him suffer from a heart attack due to excitement, Zhang Tie had not checked this option at all.

Zhang Tie could still remember the astronomical figures of basic energy storage, merit values and aura values required by those ”special seeds and fruits”.

”Am I able to grow some special seeds and fruits now?”

Zhang Tie asked.

”The wealth accumulated in Castle of Black Iron has been able to grow a few special seeds on the small tree.” Heller confirmed. ”Why not give it a look.”

Of course, Zhang Tie knew what the word ’wealth’ meant coming from Heller’s mouth. It actually referred to those basic data. Zhang Tie then pressed the last option in the air before seeing a wholly new interface.

Being the same same as the first time Zhang Tie opened the option, there were various rotating three-dimensional patterns and descriptions of strange seeds and fruits on the interface. The only difference was that a few of those patterns were bright as they were activated.

Heller then pointed at one of those activated seeds. Zhang Tie then touched its pattern. In a split second, its three-dimensional pattern became enlarged and clearer.

——Seed of Flower of Life

——Aura Values: 530000

——Basic Energy Storage: 1358000

——Merit Values: 90000

——Planting Area for LV 1 Flower of Life: A Square with a side length of 66 m.

——Flower of Secret, also the flower of taboo which was usually mentioned by some human clans. It figured out the fundamental secrets of the existence of life. With one bioactive cell, the flower of life could clone another living being.

The seed of this flower of life required astronomical amounts of aura values, basic energy storage and merit values which were out of Zhang Tie’s imagination.

”What’s clone?” Zhang Tie asked Heller.

”Simply put, a clone is a duplicate of another living being.”

”Duplicate a life?” Zhang Tie was shocked by this answer greatly.

”That’s it. It could duplicate a new life, including flesh and blood. If you have learned a lot about the scientific development of mankind before the catastrophe, you would know that people have already mastered the technology of cloning technique before the catastrophe. It’s one of the most high-end techniques that people have mastered during that age.”

”What do you mean by taboo?”

”With only one drop of your blood, the flower of life will clone a person who looks the same as you, including all the physical features and genes. If so, can your parents identify which one of you was the original if the both of you stood in front of them at the same time?”

”Of course I’m the real one!”

”Yes, you are the real one. But who will be the one who looks the same as you? From bloodline, as he originates from you, he also originates from your parents!”

Zhang Tie was then confused.

”As this technique would bring a huge impact to human ethics, it has been treated as a taboo. Actually, for many human races and living beings in the universe, they could not accept this.”

”Wait, you mean a few races and living beings didn’t think it was unacceptable. Don’t they treat this as a taboo?” Zhang Tie figured out something from Heller’s words.

”The reason lies in the difference in understanding the essence of life among different races and living beings. If you think that this body which contains various elements, blood and fleshes is all of you, you will then take the cloning technique as a taboo. Whereas, if you take this body as a garment, will you treat those people who wear the same garment as you on the streets as taboo?” Heller said meaningfully.

”You mean it’s nothing to worry about that?”

”I’ve told you that this depends on your understanding of life. If this body is all of you, then, will you think that you are different from those people with incomplete bodies essentially? When you see them wearing ragged clothes, do you think they are still as same as you? If this body is all of you, then, who’s the one in the trouble-reappearance fruits? Is that just your illusion and conscious activity?”

Heller stared at Zhang Tie who was slightly frowning his forehead, ”Don’t worry about that anymore. Everything in Castle of Black Iron now exists for you. You are the absolute ruler here. Therefore, you don’t need to change your world outlook to adapt to the things here. On the contrary, they will adapt to your existence and viewpoint! If you feel that you could hardly accept them, you can’t choose them. If you feel it is nothing different than a garment worship, it is a garment workshop!”

After thinking for a short while, Zhang Tie ridiculed it. ’What a bullsh*t taboo! I’ve not planned to do anything weird with it at all. I’d better consider something more realistic.

”Therefore, you asked me to bring in a piece of flesh of that huge deep-sea monster?”

”Yes. That powerful mutated living being is very valuable. If you can afford it, with the help of the flower of life, you could constantly produce huge deep-sea monsters in the Castle of Black Iron.”

”I don’t think it is very powerful at all. The Star and Moon Sword Sage killed it in only a few minutes. Additionally, what do I need that disgusting thing for?” Zhang Tie crooked his mouth.

”Based on my analysis of that piece of flesh, I find that the huge deep-sea monster was going through puberty. Such a creature has a great potential for growth. If it was an adult monster, it would be at least twice the size of the one you saw. If so, it would not be killed by people so easily as an adult deep-sea monster is one of the most powerful lords in the sea. What’s more, as these cloned creatures sustain their lives by consuming your resources, they will be closely related to you and treat you as their owner.”

”You mean I can treat these cloned things as my pets?”

”As you will, they will definitely be much more docile than average pets.” Heller confirmed.

Hearing this, Zhang Tie’s heart raced. With his eyes fixed onto that seed of flower of life, Zhang Tie suddenly thought of something.

”You mean people have already mastered cloning technique before the catastrophe? Is this flower the product of human science at that age?”

Heller replied with a smile, ”Besides the human race, there were numerous living beings and species in the universe. The flower of life is just a living being. Humans always dreamt of conquering the whole world with high-end science. Did you ever imagine that some other races and living beings could conquer everything by planting various plants? Those plants were born to have all the functions required by the human race, which were more senior than the top achievements of human science.”

”That’s unbelievable!”

”Fishes are born to swim and dive. However, how many difficulties have humans experienced diving deep into the sea? Birds are born to fly, however, how long had humans spent before being able to fly in the air? Treatment of water and soil pollution was a hot topic of human society even till the catastrophe, however, many plants are born to be able to purify water and revitalize the soil, which is much more powerful than human’s scientific civilization. Humans are always dreaming about eternal prosperity through sunlight, however, plants are born with that ability.”

”When did humans start transmitting messages through electromagnetic signals? All the plants in a forest naturally have the ability to transmit threatening warnings of invaders thousands of kilometers away through electromagnetic signals in a second. Receiving their signals, their partners would respond to it as soon as possible. Do you feel their instincts are strange? Do you feel that human civilization before the catastrophe is really that powerful? Living beings are born to have various strange instincts. Now that plants are born to have unimaginable super instincts, how could there not be a plant that could accomplish duplication and clone of life?”

Hearing Heller’s words, Zhang Tie touched his head. ’This steward not only dwarfs me in looks but also has excellent eloquence and wisdom.’ Compared to Heller, Zhang Tie found that he was totally an innocent kid.

”Wait...” Zhang Tie suddenly recalled that in many Chinese myths and legends, many people and living beings were bred in flowers. Are those myths and legends real?” Zhang Tie then told Heller about these myths and legends.

”Human myths and legends contain many memories and knowledge from far ancient times. Of course, many of them were fully fabricated by descendants based on their imaginations. As for the myths and legends that you mentioned before, I could only tell you that some of the Chinese might have a flower of life on this star long time ago.” Heller explained to Zhang Tie seriously.

”What? You mean there’s another Castle of Black Iron?” Zhang Tie was slightly stunned.

”There is only one Castle of Black Iron. But the flower of life is only a single member of a huge special plant population.”

”Why could the small tree bear the seeds and fruits of the flower of life?”

”Because the Manjusaka Karma Fruit Tree is the king of that huge special plant population, which carries the life potentials of all the members of this population. When the conditions became mature, the Manjusaka would release all the life potentials of those members. This is its fate and instinct. You can also take the flower of life as a subordinate of the Manjusaka Karma Fruit Tree.”

”You mean the option ’Forming Special Seeds and Fruits of Manjusaka Karma Fruit Tree’ is essentially the reproductive channel through which the small tree releases the life potentials of that huge special plant population?” Zhang Tie widened his eyes.

”You can take it as a contract or an appointment, based on which, you bring them into this world through your own efforts and they serve you as a payment instinctively. The most perfect and harmonious relationship in the universe is established on this reciprocity, cooperation, and interdependence.” Heller confirmed.

”You mean, this space of the Castle of Black Iron might be a big botanical garden at the beginning which would bring various subordinate strange flowers and plants to that small tree while I am that diligent gardener who’s selected to look after this botanical garden?” Zhang Tie pointed at his own nose.

”I don’t think you are wrong. Because I’m also a subordinate of this space, I could only tell you that as I’ve told you, the most perfect and harmonious relationship in the universe is established on this reciprocity, cooperation, and interdependence. The fundamental rule in the universe is that one party could not casually determine the life or death of the other party, casually harm the other party or pay with no gain, which is applicable anywhere, especially in people’s social life. Any relationship that violates this fundamental principle can’t be sustained. However, relationships that violate this principle exist everywhere, like friends that become enemies, regime changes and the changing relationships between nations.” After saying this, Heller asked Zhang Tie, ”Do you think that mysterious existence who created the Castle of Black Iron has not considered this simple thing?”

Zhang Tie was numb...