Genetic Engineer in a Tamer's World

The carriage rattled over stone-paved streets, carrying Kale Ardentis back toward the southern sector. Inside the dim cabin, he leaned back, reviewing his conversation with Renard.

The shadow of the Dragon Church was lengthening, and the dispatch of High Inquisitors to Stonehelm meant his window of preparation was rapidly closing. He had to secure his master status before the net tightened around the Greenroot Guild.

He returned to the Association, where stone walls offered temporary sanctuary. He stepped out, nodding to the driver, and walked straight toward the tower. The cool air of the lobby was a welcome relief from the inner palace. He took the steps to the fifth floor, entering Lazek’s grand work chamber with quiet, measured strides.

The chamber was empty, illuminated only by the faint, pulsing orange light of the Ignis Core. Kale walked over to his corner table, where the mountain of scrolls and raw materials awaited him.

He had less than six days left to complete hundreds of complex experiments. It was a workload that would drive a normal apprentice to the point of collapse, but Kale’s tamer pathways gave him a distinct advantage.

He stripped off his formal robes, draping them over a chair, and adjusted his tattered taming shirt. He tied his long green hair back to keep it out of the reagents, his fingers moving with a practised rhythm.

He decided to tackle the Pillcraft tasks first. He arranged empty glass vials on his table, setting up small, brass-rimmed portable cauldrons to begin the extraction process.

The first experiments focused on high-density biological catalysts... a process that required precise temperature control to prevent the delicate herbs from burning.

He retrieved rare dried flora, including Frost-Lotus petals and volcanic ash ferns. Under normal circumstances, combining these contrasting elements would trigger a violent, explosive reaction that would ruin the cauldron.

But Kale had the Ignis Core. He placed the warm, jelly-like orb near his cauldrons, establishing a localised mana link. As he began to channel his mana to ignite the burners, the Ignis Core acted as a thermodynamic regulator.

The slime’s membrane instantly absorbed any sudden spikes in the fire element, while a steady, purified stream of flame energy compensated for any drop.

With the variables perfectly stabilised, Kale began the cellular extraction. He crushed the Frost-Lotus petals, isolating the cooling nodes before introducing them to the boiling ash-fern solution.

The fluid hissed, turning a vibrant, glowing azure. He monitored the integration with his sharp senses, noting how the elements fused without a trace of volatility. Within three hours, he had produced twelve vials of high-grade stabilisation elixir.

He did not pause, transitioning directly to the Toolcraft tasks. These experiments required him to engrave complex, microscale mana-conductivity arrays onto raw ironwood and low-grade spirit stones.

He picked up his specialised carving knife, his grip firm as he leaned over a small block of ironwood. The grain of the wood was dense and stubborn, resisting the flow of standard mana scribing.

Kale closed his eyes for a brief second, centring his breathing, before opening them with quiet focus. He began to carve the intricate sigils, his hand moving with a disciplined precision that left no room for error.

Rather than forcing his mana into the wood, he used his understanding of cellular structures to guide the energy along the grain. The ironwood hummed softly, absorbing the lines without cracking under the stress.

He worked through the night, the pile of completed artefacts growing steadily beside his workbench.

By the time the first rays of dawn pierced the high windows, his wooden table was lined with carved spirit stones and reinforced ironwood rods, each one humming with a stable, perfectly balanced mana signature.

He stretched his stiff shoulders, his bones popping in the quiet room, but his mind remained entirely sharp.

On the third day, Kale turned his full attention to the advanced Fleshcraft experiments. These tasks required him to splice the genetic variables of different beast species to create stable, auxiliary tissue grafts. It was a delicate, dangerous process that mirrored his past life, though active mana made the biological reactions far more unpredictable.

He set up three large, transparent glass vats filled with a thick, blue preservation fluid. Into the first, he placed the muscle tissue of a Shadow-Cat, known for its flexibility and kinetic acceleration.

Into the second, he introduced the dense, iron-like bone fibres of a Stone-Boar. The goal was to fuse these contrasting traits into a single, cohesive graft without triggering a rejection cascade.

The primary bottleneck of such a synthesis was the cellular friction between predator and prey species.

The moment the genetic strands of the Shadow-Cat touched the bone fibres of the Stone-Boar, the cells began to attack one another, turning the fluid dark. A normal fleshcrafter would use expensive stabilising pills, but Kale knew artificial methods created hidden structural weaknesses.

Instead, he decided to use Neo’s unique, absolute taming affinity as a natural bridge. He called upon the taming bond, and the shadow beneath his table rippled as Neo emerged, his three heads tilting in curiosity.

Kale directed a tiny, highly refined stream of Neo’s neutral beast force into the glass vat, coating the two tissue samples in a soft, green aura.

The effect was immediate. Under the hydra’s sovereign energy, the cellular conflict ceased. The aggressive cells of the Shadow-Cat quieted down, accepting the dense bone of the Stone-Boar without resistance.

Kale quickly seized the window of stability, using his carving knife to splice the neural pathways together and anchor the fusion with micro-sized mana arrays. The fluid cleared, revealing an integrated, dual-attribute muscle graft.

Kale recorded the precise data on his parchment, his notes detailed and devoid of unnecessary academic fluff.

He continued the gruelling cycle of crafting, splicing, and refining for the next three days, sleeping only when his physical limits demanded it. He pushed his tamer pathways to their absolute thresholds, using the purified energy from the Ignis Core to restore his stamina whenever fatigue set in.

By the quiet morning of the sixth day, the corner table was no longer a chaotic mess of raw materials.

Instead, it was a perfectly organised display of scientific mastery. Dozens of high-grade stabilisation elixirs, perfectly scribed ironwood tools, and stable, multi-attribute flesh grafts sat in neat rows, each one accompanied by a detailed, flawlessly recorded research log.

The heavy steel doors of the chamber opened with a quiet hiss, and Lazek Oberon walked in, his black robes carrying the scent of rich, expensive tobacco.

The Grandmaster looked tired, his eyes carrying dark circles from his own political battles. He glanced toward Kale’s corner, expecting to see an exhausted apprentice struggling to complete the final quarter of his tasks.

Instead, Lazek’s footsteps came to a sudden halt. He stared at the neat rows of completed projects, his gaze shifting from the glowing elixirs to the pulsing, stable flesh grafts.

He walked over to the table, picking up one of the research logs and flipping through the pages in silence. His expression, usually a mask of complete boredom, slowly turned into a look of genuine, profound disbelief.

He set the log down, picked up a muscle graft, and ran his pale fingers over the spliced tissue.

He could feel the flawless cellular integration, a level of precision that even some seasoned Master Artificers struggled to achieve without expensive catalysts. He looked up, his black eyes staring deeply into Kale’s calm, green gaze.

”You did not just complete these experiments, kid...” Lazek murmured, his voice carrying a rare, quiet respect.

”You perfected them. The cellular stability of this graft is absolute... and your mana regulation during the scribing process is entirely clean. How did you stabilise the thermal spikes in the ash-fern solution without ruining the Frost-Lotus compounds?”

Kale pointed quietly toward the pulsing orange orb of the Ignis Core resting in its vat.

”I used the slime’s heat-absorbing membrane as an external thermodynamic regulator,” he explained flatly. ”By routing the excess fire mana through the taming bond, I kept the cauldron’s temperature within a two-degree variance throughout the entire extraction process. It eliminated the risk of cellular damage.”

Lazek stared at the Ignis Core, a sudden, manic grin stretching across his pale face.

He let out a low, appreciative chuckle, shaking his head in disbelief. ”A living, thermodynamic engine... utilising a neutral slime base to bypass the World Dragon’s curse. It is an elegant, beautiful solution, Kale. You have proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that your understanding of biological variables exceeds the standard limits of this Association.”

The Grandmaster walked back to his desk, sitting down with a relaxed, proud posture. ”The high council has finalised the schedule. The official Association Master Artificer exam will take place in two days. It will be a public trial, attended by the senior grandmasters and representatives from the imperial court... including Prince Renard’s observers.”

Lazek looked at his disciple, his expression turning serious. ”Once you pass this exam, your status will be solidified, granting you the political immunity you need to keep the Church’s inquisitors at bay. Prepare yourself, kid. The trial will not be easy, but I expect nothing less than absolute perfection from my only disciple.”

Kale offered a respectful half-bow, his green eyes shimmering with a quiet, determined light.