The elixirs severely impacted the conditions of the expert pilots.


    After all 11 vials of elixirs had been used up, the expert pilots all went through numerous examinations and recovery processes in order to reduce the negative consequences of ingesting the elixirs.


    None of them came away from this experience lightly. A few had been harder hit than others, so much so that it took half an hour for them to regain their wits.


    Even now, Zimro Belson was still groaning as he rubbed his head in pain.


    "Those elixirs... how can they bring so much terror? The experience of death in that illusion felt realer than the ones I''ve suffered within the MSTS."


    "I think it is mainly because nothing we did in those illusions mattered in the slightest." Venerable Disc spoke in a resentful tone. "When the Swordmaidens fell in front me one by one, the First Sword and I could do nothing to prevent the red star from burning them into a crisp. My mech and sword threatened to melt whenever I tried toe close."


    Commander Case Ingvar grimaced as she recalled her own nightmare. "At least a star is lifeless. What 1 had to fight against was a corrupted version of the Trampier of Stars. The alien hade back to take revenge against our expeditionary fleet. Nothing could stop him. Our ace mechs crumbled in from of his collisions and the remainder of our forces shattered as soon as he began to shake the fabric of space. The entire star system seemed to tear apart due to how extensively the phase lord destabilized the entire area. No amount of Commandeering and empowering on my parr made any difference. I had no solutions."


    As the expert pilots continued to swap their stories with each other, they discovered that each of them experienced different nightmares that shook them to their cores.


    Although each of them experienced so much emotional distress that their resonance strengths had spiked to new heights, none of them had been able toe away without bearing additional mental scars.


    "Nyaaaaaa..."


    This was why the Golden Cat saw the need to make an appearance. The cat showed up unannounced and even managed to rm the security systems of the Tarrasque for a moment!


    Fortunately, Jovy Armalon acted quickly enough. He disabled the rms and ensured the security personnel did not step in to subdue the cat that wasn''t supposed lo be present aboard the heavy cruiser.


    The presence of the Golden Cat clearly benefited the expert pilots. Each of them had be so shaken by their extraordinary nightmares that they had entered a rare moment of vulnerability.


    The gentle warmth and love radiating from Goldie took off the edge of those raw and bleeding emotions. The cute spiritual cat infused an element of joy and positivity in the restingpartment, encouraging the Larkinson and Glory Seeker expert pilots to rx and take their mind off their harrowing experiences.


    Ves and Jovy observed the expert pilots as they socialized and slowly picked themselves up after they had exited the hallucinations induced by the elixirs.


    "You are surprising us all yet again, Ves." The RA Senior Mech Designer spoke. "ording to the files I have ess to, the majority of expert pilots aren''t in a state to talk or share their feelings with each other after they have ingested an elixir. Your pilots are supposed to be in a considerably more brittle state, but they are already starting to get up and about. It is as if their recovery process has been fast-forwarded by several days."


    That did not particrly sound surprising lo Ves.


    "Our expert pilots have been tested plenty of times." He smirked. "Not only have they fought their fair share of challenging battles, they have also experienced plenty of defeats within our priority Mental Simtion Training System. Aside from that, 1 think our other advantages are helping them out as well. Theirpanion spirits appear to have escaped much of the negative impact, which provides every pilot with an oasis of peace in their minds. Finally, the Golden Cat excels under these circumstances. Her presence infuses the pilots with resilience in adversity. Her warmth and light dispels much of the darkness brought by their nightmares."


    There were plenty of RA researchers that were eagerly working to record new data and form new conclusions.


    The Larkinson n had unexpectedly introduced various new variables that could help the mechers figure out targeted methods that could reduce the negative consequences of the general cultivation elixirs in the future!


    As Ves continued to stare through the one-way window, he grew reassured that none of the expert pilots appeared to have suffered any uneptable seque.


    "I never expected your elixirs to work in this fashion." He said.


    "Oh? What did yon expect?"


    "well, I thought they would work much more like modern medicine or stimnts." Ves spoke. "You swallow them, they rake effect and the recipient receives a straightforward boost of strength at the cost of stability."


    "That does not sound much different from what actually urred." jovy pointed out. "The A7-KEI form may have taken a number of additional steps, but what is important is that it has produced the desired result in all 11 cases. That is the purpose for these elixirs. Their value is unimaginable. Have you guessed why that is the case?"


    Many doubts still swirled through Ves'' minds, but as he continued to go over the clues, he found it difficult to resist the most likely conclusion.


    The reason why he struggled to ept it was because it not only blew up his expectations, but also sounded far too extravagant!


    His expression grewplex. "I still can''t believe you mechers resorted to such a measure. I kind of understand why the Mace of Retaliation imed that the initial value ascribed to a single vial of this elixir can reach ashighaszoo million MTA merits. A part of me thinks that yon guys have actually undersold the vials to me. They were never supposed to circte outside of the Association, am I correct?"


    Jovy smiled back at his friend. "You are still talking as if you are an outsider. You are no mere associate anymore, Ves. You are an honorary member of the Red Association, which automatically means that you have be a nearly full-fledged member of the Survivalist Faction. There is nothing stopping you from gaining ess to exclusive benefits like these."


    "Is the A7-KE1 General Purpose Pilot Cultivation Elixir a product of the Survivalist Faction or the Transhumanist Faction?"


    "Both. We worked on this together, though I cannot tell you which side contributed more. What is Important is that the A7-KE1 form in particr is an exclusive variation of the Survivalist Faction. We are the only ones who can synthesize this elixir and distribute it through private trades and high-level exchanges. In fact, out of every Survivalist, it is only fitting that the Mace of Retaliation was the one that offered the elixirs to you. He was the only leader present that possessed the authorization to extend them beyond a select group of priority candidates."


    The clues provided by Jovy cemented the conclusion in Ves'' mind.


    From the moment the mechers opened the locked container and unveiled all ft vials of glowing elixirs, Ves already developed a suspicion of what he managed to gaze upon.


    There was no longer any doubt about the reason why the A7-KEI form produced so many powerful effects on his expert pilots.


    "The general cultivation elixir... is made out of the blood of a god pilot."


    Jovy solemnly nodded. "You have a good eye, Ves. Few if any people who first came into contact with an elixir have been able to draw this conclusion."


    "I have more exposure to this kind of stuff. Besides, as the developer of the Carmine System, I have developed a greater fascination and understanding of the properties of blood. Even though rhe amount of blood drawn from an exceptional source hardly takes up any volume inside those vials, the extraordinary power diffused throughout the liquid is massive. Il is surprising how well those containers are able lo block my perception of their might. It was only when they became exposed that 1 and many other sensitive entities noticed how much power is contained in those elixirs."


    The Tarrasque must have turned into a spiritual beacon that quietly lit up the entire Bortele System!


    This was how power a miniscule fraction of blood taken from one of humanity''s most powerful warriors retained after being separated from its source!


    "The current series of elixirs are not properly made ording to the forms of ancient times." jovy began to exin to Ves. "By their very nature, elixirs are meant to produce targeted effects bybining the properties of different reagents. The issue we have is that the Age of Dawn has only begun a rtively short time ago. Exotic radiation has already managed to produce an ample quantity of weaker reagents, but none of them are powerful enough to produce elixirs that can take effect on expert pilots."


    Ves understood the underlying logic of this situation. "So you resorted to another source of extraordinary power. Rather than wait for years for more powerful reagents to emerge, you cheated by drawing the blood of an existing god pilot."


    "Exactly. The power of our first generation cultivation elixirs predominantlye from the god pilot blood that we have processed. The remaining reagents that make up the mixture are mostly added to regte and control this powerful ingredient. I do not need to tell you that ingesting blood in its rawest form is lethal to any lesser organism. Profound expertise is still required to tame this powerful substance to the point where it can generate predictable and stable oues."


    Only an enormous organization like the Red Association was able to do this. The T Institute could never develop a product as sophisticated as these first generation elixirs!


    "From what you''ve told me, the blood donor for this batch of elixirs ought to be the Fist of Defiance, right?"


    Jovy smiled. "That is correct. The entire A7-KE1 form is based around this key ingredient. Each vial contains 0.001 milliliter of the Fist of Defiance''s lifeblood. The other factions have developed their own forms that are precisely adjusted to regte the blood of other god pilots."


    That exined why the mechers look so many steps to guard and secure the 500 vials of elixirs. It was no wonder that Ves could not justke one out and study the contents in his own researchb!


    Ves suddenly narrowed his eyes. "Wait, do you guys intend to keep using all of your god pilots as blood dispensers?"


    "Of course not. Who do you think we are? This is only a stopgap solution. Our current circumstances demand that we elerate the progression of as many high-ranking mech pilots as possible. Our god pilots are in agreement about this and have graciously donated unknown quantities of their most potent life fluids for this purpose. I cannot tell you whether the drawing of blood is harmful to them or not. 1 also camlot tell you the exact quantities they are willing to provide for this purpose, what I can tell you is that once we are able to produce higher quality reagents, we should be able to develop new forms that are able to produceparable effects without relying on such an overpowering ingredient."


    That might take a few years at the very least. In the meantime, forms such as A7-KE1 were the only ones avable for the time being.


    Ves no longer regretted the decision to forgo an insane amount of MTA merits in exchange for 500 vials of general cultivation elixirs.


    Given that each of them contained a tiny essence of a True God, he managed to obtain a bargain as far as he was concerned!


    Each use of a general cultivation elixir amounted to absorbing a fraction of the power of the Fist of Defiance!