[White Heart from a Dragon!]

With permission from his superior, in a deeper underground facility, Mr. Barnaby, who, despite his considerable power, now had to personally run errands, saw this object for the second time in his life.

Unlike the brief encounter last time, this extraordinary object, codenamed "Holly," is now housed in a specially designed, thick, and secure isolation chamber. Visitors can only conduct a relatively "direct" inspection through the internal monitoring equipment.

"It's not that we intentionally prevent you from getting close to observe, but this core 'pulses randomly' several times a day, and at most, it has been recorded to pulsate as many as twenty-two times in a single day. Each pulsation is extremely dangerous for any life within its vicinity."

The "receptionist" in the protective suit was so bulky that it was almost impossible to tell who was actually. Based on Barnaby's experience, the voice should belong to a middle-aged man.

"When it first arrived at this lab, a single throb caused two of our precious researchers to suffer cardiac arrest on the spot. If it weren't for the quick reaction of the on-site security and other colleagues, who forcibly performed CPR using stun guns and auxiliary media, one of them would probably have met their maker in a daze."

Through the screen, visitors can see the "core," no bigger than a palm, nestled securely on a perfectly shaped support inside the massive cabin.

This treasure, acquired at the cost of many lives, is almost entirely a dull, pale white, with a subdued luster reminiscent of dense biological tissue. It remains motionless, appearing exceptionally serene at present.

But everyone present knew that it was "alive"!

The man in the protective suit, whose true face was never seen, very considerately took the initiative to manually adjust the internal viewing angle for the guest.

With the precise lens feedback, Mr. Barnaby could clearly see that under certain angles of reflected light, the outer layer of this thing was faintly illuminated, and even extremely subtle, complex vein-like shadows, similar to the structure of a bird's lungs, were visible. Upon closer inspection, they resembled fine tree tendrils growing deep in the soil.

"Look at that, it's really scary."

You could hear a hint of amusement in the voice of the man in the protective suit.

"Through high-intensity composite scanning, we confirmed the presence of a structure here that is quite different from that of a normal person, but does resemble a heart, as well as a fluid with a density far exceeding that of normal biological blood"—of course, that scan also made this little guy jump a bit in displeasure.

"Just like its name suggests, this thing, capable of easily killing all life around it, is probably truly a heart in the literal sense."

"It makes me really curious, what kind of being could be worthy of such a brave heart?"

Could it be William Wallace from the movie?

The other person had clearly told a funny joke, but the guest's reaction was lukewarm.

"Sir, I'm here mainly for two things. First, to check on the specific experimental results. If you need any assistance, please don't hesitate to ask. Second, before I leave, please give me a copy of the preliminary experimental information and other relevant documents."

In this clandestine experimental area, internal and external communication and information transmission are restricted and monitored.

Therefore, he merely acted as a representative of the cooperating unit, requesting a meaningless paper document as a stepping stone to later meet certain "old friends".

"Another thing I need to remind you is that you must strengthen security measures recently, especially regarding the external relatives of scientists and internal staff. Many people are already eyeing this place."

He didn't give this person a friendly look either, as this person was clearly a half-colleague rather than an internal researcher, and who didn't even dare to show his face.

Didn't you notice that when he came to "check on the work," almost none of the main researchers showed up?

The relationships between various departments, and the connections between individuals and chaebols and politicians, are all intricately intertwined, like a tangled mess, not worth untangling in detail.

"If anyone not covered by the departmental cooperation agreement comes, even if they have proper documentation, you must delay them—"

The guest's voice abruptly stopped.

To be precise, at that instant, both of them turned their heads simultaneously toward the experimental area, toward the direction of the internal experimental chamber.

Realizing something was wrong, he then looked at the screen.

"Looks like it's time for some fresh air again."

His tone softened slightly, and the man in the protective suit casually picked up a pair of low-light experimental sunglasses from a box on the table; the box was full of these kinds of things.

He handed the item to the visitor in front of him, gesturing for him to put it on quickly.

Barnaby, of course, wasn't stupid, and immediately obediently did as he was told.

The moment I put this thing on, a strong sense of unease quickly welled up inside me, but just a few seconds later, "Thump!"

A tremor, seemingly emanating from the depths of the earth, suddenly resounded!

Even within this experimental area, which theoretically possesses multiple layers of sound insulation, one could still clearly "hear" that silent, thunderous roar, as if the entire chest resonated with it!

His body trembled slightly as he gritted his teeth to suppress the intense urge to "kneel" that arose spontaneously, as if from a life instinct, and the overwhelming sense of oppression as if he were facing a real throne!

Even though his legs buckled and his whole body trembled uncontrollably, Mr. Barnaby's face had already changed color by the time he managed to stand up.

One hand had unconsciously rested on the edge of the table.

Looking at the guy in front of him who seemed unaffected, he roughly understood the purpose of the heavy outfit the other person was wearing.

But none of that matters.

With a brief burst of bright light from the screen, or rather, a large area of intense light appearing inside the cabin, after a brief moment of turning their heads to avoid it, the two of them turned their gaze back to the monitor!

Amidst the brief bloom and rapidly fading brilliance, through the goggles, one could clearly see large patches of black, ink-like residue remaining in the air around the gradually dimming "heart"!

As this "pulse" ended, the smoke-like and ink-like "blackness" surged back into that small, palm-sized object, just like a whale sucking in water!

Ignoring the researchers who rushed out of the hidden door, skillfully operating the instruments and trying to intercept some of the black, liquid substance, Mr. Barnaby simply grabbed the shoulder of the person who was receiving him next to him.

"----What is that?"

The voice coming from beneath the protective suit, though slightly distorted, was still relatively cheerful. "Based on our analysis of certain special items we obtained from that suspected divine realm, this black smoke," the final test results identified it as—"ether."

"You know that's not what I'm asking."

His arm showed signs of trembling, but the guest still stared intently at him, his cold gaze as if trying to pry out the true face beneath the thick helmet.

"Alright, alright," the other side finally had no choice but to raise their hands in a French military salute to indicate surrender. "According to our scientists and initial user research, the full name of this thing is approximately—"

[The Heart of the White Dragon, the Humble King Voodoo]