Shepherding Humanity

  The medical students were now even more excited and eagerly posted:

  Studying medicine to save another world: "After studying the cellular diagrams sent to us by the boss, I've found that the molecular structure of the Phoenix’s blood cells is ​​very similar to the Lighthouse Jellyfish, which is the only biologically immortal organism found on Earth. In addition, its unique characteristic of "fiery rebirth" can be used to clean up redundant gene fragments, giving people an inferior version of "fiery rebirth". However, various auxiliary drugs are needed to change the molecular structure of the Phoenix's blood before others can take it in. Currently, we will require three grams of Purple Wind Grass, a drop of Green Vegetable Salt…"

Hands Off: "Enough!"

  I love learning: "Enough! I don’t love learning that much! It's fine as long as we can save him. Hurry up and post the potion’s formula, and keep the principles behind it to yourself!"

  Everyone said that they've had enough of the hardcore technical jargon; they were all busy people and didn’t have time to listen to the medical students rambling on.

Medical students: "…"

They wanted to cry.

Why must we medical students suffer so? Can’t we brag a little after working so hard?

When Future Skywhale heard this, he immediately said:

  "I could give you that data on the Phoenix’s blood because I've beaten it up once in the desert and have a blood sample stashed away. This young God of Flame has a very long growth period; though it’s more than two hundred years old, it’s still in its infancy, and hasn't truly become conscious yet. Right now, the Phoenix’s blood is hidden in my secret storeroom."

  He also added that, as a builder and veteran "Minecraft" player, he naturally had a hobby of collecting things.

  He had hidden the frozen Seven Little Witches in a super-secret vault, along with 99 samples each of various alchemical ingredients, and countless amazing treasures. The blood of the Phoenix was also stored there.

Studying medicine to save another world: "That's good, the problem now is how to wake you up."

  Everyone started arguing. Although they now had an attack plan, Grantham couldn’t wake up. This was the biggest problem. If he was unlucky, he might have already been killed while unconscious, and all their efforts thus far would have been useless.

  However, at this time, another renowned big-shot who was a professor of psychology at a certain university spoke up:

  "This old man finds your discussion very interesting and wants to join in. I personally think that, if this game is as realistic as you all say, you could try the method people use to "wake up from a coma" in reality,

I have seen many such cases where the patients are either in a coma or a vegetative state.

  Some of them can vaguely hear, but cannot move, so in order to wake them up, we’ll often have their family members talk to them by their bedside. We will also ask them to cooperate: as long as they have strong willpower, they’ll be able to wake themselves up through persistent self-hypnosis. The method is as follows…"

This was a method to wake up from a coma through self-suggestion.

"It’s a super big-shot this time!"

The netizens were even more excited when they saw this post. He was a particularly well-known authority in the field of psychology who’s been around a long time!

  When Grantham saw this post, he felt that it was a good method and immediately put on his VR glasses and entered the game. Within the pitch darkness, he frantically told himself to "Wake up!" "Wake up!" "Wake up!" using strong language and various mental cues.

  For a while, there was only darkness, but gradually, his senses started to come back. 

When he finally left the dark void, he saw an unfamiliar ceiling. He was in a jar of pickled vegetables, and several witches were talking nearby.

It really worked! I’ve woken up from my injury-induced coma!

This game is so realistic!

I'm alive!

  When Grantham opened his eyes and could see again, he was immensely relieved. As long as he didn’t wake up on a cutting board, he was perfectly fine with being in a jar of pickles. He was a Slime, OK?

  Ermin was speaking: "More than half a month has passed. In the end, the three Legendary Guardian Witches of Babylon couldn’t catch those assassins, and there’s been no news of the Emperor of Alchemy. No one knows whether he’s still alive…"

Grantham silently eavesdropped on the conversation.

In the short period of time he’s spent chatting on the forums, more than half a month has passed in the Magic World.

  "Oh? After being unconscious for half a month, this Slime has finally woken up?" Ermin noticed Grantham poking his head out, and had a sympathetic expression. "The poor little thing must have been knocked unconscious by the aftershocks of the battle in the sky. After all, those were Legendary Mages fighting!"

  After the era of the evil witches, the cute Slime has become a common pet, and they were also used as alchemical engines. The Emperor of Alchemy really favored them and raised a great number of Slimes, so it was no big deal when a Slime showed up on the side of the road.

After Grantham confirmed his safety, he silently logged out, and went on the Internet.

Future Skywhale: "Wow! Psychologists are awesome. Your wake-up method really worked! I actually woke up and saw this scene. Fortunately, I was rescued by a passing witch and didn't die, so what should I do next?"

Screenshots (7 total)

The faces of the four witches (4 Screenshots)

The scenery in the room (2 Screenshots)

Me in a jar (1 Screenshot)

Everyone online clicked on the screenshots. They were exquisite pictures filled with exotic scenery.

How could this game be so f*cking realistic? To think that the real-world method of awakening through self-suggestion would also work in the other world!

  The elderly psychology professor was also taken aback. "I casually said that, but it actually works? It's realistic enough to simulate that kind of detail? That’s incredible!"

"This is an amazing research topic."

He trembled in front of his computer, and hurriedly called some of his old friends.

….

In the thread, the players were still excitedly talking.

  They found it very interesting that Grantham actually woke up. This could be another big event in the game’s history.

  "The boss just put on his VR glasses and logged in for a few seconds, then came out. It was only the blink of an eye for us, but so many things happened inside the game. He successfully tested the ‘self-awakening method', and investigated his surroundings for a few hours? That’s scary!"

"He also took screenshots for us. I grow more convinced by the day that this is not a simple game, and is really another world. The difference in time flow is too frightening, and this witch named Ermin is so beautiful and aloof. She’s my new 2D waifu! Based on her appearance, I’m sure that she’s a kind-hearted witch! Believe it!"

"The above poster is too superficial! Mom told me not to trust pretty girls."

Countless people were getting more and more excited.

Each choice they made and each advice they gave would affect the life and death of the Emperor of Alchemy.

  This was like the text games that recently got popular online. In the games "Lifeline" and "Interdimensional Communication", the player’s phone would inadvertently connect to a victim who was in the middle of some crisis in another world, and each choice they made, each advice they gave, would affect the victim’s life and death, and the direction of the plot.

It was also similar to pick-your-own-adventure stories like "The Invisible Guardian" and "Detroit Transformers", where every choice you made would lead to completely different developments and different endings for the protagonist.

  There was also the difference in time flow: the players would make a plot choice, and in the next second, "Future Skywhale" would post the result of their choice, along with a bunch of screenshots. It was exactly the same!

"We’ll all stay online to help the Emperor of Alchemy!"

"😂! 😂! 😂! Mom and Dad, you can no longer scold your son for being a deadbeat! I can finally play this highly intellectual game! Although, it has turned into a visual novel. (😝)"

Many people tried to come up with an idea and they were surprisingly unified in their opinion.

  They said that the best plot choice at this time was to seek out the three Legendary Witches guarding the Babylonian capital. The wounded Grantham could ask them to escort him back to the royal palace, and after he had regained control of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, he could recover the blood of the Phoenix from his secret vault.

At this time, another certified big-shot—a well-known authority in the field of history who often appeared on TV—expressed a different opinion:

  "This old man has been watching ever since the psychology professor joined in. Your choice of asking the capital's three guardian witches for help will certainly lead you to a dead end.

  Right now, we need to think of these people inside as resourceful enemies,

  Look at all the plots to usurp the throne in our own history, if you have prepared for years to assassinate the Emperor of Alchemy, wouldn’t you have multiple backup plans ready? In case you fail, and the seriously wounded Emperor of Alchemy manages to get away?

  If I were them, I would definitely place an inside-man among the three guardian witches. On the surface, she’ll be the same as the other two, and do everything in her power to chase down the rebels and protect the seriously injured Emperor of Alchemy. But in reality, she’ll be waiting for the Emperor of Alchemy to reveal himself by asking for help…"

  As soon as this conspiracy theory came out, the screen was filled with comments such as: "F*ck!" "So amazing!" "As expected of a big-shot historian!" and "I grew up watching this guy on the History Channel!"

Future Skywhale was also dumbfounded.

"Then, I can't seek out the Three Guardian Witches of Babylon? Because I’ll die the moment I get back? But I thought they were quite loyal…

  Oh, why is my life so miserable? I’m the great Emperor of Alchemy! And yet, I can’t even return to my own palace after being assassinated, and am forced to sneak out of the Babylonian royal capital! I could hide out in my secret base, but how am I supposed to get there all by myself? There should be many pursuers after me, and many who are waiting in ambush along the way; but I’m just a heavily injured Slime!"

  After getting such great results, this gentleman has become completely accustomed to acting cute while begging for sympathy. He had no dignity at all.

Everyone started to argue.

This was indeed a desperate situation!

  A counterattack seemed impossible. After plotting for so many years, the traitors should have an absolutely fool-proof plan to kill him and wouldn’t make any errors.

  Although at the moment, he has gained reliable support from the Internet—with a renowned psychologist helping him wake up from his coma, and a leading historian helping him see through enemy traps—this was only the difficult first step.

  Then, someone else suggested: "You can only ask the four witches who saved you for help. Didn't you say that one of them has excellent potential? And that her Wave Magic, which utilizes sound waves, has the potential to become an entirely new magic school? What’s more, she is the champion of the Inter-Academy Tournament and your loyal fan. Although she’s only a Fifth Level Witch, you can teach her along the way. She should be able to avoid danger long enough to escort you to your vault…"

"Wow! So we’re playing the part of the hidden old master now?"

The audience members started cheering.

  Although they lacked the knowledge to participate themselves, they felt that just watching the big-shots strategizing was already super interesting.

"However, how are you going to make her believe that the cute Slime she picked up on a whim is actually the high and mighty Emperor of Alchemy? Aren't you worried that you’ll give her a stomachache from laughing too much? (😝)"

  "It's okay, just tell her directly! I am Elvis…. I am the Emperor of Alchemy. I'm alive, and am only on the streets due to unfortunate circumstances. I have a vault filled with treasures hidden away, but my 10 billion in assets is now frozen. You only have to give me 200 dollars, and I’ll be able to unfreeze my assets. I’ll richly reward you later if you stay close by my side and protect me until I recover from my injury. The King does not lie!"

"To sum it up in one sentence: I, the Emperor of Alchemy, want your money!"

  "I think I received a text message like that once: ‘I, Elvis, want your money!’ Isn’t this a very common scam? Are you trying to make me die from laughing? And then inherit my spare change?"

What a crazy bunch of idiots.

Xu Zhi was speechless.

On the other hand, he found these new developments quite interesting.

  Unexpectedly, renowned experts in the fields of medicine, psychology, and history were all interested in saving the Emperor of Alchemy after seeing his post. Because of the ruckus raised by the third beta test, big-shots from all walks of life have become interested in this game. They all wanted to see how realistic it could be, and whether their expertise could be applied in-game.

But Xu Zhi didn’t care about them, and just wanted to see if the Phoenix's blood could really be used.

So, he silently signed on using his previous alt account, and posted a fairly reasonable suggestion.

  Vengeful Creator: "Wasn’t the Emperor of Alchemy raising a bunch of Slimes? You can just say that you're the Emperor of Alchemy’s pet, the King of the Slimes, and ask her to help you save your master. That should be more believable."

As soon as he posted this, everyone nodded in agreement. Why didn't they think of this?