Hello guys. I just want to let you know that this story is not abandoned. I have been very busy with life and unable to update it. Fortunately, I have more time now and will continue updating the story, though not daily.
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The purpose of finding these two people was very simple. Zed himself was a Saiseiya, so he was naturally interested in the Saiseiya skills of the Hex Food World, even though Zed almost never used the techniques of a Saiseiya to fight anymore.
While his Saiseiya skills were not weak, they were incomparable to the combat tricks of Don Slime or the Knocking skills of Jirō. Because of this, Zed no longer relied on those methods for battle. Now, his Saiseiya techniques were used only to cultivate food, regenerate ingredients, and treat his own injuries.
Despite not using them in combat, Zed remained fascinated by various Saiseiya techniques and drugs. He planned to consult with Dina of the Saiseiya of Hex Food World. As for Rin and Mirajane, he planned to ask Noshu to help teach them how to survive in the Gourmet World.
Zed was essentially a "cheater" due to his unique circumstances and could not be used as a standard reference. Asking Noshu for help was the best choice; after all, Noshu was a candidate to become a lord of the Gourmet World and naturally had his own team.
The two were very welcoming when Zed approached them. Zed's status in the Hex Food World was very high now, and the Colorful Fish he had brought had already made them the first beneficiaries. They were the new Hex Food Beast Knights of the Hex Food World—comprised of a Saiseiya, a Food Hunter, and a chef—and the next exploration mission would likely be handed to them.
As the Hex Food Beast Knights, they were worshipped by the people, so they naturally had to take on this responsibility. Knowing how dangerous it was to walk in the Gourmet World, the arrival of the Colorful Fish was a massive boon. Using the Colorful Fish, they could bring enough benefits to the Hex Food World to thrive. There was no reason for them not to welcome Zed.
"That's it. I hope to exchange some Saiseiya skills with Mr. Dina, and I also want to ask Mr. Noshu to teach my two partners survival and combat skills for the Gourmet World," Zed explained.
"No problem, leave it to us. You are the benefactors of our world. I will teach them everything I know," Noshu agreed directly.
"The skills of Saiseiya are also no problem. In fact, I wanted to talk with Mr. Zed before!" Dina said with a smile. Dina had come here through a relationship with Teppei. While others might not know who Teppei was, as a Saiseiya, Dina knew him very well.
Teppei was one of the strongest Saiseiyas in the human world. Dina had heard from the previous generation of Hex Food Beast Knights that there were two legendary Saiseiyas in the human world: one was Mohyan Shaishai, a national treasure of the Gourmet world, and the other was Teppei, who was just as strong.
Since Zed was Teppei's student, Dina had been eager to talk to him. However, everyone was so happy at the banquet the night before that Dina didn't want to bring up business. He had planned to visit Zed in a few days, but he didn't expect Zed to come to him first.
In this way, everyone began their tasks. Mirajane and Rin learned combat and survival skills, Nakiri Mana and Arato Hisako practiced cooking, and Zed worked with Dina on Saiseiya skills.
During this time, Zed showed Dina the Strangler Thorns he had cultivated. Even though Zed tried to improve them whenever he was free, the plant's growth speed was far behind his own. In fact, even Tatsu's improvement speed was faster than the thorns, so Zed had not used them in a long time.
"It is clear Mr. Zed has put much effort into these Strangler Thorns. The adjustments are good, and the technique is exquisite," Dina remarked. "If I did it, it would look like this, but there is another way to make them more powerful. However, that requires extremely Impact Knocking skills, which I haven't fully mastered yet."
"Impact Knocking?" Zed was surprised. He realized that Impact Knocking was his specialty.
"Yes. This is a skill the Hex Food World found in the ruins of the Nitro tribe. Because of their long lives, Nitro have time for deep research, including Saiseiya. But the ruins are dangerous. Our ancestors barely came back alive and died soon after from injuries. Since then, few Saiseiyas who went there returned. Those who did found nothing."
Dina continued, "I plan to take the Colorful Fish there later to learn more. The location is on the map. If Mr. Zed is interested, you can look first."
Dina explained the technique: it was developed by the Nitro and used Impact pressure points to maintain a creature's life during genetic transformation. Usually, organisms die from the side effects of gene changes. To prevent this, one must use powerful Knocking to force the cells into a dormant state so they do not collapse.
According to Jirō's ranking, one would need to master Advanced Knocking to do this. In this world, only the three strongest men, Acacia, and the Blue Nitro were thought to have such skills. However, Zed had also mastered Advanced Knocking. While many techniques were too draining on his body to use in a fight, this specific technique was perfect for his current needs.
After Dina taught the trick, Zed mastered it in just half a day. Dina was stunned. This speed was possible because of Food Honor (Shokugi), the cell unification method, and Zed's prior knowledge of Advanced Knocking.
"Dina, I plan to test this trick on the Strangler Thorns," Zed said.
"I have many genes suitable for your thorns. You can try to integrate them," Dina replied. When Saiseiyas do research, they often act like "mad scientists" due to their thirst for knowledge.
Zed began changing the genes of the Strangler Thorns. This was not easy; even with the technique, the genes themselves had to be strong enough to survive. Zed, Dina, and an older Saiseiya named Shōgo worked together. Though Shōgo was not as famous as Teppei, his skills were very high.
"I feel like their behavior is a bit weird," Noshu said to Blanche a few days later.
"They remind me of the people from the 12th Division, especially Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi!" Rukia complained. She had seen "scientific madmen" like this in the Soul Society who wanted to put everyone on a research table.
Zed and the others ignored the comments. They were in a critical period. Although they failed many times, each failure made the genes more stable. They were close to success and refused to rest.
A week later, in Dina's lab, huge vines shot into the sky. They were black with a strange purple light. The vines were covered in huge eyes that moved to watch everything.
"Mr. Zed, what are those?" the Daruma Hermit asked.
"This is a new life form we researched based on the Strangler Thorns," Zed explained. These vines could grow wildly as long as they had nutrients. The eyes were from the genes of a Multi-Eyed Tree, giving the plant perception similar to a Gourmet Demon snake.
The most surprising part was the hardness. Zed, whose combat power was around level 1,000 or 2,000, found the vines could withstand 70% of his attack power. This meant the plant could act as a defensive shield against large Capture Level 1,000 creatures. It could also attack by turning its thorns into rotating drills, a trick Zed learned from the Sea of Thorns. It was essentially a tamed, thousand-level beast.
"You created such a thing in less than a month!" the Daruma Hermit nearly fainted.
"Zed is the powerful one," Shōgo said. "He mastered the Nitro gene trick. Maybe one day these can grow to compete with the Four Beasts."
Zed fell silent. Everyone knew the Four Beasts. They were created by the Blue Nitro to capture humans as food for GOD. The Four Beasts were much stronger than they seemed; they could absorb damage and grow. Even though Toriko and the other Four Heavenly Kings defeated them using a specific Appetite technique, the Four Beasts had once survived encounters with the Eight Kings. Zed wondered if the Four Beasts had been created using the same genetic methods he was using now.