Urahara noticed Hasumi Ren's strange behavior and slowly trailed off, turning his head to look at him.
"What is it, Hasumi Ren?"
Hasumi Ren suppressed his shock, glanced at Urahara, and then pointed at the spring with a look of slight surprise.
"It's nothing. I just thought the spring water seemed a bit unusual..."
Hasumi Ren's gaze was fixed on the staggering number of spiritual power fragments within the spring.
He had just witnessed a fragment naturally precipitate and take form within the water.
Then, Hasumi Ren sensed a faint, almost imperceptible barrier circulating around the spring.
He realized it was a miniature Spirit-Gathering Barrier, slowly collecting the wandering Reishi from the surroundings and funneling them into the pool.
'This guy Urahara actually made something like this?'
Hasumi Ren suppressed his astonishment, maintaining an expression of moderate surprise.
"This pool looks quite extraordinary."
He tried to make his voice sound merely curious.
"3rd Seat Urahara, is this also part of the experiment?"
Urahara Kisuke walked to the edge of the spring and crouched down, rippling the surface of the water.
"Good eye. This is just a little gadget I made by imitating a senior's technique I saw long ago, though my understanding is shallow and the effects are limited."
He scooped up some water, letting the warm stream flow through his fingers.
"That senior's hot spring is said to be able to bring back the dead and regrow flesh on bones, containing spiritual power that helps Soul Reapers break their limits."
"As for mine... it's alright for healing superficial wounds or replenishing Spiritual Pressure. You could call it a degraded version."
"But this was just a whim of mine, adding this simplified spring here. It wasn't officially part of this research project."
Urahara stood up and pointed at the chickens splashing in the spring and a few fat pigs that had come over to drink.
"Under the influence of this spring, these fellows not only grow faster and have better physiques, but even their meat quality has improved significantly. They're an improved breed."
Hasumi Ren observed the animals closely.
Indeed, their coats were glossy, their eyes were bright, and their bodies were a size larger than ordinary livestock.
More importantly, they naturally emitted faint ripples of Spiritual Pressure, which was extremely rare among common animals.
"The phase-specific progress of the project is a massive success."
Urahara picked up a clipboard from the workbench.
"The yield of the three main staple crops has increased by forty to sixty percent, and two types of vegetables by thirty-five percent. The growth cycle for livestock and poultry has been shortened by fifty percent. The Reishi content in the crops is stable and within safe consumption levels."
He paused, his eyes flickering.
"With such great results, I was wondering... could our partnership go a step further?"
"What do you mean?"
"I want to be involved in the subsequent commercial operations."
Urahara spoke bluntly.
"As I mentioned before, I'd like to use technology as capital for shares and enjoy the dividends. After all, the core technology behind these results is in my hands. It would be quite a loss if I only took the initial research fees."
Hasumi Ren raised an eyebrow.
'This guy Urahara certainly never makes a losing deal.'
"And I can make these results even better."
Urahara pointed smilingly at the spring.
"For instance, with this spring, if I can raise its effectiveness another notch, the quality of the crops and livestock might become even higher."
He walked over to a nearby feeding trough and took a few small, pale purple crystals from his pocket.
The crystals were only the size of rice grains, emitting an eerie glimmer in the dim light.
Urahara scattered the crystals into the feed and stirred them a few times.
The pigs that had been leisurely drinking by the spring suddenly became agitated, scrambling to the trough to devour the feed mixed with the crystals.
"What is this?"
Hasumi Ren watched the restless animals with curiosity.
"A strange little gadget to promote breeding."
Urahara clapped his hands, his tone light.
"After breeding improvements, we naturally need to check the stability of the offspring's traits. This thing significantly boosts the animals' reproductive drive and success rate. It's the perfect time to test the effects."
No sooner had he spoken than the pigs finished the feed and began to grow restless.
They sniffed each other, emitting low grunts as their eyes glazed with a red tint.
Soon, the boars began circling the sows, and the scene quickly spiraled out of control.
Hasumi Ren: "..."
"3rd Seat Urahara."
Hasumi Ren looked away, expressionless.
"Is this the kind of thing you usually research in the Maggot's Nest?"
"Scientific research requires a broad range of interests."
Urahara showed no shame, even pulling out a notebook to record observation data.
"See, the results are immediate. If used on a farm, the population expansion rate would easily triple."
Hasumi Ren took a deep breath and decided to skip the topic.
His gaze fell back onto the spring. He walked over and absorbed the fragments.
[SYSTEM: Obtained Tiny Spiritual Power Fragment x 655, Spiritual Power Experience +655]
'The quality is low, but the quantity is impressive.'
"This pool is quite good."
Urahara's hand stopped writing.
"Oh? You're interested in this too?"
"Of course."
Hasumi Ren walked to the spring and crouched, pretending to carefully observe the water quality.
"The effects of this spring are invaluable, whether for aiding cultivation, healing, or cultivating special medicinal herbs."
"Using it in a place like this is a waste of its potential."
Hasumi Ren looked up at Urahara.
"I'm willing to invest another sum specifically for this spring project, provided you can bring its effects up to my satisfaction."
Urahara closed his notebook and rubbed his chin.
"Well... that's a bit difficult."
He wore a troubled expression.
"After all, I stole this technique, and my understanding is very superficial. If I were to research it deeply and apply it on a large scale, I'm afraid it might offend the original creator."
"Would that senior really care about this?"
"Who knows?"
Urahara shrugged.
"Some of those old timers have eccentric tempers. If they showed up one day and accused me of stealing their skills for profit, I'd be in trouble. I can't afford to provoke them."
Hasumi Ren fell silent for a moment.
"But aren't you doing exactly that right now?"
"Not at all. I told you, this is my private research and has nothing to do with your commission."
"Tch."
Hasumi Ren clicked his tongue.
"Then what if it's for small-scale private use? Not publicized, but kept as a special resource for our internal supply."
"You do your research, I'll use it, and the funding won't be tied to this specific item. What do you think?"
Urahara stared at Hasumi Ren for a few seconds before suddenly laughing.
"Hasumi Ren, the way you talk makes it sound like I, Urahara Kisuke, am the type of person who only sees money."
"Aren't you?"
"Of course not," Urahara said seriously. "I conduct research to advance Soul Society's technological development. Money isn't important."
He paused, then changed his tone.
"However, if I could enjoy a certain percentage of dividends in our future cooperation, this technology might be used in the subsequent research process under my personal name..."
Hasumi Ren understood the subtext and looked into Urahara Kisuke's exceptionally shrewd eyes.
After a long while, Hasumi Ren slowly nodded.
"Fine."
The smile on Urahara's face widened.
"Pleasure doing business with you."
The two of them averted their gazes in tacit understanding, as if the conversation had never happened.
Urahara walked back to the workbench and began organizing the scattered data.
Hasumi Ren paced the cave, staring at the spring. In that short time, a few more fragments had formed.
If he could truly scale up this spring and improve its quality, the speed of his Spiritual Power leveling might experience a qualitative leap.
Before long, Urahara placed the organized documents into a folder and handed it to Hasumi Ren.
"These are the full reports on the production increase project. You can take them back and look them over."
Hasumi Ren took the folder.
"Alright. I'll take my leave then."
"See you... Oh, and," Urahara Kisuke pointed to the pool, "remember to keep it a secret."
"Naturally."
Hasumi Ren nodded and turned to leave.
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