Closer to Revealing My True Self
Chapter 175 - 145 Liquid Gold_1

Chapter 175: Chapter 145 Liquid Gold_1

For Feng Yi and Tang Kui, who caught and bred snakes for a living, these cobras from the farms were not considered aggressive, but for the average person, just hearing the name could send them running a mile, let alone trying to pat their heads!

Furthermore, they all had their fangs intact! Their venom glands had not been removed!

If it had just been Mo Xiaoguang himself, he would have definitely taken off running at the sight of a cobra.

Tang Kui asked Feng Yi, "Brother Yi, you’ve seen wild Zhoushan cobras before, right?"

Following Mo Xiaoguang’s lead, he called him "Brother Yi," which felt more intimate. "Expert Feng" sounded too formal and created a sense of distance.

It was rare for Tang Kui to encounter someone of a similar age with whom he could talk about common interests, especially someone who was a real professional! He was very excited and talked more than usual.

Feng Yi replied, "Yeah, caught some when I was on a field survey." He had even teased them before.

Tang Kui asked, "How do these compare to the wild ones in my place?"

Feng Yi said, "These snakes are really fat."

Tang Kui laughed heartily and said, "Of course! They have plenty to eat and drink. When they’re hungry, they eat; after eating, they just find a spot to zone out and sleep! And also..."

In the middle of speaking, Tang Kui patted the back of a snake’s head again.

"The reaction times of the farmed ones can’t compare with the wild ones, and they’re not as threatening when angry. I joined a field survey team as a high school volunteer. Since I was a minor at the time, there were restrictions on where I could go, but I was lucky enough to encounter a cobra. I almost got bitten during the capture..."

Tang Kui led them out of the room, locking the door behind him, and continued to jovially recount his experiences with snakes in the wild.

Feng Yi also remembered a time when he was with a survey team in the mountains and someone had caught a Zhoushan cobra but ended up being carried to the hospital instead. He turned to Mo Xiaoguang and said:

"Zhoushan cobras are still very dangerous. Don’t imitate Tang Kui’s actions. With wild cobras, keep as much distance as you can."

Mo Xiaoguang replied, "Of course!"

No need to tell me that!

Forget the wild snakes; I’d speed off on wheels of fire even from these ’not aggressive’ cobras you guys breed here!

As a fledgling entrepreneur, Tang Kui was full of confidence: "Right now in my farm, I only breed Zhoushan cobras, but I plan to start breeding the ’Five Pace Snake’ next. The Five Pace has a good market trend."

Mo Xiaoguang didn’t understand. As someone who typically wouldn’t pay attention to snakes, he always heard people rave about cobras. Some would change nicknames, TV dramas would name characters, and designers would create logos and images; all these things would incorporate elements of the cobra. ’Five Pace Snake,’ despite its bold name, was mentioned less often and was not commonly seen in everyday life.

"I think cobras are more formidable. Why didn’t you start with something simpler when you began your venture? Like breeding Five Pace before cobras?"

Tang Kui paused for a moment, then smiled lightly and said, "The Five Pace Snake is not simple either, and it’s not easy to breed. If it refuses or is lazy to eat, you have to feed it manually."

"Oh, sounds like it has a bit of a temper," Mo Xiaoguang said, nodding as if he understood, "So which is more venomous, the Five Pace Snake or the cobra?"

Tang Kui replied, "Just based on toxicity, referring to the LD50 values, Zhoushan cobras are more venomous. But Five Pace snakes have a higher volume of venom."

"However, some snakes from the cobra family have a higher venom yield, like the king cobra. They have a large body size, high venom output, and are aggressive. If it were a king cobra, I wouldn’t dare to get so close to lift the blanket just now!"

Tang Kui couldn’t really join in on such topics, so he continued to exchange experiences with Feng Yi.

"In the wild, I think the ’Five-Paced Snake’ is more dangerous than the one in Zhoushan, at least for me. Brother Yi, have you ever encountered a ’Five-Paced Snake’ in the wild?"

Feng Yi thought back, "I’ve seen one; it was quite large, hiding in a crevice by a stream, caught by another expert on the team."

Tang Kui scratched his head, "Ah, I just feel that the ’Five-Paced Snake’ is too treacherous. It grows like that, hidden in the grass, and you simply can’t spot it. It’s the kind of snake that doesn’t flinch when startled in the grass! Even though many vipers rattle their tails, whether or not you can see it is another matter. You could be poking around in the grass with a stick for ages and see no sign of it, then take one step forward and get bitten! That’s terrifying!"

Tang Kui continued to laugh and share techniques for catching ’Five-Paced Snakes’ with Feng Yi.

Standing to the side, Mo Xiaoguang thought to himself: Heh, people like you who laugh and say "it’s very dangerous" are the real scary ones!

Tang Kui was not only talking with Feng Yi, he also noticed Mo Xiaoguang’s fear of snakes and his restlessness, and offered reassurance, "Don’t be scared; we have anti-cobra venom serum here."

Mo Xiaoguang: "... Oh."

Although it was comforting to know there was a cure if bitten, hearing this still made him feel uneasy, like he could be bitten by a snake at any moment.

"Can I take a vial of this serum? I won’t take it for free, I’ll pay! And do you have serum for other types of snakes as well? I’ll take one of each!" Mo Xiaoguang said.

They were going to go out fishing later; what if a snake escaped from its enclosure? Or what if a wild snake got in?

It would certainly be better not to need it, but having it with you gives a sense of security!

Tang Kui helplessly replied, "We have other types of anti-venom serum at my family’s large farm, not far from here. In the event of a snakebite, we can also treat it promptly. There’s a professional freezer there for storage; anti-venom serum has specific storage requirements."

The production and storage costs of anti-venom serum are not low, but for a breeding farm of Tang Kui’s scale, keeping serum is essential. They keep serum ready for all types of venomous snakes they breed.

Mo Xiaoguang, hearing about the required storage conditions, was quite disappointed, "I see."

Tang Kui: "Even if you don’t have anti-venom serum, there are other ways to handle it. Brother Yi probably knows this too, as scientific expedition teams seldom carry serum with them."

Mo Xiaoguang looked towards Feng Yi.

Feng Yi nodded, "That’s right. If someone got bitten, the team immediately used the first-aid items in the medical kit for treatment, without bringing any serum."

Mo Xiaoguang then said to Tang Kui, "Then help me put together a first-aid kit, I’ll pay for it!"

This request wasn’t bothersome as there were spare medical supplies and tools. Tang Kui didn’t refuse, "Okay, I’ll put it together for you in a bit. When you encounter a snake, if it hasn’t bitten you, just stay away. If you are accidentally bitten, perform first aid and then seek medical treatment at a hospital. If you don’t recognize the snake, take a picture of it, so the doctor knows what kind of venom it is. Anti-venom serum is specific; the serum for different families of snakes might not neutralize the toxins. It’s better for treatment to know what kind of snake bit you."

Seeing Mo Xiaoguang’s forced smile and his pale face, Tang Kui changed the topic to something that might interest Mo Xiaoguang.

"Snake venom is very dangerous, but it’s also very valuable. It’s not called ’liquid gold’ for nothing."

That piqued Mo Xiaoguang’s interest, "Is it really that expensive?"

Feng Yi was also ready to take notes.

Tang Kui led them to another building:

"It’s valuable, snake venom has always been expensive. People from my grandfather’s generation all thought that every part of a snake was a treasure, with snake venom being one of the treasures. Back then, city circles weren’t big, villages were up in the mountains far away from towns, snakes were plentiful, and there was no talk of animal protection. Some villagers would catch venomous snakes in the mountains to brew alcohol; others liked to mix snake venom with alcohol."

Mo Xiaoguang shuddered: "Snake venom mixed with alcohol... Can you drink that?"

Tang Kui: "Yeah, they’d extract the venom, pour it into the alcohol, swirl it around, and just drink it. I’ve heard that even abroad some people inject snake venom to keep themselves young!"

Mo Xiaoguang began to ponder.

Tang Kui continued: "I don’t know about the health benefits of snake venom in alcohol, and there isn’t enough scientific evidence to back it up. In fact, looking at it now, it’s quite dangerous, and I wouldn’t dare to imitate it. Snake venom is basically protein. Theoretically, if it goes directly into the stomach, it can be digested and if it doesn’t come into contact with the bloodstream, it won’t cause poisoning. Additionally, high-proof alcohol can denature and deactivate the protein, eliminating its toxicity. However, there’s also talk of protein renaturation."

Mo Xiaoguang tentatively asked: "So if the snake venom in the alcohol hasn’t completely lost its toxicity, and I happen to have a canker sore, would there be any serious reaction if I took a sip?"

Tang Kui: "No serious reaction."

Mo Xiaoguang, eager to try: "Then that’s... not too bad..."

Tang Kui: "You’d just spiral up to heaven, that’s all."

Mo Xiaoguang: "..."

Mo Xiaoguang mentally crossed out the idea of using snake venom alcohol. He had wanted to use it to show off, but better not.

Tang Kui: "Snake venom is expensive, some is used for making antivenom serum to treat bites, but it also has other impressive medicinal values such as anticoagulation, pain relief, and reducing fibrinogen, and so on.

"For instance, peptide research based on snake venom, those like peptidomimetics that simulate certain active segments of snake venom, and then the synthetic active peptides are used in anti-wrinkle products. Many well-known cosmetic companies have used them, but they may not label it as snake venom because the connotation isn’t good and can easily cause misunderstandings. They often use the chemical names directly. Actually, early development was all related to snake venom."

The three of them walked into another building. Tang Kui, with a hint of pride, said: "This is my workspace, the office area is on the left, and the operational area is on the right."

Feng Yi observed, noting that Tang Kui only took them into the office area and not the operational area, which was separated by transparent glass, allowing them to see the setup inside.

The operational area was small, but it had workbenches and machines, and one could even see the apparatus for extracting snake venom.

Feng Yi’s gaze swept over the machines placed there, then turned to the printed academic articles on the desks in the office area.

Some were purely in foreign languages.

There were also quite a few books on the shelves, related to breeding as well as biological theory.

Mo Xiaoguang asked in surprise: "You need to read all this for breeding?"

Tang Kui spread his hands: "Got to keep up with the latest research trends, those can also affect snake venom prices."

Mo Xiaoguang curiously asked: "The snakes you raise, are they expensive?"

Tang Kui laughed, "Their price is a bit lower than that of the five-paced snake’s. Actually, it was even lower before, but in recent years, there have been many teams experimenting with new drugs, so demand is high, and there aren’t many legal breeding farms, so the price has bounced back a bit, making them easy to sell."

Nowadays, the number of wild snakes has declined, the strictest conservation laws limit capturing, and it isn’t easy to get a breeding license. Most of the snake venom comes from breeding farms. In recent years, with the surge in demand stimulated by new drugs, these breeding farms have been busy.

Mo Xiaoguang: "So overall, the price of the snake venom here isn’t expensive?"

Tang Kui casually said: "Ah, it’s just a bit pricier than gold."

Mo Xiaoguang: "..."

Tang Kui: "Really not that expensive. My parents’ farm has some very expensive venomous snakes. They’re raised in collaboration with other scientific research teams. Those with higher medical values are more expensive; a gram of dry snake venom powder can cost tens of thousands."

Feng Yi looked over at the operational area, asking: "Do you extract the venom yourself?"

Tang Kui replied: "There are several employees on the farm, but unless there’s something else to do, I usually extract the venom myself. Incorrect extraction can cause a lot of damage to the snakes."

"Then you process it over there in the operational area?"

"Right, it’s just a simple process to turn it into snake venom powder, which has a longer shelf-life. What we sell is crude venom, and after purchasing, pharmaceutical factories and research teams from universities will purify it to different extents based on their needs."

Feng Yi made a mental note.

If he were to breed snakes, he wouldn’t start with many; a small-scale operation like Tang Kui’s would be sufficient. Without any breeding experience, he wondered if his instincts would be reliable.

The venom just needed to be crude; he would also need to buy a dryer. The models used in Tang Kui’s operational area should suffice.

Right, he would also need to apply for a license and find a place to build the farm.

"Are snakes easy to raise?" Feng Yi continued to take notes.

Tang Kui thought for a moment, "Actually, once you’re familiar with it and have enough experience, it’s manageable. During the breeding process, you need to pay attention to weather changes, watch out for parasitic diseases, check if they’re shedding smoothly, look out for anorexia, and you need to clean, disinfect, and even remove feces. Don’t think that because they’re ectothermic you won’t have to deal with feces, you absolutely do! And then there’s..."

Tang Kui rambled on with a lot more details.

As Feng Yi listened, the little notebook in his mind was put aside again.

He took a deep breath.

Forget it, he thought, better just to take care of himself first.

He hadn’t quite figured out how to take care of himself yet, let alone snakes!

What was holding up his façade of "expertise," Feng Yi knew all too well.

Catching snakes might be instinctive, but how to raise them probably wouldn’t come as naturally.

So, he decided not to trouble himself with those complexities.

He licked the two venom fangs inside his mouth.

Could these things make money?