Closer to Revealing My True Self
Chapter 714 - 457 Snake Oil?_1

Chapter 714: Chapter 457 Snake Oil?_1

Although he knew he was trusted, Geng still found his own words a bit odd in this particular context.

After discussing the preparations for the Butterfly Plan, Feng Yu didn’t leave immediately; he still had another person in charge at the Ancestral Factory to meet—Ji Fan, the supervisor of the Core Laboratory, Ji.

In the core projects, the preparation of a certain special medication still required Feng Yi’s assistance.

Despite resolving one drug research problem after another and conquering one hurdle after another, those with high technical difficulties could not be entirely deciphered in a short period of time.

After assisting with the experimental drug, Ji asked Feng Yi to wait for a moment.

"There’s a little something else I hope you could help with, of course, depending on your personal willingness," he said.

"What is it?" Feng Yi asked.

"Recently, the ’Survivor’ show you invested in mentioned one of our secondary line products—a frostbite ointment..."

Geng Yang, listening on the side, also laughed.

After the first episode was broadcast, the frostbite ointment sold very well and became extremely popular!

If it were just any product, even if it sold well, Geng Yang wouldn’t pay much attention. The sales figures were indeed impressive, but it all depended on the comparison. Placed in front of the many core products of the Ancestral Factory, they still weren’t significant.

This time, because Feng Yi participated in the show, Geng Yang paid special attention and knew why the frostbite ointment was so popular.

Ji looked at Feng Yi: "The thing I am referring to is just this frostbite ointment. The recipe for the ointment is the old version; it’s the same as it was when it was first developed, and it hasn’t changed in many years."

It’s the very definition of unchanging for decades.

The only change was in the packaging.

Old formula, new packaging.

No matter how it changes, the inside remains the same.

When this frostbite ointment was initially developed, the public claim was: by extracting certain effective components from snake oil and using scientific research methods to create various molecules with similar structures and functions, continual testing and screening allowed us to identify the desired, most effective target compound.

When Feng Yi saw science bloggers explaining these online: ...

Nonsense imitations of snake oil!

What this so-called "snake oil" actually was, Feng Yi knew very well!

"So are you planning to research a new version? Do I need to provide liposuction?" Feng Yi, the raw material supplier, asked.

Researching myself!

And quite willing to do so!

In addition to gaining a better understanding of oneself, it also concerned his own wallet!

If not for the limitations of his knowledge, he would have liked to conduct the research himself.

"How much do you need to extract? I don’t think I have much fat right now," Feng Yi said.

"No, no, no, it’s not as exaggerated as that. We only need to take a little bit for analysis," Ji said.

"But if you are going to conduct research on upgrading the formula, a little bit of material won’t be enough, right?" Feng Yi asked.

"It’s not about upgrading the formula. First, we need to examine the active components. If the active components vary, we’ll develop different series. But if the active components are the same, there’s no need for further changes."

Even if the old formula has been the same for decades, it would still be effective for decades, even centuries, to come!

With medicine, as long as it’s effective, that’s enough. There are plenty of medicines that have been using the same formula for hundreds of years.

Feng Yi glanced at the laboratory side: "You already have a lot of projects on your hands. Although most of them do not require your direct intervention, can you really manage all this?"

Ji smiled: "I still need to control the core aspects, and then distribute them among the different project teams. Of course, we prioritize. Just arrange everything appropriately."

Feng Yi sighed: "Such professional dedication!"

Ji shook his head: "It’s just a deep love that comes from within."

During the conversation, Ji quickly prepared the tissue extraction tools.

"The fat we usually refer to is white fat. In ordinary people, the number of fat cells basically does not change after adulthood. That is, the total number will maintain a roughly balanced state. They expand or shrink only based on the fat volume stored within the cells," Ji explained.

Ji looked at Feng Yi:

"But you are different. The proliferation and differentiation potential of stem cells in you is not the same as in ordinary people; there’s no comparison," he said.

Different species, different rules for cellular repair and renewal.

"Using the previous generation as a reference, your body’s stem cells will have periodic active phases. You could understand it as, they will repair your body thoroughly during specific periods," Ji paused, then added thoughtfully, "It should be during your periodic molting."

The "previous generation" he referred to was his grandmother.

Periodic regression, that is, the next time he sheds his skin, he would be restored once again.

All of this was known to Feng Yi.

The frequency and intensity of the repairs and refreshes were non-human.

Seeing that Feng Yi did not show any surprise, and knowing that Feng Yi was aware of this, Ji did not elaborate further on the topic.

"This is just a reference to the previous generation’s situation. In your case, I’ll make a note first. After your next molting, come back and we’ll talk about your impressions. With your healing ability, a small amount extracted won’t be noticeable, and it would be hard to detect whether the number of fat cells has increased or decreased, but you should have a sense of it. Perhaps we don’t even need to wait for the specific period, some kind of extraordinary stem cells already within you will have differentiated and replenished."

Feng Yi pondered: "So you’re saying, even if I have more liposuction done now, the missing fat cells will be quickly replenished."

Ji: "Yes."

Feng Yi: "That sounds quite impressive."

However, Feng Yi was reminded of something.

"Haven’t you used those extraordinary, active special stem cells for any other projects? For instance, using tissues derived from stem cells for regenerative therapies – I’ve read about it in the literature," he said.

With such high refresh efficiency, there could be many applications.

Yet, looking at the project map of the Ancestral Factory, Feng Yi did not recall seeing anything related to this.

Ji’s smile faded into a more serious expression, "We would also like to research in this area, but it’s not allowed. These are the rules of the founding team. Of course, if you insist, I can try to start a project!"

The founding team, that is to say, my dear grandmothers didn’t approve of it at the time.

Since it was a decision made by my dear grandmothers, Feng Yi wasn’t going to change it easily at this stage.

My dear grandmother is smarter and more far-sighted than him.

For areas he didn’t understand, it was better to follow the decisions of his elders.

"First do well what’s in front of you. There are many challenges ahead that you haven’t overcome yet," Feng Yi said.

"Alright then."

Ji wasn’t exactly disappointed — there were too many projects in her hands and a lot of challenges to tackle. She would hammer out the current difficulties first anyway, knowing that as long as Feng Yi was there, they needn’t worry about lacking new and interesting projects.

So, Ji expressed her agreement with Feng Yi’s decision:

"We do need to be cautious. Some boxes, once opened, can never be closed again."

Her words seemed to have an underlying meaning.

Feng Yi looked over.

Ji: "I didn’t mean anything else, I was only talking about this area. I don’t understand other areas well and won’t comment too much."

She was definitely not implying the Butterfly Project.

But Feng Yi knew, it was also a reminder.

He had indeed planned to go to the site and closely observe the Butterfly Project’s live exercises.

However, speaking of the research restrictions at the Ancestral Factory, Feng Yi was curious, "Does Wu have the same restrictions over there?"

As a personal doctor, Wu would find it more convenient to conduct some special research.

At this question, Ji and Geng’s expressions changed slightly in a strange way.

After a moment of silence, perhaps considering her words, Ji finally said:

"Wu, as long as he does his job well, doesn’t have too many other requirements."

Feng Yi fell silent as well.

If he hadn’t misunderstood, this was actually a technical dismissal from the director of the core laboratory of the Ancestral Factory... Not optimistic.

Wu had previously mentioned their competitive relationships and had brought this up.

Wu was very aware of his limitations.

He knew a lot but wasn’t very precise.

He could serve as a personal doctor, but couldn’t be the director of the Ancestral Factory’s core laboratory.

During casual conversation, Ji led Feng Yi to a room in the laboratory.

This time, they didn’t take a lot of material but still needed samples from two places: the abdomen and the shoulder-neck area.

Feng Yi took off his shirt.

"I’ve been traveling around a lot lately and feel like I’ve lost a lot of weight," he said.

Geng, standing by, said nothing.

Where Feng Yi stood was a body weight sensor, and Geng looked at the numbers displayed on the instrument.

It was slightly higher than the last time he was measured.

How much exactly had he lost to feel "a lot thinner"?

But Geng’s expression remained unchanged.

Not knowing what else to say, he could only remark, "Good observation."

Ji: "Can you use... that form?"

Feng Yi: "Using that form would make the sampling much more difficult. Let’s do the sampling and analysis this way first."

Since Feng Yi had made up his mind, Ji focused on the current task of material sampling.

For Feng Yi, this process was neither painful nor itchy, and not much treatment was needed after the quick healing of the sampling wounds.

Geng chatted casually with Feng Yi:

"How did it feel encountering the cold wave while you were up north this time?"

Feng Yi answered, "It was okay; most of the time I was indoors with heating. When going outside, although I don’t like that kind of environment and it did slightly affect my movements, I had worn warm clothing. I had taken a walk outside when it was below forty degrees and even removed my windproof mask; it was bearable."

Geng listened calmly.

"Feels bearable."

Indeed, when the species are different, their cold tolerance truly is incomparable.

After the sampling was complete, Feng Yi glanced at the sample tubes on the side — barely a bit had been taken. Could they really analyze anything from so little material?

He then walked over to a mirror for a look.

Maybe he could try harder to gain more body fat?

The energy consumption was too high, and although he ate a lot, it was hard to accumulate.

Moreover, because he often traveled, it wasn’t possible to maintain a high food intake constantly.

Just like this time, staying at the monitoring station with the "Survivor" show crew for many days and then staying outside for a considerable time, he was in a state of low intake and low energy consumption, which wasn’t good for gaining fat.

With the New Year approaching, the only thing that needed attention was the matter of the Butterfly Project’s quotas; he hadn’t taken on any other tasks.

Not gaining weight over the New Year would be hard to justify.