The two great magicians looked over.
Archmage Carlisle frowned deeply. Wanting to intervene but hindered by the fact that it was Garrettâs own project, he found it difficult to speak out. Mage Morton, on the other hand, beyond shock and emotion, was filled with deep shame:
"Thereâs no need for thisâhow can we possiblyâ"
His voice trembled, his red hair that was once standing straight now drooped almost completely, hanging down. Garrett earnestly cut him off:
"Your Excellency Archmage. The relationship between the Curse Magic Departmentâs medical branch and our Thunder Horn has always been good. Last time one of my followers was poisoned, it was Master Galen Novak who personally came to administer the cure.
âJust because an apprentice made a mistake, it shouldnât affect our relationship. Besides, sharing knowledge and collaborating on research is exactly what the Magic Council has always advocated, isnât it?"
Archmage Carlisle remained silent. Hmm, they indeed owed the medical branch for the incident where Aurora played with electrolyzed saltwater and got poisoned. If not for that, he wouldnât have directly approached Mortonâs door; he wouldâve gone through Old Sam to bring the matter up with the review board and expose it!
Old Mortonâs face turned beet red, still shaking his head. Garrett thought for a moment, then smiled:
"How about thisâcould you do me a favor? Iâll write a paper on the interim research findings on penicillin mold in the next few days. Could you help me find a journal to publish it? And then, if you continue with the research, remember to cite my paper?"
That could work. Publishing papers and then conducting research based on them is a common and encouraged practice within the Magic Council. Old Mortonâs face finally lost some of its redness, patting his chest:
"Donât worry, Iâve got the publication covered!âAnd about that penicillin mold, I wonât take it for free, Iâll pay!"
He was about to transfer contribution points with his mage badge. Garrett quickly jumped back:
"No need, no need, weâve already agreed on the compensation. But, if you want more, youâll have to buy it from the trade center, and I wonât be shy about the price!"
"I wonât ask for a discount on bulk purchases either!"
Old Morton laughed.
They bid each other farewell. Old Morton stayed behind to watch his disciple pack up and leave at dawn, while Archmage Carlisle escorted Garrett back to the Mage Tower. The clop of hooves disappeared into the night, leaving the lights of Chaos Magic Academy far behind, before Archmage Carlisle finally sighed:
"Why are you so generous?"
"Not bad, huh?" Garrett shrugged. Archmage Carlisle glared at him, almost raising his hand to knock on his head if he wasnât on horseback:
"With this precedent, to collaborate with you in the future, one just needs to steal something first. If they canât steal, sending an apprentice to beat you up can also turn enemies into friends? Inviting people to collaborate on something this important so casually, do you dare to just give it away next?
âArenât you afraid that after all your hard work, theyâll get ahead of you and succeed first?"
"Hehe~~~"
Garrett laughed, lowering his head on horseback. It wasnât until Archmage Carlisle canceled the Phantom Steed, making him fall directly to the ground (though he cast Featherfall at the last moment), that he stopped laughing and looked up to explain:
"Whether theyâll get ahead of me and succeed first, I donât know. ButâIâm very sure, what Iâm preparing to do, they definitely wonât be able to!"
"You?"
"Just watch!"
Garrettâs paper, "Discovery of a New Pathogenic Bacterium and the Inhibitory Effect of Penicillin on Bacteria," was soon published. In a rush for time, he didnât secure a spot in "Arcane" or "Magic" journals but published it in "Deathâs Veil"â
After all, the first half talked about diseases, so placing it in a Necromancy school journal was no issue. And with Old Mortonâs endorsement, he didnât miss out on any paper awards...
A level 3 magician publishing a paper, a level 5 magician as the second author (this time Andrew Lynn replaced Aurora as the paperâs workhorse), and comments from a level 15 magician from the medical branch, and a level 15 Necromancer. This caliber quickly drew the attention of magicians.
Besides Old Morton, two other great magicians from the medical branch took great interest in Garrettâs paper:
"We found that this blue mold has a significant inhibitory effect on the proliferation of Staphylococcus aureus.
âCulturing it together with Staph aureus in a petri dish shows a clear zone
of inhibition; adding it to Staph aureus culture fluid results in a noticeable clarification of the fluid, with no extensive proliferation of Staph aureus in secondary cultures..."
"Our next goals are:
1. To study the principle behind penicillin moldâs inhibition of Staph aureus growth;
2. To investigate, besides Staph aureus, which other pathogens penicillin mold can inhibit;
3. To develop this substance that inhibits Staph aureus into a portable medication for personal carry. This way, even in places beyond the reach of extraordinary powers, the general public can improve their recovery chances..."
This is an interesting topic! Worth putting some effort into! If this medication is developed, even without a healer in the team, survival becomes easier!
The three great magicians, each leading their teams, unhesitatingly embarked on the path guided by Garrett. Then, they immediately crashed and burned. ÆrÄewebnoŃ”Ńl.cÏm
"The penicillin mold died!"
"It died again!"
"This batch is no good either, need to buy new ones..."
"Spell casting over! Weâre out of materials!"
"No problem, go buy! Itâs cheap anyway! Hurry up, or itâll all be sold out!"
Garrettâs penicillin mold listed in the trading window was very reasonably priced, even considered cheap. A 50ml culture medium, with the mold strain added 24 hours in advance, showing a faint blue color, guaranteed by independent magicians for strain viabilityâsold for just one gold coin.
Magicians swept up the stock, hardly blinking an eye. Later, they even gave up on culturing penicillin mold themselves, leaving it to apprentices to handle casually, relying entirely on purchases.
For level 14 and 15 great magicians, a material costing one gold coin a piece was incredibly cheap!
âOf course, Garrett wouldnât say that making cornstarch culture medium in bulk, filling 100 bottles of 50ml each, cost less than one gold coin. That was his secret...
"Keep it up! Make more! This monthâs research funding depends on you!"
But it must be said, great magicians are great magicians. Their brute-force approach indeed blazed a new trail:
A month later, Old Morton invited Garrett to his laboratory to observe a spell experiment.
"The extermination of pathogenic bacteria, first experiment, begins!"
Old Morton murmured the incantation, holding a test tube of penicillin mold in his left hand, his right hand continuously changing gestures. Garrett watched wide-eyed:
Alright, youâre still using penicillin mold as a spellcasting material, developing a new spell... just donât know how youâll control the dosage?
Penicillin intramuscular injection, 800,000 to 2,000,000 units per day, divided into 3-4 doses; intravenous drip, 2,000,000 to 20,000,000 units per day, divided into 2-4 doses. When administered by IV drip, the rate must not exceed 500,000 units per minute to avoid central nervous system toxicityâhow fast is your rate?
Old Mortonâs chanting abruptly stopped. His right hand extended, aiming at a weak, dirty, tangled-haired rabbit on the experimental table in front. A green light shot from his fingertip, hitting the rabbit squarely.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Garrett muttered in his heart. Almost immediately, the rabbit convulsed, stretched its neck and limbs, and died, died, died...
"Uh, still canât control the intensity of the healing spell..." Old Morton lowered his arm, awkwardly looking at Garrett:
"So far, using five milliliters of penicillin mold achieves the highest cure rate, about 30%, but the death rate is 70%...
With such a high death rate, we dare not try it on patients, as untreated death rates are lower!"
Garrett: "..." Too severe allergic reactions from penicillin overdose? Once you go above a super-high dose of penicillin, the probability of allergies skyrockets!
"What about the death rate within three days?"
"An additional 10% higher..."
Hmm, considering penicillin encephalopathy, cerebral hemorrhage, allergic heart failure, and a series of adverse reactions... So, itâs about controlling the dosage. If itâs not made into a medication and penicillin is used as spellcasting material, directly casting spells, itâs really hard to control the dosage!
"What if itâs made into a medication?"
Old Morton gave him a sorrowful look.
Donât ask, asking means nothing...