Taking a break had been the right thing for Alex to do, as that very day, another dragon joined his ranks after stumbling into their party without caution, and another one later that very day when it attacked Pearl far away.
He spent some time studying the new dragons bodies, understanding every aspect of them, which, frankly speaking, he already did now. Still, he made sure nothing strange was present in any of the other dragons bodies.
After a few days, Alex returned to practicing with the bloodline again, revisiting the task with a fresh mind, and half a day later came up with a solution for the issue of placing concentrated blood into Pearl.
The solution had been so simple that he cursed himself for not finding it sooner. .
The entire reason the blood transfusion wouldnt work was because Pearls body couldnt handle dragon blood. But what if Pearl wasnt given dragon blood?
What if… Pearl was given his own blood, only added with the dragons bloodline element?
All he really would have to do was gather some of Pearls blood, add the Azure Dragons bloodline elements into it, and then return it back to Pearl. That way, the blood wouldnt be rejected by Pearls blood, while the bloodline elements would remain active and alive.
Any issues of the blood becoming viscous or coagulating would be a foregone thought since Alex wouldnt be manipulating Pearls blood in any way other than adding the bloodline elements directly.
He needed to test out the theory immediately, but even before that, if he was to do this, he needed to start right away.
Alex stepped away for a moment and arrived next to Pearl, surprising the beast with his sudden presence.
Spear flew out of Pearls soul space and fell into his hand, ready to fight, only to stop when he noticed that it was actually Alex who had shown up.
Brother? he called out, his stance changing back to a relaxed posture. What are you doing here?
Alex took a moment to answer. He was busy searching through his soul space for something appropriate. After some time, he found nothing suitable except the Bottomless Jade Flask to give to Pearl.
Its contents had long since been emptied, so this would work well.
I want you to put your blood into this flask whenever you can, Alex said.
Pearl stared at Alex for a moment, then at the flask, and then back at Alex. Im sorry?
Im trying to find a way to get dragon blood into your body without your body rejecting it, and one of the ways I may have found is to add the dragon blood into your blood and then put it all back into your body. I will explain it all when I have the time, but for now, just focus on collecting as much of your blood as you can.
Pearl understood maybe half of what Alex was trying to say, but all he really needed to understand was that Alex had come up with a way to help him, and now he needed something to do.
Okay, Pearl said. Should I fill it up daily?
No, once every two weeks, Alex said. And no more than half the blood in your body. Youll need the rest for yourself. Also, this might be a difficult task, but try and become as large as you can before producing the blood since a larger body will produce more blood.
Pearl frowned deeply upon hearing that suggestion. All this time, he had been careful not to let the random beasts recognize what he was. So long as he didnt change, his appearance could never be guaranteed to belong to that of a White Tiger.
However, if he were to be seen while he was transformed, that was an entirely different topic.
It wouldnt be much longer after that before the White Tigers learned of his existence.
Once every two weeks? Pearl asked again.
That or whenever you think your blood has been saturated enough with your bloodline, Alex explained. Make sure to eat those blood rejuvenating pills you have each time, and dont collect blood after a particularly bloody battle as you will need to recuperate first. And always be sure that youre not letting your guard down when youre doing so.
Pearl nodded. You dont have to worry, brother. I will take good care of myself.
Alex smiled. I might not be able to keep an eye on you forever since my focus will be on learning more about how to give you your bloodline. If things get dangerous, do not rely on me showing up.
Pearl nodded. Ive learned that lesson already, brother.
Alex raised his eyebrows, wondering what Pearl was talking about. Seeing as Pearl wasnt going to elaborate, he patted Pearl on the back and left.
Alex arrived back next to the cauldron full of blood and began testing his newfound idea.
This time, he took out a separate bowl from his soul space and poured out another beasts blood. Before he even began working on it, the two bloods rejected each other, destroying one another.
Alex had to keep the blood under control and introduce some mixture made out of various ingredients in it to keep that from happening. Intent worked fine while he was working on the blood, but he needed to be able to keep the blood away without it destroying itself.
He would have to test out if Pearls blood was compatible with Azure Dragons blood at a later time, but for now, he needed to get to work.
The process of what had to be done was simple. All he did was take away part of the blood that consisted of everything but the bloodline elements he wanted from the first blood, keeping only that and the contents of the second blood.
It took some effort and concentration to make it happen, but at this point, Alex could hardly be surprised by how much work was needed. And more importantly than that, it worked like a charm.
Alex smiled upon seeing the success and was excited to learn more. Once he had enough practice with other beasts blood, he would move on to the real thing.