During each assimilation attempt, the natural wonder is injured. And during each attempt, the life pill takes in more power than it can handle, so it explodes and dies.
He knew this before. But when he saw nine life pills pulling on one natural wonder trying to assimilate it, he noticed that the power they were each pulling from the natural wonder had become weaker and milder.
He also noticed that the natural wonder itself was weakening and getting injured faster than normal because of the nine sources of stress.
These two phenomena reduced the stress on each life pill and increased their chances of assimilating the natural wonder as a whole. He became intrigued and hopeful when he saw this.
He thought to himself, "Maybe they have a chance. They might just have a chance."
As it turned out, they did have a chance. Five of them still exploded and died, but by that time, the remaining four life pills had overcome the greatest hurdle to assimilating the natural wonder and had reached a stage where they could assimilate the life pill on their own.
If anything, the only obstacle standing in their way of advancing now are the other life pills. They need the other life pills to give up or die so that they can assimilate more of the natural wonder for themselves.
Arthur decided to give them a helping hand, so he killed off the weakest of the life pills one by one. He did so after an interval of one hour. So in two hours, there was only one life pill remaining.
After another hour of waiting, this last life pill successfully fused with the natural wonder. Its color changed from white to yellow, and it was glowing brightly like a sunstone.
The sight made Arthur jump up in excitement, pump his fist, and say, "Eureka."
He was truly excited. It wasn't just because Roar will be able to advance now, but because he has learned a method to increase the chances of succeeding in the fourth stage.
He was in a good mood as he took out the upgraded life pill and took it down to meet Roar. Roar wanted to eat it as soon as he saw it, but Arthur didn't let him.
Arthur first tied him down to prevent him from moving. Then he cut open his chest. so that he could access the life seed beside his heart.
The life seed that he saw looked like another heart. It was red and had a lot of vessels connecting it to every organ and muscle in Roar's body. It was even beating as if it was really a heart.
This similarity between the life seed and heart doesn't end there. He knows that the life seed can keep the body alive for a long while without the help of the heart.
Despite being very similar and close to each other, he could tell them apart because one of them was full of life energy and mana compared to the other.
Also, the life seed doesn't have large empty chambers, valves, and compartments. Its tissues are similar to that of the liver and lungs. So he knew where to place the upgraded life pill.
He put the glowing life pill close to the life seed. Then he removed his hand and cast healing spells on Roar to heal the cut on his chest. He also gave Roar a lot of serum.
He would have loved to see how the life pill will react to the life seed, but he couldn't because he didn't have a divine sense, and he had to close Roar's chest so he couldn't use his eyes to see the reaction.
Fortunately, he has read a lot of books about the organ-type of foundation establishment, so he knew what to expect. The only difference between the organ-typefoundation establishment and the life pill art is that the life pill is highly compatible, so there won't be a rejection reaction.
He couldn't see that the life pill began producing glowing tendrils that spread out from it to its surroundings. This reaction wasn't because it wanted to assimilate Roar. It was because it wanted to attach itself to its parent body.
The life pill has sensed that it is home. So it is doing the exact same thing that the life seed does when it is created in the body. It marks its territory and becomes one with it.
The main difference between what a life seed does when someone transcends the first mortal coil and creates their life seed and what the life pill is doing is that there is already a life seed in the host.
Fortunately, there is no rejection reaction. So the new life pill was accepted, and the life seed even shared its vessels and channels with the life pill. This caused the new elemental power from the life pill to spread rapidly across Roar's body.
The process was mildly painful for Roar. It was mostly irritating because there was a new element coursing through his veins. If the new type of mana hadn't already been subdued and fused with his life force by the life pill, then it is possible that he would explode.
Even though he didn't have to do any of the work, the process still took hours. It took 19 hours before Roar officially advanced to the third mortal coil.
Arthur sighed in relief after making sure everything was alright. Then he released Roar.
Roar jumped up excited. He raised his snout into the air and howled for everyone to hear.
Arthur just shook his head and said, "You can go and have your fun."
Roar licked his face briefly before jumping out of the compound to run around and enjoy his newfound power.
Arthur didn't think the new power was special, but to a beast like Arthur, advancing to the third mortal coil with the path of energy refining is life-changing. It is so life changing that loose cultivators will be jealous of him.