Manipulating the Slime of the Ancients

The slime comes in many colors and consistencies. It is found at the bottoms of rivers, aqueducts, pipe systems - pretty much anywhere the previous inhabitants dwelled where water has been present consistently between then and now. Slime isn't the technology of course, the technology is, collectively, "Slime based sciences," the ability to separate matter within the slime and create medicines, fertilizers, etc. from it.

Utility

Certain parts of the slime can be misused. If a patch of unfiltered, untreated slime were consumed, it could just as easily poison as cure. Once filtered and separated, certain parts of the medicinal properties can be manipulated and used as a psychoactive drug. Fortunately, Gentlings are extremely creative anyway and don't really have a need for casual drug use.

Manufacturing

Different types of slime need to be handled differently, although the methods are similar. Certain tools are needed for separation and filtering, plus those to create final mixtures of applications. The skill of creating these tools is fairly new, but in high demand in the more scientific locations of the Gentling empire.

Access & Availability

At this point it is still pretty available. A good amount of it hasn't even been discovered yet. It will run out, and unless Gentlings discover a way to synthesize its various parts, that will be that. To naturally create more slime would require a recreation of the previous civilization and thousands of years.

Complexity

Gentlings are still a developing species. The slime itself is extremely complex, they have only scratched the surface of its potential. The technology used to separate the slime is actually pretty simplistic by our standards, but for the Gentlings it is as complex as they can handle at this point. Separating the layers, testing them, and adding them to other pre-existing natural mixtures is fairly routine, but studying the science behind the compound is a lifelong pursuit.

Discovery

Gentlings knew the slime was there, it's the green stuff at the base of all water reservoirs. However, its properties were not looked into until one of the builders cut his leg and fell into the water, getting stuck in the slime. After his leg healed at 3x the usual rate - and healed better - they pulled some slime up to the surface to investigate it. Within days plants were sprouting from the slime sample. From there, they began to study which parts aided in healing, which in plant growth, and which did neither.