I'm even wondering if it's a trick by Asus to reveal that you've been inside the machine and disconnected the battery.
No, I've disconnected the battery several times, took out the motherboard. Nothing like what you describe happened after that.
A few troubleshooting questions:
Does IC Diamond conduct electricity perhaps?
Did some of it get on the motherboard by any chance?
Did you touch the conductive parts of the motherboard? Did you feel an electrostatic discharge?