Chapter 00147: The Primacy of Spirit (Thanks to Scary for the Alliance Leader)
# The Primacy of Spirit (Thanks to Scary for the Alliance Leader)
Chapter 147
Novel: Above Destiny
Chapter 147: The Primacy of Spirit (Thanks to Scary for the Alliance Leader)
The Primacy of Spirit.
In the realm of blessings, it stands in opposition to the Primacy of Matter, known as the Pillar of the Wasteland.
Just by the names, one can tell that the two are utterly incompatible, never appearing together in the same chosen one.
The Primacy of Matter emphasizes that "matter is the fundamental existence of the world, and all spirit must submit to matter itself."
The essence of the Primacy of Spirit, however, is to reverse these positions, placing spirit before the world.
It denies that spirit is dependent on matter, instead emphasizing the priority of spirit.
While the Primacy of Matter sounds quite scientific, the Primacy of Spirit seems downright absurd at first glance.
But considering this is Ascension... it's actually quite normal.
After all, the core philosophy of the Ascension path is the transcendence of the soul and the liberation of the will, focusing entirely on the subjective with no regard for the objective.
Views and theories like "the world exists because of me," "all things are prepared for me," "a fleeting dream, the butterfly becomes me," and so on are commonplace among the chosen ones of the Ascension path.
The idea of elevating the subjective above the objective is already considered basic.
The real skill lies in elevating one's own subjective above others'.
Statements like "Today, I will defy the heavens" or "My drill will pierce the heavens" are also common among the more eccentric practitioners.
Though it may sound biased, within the Ascension path, which governs the soul, and the Mind Core path, which governs the mind, being a bit mentally unhinged is actually quite normal.
Under these circumstances, the Primacy of Spirit, a passive-type blessing, seems relatively normal and straightforward compared to other blessings.
Aside from the inherent traits of the Ascension path—such as increasing the upper limit of spiritual quality and enhancing recovery speed—it also grants Ji Jue gradually improving mental resistance and endurance.
Its primary effect is that, under certain conditions, it allows for the limited disregard of material defects and adverse conditions, compensating with spiritual quality and willpower to achieve results.
In simple terms, when conditions are lacking, sheer determination can make up for it.
For example, a fire escape survivor, a mother lifting a car to save her child, a climber about to fall off a cliff, an athlete breaking records while being chased by a bear, or someone fleeing a scam compound by traversing mountains and forests in four hours...
Though it lacks the synergy of other blessings and has limited initial effects, if left alone, it might only allow a phone to last from the subway ride home on 1% battery...
But it's a noble, growable passive!
There's so much potential to explore.
Even in its basic state, it significantly extends the duration of Mechanical Descent, doubling it.
Ji Jue can't even imagine what surprises await once it undergoes qualitative changes and the blessing ascends in rank.
Whether it's Divine Craftsmanship or the Primacy of Spirit, these late-game blessings are a boon for grinders like Ji Jue.
He isn't afraid of long experience bars—the longer they are, the more excited he gets, and the more motivated he becomes to grind.
It's pure joy...
First, set a small goal—use the Primacy of Spirit to save a few thousand bucks on electricity!
Who wouldn't love a phone that lasts a week on a single charge?
Truly, his fighting spirit is soaring!
"Well, since the Primacy of Spirit blessing came so smoothly, it's time to start the next phase of training."
In the workshop, after once again checking Ji Jue's current state, Professor Ye calmly said, "—on the integration and synergy between blessings."
"Have you thought about the development direction of Divine Craftsmanship?"
Her sudden question caught Ji Jue off guard.
For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.
After all, it had been such a short time.
He had barely managed to adapt to the boost from Divine Craftsmanship, gradually exploring the effects and boundaries of this blessing.
At this point, he could only say he had a basic grasp of it.
Moreover, the speed of his advancement had been so absurd that he hadn't even had time to consider it.
As the saying goes, there's no strongest weapon, only the strongest wielder.
Even with weapons, different users develop various styles and tendencies—like hammer wielders favoring heavy, powerful strikes, or knife users preferring light, agile movements, or those who use long swords, focusing on precision and reach...
The same goes for blessings.
Sometimes, the same blessing can produce entirely different effects in the hands of different people.
Take, for example, the standard setup of Bloodthirst, Prolonged Battle, and Shatter Armor, plus Preemptive Strike.
Even with the same configuration, Old Tang could easily take down ten opponents without breaking a sweat.
His proficiency was already maxed out, and after several qualitative changes, his blessing might have even ascended in rank...
Even with the same setup, a character at zero constellations and one at full constellations are worlds apart.
In limited time, trying to master everything only leads to mediocrity.
Those who focus on a single path and persist will always outshine the jack-of-all-trades.
In some sects, there are even secret rituals and methods that allow practitioners to sacrifice part of a blessing's effects to significantly enhance another part.
Of course, with a blessing like Divine Craftsmanship, which has such a wide range of applications, there's no need to resort to such methods to overextend oneself.
But now, Ji Jue has reached a point where he must choose a specialization.
Wild growth only leads to weeds, not towering trees.
Besides, it's not about giving up entirely—just making some choices at this stage.
But because the application range is so vast, when Professor Ye suddenly asked, Ji Jue found himself at a loss.
Specializing in strength could allow him to literally tear through steel plates.
Focusing on speed would let him maximize his operations in an instant.
And if he pushed precision to the limit, he might one day use ultra-fine molecular tweezers to extract excess protons from mercury and handcraft gold... though that would be a bit too eccentric.
And that's just the basic choices.
If we consider the objects of operation, the possibilities are endless—smelting, extraction, elevation, purification, and even material distinctions like metal, wood, compounds, blood, or organs...
"Spiritual quality?"
Suddenly, Ji Jue had an epiphany from the professor's hint, his eyes lighting up.
"Are you saying that my next training focus should be on spiritual quality manipulation?"
Professor Ye nodded slightly, a faint smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
Teaching a student with good compatibility and keen insight is always a smooth and satisfying experience.
There's no need for lengthy lectures—just a few key points, and they grasp it immediately.
Right now, Ji Jue's greatest strength lies in spiritual quality manipulation!
Whether it's the boost from Non-Aggression, the purification techniques of Fluid Alchemy, the practice of Dissolution, or the effects of the Primacy of Spirit, Ji Jue has already left others far behind in this field.
Not just apprentices—even ordinary craftsmen can't match his current level.
With such favorable conditions, not striving to excel and build an advantage in this area would be a waste!
"But even if I focus on spiritual quality manipulation, I don't know how to proceed."
Ji Jue sighed.
"I can't just sit in front of a furnace all day, can I?"
"No need."
Professor Ye finally smiled, sending a shiver down Ji Jue's spine.
"I've already prepared everything for you."
She waved her hand, and a hole opened in the workshop's ceiling.
With the excited cry of "Here we go, little buddy!" from the Ghost Work Ball, a box tumbled down.
It landed right at Ji Jue's feet.
Ji Jue picked it up and opened it, instantly stunned.
It was about the size of a palm, round, with mediocre craftsmanship, passable materials, and a haphazard assembly...
Ji Jue held it up, examining it from all angles, feeling more and more puzzled.
This seemed, perhaps, to be a very ordinary mechanical pocket watch you'd find on the street.
"Professor, do you need a watch?"
Ji Jue asked, confused.
"If you need one, just tell me. My mom's family used to make these. If you don't care about brands, I can handcraft one for you. If it loses even a second within a year, I'll twist my own head off."
"It's not for me."
Professor Ye calmly took the pocket watch from his hand and handed it back to him.
"It's for you."
The box still had the receipt—25.8 yuan, delivered yesterday by a yellow delivery app, with the tag still attached.
Ji Jue examined it closely, confirming that this thing was utterly useless except for telling time.
He was completely baffled.
It might have been something some auntie made in her spare time to earn some extra cash.
What was he supposed to do with it?
"Use your ability on it," Professor Ye commanded bluntly.
Without hesitation, Ji Jue reached out—Mechanical Descent.
The spiritual reaction was faint, like a flickering candle.
This mass-produced item, devoid of any care or history, could only generate a dull spiritual reaction at best.
For anything more lively, Ji Jue would have to infuse more spiritual quality to nurture it.
"Spiritual infusion complete," Ji Jue reported.
"Good," Professor Ye said.
"Now, take it out."
"Huh?"
Ji Jue froze, instinctively reaching out to cancel the ability, but quickly realized that Professor Ye wasn't asking him to cancel it—she wanted him to take it out?
Take what out?
"Take what out?" Ji Jue's hand hovered in the air.
"The 'it' you just created."
Professor Ye said, "Take it out from this pocket watch. Use Divine Craftsmanship to manipulate the spiritual quality and extract it completely from the watch, without damaging its consciousness in the slightest."
Ji Jue was stunned.
As if struck by lightning...
He stood there, holding the pocket watch, frozen for a long time before looking up at Professor Ye.
She looked back at him, her expression calm, showing no impatience or urgency—just waiting.
Finally, Ji Jue mustered the courage to reach out...
A slight error in the spiritual quality's containment.
*Snap!*
The fragile spiritual reaction instantly dissipated, turning into scattered spiritual quality that drifted into Ji Jue's hands, now meaningless.
The dull consciousness within the pocket watch had vanished completely.
And Ji Jue hadn't even started.
He hadn't even touched it!
Just a tiny leak of his own spiritual quality had completely destroyed the watch's spiritual reaction.
There was no helping it.
The watch's material limitations meant that even if Ji Jue poured all his effort into creating a stable spiritual reaction, its inherent weakness compared to other objects made it too fragile.
Even if Ji Jue could get it to cooperate, it would be like a giant trying to pick up a tiny wrench, disassembling a precision instrument to extract its core without damaging it.
Even a breath could destroy it.
He had heard that the world's smallest mechanical watch had a movement less than 0.2 centimeters in size, with 97 components.
When disassembling it, craftsmen had to use specialized tools and hold their breath, as even a moment's distraction could lead to irreversible mistakes...
It sounded impressive, so he'd take it at face value.
Ji Jue had once dreamed of getting his hands on one to try, but now, something even more challenging was before him.
He was at a loss.
"This is your next training goal, Ji Jue."
Professor Ye watched his troubled expression with appreciation, then calmly said, "Good luck."
(End of Chapter)