Chapter 00148: Black Swan
# Black Swan
Chapter 148
Novel: Above Destiny
Chapter 148: Black Swan
*Snap!*
Another faint, almost imperceptible crack echoed in the air.
Spiritual essence scattered once more, falling into Ji Jue's trembling hands.
His palms were shaking from the strain of maintaining stability, his breathing heavy after holding his breath for too long.
This time, he had come a bit closer to success—just a bit.
He had touched it, only to crush the spiritual essence he had painstakingly crafted.
After three, four, five, six attempts, the best he had managed was a fleeting sense of control over that fragile spirit.
And then, like a candle flame in the wind, it was extinguished by his movements.
"Teacher, is this really possible?" Ji Jue couldn't help but sigh, his head spinning from the effort.
In the foundational theories of modern alchemy, the world is composed of matter and spirit.
The intertwining of ascension and ruin, the fusion of soul and matter, gave birth to the earliest sacred spirits.
This is the most ancient form of perfection, where neither precedes the other.
The essence of alchemy lies in imbuing matter with spirit.
But now, Ji Jue was attempting to extract the spirit from the matter after it had been imbued.
Never mind the deep connection and harmony between matter and spirit, or whether Ji Jue's skill level was even up to the task—this was akin to pulling a person's soul out of their body...
Wait, hold on!
The moment he realized this, Ji Jue was struck with shock, his face twitching uncontrollably.
Indeed, if one were to use disassembly techniques to dismantle the matrix, break through defenses, use alchemy to bind blessings and avoid interference, and then employ non-aggressive spiritual manipulation... theoretically, it might be possible to pull out someone's soul.
But in reality?
He swallowed dryly, his posture hunching slightly.
"Is this really possible?"
"Want to give it a try?" Professor Ye raised her hand slightly, a gleam of excitement in her eyes.
"Interested in experiencing it firsthand? It's been a while since I've done this, so I might be a bit rusty."
Ji Jue shook his head frantically without a second thought.
He was terrified that if he hesitated even a moment, Professor Ye would let out a sinister laugh and say, "I've been waiting for you to say that!" before striking mercilessly.
It wasn't that he didn't trust Professor Ye.
As an apprentice craftsman making great strides on this path, Ji Jue simply couldn't bring himself to trust the average moral character of craftsmen.
Those who could kill someone, use their ashes, and then dig a pit to bury them were already considered saints among craftsmen.
It was hard to imagine how horrifying the rest of them could be.
But then, he heard Professor Ye's regretful sigh.
"Don't worry," she said.
"I can't do it."
Though she specialized in spiritual essence, her expertise didn't lie in manipulation.
The effects of Mo Ye were limited to splitting and repelling; it couldn't extract a soul from a body while preserving its structure intact.
But that didn't mean no one could do it.
In fact, some ascension-based abilities were even more adept at manipulating souls.
The more malevolent ones could pull out a soul and devour it raw, or chop it into pieces, slice it into strips, and so on...
For masters specializing in spiritual essence, such precise surgeries were just a matter of effort, not impossibility.
For the nearly omnipotent spiritual manipulation of non-aggression, it was entirely possible.
Even for Ji Jue at his current level, it wasn't out of the question.
In fact, the possibility was so high it bordered on inevitability.
"Even if extracting someone else's soul is beyond you, what about the consciousness and spiritual essence you create yourself?" Professor Ye reminded him.
"The greatest difficulty in spiritual extraction is suppressing the instinctive resistance of the spirit. Even in a comatose state, a complete spirit will instinctively resist modification. But if the spirit actively cooperates, even at your current level, you should be able to achieve it."
Ji Jue was momentarily stunned.
If the scope was limited to the spiritual essence created by his own mechanical deification, then the value of this skill would decrease...
No, wait!
Finally, it dawned on him.
It wasn't a decrease.
After repeatedly making concessions in scope and effect, this skill was now perfectly suited to Ji Jue at his current stage!
If he could freely extract and release the spiritual essence he had imbued, it would mean that creations previously limited by material constraints could now be more easily "upgraded."
The spiritual essence of a Thunder Lever Rifle could be transferred to a more convenient vessel.
But what if he didn't transfer it? What if he kept it within his own soul?
Imagine not needing to practice or train.
Simply imbue an object with spiritual intelligence, extract it, and contain it within his own soul.
He could instantly become a sharpshooter with perfect accuracy within three kilometers, a swordsman or blade master unmatched within ten steps, a martial artist capable of defeating any opponent within arm's reach...
This was a technique that could bring about a qualitative transformation in the power of mechanical deification!
But the prerequisite was that he had to be capable of doing it...
Just thinking about it filled him with fighting spirit, his eyes shining like hundred-watt light bulbs, gleaming brightly in the workshop.
And then, he heard Professor Ye's words.
"Once you can freely extract and transfer the spiritual intelligence of your mechanical deification creations, you'll have truly begun to grasp spiritual manipulation," Professor Ye said slowly.
"After that, you can start attempting alchemical constructions purely from spiritual essence."
[?]
Ji Jue was stunned once more: ???
Meow meow meow?
Teacher, are you even listening to yourself?
Just extracting the complete spiritual essence created by mechanical deification was already an insurmountable challenge for Ji Jue.
And now, constructing alchemical creations purely from spiritual essence without a physical vessel, resulting in an independent entity...
This wasn't just a tall tale; it was beyond imagination.
"Are you serious, Teacher?"
Professor Ye didn't answer.
She simply walked ahead, deeper into the workshop, casually gesturing for him to follow.
As the corridors shifted and twisted, another massive, suffocating workshop appeared before Ji Jue.
He had been here before, but each time, he gained a new understanding.
Each time, he became more aware of the terrifying transformations filling every inch of the air and the spiritual currents flowing beneath the material world like a sea of stars...
But this time, what lay on the workbench wasn't an unfinished project or some bizarre creation.
It was a...
Pink, diamond-encrusted cat carrier?!
Ji Jue rubbed his eyes, making sure he wasn't seeing things.
He even recognized it—this was the same carrier Chen Yubo and Tong Hua had been fighting over!
Beneath the carrier, a small shape wriggled and struggled, finally squeezing its round head out of the bag's opening.
It looked at Ji Jue, opened its mouth, and suddenly let out a "Meow!"
"Ah Fu?"
Ji Jue instinctively reached out, rubbing the little head and lifting it up for a closer look.
After a thorough inspection, he confirmed—this was definitely Chen Yubo's cat! He had even fed it canned food before!
"What are you doing here?"
Ah Fu's claws extended, gripping Ji Jue's collar tightly, refusing to let go.
It meowed pitifully, tears welling up in its eyes.
"It was brought here this morning. Chen Xingzhou's younger brother has been calling Ah Chun every hour, desperate to get his cat back. It's been driving me crazy. Since you're heading back today, take it with you. It'll save him from coming here and causing a scene."
Professor Ye waved her hand dismissively, and the cat hair floating in the air instantly condensed into a ball, which she tossed back into the carrier, ensuring everything was spotless.
Then, from her usual aloof and indifferent expression, a faint smile seemed to emerge.
"By the way, didn't you want to see a purely spiritual alchemical creation?"
In that moment, Ji Jue saw it.
In his hands, the struggling blue cat suddenly froze.
In the silence, it was as if some shackle had been unlocked.
Under the light, the shadow of Ah Fu in Ji Jue's hands suddenly expanded, inflating like a balloon, spreading wildly.
Countless tendrils of shadow wriggled and extended, forming ever-shifting outlines.
Finally, as the lights went out one by one, the black shadow completely detached from Ah Fu's shadow, enveloping the entire workshop, transforming into a terrifying, wing-like silhouette that seemed to blot out the sky.
With a casual spread of its wings, it revealed a form too horrifying for the naked eye to fully comprehend.
Ji Jue stood frozen, not daring to move.
Even the cat in his hands stopped struggling, trembling uncontrollably.
No sound, no visible form.
But in the intangible air, it felt as though something had lowered its gaze, leisurely examining the tiny beings before it, leaning in for a closer look.
Just the act of being observed was enough to make Ji Jue break out in a cold sweat.
Not to mention the overwhelming spiritual essence fluctuations that felt like a tidal wave.
Something was there, right in front of him!
It bared its fangs, exhaling a breath that made his soul tremble.
Then, a crisp snap of fingers sounded from Professor Ye's direction.
The massive shadow enveloping the workshop contracted, flowing back into Professor Ye's shadow and disappearing.
Ji Jue remained standing, drenched in sweat, unable to control himself.
"Teacher, what... was that?"
"It's the first piece I created after becoming a master, around the age of twenty-seven," Professor Ye said, flicking her fingers as if playing a game with the shadowy creature.
With each flick, the shadow seemed to recoil, obediently curling back into place.
"Back then, I was driven by fame and reputation, too concerned with others' opinions. Whenever I achieved something, I couldn't wait to show it off, thinking that tangible results would make the incompetent realize the gap between us... Looking back now, it was naive and shallow. After registering it with the association, it was given a Celestial Artisan rating. Over time, this line of creations became known as the 'Omen Sequence.' Within it, its codename is [Black Swan]."
As she spoke, the Black Swan in the shadow seemed to preen, spreading its wings as if dancing, graceful and magnificent.
Like an unexpected disaster, sudden and breathtaking.
Ji Jue almost forgot to breathe.
In the silence, he suddenly heard Professor Ye's question: "Ji Jue, one day, will you be able to create something like this?"
"I don't know," Ji Jue instinctively shook his head.
The future was too distant; he couldn't see it, nor could he be certain.
But Professor Ye seemed not to hear, asking again: "One day, will you be able to create something even greater than this?"
Ji Jue fell silent, thinking for a long time before sighing in shame.
"I don't know."
After a brief pause, in that moment of silence, he suddenly felt a surge of courage—no, it was more like audacity.
Reckless, like a clown.
But he couldn't help but say it.
"I want to try."
"..."
For a moment, Professor Ye seemed lost in thought, silent for a long time.
It was as if a scene from thirty years ago had suddenly resurfaced.
When her own teacher had asked her the same question, she had responded similarly...
No, no need to romanticize it.
Unlike the reserved Ji Jue, she had been far more arrogant and unrestrained back then.
But what had her teacher thought at the time?
Over the years, Ye Xian had never found out.
But now, hearing her student's answer, she couldn't help but feel a sense of joy.
Like a refreshing breeze blowing in from afar on a long journey.
The path of embers was too rugged, too distant.
A lifetime's effort, yet the end was nowhere in sight.
It felt almost eternal.
But whenever she saw those chasing after her, she felt a sense of satisfaction and anticipation...
Had her teacher felt the same way back then?
Unfortunately, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't be the kind, encouraging elder.
And for a student to already be thinking of comparing themselves to their teacher...
Such a foolish student indeed needed a good lesson!
"With where you are now, it's still too early," Ye Xian said, pouring cold water on his enthusiasm without hesitation.
"Such grandiose dreams can wait until after you've passed your craftsman's license exam."
With that, she smiled, clasped her hands behind her back, and turned to leave.
Only her final words lingered in the air.
"But your fighting spirit is commendable..."
(End of Chapter)