Chapter 00037: T5
# T5
Chapter 37
Novel: Above Destiny
Chapter 37: T5
The moment left no time for Ji Jue to react, and there was no shock, confusion, or even vigilance as he had expected.
It felt as if they were casually discussing the pleasant weather of the day or what was for breakfast...
Carefree and utterly indifferent.
Ji Jue nearly tumbled off the sofa in fright.
He instinctively picked up a can of soda and handed it over with both hands, saying, "Young hero, have some tea and elaborate, please."
Ye Chun glanced at his enthusiastic demeanor with a hint of confusion and pointed to the bookshelf behind him.
"You should check the left cabinet, the middle row. There should be an encyclopedia from the Universal Knowledge series."
That book was as big as a dictionary.
He noticed that it was published in the year 388 of the Cataclysm Era, older than Ji Jue himself.
Following Ye Chun’s words, he found the entry about the Celestial Rail.
A term that left him utterly baffled.
—[T5].
This term referred to five large corporate organizations that had existed before the Cataclysm Era, during the Eternal Dynasty period of Zhongtu.
It was said that these entities were active in history even before the reign of the Supreme Virtue, playing an indispensable role within the Eternal Dynasty.
Despite lacking a formal position in the court, they still earned the emperor's authorization and respect.
However, when disaster struck, and the lands were torn apart, the arrival of the Cataclysm Epoch led to the collapse of the Eternal Dynasty, turning Zhongtu from a land of heaven into a muddy pit of endless warfare.
Yet these five companies continued to exist, contributing significantly to the rebuilding of the world and order during the Cataclysm Epoch.
Whether it was the Federation in the north or the Empire in the south, even the various islands scattered across Zhongtu and the Endless Sea recognized their transcendent status and above-secular powers.
At the same time, to prevent the recurrence of disasters and to curb the trend of dimensional rifts, various parties came together to sign the T5 Agreement, restricting the power, operations, production, and activity scopes of these five companies.
With the gathering of vast resources and the backing of historical expertise and countless uninterrupted secret research, these companies established absolute dominance within their respective fields.
Their domains included healthcare, communication, production, finance, and transportation…
Among them, the companies involved in production and construction split into two massive giants after the collapse, monopolizing most of the industrial markets of the Federation and the Empire: [Universe Heavy Industries] and [Great Creation]!
Damn Universe Heavy Industries!
Ji Jue felt his whole being shatter.
Just as the people of the Empire could not be unaware of Great Creation, the folks in the Federation must have dealt with Universe Heavy Industries as well.
Many people lived their entire lives within its grasp—birth, aging, illness, and death all occurred under its vast operations.
From the moment Ji Jue started learning about car repairs, he had encountered the four characters of Universe Heavy Industries countless times.
Parts were produced by companies under its umbrella; the oil was refined by them; gloves, safety helmets, uniforms, and even the local coastal automobile factory in Yacheng was funded and controlled by them.
His mother’s auto repair shop barely counted as being in the same realm.
As for the unbounded united communications group in the communication sector, they directly held eighty percent of the global communication market share.
In a world filled with earthquakes and disasters, dialing a phone in Yacheng to reach someone in Zhongcheng was impossible without going through them.
Ji Jue was still stuck on his monthly plan of eighteen units.
The healthcare sector held the Hope Hospital… he seemed to recall it from somewhere, but could not quite place it.
Perhaps it was too high-end for someone like him, a mere commoner, to reach.
Or maybe they had already infiltrated the world through their holdings, unnoticed by ordinary eyes.
In the finance sector was the Perpetual Bank, which provided no detailed description besides its name, and with Ji Jue’s current finances, it seemed distant and unattainable.
Lastly, in the transportation sector was the undeniable overlord—the Celestial Rail Transportation Group!
The book stated that this group managed everything from airships to trains and cruise ships, and had built a traffic network that could reconnect the modern world.
Ji Jue felt his blood boil with excitement and a sense of pride.
Such an impressive company must be incredibly powerful, superb, and certainly had high salaries, right?
But regrettably, Ji Jue couldn’t find any trace of their existence, not even a detailed introduction.
Besides mentioning their operational scope and names, it ended with a single sentence.
—[Due to mismanagement, it has declared bankruptcy].
Bankrupt?!
Ji Jue nearly stared a hole through the page: Bankrupt? Are you serious?
Though he had sincerely hoped this at one time, how could the other four companies be so mighty while this one was so disappointing? A company that sounded as if it could reach the heavens and delve into the earth… just ceased to exist?
Glancing at the bankruptcy date, he couldn't help but go wild again: 198 years into the Cataclysm Era? They’d been gone for over two hundred years! What the hell did that mean for him?!
Hadn’t he just become a regular employee last month?
Not having a big tree to take shelter under was one thing, but at this rate, he might end up being the legal representative right from day one?!
With a loud snap, Ji Jue closed the book without hesitation, shoving it back into the cabinet and carefully shutting the door.
Who cares about that lousy Celestial Rail company! Goodbye!
After all, he hadn’t signed a contract, and the company was already defunct.
Even his own watch couldn’t connect to its system.
Celestial Rail might once have been formidable, but it had been bankrupt for over two hundred years; it was unlikely that any leadership would come back as a ghost looking for him to work overtime, right?
Determined, he put Celestial Rail out of his mind.
Not knowing, not recognizing, not understanding; this watch was found and he thought it was abandoned!
After the unexpected shock, the lingering jitters faded, and Ji Jue spent the afternoon completely absorbed in studying alchemy, losing track of time.
Until the familiar sound of breaking came once more from the furnace.
The 51st failure.
Reason: Material property disorder.
Ji Jue held his tongs, examining the battered copper scraps that endured an entire afternoon of torment, feeling the uncontrollable essence spreading within, analyzing the cause of failure yet again.
Suddenly, he noticed a crack appearing on the cooled copper piece, followed by another, then a third until numerous cracks appeared… Ultimately, right under Ji Jue's eyes, the piece shattered and collapsed into a pile of hot copper dust.
"Oh, congratulations!"
Ye Chun leaned over, clapping her hands as she saw the scraps completely scrap out.
"The first step to clearing the garbage heap has been completed!"
Essence overload.
After Ji Jue's afternoon of effort and engraving, the already wasted fragments could endure no more processing and engraving, surpassing their limits and collapsing from within.
The simpler the material properties, the more fragile they were, and the limits of what they could withstand were lower; the responses after self-destruction were also more negligible.
If it were some dangerous substance, infusing it with a massive amount of essence and Supreme Virtue essence, it could very well explode in the furnace, possibly turning the entire workshop to rubble, leaving behind a gaping hole.
Exploding furnaces were eternally the nightmare of alchemists.
This was Professor Ye's educational plan—if it can't explode, then keep pushing it to the brink of explosion.
After all, the warehouse was stuffed with worthless scraps and leftovers without value.
Might as well put the residual heat to work, letting Ji Jue practice his skills.
Even a dog, with its alchemical skills, could transform a warehouse full of scraps into something that self-destructed from overload.
How much more could a chosen one accomplish?
At this moment, having finally completed the first step of a long journey, Ji Jue should have been rejoicing.
Yet he found himself unexpectedly lost in thought.
Staring blankly at the copper dust under his feet, he couldn’t help but notice the essence rising and rapidly dissipating among the heated copper remnants.
Those accumulated traces from dozens of processes and engravings were quickly evaporating.
But why did he feel… so hungry?
Hunger, hunger, hunger, hunger, hunger!
Like a starving ghost who hadn’t eaten a grain of rice for days, an indescribable thirst emerged from Ji Jue's soul and consciousness, rising to overwhelm him, nearly turning him into a savage dog.
Instinctively, he reached out as if to grab the rapidly dissipating essence, wanting to shove it into his mouth.
Realizing this, he couldn't help but smile wryly.
Trying to capture the intangible essence with mere hands, to digest the remnants mixed with countless processes using his mouth and stomach was simply absurd.
In the next moment, he froze in his spot.
Because his hand seemed to have really grasped something… not only the essence dissipating in the air but even the remnants of essence within the copper dust seemed to be drawn in, controlled, pulled into his hand by an invisible force.
On his right hand, strands of silver light resembling circuit pathways began to glow slightly, so familiar—every time he extracted essence using the watch, he would witness this.
But now, with just a thought, the intricate essence pathways emerged from his hand, as if his hand had transformed into a piece of alchemical equipment.
Drawing in and extracting, and then, as he clenched his fingers, that emblem in his soul representing his abilities soared, absorbing all the essence, devouring and digesting it.
Dizziness struck suddenly!
Ji Jue convulsed slightly as, in barely a moment, his perception unveiled a vivid experience of fifty-one engravings and processing!
He felt transformed into copper, enduring the burning and forging of flames, sensing the operation of essence.
At the same time, he felt as though he had become the essence itself, leaving pathways and imprints, suffering repeated failures… and before all that, even earlier, he felt as if he had become a part of a colossal entity.
Before the fragments had shattered, countless essence circuits had operated within, emerging from the furnace’s flames, from a blurred human figure’s hands.
It felt as if he was creating, crafting all things!
Runes rose and fell from the fire and molten copper, intricate circuits threaded through everything, and at last, at the core, the essence of the Supreme Virtue collided and fused together.
A magnificent creation far beyond Ji Jue’s imagination appeared within the furnace, under the control of that figure; the unruly properties conformed like a loyal dog, and the changeable essence flowed like water, achieving a brand-new transformation through exquisite crafting.
At last, the flames surged from both sides, and from the quaking furnace, a massive engine, towering above two people, slowly ascended, glimmering brilliantly; the essence of the Supreme Virtue flowed through golden copper light, so solemn!
Yet what awaited was a gaze tinged with disappointment.
"Too much elevation, not enough purification."
Professor Ye averted her gaze.
"Another piece of scrap."
With a snap of her fingers, the grand engine she had just completed instantly collapsed into countless fragments.
What remained was merely a loud echo resonating within Ji Jue's soul.
Boom!
Everything went dark before Ji Jue, causing him to step back.
But in the moment he regained his wits, he had already grabbed the tongs and tossed another piece into the furnace, rushing against time, not even waiting for the material to heat up and change, he pressed down onto the operation table once more.
While that experience of becoming Professor Ye and the original fragment was still vivid in his mind, essence surged forth!
He had found the feeling!
No longer the awkwardness from before, no longer the timidness.
Ji Jue’s consciousness and perception flowed seamlessly with the essence running through the fragments, as if he had become one with it, moving forward freely, showing no concern amidst heavy distractions.
Rough yet unrestrained, like flowing cursive script, everything he conceived in his chest was executed flawlessly!
In less than a few seconds, a process he had cautiously taken more than several minutes to complete previously had concluded, bringing him an unparalleled exhilaration.
He picked up the tongs and pulled the remnants out of the furnace, staring at his sole success after an afternoon of failures—the Supreme Virtue Totem!
An ethereal flame rose upward, eternally undying.
It signified the beginning of the twelve Supreme Virtues, the foundation of truth, transcendence, and insight, the wellspring of all thought and soul in the world.
—[Transformation]!
After breaking free from an interference-free simulation environment, Ji Jue had crossed over barriers that would take other apprentices countless failures and experiences to overcome, completing his first genuine engraving of the Supreme Virtue…
He raised his hand, wiping away the nosebleed caused by over-exertion of essence, unable to suppress the smile of exhilaration.
This was truly his first step!
(The chapter ends)