Chapter 404: A Transcendent Item? [Transcendent Knowledge]?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 404: A Transcendent Item? [Transcendent Knowledge]?
Previously, because I was in front of Qiu Ruxin, I hadn't looked at it too closely. Mostly, I just hadn't considered that there might be something wrong with it.
After accepting it, I had immediately placed it in my storage equipment because I was preoccupied with the runes.
In fact, my hands hadn't even touched the pendant the entire time; I had been holding it by the string, afraid that my fingerprints or some other filth might smudge it.
But now, as I went to take it out and examine it in my palm, I made actual contact with it—and only then did I feel its abnormality!
This sensation of contact... it was almost identical to the Ninglan's Heart, that Transcendent Item I had encountered back in Ninglan New City!
The moment I sensed this anomaly, my Spirit Vision instinctively locked onto the seemingly unremarkable pendant. In the next heartbeat, a staggering torrent of information surged toward me like a tsunami, crashing into my mind with violent intensity.
My reaction was instantaneous. I flung the pendant away, recoiling and squeezing my eyes shut as my body instinctively rejected the intake of such overwhelming data.
"What is this?" I shook my head frantically, trying to clear my consciousness. The impact of that information had been a massive shock to my system.
Even now, my vision was swimming.
This was an automatic stress-response sensory block triggered by both my physical sight and my Spirit Vision. After a moment of adjustment, my normal vision returned to focus, but when my Spirit Vision looked at the pendant lying askew on the table, it was covered by a layer of "mosaic" so thick it looked physical.
"A mosaic?"
I rubbed my eyes in disbelief. I hadn't expected the pendant to provoke such a reaction from my Spirit Vision. The last time I had received this kind of treatment was from Teacher Ji Niang's fragment of [Transcendent Knowledge]. Back then, after my reckless attempt, I had managed to fully master my Foreseeing Spirit Sight, which allowed me to clear the mosaic. Now, it was happening again?
Could this be another piece of [Transcendent Knowledge]?
But it was clearly a Transcendent Item!
The moment I touched it, the balance of "cost" and "effect" unique to Transcendent Items had manifested in my cognition, very similar to that Transcendent Item that manipulated luck.
However, I wasn't clear on the specific cost or effect of this particular item. The only thing I knew was that the information it contained was no less than that of [Transcendent Knowledge].
So... was it possible that this was a piece of [Transcendent Knowledge]?
As the thought flashed through my mind, I felt a sense of absurdity!
Weren't they supposed to be incredibly rare?
Let’s look at the count: I had awakened one as a talent—the Academy Dean's Great Weakening Spell. The Academy Dean had also given me the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art, which was another. The bakery manager had one too, though I hadn't managed to get it; it seemed to be a "script prop." Teacher Ji Niang had one as well, the one she and I were currently researching.
And now...
I swallowed hard.
Beyond the shock, I felt a sense of numbness. Wasn't this a bit too many?
Then again, considering there were large numbers of Scholar Witches researching [Transcendent Knowledge] at that laboratory base, it was clear just how many pieces the Witch Academy must possess!
I slowly returned to my seat and stared at the emerald-green pendant. A flash of greed flickered in my eyes for a split second before vanishing, replaced by a sense of weary indifference.
That fleeting greed was a basic human instinct. The indifference that followed was the result of my helplessness in the face of such wealth, and a profound awe for things that far exceeded my understanding.
I hadn't even fully figured out the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art—a perfected Great Spellbook—so what was I supposed to do with this?
Teacher Ji Niang's piece of [Transcendent Knowledge] had left me in a wretched state in this world with just a single rune ritual. The mere thought of it made me shiver.
Besides, this was all just speculation. What lay before me was undoubtedly a Transcendent Item.
However, I recalled the rumors I’d heard about [Transcendent Knowledge]. Some existed as spells, while others were born as Transcendent Items, with the item serving as the carrier for the knowledge.
So... had I stumbled upon a piece of [Transcendent Knowledge] that was born as a Transcendent Item, or was this a common phenomenon?
I picked up the pendant again, turning it over in my hands, but I instinctively avoided focusing my gaze directly on it.
I had two options. One was to ignore its nature as a Transcendent Item and proceed with using alchemy to refine the summoning rune for the Reverse Summoning Spell onto it.
The other was to try and use it to see what its effect actually was.
If I were to try the latter, I faced a major hurdle: I didn't know the side effect—the cost—of this Transcendent Item.
Recalling that the cost of Ninglan's Heart was the consumption of flesh and blood... that thing could literally turn me into a shriveled husk!
Fortunately, I had mastered the Resurrection Spell by then and had a certain understanding of the essence of life.
I forced myself to calm down. My hesitation to try it was simply a fear that I wouldn't be able to pay the price. The "two choices" were just a mask for my fear of the unknown.
But as I mastered my fear and my mind cleared, I realized something: this item originally belonged to Qiu Ruxin. How could she not know about it?
Transcendent Items weren't like alchemical items; they didn't require a specific threshold or a supply of transcendent energy to use.
They only required a price to achieve a specific effect. In a sense, anyone could use them, provided they could pay the corresponding cost.
So... had Qiu Ruxin used it?
I could make a hypothesis: if she had used it, could she tell what the cost was?
Judging by her appearance, the cost wasn't flesh or body parts. Qiu Ruxin had normal intelligence, and her physical fitness was even slightly better than average. However, she had one very obvious trait: she was incredibly unlucky.
"Is the cost of using it one's luck? Then what is the effect?" Based on that hypothesis, the trail went cold.
If Qiu Ruxin's bad luck was caused by this Transcendent Item, then the side effect was continuous, because her bad luck was constant. That would mean the effect was likely continuous as well, though other possibilities existed.
Rather than making baseless guesses, I chose a more direct approach: I would go and ask Qiu Ruxin.
Was there anything that couldn't be resolved by asking the person involved?
I was no longer the person who just did solitary brainstorming, self-deduction, and worked behind closed doors. I was learning to use efficient methods, combining practice to test various possibilities.
I picked up the pendant and left my room, then knocked on Qiu Ruxin's door.
"Who is it?" After a long pause, a voice came from inside. It wasn't loud; it seemed the soundproofing in these guest rooms was quite good.
"It's me, Sister Xiao Han," I said.
"Sister Xiao Han!" Hearing the familiar voice, the door immediately opened a crack. A pair of eyes peered through the gap, and only after confirming it was really me did she open the door fully.
"Sister Xiao Han! Are you finished with your work?" Qiu Ruxin looked at me excitedly, but then her gaze instinctively flicked to the pendant, and her pupils constricted.
"Let's talk inside." I didn't answer her directly, intending to get inside first. Some topics weren't meant for other ears; this might be a secret for Qiu Ruxin as well.
"Oh? Okay then." Qiu Ruxin nodded obediently and welcomed me in, noticing that my expression wasn't exactly relaxed.
Once inside, I instinctively checked the various spell arrangements in her room. There were no signs of tampering. With a wave of my hand, I cast a minor soundproofing spell that enveloped the entire room.
"Um... did Sister Xiao Han come to see me for something specific?" Qiu Ruxin broke the silence first.
"Yes, I have a few questions I'd like to ask," I nodded.
"Oh? There's no need to be so formal about 'asking.' You can just ask me anything, Sister Xiao Han. If I know the answer, I'll tell you the truth."
"Then I'll get straight to the point." I nodded and moved to a place where I could sit down. Then, I held up the emerald-green pendant. "Qiu Ruxin, do you know what this is?"
"That? Isn't that my pendant? I asked you a few days ago to turn it into... into a caller to summon you..."
"Yes, that's right. That's what I intended a few days ago. But I'm sorry, I haven't finished it yet."
"You haven't finished... did it fail? It's okay..." A flash of disappointment crossed Qiu Ruxin's eyes, but it vanished quickly, as if she expected such things. She even offered a bit of comfort.
"It didn't fail. I just haven't started the attempt yet. For the past few days, I've been practicing on other items. I wanted to ensure total success before I truly began. Actually, just a moment ago, I succeeded, and I was prepared to begin the refinement on your pendant."
"Oh? So... why did you stop, Sister Xiao Han?" Qiu Ruxin asked curiously.
"Qiu Ruxin, do you really not know what this is?" I held it up, the emerald gem hanging between our lines of sight.
"This..." This time, it was Qiu Ruxin's turn to hesitate. "Um... is there a problem with it?"
"There is a problem. A very big one," I said, nodding.
I watched her reaction closely. Even though she hadn't said anything yet, I could tell she knew something.
"Um... is the problem really that big?" Qiu Ruxin became slightly nervous, her voice small and tentative.
"Yes. You seem to know something. Would you mind telling me the story behind this?" My tone remained calm, but my gaze was filled with curiosity.
"It's... it's a family heirloom," Qiu Ruxin finally said, biting her lower lip. "They say... it's been passed down for over a hundred years."
"A family heirloom... a family with a hundred-year heritage, and you're the only one left?"
"What family... it's just something passed down through the generations."
"Did anyone ever say why it had to be passed down?" I continued.
"I don't know," Qiu Ruxin shook her head, her voice starting to choke up. "My grandfather passed it to my father, my father passed it to my younger brother, and finally, my brother gave it to me..."
As if sensing my confusion, she spoke again. "My grandfather died before I was born. My father was killed by Secret Diggers. And my brother... not long ago, he was also destroyed by those Secret Diggers, along with our home... It's a curse. But... but I can't get rid of it. No one who handles it ever comes to a good end..."
"You think it's a curse?"
"Yes... it made me lose everything! Actually... when I said my bad luck was innate, it wasn't true. It was only after I took it from my brother... that I became unfortunate..."
"I can see that..." If a person were born unfortunate, they wouldn't have developed a personality like hers. Right now, she seemed more like an ordinary girl who had temporarily grown accustomed to bad luck.
She would complain and feel bad. For instance, when she was teaching me the script—the longest time I’d spent with her—I saw her complain when computers lagged, crashed, or got viruses just because she touched them.
If she had been born unfortunate, she would have been used to such things to the point of numbness.
"You believe me, right, Sister Xiao Han?" Qiu Ruxin's eyes were welling with tears. Recalling such a painful past all at once was hard for anyone to handle.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you bear this curse, Sister Xiao Han... I just... I just wanted to live a life without misfortune for a while... I've tasted what a normal life is like... I hate that I wasn't born unfortunate; at least then I wouldn't long for the old days..."
"I'm not blaming you. You don't need to say sorry, and you don't need to apologize."
I didn't offer much comfort; after all, it was a fact that she had wanted to use me to escape her so-called "curse." I stared at the pendant, momentarily dazed. "You said... you can't get rid of it. What do you mean by that?"
"I don't know... just that... I can't throw it away. I don't know if my grandfather, father, or brother experienced this, but I can't lose it. It always finds a way to reappear in front of me in some logical way within a very short time. Sister Xiao Han, these past few days... even though we're just across the hall, you didn't come back for so long. I thought..."
"Is that the kind of 'can't lose it' you mean?" I frowned, but in the next moment, a golden thread provided the answer.
The power of Luck... the single thread of Luck within Qiu Ruxin's body was linked to her Luck Seed, and the other end was connected to this pendant!
And it wasn't just a simple connection like the one I’d had before; it was a strong, binding link!
Previously, because the information within the pendant was too vast, I hadn't noticed that it was also connected to Luck.
As for why it hadn't been "logically" returned over the past few days, it was likely because I wasn't from this world. Luck couldn't exert a strong interference on me. Furthermore... I had thrown the thing into my storage equipment!
"Alright, alright... don't cry. It's okay." I stood up and walked over to comfort her. "You've had a hard time, Qiu Ruxin."
"Mm... no..." Qiu Ruxin bit her lip, trying her best to stop crying. "Does Sister Xiao Han know... what this is?"
"Yes, I have a general idea of what it is. It's... something that would cause countless powerful experts to fight to the death if it were out in the open. It is... incredibly precious."