Modern alchemy encompassed a vast array of disciplines.
Although its history was relatively short compared to the millennia-long lineages of ancient clans and aristocratic houses, the reason modern alchemy could become mainstream was precisely because it stood upon the foundation of ancient alchemy and charted entirely new paths and directions. It had not merely standardized measurements and criteria so that successors could more easily step into its halls—its openness and inclusiveness vastly surpassed that of ancient alchemy.
In several centuries of development, it had absorbed the essence of countless ancient alchemical traditions. Having separated the dross from the fine and integrated everything into a coherent whole, it had built upon the four pillars of Ascension, Purification, Transmutation, and Harmonization to expand into more than a dozen branches and disciplines.
Vitalism was unquestionably one of the major branches. It was intimately intertwined with the Vortex lineage and inextricably linked to the popular field of pharmaceutics.
Faced with such an abstruse and profound discipline, an apprentice like Ji Jue naturally wouldn't dare claim expertise. In truth, even when cheating via the storm-inhalation of Deus Ex Machina, his current mastery could only be described as barely scratching the surface.
In terms of skill level, he wasn't capable of turning the dead into the living, but he was exceptionally good at accidentally turning the living into the dead.
That was precisely why crafting a "human skin mask" turned out so gruesome and horrific.
Just like going shopping: you couldn't always expect something fast, high quality, and practically free all at once.
Trade-offs had to be made.
And so, this awkward situation had arisen.
If one wanted zero flaws and the most lifelike disguise possible, a live transplant was necessary. With the bone blade in hand, that was naturally trivial.
Time had been too tight, so wasn't it somewhat forgivable that this layer of painted skin hadn't stuck firmly?
It just seemed the person opposite him had no intention of being forgiving.
Then there was no helping it...
Before bending down to pick up the mask, Ji Jue smoothly plunged his last Blade of Flowing Light into her abdomen. Under the effect of Harmonize with the Light, she was instantly paralyzed, unable to move or even make a sound.
Right after, the bone blade of Mercy sank in, severing body from soul.
A total crash.
Since his cover was blown anyway, Ji Jue dropped the pretense altogether. He tore off the two pieces of skin from his face, tossed them aside, and pulled the ugly face soaking in solution from the jar in his robes, slapping it back onto his own face.
"Nothing beats the original!"
His ten fingers traced along the seams, fusing the flesh and blood. Then, with spiritus infused into the Mouth of the Ancient, it began to work, restoring about seventy to eighty percent of its original function.
As for looking even uglier... whatever!
Ugly was ugly.
Once he went back and had Lao Zhang treat it, he'd be restored to factory settings.
By comparison, the fractures in his legs were the real hindrance. Without the assistance of the quicksilver exoskeleton, even walking would have been a chore.
Having done all that, Ji Jue unhurriedly continued forward, strolling through the Precious Material Storage. His eyes were thoroughly opened.
"He's a Profound Grand Artisan after all. Damn impressive."
Ji Jue sighed and marveled, taking in the treasures one by one.
Natural Desolate Ruins blessed metal as large as two people, housing innate blessings within; crystal marrow stones the size of two heads combined; corruptions sealed frozen inside containment cases, unable to break free...
Almost every shelf and display rack held items that set the dark thoughts in his heart stirring. He sorely wanted to pull off another couple of heists, or simply call in President and spend some time looting the place down to the bedrock...
Well, assuming he lived to make it out.
According to the bald woman, this was merely a secondary item storage room. The truly precious materials were essentially all inside Kanemoto's personal domain.
Moreover, what was stored here was merely an unclassified fraction recently taken in...
Isn't this guy a little too rich?!
Alternating between sharp gasps of cold air and hot exhalations, Ji Jue didn't dare look any further. Any more, and his mentality would completely crumble.
Soon, however, the most important objective of this trip appeared before his eyes.
And then, he felt... completely choked.
"What the fuck? What is this?"
Ji Jue's vision went black in sheer disbelief.
Now he finally understood why Lou Feng was so certain his aunt was still alive. It was a life-preserving technique developed from spiritus shaping within the secret arts of the Lou clan.
When sensing imminent death or mortal peril, a Celestial Chosen would execute a final spiritus shaping—Deadlock. At that moment, spiritus crystals would encase the user's body and soul entirely like a coffin, hardening to the absolute limit until indestructible.
It was just like donning a turtle shell, leaving opponents with nowhere to strike.
As for whether you'd be dragged back to be slowly dismantled and have your life taken once they drilled through, that was another matter. At least it bought you some time to cling to life, didn't it?
Facing Kanemoto's ambush, Lou Feng's aunt, Lou Yanyue, had used the most thorough variety of Deadlock on herself in her final moments.
Upon reaching the Regeneration rank, spiritus shaping acquired the property of persisting as long as its master lived. As long as Lou Yanyue didn't die, it would not dissipate. And as long as Lou Yanyue lived, spiritus would continuously reinforce the outer crystalline seal.
To kill her, one had no choice but to cleanly deplete all of her spiritus, driving her soul to collapse and disintegrate of its own accord. In a sense, this thoroughly eliminated any possibility of using her as a material.
Kanemoto was probably keeping her around until he could free up his hands to properly teach her how a material should behave.
Too bad he likely wouldn't get the chance.
Meanwhile, Ji Jue began to question his entire reality.
"Aunt?"
Ji Jue leaned in close, staring wide-eyed at the mangled silhouette sealed inside the spiritus crystal. "You're fucking telling me this is your aunt?!"
Within the locked, frozen spiritus crystal, that body still bore horrific wounds. Both legs were severed at the root, leaving only a single arm intact.
Even her face had been slashed by a blade, both eyes shattered. What must have been a fair countenance was now twisted and grotesque, no less monstrous than Ji Jue's current appearance.
The problem was... she, she... no matter how he looked at it, she was clearly a minor!
"Sixteen? No, fourteen... thirteen..."
Ji Jue narrowed his eyes, leaning in so close he nearly tripped an alarm, checking repeatedly. Kill him if she was a day over fourteen! Couldn't possibly be older!
A fourteen-year-old at the Regeneration rank?!
It couldn't be that she practiced some divine art backwards and experienced reverse-aging, right?
Ji Jue sucked in a breath of cold air, then another, and another, wishing he could drain the air straight out of Kanemoto's central AC.
As expected of a great clan—their heritage was truly deep as hell, but their generations were also a total mess!
Lou Feng's grandfather was really still vigorous in his old age... To sire a daughter younger than his grandson?
No wonder Lou Feng always wore that indescribably complicated look whenever he mentioned his aunt. If Ji Jue had an aunt seven or eight years younger than himself, and that kid was already a core combat pillar of the Chaocheng Security Bureau—a master among masters—he'd probably want to die of shame, too!
There was no time to linger on sighs and laments.
Time waited for no one.
Ji Jue moved swiftly, running his hands over the rack to sense the spiritus circuits within. Analyzing them carefully, the Dissociation Art flashed for a split second...
Passing through the outer spiritus structure, Non-Offensive's spiritus hand reached deep within, precisely destroying the identification sequence and related modules.
Before the security sequence could complete its self-test and trigger the alarm, he had five minutes.
He pulled the "Aunt Detector" Lou Feng had crafted out of his pocket and jammed it directly against Lou Yanyue's spiritus crystal. Instantly, the two spiritus-shaped crystals met, resonating faintly as they merged into one.
Spiritus itself was a carrier of information, not to mention that the Lou clan had their own system of communication.
To avoid holding Ji Jue back or causing a mess, Lou Feng's spiritus crystal didn't just store his unique spiritus resonance for identification—it also carried the unsealing program for Deadlock, an explanation of the current situation, and Ji Jue's identity.
In the brief silence, Ji Jue suddenly noticed the mangled form within the spiritus crystal twitch ever so slightly.
She had awakened from her long slumber.
Absorbing the message from her nephew, she quickly grasped reality.
As the Deadlock slowly fractured, spiritus vibrated the air, producing a raspy, muffled voice.
"...Ji Jue?"
A faint hand formed of spiritus brushed across his face, exploring and feeling. Soon, she understood. "That boy Ah Feng... really stepped up, huh... Are you his friend?"
"Yeah, best friends—the kind who trust each other with their lives!" Ji Jue replied without hesitation. "Don't let my youth fool you, he calls me Brother Ji whenever he sees me. He insisted on getting my signed photo, put it on an altar with an incense burner at home, and bows to it three times every morning and evening. Hasn't missed a day in two years. What, you didn't know?"
A faint laugh surfaced in the raspy voice.
"That's not how he described you."
"A tsundere, you know? Can't just listen to his mouth; the body's always honest!"
"True."
Inside the Deadlock, Lou Yanyue considered it for a moment and agreed. "Of all the kids in the family, he cried the longest whenever I punched him."
"Your family culture is pretty fascinating too."
Ji Jue wiped cold sweat from his brow, his hands never stopping for a moment as they chatted. Infiltrating an artisan's workshop and altering the permissions and rules set from the inside was still far too difficult for Ji Jue.
All he could do was crudely destroy key components using the Dissociation Art, buying a futile sliver of time.
He didn't pause.
Dashing back and forth, he rigged the assorted explosives strapped beneath his black robe into their designated positions.
"How's your condition? Ready?"
Ji Jue asked one last time. "We're almost out of time."
Inside the gradually dissolving Deadlock, one final layer of crystal remained to freeze her body and sustain her life. When Ji Jue scooped her up, she felt soft and astonishingly light.
Not nearly as heavy as he had imagined.
"How much time is left?"
Lou Yanyue seized every second to gather her strength.
"Five..."
Ji Jue glanced at his watch. Before Lou Yanyue could speak, he added, "Four..."
"Hey, you little punk!"
Lou Yanyue couldn't help letting out a laugh.
And the instant the countdown ended...
An unprecedented chain explosion detonated across the corridors, floors, and ceilings of the first level. Flames gushed forth, engulfing everything.
*BOOM!!*
Amid the violent tremors and pandemonium, Ji Jue stuffed her into a crate, hoisted it onto his back, and bolted, head down.
He vanished straight into the terrified crowd outside.
Three minutes later, explosions tore through the entryways once more. In the deafening roar, driverless transport trucks waiting to be loaded flared their headlights, smashing through the doors.
One after another, they roared out into the distance.
Disappearing in all directions.
Chapter 229