Above Destiny

Chapter 739 Regardless of Success or Failure, Regardless of Consequences
As it turned out, Ji Jue's calculations were correct.

The fish was hung up just as dawn was breaking, but it died before it got dark!
It happens to be today.

On the dissection table, the mermaid, who had been completely disassembled from head to toe, tested for various reactions, and had a lot of data collected, endured nine hours of torture without even a single injection of anesthesia, finally breathed her last...

But after putting down the scalpel, Ji Jue wiped the sweat from his forehead with a satisfied sigh, as if he had just finished a thrilling battle.

If mermaids could speak, they would probably curse the Rebel Butterfly before they die.

How can anyone in this world be so shameless?

Damn it, a reborn-level rank comes to kill a mermaid who has just come of age. Not only is he unwilling to take any risks, but he also goes through all this trouble, setting up a trap and poisoning her... Is it because he has done too many immoral things that he is afraid of tripping and hitting the back of his head and dying instantly?

Even a quick death wasn't granted; before dying, he was subjected to a thousand cuts, his entire combo of embers executed flawlessly.

Even the White House would shed a couple of tears if they saw this.

They died such a tragic death.

That was such an unjust death...

no way.

Everyone has things they're not good at.

While the Vortex system can't be considered Ji Jue's blind spot, his research in life sciences is still too superficial. When he was dissecting wolves, being able to make a pinky promise to Egonu and act as an assistant could be considered a promotion beyond his level.

Now, cutting open a whole mermaid, complete with its whiskers and tail, has made him break out in a sweat.

Beyond the most basic data and organ functions, they barely understood anything about endocrine systems, genetics, recessive traits, and dominant expression. As for bloodline origins, genetic differentiation, variant identification, and potential and possibilities in various aspects, that was even further behind.

The only conclusion we can draw is that this is indeed a mermaid.

If these results were used to produce low-quality academic papers, they would likely become the laughing stock of the association.

Ultimately, the time was too short and the accumulation was too little.

The saying goes, "Every profession has its own secrets." Sometimes, even among colleagues, the barriers between different fields can be insurmountable.

Spirituality and Life Science are different branches of the Ember system. The difference between them is like that between the Vortex system and the Ascension system. Even if the basic parts are common, the higher you go, the more completely different they become.

Ji Jue's skills were mostly used to deal with inanimate objects; very few could be used against living creatures, but that didn't matter...

People are adaptable.

All you have to do is turn the living into the dead!
Throughout the entire day, Ji Jue disassembled the mermaid and put it back together, then disassembled it again and put it back together, repeating this countless times.

Even if you don't understand anything beyond basic blood circulation and organ function, you already know the functions and effects of muscles, nerves, lymph, bones and organs perfectly.

This is enough!

It doesn't matter if they're dead or alive, as long as they work!

"Derivation complete, sir."

Isis's voice rang out from inside the ship's cabin. Thousands of miles away in Punabantu, the spirit of the workshop had faithfully completed its work—observation, recording, analysis, and deduction.

"Your guess is indeed correct and feasible."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's get started!"

After resting for a few minutes, Ji Jue rolled up his sleeves again and walked toward the enormous corpse on the extended autopsy table.

The remains of a mermaid.

Then, he stretched out his hand, and Non-Aggression appeared. Silver matrices flashed in the void, enveloping the entire mermaid.

And so, in the makeshift workshop in the ship's cabin, the enormous mermaid rose into the air, its scales, flesh, bones, and internal organs falling off one by one from its body.

It's as if it's been meticulously disassembled, processed, and transformed by hundreds of unseen hands.

Amidst the surging flames of spiritual energy, the Triad Alchemy manifested and began to be refined!
This time, Ji Jue completely abandoned the rules and regulations of life science, ignored the essence of life, and used the mermaid purely as inanimate material to start creating anew!
It's not life science, but engineering; it's not the reconstruction of living things, but the transformation of inanimate objects!

Biology itself is an incredibly vast and complex system; all tangible life can be viewed as a kind of precision engineering.

Once we set aside the distinction between flesh and steel, how many similarities and differences remain between living beings and machines?
Perhaps there are some, but they are negligible!

What Ji Jue wants to do is not to exhaust the potential of species and control and enhance it like Master Egonu, but to regard mermaids as machines and examine, measure, design and upgrade them from an engineering perspective.

This makes it even purer!

boom!
At that moment, the replacement began.

Countless invisible hands emerged from the void and began their predetermined work—replacing calcium with metal, replacing nerves with spiritual circuits, replacing blood with mercury, strengthening functions with the fixed patterns of dust and haze, and covering the original soul with the spirit of the Lord of Flies.

The heart's power is too weak, so it's shaped into an engine; the scales' function is too limited, serving only as a means of heat dissipation. Eating and digestion are too inefficient, so they are replaced by sacrifices and phase transitions.

If the main trunk is too weak, then reinforce it with metal!
Ascension, purification, and transformation—

In the end, countless tiny parts emerged with a metallic sheen, the blood-red color vanished, and they resembled stars rising and falling, suspended in mid-air, awaiting only final integration.

So……

Finally, Ji Jue pointed one last time:
—【Deus Ex】!
In the dead silence, the clanging of steel rang out, like the buzzing of bees, overlapping and transforming into a distant and vast echo.

Countless suspended parts began to recombine and assemble once more, becoming one, perfectly combined and unique under the forging of non-aggression. In the blink of an eye, the mermaid emerged from the reconstruction, but it was completely different from before. The scales remained the same, but the weight had increased dozens of times, and more importantly, streaks of iron light emerged beneath the scales.

At this moment, the inanimate object was given life, and the mermaid, who should have died, opened her eyes once again.

A glimmer of light appeared in his empty eyes.

When Ji Jue reached out his palm and placed it in front of its mouth without any warning, the ferocity and resentment on that hideous face disappeared.

It obediently lowered its head to Ji Jue, respectfully awaiting orders.

You're done!

It would be even better if it didn't meow when it was lying on the ground.

Ji Jue's expression twitched, and he sighed helplessly.

Okay, fine, meow it is then, at least it can meow...

In the following period, Ji Jue directed the Iron Mermaid to complete various actions and tests in the cabin. The performance improvement was to be expected, but the stability was also significantly improved compared to the past.

There were no symptoms of delirium or mania, nor were there any self-destructive impulses or violent tendencies.

Even when Ji Jue released all control and gave commands such as spinning, rolling, doing handstands, and jumping through hoops of fire, they all completed the tasks step by step without any deviation.

In contrast, the brutal transformation during the Venom Fleet incident revealed that those crazed puppets were far too uncontrollable, possessing an almost instinctive destructive impulse. Once uncontrolled, they would go berserk and commit suicide.

It's utterly useless; it's only good for practice and accumulating experience.

Just as Ji Jue said, it's not only troublesome for inanimate objects to become living things, but also for living things to become inanimate objects.

Unlike the previous transformation of a bunch of trash, this time the transformation of the mermaids went smoothly.

After evaluation, the continuity and stability of the creation were improved by more than one level, and the level of completion was a world of difference.

The difference is even greater than that between humans and dogs.

While there are certainly factors of accumulation, the main reason is probably the fundamental difference between the chosen materials... not the species difference between pirates and mermaids, but the fundamental difference between humans and wild beasts!
That is to say...

"The existence of the self?"

Ji Jue pondered for a moment, focusing his attention on the most important foundation of the Ascension lineage—[Self-Nature]!
All changes and developments in the Ascension lineage are built upon this self and nature. For Ascension, losing nature and self is no different from death.

For example, at Wulou Temple, once one takes refuge, one's true nature is merged into the Dharma, becoming a puppet and a tool. From then on, no matter how much one cultivates or how much progress one makes, it is merely an advancement of the Dharma.

I am no longer myself.

From this perspective, what Ji Jue is doing now is actually no different from what Jue Yuan is doing.

Replacing the fishman's self with the spirit of creation, practicing the so-called 'righteous law' and integrating into the Fly Lord's system, is actually quite similar.

Compared to the overly strong sense of self in humans, the sense of self in animals appears muddled and vague, and even if it exists, it is not abundant. Mermaids, in particular, with their strong sense of community and clear division of labor, are inherently compatible with the structure of the Fly Lord's group. After the transition, the work is still the same, only the company has changed.

"Is this considered a success, sir?" Isis asked.

"This is just the beginning, there's still a long way to go..."

Ji Jue shook his head, stroking the tamed steel creation in his hand, and suddenly asked, "Isis, do you think this counts as the self-transformation of all things?"

Isis replied indifferently: "If your previous understanding is correct, the essence of all things' self-transformation is simply naturalness. Then, where is this so-called 'nature' you're referring to right now?"

"Yes, where is it?"

Ji Jue raised his hand and tapped the Iron Mermaid's head.

The transformation of mechanical deity, the modification of alchemy, the forced deconstruction and overriding of life science by engineering... If we were to draw parallels with phenomena that have occurred in the present world, where would the nature of such processes lie?

It's a complete distortion and aberration!

Since alienation and distortion exist, aren't they also a part of nature?
Alienation is also a form of change, and distortion is also a form of alteration.

Since it is an inherent part of the present world, why exclude it?

The world is like a furnace, where all things are transformed.

If all changes are natural, why am I not a part of nature?
"The Triad Alchemy originated from me, and the Deus Ex machina originated from me. Since Heaven gave me life, what I do is also a part of nature."

Ji Jue laughed, raised his head, and asked in return, "Why is what I have achieved not considered what nature has achieved?"
If that's the case, what's wrong with using my own nature to change the nature of the world?

For a fleeting moment, he seemed to grasp a glimpse of the self-transformation of all things, but he couldn't distinguish whether it was enlightenment or an illusion, nor could he tell whether it was a flash of inspiration or a demonic possession.

At this moment, is the right path under my feet or a dead end?
He didn't care.

However, he finally came to truly understand the teacher's arrogance, Kengen's conceit, and even the determination of countless craftsmen when they threw themselves into corruption.

This unwavering dedication, deeply rooted in the craftsman's nature, is the source of the embers and the decay.

Even if it's the wrong way, so what? Even if it's a dead end, so what?
Whether it succeeds or fails, you'll only know by trying!

In this unknown territory where no one had ever set foot before, Ji Jue embarked on the path he had chosen, without hesitation and without ever looking back.

And so, with great enthusiasm, Ji Jue rolled up his sleeves and once again grabbed his fishing rod!

Since we're already here, let's catch another one!
Just one!
(End of this chapter)