Life Alchemy

The dark red symbol, resembling an eye filled with stars, came from the Hidden Sage's earlier power.

Of course, under normal circumstances, it would be called corruption. Lin Chuan had intercepted some of it, so his efforts had not been wasted.

Now, he used the Hidden Sage's corruption to put a facade over the Life Alchemy ritual before him.

With that, combined with the unique nature of Lin Chuan's own standing, even if the Hidden Sage personally inspected the ritual, it would unquestionably appear to be directed at Him.

Disguising the ritual was necessary. After all, part of his Sefirah was in the cosmos and part on the Western Continent. He could hardly access it as Klein did Sefirah Castle, conveniently and without disturbing anyone.

Meanwhile, as the ritual proceeded, a faint fragrance spread through the room, creating a peaceful, tranquil atmosphere.

Old Neil took a deep breath and stood before the altar, bowing his head reverently. Rather than the improved Hermes, he chose Ancient Hermes, which offered no protection but was more effective, and chanted softly:

"The beginning of hope, inverted fate."

"You are the essence of the Boundless Void;"

"You are the negation of the meaning of existence."

Normally, after reciting a god's honorific name, the supplicant still had to make a request in a supernatural language such as Ancient Hermes, Jotun, or Elvish, so the god would know what they sought.

But the one Old Neil was praying to stood beside him, watching with interest, so the subsequent steps were simply omitted.

After he finished the first line of the honorific name, a fierce wind arose out of nowhere within the sealed Wall of Spirituality. It swept around the room once before vanishing.

Ripples of spirituality surged through the room, so violently active that they nearly tore Old Neil's perception apart.

Yet when he gritted his teeth and finished the third line, the jellylike, half-finished substance in the silver cauldron on the altar remained obediently in place. Nothing strange happened in the room, and the surging spirituality gradually subsided.

Old Neil frowned slightly. That shouldn't be right. Every step of the ritual was correct, and judging by the earlier commotion, it should have succeeded.

"Leave this room, then seal off your senses, Neil." Lin Chuan's resigned voice rang clearly through the silence. "Otherwise, the ritual will certainly succeed, but something will definitely happen to you."

As the words fell, Old Neil found himself in the living room. Not daring to delay, he immediately squeezed his eyes shut and sealed off his senses, layer by layer, sinking into a deathly silent darkness.

In theory, Old Neil should have been unable to perceive anything now, yet he still felt the deathly silent darkness around him distort for a few seconds.

An immense stream of information, countless times beyond his comprehension, slipped lightly into the newly refined vessel, which had yet to take shape.

Old Neil was all too familiar with that feeling. He almost cried out. Wasn't this form of existence as a stream of information exactly what the Hidden Sage was?

No. He remembered the symbol resembling an eye filled with stars that Lin Chuan had thrown in earlier and realized this was most likely some kind of disguise.

A hum sounded.

The tide of spirituality that had just risen instantly subsided, and the guest room returned to the quiet of early morning.

"You can open your eyes now." Only upon hearing Lin Chuan's voice did Old Neil release the seals on his senses with relief.

Although he had actually sealed off his hearing, shutting off all five senses could not stop a god from making him hear His words.

The door was pushed open.

When Old Neil opened his eyes again, he saw that the materials originally floating above the altar had disappeared.

Standing before him was a "young" man with black hair and black eyes, gentle features, shallow eye sockets, and an elven appearance.

He had also recreated his previous attire: a classical warlock's robe, predominantly black, and a soft pointed hat, perfectly fitted and free of even a speck of dust.

Lin Chuan flexed his wrist, feeling out his brand-new human body. He was reasonably satisfied.

He had no authority related to Life Alchemy, so this ritual had only succeeded by borrowing the Hidden Sage's abilities concerning information.

But a stream of information was still just a stream of information. It had absolutely nothing to do with authorities such as flesh and blood or new life.

Before the ritual, Lin Chuan had confidently declared that the missing two-thirds of the human blood hardly mattered, and that even a shortage of materials would not affect it.

Then he had nearly ended up forty centimeters shorter.

A full two-thirds of the blood that served as the material foundation was missing. Although this did not prevent the Life Alchemy ritual from succeeding, there was no way to replace matter that simply was not there.

So Lin Chuan lowered his requirements for the body a little further and took another approach. He fashioned nothing more than a shell in the most literal sense.

He simply left out parts of the body he did not need, such as the brain, to make up for the missing material.

The corners of Lin Chuan's mouth lifted slightly. Nothing else mattered. As long as he had a stomach and could eat, he was perfectly content.

"Well then, let us part here for now, Mr. Neil." He bowed slightly and prepared to leave.

"Your Excellency..." Old Neil called after him, looking somewhat uneasy.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"No need to be so formal. Just call me Lin Chuan."

"Your Excellency Lin Chuan," Old Neil hesitated before asking, "about Shaliste... I mean, roughly how long will it take?"

"It requires the right opportunity. I can't give you an exact time."

"A few years if things go well. A little over a decade at the latest," Lin Chuan said frankly. By "at the latest," he naturally meant after the battle of the Apocalypse.

Watching Old Neil's eyes suddenly dim, Lin Chuan thought for a moment and suggested:

"If you're worried you won't live to see that day, I can arrange for you to enter a deep sleep. I'll freeze your state with a seal until..."

"No, that won't be necessary, Your Excellency." Old Neil shook his head, forcing a faintly self-mocking smile.

"A deep sleep... how would that be any different from being dead? Besides, if resurrecting Shaliste takes that long, you must have a great deal to prepare as well, don't you?"

He raised his head, his gaze clearer and firmer than ever before:

"First, you freed me from the Hidden Sage's corruption, and now you're willing to resurrect Shaliste. I never dared imagine anything like this, even in my most unrealistic dreams."

"I can't lie in a coffin waiting for gifts. That would be far too greedy."

Old Neil placed his right hand over his chest and bowed deeply. "Please allow me to serve you, Your Excellency Lin Chuan."

"Since you've chosen to stay in Tingen, there must be something I can be useful for, however insignificant," he earnestly added,

finishing his words.

Lin Chuan looked at Old Neil. After a moment, he said evenly, "As you wish."

"But it isn't about being useful. It's about helping."

That was how he corrected him.