Chapter 78 Mercy
It works!
Ji Jue's nosebleed slowly, he gritted his teeth and pushed forward his ability again: [Recovery]!!!
But this time, it aroused an esoteric riot, and the wailing that echoed in his ears became more and more violent, almost echoing in his soul, and launched an attack on him.

But when it comes to the operation of fluid alchemy, everything falls apart.

The madly squirming body stopped and actually showed signs of dissolving, especially the spreading alien limbs, which began to fall off.

This was Ji Jue's first time applying fluid alchemy purification.

But I didn’t expect it to be so effective immediately!
They themselves are creations of fluid alchemy and have no resistance to it.

In just a few seconds, all the abnormalities had fallen off and disappeared.

And at this moment, the huge camp seemed to have finally recovered from the freeze.

"Mommy mommy!"

When Ji Jue let go of his hand, the child next to him was the first to rush over, hugged the person in the net, and called out in tears.

But there was no response.

The bloated man returned to his original appearance, even thinner than before, but... after Ji Jue moved his hand away, he no longer moved.

Seems still alive.

But the pupils were just empty from beginning to end.

It seems as if a part of the soul has been completely lost along with the alienation.

——When the spiritual essence is overloaded, the physical nature will collapse.

No matter how much you repair a damaged work, it can never return to its original state.

Ji Jue sighed tiredly and cursed.

97 sat next to him. "Thank you."

"It didn't work again, what are you thanking me for?"

Ji Jue wiped the blood from his nose. After the blood disappeared, the black and purple web-like marks became more and more obvious. They were the faint veins formed by the bursting capillaries on his face.

Soon, under the restoration of the Mouth of the Ancient, it disappeared.

Then, I noticed the surprised look of 97 next to me.

"What's wrong?" Ji Jue asked.

"No, I'm just surprised." 97 suddenly said, "You really sympathize with us."

Ji Jue was silent.

"Thank you, and thank you for being sad that he can't return to his original appearance." 97 said: "You have done enough, Mr. Ji Jue.

For things like us, iron disease is the most terrifying thing. We are involuntarily transformed into some inexplicable monster and are still alive, which is even more terrifying than being dead.

You can keep him the way he is, even if it's the way it is now, it's already good enough."

He patted Ji Jue on the shoulder and finally said gratefully: "Thank you."

"Stop talking about this."

Ji Jue sighed, not wanting to talk anymore, and pointed at the crying child: "What's wrong with him? Why is he calling someone mom?
If I'm not mistaken, you are all men, right?"

"That's true, but everyone here can be said to be his mother." 97 replied: "To be precise, everyone in the Rift, even those monsters, are.

Xiaojiu is the 'newcomer' just produced in this restart, but the others are different, do you understand what I mean?"

"We have been processed in this way countless times."

He pointed to his head and said, "Basically, they're all mixed together."

This is the cycle mechanism of the workshop.

All products judged to be scrapped are collected together, disassembled, sorted, mixed, reshaped, and then put into production again.

Become a brand new 'person'.

Follow the settings, follow the predetermined trajectory, and play the role that belongs to you.

They could be peddlers or high-ranking officials or wealthy businessmen.

From then on, day after day, year after year, I was confused and carried out actions that I could not understand, as if it was a pilgrimage ceremony and an endless sacrifice.

Until one day, from this life that is infinitely close to human beings, I truly understood what "I" is.

They will really think of themselves as humans.

But once you discover what your true nature is, the dream is over.

Once the inherent settings and identities lose their meaning, once they realize who they really are, those creatures that cannot accept themselves will fall into chaos and eventually go completely crazy.

Instinctively go, destroy, fight, and seek death!

Longing for an end.

And just after being completely destroyed, everything will be recycled by the workshop again, the spirit will be cleansed, the consciousness will be reset, and it will be reproduced, and then a new role and a new "life" will be ushered in.

Just like this, day by day, year by year, generation by generation...

Over time and over time.

For four hundred years, the initial despair has been continuously passed down, and in the end, the crazy spiritual essence hidden beneath everyone's consciousness has become as deep as the ocean!
Ji Jue was silent, almost suffocating.

It is hard to imagine how desperate one would be if, after being reborn again and again, one discovered that life was nothing but an illusion, the self was nothingness, and fate was so cruel.

If it was a creation of modern alchemy, it would just be a spiritual overload and collapse, but fluid alchemy is something different...

Its greatest 'advantage' and 'feature' is that it will make the shape and structure of the creation gradually approach its essence.

When their essence has completely collapsed and such a crazy spirit awakens from its slumber, their original human appearance will disappear without a trace and they will become absolute monsters.

I suffer day and night, and cry day and night.

It's like real hell.

I can't live, and I can't die.

“We want to stop.”

97 whispered softly, talking to himself, as if praying to the devil or God, "Whatever you do, just stop."

Ji Jue was silent.

No more words were spoken. Maybe it was the next day, maybe a few hours later.

Ji Jue was awakened by the noise outside and heard the cheers and blessings from the camp.

When we walked out of the tent, we saw 97 and several other people surrounded by the crowd, all holding weapons and fully armed.

It's like preparing to go to war.

Noticing Ji Jue's gaze, 97 smiled, waved at him as if saying goodbye, and turned and left.

The exploration is about to begin again.

The crowd cheered and shouted, applauding their backs, bidding them farewell with full of expectations.

Ji Jue even saw the prophet in the crowd.

At the very end, at the entrance to a shed, she sat in a wheelchair, being pushed, watching the exploration team leave and the door close again.

Noticing Ji Jue approaching, she whispered something and the person accompanying her left.

"What do you think, Mr. Ji Jue?" asked the prophet.

Ji Jue shook his head: "I don't know, I haven't thought it through, but instinctively I don't like you."

"That's normal. A person who is secretive and mysterious can never gain trust. Compared to someone as honest as you, an inhuman creature like me is more hypocritical."

The prophet smiled calmly: "Please forgive me, sir, some chips are too valuable. I only have one chance. I can't rashly entrust them to someone who may not be trustworthy."

"Can't you explore it by yourselves?" Ji Jue asked.

"Yes." The prophet nodded with difficulty: "Do you think we will achieve any results?"

"I don't know." Ji Jue shook his head.

"Let me tell you, there may be some piecemeal discoveries, maybe some warehouses and traces of mercury left behind, but a real breakthrough? A real transformation? No, there won't be."

The Prophet said, “Never.”

"From the beginning, everything was destined. We are tools, and tools cannot deviate from the operating range set by the master." The prophet said: "Even if the center of the workshop appears before their eyes, they will just turn a blind eye to it, or even fail to understand it..."

"how about you?"

Ji Jue asked: "Aren't you a prophet? Can't an omniscient prophet be found?"

"Of course I can find it."

The prophet answered flatly, his smile becoming more mocking: "But what happens after we find it? Tools can never destroy the work left by their masters, because this is the instruction engraved in the deepest part of our ectoplasm."

Others simply cannot discover it or enter.

Even though the prophet knew it long ago and understood it clearly, he was unable to do anything.

This is destined to be a fruitless cycle.

Futile expeditions will only be launched again and again, but will not produce any results.

Ji Jue asked: "Do they know?"

The Prophet did not answer.

for a long time.

Just a helpless sigh.

"Mr. Ji Jue, if you wake up from a hell of suffering and realize your own tragic outcome, then it would be best not to wake up other sleeping people. However, more and more people are waking up... Then, you must make them believe that hell can still be broken."

"Otherwise, all that awaits them is despair."

"Yes, that's right, I was lying, I didn't know everything, I lied to them, more than once."

The prophet chuckled calmly: “In fact, I can’t do anything. I’m just a liar.

Even this camp only lasts for fifty or sixty years each time. At the beginning of each restart, we will return to the workshop and become unrecognizable again.

But I have to make them believe that there is hope for the future.

No matter how distant the hope is—"

"Humans will need lies, and so will we."

The prophet murmured and sighed: "There is actually nothing wrong with Mercury's plan. The only flaw is... Did she make us too human?"

Tools do not fear hell, tools do not despair, tools do not want to be freed.

Only humans can do that.

Heaven and hell were both created by humans, and all they can do is endure all the torment in silence.

I don’t know the years, I don’t know the end.

In the silence, Ji Jue stared quietly at the camp in front of him for a long time, then laughed at himself.

"Then why me? Prophet, if you know anything, you should know that there is no essential difference between me and other outsiders."

"Maybe you are lucky?"

"My luck has never been good, only bad and worse, including when you came to my door." Ji Jue said: "Please be frank and answer me directly on this question."

"You learned fluid alchemy, right?"

The prophet turned around and stared at him with his broken eyes: "This is Mercury's workshop. According to the instructions set by Mercury, if an apprentice masters fluid alchemy, he will be automatically registered in the core and granted the most basic inner layer access rights.

But your authority is far higher than you think. Your spiritual recognition circuit represents the former central thermal reaction furnace. The module that authorized you added a small note to your authorization. "

The prophet raised his finger and drew a small symbol right in front of Ji Jue, stroke by stroke, conveying the instructions from the furnace of the past:
“It says you can be trusted.”

Ji Jue’s pupils shrank for a moment.

He discerned the meaning of the outline.

That is the rune that flows from the Supreme Goodness and Ascension.

In the interpretation of alchemy, it represents tolerance and bearing, and symbolizes shelter and gift.

It means, "compassion".

　Ah, it's the end of the month, please give me a monthly ticket

　　
　
(End of this chapter)