Chapter 1436: Super Ego
The connection opened more easily than she had prepared for.
Once Celine adjusted the core, the interior of the obelisk appeared before her — not just a room or a mechanism but the entire control system, laid out like a diagram she’d never been shown but somehow already knew how to read. Four magic power cores and the obelisk’s base formed the parent body, and between them, magic power oscillated back and forth in harmonized ripples, each wave feeding the next.
She turned it over in her mind until its shape clarified: the four cores employed different abilities to sustain their revolutions around the Deity of Gods, and the parent body at the obelisk’s base governed them. But even that wasn’t quite right. Watching the flow more carefully, she saw that the parent body had only one function — the transformation of magic power — operating like levers on the Fire of Heaven. The levers moved gears and valves and wire ropes in precisely designed sequence, simplifying something that would otherwise require Celine a great deal of time and attention to control. And here, the simplification extended to four cores at once.
She hated to admit it — but the demon Nassaupelle, who had conceived this system, was a genius.
Without the knowledge Roland had brought from the Dream World, she might not have been able to read it at all. Certainly not replicate it.
That raised a question.
The Union had once examined the records of a parent body and concluded that it was either a variant demon or a Chaos Beast born from a magic stone. Living creatures possessed sentience. They resisted. So how had a Senior Lord managed to transform one into a pure tool — nothing remaining but the capacity to receive and execute orders?
And then: the obelisk itself, she realized, wasn’t the important part. It was a receiver and an amplifier, not a source. For an object the demons depended on for survival, to find it so structurally peripheral to the system — that contradicted everything she’d assumed.
Curiosity, in Celine, was not a polite impulse. She extended her perceptive tentacle toward the parent body.
The image that came was like a wall falling open.
“Oh my god—”
A network. An enormous one, constructed of luminous lines with nodes scattered at every junction. She recognized the pattern — demon cities, concentrated heavily toward the continent facing the Land of Dawn, the Blackstone Region. Beyond those bright clusters, dim nodes drifted at irregular intervals, scattered like pearls worn down to a luster that barely caught the light.
What shook her more was the interior of the parent body itself.
There was no resistance when she entered. No guardian instinct, no territorial reflex. It was as though no one had ever been here before — or as though whatever once constituted its selfhood had simply been removed.
A carrier.
The recognition was immediate and cold.
That’s what this was. The demon species, but transformed. Stripped of consciousness, retaining only basic instinct — modified to serve as a controllable hub. The technique, without any doubt, derived from the underground civilization’s legacy.
So this is how it’s done.
Mixed emotions moved through her: the sharp joy of encountering new technology, and beneath it, the cold awareness of what that technology had been used to accomplish. The Union, relying on the same civilization’s legacy, had implemented its own transformation plan for the God’s Punishment Witches. As inheritors of the legacy shard, the demons had simply done the same — and had gone further with it.
What she couldn’t resolve was the question of scope. The alteration to control more core apparatuses simultaneously would produce extraordinary results — she could see that. But other demon cities didn’t require anything like this. The undertaking was enormous and the risks of stripping a parent body’s consciousness were not trivial, particularly given the parent body’s central role in the obelisk’s growth and thus its importance within demon society.
Yet the other city nodes in the network had also been partially remodeled. They were becoming receptacles too.
Does the King not care about the lives of the demons?
“Done admiring?”
The voice came from behind her. Unfamiliar. She turned — turned, and registered the strangeness of having an orientation to turn from — and faced a demon she could not place in any category she knew. Its lower body was vermicular; its upper portion bore five or more pairs of arms, each hand a different shape. The head was a deformed column with multiple masks arranged around it in a ring.
In the same moment, she became aware that she had a form with mass. Unknowingly, she had moved from being a floating awareness to something that occupied space.
“I never thought a second entity could enter this place besides me.” The voice carried genuine interest. “It seems you and I are alike — we’ve abandoned our original forms, freed ourselves from the constraints of a body, all in the pursuit of knowledge and truth. Tell me: are you satisfied with my work?”
No question remained. This was Nassaupelle. Senior Lord Mask.
“Why can I see my own form? What did you do?”
“You should be able to guess.” He spread all his arms, gratified. “Doesn’t it remind you of the Realm of Mind?”
Celine’s expression changed. “Could it be that you—”
“Yes. This is a Realm of Mind of my own construction.” The laugh that came out was built from multiple voices layered together. “Why must anyone seek talent in the Origin of Magic? Why do some enter and leave freely while others cannot touch it at all? Nothing irritates me more than those born to gift.”
“This is wrong.” She pulled her composure back and thought through everything she’d heard from those who had been in the Dream World. “To see yourself there, you need only a mirror. The Realm of Mind realizes thousands of living beings precisely. There is nothing here except a network of light. And what I am seeing is the concept of a carrier — not my real self.”
“What’s the disadvantage of being a carrier? Without this form, you couldn’t control the magic power core.” Mask dismissed it. “‘Realm of Mind’ is a name — no one dictates what it must be. This is still a prototype, admittedly. But what I have achieved should be obvious from a single look.”
He walked toward her and passed through her as though she weren’t there.
“Liberation from the shackle of a single body. An existence that transcends everything.”
Celine stared.
“Every body has its limits. There is no perfect body anywhere in this world. Given that — why continue down a path that ends in a wall? Do you see this network?” His voice climbed. “Through it, I am everywhere. A form stronger than any single body could provide. Once it expands far enough, I will exist in multiple places at once. I can create unlimited versions of myself.”
“With every version of me, I can go to the most dangerous places, conduct the most dangerous experiments — nothing will bar me from uncovering every mystery in existence. Every emotion, every experience, every piece of knowledge will belong to me. The efficiency alone will drive a new evolution. No talent required. No magic stone required. Is this not the ideal every being that truly hungers for knowledge has always wanted?”
This one is insane.
She finally understood the alterations on the other parent bodies — the ones that weren’t Deity of Gods. This hadn’t been the King’s directive.
Mask had been working alone. In secret.
“I see you’ve understood it too.” Nassaupelle removed one of the masks from his face, revealing a woman’s face beneath. The rigid features pulled into a smile at the corners. “Once outside the Realm of Mind, all the senior lords are nothing. And the King — he couldn’t detect any of this from his Presiding Holy Sea. That is the gap between him and me. They are all too reliant on their abilities. But you — you won’t have the chance to carry this information out. Stay here, and become part of me.”
As the last word fell, all four cores stopped revolving.
Chapter 1436 - Super Ego
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
…
The connection process went smoother than anticipated.
After adjusting the core, Celine ‘saw’ the interior of the obelisk—or rather, the entire control system. With the four magic power cores and the bottom of the obelisk as the parent body, it formed an intricate system. Magic power oscillated back and forth and emitted harmonized ripples.
After a moment of mulling things over, she gained a new understanding of the system: the four cores utilized different abilities to maintain their revolutions around the Deity of Gods, and the one controlling them was the parent body located at the bottom of the obelisk. But that was not entirely accurate as well. One could tell when observing the flow of magic power—the parent body only had one function of transforming magic power, similar to the operating levers on the Fire of Heaven.
The levers activated a few gears, valves or wire ropes, all of which were well designed components with the crucial point being the simplification of the complicated process. Typically, it took Celine a great deal of time, much less to control four at once. However, after experiencing the inconceivable simplistic transformation, it seemed possible.
She hated to admit it, but the demon Nassaupelle who had thought of the system was truly a genius.
Ignoring the replication of an exact same system, if not for the knowledge bestowed by Roland from the Dream World, she might not even be able to understand the system.
This gave rise to her suspicions.
The Union had once examined the records of a parent body and discovered that they were either a variant demon or a Chaos Beast birthed from a magic stone. Since it was a living creature, the Union believed that it had it was sentient and would undoubtedly hinder the control. How was it that the senior lord was able to transform it into a complete ‘tool’ capable of only taking orders?
Aside from that, Celine discovered from the intricate system that the obelisk itself was not important, and functioned more as a receiver and amplifier. As a crucial object that the demons depended on to survive, yet not part of the Deity of Gods, it was completely different from what she assumed the obelisk to be.
With her strong sense of curiosity, Celine extended her perceptive tentacle onto the parent body.
In that instant, an inconceivable image appeared before her—
“Oh my god…”
She could not help but exclaim in surprise.
It was actually a large ‘network.’
Within the large network composed of brightly lit lines, there were many twinkling nodes. Celine realized that they were the demon cities and more concentrated towards the large continent facing the Land of Dawn— Blackstone Region! Celine also discovered many more dim nodes that were scattered outside of the network, akin to lusterless pearls.
What shocked Celine even more was the familiar sense she had within the parent body.
There were no obstruction upon entry, as though this place was not a frequently visited place.
A carrier!
Celine quickly reacted!
That’s right, although it was a type of demon, the changes within it had made it somewhat similar to a carrier. It no longer had its own consciousness and only kept its basic instincts, the most crucial aspects to be a ‘controllable hub!’
There was no doubt that the technique was related to the underground civilization.
So that’s how this is operating… Mixed emotions rose within Celine—a mix of the excitement of discovering new technology and realizing the merciless intent behind it.
By relying on a destroyed race’s technology, the Union was able to implement a transformation plan for the ‘God’s Punishment Witches.’ And as inheritors of the legacy shard, how could the demons not make use of it?
Reality proved that their technology was far ahead compared to the Union.
The only thing she was incapable of understanding was that the altercation was done to allow the control of more core apparatuses which would result in an astonishing result. Aside from the Deity of Gods, the other cities did not require going this far. After all, the undertaking was filled with risk, much less mentioning the ‘transformed’ having its consciousness stripped. The parent body was responsible for the growth of the obelisk, holding a high importance amongst the demons, and thus wielding a substantial position.
But she noticed that the parent body that represented other city nodes had more or less been remodeled and were turning into receptacles, which went against conventional reasoning.
Does the King not care about the lives of the demons?
“Done admiring?”
An unfamiliar voice suddenly sounded out from behind her.
Celine jumped in fright and quickly ‘turned back,’ only to see a grotesque demon in front of her. It did not have an appearance that resembled a
humanoid senior demon—its lower body was like a worm while its upper body had more than five pairs of arms that with hands of various shapes. The most conspicuous part was its head that resembled a deformed pillar with multiple masks hanging around it.
That was when Celine discovered she was actually able to turn through her consciousness! Unknowingly, she was no longer a floating spirit, but a form that had mass.
“I never thought that a second entity had the ability to enter this place aside from me.” The other entity’s voice was brimming with admiration. “It seems like you and I are the same; we have abandoned our original shells and are no longer bound by any rules, all for the sake of seeking knowledge and the truth! How is it, are you satisfied with my work?”
There was no longer a need to ask, the demon in front of her was obviously the Senior Lord Mask, Nassaupelle.
“Why am I able to see my own form… what did you do?”
“You should be able to guess.” Mask extended his arms complacently. “Doesn’t this resemble the Realm of Mind?”
Celine’s expression changed. “Could it be that you—”
“That’s right, this is the ‘Realm of Mind’ that I’ve created!” He released a laughter composed of multiple voices. “Why so we need to seek talent in the Origin of Magic? Why are people able to casually enter and exit on a whim, but so difficult for others to interact with it? What I hate the most is those born with extraordinary gifts.”
“This isn’t right.” Celine calmed herself down and thought back to her companions’ recounts of the Dream World. “If you want to see yourself, all you need is a mirror. The Realm of Mind can accurately realize thousands of living beings. But there’s nothing here aside from a large network of light. And most importantly… What I’m seeing is the concept of a carrier, and not the real me!”
“Heh, what’s so bad about being a carrier? If not for this body, you would not be able to control the magic power core.” Mask snorted. “The Realm of Mind is just a name; no one is able to dictate what it should be—although this is ultimately still a prototype. As for what I have accomplished, isn’t it obvious from a glance?”
He walked towards Celine and ‘passed through’ her. “It is absolving the shackles of a shell and became an existence that transcends everything!”
Celine gaped in shock.
“There are limits to every body. There’s isn’t a perfect body in this world! Since that is so, why should I continue walking down this hopeless path? Do you see this network?” Mask’s voice became higher and higher. “Through it, I am everywhere, a body that is stronger than anything. Once it expands to a certain degree, I will be able to exist at multiple places at once, or in other words, the ability to create an unlimited ‘me!’”
“With all of my clones, I can head to the most dangerous of places, engage in the most dangerous of experiments, and nothing will prohibit me from discovering all the mysteries of this world! You should know what this entails!” Nassaupelle raised all of his hands in excitement. “All emotions, experiences, and knowledge shall belong to me. The efficiency of absorbing all of this knowledge will definitely induce a new evolution in me. There isn’t a need for talent or magic stones. Isn’t this the ideal goal that all beings that thirst for knowledge yearn for!?”
This guy… is crazy.
She finally understood the reason for the alterations on the other parent bodies that had not become not Deity of Gods.
It wasn’t the intent of the demon king.
But things done secretly by Mask.
“Seems like you realized it too.” Nassaupelle took off a mask from his face and revealed a female face. That corners of the rigid face curled up. “Upon leaving the Realm of Mind, all senior lords are nothing. And the King… he was unable to discover this despite being in his Presiding Holy Sea, that is the difference between me and him. They are too reliant on their abilities… but you will not have the chance of bringing this information out. Stay here, and become part of me.”
When he finished his words, the four cores suddenly stopped revolving.