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Chapter 447: Transformation
Chapter 447: Transformation
"Liam, are you okay? I just saw Reaper." As everything returned to normal, Hermione dashed over, her eyes filled with worry as she looked at Liam. In her description, Reaper was a hooded figure whose face couldn't be seen. He had suddenly appeared and, after her questioning, told her how to leave the place.
"Oh, you idiot! Why didn't you leave when you had the chance?" Liam said, a hint of anger in his voice, as he noticed the Meteorite Amulet on Hermione's neck, which could protect against one Killing Curse, had disappeared. "At least one of us could have gotten out, instead of both of us being trapped here—"
Before he could finish, Hermione suddenly hugged Liam, pressing her lips to his. They stayed like that for several minutes until both of them were blushing furiously and finally pulled apart.
"I told you, when facing danger, I never want you to be alone", Hermione said, flicking her hair back with a confident flourish. "And thanks to Reaper, you won't be able to get rid of me now."
Liam could clearly feel that the girl in front of him had linked her soul with his. Most importantly, this act of bonding was one-sided, demonstrating Hermione's extreme trust in Liam.
At this moment, the System informed Liam that with Hermione entrusting her soul to him, she had become a part of his soul, similar to the Rose Crystal. This meant that in the future, they wouldn't need additional Deviation Points to travel to other worlds.
"Thank you!" At that moment, Liam had a thousand words to say, but they all boiled down to this single, inadequate word.
After composing himself, Liam began the process of creating an item that contained the Law of Life. As Reaper had promised, all the tools he needed appeared at his mental command, and the overwhelming death energy filling the dimension was the perfect raw material.
With the support of the Flame of Eternity, the two of them could go without food, water, or sleep, so they devoted all their time and energy to the creation of the Rose Madonna. Hermione's intelligence proved invaluable during the experiments, and with her help, Liam felt his research progress was a third faster than if he had been working alone.
During their breaks from creating the Rose Madonna, Liam diligently helped Hermione counteract the effects of the Law of Death on her body. Fortunately, with their souls partially fused, Liam could guide the energy within Hermione's body as if it were his own. With his assistance, Hermione learned to control the forces of life and death, freeing her from the danger of death's influence.
However, this meant that the Power of Life and Death would leave a permanent mark on Hermione. Still, it was a relief that the immediate threat of her turning into a lich had been averted.
The complexity of creating the Rose Madonna far exceeded that of ordinary alchemical items. One could say that creating an item of this caliber was the alchemist's understanding of the laws of nature materialized into a physical form. For Liam, if he could create such an item, it would prove that his grasp of the laws was on par with Dumbledore, Voldemort, Nicolas Flamel, or Grindelwald.
This was no easy task, even with the advantage of having a world-renowned alchemist who understood the laws to guide him, sparing him the need to trial and error on his own. Even so, knowing how to do something and actually doing it were two different things.
In the long days that followed, Liam and Hermione spent their time in a cycle of creation, failure, and repetition. The mental strain left them visibly weakened, but if one could see their souls, they would notice that their soul flames burned brighter and more intensely. Liam's soul flame, in particular, was undergoing a transformation, ascending to an unprecedented level.
Finally, after countless trials and failures, Liam felt he had broken through an unprecedented barrier, like a chick hatching from its shell or the first golden rays of sunlight piercing the darkness at dawn.
"I get it", Liam said to Hermione, who was beside him, her face pale and exhausted, mechanically assisting him. Hermione snapped back to attention and gave Liam an encouraging smile.
Liam swung his arms again. Countless blood-red runes flowed from his hands like a stream, and various precious materials materialized out of thin air. This time, unlike any previous attempt, there were no mid-process errors causing the energy to explode like fireworks, nor did the energy dissipate due to a lack of sustained power. This time, all the runes and precious materials coalesced into an extremely tiny point, and the surrounding death aura surged toward it like a tidal wave.
The influx of death aura stirred the environment, bringing about a wind, or something akin to it, in this otherwise still and lifeless space. The death aura swept past the two of them, causing their clothes to rustle.
A portion of the death energy was repeatedly condensed, combining with some of the materials to form a heavy, black liquid. Another part of the death energy was converted into concentrated life force, which merged with the remaining materials to create an extremely fine golden powder.
"Life and death, exchanging and transforming—this is the manifestation of the Power of the Rules", Liam muttered, gazing at the scene before him. "This is the legendary Fifth Element, Rose Madonna, or the Philosopher's Stone. It is a reflection of the entire universe."
At this moment, the surrounding death energy continued to transform into two substances, which began to rapidly spin and merge together. Liam could sense that the object before him was constantly changing, with various transformations occurring within it at all times. Yet, it was also gradually stabilizing, developing a firm structure, and a force of life and creation slowly growing within it.
In ancient European philosophy, all things in the world were categorized into four properties: dry, wet, cold, and hot. The creation of the Rose Madonna now integrated all of these. According to the legends, mercury and sulfur were the two primary elements of the Philosopher's Stone. However, these were actually metaphors: mercury represented the cold and wet substances of the world, while sulfur represented the dry and hot substances. Their combination symbolized the unification of all things, a miniature reflection of the entire universe.
As the energy was compressed beyond a certain threshold, the first drop of red liquid appeared before Liam. More drops followed, gathering around the first and slowly solidifying.
Ultimately, a palm-sized, semi-transparent red stone appeared in mid-air, radiating a life force that stood out starkly against the surrounding environment. Liam reached out and caught it.
"Pity, in this singular, incomplete environment, the Rose Madonna we've created is only a lesser version of the true Rose Madonna. Such a waste of those precious materials", Liam said regretfully after examining the stone in his hand. "But it should be enough to get us out of here."
"We—did we succeed?" Hermione asked, her eyes fixed on the stone in Liam's hand. It was understandable; in a place filled with death aura and a grayish haze, a vibrant, life-infused object would naturally draw attention.
"Yes, we did—", Liam began, but his words were cut short as he gaped in shock. When he turned to look at Hermione, he saw that the girl beside him had changed completely: her face was deathly pale, and her hair had turned a lifeless, grayish white.
"What happened to you?" Liam asked, grabbing Hermione's shoulders in alarm. But when he touched her, his heart skipped a beat. Her skin was completely cold, like touching a corpse.
"Oh, sorry! I forgot", Hermione said, placing her hands together under her chin in an apologetic gesture. "This is a new ability I learned from you, to better adapt to the environment. I'm sorry for scaring you."
Hermione closed her eyes, and soon she returned to her normal appearance, looking even healthier than before.
(End of Chapter)
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