Chapter 1494: 1494. Procedure

'It hurts!' Fergie shouted through his mental waves.

"You will be fine," Noah said as he reviewed the outline in his mind. "You can't die in there anyway."

Fergie was still inside the dark world. His condition had yet to improve, but Noah had devised a proper approach to fix his situation. The process had just begun, and its initial phases were excruciating for Fergie.

'Why can't you let me die?!' Fergie asked as dark matter flowed into his broken tissues and replaced part of their fabric.

"You will thank me once the procedure is complete," Noah replied without bothering to open his eyes. "Endure for now. You will enjoy the benefits later."

Fergie continued to scream in pain and curse Noah as the process continued. Noah didn't lie to him. The expert was inside the dark world, which would preserve his consciousness even if his centers of power were to fall apart.

That was an environment made specifically for the procedure. Fergie couldn't see its incredible features in his condition, but Noah had made many efforts to create that space.

The Demonic Deduction technique had given Noah a solution to an issue that he thought to be unsolvable. In theory, cultivators in the heroic ranks and above couldn't survive thorough changes in their existence. Even if they did, they would find their path blocked due to the lack of harmony in their centers of power.

That issue had stopped Noah from giving hybrid bodies to others. The differences between magical beasts and cultivators who had already unlocked their individuality were too great.

However, the dark world could work in Noah's favor now that he wielded divine power. Humans didn't need to become hybrids to reach stronger states of existence.

There could be more types of existence. Noah didn't belong to that species anymore either. It was only normal that other cultivators could reach a similar state or something slightly inferior.

The main issue in the procedure was the harmony between the specimen and the other materials. Cultivators could already improve their tissues through specific inscription methods, but their bodies couldn't go past certain limits because their existences would reject the improvements otherwise.

Still, Noah had access to a material that could take any shape in the world. It could also imitate elements. The dark matter that filled the dark world was the key to solve that problem.

Noah kept track of Fergie's condition. The expert's consciousness went dark multiple times, but the dark world didn't let it leave its edges.

Fergie soon went past the verge of insanity, and Noah couldn't help him in that matter. The procedure was a product of the Demonic Deduction technique. Making it less destructive would go against Noah's very existence.

The dark matter replaced Fergie's tissues. It destroyed and replicated every inch of his body without ignoring his dantian and mind. The pain that the expert was suffering was immense, but the procedure was about to end since it had reached those phases.

Fergie lost his body, dantian, and mind. He became nothing more than a mass of dark matter that replicated his original appearance. He still had his consciousness, but everything else had crumbled under the waves of higher energy that had seeped inside him.

"It's almost over," Noah said as he dragged Fergie's new body outside of his cave.

The dark world began to disperse, and the white light of the sky soon shone on Fergie's figure. Lumps of dense gas escaped his new body as he kneeled on the ground and tried to understand what had happened to him.

"What have you done?" Fergie asked in a low tone.

"I replaced every cell of your body with a powerful material," Noah replied. "I have preserved all the features of your existence, but you have a better foundation now."

Fergie didn't seem to accept that outcome. His body felt unstable. It was a mass of dense gas belonging to someone else. He couldn't even say that it was part of his existence.

"Did you turn me into one of your slaves?" Fergie eventually asked. "I can feel the connection to your mind. This energy doesn't belong to me."

"It would be pointless to take away the freedom of my followers," Noah replied. "I don't need slaves. My organization requires existences capable of improving past the limits of Heaven and Earth's system. This is a war against the whole world. I can't win it with empty puppets."

Fergie couldn't understand what Noah meant, but his words went against that new body. Fergie could see that he would never be free as long as he depended on the dark matter to remain alive.

"What can I even do in this condition?" Fergie asked. "How can you ask me to fight for you when I'm nothing more than a humanoid cloud?"

"Well," Noah replied as he scratched his head, "The procedure isn't over."

Noah's ambition surged. His aura began to influence the world and resonated with Fergie's new body. The dark matter amplified that feeling and forced the expert to express his desire to reach the peak of the cultivation world.

"I can only create destruction now," Noah explained. "You can thank the Crystal City for that. This material has your features and replicates your existence, but it can't create a body for you. Only your law knows how to build something that fits you."

Fergie's aura expanded under the effects of Noah's ambition. It seeped in the matter around his figure, destroying it in the process. A suction forge then came out of the dark matter that made its tissues, making him absorb the energy released in the environment.

"Breath" and primary energy flowed toward Fergie as his aura expanded. The ground broke, and small magical plants turned into dust to provide him with the power needed for the transformation.

The dark matter that made his body slowly transformed as energy flowed inside it. The higher energy adapted to the features carried by Fergie's aura and began to build a body that reflected his existence.

Noah had understood that he couldn't wholly replicate a law. He couldn't avoid flaws and differences in his copies due to his lack of understanding in that unique field.

Yet, Noah could let Fergie take care of that part of the procedure. The ambition would force the expert to unfold his aura, which led to the creation of something that suited him perfectly.

The world had to pay the price for that process. Noah's creations had to destroy, so Fergie had to sacrifice part of the environment to obtain the energy required to build a new body.

That amount of energy would be immense due to the high standards set by Noah's outline. Fergie would aim to reach his most perfect form, which could require the "Breath" contained in an entire region.

Of course, Noah didn't care that he had to sacrifice part of the world to give Fergie new centers of power, but the magical plants living in the area didn't feel happy when they saw the ground shattering around them.

Their sharp roots came out of the ground and shot toward Fergie's figure, but Noah promptly stepped between them and the expert. Fergie needed time to complete the transformation, and Noah would gladly protect him during the process.