Chapter 137: The Resurgence of the Reborn

Facing Geppetto's thinly veiled murderous intent, Li Nanke did not look at the Father of Puppets.

He stared intently at the puppet standing behind Geppetto, feeling his hair stand on end, goosebumps breaking out all over his skin as a chill crawled from the soles of his feet straight up to his spine.

This puppet was similar in size to an ordinary human, with skin the grayish-white of a corpse. It had no facial features, its countenance as blurred and indistinct as an unfinished sculpture.

A long sword was strapped across its back, and numerous blue threads extended from Geppetto's fingertips, connecting to every joint of the puppet's body, seemingly granting him complete control over its every movement.

Geppetto himself did not project much sense of danger to Li Nanke; the overwhelming crisis all stemmed from this featureless, nameless puppet.

This must be the "Nameless Puppet" from the original final node!

At this moment, having survived a life-or-death battle, Li Nanke's mental energy was entirely exhausted. His mind was dizzy and fatigued, and he was only staying conscious through sheer willpower.

To battle an enemy in such a state was practically courting certain death.

If he were at the peak of his condition, he naturally wouldn't need to fear the enemy, but right now... he could not afford to fight!

"Carlo..."

Looking at the "Nameless Puppet" behind Geppetto, Romeo's gaze grew somewhat dazed, and the name slipped out unconsciously.

Though the Nameless Puppet was featureless and lacked facial expressions, its build and physique were painfully familiar. Viewed from the back, it was the exact spitting image of Carlo.

Not the young Carlo of Pinocchio's age, but the adult Carlo; the Nameless Puppet's physical form was identical to Carlo's before his fatal accident.

Geppetto shifted his gaze away from the rusted motive heart and looked down at the prostrate King of Puppets.

"That's right, he is Carlo as well."

"For the sake of his ludicrous plan to become a god, Simon didn't hesitate to harm Carlo, making me research the possibility of combining machinery and flesh for him."

"Romeo, you were my first test subject—the first test subject created using the flesh and blood of a divinity..."

After Simon caused Carlo's "accidental" demise, Geppetto, desperate to resurrect his only son, had no choice but to begin researching the ascension plan.

The impossible feat of bringing the dead back to life crossed into the domain of deities, an insurmountable life-and-death taboo for mortals.

Even though Geppetto was the greatest alchemist in the world, he did not possess even a fifty-percent certainty that he could resurrect his son.

Romeo had been Carlo's best friend during life. Afflicted with petrification disease and running out of time, Romeo struck a deal with him, willingly becoming a test subject at the cost of his freedom.

Geppetto used a portion of divine flesh and blood, implanted it into Romeo's heart, and thoroughly reconstructed him into a puppet.

The experiment was immensely difficult; Romeo nearly died on the operating table several times over, and his ultimate successful transformation into a puppet was largely a matter of luck.

Even if Geppetto were forced to repeat such a reconstruction surgery, the probability of failure would still be extremely high.

Moreover, before becoming a puppet, Romeo had been a living human, not a completely lifeless corpse—a fundamental difference between him and Carlo.

The success of transforming Romeo into a puppet only amounted to conquering the most preliminary and simplest part of the problem, leaving it a distance of ten thousand miles away from true resurrection.

This experiment made Geppetto realize that trying to resurrect the dead purely through the fusion of machinery and flesh was an almost impossible task.

However, for Simon, Romeo's transition from a living person to a mechanical puppet had proven that machinery and flesh could indeed merge.

Though the degree of this fusion was low and insufficient to meet the conditions of the godhood plan, it nevertheless greatly boosted his confidence.

The crucial material of the experiment was the divine flesh and blood; this material served as the most vital medium, which could be used to enhance the fusion between machinery and flesh.

Consuming vast amounts of divine flesh and blood, Geppetto ostensibly conducted research to increase the fusion rate, while secretly blazing a new trail, hoping to find another viable path.

After consuming a considerable amount of divine flesh and blood, the world's most formidable alchemist actually did discover two methods for resurrecting the dead.

The first was known as the Usurpation Plan.

Going to great lengths, Geppetto manufactured a heart with immense potential.

This motive heart was formed by fusing Carlo's heart with machinery, sealing a portion of Carlo's consciousness within it.

In its initial state, the overall fusion degree of the heart was very low, but through repeated battles, it could absorb Ergo and continuously increase the fusion degree, ultimately perhaps truly fulfilling Simon's requirements.

If everything went smoothly, after Simon implanted the motive heart and performed the "deification" ritual, regardless of whether he could truly become a deity, Simon—infused with massive amounts of Ergo—would experience a rebirth in the essence of his life.

And Carlo's dormant consciousness would awaken through this, giving him a strong possibility, under Geppetto's assistance, of becoming the new master of the divine body, thereby achieving the goal of resurrection.

However, Geppetto felt this plan lacked reliability; there were simply too many uncontrollable factors, carrying an overwhelming probability of failure.

Therefore, while preparing the "Usurpation Plan," he also secretly pursued the "Mechanical Ascension" plan.

It was a magnificent path that no one else had ever discovered or even dared to imagine.

If the Mechanical Ascension plan succeeded, then resurrecting Carlo would become an effortless task.

"You interrupted Simon's deification ritual, damaging the motive heart and causing the portion of Carlo's consciousness sealed within it to perish as a result..."

With a deep gaze, Geppetto raised a hand, and the blue energy threads between his fingers quivered.

The controlled Nameless Puppet drew the long sword from its back and stepped forward toward Li Nanke.

"Even if I execute the Mechanical Ascension plan now, that part of Carlo is gone forever."

"Therefore, you must pay the price for this!"

The motive heart of deification originated from Carlo's heart, and the Nameless Puppet before them had been reconstructed from Carlo's remains.

Although Geppetto had used superior materials compared to those used for Romeo, the King of Puppets, to modify Carlo's remains and forge the Nameless Puppet—making its strength incomparably formidable—the reconstruction surgery had still failed.

After all, Romeo's successful transformation into the King of Puppets had been a low-probability event born purely of luck.

The Nameless Puppet before them was essentially no different from a war machine; it was a cold, lifeless object that could only act under artificial manipulation.

Consequently, Geppetto needed to use blue energy threads to control the Nameless Puppet's every move.

Watching the Nameless Puppet close in step by step, feeling its chilling murderous intent and the powerful oppressive aura it radiated, Li Nanke immediately raised a hand and said:

"Wait!"

"Pinocchio is not dead yet. I can resurrect him."

Hearing this, Geppetto smiled silently, as if he had heard some low-brow joke.

As the world's greatest alchemist, he had delved deeply into the taboo of life and death; no one understood the difficulties involved better than he did.

If just anyone could easily shatter the barrier between life and death, Carlo would have been resurrected long ago.

Suffice it to say, if even Geppetto himself lacked the confidence to accomplish it, no one else in the entire world could do it either.

"If you can bring Carlo back from the dead, not only will I forgive your transgression, but I will also give you a chance to join the great Mechanical Ascension."

Li Nanke had not the slightest interest in the so-called Mechanical Ascension right now, but if he didn't bring Pinocchio back to life at this moment, the one who would die was himself.

He took a deep breath and unpinned a metal badge engraved with a crimson rose from his chest.

Li Nanke pinned this rose emblem onto the puppet boy's chest...

Then, amidst the astonished gazes of everyone present, he raised his sword and thrust it straight toward the exposed, rusted heart!

"Stop!"

"What are you doing!"

Amidst the shouts of Geppetto and Romeo, the tip of the greatsword pierced the motive heart.

The already rust-eaten heart was extremely fragile and unable to withstand the stab of the greatsword; it instantly shattered and disintegrated, turning into fragments of rust-red debris.

Geppetto could no longer suppress his anger. This heart came from Carlo, and Li Nanke's act was tantamount to desecrating the remains of the dead.

Lifting his hand, the blue threads trembled, and he prepared to have the Nameless Puppet slay the intruder.

Yet, the scene that followed left Geppetto frozen in place, supporting his monocle in disbelief as he stared wide-eyed at the puppet boy's chest.

The moment the greatsword pierced the heart and caused the motive heart to disintegrate and shatter, the rose emblem pinned to Pinocchio's chest ignited spontaneously, turning into fine ashes.

Simultaneously, under the influence of an invisible force, the shattered pieces of the motive heart rapidly pieced themselves back together and healed.

In the blink of an eye, the motive heart was completely restored.

No! It wasn't merely mended and healed; all the mottled rust and crimson iron filings had completely vanished. The heart appeared brand new, as if it had never suffered any damage whatsoever!

Under the incredulous gazes of everyone, the motive heart began to vibrate slightly.

As time passed, the vibrations of the heart grew increasingly violent, quickly turning into a rhythmic pulse.

Finally, Pinocchio's eyelids fluttered, and he slowly opened his eyes.

The puppet boy sat up, rubbed his eyes, and looked around in a daze.

He only remembered Li Nanke asking if he trusted him, followed immediately by a fierce plunge that ripped out his motive heart.

"Am I not dead?"

Pinocchio looked down at his chest. The gaping hole was slowly healing; transcendent metal possessed the property of self-recovery, and his heart was resting securely inside his chest, beating with tremendous vigor.

"This..." Witnessing this scene, Geppetto was utterly lost for words to express his shock.

Carlo's motive heart had lost all its vital essence and was completely ruined, leaving zero possibility of salvation.

Had he not witnessed this with his own eyes, if anyone had told him they could restore that motive heart, Geppetto would have made sure to educate that person thoroughly in alchemy before turning the daring jokester into the purest vital essence.

Yet the impossible fact had unfolded right before him, completely shattering Geppetto's cognition and subverting the alchemical knowledge he held as absolute truth.

Not only Geppetto, but Romeo was also rendered completely speechless by the spectacle.

No wonder Li Nanke had previously asked Carlo if he trusted him; Romeo had initially thought he was just placating a child, but it turned out the man possessed absolute certainty that he could resurrect Carlo.

"Mr. Geppetto, I have done as I said. I hope you will also keep your promise."

With a complex expression, Geppetto remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking:

"You have fully repaired Carlo's heart and eliminated Simon, who stood against me... Of course I will honor my promise."

The middle-aged man looked over at Pinocchio, and seeing the complete unfamiliarity in the puppet boy's eyes, he understood that the portion of consciousness belonging to Carlo was still dormant.

Averting his gaze, Geppetto asked instead:

"What was that alchemical item you used to mend the heart earlier?"

The metal badge carved with a rose was, naturally, the "Bloody Rose Emblem." This special redeemable accessory from the "Sea of Abess," when the heart suffered a fatal blow, could trigger the "Rekindle" effect at the cost of the accessory's destruction, repairing all trauma to the heart.

Li Nanke had originally redeemed this trinket to preserve his life.

Under certain specific circumstances, wearing the "Bloody Rose Emblem" was equivalent to gaining an extra life.

However, the activation conditions for this item were rather harsh, triggering only when the heart suffered a fatal blow. In the Dream of Taboo, most enemies were monster-types, and enemies wouldn't deliberately aim solely for his heart.

Along the way through the Dream of Taboo, Li Nanke had faced life-and-death crises multiple times, narrowly escaping death on several occasions without ever triggering the "Bloody Rose Emblem," leaving the trinket to gather dust.

In this Dream of Taboo, when the optional hidden node indicated that Simon required Pinocchio's motive heart, Li Nanke realized this was a golden opportunity.

He could use the effect of the "Bloody Rose Emblem" to turn a single-choice question into a multiple-choice one, reaping both hidden rewards without sacrificing Pinocchio.

"Just an ancient alchemical artifact I happened to acquire... Compared to that, I'm much more interested in your Mechanical Ascension plan."

"Didn't Mr. Geppetto promise to let me join the glorious Mechanical Ascension plan? Could you elaborate on it for me?"

Li Nanke secretly slid his hand into his pocket, calmly touching Simon's alchemical notes and coming into contact with the prime substance known as "Alchemy."

At these words, the corners of Geppetto's mouth curled upward, a fanatical light flashing in his eyes as he spread his arms wide, as if embracing the entire heavens and earth.

"This is an incomparably magnificent plan!"

"Whether in body or soul, human beings are inherently extremely fragile and ephemeral existences."

"Disease, slaughter, war... There are far too many ways for an individual human to perish, and no one can escape the threat of death."

"Ancient humans feared death and prayed to the stars, thereby evolving into a higher-tier blue lifeform to evade death and attain immortality."

"Ignorant mortals call these blue lifeforms 'angels and deities,' failing to understand that they are merely higher-tier lifeforms and cannot truly be called gods."

"The stars did not merely grant immortality to a few lucky humans; they thoroughly answered humanity's wish for immortality, reshaping the entire world from its very roots."

"Ignorant people believe that only those 'angels and deities' attained immortality, unaware that... every single one of us has been granted the opportunity for eternal life."

"This opportunity is the prime essence of all life—Ergo!"

"Ergo is the true response of the stars to humanity's wish for immortality!"