The Mech Touch (Web Novel)

5939 Unsolvable

Ves never expected his mother to be able to get rid of the soul mark with ease, so her verdict did not affect him all that much.

Sure, he grew disappointed that he wouldn't be able to get rid of this huge burden right away, but he quickly accepted his new reality and regained his composure.

"Is there anything about the soul mark that allows it to record my thoughts and activities before transmitting them back to You-Know-Who?"

The manifestation of the Superior Mother rolled her eyes at the banal way that Ves referred to his latest alien foe.

"Do not act childish. The opponent you face is so much more powerful than any of us that he has earned our highest respect… and fear. This soul mark is a masterpiece in itself. It has already exposed me to a and radically different approach to energy manipulation and soul manipulation. This God King is not only old and experienced beyond measure, but he is also a product of a highly advanced society that has made so many attainments in the application of E energy that I envy the natives of Messier 87."

Cynthia's respect for the Subjugation King's work made it clear that she truly felt outclassed in this area!

This worried Ves quite a bit. Even though she was not the strongest True God that Ves had known, she had definitely been the most knowledgeable among them. It was hard for Ves to accept this truth.

"Does this soul mark contain anything that can alter or influence my behavior?"

"I am not certain." Cynthia responded. "The soul mark contains a number of elements that I cannot decipher without conducting a closer examination, but that might provoke all manner of undesirable reactions. I am reasonably confident that the soul mark does not have any other major functions. This includes remote transmission, monitoring and indoctrination. To put it in terms that you can understand, the soul mark is a very limited vessel and does not possess a large amount of capacity. However, I cannot rule anything out. The creator of the mark prioritized the positioning and entrenchment functions so much that it is missing numerous obvious features."

Ves grew a little more relieved when he heard that. "I hope that is the case. I think that attempting to manipulate the lightning tribulation into planting a soul mark on me by remote already forced the alien God King to pay an enormous price. Still, I find it a bit hard to imagine that this bastard is so amazingly wise and powerful. His behavior at the time did not give me the impression that I am dealing with a rational decision maker."

"Have you forgotten what I said earlier, Ves?"

Ves briefly paused in thought.

"You mean the stuff about how if we don't pay enough attention to ourselves, we become so obsessed with the baggage brought by our cultivation methods that we become hijacked by them? Are you claiming that the God King…"

"It is a possibility, my son. I am not familiar with the cultivation culture of his civilization and Messier 87 as a whole. The aliens who reside in this enormous galaxy may not see this as a problem. Instead, they may have the impression that they are casting their mortal weaknesses and turning themselves into ideals that represent gods. During my time, there were plenty of human cultivators who believed in this theory."

"I take it you disagree."

The manifestation of the Superior Mother nodded. "You can ponder over it in your own time. What is important is that the soul mark cannot be erased. Just as you have suspected, not even god pilots are able to get rid of it. The mark has already dug in too deep for that. Theoretically, they can apply so much force that your 'spirit' will succumb much sooner than this mark."

The mark was absurdly resistant towards attacks!

Ves grimaced at that. "Will it be any different if any of them managed to become a god king pilot?"

That was an interesting suggestion. "It is difficult to judge the answer when I know so little about God Kings. I believe it should be possible for a god king pilot to break the soul mark. They most certainly obtained enough hard power to compete against the mark, especially if the alien God King is not in close proximity. However, if the soul mark has become too deeply entrenched, then removing it in a violent fashion will result in a great amount of collateral damage. This is one of the more insidious parts about the soul mark. It is not actually alive, but it is capable of leeching your power to fuel its own growth. The stronger you become, the more this mark burrows into your spirit."

Ves felt as if he had jumped into an inescapable trap. From the moment he got marked by the Subjugation King, he fell into a permanent entanglement with this alien bastard's power!

"Wait. If you are saying what I think you are saying, the soul mark will become much harder to remove if I get stronger. In contrast, if I stop progressing my cultivation any further, it will not be too difficult to remove it from my Spirituality so long as someone friendly grows powerful enough to erase the soul mark."

Cynthia nodded. "That is so. This presents a dilemma to you, though I can already tell your preferred answer. You are my son, after all. We do not allow fate to dictate our lives. If we do not like what it has in store for us, then we must fight to achieve a different outcome."

She took the words right out of his mouth! Ves indeed chose to adopt a defiant attitude towards this problem!

There was no way in hell that he wanted to give up on becoming a Star Designer. He had so many dreams and ambitions that he refused to let this annoying soul mark deter him from making further progress!

"I don't believe that this soul mark cannot be removed even if I grow stronger in the future." Ves firmly stated. "We have several decades to figure out a solution. Since destroying the soul mark outright is not possible, we can still resort to subtler means to erase it from my Spirituality. For example, I think my new affinity for darkness can be used in a way that it can dampen and suppress the connection between the soul mark and its creator."

If it truly became impossible to get rid of the soul mark, then Ves would settle for the next-best solution and suppress it to the point where it hardly posed a threat anymore!

His mother approved. "That is a viable strategy, but only when you have become stronger and better versed in the element of darkness. You need to become a Star Designer first before you have any chance of suppressing the soul mark. By the time you have reached this level of strength, you should be able to develop a powerful device that can suppress the soul mark."

"Can't I rely on Blinky to undermine the soul mark?"

"No. Absolutely not. Direct confrontation is out of the question. Your companion spirit will explode."

Ves got the message. It was safest to deal with this problem as a creation cultivator. If his tool provoked a backlash from the soul mark, then all Ves would lose was a single object.

He needed to remind himself to not mess around with the soul mark. Cynthia's cautious examination already showed that not even his mother possessed the confidence of containing the mark once it reacted to her probing.

"Is there a more permanent way to deal with the soul mark?" Ves asked.

"..."

Ves directed a suspicious look towards the manifestation of the Superior Mother.

"You have an answer."

"I do…"

"It's probably an incredibly dangerous scheme that may end up risking my life or sanity."

Cynthia gave her son a rueful smile. "You have become increasingly better at reading me. Impressive."

"That is because the more time I spend with you, the more I realize that we are not as different from each other as I previously assumed. Sure, you may be a centuries-old witch, but you are also an innovator. Just like me, you don't accept a reality where there are no solutions. There is always a solution. You just need to look hard enough and be willing to make greater sacrifices to fulfill your goal."

The Superior Mother reached out with her arm and flicked Ves in the head.

"Cheeky brat. We are not that similar to each other. Our life experiences are too different for us to possess similar mindsets. I may appear reasonable and relatable to you, but that is because I am purposefully exhibiting more of my humanity to my family than I am typically comfortable with. This is not my actual persona, so do not try to predict my plans and behavior based on your biased impressions of myself."

"Can you just tell me your plan? Even if it is crazy, it is better to have one than be left without any solution."

Cynthia did not withhold her idea any further.

"Very well. In my opinion, the price of removing the soul mark is far too great. The alien God King chose wisely by preserving its entrenchment aspect. He has effectively made it impossible for you to remove it. Since this is the case, why not promote this process and assimilate the mark?"

"What?! Won't that play into its maker's hands?!"

"Not if you assimilate it in a specific manner." His mother smirked. "Think about how Lucky is able to break down anything that enters his stomach. If he eats an electronic device, then the item will lose all of its original functions as your cat reduces it to a collection of raw materials. Now imagine yourself adopting a similar approach to your situation. Treat your spirit as your intangible stomach and the soul mark as your meal."

That was a good analogy. Ves never thought about it, but now that he heard the idea, he believed it might actually work!

"Maybe you're right, mother. Maybe I can grow stronger and train my Spirituality into assimilating the soul mark step by step. Won't that cause me to get contaminated, though?"

"This is why I am reluctant to share this idea with you. There is no perfect outcome. Breaking down the soul mark may remove the alien God King's ability to track you and possibly sabotage you from a distance, but his raw energies will merge with your own soul. The difference in energy levels will inflict great suffering on you. If you are able to survive this painful sequence, you will become forever scarred and changed by what you have done."

This strategy sounded far too dangerous for Ves to commit to it right away!

He understood why his mother was so reluctantto share this crazy idea. There were too many points of failure.

However, a part of Ves actually applauded this crazy idea. The contamination was awful, but there was a good chance that he might actually absorb a miniscule portion of the strength of a God King!

This might grant him unmatched advantages that no ordinary Star Designer should possess!

All Ves had to do was to bite the bullet and accept the consequences over his own decision.

He just wondered whether enough parts of himself would remain intact after he devoured the soul mark.

If the soul mark was powerful enough to completely change his personality, then he had already lost his sense of self!

Ves could not accept this outcome. He would rather try to make peace with the soul mark than to change his personality beyond recognition.

Fortunately, he should have plenty of time to refine this potential plan. Several decades of time should be enough for him to devise a powerful product that could reduce the negative consequences of assimilating the soul mark!