Kabuto felt the same confusion he'd faced long ago.
An orphan…
He'd lost his memories and killed his foster mother.
Thus, he entrusted everything to Lord Orochimaru.
Because he'd long lost his own purpose.
But if Lord Orochimaru truly died…
He forced himself not to dwell on it.
"Sir," Kabuto said cautiously to Shen Mo, "I'd like to buy a few cans to boost my strength."
Orochimaru's awakening was uncertain.
To protect his legacy…
Kabuto's current strength wasn't enough.
"Of course," Shen Mo said, not refusing.
He tapped his staff lightly.
A stream of information flooded Kabuto's mind.
Rules about can prices and purchases.
In moments, Kabuto digested and understood them.
"Sir, can series be changed freely?" Kabuto keenly caught the key point.
"For Level 1 cans, as a trial, they can't be bought after becoming a member. Level 2 cans have no series or quantity limits, but from the 490th to 500th, there's a chance for a destiny-altering item—tied to your chosen series," Shen Mo replied.
His can purchase rules were simple.
Simplicity reduced errors.
Level 1 cans were restricted to limit cheap otherworldly items' spread.
Kabuto pursed his lips, looking at Shen Mo respectfully. "Sir, my strength lies in analysis and calculation. Is there a series suited for me?"
Like most clever people, he chose to let Shen Mo recommend a series.
He didn't know the series' traits.
Shen Mo's advice was best.
"Skilled in analysis?" Shen Mo sized him up, nodding slightly. "Then the Alchemy Series suits you."
His tone was calm, but Kabuto felt utterly seen through.
That gaze…
As if his thoughts, personality, destiny, and past were all laid bare.
Suppressing panic, Kabuto asked, "What kind of series is Alchemy?"
He wasn't buying cans for himself.
He wanted ones suited for his next steps.
"Alchemy uses knowledge to create items," Shen Mo said, looking at Kabuto. "It exists widely across worlds, but most alchemy follows three steps—understanding, decomposition, reconstruction."
The Alchemy Series wasn't from a single world.
It was a composite.
Shen Mo combined various alchemy systems into this series.
It included several specialized classes.
Seeing Kabuto's confusion, Shen Mo extended a hand.
"Let's do a simple demonstration." He smiled cryptically. "In one alchemy class, life is seen as a union of body, soul, and spirit. The body contains trace elements, all drawn from nature."
As he spoke…
A small whirlwind formed above his palm, gathering something from the air, gradually forming white matter.
Kabuto recognized it.
A bird's skeleton!
His eyes widened, and he leaned closer, eager to understand this power.
Soon…
After the skeleton came cells, blood, muscles, organs…
A beautiful yellow-feathered bird's body formed bit by bit before his eyes!
"Could this be…" Kabuto's body trembled, unable to look away.
He could imagine what came next.
But was it real?
Creating life from nothing?
"Then, the soul," Shen Mo continued.
Kabuto's eyes widened further, seeing faint mist swirl above the bird.
It formed an intangible substance.
The soul's composition!
The substance merged into the bird's body, which began to twitch, but only instinctively.
"Finally, the spirit," Shen Mo said.
A light flashed and vanished. The bird seemed to come fully alive.
It flapped its wings vividly, flying up, but an invisible force kept it in Shen Mo's palm, chirping in panic.
"Creating new life…"
Kabuto murmured, staring at the lively bird, unsure how to express his emotions.
What had he witnessed?
A living, soul-endowed life, crafted against nature's rules, bit by bit in that palm!
"This is high-tier alchemy," Shen Mo said, passing the bird to Kabuto.
Feeling its struggling force, Kabuto was certain it was true life.
Creating a life that didn't exist in the world.
Could alchemy achieve such a thing?
Kabuto's mind was chaos.
In that moment, he pondered life's origins, the world's truth, human will, the reality of self…
Questions surged in his mind.
Ethics, truth, the world…
For someone used to analysis, dialectics, and thought, this godlike domain was like an old computer tackling weather patterns—beyond his capacity.
"It's a species from no world," Shen Mo said calmly. "I didn't grant it a purpose or means to survive, so I gave it only an hour's lifespan."
"An hour…"
Kabuto's mind buzzed.
His thoughts scattered.
Looking at the yellow bird, now tired, panting slightly, it turned and angrily pecked his hand with its sharp beak.
"Lacking a granted purpose and means to survive, it can only await death…" Kabuto lowered his gaze, a self-mocking smile forming, then looked up sharply.
"Sir!" he pleaded, looking at Shen Mo. "Can you grant it a normal life, like other birds? I'll pay any price."
In that moment, he wasn't thinking of this miraculous power.
In the struggling bird, desperate to escape…
He saw his own reflection.