Pure Materialism

(AN; The chapter is not edited.)

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Edward looked at Kingsley for a moment before a look of excitement appeared on his face.

"You don't have a soul?" he asked as he could not access Kingsley's Soul Dimension. He saw the latter's brain that had been modified by biochips to function like a super quantum computer.

"Of course not," replied Kingsley calmly. "The soul is either energy released after death, and this energy is an electromagnetic field that can interact with the physical world.

"Or, something created as the result of quantum mechanics; it arises from the complex interactions of subatomic particles within the brain."

Kingsley was limited in his scientific knowledge because of the restraints from the Samsara Hall. However, he did his research on the soul, and this was the result of his analysis.

Edward's eyes became brighter than the sun. He cast a hundred more spells.

"Morgana, look: my conjecture was right."

A little purple elf suddenly manifested next to Edward and observed Kingsley intensely.

"The existence of a Pure Materialism World," she commented. "I thought your conjecture was simply the result of your paranoia."

"I told all of you I was correct, but you were all so closed-minded," said Edward with a sneer. "Especially you; so smug because you have better computing power than everybody else."

Morgana blushed in shame, "Master, you have to admit: your conjecture was outlandish."

"Even if it was. We have known of the Omniverse. So, anything should be possible."

"But the worlds we have traveled to so far were not so different."

"Compared to the infinite universe in the void, we have not even discovered a trillionth of them."

"True."

"If you don't mind asking, what was your conjecture?" asked Kingsley.

Edward looked at him, "I hypothesized all universes were primarily composed of two concepts: materialism and spiritualism.

"Materialism is responsible for the laws of physics of the world, while spiritualism is the reason why things like mana, Chakra, Curse energy, or even the soul exists; it is the source of all supernatural abilities that science would deem fantasy or fiction."

Edward had a scholarly aura around him, "But I hypothesized the existence of a Pure Material World with no spiritualism. In such a universe, science and technology will be the core with absolutely no supernatural power."

"How is that possible? As long as science develops to a degree, it can modify the genes to acquire powers," argued Set.

"Such a world has spiritualism–albeit the majority of it would be materialism," replied Edward. "In a purely materialistic world, modifying the genes can prolong life but to an extent. They cannot have powers like Kryptonian or Viltrumite. Some species might develop on planets where the gravity is higher than normal, thus evolving higher muscular-skeletal structures than ordinary humans, but these people would never fight tanks or destroy countries or planets. At best, they could fight a bear singlehandedly.

"If humans want to transcend the shackles of death, they have to change their carbon-based lifeform; in other words, they turn into robots or cyborgs.

"They have to upload their memories into perfectly created clones or even into the whole wide web and become electromagnetic lifeforms.

"And only through cybernetic enhancement can supernatural powers can exist. The soul and Soul Dimension do not exist."

"Such a world seems very boring and a nightmare for people with ambitions or desires to be extraordinary," commented Set, thinking about planet Earth where he was from. And he was not the only one who had such a thought; the others thought of their home as well.

"You have no idea," agreed Edward. "According to my hypothesis, such a world would turn any Tier 10 Powerhouse into a normal human."

"Are you serious? On what basis is this assumption?"

"All universe has their own rules and regulation. So, once a Tier 10 Entity enters a universe that absolutely rejects any superpower, the rules of the universe will forcibly change him to adopt, thus stripping them of their powers.

"In fact, I believe even Tier 11 won't be much different in such a world. Only Tier 12 Entities who have transcended the Multiverse will not be affected. Of course, things are not as simple as I stated since there are other things to consider, like the level of the Pure Materialistic World and the amount of World Source it has."

"World Level? World Source?" Set was confused.

"If you don't know, then you don't." Edward shrugged and did not explain.

"There is an alternative to what you said," suddenly added Tobias. "Instead of stripping people of their power, the world rule might turn them into matter of equal energy value."

Edward glanced at him and smiled, "Great minds think alike."

"What does that mean?" asked Michelle, who was confused yet intrigued by the subject.

"The energy intensity of this excellency is Tier 8. After descending on a Pure Materialism World, the universe would turn him into a substance equal to his energy level," explained Tobias; however, Michelle still had a look of confusion.

"Basically, I will be turned into a Star System. Someone like Set would be turned into a Planet," explained Edward.

"Oh, I understand."

Edward looked at Tobias.

"Kid, it seems you are walking on the Body Training Path. That's such a waste of your intelligence. You should become a scientist or magician."

"Not interested."

"Are you sure? If you want, I can take you as my apprentice."

"Thank you for the offer, but I have to decline," he responded with caution. Tobias could tell this Legendary Arcanist was not only powerful but also very knowledgeable.

And from his observation, he seemed easy to talk to. However, he had only recently met the latter and did not know his true personality and temperament; for all he knew, the current him was nothing but a façade.

Furthermore, he chose One Piece's Haki System because of his love for the anime and because he enjoyed pushing his body beyond the limit. No matter how intelligent he was, it would be pointless if he did something he did not like or had any passion for.

"It's a shame."

"Master, don't corrupt the young and innocent," said Morgana.

"What does that mean?"

She did not answer him but looked at the group. "Don't look how cool he is by creating such an interesting conjecture. He only did so because of his paranoia that someone would imprison him in such a world.

"So, he created this hypothesis, thinking of ways he could escape such a prison."

"What you call paranoia, I call being prepared," countered Edward. "Plus, I was not only correct, but I found my way of escape."

His eyes focused on Tobias.

"His Technomancer Class is probably the result of the science and technology universe developing to its absolute peak in a Pure Materialistic World. After analyzing the technology he contained, the Empire will benefit, and I will have a way of escaping a Pure Materialistic World in case I'm ever stuck."

The group looked at him weirdly, not knowing whether to praise the latter's caution or complain he was mentally unstable. However, one thing they agreed with–such a person would thrive in the Samsara Hall just because of his extremely cautious nature.

"Arcanists are believed to be magical civilizations with the best potential because of their adaptive nature to any situation or environment. Today, I finally see the proof," muttered Set, who decided to emulate Edward if he survived this current situation.

"Indeed," commented Morgana. "Even his weirdness is worth of researching."

"Weirdness? What weirdness?" asked Kingsley.

"Why don't you have a soul?"

"Haven't you already understood the reason?" He was confused as even if his computing power could not follow the conversation.

"A high Tier entity will be affected by the rules of the universe after entering a Pure Materialistic World. So, why wouldn't someone of lower tier face the same situation after entering a world with Spiritualism?" asked Edward.

Kingsley paused for a moment, "Indeed. I have been to other universes where the concept of the soul exists. So, according to your logic, I should have been influenced by them and developed a soul and Soul Dimension."

"Correct."

"Could this be the power of the Samsara Hall?"

"That's the most logical explanation," replied Edward.

"But how did it do it?"

"Unfortunately, that's knowledge even beyond me. However, it will be interesting to know."