Chapter 1022: Land of Fool's Dream
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 1022: Land of Fool's Dream
My conversation with Cleveland wasn't particularly long; I mostly wanted to use her perspective to get a better grasp of the current situation.
Aside from her suggestions, there was another line of thought I found quite promising.
It involved the "Fourth Top Academy" that everyone always ignored: the Abyssal Demon Academy!
If we could draw that notorious academy into the fray, it would certainly break the current deadlock.
After all, they were Abyssal Demons! Those creatures had no bottom line. Back when the Players first invaded, the Abyssal Demons had even stooped to stealing corpses and harvesting flesh.
They were cursed out for it back then, but in the end, didn't it just blow over like everything else?
However, getting the Abyssal Demons to join the game wasn't something that could be achieved with a few words. This, too, couldn't be rushed.
At this stage, the United Club was in a truly awkward position. To some extent, they were overestimating themselves—their elite Combat Sequences weren't even willing to deploy to resolve minor border disputes.
It made sense, though. After tasting such massive success, many had developed a penchant for chasing grand achievements while ignoring the basics.
Still, if I really wanted to find something for the United Club to do... thinking it over, there actually was an option.
For instance, my proposal: Peacekeeping.
The Core World was never truly at peace, and Academy Wars never ceased.
Since the three top academies held up the banner of righteousness to threaten the Witch Academy against unprovoked invasions, then the Witch Academy would simply hoist the banner of peace!
We would use force to keep the peace and mediate the Academy Wars between other institutions!
Most Academy Wars between smaller Transcendent academies were essentially proxy battles for the three top academies.
Because of the Staff of World Destruction Plan, the three top academies had to maintain a facade of harmony. However, this couldn't mask the disputes and contradictions between them. As long as there were conflicts of interest, peace would remain an impossibility.
So, by raising the banner of peacekeeping, the Witch Academy would be making them uncomfortable in the most public way possible.
If you try to stop us, you're opposing peace. If you claim you won't interfere in the internal decisions of other Transcendent academies, then we'll expose how you've been squeezing those smaller academies dry.
Regardless, the United Club would move forward with peacekeeping. They’d show up and give both sides a heavy slap across the face. Since neither side would be their own lackeys, it wouldn't hurt the Witches one bit. If anyone dared to resist, they’d be labeled as "disturbers of the peace," and the Witch Academy would resolutely stand with the "underdog" to demand justice!
The defeated side would have to pay war reparations, while the side we "supported" would "voluntarily" offer up gifts of gratitude.
If the mediation succeeded, we’d strengthen trade cooperation, letting the families coordinate to dump goods and harvest resources.
Then there were the follow-up concepts like "stationing troops," collecting protection fees, and so on.
The Main World really hasn't had enough world wars...
After finishing my discussion with Cleveland, I left the academy immediately and headed for the Sun Rock Territory.
Being a Life Clone, I had no fear of death, which naturally gave me the confidence to wander around outside the academy as I pleased.
Below the Transcendent level, no one was my match. Above it, I could always use my Infinite Mana to force a one-for-one trade with the opponent.
I had to admit, after the top academies and the Witch Academy agreed to the principle of Transcendent non-interference, a "Little Witch" like me became the biggest loophole in this unspoken rule!
Especially after the "Double Sun Event," those Transcendents had seen with their own eyes that this Little Witch possessed the power to destroy an entire continental plate single-handedly. It made them grit their teeth in frustration.
Every move I made was a constant provocation to their nerves.
More importantly, back in the Life Forbidden Zone, they had witnessed this Little Witch die in a void rift. Not even her soul should have remained, yet here she was, bouncing around right in front of them, perfectly intact.
This had completely transcended their understanding.
Consequently, they were now convinced that this Little Witch was merely a "tool" pushed forward by the Transcendent Witches to show off.
It was their way of flaunting the techniques and abilities they possessed.
Other Transcendent academies had also obtained this intelligence through special means.
Life Clone... Infinite Mana...
That deep-seated sense of powerlessness was accelerating the collapse of their resolve.
Looking at the scale of the Void, could anyone truly defeat the terrifying race known as the Transcendent Witches?
No one could provide an answer.
* * *
While my Life Clone was out roaming, my main body remained in the Primitive Dream Laboratory.
The Fool's Dream life experiment was a long-term process, and my idea of using the Fool's Dream Transformation as an entry point had been correct.
Under the techniques of Soul Depiction and Life Evolution, the definition of the Fool's Dream bloodline concept had already begun to manifest as a promising start on the Life Sequence.
As the power of the Primal Great Fool's Dream Spell gradually neared completion, the power of the Holy Relic began to carve out the trajectory of life.
Subsequently, Yulan, Yu Yun, Yu Guo, and Yu Xing found the "destination" of their bloodlines through experiments on their own bloodline shells.
The Life Sequence was a very abstract concept, but such descriptions were mostly for the sake of easier understanding.
Carving out a Life Sequence didn't mean literally using a chisel to mark something; it meant using the power of the Holy Relic to forcibly write the trajectory of life for the Fool's Dream.
I used bloodline information to stabilize the existence of the Fool's Dream, and then used that existence to anchor the concept of the Fool's Dream race.
This was the primary reason I researched the transformation spell first and the summoning spell second.
When I tried to scale these effects up to Yulan and the others, I realized I had been wrong about one thing.
If I wanted to shape the Fool's Dream race, I couldn't just target individuals like Yulan and Yu Yun. I had to trace back to a more fundamental concept!
The Tree of Fool's Dream.
Even though I had shaped their memories and existence into Seeds of Wisdom back then, the root of the Fool's Dream would never change.
I entered my soul dream once again.
I stood beneath the Tree of Fool's Dream.
As I looked at the tree again, I suddenly realized that my previous thinking had been too narrow.
Perhaps the existence of the Fool's Village was a revelation in itself.
The root of the Fool's Dream could be the Dream Scroll, or it could be the Tree of Fool's Dream, but it couldn't only be the Tree of Fool's Dream.
As the source of the Fool's Dream, it should have been the cradle that birthed them. So, what was the cradle that carried the Fool's Dream?
The Fool's Village.
The Fool's Village itself was the cradle of the Fool's Dream.
The moment I understood this, the framework bestowed upon the Tree of Fool's Dream by the Tree of Great Knowledge collapsed!
It was like a tree growing in reverse, letting everything return to the original seed.
This seed was the one woven by the Dream Scroll under the framework of the Tree of Great Knowledge. It was the new vessel for the Fool's Dream, but also their new shackle.
Now... I had unraveled it once more.
The disappearance of the Tree of Fool's Dream immediately drew the attention of many Fool's Dream spirits in the village.
However, they were mostly just curious—curious as to why the tree was gone.
They weren't worried about how it had disappeared. The Fool's Dream never cared about the Tree of Fool's Dream or the Dream Scroll; they cared about the source of everything!
Perhaps I should give it a new name.
The Land of Fool's Dream.
I gripped the seed in my hand. It began to glow, and countless root-like threads—the very essence of the source—began to dismantle the seed that the tree had reverted into, like unraveling a cocoon.
The source characteristics of the Land of Fool's Dream merged into the Fool's Village itself!
If the previous Fool's Village was an illusory thing built within my soul dream, the current Fool's Village was the true cradle, given meaning by the Land of Fool's Dream.
And what poured vitality into this cradle... was the Primal Great Fool's Dream Spell, transformed into a Holy Relic!
Its existence stabilized the information of the Fool's Dream bloodline, ensuring that their existence was no longer ethereal and fleeting.
Individual Fool's Dream spirits born from dream consciousness would spontaneously carry dream-state souls, becoming beings similar to Yulan and Yu Yun.
Once I completely perfected the Primal Great Fool's Dream Spell, the Fool's Dream would essentially have one foot through the door of the Life Sequence!
Once I used the bloodline information from the transformation spell to leverage the Life Sequence and anchor the racial concept...
The Fool's Dream would be completely transformed into a brand-new form of life!
After I finished all of this within the soul dream, a tree began to grow again at the spot where the Tree of Fool's Dream had vanished, visible to the naked eye.
It looked almost identical to the original tree.
But it was no longer the Tree of Fool's Dream; it was a part of the Land of Fool's Dream.
The so-called "Dual Tree Structure" had ultimately been an immature fantasy of mine, a clumsy improvisation that had become a shackle on my understanding.
From this point on, in my soul dream and the Land of Fool's Dream, only one tree stood tall.
The Tree of Great Knowledge!
However, even though the Land of Fool's Dream had broken free from the framework of the Tree of Great Knowledge, the tree's influence on the Fool's Dream was far from over.
If the Holy Relic represented the innate gifts and the creation of the Fool's Dream, then the Tree of Great Knowledge was the teacher who shaped their cognition and values, teaching them knowledge and principles.
Only by imbuing them with pure beauty and teaching them kindness and fortitude in a place like the Land of Fool's Dream could they look upon the bright side of the real world.
As someone who could no longer experience it, I understood all too well how much the environment of one's primary education influenced the path a life would take.
* * *
Meanwhile.
"Yu Cha! What's wrong?"
Sheryl watched as Yu Cha, who had been bouncing around with boundless energy just a moment ago, suddenly became extremely lethargic. It must be said that even the Rebel Witch lost her composure for a split second.
"Ugh... I-I'm not really sure?"
Yu Cha rubbed her eyes. She felt as if something had happened in that instant—a tremor originating from the very source of her consciousness. Then, that feeling seemed to transform into something that influenced her from her very roots, causing her sudden exhaustion.
"You're not sure either?" Sheryl held Yu Cha with one hand while catching the small camera that had slipped from the girl's grasp with the other.
She frowned, sensing that something was amiss.
"It felt like a tremor from deep inside... it affected me. I think I just need to rest for a bit."
"How about a Fool's Dream Drink?" Sheryl suggested. "I'll take you to the Witch Cat Cafe."
"Mmm~ Okay! Let's go have a Fool's Dream Drink~ Charge!"
"Sit tight." Holding Yu Cha, Sheryl immediately locked onto the nearest Witch Cat Cafe.
Her reason for suggesting this place wasn't just because they provided the ingredients for the drink; she also wanted to see if the other Fool's Dream spirits at the cafe had experienced the same thing as Yu Cha.
If that was confirmed, then the root of the problem was clear—it was likely Xiao Han's doing.
Xiao Han's main body was currently in the Experimental Zone. Mei Lind had mentioned she was busy with a project related to the Fool's Dream life experiment.
Sheryl couldn't get in there.
However, she hoped Xiao Han would finish the experiment as soon as possible.
As for this little one, Yu Cha... she realized that, without knowing it, she had grown quite fond of the little creature. Of course, it wasn't that kind of affection; it was simply the fondness of friendship.
Generally speaking, it was very difficult for a Rebel Witch to form such emotional bonds.
She found it novel, yet she also felt a hint of resistance—it was a contradiction.
After all, a Rebel Witch was usually a lone traveler. She didn't need friends, nor did she need friendship.
While there were Rebel Witches who were popular and had many friends, she clearly wasn't one of them.
She wondered what Xiao Han would think if she knew one of her Fool's Dream spirits had already been "abducted" by her.
Would she agree?
Or would she intervene to keep Yu Cha away from her?
Unconsciously, she felt a trace of anxiety... what a novel sensation.
They entered the Witch Cat Cafe.
"Ah~ A guest with her own Fool's Dream spirit~ How can I help you?" The girl at the front desk greeted them eagerly.
"Give me four servings of Fool's Dream Drink, unmixed. Thank you." Sheryl pulled out a Gold Cat Card, speaking with the air of someone with deep pockets.
"Certainly! I'll have those ready for you right away. Is there anything else you need?"
"Nothing else for now, but... I wanted to ask something about the Fool's Dream spirits. Did any of the spirits in your cafe seem unwell just a moment ago?" Sheryl asked casually, as if just making small talk.
"Unwell? Um... I didn't really notice?"
"A guest just ordered a freshly mixed Fool's Dream Drink and spilled some on the table. I just went to wipe it up, and that spirit did look a bit out of it for a second, but she was fine right after." A waitress with cat ears nearby chimed in.
"Is that so? Well, you should take good care of them." Sheryl made the comment offhandedly, but she now had a general idea of what was happening.
"It looks like it really was Xiao Han's handiwork. I hope it wasn't an accident," Sheryl muttered to herself as she led Yu Cha further into the cafe.
They reached a scenic spot by the floor-to-ceiling window. Sheryl lifted Yu Cha from her shoulder and placed her on the table.
In a Witch Cat Cafe, only cats and Fool's Dream spirits were allowed to walk on the tables!
This was a privilege tacitly accepted by everyone.
"Little Yu Cha~ Why don't you tell me more about Xiao Han?" Sheryl brought up the topic again.
"Oh? Sister Sheryl, do you really like hearing about Sage Sister that much? Then I'll tell you some more! This time, I'll tell you about... hmm... our Fool's Village!"