Chapter 330: Change of Plans: The Purge of Dream Demons Begins Early
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 330: Change of Plans: The Purge of Dream Demons Begins Early
"Um... Sister Xiao Han has been gone for so long. Nothing bad happened, right?"
"No, no, Sister Xiao Han will be fine!"
They were currently inside a sealed laboratory.
This was a high-security lab at the base, requested specifically so they wouldn't be disturbed. I had also layered it with various protective spells, making it the safest place in the entire Underground District. With the help of the Fool's Dreams, neither dream nor reality could easily breach this place.
In the center of the room, Bai Yu stood silently to one side, her gaze fixed intently on the runic ritual markings of the spatial teleportation anchor point they had prepared.
A group of Fool's Dreams huddled together nearby, trembling with worry. They were terrified that something might go wrong with the device Sister Xiao Han had taught them to build step-by-step.
They were currently double-checking the ritual runes and the energy crystals powering them. These crystals were condensed from Ley Line energy, the most common high-concentration transcendent mineral found in the Underground District. A large pile of spare crystals sat nearby, just in case.
Suddenly, the spatial teleportation anchor point erupted in a brilliant white light, and the energy levels began to plummet.
"Quick! Get ready to replenish the energy crystals!" Bai Yu commanded immediately.
She possessed a teleportation spellbook, so she knew that teleportation was an incredibly mana-intensive process. The consumption fluctuated wildly depending on whether there was a pre-existing mark, the distance involved, and the size of the object being transported.
But before they could even add the crystals, a portal swung open. A hand reached out and waved, followed by the upper half of its owner’s body.
"Xiao Han!" Bai Yu cried out in excitement.
"Sister Bai~"
I turned my head and saw that familiar figure. I had been worried about potential accidents, but it actually worked!
Just then, a massive force hit me from behind, shoving me through the portal.
"Xiao Han, watch out!" Bai Yu instinctively reached out to catch me, but her hands passed right through my body. I tumbled through her and hit the floor.
A moment later, the portal behind me snapped shut.
"Ouch... Did the Academy Dean just kick me? That was a bit much, wasn't it?" I stood up and rubbed my backside. I couldn't really blame her, though; the portal couldn't stay open for long, and I was dawdling.
"Sister Xiao Han, are you okay?"
"It doesn't hurt, does it?"
"Xiao Han... you... you succeeded?" Bai Yu stared at me as I stood "inside" her for a moment. She blinked, realizing she had worried for nothing.
"Yep, it was actually pretty simple."
Once I was on my feet, I looked at the cat-girl Fool's Dreams surrounding me. I couldn't help myself—I reached out my "evil hands" and gave their cute ears a good rub.
The Fool's Dreams didn't resist; in fact, they seemed to love it.
"Sister Xiao Han, you can touch me?" the Fool's Dream I was petting chirped in surprise. They didn't ask how; they just accepted the new reality as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Under my touch, they began to let out rhythmic, comfortable purrs.
After playing with them for a while, I finally let go of their ears at Sister Bai's reminder and began to tidy up the area.
"Xiao Han... if you're like this, caught between reality and the dream... won't it cause a lot of trouble?"
"Hmm... probably not. My physical body is in reality, but if I want to interact with the dream, I can use that primitive rune ritual I got from the Nightmares. It lets me appear in the dream as an independent consciousness."
"But... can you manage both sides? What about your body in reality?"
"Good question!" I nodded. That was indeed the hurdle I had to clear. "That's the new problem I need to overcome."
"Actually, given my current status and identity at the base, I could probably live my life as usual. No one would dare do anything out of line to me."
"I see..."
"Or, Sister Bai, you could watch over my body when you're free. I can just hang out in the dream whenever I want~"
"That sounds like a plan," Bai Yu agreed with a nod.
"Wait, Sister Bai, are you serious?"
"I don't have much to do anyway. I don't mind finding something to keep me busy."
"Hehe~ Then Sister Bai, you better not do anything... indescribable to my body while I'm away, okay?"
"Xiao Han, I'm being serious, and you're getting more and more improper, aren't you?" Bai Yu swiped at me in mock anger, but her hand just passed through my body again.
"Ehehe~ Can't hit me! Actually, even if Sister Bai wanted to do something to my main body, it's fine. I definitely won't sneak back to see if you're getting handsy~"
After joking around with Sister Bai for a bit, we prepared to head back. My departure hadn't raised any alarms; after all, no one was constantly checking to see if an Outsider had suddenly gained a physical form—that would be pure fantasy to them.
On the way back, I thought about what the Academy Dean had told me. Even now that I'd had time to process it, I was still shocked—both by the state of this world and the truth behind my fragment of [Transcendent Knowledge].
I also had a new perspective on everything that had happened since I enrolled. It turned out the Academy Dean had been watching me from the moment I awakened my talent.
With the massive gap in our power, she could have easily taken what was originally hers. I wouldn't have been able to say a word. But she didn't. Instead, she helped me and invested in me. That kind of magnanimity and vision was something I couldn't even hope to reach yet.
You could say the Academy Dean was my second benefactor, after Teacher Ji Niang. And Sister Bai was my best friend.
The key to my easy return this time was a gift from the Dean.
She had explained that the place where I originally lived was under the effect of a spell cast by a Great Spellbook, which suppressed all transcendent powers. That was why I could only produce sparks when I tried to cast a Fireball Spell at the academy—my "rubbing sticks together" sparks were about as effective as that.
However, the existence of a spellbook bypassed this suppression to an extent. Spells cast from a spellbook were guaranteed to work, though they were still weakened.
In principle, the transcendent powers of other academies were also heavily suppressed. It wasn't that they were weak; it was just that the suppression was incredibly harsh. Because we Witches had spellbooks, the Main World Witch Academy was essentially playing with a cheat code in the Main World.
Raw transcendent power would be suppressed, but spellbooks—which relied on Real Editing—could partially ignore the effects of the Great Spellbook. The other three top academies had similar workarounds. For example, the Elves relied on their Elf Bloodline and World Tree Branches; the Angels relied on the uniqueness of their Angel Halos and Divine Art heritage; and the Wizards used pure mental power and knowledge to leverage transcendent energy through equivalent exchange, bolstered by their Wizard Tools.
As for the smaller academies... they were on their own. In the Main World, transcendent power was suppressed, and if you didn't have the strength to back up your words, you didn't get a seat at the table.
The Academy Dean had explained this as if it were the most natural thing in the world, because strength was the foundation of everything here.
I looked at the two extra spellbooks inside me. The Dean had given them to me personally. One was the teleportation spellbook, which allowed me to return here reliably from the Witch Academy.
The other... was Resurrection.
The Dean hadn't explained why she gave it to me; she just said she felt I might need it.
Am I going to die?
That was my first thought, but I didn't really think I would.
Perhaps I could try to understand the essence of the Resurrection spell. Or maybe the Dean was tacitly giving me permission to explore the boundary between life and death. Then again, maybe it had something to do with severing the Ley Line Shackles?
Regardless, it wasn't meaningless.
The Dean hadn't specified the nature of this Resurrection spell. Was it a soul resurrection, a soul essence resurrection, or just a physical memory resurrection?
She knew my essence was a soul, so this spell had to have a deeper meaning. I'd have to find time to look into it.
When I was back in the dream, I'd do some "violent disassembly" to see what the ritual inside the Resurrection spellbook looked like. If I could study it, I would; if it was too complex, I'd set it aside for now.
* * *
Several days later.
Ninglan New City was in a state of upheaval. The frequent and erratic movements of the City Lord, the issuance of new regulations, and other actions had naturally sparked widespread resentment.
Combined with the looming threat of the mutant beast tide and the forced conscription to combat it, Ninglan New City was like a suppressed volcano, waiting for a single spark to explode.
Yet, on this wasteland, Ninglan New City was the last refuge for humanity. No one could leave, and no one could afford to just stand by and watch.
The citizens didn't ask for much out of life, and they didn't particularly care who the City Lord was. But once the City Lord touched the fundamental interests of the majority, the outcome was inevitable.
And the most fundamental interest for everyone was, of course, survival.
No one wanted to die for no reason. Rumors that the City Lord was colluding with Dream Demons and using Nightmares to maintain a high-pressure rule over the city were spreading like wildfire.
Simultaneously, a quiet campaign to clear the names of the Outsiders was underway. More and more people were coming forward to say that the Outsiders they knew had been investigating the Nightmares. More people were highlighting the Outsiders' contributions to driving the Nightmares away.
For the citizens who had spent their entire lives in Ninglan New City, life was like a stagnant pond. Their only world was the city, their only news came from the stands, and their only entertainment was neighborhood gossip.
Any topic could spread through the city like a plague, especially when it involved a dramatic reversal of public opinion.
If the City Lord had lost control of the narrative, it only meant one thing: he had fed the people too well.
When survival was no longer the immediate concern and the city was stable, entertainment became the dominant topic. Daily chats and city events were fodder for the aggressive reporters to put on tomorrow's front page.
Some things couldn't be suppressed—like the fact that the current City Lord was no longer fit to lead them.
"It seems the commoners have quite a few complaints about your rule. Or... is this the outcome you were hoping for?" Inside Ninglan Township Castle, a Dream Demon spoke openly, no longer bothering to hide from the officials. She had brought their dark dealings into the light.
Ninglan Qiuyun looked down at his officials with a dark expression. His heart was bleeding. Things were slipping out of his control. He had underestimated the power of the Dream Demons. Even with a massive purge, Ninglan New City was going to undergo a painful, bone-deep reformation.
But he couldn't understand how the Dream Demons had seized the city's lifelines so quickly. The corruption and greed of his officials were being laid bare; it seemed they would destroy themselves without the enemy even lifting a finger.
"You... Dream Demons... what exactly do you want from Ninglan New City?" Ninglan Qiuyun asked, forcing his emotions down and speaking with what remained of his reason.
"Hehe, is that any way to speak to me? I wonder where you get your courage." The Dream Demon laughed and sat on the corner of the City Lord's desk. She looked down at the officials as if she were the one in charge.
"But since you're at death's door, I suppose I can tell you. To us, Ninglan New City is nothing more than a small stepping stone. Our goal is the last pure land of the Main World."
"And, of course, those Nightmares. The exquisite Luck within them. From the very beginning, our targets were the Nightmares. Those Outsiders are also after them. We're just two groups of hunters chasing the same prey. The only difference is that our goal is clear, while the Outsiders are still being kept in the dark."
"You... all of this was for that? Then why did you have to drag Ninglan New City into..."
"Hehe... Standing here for a thousand years amidst the ruins abandoned by the Main World, Ninglan New City is also protected by Luck. We aren't just chasing the Nightmares; we're chasing the Luck within them. And the Luck within Ninglan New City is even more precious."
"Protected by Luck?!"
"You... you want to steal the Luck of Ninglan New City?"
"Yes~ But... looking at you, you don't seem to understand the importance of Luck at all. You probably even doubt its existence, don't you? That's fine. It's better if you don't believe."
"I believe. I believe everything you've said. If it's Luck you want, take it! Just stop tormenting Ninglan New City!" Ninglan Qiuyun said in a low voice.
"Hahaha! What an ignorant statement! 'Take it'? What do you think Luck is? Once Ninglan New City loses the protection of Luck, you won't be able to survive here. Natural disasters, man-made calamities... they will ruthlessly destroy your precious city~" The Dream Demon burst into laughter at the City Lord's words. Even so, she continued to explain, as some people lacked the basic knowledge to even understand what kind of existence they were facing.
But her explanation finally crossed the City Lord's line.
"This is a declaration of war against Ninglan New City!"
"Exactly. Didn't you know? I suppose the information gap only breeds fools like you. In my eyes, you're just a bunch of idiots being slowly devoured by us. A declaration of war? Hasn't your son already broken ties with you? I won't even have to lift a finger to see Ninglan New City fall."
"Ninglan Qiuyu..."
Ninglan Qiuyun slumped back into his chair.
"What? Lost hope? I seem to recall you had some trump cards left. Type IV Beyonder Killing Weapons, a path paved for your son, clearing the obstacles to his succession... weapons meant for hunting Dream Demons."
"I heard one of our companions died at the hands of your Type III Beyonder Killing Weapon. I wonder if that's true? I'm so scared~ But so what? Can your Beyonder Killing Weapons kill me?"
The Dream Demon mocked the City Lord to his face, her body beginning to fade into the dream.
"You personally drove those Outsiders out of the city. Your only hope is... Ugh! Who?!"
Just as the Dream Demon was reveling in her arrogance, a sharp weapon pierced through her abdomen. A cold, self-mocking voice rang out.
"So, Dream Demons can be killed after all."
A figure emerged from the shadows. But as he moved to deliver a second strike, his blade hit nothing but air.
The enemy had decisively retreated from the dream.
"Tsk..."
"You... a Wizard? Damn it! Weren't you all driven out of the city!"
The Wizard didn't answer. Instead, a thunderous boom tore through the air.
A bullet surging with violent transcendent power instantly shredded the Dream Demon. Flesh and blood splattered everywhere, staining the room red.
Ninglan Qiuyun, who was closest to the demon, was half-covered in blood. He calmly wiped the gore from his eyes and looked down at his officials.
"Change of plans. The purge of the Dream Demons begins early. Also... I'll have to trouble you all," Ninglan Qiuyun said, his gaze shifting back to the Wizard.
"Understood. But you're moving a bit too hastily."
"It can't be helped. We knew too little. 'Protection by Luck'... I never understood that concept. But if they want us to perish just so they can seize our so-called Luck, then they must die. I have to cut our losses now."
"Fair enough. Survival is your priority, after all. Thanks for the tip; it's the first I've heard of 'Luck.' I'll take the information from that Dream Demon as payment." The figure donned a mask-like Wizard Tool and vanished from sight.
"Let's go. We've been partners for many years; I know exactly what kind of people you are. Fight for Ninglan New City one last time, and I'll give you a dignified end," Ninglan Qiuyun said to the silent officials below.
The officials remained speechless. It wasn't just the fear of death; it was the chilling decisiveness of the City Lord. More importantly, they knew that by making this decision, the City Lord had ensured he would never have a dignified end of his own.