Chapter 426: What the Secret Diggers Plunder
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 426: What the Secret Diggers Plunder
Seeing me preparing to retire to my own bedroom for the night, several of the Witch Mentors who had been chatting with me earlier stepped forward to exchange a few more words.
They mostly asked if there was any "fun" to be had in this world. I shared a few locations from my global travel itinerary, but they seemed largely indifferent to the sights. Instead, they showed a flicker of interest in the Omni-Link Main Network Trees.
As they watched me leave, one of the witches suddenly spoke up. "By the way, shouldn't we tell Xiao Han about this?"
The atmosphere in the front hall eased instantly at her words.
"Why tell Xiao Han early? I’m not a big mouth like Mei. It’s better to leave a little surprise," Dean Bev said nonchalantly. "I wonder what kind of face Xiao Han will make upon seeing those guys in the Main World. It’ll probably be quite a sight."
She toyed with a Transcendent Pixel in her hand. The pixel wasn't even sealed, yet it remained stable in her palm without dissipating. This small gesture was a clear sign that they were far from ignorant regarding the Secret Diggers.
"True. Though Xiao Han’s reverse summoning ritual seems to have some potential. I just hope she doesn't end up wiping out that world before we get there."
"Surely it won't come to that?"
"Xiao Han has already spread the reverse summoning rune ritual far and wide, hasn't she? Just in case..."
"Forget it, let's not talk about that. Honestly, there’s nothing fun in this world at all."
"Come to think of it... this world is likely just the entry ticket sent over by the Abyssal Demons, right?"
At this point, the group of witches discussed the matter without reservation. They understood the Abyssal Demons' intentions perfectly and knew the Witch Academy's stance. It was all about gaining a foothold in the Main World, wasn't it?
However, that didn't stop them from loathing those hideous demons.
The small world they were currently in was merely an appetizer. The real prize was the unknown world linked to it—one they tentatively theorized to be a Large World.
After getting a brief overview from Xiao Han, that world had been designated as the "Game World," and the numerous small worlds attached to it were quite substantial in their own right.
It was clear how much effort the Abyssal Demons had put into currying favor. On the surface, they had only "gifted" a single small world, but in reality, it was a case of "a small gift carrying heavy sentiment."
Under these circumstances, the Witch faction would be hard-pressed not to support the Abyssal Demons' entry into the Main World.
In fact, other Transcendent Academies had received similar benefits. How else did those Lesser Demon Academies and Necromancy Academies in the Main World get established? It was all through greasing palms and using the back door.
The Three Top Academies had certainly taken their share of benefits; otherwise, they would never have acknowledged the legitimacy of those institutions.
But now, it seemed it was the Witch Academy's turn. The Abyssal Demons weren't fools. They had given gifts to the Three Great Transcendent Races only to have trash like Lesser Demons and Undead squeezed in. Naturally, they wanted to cut their losses.
It was better to start with the witches. Witches were generally indifferent, and some had even expressed a willingness to accept high-ranking demons like Succubus Witches into the Main World. Once high-ranking demons led the way, their entry would effectively tear a permanent opening in the Main World.
Those Abyssal Demons were confident that they could eventually integrate those smaller academies and expand the Abyssal Demon Academy to a scale rivaling the Three Top Academies.
* * *
At that moment, I paused briefly on my way back, trying to eavesdrop on the Dean and the others. But after waiting for a while without hearing a sound, I gave up. They had likely set up some Silencing Rune or soundproofing spell...
Probably specifically to keep me out.
If they didn't want me to hear, I wouldn't force it.
While it would be ideal if the Witch Academy's high-level secrets were shared with me without reservation, I saw things clearly. The Dean and the others had no obligation to tell me their plans or arrangements.
After a quick bath, I returned to my bedroom.
I didn't go to sleep, however. My need for rest was steadily decreasing, and my daily routine was drifting further and further from its original track.
But it made sense. The concept of "working at sunrise and resting at sunset" was a habit humans formed to adapt to their environment. From the perspective of the Void, there was no such thing as day or night. When one's mind was no longer confined to a single world, the concept of rest changed accordingly.
The external cycle of day and night was no longer a factor; I decided when to rest based on my own condition.
It was a process of shifting from external dependence to internal self-reflection.
Wasn't the cycle of day and night within a world just a compliance test for all life within it?
For instance, it's late—will you sleep? If you don't, it's called "staying up late." It's daytime—will you get up? If you don't, it's "sleeping in" or "daydreaming."
Faced with such rigid structures, those unwilling to settle developed a rebellious streak, giving rise to "nightlife." Given the nature of the Witch race, I suddenly understood why nightlife was such a prominent feature of the Witch Academy.
So now... I would stay up late, and rightfully so!
I wasn't sleepy anyway, so I might as well spend the time exploring more about the Tree of Knowledge.
I was still thinking about linking it with my Illusion Clone, but that was no easy task.
In the gaps between my research, I also manipulated public opinion on the Plantnet. I pretended to be a fellow Secret Digger who had discovered the secret of this world: that it was the root of all magic! I claimed the buried secret was the origin of all transcendent power.
I knew this wouldn't fool the upper echelons of that civilization. They valued this world's secrets so highly because they knew [Transcendent Knowledge] was here, or at least suspected it. But they knew for a fact it wasn't "magic."
If it were, the introduction of magic and spells would cause a significant shock to their tech-side foundation.
But what if the higher-ups knew? It was enough that the bottom-layer players didn't. Even if the authorities tried to stop it, it would be futile unless they cheated—and doing that would be tantamount to telling the players the game was rigged.
I stayed up all night working on my own projects. Even before the sun was fully up, I began my daily routine of meditation and body cultivation. These practices had become ingrained habits.
However, I noticed the effects of body cultivation were gradually diminishing. I had likely reached the limit of what the Primary Ritual War Dance could offer. Once I returned to the Witch Academy, I could simply swap it for something more advanced.
After finishing my routine, I noticed quite a few Witch Mentors were already up. Or perhaps... they hadn't slept at all, just like me?
I suspected the latter.
Some had already vanished since last night, reportedly off to find some "fun."
After a night of reflection, I realized I still had many questions.
For example... what exactly were these Secret Diggers after when they invaded this world?
Was it purely for [Transcendent Knowledge]?
But if there was no immediate profit, could such an endeavor really be sustained?
Especially now that they had abandoned it halfway—that should have been a total loss.
When I took this question to the Dean, she didn't hide anything and told me directly.
First, she corrected my perspective on what constitutes "profit" in a world invasion. At the level of world-scale invasions, simple material plunder was no longer the goal.
If they were going to plunder materials, it would at most be for transcendent materials or rare substances.
Plunder between worlds focused primarily on three aspects, known as the "World Three Source Elements."
The material plunder I mentioned was essentially the theft of "World Origin Soil." Sufficient World Origin Soil is the foundation for a world's growth and expansion.
Then there are "Transcendent Source Crystals." These determine a world's development and are one of the primary reasons for the abundance or scarcity of transcendent energy.
Did I really think every technological world was firmly tech-side by choice? Perhaps they simply lacked enough Transcendent Source Crystals to sprout the seeds of a transcendent civilization.
As for the small world we were in, while it wasn't exactly lacking in Transcendent Source Crystals, it had taken the path of plant technology under the intervention of the World Will.
The final of the Three Source Elements was something I was familiar with: "Soul Essence." Soul Essence is the life force flowing through a world and the foundation for the birth of life.
Based on my description of the Secret Diggers' bloodthirsty nature, they were very likely plundering Soul Essence.
Since they used [Transcendent Knowledge] to invade and control small worlds via a "game," they needed a massive population to support such development. It wasn't hard to guess that they had discovered the secret of Soul Essence and were using its plunder as a means of world development.
As for why one of the Three Source Elements was Soul Essence rather than "souls," it was because the concept of the soul had not yet spread widely throughout the Void.
More importantly... the Main World had not "acknowledged" it. When the concept of the soul penetrates deep into the Void, and when the birth of the next Main World recognizes the concept of the soul and uses it as the basis for life, only then will the concept of the soul be implemented without hindrance across the Void!
Newly born worlds in the Void would even follow the concept of the soul for the evolution of life from the very beginning.
The Main World is special because it is the only existence situated on the mainstream of the River of Ley Lines.
Its fluctuations pull at the changes of the entire Void.
It’s like the concept of Real Time, which is widely recognized by the Void. Because of this, even non-transcendent beings in the Main World can possess talents like Spirit Vision. And it’s not just Spirit Vision; in past worlds that held the title of Main World, there were cases of other senses touching Real Time. These correspond to the "Real Five Senses"—five ways to perceive Real Time.
Spirit Vision is the visual perception among those five senses.
There is another even more widely circulated proof: the concept of "Humans." Because humans held the dominant position in the original Main World, many small worlds born in the Void appear in humanoid forms.
They also call themselves humans. Even if there are slight differences in appearance, they are all part of the Human Race. To distinguish themselves, they try to categorize different human races.
This is why so many transcendent races flock to the Main World. Doing so effectively carves their race's "concept" into the River of Ley Lines of the Void. Even if the influence is small, it is enough to allow various transcendent races to flourish in the Void, just as the "human" concept did.
Even if they have no essential connection, the sense of belonging as a similar race is subtle but powerful.
Furthermore, given the natural tendency of life to admire the strong, races in the Void will naturally be led by those of their kind who were the first to ascend to transcendence...
This information hit my understanding like a tidal wave, giving me a much deeper grasp of the "Main World" concept.
Of course, Dean Bev didn't tell me all of this. She only gave me a brief overview of the World Three Source Elements and the theory that the Secret Diggers were harvesting this world's Soul Essence. That was all.
I used the Plantnet to compare the annual birth rates and total population data of this world; they were indeed declining year by year, which indirectly proved the theory correct.
As for the rest of the information regarding the Main World, I had to shamelessly pester the other mentors for it.
Teacher Ji Niang and Dean Mei Lind had already conditioned me to be intensely curious about these novel concepts, so I instinctively sought to understand anything that piqued my interest.
But learning these things wasn't free. They weren't like Dean Mei or Teacher Ji Niang, who were willing to talk about anything.
I had to share my total administrative authority over this world's Plantnet to get one Witch Mentor to talk. When I proposed the trade, she looked at me as if she’d seen a ghost, but in the end, she accepted readily.
She even shared many other interesting anecdotes that truly opened my eyes.
As expected... building good relationships with mentors is key. The casual stories they tell can be the very things that broaden my horizons.
Although Dean Bev didn't seem like the type who enjoyed talking as much as Dean Mei, she didn't stop me from learning these things.
For the remaining time, I planned to continue my journey. I even helped renew the stay at the guesthouse where the Dean and the others were staying.
After all, the Witch Mentors would certainly want to investigate the state of this world personally; the information they got from me and Qiu Ruxin was only supplementary.
But with the highest authority over the Plantnet I provided, their workload was effectively slashed.
Regardless, this world was destined to be integrated into the Main World. They weren't going to start with thoughts of world destruction.
Such an absurd idea was something only I would occasionally entertain.
This world was truly terrible, but... if I decided to destroy every unfamiliar world I happened upon just because it didn't suit my tastes, wouldn't I work myself to death?
By then, my title as the Calamity Witch would be set in stone—I might even be promoted to the World-Destroying Witch or something.
One mentor also revealed that their arrival wasn't just to break the information barrier between worlds, but also to accelerate the collision and fusion of this small world with the Main World to a certain extent. However, there was no specific timeline for how long that would take.
Setting aside unrealistic fantasies and things I couldn't interfere with, I planned to fully release my mind and body during this trip before returning to the Witch Academy.
I estimated this would take a few months. Since the Dean and the mentors hadn't ordered me back, this was a legitimate Otherworld Exploration Mission!
Besides, I was exempt from classes. Travel was its own form of cultivation; at most, I’d just miss a few monthly exams.
And if the Dean or Teacher Ji Niang wanted me back, a single reverse summoning ritual could bring me home instantly. It was very convenient.
If I worried about every little thing, I might as well have never come on this trip in the first place.
At this moment, the only person I truly missed was probably Sister Bai.
This time... it really had been a long time since we last met.
Yet, I also hoped Sister Bai wouldn't return too quickly. After leaving the Main World, the world of witches was surely a place better suited for her. There, her development would be much faster.
In the Main World... the restrictions were numerous.
This was a clash between my own selfish desires and my concern for Sister Bai.
But no matter how much I thought about it, the choice could only be hers.
Indeed... no matter how clearly I think through everything else, I still become irrational when it comes to Sister Bai. But I simply don't want to be rational about this.
Because affection and love cannot withstand such cold, logical scrutiny. Sometimes, a person just needs to be sentimental.