Chapter 864: This Isn't a Report, It's a Direct Notification!
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 864: This Isn't a Report, It's a Direct Notification!
Inside the laboratory.
This was one of the few times I had actually spent in the lab over the past few days.
The rest of my time had been spent searching for the academy’s other Fool's Dreams, bringing these "strays" back to the Tree of Fool's Dream.
I had discovered that the memories I previously envisioned—those processed through [Transcendent Knowledge] fragments and Soul Depiction—could serve as indispensable material for a Fool's Dream to become a true lifeform.
However, memories gathered from these unsystematic [Transcendent Knowledge] fragments could never compare to a Fool's Dream Seed molded by the Dream Scroll.
It was an advantage at the fundamental structural level. After all, the [Transcendent Knowledge] fragments weren't originally intended for this purpose. One could say that for professional work, you needed professional tools.
So, over these past few days, I had completed the "root tracing" for over a hundred Fool's Dreams within the academy.
Although the Fool's Dreams in the Witch Academy knew nothing of the history depicted by those in Fool's Village, they still held a celebratory homecoming ritual for these hundred-plus remaining "Braves."
They had lost their past memories, but being fellow Fool's Dreams was reason enough for them to be accepted.
Once the root tracing was complete, however, most still chose to return to reality to realize their self-worth there.
A few chose to stay in the Fool's Village within my Soul Dream. These were their own choices, and I wouldn't interfere too much.
Thus, I had been busy with these matters lately.
Any student who paid attention to the Fool's Dreams in their daily lives would surely notice that many unfamiliar yet adorable Fool's Dreams had appeared in the academy's witch cat cafes.
Though their movements were green and they were a bit clumsy, they were still experts at mixing Fool's Dream Drinks.
* * *
I arrived at the laboratory.
Occupying an entire lab by myself was a bit extravagant, but who told me I had the capital to be so willful?
Besides me, there were four other little ones in the lab: Yulan, Yu Yun, Yu Guo, and Yu Xing.
These four would be my little assistants for what came next—likely my only four assistants.
This was because I planned to designate the area where this laboratory was located as a Dream Zone.
I intended to replicate a localized overlap of the Primitive Dream Realm here in the Core World experimental zone.
Yes, an overlap of the Primitive Dream Realm, not just a common shallow dream overlap.
This plan essentially ruled out the possibility of people like Yi Rui helping me out in the lab. The moment they stepped inside, they would effectively be lost within the Primitive Dream Realm.
Setting the assistant issue aside for a moment...
First of all, trying to manifest a Primitive Dream Realm zone within a laboratory was extremely difficult from a "technical level" alone.
If dreams are compared to a shallow sea, then overlapping a dream with reality is like simulating a shallow water environment in a localized area.
But if I wanted to confine the Primitive Dream Realm to a very small area, it was like saying I wanted to simulate a tsunami within that same tiny space. It was practically a pipe dream.
Most people couldn't even begin to imagine such a thing, and if you can't imagine it, you certainly can't achieve it.
However... I possessed the Primal Runes and resonance techniques for overlapping dream zones via Domain Order. Combined with the Dream Domain within the Primitive Dream Realm, I had a dual guarantee from both "reality" and "dream" to create a tiny area like this.
As for why I was going through all this trouble to recreate a "controllable" Primitive Dream Realm zone in reality when I had said I was basically done with my business in the Primitive Dream Realm?
Naturally, it was because doing so was more efficient and convenient for authentic simulation!
Both an abacus and a supercomputer can be used for calculations, so why wouldn't you choose the better tool?
So now, I had already begun planning the layout for my "Controllable Primitive Dream Realm Descent."
Since such a site would definitely require a large-scale shallow dream to act as a transition and buffer, the range of the shallow dream would exceed my lab's boundaries and cover the exterior of the building. However, I would try my best to keep it within the footprint of my lab so as not to disturb the progress of other laboratories.
According to the information simulations from my Tree of Great Knowledge, after obtaining the actual data of the lab, I found that the size of the "Deep Primitive Dream Realm" I could stably create in reality... might be less than an eighth of a cubic meter.
And that was likely my limit.
Once the plan was finalized, I began clearing out various equipment from the lab to leave enough space for this "Controllable Primitive Dream Realm Descent" experiment.
I knew perfectly well that the Primitive Dream Realm wouldn't cause any physical damage to reality, but at least it would look cleaner this way.
After all, one's mood can sometimes heavily influence the progress of an experiment.
"Hmm... since I'm doing this kind of experiment in the Core World, maybe I should report it to the Academy Dean... I hope she doesn't have too much of a stress reaction."
This time, I didn't have the Dream Scroll to act as a deep anchor for the Primitive Dream Realm. Plus, I had learned to restrain the influence of my Domain Order within the Primitive Dream Realm. It was naturally impossible for me to cause something as ridiculous as a Dreamscape Calamity in the Core World.
I had promised the Dean I wouldn't make too much of a scene, after all.
To avoid unnecessary bickering, I drafted my report and sent it directly to the Dean.
With the process out of the way, I only needed to wait for her to reply with a "yes" or "no."
As for the rest... naturally, it was time to start the hands-on work!
I wasn't the type of researcher who needed massive amounts of transcendent materials for stability and assistance, so I kept everything simple.
This attempt involved only two levels. The first was fully mastering the resonant Primal Runes for dream overlap in reality, using Domain Order to stabilize the overlap. The second was using the Dream Domain as a catalyst on the Primitive Dream Realm level to complete my original vision.
The plan looked quite rudimentary on paper, but the execution would be a massive test of my timing.
As my domain gradually expanded and covered the laboratory, I could feel the changes within it.
Lacking the "base point" of the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art, my domain felt "discordant," though not to the point of collapse.
This was because the foundation of this domain originated from the Heart State Domain of the Body Cultivation Sixth Sense, Heart Sense.
I had to admit... in reality, the power of my domain's Order had "weakened" visibly. Lacking the energy balance provided by a Great Spellbook and its corresponding void rift, it naturally wasn't as handy as before.
Even the Power of Knowledge at this moment had become "true" Power of Knowledge; the characteristics and Order belonging to the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art were dissipating.
The knowledge surfacing from the Power of Knowledge was entirely from the Tree of Great Knowledge, only now it lacked "deduction."
However, one thing worth mentioning was... my development of the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art had been very low. While it had a huge impact on the Domain Order, its influence on the characteristics of Power of Knowledge wasn't that significant.
But this wasn't something to be happy about. A temporary low point was for the sake of soaring higher later!
Since this [Transcendent Knowledge] had already broken away from the framework of the original Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art, it felt inappropriate to keep calling it by that name.
So, I decided to adopt the terminology of the Fool's Dreams and temporarily refer to this [Transcendent Knowledge] as the "Holy Relic."
The relationship between the Holy Relic and me was currently very subtle.
It used "Me," the "Fool's Dream Seed," and "Life" as elements to construct a ritual for the concept of "Leading to Life."
Furthermore, a stable relationship was established between "Me" and the "Fool's Dream Seed" with "Faith" as the bond. By using "Me" and my "Actions" to lead toward the concept of "Life," all the components of the ritual were linked together.
It firmly bound me and the Fool's Dreams into a tight, singular entity.
Ultimately, this was just the Holy Relic's way of shaping a "carrier" that could bear its concept of "Leading to Life."
And this "carrier" was extremely abstract.
So much so that it wasn't a specific object, nor just a group of Fool's Dreams, nor even me as a person. It was the total superposition of complex behaviors, concepts, and processes—a "result" that couldn't be described with linguistic concepts.
Therefore, I needed to give this complex concept a definition and label it with annotations.
I assigned this definition to my vision of the "Fool's Dream Clan."
This meant that the Holy Relic was never a power that directly transformed Fool's Dreams into life. Rather, only after a Fool's Dream transformed into life would this power truly manifest. That was the correct way to use it.
Perhaps Fool's Dreams weren't the only solution for the Holy Relic, but since it had fallen into my hands, it was the only solution for the Fool's Dreams!
Right now, it was merely a lock, and the Fool's Dreams were the key.
However, I could use this lock as a template to shape the Fool's Dreams into that key.
In other words, the transcendent techniques derived from the Holy Relic were the secret to transforming Fool's Dreams into life.
As my Domain Order gradually stabilized, I also attempted to refocus the power of the Holy Relic back into the Domain Order.
Although this couldn't provide a void rift to maintain energy balance like a Great Spellbook, I felt that energy was a minor issue. Achieving the perfection of Order was what mattered most!
After all... for energy, I had the "Infinite Mana" plan. Although that vision hadn't been fully realized yet, it was a feasible method. I just needed time and the inspiration to make it happen...
As for the Holy Relic, my understanding of it wasn't yet sufficient to fully integrate it into my domain's Order.
As the Domain Order was maintained, I could visibly feel... that my endurance in maintaining the domain was no longer what it used to be.
I fixed my gaze on my golden Power of Knowledge. The integration of the Holy Relic was progressing faster than expected, but the domain didn't become more durable or powerful because of it.
I only felt a subtle, unique shift in the transformation of Power of Knowledge.
Power of Knowledge now lacked the concept of "Wisdom," which meant it lacked the function of autonomous deduction.
Though... I hadn't used that ability for many things, the things I had achieved with it were all vital. For instance... the Domain Order resonance and the Primal Runes for overlapping dreams were born from the deductive power of Wisdom.
And now... what kind of sparks would fly between "Knowledge" and "Life"... even I was looking forward to it!
But for the moment, my primary goal was the "Controllable Primitive Dream Realm Descent."
Accompanied by the unique disturbance of a dream, my laboratory was covered by a shallow dream in an instant.
Watching this "normal phenomenon," my heart remained calm as I continued the experiment methodically.
As my consciousness entered the Primitive Dream Realm, the Dream Domain expanded, and the "me" existing within the Primitive Dream Realm began to exert force.
Until a certain critical point, the Primitive Dream Realm broke through the boundaries of reality and descended!
"Crap! That was a bit loud!"
I snapped my eyes open, feeling no joy in my success.
Everything had gone according to plan, except for the disturbance caused by the Primitive Dream Realm breaking through the threshold of reality—it had exceeded my expectations!
I looked at the tiny area of "Controllable Primitive Dream Realm" in front of me, barely the size of a fist. This was the Dream Core where the initial Primitive Dream Realm had breached reality. The surrounding reality, overlapped by the shallow dream, radiated a dreamlike, ethereal scenery with this core at its center.
Information precipitated within the Primitive Dream Realm was constantly pouring into reality, causing "distorted" yet "exquisite" images to flicker continuously.
Thud, thud, thud!
Right then, my laboratory door was pounded on violently.
"Oh no... it couldn't be the Dean herself, could it?" I instinctively pulled up the report I had sent her, only to notice that she had already replied.
"No. Stop conducting these dangerous experiments in the Core World. The academy is not a place for you to mess around!"
Seeing this firm rejection, my heart sank halfway... and at that moment, the lab door was pounded on again.
Those knocks weren't hitting the door; they were hitting my heart!
"Coming, coming!" I called out, not caring if the person outside heard me.
As I opened the door, the person standing there was exactly who I expected—Dean Mei!
"Hi... Hi, Dean? What a coincidence, running into you again." I spoke with a bit of awkwardness... my words were even a bit muddled.
"Coincidence? Xiao Han! What on earth have you done this time!"
Dean Mei Lind wasn't going to indulge me this time. She grabbed me by the back of my collar and marched into my lab.
Then, she saw the very conspicuous Primitive Dream Realm Core in the center of the room.
"Xiao Han, didn't I tell you to behave? Is this your idea of behaving? What is this?" Mei Lind pointed at the Primitive Dream Realm and questioned me.
"This... this is the Dream Core of a Controllable Primitive Dream Realm Descent! Believe me, Dean! This thing is really stable! It won't affect the whole Witch Academy! I really have a sense of proportion!"
"Do you have any idea how dangerous the Primitive Dream Realm is? Didn't you say you were done with everything you needed to do inside it? What kind of trouble are you stirring up now?"
"Well... I am done... but, but... having it and not having it are two completely different things... and... I did file a report..."
And the main reason I had left the Primitive Dream Realm so quickly was that I was in a hurry to see Sister Bai... but I didn't dare mention that reason now.
"A report? You still have the nerve to say that? I explicitly rejected your report. This isn't a report—it's a direct notification, isn't it? Huh?" At the mention of this, Mei Lind felt her temper rising even more.
Heaven knows she had almost laughed when she first read the report Xiao Han sent. But not long after she rejected it, she couldn't laugh anymore, because she had once again experienced Xiao Han's talent for causing trouble.
"Something this dangerous—I suggest you clear it out immediately..." Mei Lind said, before shifting her tone. "It seems if I don't keep a tighter leash on you, next time you'll report to me only after you've finished dismantling the entire Witch Academy, won't you?"
"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare..." I said, waving my hands frantically.