Chapter 576

Chapter 420 – Memory

On the northern shore of Conquer Sea, in Navaha.

As the moon set and the sun rose, time seemed to twist. In what felt like the blink of an eye, another night had passed swiftly. Just as usual, Navaha welcomed yet another morning.

In the early hours of the morning, the citizens of Navaha began to awaken from deep slumber. For most people, last night was just another ordinary night. After waking up in the morning, they resumed their daily activities, with the only difference being that they might have slept more deeply than usual.

However, when the citizens of Navaha were going about their morning routines, washing up and heading out to work, they noticed some unusual occurrences on the streets. Most notably, major restaurants and street stalls that should have been open for breakfast were not operating. Those who usually ate outside found themselves unable to buy any breakfast after searching for a long time. Upon inquiry, they discovered that all these establishments had not opened because everyone had overslept, leaving no time to prepare for business.

It wasn’t just about breakfast; the citizens of Navaha also noticed other issues during this morning. For example, police officers who should have been patrolling were found sleeping on the streets. There were no newspaper vendors due to lack of preparation. Thieves were even caught sleeping on rooftops…

Among these events, the most peculiar were the cases involving patients suffering from Hypersomnia. These patients, who were originally treated in psychiatric hospitals, were found sleeping on the streets very early in the morning. What was even more astonishing was that many of these patients, previously considered incurable, miraculously regained their mental faculties upon being awakened. Although they still appeared somewhat disoriented and confused, they were no longer the hollow shells they once were. They could speak coherently and even recognize friends and family on the streets, although their minds were not entirely clear, their overall condition had improved significantly compared to before.

Although the scale of Hypersomnia had never been large enough to affect the city’s functions or the lives of most citizens, the high rate of psychiatric disorders in Navaha had always been a source of concern for its residents. The three psychiatric hospitals on the outskirts of the city and the various rumors that had circulated for over a decade had already cast a shadow over Navaha.

Most residents of Navaha were aware of this strange illness and feared it, constantly worrying that they might fall victim to it. In recent years, as the incidence of Hypersomnia had increased, so had the fear among the populace. Some young people had begun to leave this city shrouded by bizarre illnesses. Many residents of Navaha had already been affected by Hypersomnia, and if this strange disease continued to spread, it would only deepen the underlying fear.

The sudden improvement in some Hypersomnia patients brought hope to many who had been afraid of the illness. They rejoiced and praised the grace of the Three Saints.

In summary, after a chaotic morning, Navaha gradually returned to normal, with basic order restored.

After working through the night, Dorothy returned late to her hotel and slept until noon. Even the noisy seagulls outside did not wake her up. It was well past midday when she finally stretched and got up.

Upon getting up, Dorothy first opened the curtains and looked out at the vast sea and bustling seaside city. After taking a breath of sea air, she contentedly went back inside to wash up.

After washing up, Dorothy changed out of her pajamas and picked out a brown checkered dress from her suitcase. She combed her hair, put on a hat, and slipped on her little leather shoes before stepping down the stairs with a light step.

After leaving the hotel, Dorothy found a restaurant she had eaten at before and thought was decent. She ordered a potato pancake, a bowl of cold vegetable soup, a meat roll, and a glass of milk for breakfast and lunch.

While leisurely eating, Dorothy began to pay special attention to the conversations of other customers in the restaurant to confirm the impact of the previous night’s events.

“It seems that most of the people affected by hypnosis in the city woke up this morning… Normal people who were hypnotized by the moth would only sleep for one night if the hypnotic effect doesn’t persist. Although many experienced strange situations in the morning, few knew what happened at night. Apart from the church members, no one else has seen the moth.”

“And… Many of those originally drained of their dream cocoons have started to recover. When I saw the spirits revert to dream cocoons in the forest yesterday, I wondered if the Hypersomnia patients could recover… I didn’t expect them to actually recover. It seems that even if the dream cocoon is drained, there’s still a chance to recover if the extracted spirit hasn’t been fully digested. However, spirits that have been deeply digested seem impossible to revert to dream cocoons…”

Dorothy thought to herself while gathering information. She noticed that those who could recover were relatively new cases, having become Hypersomnia patients for a shorter period. Many long-term patients still showed no signs of improvement.

“After I killed the moth… some of the spirits returned to form the original dream cocoon, while others slowly dissipated. Those that dissipated might have been absorbed by the moth for too long and couldn’t return to the original dream cocoon… It’s a bit disappointing. Not everyone can recover. The damage left by the Black Dream Hunter Group in this city is too deep and lasting; it cannot be completely healed…”

Dorothy sighed inwardly as she confirmed the current situation in Navaha. Then she began to focus on her main task, carefully reading the memory bubbles she had collected the previous night. According to Dorothy’s judgment, these should be the products of the mental states of Black Dream Hunter Group members after being severely damaged along with the moth.

Some ordinary memory bubbles quickly shattered, while those containing Poison Recognition remained. Dorothy absorbed them using her mimicry ability. She had encountered such special memory bubbles carrying forbidden knowledge during her first entry into the Dream Realm.

While eating her lunch, Dorothy began to read the information contained within the memory bubbles. Soon, she discovered that the contents of these bubbles mainly consisted of three parts, equivalent to three secret transmissions.

The first part documented a new method of accumulating spiritual energy called the Dream Hunting Method. According to the contents of the memory bubbles, this method could obtain “Shadow” spiritual energy by hunting Dream Realm beings or other Dream Realm mimics. Besides cultivating pseudo-moths to extract spiritual energy from ordinary people’s dream cocoons, the Black Dream Hunter Group seemed to use this method as well. This appeared to be quite a universal method of accumulating spiritual energy.