Chapter 604 “Game Plan,” Player vs. Player
Inside Ninglan New City.
The pressure of overlapping dreams enveloped all those in the know, and a dedicated team was continuously monitoring the nearest explosion node of the overlapping dream space. According to the data currently collected, it wouldn’t be long before it potentially covered the entire surrounding area of Ninglan New City.
Thus, everyone in the know was learning this so-called Dream Demon Spell. Although Principal Elena had laid out the conditions for learning, no one was a fool; when it came to their own abilities, they had no choice but to learn!
Overlapping dreams had a high probability of erupting anywhere, and places where Soul Crystals existed might attract those dream creatures, thereby promoting the outbreak of dream overlap.
Therefore, they had to master the means to escape from the dream. If they couldn’t acquire this skill, the risks of leaving the city to scavenge for resources were immense. Moreover, just in case, they needed to act alongside a Teaching Assistant who had mastered such skills, which would also result in losing their initiative.
Of course, there were also many face-related reasons. In a few days, the first batch of new students would enter; if those students found themselves trapped in dreams and couldn’t break free to seek help from her, all she could say would be “good luck.” If she got trapped and was discovered by other students, her face would be equally ruined.
Thus, they had to learn it. Complaining was of no use; after all, the world wouldn’t revolve around them.
Fortunately, the Dream Demon Spell wasn’t particularly difficult. Its difficulty mainly lay in “discovery,” “summary,” and “creation,” and they only needed to “learn” step by step.
Those who had been exposed to Rune Literature or studied Spell Ceremonies generally had some foundation and picked it up relatively quickly.
Once they truly learned it, there was only one feeling: surprisingly… the Dream Demon Spell was that easy?
The Dream Demon Spell was indeed simple; after all, its difficulty never lay in the “learning” process.
However, for those who had never engaged with Rune Literature or studied independent Spell Ceremonies, it would be a lot more troublesome. Yet, they could only hold their noses and accept it. After all, watching the Teaching Assistant next to them succeed time and again, they were naturally unwilling to be outdone.
Some successful Teaching Assistants didn’t linger too long and chose to leave directly, while a few others clearly remembered what Principal Elena had said back then and secretly approached her.
“Principal Elena, you mentioned earlier that the spells created by Xiao Han were compiled into a Spellbook…”
“I don’t have any extra Spellbooks here, and I don’t wish to trade my Spellbooks meant for collection with you.” Upon seeing their expressions, Elena sighed and flatly refused.
“Principal Elena, you misunderstood; I’m not concerned about the Spellbook, but…‘those’—didn’t Xiao Han create more than just this Dream Demon Spell?”
“Oh? You noticed this small detail?” Elena was somewhat surprised and recalled that she seemed to have let something slip.
“That’s right; Xiao Han indeed created several spells, including Nightmare Spells and Dream Demon Spells. These two spells have been systematically refined, inheriting the term ‘Dream Demon Spell’ that Xiao Han bestowed, which is what you’re currently learning. There’s also… the Dream Rewriting Spell, but this spell… needs to be used in a special environment.”
“Can Principal Elena teach us this spell?”
“I’ve said before, the scope of this spell is too narrow. Learning it would be meaningless for you; its effects only apply to that particular instance of dream overlap.” Elena shook her head again.
In reality, she had made it very clear that dream overlaps varied, and the laws governing reality and dreams were different, making specific spells inapplicable.
She had also researched this all-powerful spell within dreams. After all, the birth and use of this spell had left even them, extraordinary witches, astonished. But the deeper the understanding, the more one mused upon the fact that Xiao Han, with her limited cognitive foundation and simplest means, had articulated the characteristics and laws of dreams and reality to perfection!
The cost of this was that just altering a tiny bit of the critical overlapping laws between dreams and reality would render the spell useless.
“Can we learn it? I’m willing to spend time learning!” Upon hearing the name Dream Rewriting Spell, they were certain they had found the right path. As for Elena saying it wouldn’t be useful, they had to try it themselves to know!
“Do as you wish. If you want to study something that will yield no reward, I will, of course, teach you. This time, you won’t have to pay anything because even if you learn it, it won’t be useful unless you can gain inspiration and create a brand new Dream Rewriting Spell based on it. But… that will depend on your abilities.”
…
At the Wanlian Main Network Tree.
After confirming the final plan, I directly used magic to begin constructing the shelter.
It was a meticulous task; not that it had to be finely crafted, but the control of the spell needed to be precise, which ultimately took a great deal of my effort.
However, in the end, I was quite satisfied with my results. Seeing them move into those small houses made of earth and stones signified that they could temporarily reside here.
Of course, my hope for them to settle down came with other motives—that was to protect this newborn Wanlian Main Network Tree.
At this moment, it had grown to a diameter one-third of its original size, but it still resembled a “seedling” in terms of the shape I envisioned for its growth.
Its root system was gradually spreading, weaving into a vast network of plant roots.
The original Wanlian Main Network Tree had died, and its associated root network gradually lost connections, but the new main network tree was steadily replacing the old roots.
This would undoubtedly take a lot of time, and its growth required constant care.
Having been busy until now, I was prepared to take a break, observe its condition, and finally apply some fertilizer.
At this moment, the Wanlian Main Network Tree’s most needed fertilizer was… Extraordinary Energy, after all, it had already become an Extraordinary Plant.
Moreover… it was harnessing a type of energy known as “Earth Energy,” a peculiar energy that had once flowed through that civilization, transformed from Earth Vein Energy.
It also allowed my Earth Vein Identification Technique to bypass the control of Earth Vein Energy and acquire information and insights about the Earth Veins. As long as the techniques for transforming Earth Energy closely approached the lossless transmission of information, the information acquired through the Earth Vein Identification Technique would be virtually objective.
The current Earth Vein Identification Technique had undergone two transformations, and these two transformations determined the precision of the technique.
One was the craftsmanship of the Earth Energy Transformation Ritual, and the other was the “translation” of information and cognitive language.
In other words, the Earth Vein Identification Technique, which had been incorporated into the Great Knowledge Tree system, was a type of spellcraft that could be comprehensively understood at a glance.
However, to improve its process, it would only approach but never achieve absolute perfection. Its primary function was more about horizontal expansion, applying it to more domains.
This was akin to Qi Observation Technique, which faced similar dilemmas to the Earth Vein Identification Technique but had opened an entirely new path, playing a significant guiding role in world restoration.
Now, since the Wanlian Main Network Tree dominated Earth Energy, it meant it could support the Earth Vein Identification Technique, allowing it to gather information wherever its roots extended and the Earth Energy flowed!
Controlling the Wanlian Main Network Tree equated to controlling… the acquisition of information for the entire world!
And as long as it remained within the realm of Earth Vein information recording, there would be no privacy whatsoever!
Even Extraordinary Beings could violently sweep through localized Earth Vein information; thus, their actions would also constitute information. Therefore, even if an Extraordinary Being entered the world governed by the Wanlian Main Network Tree, I could at least track their location, and every step they took, every action they performed would require them to clear Earth Vein information; otherwise, I could observe what they were doing.
Although real-time Earth Vein information might have a certain delay due to Earth Energy transmission, that could not mask its terrifying effectiveness.
I must say, the civilization within this small world had utilized the Wanlian Main Network Tree too inefficiently.
However, it is foreseeable that if they had not encountered player invasions and being sacrificed as materials to restore the main world, their civilization would likely have developed as I had envisioned.
But all things considered, there are no “ifs”…
Focusing on the present.
What I needed to do was grant extraordinary power to those taking refuge here, enabling them to help me protect this Wanlian Main Network Tree.
My main concern remained the surviving refugees in the small world; as for those Teaching Assistants, I wager they wouldn’t dare touch my things, seeing as there would be no profit in it. Furthermore, if they did tamper with them, they would have to bear my wrath and revenge.
As for how to empower these ordinary people… I initially thought of arming them with Alchemical Items and then giving them my Reverse Summoning Spell’s business card, so they could call me if they could not handle a situation.
However, now… I felt that might not be necessary.
I looked up at the Wanlian Main Network Tree. Although I couldn’t confidently assert what effect its fruits would yield, that didn’t mean I didn’t have expectations for its planned outcome.
Gazing at the gradually growing Wanlian Main Network Tree, I also acquired all the technology from that witch sister who intended to build a “gaming platform” using my Great Knowledge Tree, through the Great Knowledge Sharing Technique.
She plans to use Knowledge Shadows to complete “augmented reality technology,” transforming it into an interactive game, one of the ideas for their gaming platform.
I found her idea quite brilliant and… very suitable for the present.
If we define the fruits of the Wanlian Main Network Tree as the registration of gaming qualification accounts, and the gaming platform rests upon the new-style Plant Network, leveraging its governing Earth Energy to structure the Earth Vein Identification Technique, then refining information display through tiered information technology, wouldn’t that become an information gaming screen?
And players would start out grasping “Basic Identification Techniques.”
The new-style Wanlian Main Network Tree and the areas covered by the Plant Network would be the “gaming zone.”
The basic outline… seemed to have been established just like that, and all that remained was to create the “skills” and “mana bar” for character creation.
After all, these two aspects would secure “the players’ basic extraordinary combat power,” followed by more complex systems like “equipment systems” and “enchantment systems,” among others.
However, all these conceptualizations required cooperation from the “fruits of the Wanlian Main Network Tree.”
Without a foundation, there could be no testing; even the best plans would be meaningless if they couldn’t fit together.
But it didn’t matter. The Wanlian Main Network Tree was now part of my system. If the effects of the first batch of fruits didn’t meet my expectations, I would not hesitate to make “adjustments.” This process resembled the gathering of Knowledge Seeds by the Knowledge Tree— as long as there was that possibility, it could be realized.
What I needed to do was continually test until I was satisfied.
With my mind made up, I didn’t plan to leave this place before perfecting this technique, so empowering these people became less urgent. It was better to let them adjust and settle into their current life for now.
As for this notion of creating a “real-life game” and “players,” besides the skills I currently had to support me in realizing this idea, that witch sister who was particularly keen on games was equally important. After all, she was one of the first witches to join my research group.
However, more importantly were the “players” from that gaming world.
I wanted to create a new batch of “players” within a limited time, enabling player versus player competition. Isn’t that intriguing?
However, I knew that my created players would undoubtedly be no match for those seasoned players, but a sufficient quantity to suppress those ordinary players would suffice. The powerful players would be left to me, along with those Teaching Assistants and students who wielded extraordinary powers.
Those players were never my enemies alone; my unfavorable impression of them stemmed mostly from contrasting stances. Conversely, the people in the Extraordinary Academy were indeed the ones with bl**d debts to repay.
They adored maintaining the peace of the main world; naturally, such a grave duty would fall upon their shoulders.
Thus, my tasks became tremendously simpler.
I was communicating and negotiating with several witch sisters, wanting to invite them to assist me in refining the implementation of the “game plan.”
However, this involved the strategic game between scripts and fortunes, and extraordinary witches could not intervene so blatantly. However… there was a stationed extraordinary witch in Ninglan New City, which indicated that intervention was possible.
But they adhered to a non-interference contract, providing only essential assistance, which might also include guiding the script’s direction.
After all, the script was merely a toy in their hands; they were indifferent to how the ending of the script unfolded but were concerned whether the conclusion could achieve their anticipated objectives.
Moreover… after the Qi Observation instrument was established in Principal Mei’s office, I had seen that instructor, Principal Elena, and I remembered her well.
Ultimately, through my persistent efforts, I managed to secure an opportunity, although those few witch sisters came in the guise of academic and technical exchange and could not intervene subjectively in the actions of anyone in the Expanding Realm—this was the most basic requirement.
This matter needed to be discussed with other extraordinary academies, as everything on the surface had to appear fair. They could accept Elena in Ninglan New City, as her main role was still to resurrect deceased students, treating witches from any academy equally.
However, if a Teaching Assistant sought special treatment, they would also demand one for fairness!
As for what benefits such special treatment would yield… that issue would require negotiation.
I felt as if I had caused quite a headache for the academy…
Although those witch sisters repeatedly stated that it was no trouble, I wasn’t blind to what was happening.
Sighing, I turned to face the Wanlian Main Network Tree and picked up the Box of Books.
I opened to the page sealing the Extraordinary Crystal and slightly unraveled a portion of the seal, allowing a terrifying energy to pour out.
It was time to give the Wanlian Main Network Tree some powerful nutrients to accelerate its growth progress.
