Chapter 832: Could This Be a Good Deed by Xiao Han?
Originally, my primary focus should have been exploring the characteristics of the Primordial Dream World and determining how much I could do with the Great Spellbook.
However, the injured Fool Dream in front of me made me change my initial plan.
After sealing off that dream creature, I approached one of the Fool Dreams, crouching down to observe this somewhat anxious Fool Dream.
“It won’t hurt; let me see your wound.”
“Um… Okay, but the wound has already healed.”
“Is that so?” I took the little hand of the Fool Dream and noticed the torn clothing on her shoulder, where the dream creature had scratched her. Indeed, it had healed.
This is quite common in the Primordial Dream World, but that doesn’t mean this Fool Dream is out of danger.
She already had the Curse of the Nightmare within her.
According to the Village Head, this curse would worsen over time.
Yet, I could perceive the aura of the “Nightmare” from this Fool Dream through my Heart Sense.
Because understanding the Nightmare through my Heart Sense means it’s a gathering of unrelenting negative emotions, constantly emitting “black mist.”
When this perception connected with the Five Senses, I could also see the swirling black mist around the Fool Dream’s shoulders.
This is the Nightmare, a unique and inseparable part of dream creatures.
There is something slightly incorrect about the Village Head’s words: the Nightmare doesn’t grow stronger with time, but rather it amplifies through the accumulation of negative concepts.
The Nightmare carries a lot of memories and consciousness, as well as intense emotions.
Back in Ninglan New City, I had separated the Nightmare using the script’s driving force together with the Academy Head.
But now, it’s clear I can’t achieve that extent.
Is the Nightmare only separable in that manner?
It seems not… at least that’s what I think.
I stripped the Nightmare from this Fool Dream using my Sense of Time. The black mist wrapped around my fingertips; this was simply me “taking” the Nightmare away through the method of time perception and dream information reflux.
But that doesn’t mean I severed the relationship between the Fool Dream and the Nightmare.
It’s like how the Academy Head had previously separated the Fool Dream from the Nightmare with her power, placing the Nightmare within a script, forcibly binding it to the Child of Fortune through a m*rder mystery scenario, while the Fool Dream stood outside the script, thus eliminating the Nightmare through this clever approach.
That was not severing but rather annihilating.
Looking at how the Academy Head resolved the Nightmare, it was clear she had no better way to cut the connection between the two.
So… what about me?
Can I do it?
I’m not sure, but… it seems I have already accomplished many things that the Academy Head had previously not achieved.
“Is… is this really okay?” The Fool Dream looked at me in shock as I removed the Nightmare from her body, still somewhat incredulous.
“No, I merely took it away. After this, you will not harm other Fool Dreams like the others, but this Nightmare will always follow you, and as it grows, it will one day come back to you.” I shook my head.
Even if I take measures to seal it, it won’t matter; it’s still there.
“Then… what should I do?”
“What to do is something the Sage must contemplate~” I patted the Fool Dream’s head, smiling, “The Fool Dream just needs to be happy~ Now you don’t have to worry too much about the Nightmare, and you can temporarily return to your previous life.”
“Really?”
“Mm, but… if a problem arises with the Nightmare, I need you to come back at any time.”
I looked at the initially formed Nightmare in my hand, curious about what it truly was.
Why does it have such a profound connection to “dream consciousness”?
But I also understand that for these injured Fool Dreams, this method is merely a superficial remedy.
I need to thoroughly find a way to sever this connection. And before that… I need to figure out what the Nightmare actually is.
“Actually, Sage, I can cooperate with the experiment if you want.”
“Don’t you want to return to your previous days?” I curiously asked the Fool Dream who made such a statement.
“I want to… but I want my other sisters to no longer be cursed by the Nightmare!” The Fool Dream said with a serious expression.
“So… Sage! Please feel free to use me! Experiments, anything, as long as…”
“You really don’t have to go this far.” I reached out and stroked the Fool Dream’s head, realizing I really enjoyed doing this because it felt comfortable and satisfying. “Additionally~ call me Sister Xiao Han~”
“Um… got it, Sister Xiao Han.”
After comforting this Fool Dream, I naturally approached the other Fool Dreams.
Regardless, I first needed to use my Sense of Time to strip the Nightmare from the Fool Dreams.
Then, I could study its characteristics slowly.
Time passed gradually.
I tried various means to understand what the Nightmare is.
The methods include but are not limited to Spirit Vision and the Great Knowledge Tree, all used for interpreting information.
To “decompose” the Nightmare, the methods are the embryonic forms of Sense of Time and Sense of Space.
Perceiving the extreme emotions within the Nightmare is done through Heart Sense.
The reason I am so curious about the concept of the Nightmare is because I find its characteristics somewhat similar to… Soul Material.
However, if the Nightmare is dream-state Soul Material… does that mean dream creatures are lives within the dream?
That seems very unlikely, and using the Grand Wisdom Enlightenment Spell to attempt a Soul Drawing on the Nightmare, although a bit difficult as it seeks to use a “Sacred Object,” is still verifiable.
The final result was somewhat unexpected!
It seemed capable of becoming “raw material” for Soul Drawing, but this raw material couldn’t be sublimated into a soul under the power of the Soul Drawing technique.
So this is very contradictory.
It can’t be both Soul Material and not Soul Material, right?
Thus, I boldly hypothesized that the Nightmare might be dream-state Soul Material but not pure Soul Material.
After all, my Heart Sense tells me there are too many extreme emotional concepts within the Nightmare.
Moreover… combining the fact that dream creatures enjoy consuming Soul Material from the real world, what becomes of the Soul Material they consume?
I seem to have never cared about that.
Back then, I used the Mimetic Soul technique to shape realistic concepts for dream creatures…
Past experiments and their data kept replaying in the Great Knowledge Tree, continuously corroborating my hypothesis.
And all this led me to a very important inference.
That is… the concept of Soul Material seems capable of transcending reality and dreams!
And the soul serves as the bridge connecting reality and dreams, evolving from Soul Material…
Even though I currently lack any evidence to support my hypothesis, all I need is a conjecture.
Then, I can verify based on this conjecture.
As for those emotions, memories, and cognitions—everything contained within the Nightmare—are all information.
What is information?
Information in reality describes any cognizable and incognizable data; it encompasses all forms of data, knowledge, memories, information, concepts…
In dreams, it is no longer mere description but rather a “presence” concept akin to the properties of physical matter.
Information in dreams can be considered the best “home.”
So now… the concepts within the dream can be dissected.
“Dream consciousness,” “dream-state Soul Material,” and “information”—these three constitute the entirety of the Primordial Dream World that I can currently comprehend.
As for the realms I cannot comprehend, that is no longer my concern.
It’s just like a person in the real world has no relation to the inconceivable “dark matter.”
I set aside my tasks; the preliminary exploration and hypotheses about the Primordial Dream World have reached their limits.
By the way, how long have I been in the Primordial Dream World?
I stepped out of my small house.
Looking at everything that felt unreal yet was “perceived” as real, I couldn’t help but express a sigh.
Behind me, the Fool Dream followed me, silently watching, hesitant to make a sound.
Even so, they were curious about what had happened to the Sage.
At this moment, I wasn’t just sighing; alongside this, I was anchoring my perception of myself in relation to reality, attempting to see if I could return.
And… once I return, can I come back again?
To be honest, I still care a lot about this Fool Village dream, and I don’t want to disappoint their expectations. If anyone should be blamed, it’s my impulsive promise back then.
This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, one that may not be replicable.
I don’t care if my self in reality dies this way; let’s not mention the strength of my body and the cyclic process of my body—after several days without food, I wouldn’t perish.
What’s crucial is always the essence of my life.
With the Reincarnation Rebirth Spell in my possession, as long as I return to reality, I can resurrect once more.
However, now I can feel the anchoring between myself and reality growing weaker.
If this continues, my consciousness, immersed so deeply in the Primordial Dream World, might encounter unpredictable accidents.
What left me uneasy was… if my consciousness loses its connection with the Sacred Object, it would be even more critical.
After all, I originally used the Great Knowledge Tree as the anchor for my consciousness to enter the Primordial Dream World.
The Great Knowledge Tree was used to organize memories, preventing the Primordial Dream World from assimilating my cognition.
While the Grand Wisdom Enlightenment Tree provided the connection within the “double tree structure” with the Great Knowledge Tree, ultimately integrating me into the dream world.
So this relationship is somewhat like walking a tightrope; a careless mistake, and a connection is severed… and that could be fatal.
The Primordial Dream World won’t joke around with me!
But… I could use this relationship to guide the essence of my soul into the Primordial Dream World, leaving only my physical body in reality.
After all, merely having my consciousness immerse within the Primordial Dream World prevents me from doing many things.
Moreover, consciousness is a fragile form of cognition, which, according to the relationship between consciousness and soul, are an inseparable unified concept.
Right now, my state feels more like dreaming rather than truly entering the Primordial Dream World through the soul as a bridge.
However, my consciousness has submerged too deeply into the dream, coupled with the anchoring of the Grand Wisdom Enlightenment Tree, leading me into the deep layer of the Primordial Dream Fool Village.
Thus… I have two tasks now.
One is to guide the soul essence into the depths of the Primordial Dream Village, and the other is to deepen the anchoring between the Grand Wisdom Enlightenment Tree and the Fool Village.
As for why the anchoring is with the Fool Village rather than myself, it’s because I need a stable anchor to return to the Fool Village again. Even if I were to leave the Fool Village for some reason, with this anchoring in the Primordial Dream World, I could find my way back.
So I left my small house and went to the Starlight Tower to find the Village Head.
I conveyed my needs to her.
These two points, one was to establish a stable “landmark” with the Fool Village, and the other was to augment my capabilities.
After all, my soul is embarking on the Great Topic of the Soul!
With the Soul Dream as my trump card, no matter what danger arises, I can conceal myself and avoid it.
Moreover, having attained my soul essence, all my means such as Five Senses Body Cultivation and Mental Power are no longer merely cognitive inertia of consciousness; they can help me better study the Primordial Dream World as well as… the relationship between the Fool Dream and the Nightmare.
“Sister Xiao Han… I naturally have no authority to interfere with your decision. Your willingness to do so much for us Fool Dreams, I will support you no matter what.”
“Thank you for understanding my intentions… but this is ultimately just an experiment, and there is a possibility of failure; what the final result will be, even risking exposing the Fool Village again to the Primordial Dream World… anything could happen.”
“However, I still support your decision. When you told me you accepted those heroes who left the Fool Village, I had no more concerns because… that would be the hope of our Fool Dream Clan. The reason we hold on to the Fool Village is that it is our only hope, but you have redeemed those Fool Dream heroes, allowing them to live in the real world. Thus, their mission to become true lives would also be undertaken by them… I truly hope they can live happily in reality…”
“They will, and one day you can all come to reality to live the life you desire.”
As my words finished, I quietly closed my eyes, and a shadow of a great tree gradually emerged behind me.
……
In the real world.
Accompanied by a silent shockwave from the Expanding Realm.
In the area overlapping the dream of the Expanding Realm, a sudden breach of boundaries between reality and dreams occurred.
In the depths of the Primordial Dream World, something seemed poised to break through that layer of limits, sending ripples of the dream world spreading through the real world.
And the starting point of it all… was located beneath the crack of the Expanding Realm.
There floated a figure above, two massive golden giant trees blooming countless branches as if centered around that figure.
The infinite cross-section of the two trees seemed to divide reality from dreams…
Such violent commotion resonated in the Expanding Realm, immediately drawing the attention of all the higher-ups from the Extraordinary Academy.
At this moment, in Mei Linde’s office.
“What’s going on? Is this a reverberation from the Dream Wave of the Expanding Realm?!” Mei Linde exclaimed, astonished.
Until the next moment, a part of her observation instrument slipped from her hands.
“No way! **! It’s Xiao Han! This couldn’t possibly be a good deed done by her, right?!”
Mei Linde immediately thought of Xiao Han’s impending experiment with dream life in the Expanding Realm.
Isn’t this just too coincidental?
The more she recalled the details, the more she felt it was possible. Without caring about the things in her hands, she hurried towards the location of this anomaly in the Expanding Realm.
