The Source of Unease

"The other side of this monument is the Abyss Prison," Ai De Wen, standing side by side with He Wei Ni Ya. "But how did you wake up?"

He Wei Ni Ya glanced at Ai De Wen: "Looks like you don't really want me to wake up."

"Hey, hey, hey, don't be like that. We're already here, what's the point of us still doubting each other?" Ai De Wen raised his hands in surrender. "I'm just genuinely curious. You're not Eternal Nightmare Apostle, you shouldn't have woken up so easily."

He Wei Ni Ya asked, "What exactly is this divine stele?"

"You should have felt it just now," Ai De Wen said. "Just like the name of this divine monument, 'Sleep,' it's meant to put you to sleep."

"It's not just that, is it?"

"Of course it's not just that, because once you fall asleep, you can never wake up again." Ai De Wen pointed behind him. "Just look back and you'll see."

He Wei Ni Ya turned around and realized that the path she had come from was littered with corpses.

These remains are not all human; most are from animals. The stark white bones piled up in the yellow sand, and their postures make them look as if they were asleep.

He Wei Ni Ya also saw the remains of three human women, from smallest to largest, which immediately reminded her of the three people in her dream who kept urging her to stay.

Can I take a short nap and then stay in my dreams forever?

Moreover, He Wei Ni Ya did not react at all during this time, and did not even know when she fell asleep.

This is the power of the gods.

"Unless you have received special training, you are out of control in your dreams," Ai De Wen said. "You will forget your mission, forget who you are, and you can easily sink into it with the slightest guidance. It's called a light sleep, but if you take a light sleep in your dream, your body in reality may have already rotted away, and by then it will be too late to wake up."

"But you were not affected."

"Of course, I am Eternal Nightmare Apostle. Entering dreams is as familiar to us as coming home. We have long known how to maintain our true selves in dreams." Ai De Wen shrugged. "So this divine tablet has almost no effect on Eternal Nightmare Apostle. I originally planned to wake you up from your sleep after I came here. But I didn't expect you to wake up so quickly... So the one who should be asking how I did it is not you, but me."

He Wei Ni Ya said casually, "I guess it's because I haven't been sleeping well lately."

Tsk, what a perfunctory explanation! This is a true creation of God, yet you make it sound like a cheap sleeping pill.

Ai De Wen thought to himself that he was complaining, but he didn't say it out loud, assuming that the body part inside He Wei Ni Ya was working again.

This isn't necessarily a bad thing; the stronger He Wei Ni Ya is, the more advantageous it is for him if he wants to go straight to prison.

"So what's next?" He Wei Ni Ya asked, "Can we just walk straight through this divine monument?"

"It's not that simple." Ai De Wen raised his hand and pointed to the Magic Power runes on the Slumber God Tablet. "See those? The Magic Power in those runes is all artificially provided by the Guardian of the Contract Land, and it has never been interrupted for thousands of years."

"What about the Guardian?"

"It's right behind this sacred monument," Ai De Wen said. "If we rashly cross the monument, we'll definitely be discovered by the Guardian on duty immediately."

"So we need to deal with those Guardian first?"

"It's not that simple." Ai De Wen shook his head. "Dealing with those Guardian will cut off the Magic Power supply to the Divine Stele. If the Magic Power supply is cut off, the Divine Stele will naturally stop working. And if any one of the four Divine Steles stops working, it will be discovered, and our infiltration will fail. Although you are strong, I don't think you are strong enough to deal with the entire Abyss Prison."

"Don't worry, if you really want me to do that, I'll kill you right now and go home," He Wei Ni Ya said calmly.

"Hey, don't be so blunt. At least trust me a little," Ai De Wen smile. "Since I'm here, I'm naturally prepared. In most cases, trying to pass through a divine monument without preparation would only require brute force, but the Slumber God Tablet is an exception. Its essence is dreams, and I happen to be the world's most outstanding dream scholar. Do you understand what I mean?"

He Wei Ni Ya remained silent, but simply took out her staff.

"Alright, alright, I won't beat around the bush anymore." Ai De Wen surrendered again. "The Guardian use the Slumber God Tablet to influence the outside world, but the outside world can also use it against them."

He Wei Ni Ya frowned slightly. "You mean, you can attack the Guardian inside in reverse?"

"Yes."

"This is a creation of the Gods, how could you possibly crack it so easily?"

"I'm not trying to decipher the divine monuments," Ai De Wen said. "It's just that the divine monuments are essentially weapons created by the Gods, and they have no fixed affiliation, so they can naturally be seized. Of course, my statement only applies to the Slumber God Tablet; I don't know what the other three divine monuments are like."

He Wei Ni Ya nodded slightly and didn't say anything more, but Ai De Wen's words made her realize that the seal on the Contract Land was not as airtight as outsiders imagined.

Ultimately, the Contract Land is supported by the Eight Great Churches, who contribute manpower, resources, and technology.

In other words, as long as the corresponding person can be found, then every restriction can be broken? Just like Ai De Wen was able to break the Slumber God Tablet of the Lord of Eternal Nightmare, do the other three God Tablets also have similar ways of breaking them, but Ai De Wen doesn't know about them?

That is indeed possible.

However, from another perspective, the restrictions of the Abyss Prison combine the technologies of the Eight Great Churches. Ordinary people can only break through one or two of them at most. To break through them all, the Eight Great Churches would have to join forces, but how is that possible?

Therefore, the Abyss Prison can indeed be seen as an unbreakable sealed place.

"To what extent can you do it?" He Wei Ni Ya asked.

"Let's put the Guardian inside to sleep in reverse, and then go in," Ai De Wen said. "Before the next shift changes, no one will notice that the Slumber God Tablet is only nominally operating during this time; in reality, it's already ineffective. And this time is enough for us to reach the depths of the Abyss Prison. Don't worry, I know this route too. When my student came back, I saw his memories clearly."

"And then what?"

"And then... only God knows." Ai De Wen shrugged. "I can only guarantee to break the seal set by the Lord of Eternal Nightmare, but you have seven musical notes, so theoretically you can also break the seal set by the Lord of Holy Sound. If we combine our powers, optimistically, we should be able to break a quarter of the seal."

"Only a quarter?"

"It's only a quarter," Ai De Wen said. "And that doesn't even take into account the restrictions that don't belong to the technology of the eight Eight Great Churches. A quarter is already the most optimistic estimate. Think about it, I am the most outstanding dream scholar in Eternal Nightmare, and you are the only Seventh Note in the history of Holy Sound. The two of us who have reached the top in each other's churches can only achieve a quarter. For others, the chance is zero."

He Wei Ni Ya looked at Ai De Wen: "You seem to have misunderstood something. According to you, we only have a one-quarter chance of breaking the restriction, not a one-quarter chance of making it to the end. When we encounter restrictions that we can't break but are right in front of us, we just can't get past them."

"Of course I know."

What should I do if I encounter such a situation?

"What else can we do?" Ai De Wen shrugged. "Either we break through it or we accept our fate. That's all we can do. We have no way out, do we? We have no choice but to go all the way."

He Wei Ni Ya didn't speak, but she understood that Ai De Wen had long been mentally prepared for only two possible outcomes for this trip.

It's either break through all obstacles to reach the deepest point, or you perish without a trace. And as things stand now, the former seems almost impossible.

This guy is really crazy.

"What we're about to do is no small matter." Ai De Wen seemed to see through He Wei Ni Ya's thoughts. "For thousands of years, let alone opening the Abyss Prison, outsiders haven't even been able to get close to it. The fact that we've managed to get here is already a historic achievement, isn't it?"

He Wei Ni Ya said calmly, "I didn't realize you were such an ambitious person."

"Don't forget I'm a scholar." Ai De Wen sat down with his back against the Slumber God Tablet, and then channeled his Magic Power into the monument behind him. "And I'm a rather daring one at that."

After saying that, his head lolled to the side, and he fell into a deep sleep.

Behind him, on the Slumber God Tablet, a different kind of Magic Power rapidly mixed into the incantation. If He Wei Ni Ya hadn't been watching closely, she wouldn't have noticed this change.

The intrusion has begun.

He Wei Ni Ya raised her head and looked at the endless stele, feeling as if she were an ant trying to shake a tree.

Is it truly possible for mortals to challenge the gods?

He Wei Ni Ya couldn't help but think this.

Just then, she caught a faint glimmer in her peripheral vision and instinctively turned her head to look.

Then I saw a star in the distant sky, which should have appeared in the night sky, but was hanging abruptly in the evening glow.

The Warden suddenly opened his eyes, as if he had woken up from a nightmare.

"You're awake, old pal." A leisurely voice rang in the Warden's ear. He turned his head and was startled to see a rotting corpse smiling at him. "Luer, what are you doing here?"

After asking the question, the Warden seemed to recall something.

"Ah, I sent you."

"Yes, you asked me to come and chat with you, but I fell asleep after only a few words." Luer, the messenger of the underworld, continued to display his rotten smile. "Your soul hasn't recovered yet, Xin De."

"...It's been so long since anyone called me by that name," the Warden said in a deep voice. "I'd almost forgotten it."

"You've been alone for too long, Xin De," Luer said. "Or rather, you've been bound by this duty for too long. The Abyss Prison has sealed not only Visas, but also you."

The Warden didn't speak, but simply looked out the window.

The sky was gradually darkening.

"How long was I unconscious?" the Warden asked.

"About an hour."

"Did anything happen during this time?"

"If I do, I will wake you up," Luer said. "There are not many people left in the camp now. The Star Remnant delegation has left, and the delegations from other churches have also temporarily left, but this was also your request."

"This is my request?" The Warden thought for a moment. "Ah, it seems there was such a thing."

"You want Isaiah to let go and do it," Luer asked, "But do you really think he can do as you wish?"

"It doesn't matter whether he does what I want or not," the Warden said. "I'm just eliminating the last remaining threat."

"Yes, you're always so cautious when it comes to anything involving Visas."

"Because he is Visas." As the Warden spoke, he felt a tearing pain deep in his brain, causing him to clutch his forehead. The sealing chains dragged on the ground, making a grating sound. "No matter how careful we are, it's not enough... Uh, I remember why I called you here. Luer, I feel like something's wrong with me."

"What's wrong?"

"I feel terrible," the Warden said in a low voice. "Ever since that guy tore me apart the night before last, I've felt terrible."

"This is normal, after all, your soul was torn apart," Luer said. "And I forcibly brought your soul back, so it's normal to feel a little uncomfortable."

"But I still feel something's not right," the Warden said. "Luer, you're an expert in this area. Can you sense anything unusual about my soul?"

Why do I feel this way?

"I always feel that my soul is no longer pure, as if there is something else inside."

"Is there anything else? Your soul has been specially treated by the Lord, and I have no way to examine it." Luer shook his head and said, "But you can examine it yourself. Have you forgotten? If you feel there is a problem with your soul, you might as well think about whether the things you have done recently match your memories of yourself."

Does this match the image of myself I remember?

"Yes, the soul is not the body; it doesn't get sick and is as stable as a glass of water most of the time. If you can feel obvious discomfort, there's only one possibility."

"What?"

"Your soul no longer belongs to you, or at least part of it does not," Luer said. "It's like when you're Spirit Summoning, you have to make sure there's only one person's soul around. Otherwise, if you summon someone else's soul and it mixes with yours, then you're no longer yourself, or at least not entirely yourself. The best way to check in this situation is to recall your recent actions and see if they match the person you remember. Do you think you are that person?"

What have you been doing lately?

The Warden tried hard to recall.

After his Soul Return, all he did was take these actions against Isaiah.

This included forcing Isaiah into a corner by demanding Obedience of Heavenly Voice, causing the other church representatives to leave so that Isaiah could act freely and avoid any accidents.

Everything was normal, just like something he would do.

But why did he always feel that something was wrong, and why did he always feel uneasy?

Has he forgotten something?

Just then, a sudden alarm sounded throughout the entire camp.

Before the Warden could react, Carter rushed in, shouting.

"Warden! The Abyss Prison has been invaded by the Star Remnants! The Ice Curse God Tablet has been shattered!"

"Activate Heaven's Obedience immediately!"

Wow, I didn't even take a day off at the beginning of this month! I'm so diligent!