Weimeng's expression changed at his words, and he immediately cast Oko a startled look.
"Oko, you... awakened your own 'Spirit Realm' in this battle too, just like me?"
Oko nodded calmly in acknowledgment.
"Yes, although mine was a little easier than yours. I wasn't struck by a Tainted Crystal; I merely comprehended the 'Spirit Realm' bit by bit on the brink of death."
"Even so, like you, I barely remember how it felt at the time. It was like something I did while drunk—I only remember the name of a spell and what it does."
"If you asked me to use it now, I wouldn't be sure of myself either."
Weimeng pondered for a while, then shook his head.
"No, you can't put it that way."
"I vaguely remember the Tainted Crystal Dagger pouring something into my mind—something like bizarre hallucinations."
"Maybe those things gave me some kind of inspiration, which was why I somehow managed to unearth the 'Spirit Realm.'"
Firona and Erigat's expressions shifted, and they immediately pressed him in unison.
"You mean the Tainted Crystal helped you achieve all this?"
"Could it possess catalytic properties in this regard as well?"
At this, Xiya immediately shot the two of them a glare and issued a stern warning.
"Stop. This topic ends here. I know what you're thinking, but no. Absolutely not."
"Have you forgotten that the initiation ritual for those Mad Clowns of the Delight Theater relied on things like this?"
"If Tainted Crystals really possessed such miraculous effects, then why, out of so many of them, were only a handful ultimately able to control the 'Spirit Realm'? Their numbers pale in comparison to our Hunter Corps."
"So get rid of those dangerous thoughts, now! At his worst, Weimeng's physical condition was practically indistinguishable from a corpse! The