236. Exploration

Inside the apartment.

After a hasty dinner, he watched Mary leave, chatted with Margaret for a while, then ordered Harlock to watch over the house, and returned Sulu to his bedroom. He gently closed the door, his expression slightly agitated.

"How long has it been...? In order to escape the Dream of the Ancient God in Nia City, I used the Evil Spirit Knight Card's power for an extended period... which injured me until now..."

"Because of the damage to my body and soul, I have had to remain anonymous and lie low, waiting silently..."

"Finally... I'm completely healed!"

The restoration of the soul is of great importance to [Thaumaturge].

This means he can use ' Psychic Thaumaturgy ' without restraint, hide in any major city, and create a flawless identity for himself.

You can also use Thaumaturgy Card to recreate the luxurious tactics of the ancient [Scroll Mage], achieving peak Tier 3 power, or even comparable to Tier 4 power.

Even if you cause a huge disaster, you still have one last chance to activate the Evil Spirit Knight Card to break through the encirclement, or even to Spirit World Travel to escape!

Of course, besides combat power, the biggest benefit lies in the Dream Spirit World!

That third layer of the Spirit World, with its twisted rules, abstract concepts, and a place where danger and opportunity coexist!

"Although I've already given Harlock orders and Margaret has given a 'hint' that no one will bother me, it's still best to be safe..."

Sulu performed the ritual and sealed off the bedroom.

Immediately, he lay down on the bed in a comfortable position and used his ability to Soul Projection.

His spirit leaped swiftly, first breaking into the first layer of the Phantom Spirit World, where the surrounding buildings became illusory, and then into the second layer of the Mind World, where all physical entities disappeared, leaving only the mind.

Finally, Sulu felt his spirit break through a hard barrier and arrive at the third level of the Spirit World.

Red, yellow, green... all sorts of intense colors appeared before my eyes, so vibrant they were almost nauseating.

He looked down, his gaze piercing through the earth, and saw a square 'sun' radiating a bright green light!

The light shone upwards, creating a beauty reminiscent of the aurora borealis.

"Abstract, distorted..."

Sulu murmured, constantly sensing his own body.

In the Dream Spirit World, the concept of 'distance' no longer exists, making it easy to get lost. Once a spirit gets lost, its physical body can be declared dead or mutated.

This is one of the most common dangers in the Dream Spirit World.

"Of course... if it's a pure spirit without a physical body, or a powerful being capable of Spirit World Travel, or a native creature of the Dream Spirit World, then there's no such concern..."

Sulu looked at an abstract object.

It looks like a pirate ship that has been flattened, with various occult symbols on its hull.

In the Dream Spirit World, knowledge can be directly converted into power.

This abstract pirate ship is itself a piece of knowledge!

But Sulu didn't go forward, because he could sense that although the other person seemed within reach, they were actually very far away from him.

Even if I could walk up to the other person, I would inevitably lose all sense of my own body.

He tried it for four weeks and found that his range of movement was very limited.

After thinking for a moment, Sulu walked towards a grove of upside-down trees.

These numbers resemble oak trees, each with its tip pointing downwards and piercing the earth. On the trunk, the fine wood grain forms fragmented, strange symbols, like the Vortex, making one dizzy at first glance.

Several fluffy things jumped out from the branches, making 'clucking' sounds.

"Spirit World creature?"

Sulu tried to extend goodwill and communicate with the other party.

"Giggle... giggle... giggle..."

The Furball kept making gurgling sounds, which seemed to be a bizarre language, expressing meaning through changes in tone.

The feeling expressed here should be one of pleasure, right?

Sulu composed himself and asked, "I want to know where there are creatures with spatial attributes... or clues about the [Dream Master]... Can you tell me?"

The Dream Spirit World interacts with reality, contains all information, and is the source of various symbols and divination.

Theoretically speaking, you can gain everything here! But you can also lose everything here!

"Giggle... giggle..."

'Dreaming... tasty... not tasty...'

"Giggle... giggle..."

"Eat... snake..."

The Furball bounced around, its thoughts seemingly sluggish, unable to express a complete meaning.

"I don't understand... but it feels a lot like a dream... even if I know I'm dreaming, it's hard to fully hear and remember what the people in the dream are saying..."

Sulu reluctantly decided to return.

Anyway, he'll have many opportunities to interact with the Dream Spirit World in the future, and he'll definitely continue to explore this place.

'I just don't know... if this forest will still be there by then. Hmm, I guess it'll most likely disappear...'

Sulu turned around, preparing to leave.

In the Dream Spirit World, his Inspiration was consumed rapidly, even more so than in the Mind World, and its duration was also shorter.

Furthermore, the rules in the Dream Spirit World are distorted; perhaps even time itself is affected.

This could have extremely terrible consequences.

Suddenly, his pupils contracted.

Inspired by his own Inspiration, he sketched the shape of a small snake on a tree trunk.

It looked like a finger, without scales, with flesh-colored skin, and it was facing several Furball, its 'blood-red mouth' wide open!

It really is a 'blood-red maw'!

Sulu had heard the story of a snake swallowing an elephant to illustrate the limit of a snake's mouth expansion.

But here, that little snake is no longer swallowing an elephant, it's swallowing the sky!

It opened its mouth wide, and a black hole seemed to appear around it, with a terrifying suction force.

The Inverted Oak where the Furball were located was uprooted and thrown into the black hole.

"Roar!"

Seeing this, the Furball roared and underwent strange changes. Their bodies rapidly expanded, growing from tiny creatures to mountain-sized figures in the blink of an eye. They had three elephant trunks and mysterious symbols engraved on their bodies.

'Depend on...'

Sulu retreated quickly, a lingering fear in his heart: 'These Furball... their strength is probably comparable to a fourth-tier master, right? Their size and destructive power are even more impressive... Luckily, I meant no harm.'

But it didn't work!

Despite the Furball transforming into monsters and roaring incessantly, they still couldn't stop the Finger Snake from being swallowed by the black hole.

Belch!

After swallowing the Furball, the Finger Snake seemed to burp, and its beady eyes looked at Sulu.

"Holy crap!"

Sulu retreated rapidly, fleeing for his life in a panic.

Without Evil Spirit Knight, it seems I can't defeat this little snake!

That's a trump card, not to be used lightly. It's better to go back to where we came from and leave the Spirit World directly!

He was incredibly fast, but the Finger Snake was just as fast!

It even opened its mouth as it watched Sulu's retreating figure.

Rumble!

A the Vortex formed, and a terrifying power descended upon Sulu.

'No, I have to get Evil Spirit Knight!'

He gritted his teeth, ready to strike, when suddenly, he felt his very soul tremble.

Bang!

A gigantic, Black Iron -colored foot fell from the sky, grazing the area where the Finger Snake was, and then left without stopping.

A huge footprint was left behind, and the forest vanished without a trace.

'Is this the Spirit World? Terrifying... Was that just a terrifying being passing by? At least a legend...'

Sulu stared blankly in the direction where the foot had disappeared.