A Few Tricks Up His Sleeve

Before preparing to explore the Migrant Surge, Fan Ning recalled what had happened after he, Lu, and Roy awoke from their Shared Dream.

He took out the little black bottle he had obtained from the Guidance School and tossed the Museum Key inside.

Since the necklace remained outside with the key, the bottle cap could not be tightened. The remaining Luminous Essence Elixir inside would soon inevitably evaporate into Inspiration and disperse into the surface of the world.

But there was no helping it if he wanted to verify his conjecture.

Within his sleeping dream, Fan Ning tested and recognized the dream, then began chanting the Hidden Knowledge prayer concerning the "Endless Fugue."

He found the symbol of the Lord of Witnesses of the "Four-Fold Line" floating at the edge of some area of the Astral World, then decisively tore it open.

The Inspiration burned faster, and his consciousness shifted from the state of a Clear Dream to one that was half-awake and half-blurred.

His spirit drifted down onto an empty, light-brown wooden stage.

Heavy curtains bearing plant motifs, corridor pillars decorated with curved plasterwork, walls fitted with stained-glass windows, and a domed skylight that let through a faint glow.

At the far end, atop the steps, stood a pipe organ shrouded in a golden haze. Beneath the stage were rows of long mahogany benches and a gallery lined with candle racks.

"This church again."

Fan Ning spread open his palm and visualized the shape of the Museum Key within his consciousness.

Within the dream, the small, inconspicuous black key successfully appeared in his palm.

"Still no sign of Luminous Substance gathering."

From Fan Ning's perception, the church contained a fairly abundant amount of Inspiration, but he indeed could not see any suspended motes of Luminous Substance in various colors.

Was the effect limited to a single occasion?

Or was this not actually the Migrant Surge, with the outside being the real thing?

He lightly jumped down from the stage, passed through row after row of long mahogany benches, and looked once more toward the entrance: a massive marble door, with spiral grooves and a "Four-Fold Line" relief in the center.

He placed his hand on the cold relief and carefully savored the sensation of his previous life's creations being drawn into it.

The golden radiance had already filled nearly half of the first ring of the spiral groove. Now, it continued to "charge."

After stopping this time, it still had not reached the first inner ring of the spiral groove, but it was already very close.

Fan Ning remembered that last time, it had not even reached halfway.

There had been the small-scale reappearance of Death and the Maiden as well.

"I really wonder what will happen if I fill all of them with golden radiance."

"I'll go outside and take a look first." He started walking.

"Bang—!"

Fan Ning's spirit body's "forehead" slammed solidly into the stone door. He felt no pain, but the impact left his mind reeling.

Why can't I get out?

Within the dream, Fan Ning still habitually rubbed his forehead.

Right. After I charged the relief last time, the entire door turned into a watery, illusory shape, and its texture vanished as well.

That phenomenon had not occurred this time.

"Shouldn't the progress bar of the pale-gold radiance be farther along than last time?" Fan Ning wondered inwardly.

Could it be that I need to fill the first spiral ring completely with radiance before I can leave again?

Fine. If that was the case, he could not pass through the church to reach the outside world of the Migrant Surge. If he wanted to study the Museum Key, then he could only...

Fan Ning returned to the wooden stage, closed his eyes, relaxed his thoughts, suppressed the burning of his Inspiration, and imagined his entire spirit body gently sinking downward.

When he opened his eyes again, he had drifted back into the Astral World—the ordinary dreamscape.

A factory suffused with purplish-red light. The air was thick with the smell of burning. Scrap-metal barrels and greasy wrenches were piled at his feet. Steam boilers rumbled in the distance, while the black machinery all around was joined by enormous rivets. Chains drove dense gears, treads, and steel levers.

The Museum Key reappeared in Fan Ning's palm.

Points of light converged on his hand from all directions.

An even more vigorous stream of violet radiance came from within the steam boiler. That was precisely the edge of the Astral World. If he crawled into the boiler, he could descend to some unknown location in the Migrant Surge.

According to the pattern from before, the Museum Key in reality should already be precipitating Luminous Essence Elixir. Judging by the amount produced last time, his little bottle might not even be filled.

However, as Fan Ning looked at the dazzling, multicolored motes of light, he had some questions as well.

Dreams were full of randomness. The motes this time were primarily violet, which should represent the "Key" Phase, but just like last time, they clearly also contained a small mixture of colors from other Phases.

Then the Luminous Essence Elixir precipitated should not be absolutely pure in a single Phase either...

He leisurely remained in the Clear Dream for several hundred breaths. After estimating that the elixir precipitated in reality had long since overflowed, he controlled himself and woke up.

When he opened his eyes, violet shadows danced in the guest room.

"It didn't overflow." Fan Ning got up and picked up the little bottle. He pulled out the necklace and watched violet radiance gush from the bottle's mouth, with even faint flashes of lightning leaping through it.

"Only a little over half a bottle?"

Is the precipitation efficiency different for Luminous Substance of different Phases?

But this nearly twenty milliliters of "Key"-Phase Luminous Essence Elixir would probably be worth more than three or four hundred pounds on the black market!

At such an exorbitant price, extracting it from the Migrant Surge must be extremely difficult. Its uses certainly extended far beyond activating the Drift Waymarker.

At the very least, he could imagine that it would be useful when arranging secret rituals or refining special items and potions.

And, if one wanted to be even more extravagant, letting it evaporate directly around him seemed to faintly strengthen the intensity of his Inspiration.

Perhaps it could also rapidly replenish Inspiration consumed in certain situations?

"So... even though I don't understand why this Museum Key helped me 'counterkill' those two people at the site of my transmigration, it pointed out my path to advancement. And it's a real jack-of-all-trades?"

What if another Knower learned that I possessed such a key...?

The importance of this secret to him had grown even greater.

But for now, he had no better way to keep it safe. Wearing it as a necklace, resting against his skin and hanging with him wherever he went, was relatively the safest option. The key to his own family's art museum hung around his neck every day; that was perfectly normal.

The next morning, after sending Hiran to school, Fan Ning took a carriage to the Woodpecker Inquiry Office.

Several clerical workers greeted him, and Fan Ning responded amiably to each of them.

Dupont and the other team members had not arrived yet, so he went straight up to the fourth floor.

At the shooting range, he continued practicing loading his revolver and fired the remaining twenty or thirty rounds.

As a Third-Rank Knower, Fan Ning's marksmanship improved rapidly. In the subsequent magazine, his shots at the fixed ten-meter target had steadily remained above the nine-ring mark.

He then returned to his office, 209, opened the piano lid, and began playing "Twenty-Four Piano Études" by the contemporary Romantic composer Wuqiluo. Fast, ornate notes flowed through the corridor.

At the end of the piece, Fan Ning struck a vigorous chord in the piano's lower register. Then came a knock at the door.

"Come in."

Dupont, the long-haired wandering guitarist in a vest and an open shirt, pushed open the door.

"Caloen, if you're free today, I'll teach you the basics of mysticism first."

"Of course. Sorry to trouble you." Fan Ning stood up. "I've been waiting for you to come."

Dupont casually took the main chair behind the desk. "Your Light of First Acquaintance is of the 'Candle' Phase, right? Have you become proficient in using your spiritual perception?"

"Spiritual perception?" Fan Ning was somewhat uncertain.