Here it came again

The "Noodle Man" started dancing again.

Lumian thus confirmed that the mysterious dance could indeed partially activate the Black Thorn Symbol on his chest; that is, the pattern would appear, but the accompanying terrifying sound would be almost nonexistent, with only a faint, indistinct whisper remaining.

This is a huge advantage for him in utilizing the "special" nature of Dream.

However, at the same time, he discovered two problems:

First, the "Noodle Man's" dance moves are extremely difficult, some even defying human anatomy. Only Monster with such exaggerated flexibility, seemingly without bones and fascia, could complete them. Although Lumian is Beyonder and a "Hunter" with greatly enhanced physical strength, he has no confidence in himself. He feels that if he were to complete a full circle like that, he would either tear a ligament, strain a muscle, or even suffer a fracture.

Secondly, this mysterious dance seemed to truly be able to manipulate the surrounding natural forces, possessing an extraordinary charm, so much so that after Lumian memorized it for a while, he found that his spiritual energy was greatly depleted.

"After watching this once, I need to go back and rest." Lumian sighed silently as he watched the "Noodle Man" perform the "Mysterious Dance" for the third time.

The Hunter's intuition is really useless!

After today's events, he was almost certain that That One Hidden Being corresponding to the Thorn Symbol was closely related to this Dream Ruins.

Here, there is the Black Mark on the Parish Priest's body, as well as dancing Monster that can activate Thorn Symbol. It would be surprising to say that they have nothing to do with That One Hidden Being!

Thinking of the similar symbol on the Parish Priest's chest, and how the Dream Ruins had also Reboot along with reality, trapped in Loop, Lumian became increasingly convinced of Aurora's guess:

The key to breaking the Loop may lie Depths here, or at least a significant part of it.

So, That One mysterious Lady had been hinting that I should unravel the secrets of the Dream Ruins? Lumian grew increasingly resentful, raising his left hand (the one not holding the Axe) and making a vulgar "I'll fuck you, you immortal" gesture towards the Black Thorn Symbol on his chest.

He wasn't worried about angering the other party. Putting aside whether That One Hidden Being could sense it or see it, the fact that he was already trapped in the time Loop it had brought, and that everyone around him was stranger and more dangerous than the last, made Lumian feel that the problem couldn't get any worse.

After watching the dance for the third time, Lumian rubbed his somewhat empty head, and with a slight warmth in his chest, he left the Ruins the way he came and returned to his home on the other side of the Wilderness.

Before leaving the Dream, he tried to reinforce the dance moves he had memorized, almost straining his back, tearing the ligaments in his knee, and ripping the muscles on the inside of his calf.

"Dog Shit, this is not something a normal human could do!" Lumian cursed, then lay down on the bed.

Because of the extreme depletion of his spiritual energy and his deep exhaustion, he quickly fell Past a deep sleep.

When Lumian awoke, it was just dawn; the Sun had not yet risen, and the Crimson Moon had lost its luster.

He slowly sat up, feeling a sense of satisfaction like after a deep sleep, as if his depleted spiritual energy had been perfectly replenished.

Walking to the window, Lumian drew back the curtains, letting the morning light stream into the room.

The next second, his gaze froze.

The creature, a size larger than a regular Owl, reappeared on the Elm Tree not far away, looking down at him from its elevated position.

Lumian quickly regained his senses and opened his mouth:

"Aurora! Aurora!"

Quick, the suspect is here!

Follow it!

Hearing the shout, the Owl spread its wings and flew towards the edge of the village.

It flew lower and lower, and soon disappeared into the woods on the edge of Cordou Village.

A few seconds later, Aurora, dressed in a white silk nightgown, entered Lumian's bedroom.

She asked, her face full of frustration, "Was it the Owl?"

"Yes." Lumian looked out the window, "Is ' White Paper ' keeping up?"

Aurora tugged at her long Golden hair and said resentfully, "Why does it always choose to appear during the underworld?"

"I was sleeping soundly when you woke me up. Before I could even release the ' White Paper,' it flew away."

"Didn't you say you couldn't sleep well because you had something on your mind?" Lumian replied instinctively.

Aurora rolled her eyes at him:

"Poor sleep can affect your mental state and lead to signs of Loss of Control."

"People are always tense, uneasy, and fearful at the beginning, but they become numb after getting used to it. Only by getting a good night's sleep can you stay clear-headed and Rationality."

"We'll have to wait until next time..." Lumian with great regret.

Aurora thought for a moment:

"Let's summarize the pattern of its appearance. We can't just sit on the tree stump waiting for the Rabbit to run into it. Besides, we need to rest; we can't be watching it all the time."

Lumian recalled the previous times:

"It's all during the period from late at night to early morning..."

"Then why this period?" Aurora asked further. "This is only a manifestation, not a pattern. Think carefully about the nights, or rather, the first half of the nights, when it occurred. What did you do? Did you repeat the same behavior?"

"I've been exploring the Dream Ruins..." Lumian didn't hide anything from her Older Sister and began to recall, "Before it first appeared, I killed the first Monster in the Dream. Before it appeared a second time, I think I activated the symbol on my chest through Meditation and found its 'special' nature. The third time, I took Potion in the dream and became a ' Hunter.' The fourth time, which is today, I... I discovered a way to activate the Dream's 'special' nature to a certain extent with less damage."

"What method?" Aurora blurted out.

Lumian recounted the entire story of the "Noodle Man," its dance, and his own attempts.

As Aurora listened, she pondered the Owl's story. After her brother finished, she carefully said, "It seems the Owl's visit to you is related to your significant progress in Dream exploration..."

Uh... Lumian thought for a moment, his eyes gradually brightening:

"Really!

"The first time I killed Monster, the first time I displayed my 'special' abilities, the first time I took Potion, the first time I embarked on the path of the extraordinary, the first time I found a way to utilize that 'special' ability..."

"Similar significant developments have also had some real-world repercussions. The Owl noticed and came over to observe? Ha, it smelled something."

Aurora hummed in agreement.

"After that, we can consciously create similar opportunities to see if we can catch that Owl."

"I think it will reappear after I've mastered that mysterious dance and can truly utilize the 'special' power of the chest symbol in my dreams." Lumian, a malicious smile spreading across his face. "Then, I'll tell you before I try entering your dreams, so be prepared."

Aurora thought for a moment and nodded:

"Hopefully, we can get a preliminary understanding of who the Owl is connected to and what role Acting in Cordu's anomalies..."

Lumian then asked, "Aurora, uh, Older Sister, do you know anything about that kind of dance?"

"You know, I'm practically illiterate in the field of Mysticism."

Aurora pulled up a chair from the Lumian Wooden Table, sat down, and pondered for a moment before saying, "Several notebooks mention that in ancient times, specifically the early Fifth Epoch and the entire Fourth Epoch, there were some large-scale Ritual Magic."

"Those Ritual Magic not only involve a large number of Sacrifice, but also many Participant who please the target being through special dances in exchange for a response."

"In fact, in terms of the rituals and Ritual themselves, dance was widely believed from the Primordial One to influence nature and communicate with the Deity, its function being close to a combination of supernatural language and Herbs, essential oils, and other items."

In the world where Aurora and Lumian live, history is divided into five eras. The first era is the Chaos Epoch, the Second Epoch is called the Darkness Epoch, and the third era is called the Cataclysm Epoch. However, Aurora heard from a pen pal that this is also known as the Glorious Era.

The Fourth Epoch was the Age of Era of the Gods, and the Fifth Epoch is the present, which began 1,358 years ago and is called the Iron Age.

The history of the first three ages is impossible to verify, leaving only myths and legends. The history of the Fourth Epoch is occasionally documented, with materials, notes, Ruins, Mausoleum, and ancient cities appearing. However, the overall history seems to be shrouded in mist, with only a faint outline. This is thanks to the fact that the theological texts of the Seven Churches often mention some stories of the Fourth Epoch.

After listening to her Older Sister's explanation, Lumian immediately had a guess:

"Is that ' Noodle Man ' using dance to please That One Hidden Being corresponding to the Thorn Symbol, hoping to receive a response or Gift?"

"Was a large part of its Ritual missing, which is why it was so ineffective? Or was there a problem with the Dream Ruins themselves that caused the failure, only able to draw upon the small amount of power contained within the symbol of me?"

"Heh, this makes it seem like I'm some kind of god who, seeing the ' Noodle Man's' dance, was amused by it, and therefore decided to highlight the symbol and give a certain response."

However, this was actually entirely beyond Lumian's control, a spontaneous reaction of the Thorn Symbol.

Aurora smiled:

"You're more like a vessel for that symbol, a tool in a certain sense."

She paused for a moment, then said thoughtfully, "I suspect that dance was 'invented' specifically to please or communicate with That One Hidden Being corresponding to the Thorn Symbol; otherwise, it wouldn't have caused a symbol to react..."

"Moreover, according to your description, this is not something Ordinary Person can jump; only Beyonder with special enhancements can complete it."

"I know the names of Sequence 9 and Sequence 8, which correspond to the twenty-two Pathway, and I have some understanding of them. None of them can dance that kind of dance. The ' Noodle Man's' behavior doesn't seem to be of High-Sequence, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to escape at all."

"Perhaps it's not among the twenty-two Pathway, but Gift from some Hidden Being?" Lumian thought of That One mysterious Lady's words.

Aurora glanced out the window and pursed her lips:

"I wonder if this is related to the ' Person of the Loop,' or if it's equivalent to Sequence 9 or Sequence 8 power?"

"Sure." Lumian suddenly chuckled, "I'll name it, ' Person of the Loop,' the corresponding Sequence 9, ' Noodle Man '!"

Aurora couldn't help but glance up at the ceiling.

The siblings chatted for a while, then went downstairs to have breakfast.

After studying Hermetic until a little after ten o'clock, Lumian took his important tools and went out.