Dreamforce
‘Dreamscape is a huge treasure trove, but it holds perilous dangers within…’ Leylin pondered deeply over this.
Unlike the Magus World, Dreamscape hadn’t suffered any damage, and was still a terrifying world that retained its ancient splendour. The demons inside this place were beings even ancient Magi had been fearful of.
On top of that, Dreamscape was even more dangerous than the real world. The slightest of mistakes in there would result in the loss of one’s truesoul. Whether it was an encounter with a demon or some other danger from the environment itself, everything would be extremely terrifying for him.
What if they found his laboratory and used it as a springboard to get to the Magus World? Just the thought of it left Leylin’s scalp numb.
While he didn’t mind being treated as a traitor to humanity, he wasn’t going to do anything that would not benefit him.
Besides, Leylin had long since begun treating the central continent as his own. He did not want an even stronger organisation to occupy it. With the consolidated might of the central continent as it was, just a random demon would cause the Magus World to tremble in fear.
There would be nothing for him in that situation.
‘It’s better to keep a low profile and focus on exploration!’ Leylin consoled Freya and immediately made the decision to move the castle. He’d completely sealed off this area, turning it into an observation zone.
Freya was very considerate, leaving quickly. It was quite normal for there to be issues during high-ranking experiments. Leylin was the most serious she’d ever seen him, which meant that this particular incident was extremely dangerous. Reasonable as she was, she immediately supported his decision.
Truth be told, she had no other choice. Such powerful contamination would be very dangerous for low-ranked Warlocks and Magi, and she was not going to risk her child for that.
As for Leylin, he stayed behind in the name of surveying the contamination.
Through many disastrous experiments, the various situations and processes were excellent research material. With the feigned traces of a failed experiment formed by the A.I. Chip, many Warlocks were deceived, not in the least suspicious of his actions. His secret exploration of Dreamscape could continue unperturbed.
His astral gate had now turned into a strange bridge connecting the Magus World and Dreamscape. Leylin currently stood before a half-body statue of a human, looking deep in thought.
‘As expected, Dreamscape’s invasion has already begun?’ Noticing the unwanted presence of this statue in his laboratory, Leylin stroked his chin in contemplation. As the bridge linking the two worlds, the laboratory itself was greatly contaminated by Dreamscape. Especially after a few experiments on Leylin’s end, the laboratory had now undergone some changes.
Leylin could sense that the invasion from Dreamscape hadn’t ceased for even a moment, constantly modifying the materials and other things in the lab. If not for Leylin having moved everyone away from the castle, something big might have happened.
The laboratory now seemed extremely dangerous even by the standards of the Radiant Moon Leylin. He couldn’t help but move forward, his hand running along the surface of the statue and allowing him to feel the coarse texture.
[Beep! Scan completed. Target has no obvious signs of radiation. Style is from the Eiffel era. determined to be constructed 6231 years ago…]
The A.I. Chip projected some densely packed data before Leylin’s eyes, but it did not contain what he wanted to see the most.
“From my past observations, this should be the time when the invasion from Dreamscape peaks. Afterwards, the space between it and the lab will widen until the link to Dreamscape is lost…” Dreamscape and Magus World were two completely different large worlds. They were like two parallel lines, and the laboratory was the point that connected the two together.
It might have been because of the owl’s feather, or the unique explosion of the astral gate. Whatever it was, the chance of such a thing happening was almost negligible, and it was impossible for Leylin to create it.
With the movement of space and the worlds themselves, they would eventually separate and the laboratory would lose its mysterious function.
This would not last for a long time. The energy required to connect two separate worlds was massive, and though Leylin did not understand the specific principle of how this connection worked he was quite sure it would break.
Through the tests of the A.I. Chip, it was made known that the concentration of dreamforce within the laboratory had reached its peak.
‘Given how high the rate of corrosion is, demons might be able to come over as well…’ Looking through the graphic the A.I. Chip had given him representing the corrosion, as well as the graph showing the density of dreamforce, cold sweat appeared on Leylin’s forehead.
The connection between his laboratory and Dreamscape had reached a peak, and it would weaken past now. However, this peak was enough for even someone at rank 7 and above to pass through. In other words, if a demon in Dreamscape found the laboratory, it could very well make use of it to enter the Magus World!
This was a convenient path, not requiring all the blood rites and soul sacrifices that were currently obstructing the demons’ invasion.
‘Thankfully, there aren’t any demons on the other side, and this peak period will last a few days at most…’ An expression of relief flashed on Leylin’s face. In this short period of time, the chances of demons finding the laboratory were extremely low, and his luck would have to be very poor for it to happen. Because of that, he could be at ease and use this time to explore Dreamscape.
At this thought, Leylin surveyed the items in the laboratory. Besides the statue, there was now another experimentation table where the astral gate had been, with large amounts of plants and ore samples gathered atop it.
Many items from the dilapidated buildings, such as abandoned coats and hats, were placed in a messy pile. Around it were powerful binding runes, isolating their auras and radiation.
‘Dreamscape is a illusory world. How is it that these things can continue to exist even after they enter the Magus World?’ This question had vexed Leylin greatly. The owl had told him that Dreamscape was created out of the dreams of all intellectual beings, so all things there should have been virtual.
Something in a virtual land could be brought into the real world, and even ancient demons and the like could actually appear in the Magus World. There were too many mysteries surrounding Dreamscape.
‘Could the main culprit of all this be dreamforce?’ Dreamscape and the Magus World were different. Even the concept of air might be absent there, and regular humans could suffocate the moment they entered. However, the flora and fauna was still abundant, which confused Leylin further.
Dreamscape was permeated by an unusual energy, a power that Leylin had named dreamforce. He believed that it was this very power that resulted in Dreamscape being so strange and not following any rules.
‘A.I. Chip! Engage Astral Vision and set up the multicoloured graphics. Begin automatic filter,’ Leylin ordered.
[Beep! Launching Astral Vision] the A.I. Chip loyally intoned.
Astral Vision was the unique visual ability of the Heavenly Astral race. As they were beings of the astral plane, their eyes could see things that Magi could not.
Having gathered information about them from Sky City, Leylin had tried to imitate the structure of their eyes. With the ability Warlocks had at working with bloodlines, he’d managed to create a strange effect.
With the robotic voice of the A.I. Chip, Leylin’s eyes were wrapped up in a sparkling blue light, as if having turned into sapphires.
Colours were filtered out of his vision layer by layer, leaving behind only a dark red. Unlike the crimson of bloodline force, this red was filled with a certain darkness, as if containing the malicious intent of the world. It made Leylin feel incredibly uncomfortable.
‘The dreamforce wasn’t this dense yesterday!’ Leylin watched the dark colour grow increasingly deep scarlet and shook his head, feeling anxious.
He came before the experimentation table, sweeping away the miscellaneous items atop it away to reveal a fine Petri dish that seemed to be formed entirely out of crystal. One could even see its contents from the outside in spite of it being covered.
Inside was a tiny organism, what looked like a black bug with massive compound eyes and six limbs with reverse hooks on them. It was squirming around.
Leylin could see large amounts of dreamforce amassing in his sight, entering the bug as if supplementing it.
“Dreamforce! A muddled mix of illusion and reality, a power that exists to transcend laws?” Leylin mumbled to himself, hands emitting a layer of sparkling white light.
*Whoosh!* Dark red streams of air were caught in his hand and quickly dissipated. The soul force of a rank 5 Warlock that he was proud of could actually do little to this dreamforce!
“It’s something of a completely different system…” Leylin laughed bitterly, mulling it over for a moment and then submerging the petri-dish in another pool crackling with thunder.
“Begin experiment number 581!” Leylin had been performing all sorts of experiments, looking for something capable of interfering with dreamforce that would allow him to use this strength himself!