Chapter 175: Exploring the Dream

Chapter 175: Exploring the Dream

“What?” Old Kohler asked, unable to hear clearly.

Klein looked ahead at the somewhat potholed road and let out a self-mocking chuckle.

“Nothing.

“I hope Liv’s family can free themselves from their present circumstances and live better and better lives.”

His earlier remark had indeed come from genuine feeling. As the successor to the new era of a great food-loving empire, when he thought of revolution, of mobilizing the masses, of overturning the old world and remaking it anew, it was only the most natural instinct. Yet after thinking it through and analyzing the matter according to its specific conditions, he felt that the poor alone could not save themselves. This was because the world contained supernatural powers, some of which were extremely bizarre and could not be solved with rifles and cannons—just like the Sequence 5 Wraith of the Mutant pathway.

That was one reason. Another was the restriction imposed by the Law of Beyonder Characteristics Conservation, and by the acquisition of materials. Supernatural powers could not be popularized; numerical superiority could hardly be transformed into effective combat strength. And even if such powers could be made widespread, if the problem of losing control was not solved, it would likewise bring disaster.

If high-sequence powerhouses did not exist, these problems could in fact be solved to a certain extent. But in the real world, there were not only demigods and half-humans, there were also Sealed Artifacts that could kill people without them even knowing how they had died. And deities were real—true and genuine, high above all.

Under such circumstances, the poor might resist through strikes, demonstrations, and similar means without causing too great a problem. But the moment they took up weapons and established an army, they would inevitably suffer a counterattack they could not withstand. Large-scale natural disasters and mass psychological suggestions were not impossible.

As for the forces capable of opposing the official Beyonder organizations, most were secret organizations that often came with an evil nature of their own. To merge with them, death might not even be the most tragic end. Therefore, if one wanted revolution to succeed in this world, the most hopeful method would be to gain the support of one or several Churches.

But with strikes and demonstrations alone, how many concessions would the class of vested interests be willing to make? Bribery would be much easier by comparison… On the other hand, the incident in which the True Creator had nearly descended upon Backlund by taking advantage of the poor’s tragic circumstances did seem to have touched the Church of the Goddess and the nobles who knew the truth. This could be glimpsed from the investigation mission Reporter Mike had accepted, as well as the information Miss Justice had fed back… Klein’s thoughts drifted aimlessly over matters related to the East Borough, the docks, and the factory districts.

In the end, he could not help laughing once more, sighing inwardly:

“After thinking it over and over, it turns out that the threat of an evil god’s descent is the thing most likely to win an improvement in the poor’s circumstances.

“But evil gods are also the ones most eager to suck their flesh and blood dry, devour their souls, and bring a disaster from which no one can escape.

“What a perfect irony.”

…

Queen Borough, in Earl Hall’s luxurious villa.

Because Dr. Islant had other matters to attend to afterward, Audrey began her second psychology lesson of the week earlier than usual.

Susie was even more excited than she was. The golden retriever had rushed into the study long ago, leaving even her usual ball game forgotten to one side.

During this lesson, Audrey deliberately displayed her curiosity. From time to time, she asked Islant about the psychological knowledge related to the field of mysticism that had been discussed last time.

As the lesson neared its end, Islant finally chose her words carefully and said, “Miss Audrey, we have organized a seminar in this field. Many of its members have comparatively professional research into the intersection of psychology and mysticism. Would you be interested in joining?”

“Of course!” Audrey nodded without hesitation, perfectly matching the innocent and curious young lady persona she had prepared for herself.

Islant revealed a smile.

“Remember to keep it confidential. As you know, your elders have rather strong prejudices against mysticism. At the next lesson, I’ll take you there.”

“No problem.” Audrey gave an affirmative answer with visible excitement.

After seeing Islant, whose hair reached her waist, out of the study, she closed the door, faced the mirror beside the bookshelf, and remained graceful and quiet for two seconds.

Then she lifted the hem of her dress, took a step, and made a turn from a court dance. Looking at herself in the mirror, she smiled sweetly.

“Audrey, you’re amazing!”

Audrey knew she had taken the first step toward entering the Psychology Alchemists. Although that seminar was most likely only an outer circle, and many tests would surely follow, she had undeniably pushed open the door to the Psychology Alchemists.

And throughout this process, she had not relied on any external power. She had used only her own observation and performance to perfectly deceive Dr. Islant, the psychologist. Because of that, she felt very proud.

“That seminar sounds very interesting.” Susie came over, wagging her tail. “Audrey, can I join?”

Join? Looking at her beloved dog, covered in golden fur and with round, bright eyes, Audrey fell into thought.

She drew out a long “hmm.”

“Susie, not for now. You—you’re too conspicuous…”

At that point, she changed the subject and smiled faintly.

“But I can take you with me.”

…

On Saturday night, Klein took the Master Key and his black cane, then walked out of 15 Minsk Street. Without the latter, he suspected he would not be able to make it back today.

He was going to “find” Dr. Allen, enter the man’s dream, and figure out how the nightmare related to Will Auceptin had come about.

As for where Dr. Allen lived, Klein had already found that out the day before: 3 Birmingham Road in the Hillston Borough.

By the time Klein arrived, it was already past eleven. The surrounding streets were dimly lit, gloomy, and quiet.

After tossing a coin and performing a divination, Klein passed through the iron fence outside, circled around to the side, and used the Master Key to open an invisible passage in the wall, entering a corridor where every light had already been extinguished.

With agile, silent steps, he went up to the second floor and hid in an unoccupied guest room.

Only after confirming that Dr. Allen and his wife had fallen asleep did Klein pass through the wall and enter their bedroom.

The first thing he did was take out a Slumber Charm and softly recite the activation incantation, causing Dr. Allen’s wife to sink into true slumber so that she would not suddenly wake and interfere with his subsequent entry into her husband’s dream.

Next, Klein sat on the chair before the dressing table, held the Dream Charm in his hand, and quietly uttered a word in ancient Hermes.

“Crimson!”

The moment the word left his mouth, he felt the charm in his palm become light and airy, as though it had suddenly turned into an illusion without weight.

As spirituality poured into it, transparent flames enveloped the charm, burning with a deep, tranquil black.

Driven by Klein’s will, that blackness spread outward, enveloping Dr. Allen and enveloping Klein himself as well.

Swiftly entering a meditative state, Klein saw boundless deep darkness. He saw a lonely, oval-shaped ball of light.

His spirituality extended toward it and touched that illusory, hazy thing.

The world around him suddenly inverted and distorted back into place. Before he knew it, Klein found himself in a desolate plain, beneath his feet nothing but pitch-black stones without even a single blade of grass.

At the center of the plain stood a black spire. Coiled around it was a colossal silver-white serpent, its head already raised, its crimson eyes coldly watching in his direction.

What differed from Dr. Allen’s description was that this silver-white serpent had no tangible scales. Its body was covered in dense patterns and symbols. Together they formed interlinked wheels, and around every wheel were different markings.

At the serpent’s tail and head, the wheels each possessed only half a circle. They looked profoundly discordant, almost enough to drive a person with obsessive tendencies mad. Yet Klein imagined that if the silver-white serpent could bite its own tail, the wheel would become complete. Everything would become perfect, no longer incomplete, no longer changing.

Beside Klein, Dr. Allen stared blankly ahead and approached the pitch-black spire step by step.

I can confirm that no one is guiding Dr. Allen… This rules out Nightmare-type Beyonder powers… Klein swiftly made a judgment.

He did not stop Dr. Allen. Instead, he followed at a slight angle behind him, heading toward the black spire and the silver-white serpent.

They had only taken a few steps before the target appeared right before them. The silver-white serpent lowered the upper half of its body, seeming to consider how best to enjoy the sweetmeats delivered to its mouth.

Its mouth opened wide, yet no stench wafted out. Its red eyes were cold and merciless, looking upon everything as prey, yet without the slightest intent of slaughter or cruelty.

Before it, all things seemed insignificant—and because they were insignificant, all things were equal.

In the end, the serpent did not attack. Klein followed Dr. Allen through an ancient, rotting wooden door and entered the interior of the pitch-black tower.

Just as Allen had described, the layout here was exceptionally chaotic. The stairs first spiraled upward, then slanted down. Halls, libraries, and rooms of all kinds appeared; some were normal, some stood upside down, and some were embedded within other parts. This was a building that could not possibly exist in the real world.

Passing through door after door, walking through wall after wall, Klein no longer knew which part of the black tower he had reached. Perhaps it was the very tip of the spire, or perhaps it was the basement.

In the thick darkness, he suddenly discovered a figure curled up in the corner ahead.

That figure sensed Dr. Allen’s approach, hurriedly supported himself, stood up, and hopped closer on one leg.

Only when the figure drew near did Klein clearly see his appearance. He had a sturdy, childlike face, looked a little over ten, and his expression was full of obvious fear.

The figure was around 1.4 meters tall. His left calf was empty. He was indeed the boy who had undergone surgery, Will Auceptin.

In his hands, he held a deck of tarot cards. His jet-black eyes were filled with both surprise and joy, both fear and terror.

“Dr. Allen, there’s a snake that wants to eat me!”

Suddenly, he let out a miserable scream. Reflected within his eyes was that enormous, mysterious silver serpent.

Rustle!

The tarot cards in his hands fell all over the ground, leaving only a single card tightly grasped in his palm.

Klein focused his gaze and discovered that the card also bore a wheel.

It was the Wheel of Fortune card.

Crash!

The dream instantly shattered. Klein found himself still sitting on the chair before the dressing table.