Chapter 37: Deep Dive Team
Goddess Shatae did not immediately agree, instead asking the old knight for his opinion. The old knight remained silent, indicating that the decision was entirely up to Goddess Shatae.
"Are the ones you want to kill ordinary people? I will no longer slaughter the weak."
"No."
"Very well, then we will help you kill them. Please restore the stalled time here. They... are in great pain."
The 'they' Goddess Shatae referred to were the residents deep within the dreamscape. To see these dream residents, one had to 'deep dive' into the dream world.
Goddess Shatae was not of the lawful alignment; rather, she was of the chaotic-evil alignment. Before coming to the dream world, she had killed at least tens of thousands of mad scholars. For a long time, influenced by the energy of the ancient god and excessive slaughter, she had fallen into madness. During that time, she massacred an entire city.
When she regained her sanity, she stood amidst blazing black flames, the city reduced to ruins, with hundreds of thousands of civilians slaughtered by her hand.
Now, Goddess Shatae wanted to protect the dream residents. This seemed like an act of repentance and atonement.
In truth, both Goddess Shatae and the old knight were the same. Before coming to the dream world, they were both deeply sinful individuals who had lost everything, their hearts empty.
Guarding the dream world and the dream residents deep within it was the only thing they could do. If they lost even this, they would have no reason to live, becoming two empty shells.
Su Xiao currently had no intention of severing Goddess Shatae's soul chain. The reason was that once the second layer of the soul chain was opened, the seal on the ancient god would weaken further.
For now, setting up a spatial coordinate to allow his contractors to 'deep dive' was the best choice. After that, he would handle the space-time power trade. Once all this was done, he would sever the soul chain to deal with the ancient god. This was the safest approach.
Both Goddess Shatae and the old knight put away their weapons. Shatae knelt inside the church to pray, while the old knight crouched down, looking at Bubu Wang. He was extremely friendly toward canine creatures and was about to teach Bubu Wang to shake hands. Bubu Wang immediately performed a handshake involving a handstand, a 360-degree spin, and a full split, leaving the old knight dumbfounded.
"Shatae, how old are you today?"
Baha spoke with a smile. Goddess Shatae didn't respond, just stared at Baha, causing him to shiver.
At this point, the outer world of the dreamscape was no longer dangerous. As for the inner world reached after deep diving, the situation there was still unknown.
According to Goddess Shatae, the dream world had two layers. Su Xiao was currently in the outer world, the material world. After deep diving, he would enter the inner world, the spiritual world.
The outer and inner layers of the dream world had identical architecture and terrain. The difference was that the spiritual world contained many dream residents and dream monsters.
The dream residents were not dangerous; they were spiritual entities that would not actively harm anyone.
The dream monsters were different. They would devour foreign consciousness. How they formed was unknown.
The 'deep dive' Goddess Shatae had repeatedly mentioned referred to entering the spiritual world.
Su Xiao had no interest in this. He was only responsible for setting up the spatial coordinates. Professionals in this field would arrive later.
Su Xiao took a metal rod about the length of a forearm from his storage space and thrust it into the ground. The rod expanded, emitting a pulse that spread until it covered the entire dream world before dissipating.
[Spatial coordinate setup in progress. Estimated time: 4 hours 24 minutes.]
Seeing the required time, Su Xiao walked out of the grand cathedral. The dream world's reset would begin in a little over three hours. He planned to return after the reset was complete.
Returning to the dense fog area, Su Xiao opened the fog door and, along with Bubu Wang and Baha, went back to the wooden hut where Snake Lady resided.
Back inside, Su Xiao lay down on the bed to sleep. Before he could fall asleep, Moon Spirit muttered about wanting to visit the dream world. After Su Xiao gave her a look, she went to the corner to face the wall in punishment.
Moon Spirit couldn't enter the dream world. She had to watch over Snake Lady, who was of the neutral-good alignment—someone who would help anyone as long as they didn't harm her. In such a chaotic Dark Star world, one either had to be powerful or, like Snake Lady, adopt this stance to survive.
In this world of rampant demons, the average lifespan of a World Child was under 20 years. Countless traps awaited them, such as the 'humble' Great Sage, the 'merciful' Mother Goddess, the 'reasonable' Kodo School, and the 'friendly' Soul Clock Tower.
Unless a World Child like the Nameless Captain appeared, they simply couldn't grow up, even with the world's favor.
After resting for a few hours, Su Xiao returned to the dream world. Exiting the dense fog, he saw the central clock tower in the distance pointing to 7:13. It was morning, but the moon hung high in the sky. The dream world had no concept of daytime; 23 hours and 59 minutes were all nighttime.
With no obstacles along the way, Su Xiao arrived at the grand cathedral. Goddess Shatae was still kneeling there, her hands clasped in prayer.
The spatial coordinates had been set up. Su Xiao placed his hand on them and activated them through his Reincarnation Mark.
[Tip: The Hunter has successfully set up the spatial coordinates.]
[Three contractors are about to be teleported to the grand cathedral. The Hunter must ensure the cathedral is safe. The three contractors arriving in this world have combat power lower than this world's standard.]
[Tip: After resolving the time stagnation in the dream layer, the three contractors arriving in this world will be forcibly returned to Reincarnation Paradise.]
[You have completed the hidden mission: Coordinate Setup.]
[You have received World-Class Chest ×1.]
[You have received Honor Crystal ×3.]
Three contractors were about to arrive. Based on the tip's content, these three were not Eighth Rank, but they excelled at handling 'puzzle-solving events.' In the spiritual world, logical thinking, insight, patience, and abnormal survival ability were more important.
Spatial fluctuations appeared. Goddess Shatae, who was praying, opened her eyes. Her hand rose, and the Penitent Scythe flew into her grasp.
With a whoosh, Goddess Shatae vanished from her spot. When she reappeared, the blade of the Penitent Scythe was hooked around the neck of a short figure that had just materialized.
"What the hell!"
The short figure shouted, their voice somewhat androgynous.
"Is this an enemy, or someone you brought?"
Goddess Shatae leaned forward slightly, waiting for Su Xiao's word. If he said the word, the scythe in her hand would sever the newcomer's neck.
"Friendly."
"Apologies."
Goddess Shatae withdrew her war scythe and bowed slightly.
"What the hell is this? I almost died the moment I arrived."
A little girl? No, a little boy spoke. He wore a peaked cap, had an androgynous appearance, and was dressed like a detective.
Snoring came from a sleeping bag. Hearing this, the little detective smirked. He leaped high, assumed a golden rooster stance, and brought his full weight down with his toe, landing on the middle section of the sleeping bag. For the person inside, this was a critical hit to a vital area.
"Damn it!!"
A scream of agony came from the sleeping bag, which bent into a V-shape. Su Xiao found the scream somewhat familiar.
"You two, be serious. There's a puzzle-solving event here, and it's very dangerous."
A female voice spoke. Su Xiao turned his head, and their eyes met. Both Su Xiao and the newcomer were surprised.
The newcomer was initially wary, then awkward. Her name was Naluoyi, not particularly famous among contractors, but she had another title: Stan's ex-wife.
The sleeping bag's zipper opened, and a man who had been sleeping in a daze sat up. He rubbed his messy hair. Upon closer inspection, the sleeping bag had many functions; it was a piece of equipment that could even undergo hydraulic filling in critical moments, ensuring safety even from a fall of tens of thousands of meters.
The man sitting up from the sleeping bag was none other than Umbrella Brother.
"Woof?"
Bubu Wang was dumbfounded. He knew Umbrella Brother well, but with Umbrella Brother's logical thinking ability, could he really handle the time stagnation in the spiritual world?
This wasn't Bubu Wang being biased against Umbrella Brother. Umbrella Brother's IQ was certainly not low, but his logical thinking was terrible. For example: A, B, C, and D are sitting in a row. A is Xiao Ming, B is Xiao Bai, C is Xiao Hua, and D is Wang Tiedan. Question: After A and C swap positions, who is to the right of Xiao Bai?
Umbrella Brother's answer was: Xiao Hei.