Chapter 126: Optional Branches of Hidden Nodes

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Confronted with Listener Sophia’s doubts, Li Nanke remained outwardly impassive, though inwardly he could not help feeling startled.

Although the blue-haired woman before him possessed little combat ability, she could use ego essence to monitor every move of those around her. Her mastery of ego essence was far beyond that of the Trackers.

The difference was that Trackers used ego essence for combat, while Listeners were more inclined to use it as an aid.

Unable to manipulate ego essence to hear Li Nanke’s thoughts, Sophia therefore suspected that he was not using ego essence to fight at all, and that he was fundamentally different from the Trackers.

“Lady Sophia, merely because you cannot see through me, you arbitrarily conclude that the power I possess does not belong to this world? Isn’t that rather absurd?”

Sophia shook her head without pursuing the matter. Instead, she continued, “Mr. Black Rabbit, no one in this world understands ego essence better than I do as a Listener. My eyes and ears do not deceive me.”

“I have no interest in the source of your power. I need only know that you do not stand with the Alchemists’ Order.”

“Because I need your help. I want you to kill Simon, the current head of the Alchemists’ Order.”

As Sophia’s voice fell, the synchronized prompt sounded at once.

[Nightmare, you have triggered a hidden node!]

[Hidden Node (Optional Branch): Travel to Alchemy Island and seize the God’s Arm of Simon, Head of the Alchemists’ Order!]

“Alchemy Island is surrounded by eternal mist and storms. It is the legendary place where angels and gods fell. No ship can approach or land on the island. The only way to reach it is by using an alchemical teleportation array.”

“The alchemical workshop tower in this city has now been destroyed, and the only teleportation array in Claret City is controlled by the Puppet King…”

Li Nanke watched the crimson words of the hidden node appear, his expression thoughtful.

An optional branch…

In the previous Forbidden Dream, the hidden node involving the rescue of Anya, the Lady of Eternal Pain, had also contained the optional branches of “Termination” and “Rest.”

At the time, however, the branches had existed within the same node. This time, the prompt explicitly stated “Optional Branch,” indicating that there was at least one other subsequent route, perhaps even another hidden node entirely different from this one.

He suddenly interrupted Sophia.

“Lady Sophia, whether it is the Puppet King or Head Simon, both are incomparably powerful beings. If you want me to kill them, you will have to provide corresponding assistance.”

“What reward can you offer for this commission?”

In the underground laboratory beneath the Grand Cathedral, Li Nanke had learned that Champion Victor’s evolution had failed. After going mad, he had killed several alchemists, and in the end, only the intervention of Head Simon had been enough to subdue him.

From this, it was clear that the current head of the Alchemists’ Order possessed strength beyond imagination.

Li Nanke had managed to kill Champion Victor only by taking advantage of the terrain of the sea.

Even though his Pain Principle had now risen to the fourth level and his own strength had increased substantially, if he were to fight Champion Victor again, he would still be far more likely to lose than win.

Trying to kill Head Simon, who was even stronger than Champion Victor, would obviously make this hidden node unimaginably difficult.

Without outside assistance, completing it would be harder still.

The Sophia before him had revealed her true identity as a Listener. Perhaps she could provide him with additional help.

Sophia had clearly come prepared. She spoke slowly.

“I possess a great deal of classified information. Not only would it be extremely valuable to you, it could also help several Trackers in the Black Rabbit Gang.”

“Furthermore, I can use butterflies formed from ego essence to guide you, allowing you to obtain the treasures hidden on Alchemy Island.”

“And there is something else. I can tell that you value Puppet P greatly. If you are willing to help me, I can provide clues that will allow you to gain complete control over Puppet P.”

Li Nanke’s heart jolted.

Leaving aside the secrets contained in Sophia’s intelligence, the fact that she could help him uncover hidden treasures and provide clues about the conditions for Pinocchio to acknowledge its master was already of immense importance to him.

Perhaps the key to completing the hidden node with outside assistance lay in some secret object concealed on Alchemy Island.

Moreover, he had gone to great lengths to take Pinocchio along while it leveled up and fought monsters, yet he had still failed to find the crucial clue that would make it acknowledge its master. He could not afford to end up with nothing after all that effort.

Now that Sophia could provide him with a clue, she was no different from a beacon showing him the way.

Seeing that Li Nanke was tempted, Sophia continued.

“To demonstrate my sincerity, I can give you one piece of information in advance. It concerns the lives of several Trackers in the Black Rabbit Gang.”

“You have read Geppetto’s notes, so you should have some understanding of the essence of ego essence.”

Geppetto’s notes stated that the energy of ego essence had originally come from the fallen “Star.” Later, when the angels and gods fell, only one of them left behind a physical arm. The other higher lifeforms were transformed into ego-essence energy, scattered throughout the world.

Sophia seemed to see what he was thinking and explained, “There were very few angels and gods. Even if every one of them had fallen and died, they could never have produced enough ego essence to fill the entire world. And beneath the earth lie vast veins of ego-essence crystals. Such quantities could not have been produced solely by higher lifeforms.”

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Li Nanke frowned. “Then where did all this ego essence come from? Could it be that the fallen ‘Star’ never truly vanished, and is still continuously releasing ego essence?”

Although he was merely a half-trained researcher in the real world, the things he had encountered had awakened his natural thirst for knowledge. He was extremely curious about knowledge that touched upon the origin of the world itself.

Such knowledge could be used to uncover the properties of Forbidden Objects, while also deepening his understanding of the background of the Dream World.

The blue crystal that drove Forbidden Object No. 6-1828, supplied by Minyan, appeared at first glance to be nothing more than a relatively large ego-essence crystal, with no other particularly unusual qualities.

Its function was also no different from that of an ordinary ego-essence crystal. It provided powerful energy capable of keeping gears turning indefinitely and enabled mechanical creations to develop a certain degree of self-awareness.

Sophia shook her head. Her next words were earth-shattering.

“Ego essence has nothing to do with gods in its fundamental nature. The Star and the angels merely gave tangible form to this free energy that has always existed in the world.”

“The true essence of ego essence is the vital essence of humanity!”

“Vital essence is all the energy contained within a complete, intelligent life-form, including memories, souls, emotions, and more.”

“After human beings die, their vital essence separates from them. The Star was able to control the human vital essence drifting throughout the world, which was why it could grant special powers to the ancient humans who prayed to it, and even fulfill their wishes for immortality.”

Li Nanke froze, then blurted out, “So the immortality of the angels and gods was not created from nothing. It was sustained by the endless vital essence of humanity.”

Sophia smiled faintly and nodded.

“Because the fundamental nature of ego essence is human vital essence, angels and gods need only absorb ego essence continuously to obtain eternal, undying life.”

Li Nanke suddenly understood. It felt as though a bolt of lightning had torn through the fog.

Following that line of thought, he continued, “And because ego essence contains human memories, souls, and emotions, mechanical puppets driven by ego essence are capable of actions beyond their programmed commands. That is how they develop self-awareness.”

“However, low-level puppets can contain only a very limited amount of ego essence, so they can give birth only to the most rudimentary self-awareness. Only advanced, special puppets can develop intelligence resembling that of a human being.”

“For example, Pinocchio…”

“Exactly,” Sophia picked up the thread. “And the Puppet King as well.”

“The ego-essence energy drifting through the world is like spores. All ego-essence crystals are constantly spreading these spores, and every person absorbs, to some extent and without realizing it, the vital essence of the dead.”

“But humans who have not transformed into higher lifeforms cannot bear the vital essence of others.”

“Those with a weaker capacity to bear vital essence contract ‘Petrification Disease.’ That is why Simon believes it to be a form of purification—or even evolution.”

“He deliberately spread Petrification Disease in order to eliminate lower lifeforms incapable of bearing vital essence. Through survival of the fittest, he continuously selected the best specimens from his test subjects, seeking the correct path toward evolving into a higher lifeform and thereby obtaining immortality for himself.”

“And you Trackers…”

Sophia stopped halfway, looking into Li Nanke’s eyes.

The implication was clear: he should now understand what sort of beings the Trackers were, and why she had said that this concerned the lives of several members of the Black Rabbit Gang.

Li Nanke slowly exhaled. He understood.

He said slowly, “If humans who contract Petrification Disease are those with a poor capacity to bear vital essence, then Trackers are a group of people born with an unusually strong capacity to bear it. They can even absorb large quantities of ego essence and use it in combat.”

“But Trackers are not higher lifeforms. At most, they are simply people with a high resistance to the poison.”

“If Trackers continue using ego essence in battle and continue absorbing it to increase their strength, they will eventually contract Petrification Disease as well—just like Monster Rabbit. He had never even come into contact with anyone suffering from Petrification Disease, yet he still contracted this incurable illness…”

Sophia used a fork to cut off a small piece of cake from the tea table and placed it in her mouth, chewing and savoring it gently.

“That’s right. So if you do not want them all to die from Petrification Disease in the end, let them live quietly as ordinary people from now on.”

Li Nanke’s thoughts stirred. He took out several Gold Coin Fruits and set them on the tea table.

“Lady Sophia, you are the daughter of the former head of the Alchemists’ Order. Do you know alchemy? Can you create a Special Panacea?”

Sophia’s gaze grew somewhat distant.

“The Gold Coin Tree was transformed from a Listener who suffered the effects of evil alchemy, while the Gold Coin Fruits are the silent tears left behind by that Listener…”

“I’m sorry. My understanding of alchemy is limited to theoretical knowledge. I cannot truly use alchemy to produce medicine.”

Li Nanke had long suspected the identity of his mysterious employer, Mr. X. Now that he had visited the Grand Cathedral district, he had more or less determined Mr. X’s true identity.

If reality was indeed as he suspected, having Mr. X create a Special Panacea to cure Monster Rabbit might conflict with Sophia’s commission.

“Mr. Black Rabbit, what do you think? Have you made your decision? Will you accept my commission?”

“What about the clue to controlling Pinocchio?”

Sophia smiled helplessly. “Mr. Black Rabbit, I have already demonstrated my sincerity by paying the deposit. Shouldn’t you show some sincerity as well?”

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“Otherwise, if I hand over the entire reward to you in advance, I can only place my hopes of revenge in Mr. Black Rabbit’s character.”

“Once you defeat the Puppet King and reach Alchemy Island, I will pay the remaining reward.”

There was nothing left for Li Nanke to hesitate over. He rose and extended one hand.

“Then… to a pleasant cooperation.”

“To a pleasant cooperation.”

…

Late that night, Li Nanke arrived on the balcony of the suite.

He lined up five Gold Coin Fruits along the marble railing, then took out the short flute used to summon his employer, Mr. X, and raised it to his lips, blowing softly.

The flute produced no sound, but an invisible ripple spread into the distance.

After waiting for quite some time, he suddenly turned around.

On the floor of the neighboring balcony, a faint blue light had appeared from nowhere. It was as though a giant brush were swiftly sketching back and forth. Numerous deep-blue lines emerged across the floor, forming a complex alchemical array resembling a pentagram.

The light flickered faintly, and two figures suddenly appeared on the balcony.

Unlike the previous time, when he had been completely unable to sense how the other party had appeared, Li Nanke had detected the alchemical array being drawn in advance this time.

His employer, Mr. X, had arrived. He was still dressed in a sharply tailored gentleman’s suit, with a tall silk top hat and an elegant metal cane.

The pale armored knight covered in spikes behind him continued to trigger an intense sense of danger within Li Nanke.

That sensation of danger was even stronger than the one Champion Victor had given him. Although Li Nanke’s Pain Principle had risen to the fourth level, the pressure emanating from the other party had not diminished in the slightest.

Li Nanke studied his employer, Mr. X. The man appeared to be in his forties and wore a full beard, with a scar over his left eye.

The pupil of his left eye was gray-white. That eye should have been blind.

Strangely, Li Nanke’s danger sense did not react to him. This meant that the man before him posed no real threat to him.

Mr. X waved a hand, and the five Gold Coin Fruits rose into the air before flying into his grasp.

“Black Rabbit, you have done well. Puppet P has grown considerably since the last time.”

“I will fulfill our previous agreement and prepare a Special Panacea.”

Li Nanke asked, “When will it be ready?”

Mr. X chuckled. “It will not take long. However, you will need to take Puppet P, defeat the Puppet King, and travel to Alchemy Island to retrieve it.”

Li Nanke suddenly spoke. “Mr. Simon, why are you so concerned with Puppet P?”

Upon hearing that form of address, the warm smile gradually vanished from Mr. X’s face. His eyes fixed tightly on Li Nanke as an invisible pressure slowly radiated outward.

“Black Rabbit, you are an intelligent man. Do not ask questions that should not be asked. Knowing too much will do you no good.”

Mr. X did not deny his identity. He was indeed Simon, the current head of the Alchemists’ Order.

Simon turned toward the pale knight. “Let’s go, Laxia.”

The pale knight knelt on one knee and extended an arm. Mr. X placed his hand upon the knight’s arm.

A glow of ego essence emerged from the knight, and another alchemical array appeared beneath their feet.

Before Simon’s figure disappeared, he left behind a final sentence.

“Do not try to become Puppet P’s master. You will lose him in the end.”

With those words, the two vanished through teleportation.

Laxia…

According to Geppetto’s notes, she was the nun of the Grand Cathedral—a woman who had loved Simon and willingly become a test subject. She was a terrifying existence even closer to completeness than Champion Victor.

So the pale knight who had always followed Simon was Laxia.

At that same moment, the synchronized prompt sounded once again!

[Nightmare, you have triggered a hidden node!]

[Hidden Node (Optional Branch): Travel to Alchemy Island and offer Puppet P’s Power Core to Simon, Head of the Alchemists’ Order!]