"Perhaps you guessed correctly," Roland said after a moment of silence, "but at this point, the Dream World is key to the rapid development of Neverwinter City. I cannot... nor should I unilaterally close the channel to it."

Especially after Shujuan advanced beyond the extraordinary, the significance of the Dream World has become more important than ever. Each time she enters the realm of consciousness, she brings an immeasurable amount of knowledge to humanity. What's more, there's also Jie Luo, Garcia, the guardian, Panshi... He can no longer treat them as fictional illusions. Even without the factor of Lan, Roland is unwilling to abandon the Dream World.

Nightingale's hand tightened. "Then what about me?"

Roland was slightly taken aback. "What..."

"What about me!" Her voice suddenly rose, with a hint of tremor at the end. "If the time keeps shortening like this, in a few years you'll—" Nightingale bit her lip, as if using all her strength to cut off the second half of her sentence in her throat. "Anna and I made an agreement, and I'm willing to abide by it, but if that day doesn't come, I—what am I supposed to do?"

Roland raised his hand and gently stroked her pale lips. "That's why I need to enter the Dream World to end all this. You know, the numbers don't only decrease; they also increase. It only represents a trend, not the result. If we can uncover the essence of the source of magic, these adverse effects controlled by the realm of consciousness have a high probability of being eliminated. On the contrary, if we just avoid it, it might intensify at some point. By then, it will be too late to act."

If Lan's warning is true, the patience of the gods may be running out. At this point, any decision to entrust hope to time could lead to destruction. The frequent appearance of the Fallen and the God's Messengers seems to prove this point.

He must take this risk.

"But..."

"I promise, I won't let that happen," Roland said earnestly.

Nightingale stared at him for a long time. "No matter what?"

"No matter what," he nodded.

The latter did not respond. Her figure gradually faded away until it completely disappeared into the mist. Roland placed the magic stone in the drawer. Darkness quickly occupied every corner of the room, and the faint light on the glass window returned to its previous color, as if nothing had happened.

But he knew those were not illusions.

On his left hand, lying flat at his side, the warm touch never disappeared.

—Before he fell asleep.

...

"Ding, you have an unread text message."

"Ding, you have an unread text message."

"Who is it? Sending messages so frequently?" Fei Yuhan tidied up her last belongings in front of the mirror. "Is it someone from the association?"

"Sort of..." Valkyries resentfully opened the inbox, and then gritted her teeth and closed it. If she hadn't deliberately controlled her power, the thing in her hand would probably have shattered into pieces.

"Not bad."

"What's not bad?"

"That person has an eye for talent." Fei Yuhan smiled and put on her fleece gloves. "Didn't you notice that the number of gazes directed at you during the Martial Artist Convention was second only to mine? But most people only dare to look. Being the first to muster the courage to send you a message is certainly commendable. If you have time, you might as well introduce me to them."

"It's not what you think," Valkyries replied angrily. After recovering from her injuries and being discharged from the hospital, she and Fei Yuhan moved into the same building due to their group assignments. The two's bedrooms were connected by a large living room, so they were well aware of each other's movements.

Valkyries had no objection to this and was even somewhat grateful—after all, being in this unfamiliar world, the more people she came into contact with, the more likely she was to be exposed. Fei Yuhan, who had been taking good care of her since her visit, had also helped her a lot. Therefore, this anger was not directed at the other party.

She was angry at the sender of the message.

There was no doubt that the small box in her hand, called a mobile phone, was definitely a divine-level treasure. Through it, she could search for most of the knowledge she wanted to know. Compared to those paper books, it was a true encyclopedia. Ever since Fei Yuhan taught her how to use this "communication tool," she could no longer put down her phone.

However, it was not without its drawbacks. For example, once the number was known to others, this thing would become extremely annoying. What was even more unpleasant was that she couldn't easily block the other party.

"Anyway, don't worry about this," Valkyries rubbed her forehead. Losing the Three-Eyed Magic Stone always made her feel like she was missing something. "Are you going out now?"

"That's right. The association recently recruited a new person. Guardian Panshi asked me to meet her."

"A new person?" Valkyries raised an eyebrow. She naturally knew that Fei Yuhan's position in the Martial Artist Association was extraordinary, and she shouldn't need to come forward to receive a new person.

"That's right, after all, I'm going to be her master in the future." The other party smiled, then waved and walked out the door.

Master...

For a moment, Qianxing's figure appeared in Valkyries' mind.

However, this surge of emotion lasted for less than a second before being interrupted by the buzzing of her phone.

"Ding, you have an unread text message."

"Ding, you have an unread text message."

—That guy!

She clenched her fist and, after enduring it for a long time, finally opened her inbox.

"Sender: Roland. Your invading forces have been counterattacked by our army in the Wolfheart Southern Border. The front line is almost completely defeated, and the casualties are close to one hundred thousand. Several giant skeletons that can create red mist have also been lost, and the Lord of the Sky Dome is nowhere to be seen. Is he scared out of his wits by the cannons? Where have those Great Lords gone? If you don't come over soon, this group of vanguard troops will all be buried in Wolfheart."

"Sender: Roland. We have already discovered the Black Stone Obelisk located on the spine of the continent, and it is only a matter of time before we launch an attack on it. What do you think will happen if we throw incendiary bombs into that big pit? Although the distance is a bit far, aircraft that can travel long distances are already under development. If we can't end the Divine Will War as soon as possible, the same scene will repeat itself until the Black Stone Domain becomes a volcano that never goes out. I hope you understand this."

"Sender: Roland. By the way, after being in the Dream World for so long, you should understand what level humans can reach in terms of weapons, right? And one of the peaks of this mountain—the Sun's Radiance—has just undergone a principle test, and it is only one step away from being born. Do you still want to continue thinking about it?"

She received several such messages every day, either about the front-line battles or the latest research results of mankind. Previously, Valkyries had remained silent, neither rejecting nor replying to the messages, but this time, after staring at the screen for a long time, she slowly pressed the reply button.

"Where are you? Let's meet and talk."

...

"Forward: Where are you? Let's meet and talk."

The same information also appeared on Fei Yuhan's mobile phone.

Not bad, it seems that I can learn a lot of new information about another world today. She happily closed the screen and knocked on the door of the guardian's office.

"Come in," came the guardian's steady voice from inside.

"Yes."

The moment she opened the door, she noticed the little girl sitting at the tea table, looking down with a slightly nervous expression. The other party had smooth white hair and was not very tall. The fluctuations of natural power were not obvious either. Just in terms of the foundation of an Awakener, she was not considered outstanding.

But that was not the point.

After only a glance, Fei Yuhan returned to her usual taciturn manner and nodded to the guardian. "Your Excellency."

"Yes, you should already know the reason I called you here," Panshi said unhurriedly as he took a sip of tea. "Now that the person is here, I can't help but ask, what is the reason you want to take her as a disciple? After all, this is the first time you have actively made such a request to the association."

"Maybe... I just want to find something to do?" she replied indifferently.

Panshi was slightly taken aback, and then clapped his hands and laughed loudly, "Hahaha... it does seem like your style. But no matter what the reason, it is a good thing for Prism City, which urgently needs to replenish its strength." He looked at the little girl aside, "Let me introduce you, this is Fei Yuhan, a genius martial artist recognized by the association. Although she doesn't seem easy to approach, she is a responsible person. Her becoming your master will greatly help you in your future path."

"And this little girl is the new Awakener staying at Roland's house—"

"Jie Luo," Fei Yuhan extended her hand to the other party, smiling slightly. "Welcome to the Martial Artist Association."