Chapter 404: Rain and Crown

"Dream-Loss Syndrome?"

Under the scorching sun of autumn, the old mansion in Yacheng was cool.

Tong Ting lowered his eyes, staring at the strange spiritual essence flying insect in his hand that couldn't fly out no matter how much it flapped, and couldn't help but sigh in distress:

"Why has Yacheng had more drama in these two years than in half my life combined?

It feels like everyone and every ghost wants to come and mess around..."

He paused and looked at the old man cooling off by the pond: "Dad, did you misjudge when you chose this place? Is there something wrong with our family’s Feng Shui?"

"Yeah, you finally realized?"

Tong Yuan glanced at his unruly successor, smiling but not smiling: "How about I help you find a piece of prime Feng Shui land and bury you to offset it?

I can just sell you that yellow pear wood coffin of mine for cheap; first come, first served."

"I was wrong ————"

Tong Ting surrendered instantly. He didn't want to trip and roll from the mountainside to the foot of the mountain on his way out; if he kept being stubborn, his dad would make him roll all the way into the Nandu River.

"You’re the elder, why don't you take a look? What exactly is this thing?"

He opened his five fingers and threw the insect that Tong Hua had brought back. Immediately, the spiritual essence flying insect spread its wings and flew around aimlessly, but no matter how it flew, it always circled around the old man’s recliner.

Until finally, Tong Yuan reached out his hand, and it hovered above it.

It folded its cicada wings.

As if it were a real flying insect, it groomed its head and antennae.

Occasionally, it emitted faint chirps, calling for companions.

It was clearly a phenomenon mutated from the residual fragments of spiritual essence, yet it was as if...

It were a living thing?

Tong Yuan lowered his eyes.

At this moment, under the gaze of those old, turbid eyes, the Heavenly Human [Observation], far surpassing Tong Ting’s, began.

It was not about breaking through disguises and cover-ups through one’s own insight, but rather, through one’s own observation, causing everything in the present world to actively reveal its essence before one’s eyes.

Event unfolding, essence pointing, and then, the true [Name] manifest!

For a moment, the spiritual essence flying insect on the old man’s fingertip dissipated again, turning into a cluster of ever-changing light halos. After the spiritual essence unfolded, the information it carried was rewritten.

In the changing rainbow light, countless impulses emerged like a tide — wanting to eat, wanting to sleep, wanting to feel good, wanting women, wanting men, wanting to kill everyone who was an eyesore...

When consciousness dissipated and the soul collapsed, the residue precipitated in the spiritual essence was the distortion and activation of human desires.

This was the "desire" that patients left behind in the mortal world.

"But what about consciousness?" Tong Ting frowned, "Where do consciousness and the self go?"

"Isn't it in its name?"

Tong Yuan asked back, "Dream-Loss Syndrome... those dreams have already taken away consciousness and the self. No, it should be said that consciousness and the self have also merged into those ethereal dreams, right?"

After having no more attachment or lingering feelings for the mortal world, people would turn and walk toward the endless beautiful dream, longing for a moment of pleasure and peace...

Breaking free from the shackles of the physical body and life, hatching such moths from the soul.

The beautiful dream of turning into a butterfly was still continuing.

"A dream of yellow millet."

Tong Yuan sighed softly: "The gift and poison of Lord Huaxu from the past, the invitation of the Dream-Caster calling for the suffering to abandon the mortal world and go to the land of never-ending."

This was the true form of Dream-Loss Syndrome — a fragment left over from the chaotic era to the present, a negligible part of the achievements and evil deeds created by the kings of the past.

In that era when supreme good had not yet fully manifested, a world of chaos after the fall of the gods, its madness and terror were far beyond what people of the current generation could imagine.

Even the cruel tyrants of the Eternal Empire that followed could hardly reach it.

After all, those who could leave their names in history, who didn't have some unique skills?

And as representatives, the kings of the chaotic era each had world-shaking wisdom and dog-donkey hearts, worthy of being called a gathering of heroes, immortals like hemp.

The Fire-Stealer intended to monopolize the fire of the whole world, the Web-Weaver wanted to incorporate all living beings into the fate she wove, and the Candle-Illuminator wanted to gather the souls of all things to ignite and become a second sun.

And that Dream-Caster, the king known as the Lord of Yellow Millet and Lord of Huaxu, was no less than them compared to them, and even exceeded them.

The former Lord of Dreams and Desires was not satisfied with the dullness and boredom of waking moments, and actually insanely overlapped his dreams with the present world, merging with each other, creating the so-called Myriad Phenomena Paradise... claiming to satisfy all desires and possess all beauty in the world.

Like a heavenly kingdom.

In the dream-like beautiful time, the cruel pleasure lasted for ninety-one years. I don't know how many people gathered from all directions, willingly abandoning everything in the present world, just hoping to have a spring and autumn dream... until the end, when the moment of waking came, the dream that overlapped with the present world tore apart a part of the present world, ushering in destruction and nothingness.

The Lord of Huaxu and his Myriad Phenomena Paradise disintegrated and disappeared without a trace.

And the disaster and shock it caused still deeply affect the whole world to this day. Even since then, cracks that seemed to be born that way have appeared in the consciousness and souls of sentient beings, and some people, after birth, their consciousness is no longer complete... congenitally incomplete.

"Strictly speaking, Dream-Loss Syndrome is not a disease, but rather more like a ritual of higher-level calling, except that the ritual has long been out of control, with no one presiding over it."

Tong Yuan said slowly: "In the chaotic era of the past, the Dream-Loss Syndrome you and I speak of was Lord Huaxu’s announcement and invitation to the whole world.

After experiencing the happiness in the beautiful dream, those who were trapped in reality and pain would turn into butterflies and throw themselves into that eternal illusory dream.

Just like moths instinctively chasing the light of fire.

For the current generation, it is an out-and-out disaster, but in the chaotic era of the past, it was a gospel that I don't know how many people dreamed of."

"But it has been thousands of years, right? No, the time of the chaotic era is chaotic, it might even be more than ten thousand years..."

Tong Ting frowned: "Lord Huaxu has long since perished along with the Myriad Phenomena Paradise. What place does this invitation point to now?"

"Isn't this exactly the problem?"

Tong Yuan sighed softly, [Observing] like this, [Explaining] like this, discerning the residual clues from this tiny flying insect, tracing the roots.

In the long dead silence, the light halo on his fingertips changed constantly, revealing bizarre landscapes.

Strange scenes that were definitely not of the present world.

At some moment, a blurred side face appeared, as if it had sensed something, looked back, and disappeared again... Two hands intertwined, each with six fingers, but one of the six fingers flicked slightly, and the scene dissipated again... Countless stars intertwined, turning into an old, senile woman, who glared coldly after noticing Tong Yuan’s tracing...

"Whoa!"

Tong Yuan was amused, "There are really quite a few people tracing it... The Faceless of the Thousand Islands, the Six-Fingered of the Empire, the old hag of the enemy family, hmm, let me see, there are also a few filth-stains causing trouble in it, heh, and the Dragon Sacrifice Society is also involved. How come when the water gets muddy, everyone reaches out their hands?"

Watching the changing rainbow light and even the strange sounds of crackling, Tong Ting instinctively took a step back, fearing that his meager cultivation would be involved in it.

But seeing his own father’s lack of concern, he was immediately puzzled... why was he so high-profile this time?

Not even pretending?

"Oh, don't worry, I’m using the 'Life Observation' of that old woman from the Ma family. I have to say, it’s quite easy to use ————"

Tong Yuan was holding a thin, ancient book of life-reading in his right hand, and now, the ancient book was withering and breaking at a fast speed, turning into dust, and the life numbers recorded in it were burning hot like firewood.

Doing whatever one wants while wearing someone else’s vest, the joy of it is indescribable.

Could Granny Ma crawl out of the grave to condemn him?

Only Tong Ting’s eyelids jumped wildly, wanting to speak but stopping.

It wasn't that he wanted to condemn his father’s behavior, but he wanted to say, you should save it, leave some for me... let me try next time!

Unfortunately, Tong Yuan didn't seem to have any intention of saving at all, and he was still standing up and pedaling!

The life observation in his hand was being consumed at a speed visible to the naked eye, squandering the ancestral savings of others without any mercy, ignoring all interference, and tracing the chaos before his eyes with the instinct of the Heavenly Listening lineage to deal with chaos with chaos.

Countless scenes jumped between each other.

In the end, at some moment, mist seemed to appear.

Distant singing rang out, mixed with the muffled sound of seawater surging.

In the fleeting scene, a pale face rose and fell in the seawater, with a strange smiling face, drifting with the waves to the distance.

Then one, another, and another...

Countless corpses floated on the sea surface, with happy smiles, heading to the depths of the sea, the deepest part of the layers of mist, where the outline of an island appeared.

Illusion or reality?

It was really hard to distinguish. The divination of the Taiyi Sect was like this; even if the result was placed in front of you, there were still many strange images that needed to be interpreted.

But at that moment, what attracted Tong Ting was the tower on the island that seemed to lead to the sky... and even, the strange shadow entwined around the tower.

The shadow looked back, looking over suddenly.

Immediately, the scene dissipated suddenly, hiding in chaos again, deeper...

As if triggering some backlash, the spiritual essence flying insect vanished into thin air.

Then, the life book shook and burned without fire.

Only a long silence remained.

"Usurper?"

Tong Ting murmured softly.

"Not just the Usurper’s Tower, there is also the cover-up and modification of the Filth-Stain Demon. No, the essence besides that is also the Unending and the Absolute Abyss... You ignored the singing and the Black Sky." Tong Yuan shook his head, expressionless, "The one causing trouble behind the scenes, it might be a big fish."

Tong Ting was silent.

After a long time, he sighed self-deprecatingly: "Ether..."

Ether is made of observation and seeing, and likewise, it is defeated by observation and seeing.

Who knows what kind of ghost thing one can see when one looks at it? If one can't see it, that’s fine, but what if one really sees it?

Tong Yuan took action while wearing a vest and almost caused a backlash.

He originally thought it was some evil way or a clown causing trouble, but after one shovel down, he found that the thunder was not ordinary!

It involved Lord Huaxu and the Myriad Phenomena Paradise, and behind it, there was the Filth-Stain causing trouble under the vortex, and behind that, there were the Absolute Abyss and the Unending...

God knows what else it involved.

For a moment, he actually started to have a headache.

"Why are you pulling a long face? Look at your appearance of being like a bird startled by the bow." Tong Yuan glanced back at him, sneering: "In this world, there are plenty of large groups that kill people, White Deer that kill for money, Entropy that burns mountains, and Tianyuan that eats people. When is it the turn of Ether to wrestle with people?"

"It involves Yacheng, at least."

Tong Ting smiled self-deprecatingly: "Can't just leave it alone, right?"

"That’s why I want you and Shengnian to separate. Shengnian manages the family business, does investment, does charity, does things. He has this ability, this capability, and this qualification.

But you can't. The more Ether is involved with people, the more deeply mired it is, and it’s hard to have a long-term view.

This is not to let you stand by and watch, but you have to understand where to start, which is the most convenient..."

Tong Yuan reached out his hand again, and the palm covered with wrinkles and age spots gently pinched, as if pinching a tiny, drifting spider silk.

From the thousands of threads of chaos, he found a crucial line.

Then...

He pulled it violently!

In that instant, a sharp sound like a baby crying rang out.

Auditory hallucination!

But then, there was a series of piercing screams, like high-pitched cicada chirps, one after another, from the mountains and forests in the distance!

The buzzing sound was endless.

Insects!

Massive amounts of spiritual essence flying insects screamed and flapped their wings, rising into the sky!

Under the malicious guidance and promotion of Ether, relying on the glimpse seen in the fleeting light just now, they disguised themselves as the source and issued orders.

In an instant, throughout the entire federation coast, countless lurking spiritual essence moths fell into chaos, interrupted all the processes of infection and spread, and flapped their wings.

Amidst the sharp screams, they converged, thousands upon thousands, like a raging torrent, and began to fly around aimlessly!

It was like someone suddenly flew up and kicked over a hornet’s nest hidden in the dark.

The insect swarm went berserk!

Massive amounts of moths roared past, almost dimming the sky light.

Blocking the sky and the sun.

Tong Ting’s expression was solemn; had it already developed to such a terrifying scale!

"Alright."

The old man on the recliner waved his hand lazily, yawning: "After poking the hornet’s nest, it’s none of our business. Let the young people have the chance to show off."

"Young people?" Tong Ting was puzzled.

But when he looked up, he saw the iron curtain of clouds drifting from the horizon, and after a hurried glance, he seemed to have sensed something.

He was stunned for a moment and sighed self-deprecatingly.

"So it is a Remnant after all..."

In the sweltering afternoon, there was no cool breeze.

Roars came from the distance.

It was raining!

At this moment, Xinquan.

Thunder and lightning, the world was dark!

In the roaring wind, countless iron curtain clouds formed by mercury vapor covered everything.

The gorgeous silver light and the broken rainbows refracted from the scorching sun overlapped in one place. The edge of the huge shadow cast on the earth even seemed to be connected with a layer of colorful rainbow colors like a skirt.

The iron curtain was like a cover, covering the sky, covering the mortal world.

The disturbed silver light danced in the sky, enchanting and cold, so ferocious.

"So beautiful."

In the workshop with the dome open, Ji Jue felt the strong wind blowing in his face, looked up and looked into the distance, and couldn't help but smile: "How does it feel, Isis?"

Isis was silent, saying nothing.

In the sky, in the silver clouds, a blurred face appeared and disappeared, as if looking at the mortal world, looking at her creator, controller, and restrainer, as if some spirit had changed.

Or as if not.

At this moment, above the rolling clouds, endless mercury danced, unfolding in layers, blooming like a lotus flower. Even compared to the simulation of the Myriad Phenomena Tower, her final appearance was too cramped and small, not even one ten-thousandth...

It was just a container like a vehicle.

But at the same time, there were no more shackles.

Returning to freedom.

When the torrential silver rain fell from the sky, the dense rain curtain covered everything. In the endless silver light, Ji Jue seemed to see the figure in front of him.

Drifting and distant.

Looking at himself.

The strong wind blowing in his face seemed to become gentle, like an embrace.

Then, the figure turned and walked toward the deeper part of the rain, disappearing.

Endless silver light rain fell from the sky, watering Xinquan, covering the stunned faces on the street, and countless silver threads spread from the rain.

Isis’s hand, unfold!

Pedestrians on the street, employees working busily in the room, workers sweating on the assembly line, passengers who were sleepy or expectant in the buses.

Thousands of threads stretched and swept past, touching and separating.

Some people were ignorant, some people felt a slight chill on the back of their necks, and some people coughed violently, waking up from their dreams, sweating profusely, looking around, not knowing where they were. Others were already immersed in their dreams, with no reaction.

If observed with spiritual essence vision, one could see countless flashes of light within the range covered by the rain.

That was the inverse application of Fluid Alchemy, controlling spirit with matter, a technique created and developed to target all spiritual essence changes.

———Solid Alchemy!

At this moment, endless mercury fell from the sky and rose into the sky again, returning to that enchanting and gorgeous cloud layer, carrying countless tiny "sand grains."

Just like after a mountain flood, washing away all buildings and cities from the earth, when the silver rain swept past, all the alienated spiritual essence left by the spiritual plague was sealed in mercury sand grains smaller than dust and brought back to the sky.

At the same time, insight into all living things, locking onto all targets, and finally sealing all anomalies.

The alienated spiritual essence on the bodies of those ignorant carriers was removed in the thousands of threads of Isis’s hand, and the spiritual plague that had just parasitized the soul was also forcibly cut off. A little loss of spiritual essence would be replenished after a sleep.

As for the empty shells that were already terminally ill and had no consciousness, the internal precipitation had not yet had time to form moths, so they were thoroughly extinguished, killed, and extracted!

As the clouds in the sky moved slowly, the storm spread out, like an invisible plow, sweeping across the wilderness of Haizhou inch by inch.

Without concealing its existence, nor whitewashing this inconceivable power.

It didn't even ask for anyone’s consent or permission.

————The ruthless purification, start!

"Pity, the name Isis’s Hand has already been used."

Ji Jue pinched his chin, sighing sincerely: "However, since it can serve as a carrier and container for you to move freely, then as a correspondence, why not call it Isis’s..."

Before the words were finished, he felt the cold gaze from the clouds, and even the cold chill and anger that descended amidst the thunder and lightning.

Soon, a sweet voice like a smile rang out: "Sir, if you don't want your mouth, I can help you tear it off."

Why do you have to speak every time I want to start respecting you!

"Fine, fine..."

Ji Jue sighed helplessly, giving up his sudden inspiration: "Since it hangs high in the sky, let’s call it Isis’s Crown, how about that?"

In the remaining historical records of the present world, in the descriptions of that goddess, her crown once evolved from the totem of the scorching sun to the style of the throne of royal power.

If the relevant hieroglyphs were translated into the Federation language, it could be called "Throne."

Its meaning is that the gods descend into the human world, dominating and ruling everything.

This is the royal power bestowed by heaven!

"Such a name is quite fitting for you."

Isis was silent.

In the silent wind, a distant echo seemed to come, like a sigh, and like a shallow smile, hard to distinguish.

Only the silver clouds changed silently, and those blurred pupils lowered slightly, tamely wearing the sky crown on her head.

Then, endless iron light rose again, the clouds unfolded again, carrying the metal rain that swept everything, walking step by step toward the wilderness in the distance.

Mountains covered with weeds, overflowing rivers, parched earth, foul-smelling swamps...

Even if she had seen the same scenery countless times in surveillance and countless cameras, when she truly witnessed such barren and dilapidated scenery, the workshop spirit still couldn't restrain her resistance, and even disgust.

Unable to understand why anyone would care about such scenery.

Nor could she understand why such things were regarded as treasures.

What hatched from the silt were only the endless moths rising before her eyes. The shameless insects were disturbing the sky and the earth, chirping triumphantly before her eyes, making her even more unhappy!

So, Isis raised her hand again.

———In his courtyard, there is no need for pests!