The Wizard's Pursuit of Truth

[Individual Dream Wizard Path]

[Objective: Finalize the choice of Dream Wizard Path and determine future prospects.]

[Details: Research the essence of the Dream World, explore the connection between Dream Wizards, Dream Power, and the Dream World... Study the anatomy of Dream Creatures to understand their fundamentals and see if it can provide beneficial aid to the individual path.]

[Assistance: ’Analysis Ability of the Eye of Truth,’ ’Manuscripts from the Illusory Dream Wizard’s past research, and some recorded information can be used as a reference.’]

Wang Ya settled down comfortably in the Illusory Dream Garden. He thoroughly organized the Illusory Dream Wizard’s manuscripts, sorting them by research period, topic, and subsequent developments.

Within them, Wang Ya saw flashes of the Illusory Dream Wizard’s brilliance. That Wizard had been more inclined to study the Dream World itself, seemingly by absorbing Dream Power and then using their own consciousness and Spiritual Power to occupy and influence the Dream World.

This was the origin of the Illusory Dream Garden—it was a Dream Wizard’s territory within the Dream World.

The Illusory Dream Wizard had established its internal order, its relative ecological rules, and its Wizard resource sites. Just as he had imagined, all of it existed within the Illusory Dream Garden.

It even extended the Dream Territory to the vicinity of the Illusory Dream Tower through a corner of the Dark Land’s Dream Realm, thus anchoring it completely.

This included the unique Maple Forest and the Heart Dream Lake, where the aura of the Dream World was even richer.

The majority of the Illusory Dream Wizard’s Power was concentrated within this Dream Territory. One could say that within the Dark Land Headquarters, the Illusory Dream Wizard was the strongest.

To some extent, even more powerful Wizards would be no match for the Illusory Dream Wizard.

But if they left the Dark Land Headquarters, their Power would be greatly diminished.

However, for the Illusory Dream Wizard, it probably made no difference.

Their true body was in the Dream World, making it difficult to appear in reality. It was fundamentally impossible for them to leave the Dark Land Headquarters’ territory.

The effect of the anchor diminished with distance.

If the Illusory Dream Wizard were to leave the Dark Land’s sphere of influence, they would likely become completely trapped in the Dream World, unable to ever appear in the real world again.

They would become a native of the Dream World, just like the Dream Creatures that existed there.

Wang Ya did not want to follow the same path as the Illusory Dream Wizard. ’What kind of path should I take?’ he began to wonder.

After fully absorbing all the information from the manuscripts with his Eye of Truth, he began to explore the entire Illusory Dream Garden while lost in thought.

No matter what kind of Dream Creatures or other things worth investigating he found, he collected partial samples to bring back as materials for comparative experiments.

After a long period of contemplation, Wang Ya remained at a loss. After all, the Dream Mage System was mysterious and unknown, and he had been left to research it all on his own.

For a time, he couldn’t figure out which way his own Dream Wizard Path should go.

He even fell into a state of extreme frustration at one point, but he quickly came to his senses. ’This state is not good,’ he thought. ’I absolutely cannot let this continue. I need to adjust my mindset.’

He walked out of the manor’s laboratory and into the courtyard. He began planting parts of the Dream Plants into the black soil.

There were all sorts of tools in the courtyard. He first loosened the soil, then carefully planted the cuttings and watered them. The water was drawn from the jade-green river, a process that involved some danger, as a colony of Dream Creatures lived within it.

These were creatures called Poisonous Water Head Children—they had the bodies of frogs but the heads of human babies. It was an incredibly bizarre sight. They were also baby-sized and secreted a green mucus all over their bodies, which was likely related to their habitat in the jade-green river.

However, a single one was not very powerful; Wang Ya could easily defeat it with his Spiritual Power.

Of course, if he were to face a group attack, he could only flee in disarray.

He had plenty of ways to deal with a group of creatures that could only hole up in the jade-green river.

Soon, a specimen of a Poisonous Water Head Child, along with other experimental materials, appeared in his laboratory.

There was also a small pond in the courtyard for raising a few aquatic creatures, but unfortunately, it had dried up. Wang Ya went to great lengths to bring water from the jade-green river to fill the pond.

He then found a sickle, rolled up his sleeves, and began to harvest the mature rice in the paddy field.

The joy of a bountiful harvest brought a smile to Wang Ya’s face, gradually washing away the frustration of being at a standstill.

Even his mental state eased and relaxed.

In the days that followed, he stopped trying to force a decision on how to proceed with his Dream Wizard Path.

That would just be banging his head against a wall.

He came to a realization: his foundation was insufficient. His understanding of both the Dream World and its Dream Creatures was far too shallow.

’I should first try to immerse myself and observe the details of life here.’

Only by truly living in the Dream World and becoming a native life form would he gain a deeper understanding and perception of it.

「Half a month later.」

SPLASH!

A Poisonous Water Head Child emerged from the pond’s surface and, with a powerful kick of its legs, leaped onto the bank. The baby-like face on its head wore a fearful expression. Its glossy black eyes, incredibly lively, darted around as if searching for something.

Its every movement was exceedingly cautious.

After confirming that the terrifying two-legged monster was not around, the Poisonous Water Head Child flailed its four legs, preparing to escape this dreadful place.

One of its companions had already fallen prey to that two-legged monster and been dragged into the terrifying house. What fate it had suffered was unknown.