Treasure Hunting System： The Ocean Conquerer

Chapter 565: Chapter 271: Red Mist Behemoth_3

”I’ll leave them to you,” Alka said, looking at Chadite.

Chadite took the Dream Catcher and nodded, a Ring of Light appearing on her forehead.

He informed Chadite of Pororo and the others’ location, then had Lucilia send a message asking them to wait where they were.

After that, he opened the Dream Bubbles.

Chadite immediately transformed into a stream of light and vanished.

After doing all this, Alka finally sighed in relief and sat inside the Dream Bubble.

This series of changes left him somewhat mentally exhausted. Every step today seemed like dancing on the edge of a blade. But he couldn’t rest yet.

Lucilia also sat nearby, frowning as she waited for a reply from the Puppet Girl who was with Pororo and the others.

After a while, she received a message, and a smile finally appeared on her face.

”Ling has already opened the Dream Bubbles, enclosing the Sound of Dawn and everyone on the ship. Chadite has also arrived, and she’s opened a bubble too.”

Hearing this, Alka lay back on the dream grass.

Finally, safety was within reach. No, they still couldn’t let their guard down. The bubble might not hold forever, but there was no better method now.

Scarlet tentacles moved over and touched the Dream Bubble. One tentacle connected to it.

Other tentacles extended in various directions.

Alka sat up and turned to look at the bubble’s membrane. He could sense something in that direction drawing Dream Energy. This meant the red tentacles hadn’t shattered the bubble; they were absorbing its energy slowly, just as they had the previous night.

The great weight finally lifted.

”What should we do now?” Lucilia asked, sitting on the grass.

The Puppet Girls were all around, lying on the grass and resting. Although the recent screams hadn’t harmed them, they were still fatigued. This was the first time they had felt tired, and they were just discussing this novel sensation.

Hearing Lucilia’s inquiry, Alka sat up and looked at her.

”Now we just have to wait,” he said. ”Typically, it would take another half-day for the island to completely fall into the Dream Realm and then reconnect with reality.”

”But now the island has been forcibly dragged into a dream. I don’t know how long it will take to return to reality, but it will likely take at least a full day and night.”

Lucilia nodded, looking at Alka with some concern. ”Can we hold out for a full day and night like this?”

”No worries, we’ll manage,” Alka nodded reassuringly.

Continuously having Dream Energy siphoned for a day and night was manageable; it would just lead to extreme fatigue afterward.

”What about them?”

Hearing this, Alka frowned slightly and began to calculate seriously.

”Chadite should be fine. I’ve stored some dream mist in the replica I created, which should be able to replenish her a bit.”

However, Alka wasn’t as confident about Ling and the others.

”I recall you can absorb the energy from their bodies to strengthen yourself, am I right?”

Lucilia nodded. The Bloody Team Banner indeed had this effect; she just hadn’t used it before.

”Can they, like you, absorb energy from other Puppet Girls to strengthen one individual?”

Lucilia pondered this deeply upon hearing the suggestion. She had never considered this before, as she had never even used her own ability. She really cherished her Puppet Knight Order; why would she harm them meaninglessly with such an ability?

Closing her eyes, she began to carefully comprehend the Treasure’s ability, starting some small experiments.

Shortly afterward, she opened her eyes. ”Yes, this method is feasible, but they can only absorb from those nearby, and it must be willingly given. I can’t compel any of them to transfer energy to someone else.”

This ability was somewhat reduced compared to her direct use, but it was still acceptable.

”That’s enough, more than enough.”

Julia and the others had the largest number of Puppet Girls, as half had been left on the ship. Not to mention, there was Vice Captain Ling, a powerful Third Stage member. All this would be more than enough to elevate the other Ling’s mental fortitude and power, allowing her to endure much longer.

”Then convey this method to them. When Ling is about to falter, have the other Puppet Girls gather their strength for her.”

After handling these matters, Alka could only sit and rest within the Dream Realm.

Though ’rest’ was a generous term; he could feel his Dream Energy constantly leaking away, translating into mental fatigue. He couldn’t leave, nor could he see any changes outside. The Dream Bubble’s membrane was as hard as steel, just like that night. He could only feel the Dream Energy slowly draining away, being absorbed. Alka longed to know what had become of the island outside, but he was powerless to find out. All he could do was quietly wait within the bubble. Still, surviving was enough.

Lucilia looked at the large crystal behind Alka and the Gold and Silver Energy spiraling inside it.

”What exactly is this energy inside?” Lucilia asked curiously, having never seen anything like it before.

Alka turned to gaze at his crystal.

”This... this holds two types of energy from the Dream Realm,” he explained. ”The golden energy allows dream objects to exist in reality, and the silver energy allows real objects to enter the Dream Realm.”

”Is the energy inside growing?” Lucilia asked uncertainly, seeing it seemingly increase.

Alka nodded. ”We were forcibly dragged from reality, which generated countless amounts of silver energy. It is indeed increasing; your eyes don’t deceive you.”

”Soon enough, the golden energy should begin to increase as well, as the island starts moving back towards reality.”

Since Alka had entered the Dream Realm, the silver energy had been constantly increasing, but it had just now stabilized. This indicated that the island was now utterly pulled into the Dream Realm, with any residual energy on it almost vanished. A rise in golden energy would mean the island was journeying back to reality. He had to rely on this method to determine if the island had commenced its return.

”Can you use this energy to open a gateway to reality?” Lucilia asked curiously.

Alka looked at the energy in his crystal. He had just pondered the same thing; if it were plausible, he could escape immediately.

But he regrettably shook his head. ”If my true body were in reality, yes. But now, my body is engulfed in the Dream Realm, leaving no medium.”

He needed a connecting passage, a way to fix coordinates, before he could open a gate from the Dream Realm to reality. Previously, he himself had provided the coordinates; now, that was impossible.

”Unless I discover a method to open a path to reality even while in the Dream Realm.”