Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2808: Chapter 2809: Sweet Dream

After the Wise Sovereign gave instructions to Little Bao, he went to a corner of the room and retrieved a frame devoid of a painting from a pile of miscellaneous items.

The Wise Sovereign turned to look at the crowd: "I’m going to rest inside for a bit. When you’re done asking questions, you can have Little Bao wake me up."

Before everyone could understand, the Wise Sovereign’s body slowly shrank and he stepped into the frame.

As the Wise Sovereign’s figure disappeared, a portrait appeared inside the once unpainted frame — a one-eyed boy sitting on a redwood rocking chair, basking in the sunshine from the window, eyes closed in a serene nap.

In human aesthetics, symmetry is considered the most harmonious beauty, whereas one eye can hardly appear beautiful.

But in this painting, the Rembrandt-style lighting accentuated the light-shadow contours of the one-eyed boy’s face, making it serene and lovely.

"Is he really asleep?" Dox looked at the sleeping boy in the painting and murmured softly.

"Of course, the Sovereign is asleep; this painting is the Sweet Dream. In the painting, a short rest can..." The one-eyed Little Bao, within the cup, was explaining, but suddenly stopped halfway through.

Dox looked at the one-eyed Little Bao in confusion: "Go on, continue to explain?"

The one-eyed Little Bao snorted: "Second Bao doesn’t let me reveal the effects of the Sweet Dream, I listen to my brother!"

"Sweet Dream? Is it an alchemy tool?" It was Angel asking, feeling that when Little Bao described the ’Sweet Dream’, it seemed like he was talking about some special tool, rather than a mere ability.

But to call it an alchemy tool... Angel was puzzled since under the gaze of the Alchemy Eye, the frame’s material was clear as day.

It was a known type of wood to Angel and not an extraordinary material.

If it’s not an extraordinary item, why did the one-eyed Little Bao’s tone sound as if he’s describing some sort of alchemy tool?

The one-eyed Little Bao continued to hum: "This is not concerning the Qingkong Poetry Room, I won’t answer!"

The question Dox asked earlier had nothing to do with Qingkong Poetry Room... Angel grumbled internally but maintained patience: "Why not ask Second Bao? Maybe Second Bao will allow you to answer?"

Little Bao said nothing and closed his eyes, sinking into contemplation.

Seconds later, Little Bao blinked open his cartoon-style large eyes: "My brother agreed I can explain the Sweet Dream to you, but I can’t reveal the effects of Sweet Dream."

With that said, Little Bao muttered to himself: "How to explain this? Talk about Sweet Dream but can’t talk about effects, it’s annoying!"

"How about I ask you?" Angel: "There’s no True Words Tome here, you can choose to answer or remain silent."

The True Words Tome was also taken away by the Wise Sovereign when he left.

No one had any objections to this; Little Bao himself was not part of any contract of the True Words Tome, so even if covered by the tome, it wouldn’t matter. At most, the effect of "answering diligently" can still work. But Little Bao could completely reply off-topic or simply lie.

Moreover, Little Bao’s case is quite special; if it lies... everyone would actually notice, so there’s no need for the True Words Tome as a constraint.

"Fine, ask quickly then, finish asking and I can complain to Mother."

"Complain? Complain about us?"

"If you bully me, I’ll complain about you. But not now; later I’m going to complain about Second Bao, who ignored me earlier."

Listening to Little Bao’s grievances, everyone had nothing to say.

Clearly, Second Bao had just finished talking to Little Bao, and now Little Bao wants to complain about Second Bao ignoring it. What kind of sibling dynamics is this?

"Hurry up!" after muttering for a long time, Little Bao loudly said to Angel.

"Yes, the first question I asked earlier: Is the Sweet Dream an alchemy tool?"

Little Bao: "No."

Angel: "Then what is it, an ability? A talent?"

Little Bao thought for a moment: "Neither. In human terms, Sweet Dream should be considered a mysterious object."

Mysterious object?! Although earlier, everyone was puzzled as to why Angel was fixated on Sweet Dream, now their eyes lit up... It’s a mysterious object!

However, in the next second, they recalled Little Bao’s earlier words: only Sweet Dream itself could be mentioned, not its effects. It’s frustrating to know a mysterious object is right here yet unable to understand its effects, that itching feeling is quite unpleasant.

"Sweet Dream is a mysterious object..." Angel squinted slightly and continued: "Is its entity the frame?"

Little Bao: "Certainly not. Sweet Dream has no entity, it’s merely a dream."

Perhaps seeing the crowd’s misunderstanding, Little Bao thought for a moment and continued: "The Sovereign once told me the precursor of Sweet Dream was a fragment of a blank dream drifting in the Sea of Void Mirror. By chance, it gathered a large number of sweet dreams and then, prompted by favorable timing and conditions, transformed into a mysterious object... the Mysterious Dream."

"It has no entity. The Sovereign was able to acquire it thanks to the help of a white-haired lady with peculiar eyes. Now, it’s stored within a special mirror world."

"While the Sovereign enters through this frame, the frame is not crucial; he can enter through any mirror surface."

Others might not understand, but Angel somewhat comprehends.

It’s essentially an abstract notion of a mysterious object.

In Culori’s records, Angel found many similar mysterious objects. For example, ’Seed’, this chaotic object is considered abstract because entering Seed requires no physical entity, nor can anyone find its entity; one simply recites the corresponding symbols to enter the disordered rhythm of Seed.

Also, the ’Heartbeat of the Lonely Joker’, its effect is that all life hearing the heartbeat would dance to it. Initially, it might seem the heart itself is the mysterious object, in truth, it’s the heartbeat that is central. And the heartbeat as a mysterious object fits the abstract sense.

Besides this, ’Growth Ray’, ’Old Dream’, and ’Echo’ can be categorized similarly.

Thus, upon hearing about the Sweet Dream being an entity-less mysterious object, Angel was not surprised.

Compared to its form of existence, Angel was more intrigued by the process of creation Little Bao mentioned.

If what the Wise Sovereign described about its birth process is factual, or was it randomly fabricated to fool Little Bao? If it’s true, maybe from there one can identify the key to the birth of a mysterious object?

"How does the Wise Sovereign know so well about the creation process of Sweet Dream; was he witness to it?" Angel thought for a moment before voicing the inner doubts.

"What the Sovereign described is the process, why do you doubt?" The one-eyed Little Bao could not understand why Angel would ask; in its memory, the Wise Sovereign never lied. Since he said so, then the process must be like this.

Angel and others’ skepticism made the one-eyed Little Bao a bit uncomfortable.

Angel sensed the disdain in Little Bao’s tone and thought over, adding: "I’m merely lamenting why I didn’t have such luck as the Wise Sovereign to witness the birth of Sweet Dream personally."

Upon hearing Angel express admiration for the Sovereign, the one-eyed Little Bao immediately retracted its displeasure, mumbling: "The Sovereign is great, you can’t compare."

Angel nodded with a smile, showing agreement.

Once Angel could confirm Little Baos emotions had turned positive again, he continued asking, "Is this Sweet Dream related to dreaming?"

Little Bao was about to answer when suddenly, as if realizing something, said, "Hm, I won’t tell you anything."

Angel responded, "It’s okay if you don’t tell me. But can I guess its mechanism?"

Little Bao said, "Suit yourself, I won’t say anything regardless."

Angel asked, "Does Sweet Dream cause people to fall asleep?"

Little Bao didn’t answer, but Angel, through Hyper Perception, sensed a feeling of "dismissiveness" from Little Bao’s emotions.

Placed in another situation, this emotion would likely indicate Angel’s guess was incorrect. Yet here, it was inconclusive.

Because The Sage Sovereign had entered the picture right in front of them, showing a sleeping posture, it made it almost explicit that Sweet Dream does induce sleep. Therefore, Little Bao’s dismissiveness seemed quite normal.

Angel understood this as well; he asked the question to relax Little Bao’s emotions for better perception of his emotional fluctuations in the discussion.

"Once you fall asleep, Sweet Dream will display the effects of the Mysterious Object." Angel paused, "The effect might be some positive gains from dreaming?"

Little Bao showed slight emotional fluctuation, but it was mostly confusion. The confusion began when Angel mentioned "positive gains."

Angel found Little Bao’s confusion peculiar; he wondered if he might have said something wrong.

As Angel contemplated, Little Bao asked aloud, "Uh, what do you mean by positive gains?"

Angel: "..."

He pondered over Little Bao’s confusion, questioning whether he had misspoken. But it turned out Little Bao didn’t grasp the meaning of Angel’s words.

"Positive gains are simply beneficial effects."

Little Bao replied, "Isn’t that obvious? Would the Dominator still impose any negative effects on their own sleep?... Okay, okay, I got it, I’ll stop talking now."

The first sentence was addressed to Angel, while Little Bao paused briefly before talking to Er Bao, evidently instructed by Er Bao to stop speaking.

Angel’s question wasn’t pointless; for Mysterious Objects, benefits aren’t guaranteed—whether good or bad.

Their effects tend more towards "breaking rules," meaning effects untraceable through logic.

Just like "Heartbeat of the Lonely Joker," dancing to the heartbeat—does that qualify as a positive effect or a negative one? Neither. It merely makes you compelled to dance. Whether mortals or legends, everyone sings and dances to the heartbeat. Once alone in the heartbeat rhythm without teammates or outsiders’ help, it’s essentially an unsolvable effect.

Little Bao’s understanding of Mysterious Objects was clearly not complete, so thinking that the Dominator wouldn’t produce negative effects makes sense.

Little Bao might not have thought he disclosed any information, but he actually provided quite valuable insight.

This is a Mysterious Object that can give its user beneficial effects, a rarity among Mysterious Objects.

"Mysterious Objects aren’t always beneficial." Angel said along with Little Bao’s words, "Generally speaking, Mysterious Objects have some negative effects."

Angel intended to entice Little Bao into asking questions, but Little Bao wouldn’t bite, persistently grumbling without uttering a word.

Angel continued to talk on his own, "For instance, a Mysterious Object I once heard about is a nondescript cabin. As long as you live in this cabin, you achieve eternal life."

When Angel mentioned eternal life, Little Bao didn’t react, since the term’s allure wasn’t significant for a "child." But everyone else present focused their attention on Angel.

"Is there really such a Mysterious Object? You’re not deceiving us, are you?" Dox asked.

Angel replied, "There is."

"Can one truly attain eternal life?" Dox’s eyes were alight as he pressed on.

Angel nodded again.

Dox’s eyes sparkled brighter, but just as he intended to inquire further about the cabin’s information, a shiver ran through his heart: "You said earlier, Mysterious Objects typically have negative effects. So what’s the negative effect of this cabin?"

Angel was upfront, "You cannot leave. If you remain inside the cabin, you never age nor die, but should you step out of the cabin, you’ll perish instantly."

Dox murmured, "... This kind of eternal life, I suppose only Vay would appreciate."

The ’homebody’ Vay protested, "I’m not always indoors, alright? If I never go out, how could I get to your broken bar?"

Angel disregarded Dox and Vay’s bickering, choosing to expand on the negative effects of Mysterious Objects instead, "However, there are ways to neutralize negative effects, and the method lies in the cabin’s name."

Angel’s narration style, coupled with deliberately teasing suspense, invited curiosity not only from the audience but also from Little Bao, whose large eyes brimmed with wonder.

"The name of this cabin is—The Lonely Cabin."

Once Angel spoke, Kaier murmured, "Lonely... Cabin? Isn’t a cabin a lifeless thing, how can it be lonely?"

Kaier’s self-talk inadvertently sparked realization in the crowd.

Dox suggested, "Could it be that the cabin is incredibly lonely and requires companionship so its residents attain eternal life?"

Angel smiled at Dox, signaling him to continue.

Dox elaborated, "And once the companion leaves, the cabin becomes lonely again, punishing the betrayer with instant death?"

"You mentioned the method to break the instant death is found in its name. The most prominent feature of the name is undoubtedly ’lonely,’ so if it’s no longer lonely, could it undo the instant death?"

Dox reasoned further, "Thinking along these lines, all it takes is someone new to replace the current companion of the Lonely Cabin, then the cabin wouldn’t be lonely, and leaving wouldn’t lead to instant death?"

Angel clapped his hands, giving Dox a ’thumbs up,’ "The explanation is excellent, the answer indeed aligns with your thoughts. As long as someone can replace the person in the cabin, the occupant leaving will remain safe."

"Yet, the Lonely Cabin doesn’t remain in one location, its appearance shifts with the places it visits. Hence, the first person who enters it is typically through accidental entry. So how could one get someone else to substitute for them?"

"Deception. Using words to deceive passersby, employing Magic Power communications to trick friends."

"Therefore, should any of you ever get a friend’s magic message inviting you to a location, and that place happens to be a cabin, you’ll need to be cautious, or you might fall into trouble."

While everyone reflected, Angel shifted the topic, "Turning back to the point, I used this example to illustrate that Mysterious Objects having negative effects is quite common, though most also have ways to counteract these effects."

"Sweet Dream isn’t necessarily all positive; it may also have negative impacts."

Angel looked at Little Bao, "Analyzing from the Mysterious Object’s name, Sweet Dream must be a beautiful dream, but beauty can easily lead to fascination, making one reluctant to awaken. Could it be that Sweet Dream’s downside is that once you’re immersed in the dream, you cannot wake up on your own?"