Chapter 219

Chapter 219

Upon seeing Lane's serious expression, Bestia chuckled mischievously. "So nervous? That makes me even more intrigued."

"Don't tease me," Lane surrendered with his hands raised, sighing. "Shall we talk about something else?"

"That won't do," Bestia replied, curling the corner of her lips. "But if you can tell me some interesting stories from Earth, I might go easy on you."

Lane pondered for a moment. "How about joke compilations?"

"Hmm... I'd rather hear about your personal experiences," Bestia said, propping her chin in her hand. "Not gossip necessarily, just share some amusing anecdotes from your upbringing. It's been a long time since I last conversed with someone like me."

Hearing this, Lane couldn't help but look directly into Bestia's eyes. The cat goddess had slender and enchanting eyes, her gaze sparkling as she blinked. Her lids were adorned with thick Egyptian eyeliner, making them strikingly beautiful. Yet, loneliness seemed to lurk beneath their depths.

After a long silence, Lane began recounting amusing tales of players, such as public pants-dropping incidents, reporting blackbinders, and the staged fake injury spectacle outside the hospital to trap Sauron, leaving Bestia giggling nonstop.

"Your followers are so entertaining. Where did you find such characters?"

"Haha," Lane twitched the corners of his mouth. "Perhaps it was fate's guidance."

Beast wiped away a tear from the corner of her eye with a smile. "It's clear you have a deep affection for them."

Lane was slightly taken aback and chuckled. "Yes, they give me quite a headache most of the time, but they're also a part of my strength. Without them, I probably wouldn't be who I am today."

Two timelines flashed through his mind.

In one, without Lane, only Players remained, and the world would fall to evil deities.

In the other, with only Lane, he'd become an eternal and solitary god, guarding a reality inhabited solely by plants.

How many miracles were needed for both to converge in this very world?

Beast propped her chin on her hand, gazing at Lane's softening gaze. A shared smile tugged at her lips. "You truly love your followers... As expected, every Old God does..."

The latter half of her sentence was barely audible. Lane looked at Beast quizzically, but she waved it off casually. "It's nothing. But speaking of which, if you genuinely care for your followers, it's best to leave the Dream World with them quickly."

The feline goddess's expression turned solemn, her beautiful face radiating divine dignity. "For non-gods, this place has become a hell."

Lane was momentarily stunned. "Hell? You mean the areas without divine protection? That is indeed a no-man's-land for life."

For instance, the dark soil outside the Pan's Forest, which still held the remnants of the previous Pan's power, was the reason any life could survive within the forest. Lane had briefly ventured into those lifeless zones and found that all creatures there had mutated into terrifying forms, nearly devoid of reason. Those frenzied monsters would slay anything they laid eyes on.

"Not really. It's still manageable there, though not survivable. The true hell is in the regions protected by the Old Gods," Beast hinted, scratching the chin of the cat beside him. The black cat closed its eyes in pleasure. "Even in my domain, the Old Gods can only barely maintain a balance now."

"Balance..." Lane was unsure, but he could sense Beast's disapproval of his sending of kin to explore. He pondered and opened the player forum.

Now, not just the Druid team, but other strategic players, having harvested resources from the forest, were also turning their attention towards the river. However, the Druids were still ahead in progress.

...

The Druid team chose the cave on the right. Oddly, the deeper they went, the darker it became, as if the light was being absorbed. It was pitch-black.

"Did we go the wrong way?" Matcha Latte asked uneasily. "Should we turn back?"

"No, I can sense the wind direction," the black cat said, licking its finger and pointing it forward. "There should be an air vent up ahead, possibly an exit. Let's keep going and see."

The trio proceeded, and as the path narrowed, a faint light suddenly appeared before them. The Druid instinctively stepped forward, followed by a burst of white light.

By the time the trio regained their composure, they had already left the cave and found themselves facing an unfamiliar black city.

The walls of the city were indiscernible in terms of material, entirely pitch-black as if carved from a single piece of black crystal. It was an awe-inspiring sight. The Druid pondered for a moment before starting the live stream. They were likely already ahead of the pack.

Players who couldn't enter the Dream World due to insufficient levels or those simply spectating through live streams rushed into his channel.

"Finally! I've been waiting for you!"

"Too slow, Druid! Others' live streams are already gaining massive viewership! You're only catching the tail end now."

"Hmm, isn't your surroundings supposed to be a forest?"

"Well done! You explored first!"

"Oh, oh, oh! It's a new map! Charge, Druid!"

Black Cat turned back to where they had come from, sensing something amiss. "When we entered the cave earlier, there were black lands and rivers around it, right? Why is it a rainforest now?"

Unlike Lan's middle path, Black Cat and company had arrived in a region resembling a rainforest, with a black city right in front of them. The trio entered through a side gate. After the customary checks, listens, and sneaks that players typically performed, they discovered that the city gates seemed to be protected by some intangible power, making it difficult to leave any traces on them.

"Hey! What are you doing here?"

A voice echoed from above, catching the druids off guard. They looked up in astonishment to see someone on the wall staring down at them.

Of course, they couldn't understand the language being spoken, but as wizards, this was no obstacle for them. The black cat, being meticulous, had sought out Professor Alders after gaining the chance to enter the Dream World, inquiring about Mage University's exploration experiences and learning the Language Proficiency spell from him.

"Will: Success"

With the spell cast successfully, the words of the person above were translated into a language they could comprehend, accompanied by the live stream's built-in chat function.

"You there! How did you get here?!"

"Well, we..."

"Let me handle this," the black cat stepped forward. "Excuse us, we're just passing travelers seeking a moment of rest within the city."

"Passing through? You're wanderers outside? How did you avoid the moonlight?"

"We relied on the leaves on our bodies," the black cat replied, subtly employing persuasive magic. "We pose no suspicion; we carry no weapons, only seeking a brief respite. May we be allowed entry to the city?"

"Rhetoric: Success"

The person on the wall hesitated for a long time but, whether it was due to the dice's influence or not, said, "Follow the wall and find a small gate."

The Black Cat and her companions did as they were told and indeed found an entrance on the wall. The moment they stepped in, they were surrounded.

Several individuals dressed in coarse waistcoats, fur-lined jackets, riding breeches, and either hats or headscarves pointed sharp blades at them, their eyes watchful. "Hands up, and strip off all your belongings."

Without hesitation, the trio followed the order, placing everything on the ground except for their clothes. Thus, the people within the city witnessed...

Druid: Alcohol lamp, enchanted crowbar, C2 bomb, bayonet, nylon rope, mysterious bone, various herbs, Desert Eagle

Black Cat: Wire, hairpin, small knife, matchbox, insect repellent, suspicious vial of human blood, deer antler, enchanted dagger, RPG, Taser

Matcha Milk Green: First aid kit, full set of surgical knives, Mercy's Gun (enchanted), miscellaneous potion bottles

"One of you calls this not having weapons???"

"Hilarious, this is like a massive game master inspection scene."

"Something suspicious has crept in. Now we'll probably be chased out by the NPCs!"

In truth, the druids were also on edge. Well, if only they had discarded their weapons earlier.

Under the tense gazes of the group, the NPCs before them picked up their belongings one by one for inspection. They then discarded the magic potions, enchanted daggers, bayonets, a vial of human blood, a mysterious bone, and the full set of surgical tools belonging to Matcha Milk Green.

Surprisingly, they returned the dangerous firearms and bombs directly to them.

Black Cat's gaze swept over the rough linen clothing of these people, seemingly lost in thought.

"Enter. Though we haven't hosted travelers in a long time... though we're unsure where you've come from, when you arrive in someone else's city, you must abide by the rules, understand?"

"Of course, we would never violate your rules!" the druid promptly replied.

"Integrity: Success"

Satisfied, the men nodded. One with deep-set eyes handed them a few small cards. "Very well. You may use an empty house in the city for a few days. Leave once you've rested. This is your temporary residency card. Remember, wear it at all times, that's rule number one."

As he spoke, his gaze fixated intently on the druid, as if to ensure he would truly abide by the rules. Deep within his sunken eyes lurked a perilous obsession.

The Druid hastily put it on, as did Matcha Latte. The black cat observed and noticed that the NPCs also wore cards on their chests, but alas, the Language Proficiency spell allowed them to understand NPC speech but not written words. They could only tell that these people's cards had three characters, while theirs had five.

Seeing the group obediently wearing their cards on their chests, the NPCs were finally satisfied and led them officially into the city.

The Druid and his companions watched in astonishment as the NPCs walked out of the city walls without any cover. After much hesitation, they mustered up the courage to follow them. To their surprise, the moon within the city was vastly different from the one outside – silver and gentle, almost making them feel like they were back on Earth.

"Follow us. We'll take you to designated accommodations. Don't wander around for the next few days, especially at night. Be in bed by midnight and wake up at seven... If anything comes up, look for the patrol officers in blue uniforms, not anyone else."

The NPC who had been staring intently at the Druid continued to recite the city's rules, while the others remained silent, seemingly indifferent to the outsiders' presence.

Just before leaving the city walls, the black cat nonchalantly cast a reconnaissance spell. Upon success, they noticed an almost invisible scratch on the wall, which seemed to be a string of text. Tsk, but they couldn't decipher the script of the Dream World.

"It seems these NPCs are quite friendly, just a bit intimidating."

"Hold on, there are humans in the Dream World too?"

"Of course, where do you think Sauron came from? But I thought all the NPCs here would be like Sauron, powerful bosses. Why do they seem unexpectedly weak? Like ordinary folks?"

"Yeah, it feels a bit odd. Could it be that Sauron himself is not simple in the Dream World? And these people are just ordinary folk of the Dream World?"

"Really? I find them rather enigmatic, like those cryptic NPCs in horror games."

"The mighty Black Cat seems to have noticed something—was it the writing on the wall? But alas, we are unable to decipher its meaning."

As he watched the live broadcast, Lane's expression gradually became more serious.

Players were unfamiliar with the language of the Dreamworld, but Lorne was not. Thus, he effortlessly deciphered the message on the wall.

'He who defies the rules shall perish!'