"Dream World..."
Lei Lin sighed. He could sense that the special point connecting the two planes had already vanished from here.
From now on, this place had completely lost its ability to connect to the Dream World.
Although he had long anticipated this day, Lei Lin still felt somewhat dejected.
"Farewell for now, Dream World, and farewell, Gillian..."
With a wealth of Dream Force and rare research materials in hand, Lei Lin had every confidence he could enter the Dream World on his own. It would, however, require a great deal of research and experimentation. It was foreseeable that while he would be unable to reach the Dream World for some time to come, one day he would use his own power to reestablish the connection between the two realms and descend there once more.
"What a pity..."
A trace of melancholy still lingered in Lei Lin's eyes. Under normal circumstances, this place could have sustained communication with the Dream World for some time longer, bringing him even greater benefits — but he had no regrets about the decision he had made.
Once a Tier 6 being had discovered this location, keeping the spatial node active would have been nothing short of irresponsible disregard for his own safety.
That colossal spider alone had nearly forced its way into the Wizard World. If it had attracted even more powerful entities as a result, Lei Lin would have been well and truly doomed.
Even losing this passageway in the process was, in his view, a worthwhile trade.
"Fortunately, most of the surrounding specimens and research materials are in my hands. Most importantly, I've obtained the Dream Force system from the natives, along with the runic structures on their bodies..."
Lei Lin's eyes brightened as he continuously ran calculations.
"With these, I have a very good chance of developing a Dream wizardry suited to me. It could serve perfectly as a hidden trump card..."
Lei Lin had firsthand experience with the eerie nature of Dream Force. Moreover, this power existed at an extraordinarily high tier — virtually on par with the force of laws, and even possessing a restraining relationship against it. Even beings of Tier 6 or above would find themselves in serious trouble if they came into contact with it.
As such, wizardry developed primarily from Dream Force, even if only at Tier 5, would surely be a terrifying prospect for many Tier 6 Wizards.
"The materials they provided only cover the use of low-level Dream Force, and specifically for the natives' benefit. I'll need a great deal more time to derive and modify it, and even to construct a template for Tier 5 wizardry..."
Lei Lin stroked his chin.
Just at that moment, his entire body shifted as dense clouds of dark red mist surged from his skin, coalescing into a variety of faces and spiders that crawled across his clothing.
"Woo woo..." Wailing sounds crawled across Lei Lin's eardrums, so intense that his complexion drained to an ashen white in an instant.
"Get off me!" His pupils instantly transformed into amber vertical slits, and the terrifying phantom of the Cimoyan Serpent Emperor materialised around him.
Bang! Bang! Crack! The countless faces were repelled, only to return with dogged persistence, swarming around Lei Lin's body once more.
"Dream Force! It's the injuries I just sustained!" Lei Lin's expression was exceedingly grim.
That colossal spider was, after all, a Tier 6 being. Lei Lin had only managed to infiltrate the laboratory by catching it off guard, and had sustained injuries in the process.
Even with the Life Energy he had devoured compensating him, the power of dreams still lingered stubbornly.
Lei Lin had first-hand experience with how eerie this force could be. Had he not already conducted some research into dream power and even developed trace antibodies against it, the backlash this time would have been far worse than it turned out.
"It looks like before I can deduce any new Wizard spells, I'll have to deal with this body problem first!"
Lei Lin let out a bitter laugh as a thick layer of black mist rose from his body, enveloping both the surrounding masks and the phantom silhouette of the spider.
……
Several months later, inside the laboratory.
The scorching temperature mingled with white water vapor, forming rolling waves of oppressive heat.
Crimson light reflected off the walls, casting shadows that looked like flickering flames. In the center of the laboratory, Lei Lin lay submerged in an enormous crimson pool, his eyes slightly closed, apparently deep in thought.
Within the red liquid, wisps of pitch-black color were clearly visible, seeping ceaselessly from Lei Lin's pores like ink.
Once they left his body, these black inky strands quickly diffused, contaminating a vast area of the pool, and faint cries of anguish could even be heard emanating from the dark substance.
"Myaaaah—!" Accompanied by a piercing phoenix cry, a colossal phantom silhouette of a phoenix materialized above the crimson pool.
The phoenix phantom spread its wings, its two flame-like pinions wrapping around the entire pool as crimson flames surged upward.
"Wooo wooo…" The wailing grew even more shrill as the black ink rapidly faded under the red flames, gradually evaporating until the pool returned to its original color.
After several hours, the water vapor inside the laboratory had grown even denser, coalescing into a thick fog that shrouded the entire room.
Within the crimson pool, the black tendrils emerging from Lei Lin's pores gradually turned brown before fading away entirely.