When Russell entered the house, it was already half past three in the afternoon.

He sat down on the massage chair, turned on the zero-gravity mode, inserted the data chip that the deer head had brought to Russell into the interface of his left arm, and began to read the documents in the chip.

“…… Hey? ”

Russell originally just came to see it with a preview mentality, but he quickly realized the importance of this knowledge.

That was the experience of the deer head in the "dream world" - yes, she called the illusory world of collective consciousness that the mages arrived at after dreaming "the dream world".

And the mage's act of dreaming is called "Dream Wandering".

As the name suggests, it is an aimless exploration.

Because in the dream world, there are no coordinates, no day and night...... There are not even borders.

It may be that from the original wasteland, looking into the distance, it is an endless wasteland in any direction.

But after walking a certain line, you will suddenly come to the ruins of crystal remains, or you may suddenly come to an abyss full of lava. And if you continue to walk forward from the abyss, you may enter the underwater city, or you may enter the dark cave; The crystal ruins came to an end, perhaps a labyrinth of mirrors, or a city of giant toys......

All the areas, there are no obvious borders. All areas are changing and changing every day...... There will also be changes within the zone, the zone itself will move, and different zones will eat at each other.

They are like monsters composed of different currents of thought, devouring, digesting, and merging with each other.

There are as many different ideas as there are in the world, and there will be as many different areas as there are in the dream world.

Because of this, the dream map cannot be drawn.

Because it cannot be measured without entering the corresponding area, the dividing line has already changed the moment you enter the corresponding area. Therefore, it can be said that the map of the dream world is always inaccurate. If it were an ignorant young mage who had entered the primordial wasteland, he would probably have been lost in it. When the mage walks with his heart, the dream world will gradually guide him to the path that suits him best.

It's like a psychological test that's constantly corrected.

The big problem, of course, is ...... The mage's own mind is constantly changing. As a result, their own position in the dream world will always shift and deviate.

But according to the experience of the deer head, there is also an experience that can barely recognize the way.

That is to find the "Tower of the End".

Although these areas are constantly moving, gnawing, and merging, the general direction they belong to will not be easily changed.

After waking up from the dream, the Tower of the End can be seen just before leaving the Primordial Wasteland, which will always appear right in front of you when you are about to leave the Primordial Wasteland.

The Tower of the End is an illusion. Those who go straight in that direction will never reach it no matter how far they go.

But it will always point in a fixed direction and can be seen in all areas of the dream world.

In other words, the Tower of the End can serve as a kind of coordinate for the dream realm.

For example, if a person who has advanced a distance at an angle of 60 degrees to the right side of the tower will fail if he tries to go back the same way at the opposite angle. Because he will not reach the previous area, but will enter another new area of the "120-degree angle to the left of the tower".

On the other hand, if you go 180 degrees away from the Tower of the End, you will eventually reach the "First Wasteland", no matter which area you have been in. This is also the method that those mages organized to "dig up new people".

Because different regions want to be stronger. But every mage is not fixed to a particular area...... They will surely walk on the way.

The "lines" that connect different areas are called "paths".

Each time you walk on the path, you can wander through the dream world - whether it's exploring this area or getting from this area to the next different area. As long as you don't go back and don't look at "what you've already seen", you can give the mage access to different types of spells.

And the essence of these "paths" is actually the means that a mage will choose at the first time when he encounters difficulties and acts in an unfamiliar field.

For example, "the way to answer", "the way to practice", "the way to anger", "the way to stillness", "the way to delight", "the way to contemplate"...... The spells that mages acquire are often the power that helps them continue to walk on the "path".

The deer head also shared her own path with Russell: she first walked on the path of contemplation, and the specific coordinates were fifteen degrees to the left of the Tower of the End.

She passed through the "Crystal Ruins", "Mirror Labyrinth", "Fossil Sea", and "Book Group", where she stopped.

Then her path changed.

She has ended her musings and turned to the "way of doing". It was thirty degrees to the right from the Tower of the End—and when she crossed the border, she would follow the path into the next area.

After that, she switched back and forth from time to time on the "way of practice", "the way of guarding", and "the way of stillness", and now she is back to the "way of practice". And all the way forward, in the dream world reached a far, far away location...... It's called "The Way Forward". And in this area, she is currently the only mage.

The spells she was using now, spells that could connect different doors together, came from the power of this area.

"And the mage who recruited new people came back along the 'path of wrath'. The specific angle is that the tower is tilted to the right at 45 degrees. ”

The calm and ethereal voice of the deer head statue was also recorded in the chip: "Every time they change direction after that, you can record it."

"Once you're in the dream world, all the abilities that the chip gives you are unusable. You will enter the Dream Realm in the form of 'No Prosthetic', so the abilities of the Prosthetic series cannot be used...... Since there are no slots, the 'consumable chips' provided by your company cannot be used.

"But other than that, you can bring some cold weapons. My recommendation is a crowbar or a sapper shovel, which is too easy to spot, but you can bring a graduated pendulum and disguise yourself as a soothsayer...... Use the pendulum and the tower to determine the angle at which you are moving forward at the moment. ”

According to the opinion of the deer head, Russell packed his bags.

Pendulums, sapper shovels, crowbars, windscreens, windproof and waterproof jackets. Plus bandages, wound medicine, "decapitation of the saint", and most importantly...... A shotgun.

- Yes, guns can be brought into the dream world.

But it's too high-tech because it has to be automated with a prosthetic...... The simpler kind is okay.

This is the gun that Russell received from Bad Day on the airboat before. The gun was later sent to the Executive Department, and Russell borrowed it by virtue of his authority.

After that, Russell prepared fast-acting sleeping pills. The purpose is to be able to fall asleep quickly in the short time that he transforms into a blue robin.

So, Russell put on a mask when he was fully armed.

In the midst of the ultramarine flames, he suddenly rose much taller and became a blue song robin with a cheerful smile.

Immediately afterwards, he gave himself sleeping pills that delayed the onset of action.

There are many keys to entering the dream world—the deer head taught Russell the way to cover his eyes with a white cloth and wrap a white cloth around his ankles and wrists. If you do, it will be difficult to get a needle in yourself...... So Russell first tied the white bandages on his eyes and ankles, and only after the needles did he tie the bandages that trapped his wrists.

After that, Russell soon fell into a deep sleep.

A strange and familiar feeling of drowning and falling, made Russell feel suffocated.

It's like being tied with your hands and feet tied and submerged in the sea......

When Russell could no longer bear the feeling of suffocation, he suddenly woke up and suddenly sat up from the ground.

"Phew!"

He took a few sips and spat out the sand that had grown his mouth because of the suffocation.

Then, Russell forcefully broke the bandage on his wrist. And untie the bandage that covers the eyes.

That moment – Russell didn't expect it.

The intense light brought tears to his eyes for a moment.

It was really tearful.

"It's so bright......"

He couldn't help but let out a low breath.

As soon as the sound came out, it was as if something drowned out...... The strange feeling made him really feel like he was "in another world".

Considering that in order to maximize the information, Russell did not buy tinted windproof goggles.

As a result, as soon as I opened my eyes, I was almost blinded by the cat's eye.

He had never seen such a strong daylight on the empty island. Suddenly it was irradiated, and it became difficult to even open Russell's eyes. If you open it a little, you will cry non-stop.

And when Russell gradually adjusted to the intense light and opened his eyes to look at the world around him......

He realized that he was standing in the middle of a desert.

The flying sand raised by the wind made him unable to see too far away.

The sunlight was also strong and dim...... It's a little dull because it's been blocked by the dust that rolls up.

And when Russell reached out to block the sand and tried to raise his head to look at the sun.

- He was stunned.

Because on the head, it is the bright sun that is so clear and dazzling that it is impossible to look at directly.

And......

Russell's ...... Once Familiar and Now Unfamiliar Clear blue skies.