Chapter 955: Aftermath |
Trier, inside a luxurious villa.
Franca suddenly opened her eyes and sat up.
Her first reaction was to reach for her waist, feeling the Traveler's Bag about the size of a coin purse.
Phew… Franca let out an unconcealed sigh of relief.
At the last moment, she had proactively withdrawn before being completely kicked out of the dream. Her concern was that her personal items might be lost due to passive ejection, left behind in the dream city, and thus lost in reality as well!
In that situation, she couldn't pin her hopes on Luo Shan picking up and safeguarding her belongings, or on Lumian and Jenna, who were secretly observing, finding an opportunity to retrieve the items—that could potentially implicate them and subject them to the Celestial Worthy's scrutiny.
According to the information provided by the Major Arcana card holders, whether she left actively or passively, her dream persona, woven with the help of the lucky coin and Madam Justice, wouldn't disappear after her consciousness left the dream. The next time she entered, she would still be that person.
Of course, the current "Luo Fu" would revert to an NPC, following the subconscious manipulation of Mr. Fool or the Celestial Worthy, living her life according to her background settings and current social relationships, appearing normal on the surface.
As for whether this "Luo Fu" NPC harbored hidden issues or would contact companions, potentially implicating them in being kicked out as well, the Major Arcana card holders were currently uncertain, as they had always acted separately in their previous entries.
At that moment, her screen was frozen on the "Information Shredder" mini-program, with her finger on the "Clear All Information on This Phone" button.
This was part of the contingency plan. Throughout the meal with Zhou Mingrui, except for the brief ten or so seconds when she showed him her WeChat name, Franca's phone screen had displayed the running "Information Shredder" program. In her own words, after leaving home that evening, she was prepared to "wipe the database and abscond" at any moment. She feared the Celestial Worthy might take the opportunity to scan her contact list, mark suspicious parts, and deal with them specifically.
Franca reached into the Traveler's Bag, unsurprised but still delighted to find that the Beyonder characteristic and corresponding body parts extracted from the reanimated female corpse Panatiya were inside, real and tangible, within reach.
Correspondingly, the Pride Armor had vanished, disappearing into thin air.
Damn, the boundary between dream and reality has really been fooled. I can barely tell which side is the dream and which is reality… Franca was equally unsurprised by this, but still shocked.
Is this the terrifying aspect of a great existence?
If Mr. Fool was willing to maintain it and received certain assistance, the dream city could completely become real, as long as one didn't leave on their own!
From this perspective, the real world might also be the dream of that initial being… Thankfully, It has awakened and split…
Franca, having read many foreign myths before her transmigration, naturally made some associations.
She got out of bed, intending to go to the bathroom to relieve herself.
This was the first thing she did every morning after waking up.
After a few steps, Franca suddenly stopped.
She didn't feel any urge to urinate at all, and instead felt full, as if she had just eaten a good meal.
Franca immediately took out a mirror and used divination to confirm the current date.
Reality had also passed several days, basically consistent with the dream, though there seemed to be a slight time difference—in this bedroom, the tightly drawn curtains let in a bit of twilight, it wasn't completely dark outside yet.
Is the dream city using Backlund time?
We've been in the dream city for over a week, it's impossible not to be hungry or need to use the bathroom in reality… Damn, does eating in the dream mean being full in reality, gaining the corresponding nutrients? Does using the bathroom in the dream equate to using it in reality?
But, but I don't smell bad, and my pants are normal…
Is this Grafting the excrement at the exit to the toilet and sewers?
Or, directly opening a door, sending it to another dimension?
Right, Ludwig seemed to have said that some of the food in the dream city was real… How could it be real?
My goodness, it's really hard to distinguish between dream and reality…
Franca was amazed, both shocked and amused.
After about ten seconds, her mind calmed down, and she began to think about the gains from tonight's probe.
Hinting at the existence of Beyonder powers to Zhou Mingrui at night, warning him about the risks following the Assassin potion, will result in being kicked out of the dream… But not immediately, there's a reaction time, close to an hour…
Perhaps later we can use this hour to do something, like directly telling Zhou Mingrui about the Witch's transformation…
But maybe just saying the word 'Witch' would result in an immediate ejection, we'll need experiments to confirm this…
Also, we can't rely on the assumption that the Celestial Worthy's reaction time for kicking people out in this situation is always an hour. It might be that as long as Zhou Mingrui is watching, nothing unusual happens, but as soon as we say goodbye and create some distance, we're quickly kicked out…
There were two influences at the time, one trying to kick me out of the dream, and one attempting to turn me into a marionette… But the speed of becoming a marionette wasn't as dramatic as described in the documents for High-Sequence Seer pathway Beyonders, as if it was being interfered with, resulting in a tug-of-war… Mr. Fool versus the Celestial Worthy?
If I found a way to hold on for a while before being kicked out of the dream, I might have already become a marionette. It's better to withdraw proactively to reduce potential risks…
Just as Franca was thinking this, she suddenly heard a knock on the door.
"Who is it?" She tensed instinctively, though her spirituality hadn't given her any warning.
"It's us." Two voices came from outside, one belonging to Madam Magician, the other to Madam Judgment.
Franca relaxed.
If it had been only Madam Magician by herself, she would have harbored some worry, as the other was a High-Sequence Beyonder of the Apprentice pathway and could potentially be influenced or misled by that Celestial Worthy. But now, Madam Judgment was also present.
I can ask for an autograph now… Hmm, I can't ask Madam Magician why her pen name in the dream city is "Salted Fish Without Dreams"… Franca happily took out paper and pen, opened the door, and saw the two Major Arcana card holders who had already changed their clothes.
Madam Magician reminded her, "You need to wait a day and a night before you can re-enter the dream."
"Yes, I know." Franca nodded.
This was mentioned in the documents.
…
Dream city, Worker's Road.
As some passersby saw Franca fall to the ground and wanted to come help, Franca had already stood up, touched her neck, and bent down to pick up the items that had fallen to the ground.
Only then did Luo Shan come to her senses, helping to put some of the cosmetics and mirrors back into the handbag.
"What happened just now?" she asked Franca, puzzled, alert, and concerned.
Franca looked at Luo Shan and smiled reassuringly.
"Don't worry, it's an old problem. I'll be fine after a while."
You never mentioned having such a condition before… Luo Shan fell silent.
Franca continued, "Let's not go shopping, shall we? I want to rest early."
That's not what you said earlier… Luo Shan made a sound of agreement.
After the two got into a ride-share car, Lumian's right hand loosened its five fingers, and he nodded at Anthony.
Anthony started the car, drove to the intersection, and stopped again.
From the shadows, Jenna emerged, walking towards the gray sedan as if she had finally waited for her ride-share.
Lumian lowered the car window and, looking straight ahead, said, "Try to minimize contact with her tonight, and it's best to find an excuse not to sleep in Dechuang Garden."
After saying this, without waiting for Jenna's response, he raised the window, and Anthony drove the vehicle into the middle lane.
Jenna's lips bore the marks of her teeth, and her clenched fists finally relaxed.
After seeing Franca's abnormal situation, she knew she shouldn't go to her rescue to avoid implicating herself, but rationality was one thing and emotion was another, especially when Franca seemed on the verge of death during her struggle.
It took great willpower for Jenna to control herself, clearly discerning Franca's state, and waiting for her to withdraw on her own.
Dechuang Garden, Building 5.
Luo Shan said goodbye to Franca on the 15th floor and returned to her own home.
After a while, she heard the doorbell.
Outside the door was Jenna, known as Jian Na in the dream city.
The moment she saw Jenna, Luo Shan opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but then closed it, remaining silent.
Jenna looked around and said in a low voice, "Minimize contact with Luo Fu for the next two days, and don't discuss anything related to Beyonder powers with her."
Luo Shan's expression immediately relaxed, and she spoke as if she had been holding it in for a long time.
"I knew something was off with Fu Fu. After we finished dinner with Zhou Mingrui, she suddenly wasn't right. First, she had a sudden illness, and then it was like she became a different person…
"What, what problem has occurred?"
Jenna considered for a few seconds before saying, "You can understand it this way: interfering with past history has limitations and comes at a cost. Otherwise, we could just go to Zhou Mingrui's house, control him directly, tell him everything in detail, then demonstrate some abilities, provide some evidence, and wouldn't that make him believe initially?"
"I understand now," Luo Shan had a sudden realization. "Fu Fu hinted at the existence of Beyonder powers and the problem with the Assassin potion tonight, and was affected by the self-correcting force of history, causing problems, her old condition flaring up?
"Is she now equivalent to another version of herself, similar to my previous situation?"
"You can understand it that way." Jenna nodded, not explaining in detail.
She returned to the 23rd floor and saw Franca sitting on the sofa on her phone. After some thought, she said, "I'm going to see Li Lu later, I won't be back tonight."
In the identity documents, Li Lu's father was Li Ming, and his mother was Jian Na.
Franca raised her head and said with a smile, "When will you bring Li Lu over to play? I can sleep on the sofa."
"It depends on his father's opinion," Jenna smiled, packed her toiletries, and left the apartment.
Taking the elevator to the first floor, she took out her phone and sent a message to Lumian:
"Luo Shan still remembers the story we told her, remembers the help we gave her, and shows no changes at present.
"Franca only knows about the things in the background information, remembering only the nominal social relationships."
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