Chapter 957 A Special Ability Once Obtained
"A name that leaves a deep impression on you" sent a "Hi" emoji: "Want another round of fun?"
"Hope it's more exciting than last night," Lumian replied using voice input, bringing the phone close to his mouth.
Nearby, Old Xia glanced at him, his eyes full of envy and longing.
Young people sure have exciting lives…
No wonder he has a 7-year-old child at just 22…
Too bad I don't dare…
Soon, Anderson replied to Lumian: "You pick the place, somewhere suitable for discussing secrets."
"Alright," Lumian didn't refuse.
"Let's set the time for 6 p.m., I like sunlight." Anderson sent an "OK" emoji.
After Lumian replied "No problem," the former strongest Hunter of the Fog Sea asked in text: "Why is your WeChat name 'The Idiot', do you think you're not smart enough?"
Lumian chuckled. "I really like tarot cards, and I think The Fool card is super cool. Calling myself 'Idiot' is a kind of an imitation."
"Sometimes, people like to use high-sounding reasons to cover up their own issues. This is a phrase I've been fond of lately, and I'll share it with you too." Anderson replied, sending a "Bye-bye" emoji.
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Lumian didn't respond further.
After resting for a while, he and Old Xia started patrolling the floors again.
When they reached the 10th floor, while patrolling inside the Intis Group, Lumian saw Zhou Mingrui coming out of the public restroom.
As their eyes met, Lumian nodded slightly, as a greeting.
Zhou Mingrui hadn't run into him these past couple of days, and since security guards patrolling the floors was indeed routine work, he didn't show any alertness and responded with a nod.
As they passed each other, Lumian naturally checked the surroundings for any fire hazards.
He hadn't thought about using this opportunity to hint at the existence of Beyonder powers to Zhou Mingrui during the day. Firstly, they weren't close enough to chat, and even if he tried hinting, the other party might not be willing to listen. Secondly, he needed to wait until Franca being kicked out of the dreamscape truly ended, otherwise it would be impossible to distinguish whether subsequent anomalies were aftereffects of last night's reminder or caused by today's probing.
Seeing that Li Ming, this security guard, didn't make any strange gestures or say anything odd, Zhou Mingrui's doubts dissipated a bit more.
…
At 6 p.m., sunlight still illuminated the small square in front of the mall, lighting up those facilities for children to play.
Inside a glass-sealed cylinder, six sets of seats were slowly rotating.
In the middle of the cylinder, various colored plastic balls were constantly being sprayed out, flying in all directions. Ludwig was using a fishing net with a handle to catch them.
Lumian sat next to him, like a real parent, and the adjacent set of seats belonged to Anderson.
Anderson didn't have children, but he sat there at ease, occasionally raising his net to catch a ball, completely without the shame or embarrassment of an adult who had entered a children's ball pit without bringing a child.
At this time, except for the three of them, no one else was present; everyone else had gone home for dinner.
"It's very enclosed here, no one will disturb or eavesdrop, and I've checked the facility, there's no problem," Lumian said to Anderson with a smile. "I originally wanted to choose the carousel, but it's not private enough, not suitable for discussing secrets."
As they spoke, they followed the seats, constantly rotating around the middle of the cylinder.
"This effectively makes up for the childhood I lost." Anderson glanced at Ludwig, then turned to Lumian and said, "Do you sometimes feel that this world is unreal, that many people are like puppets in a theater, seeming normal at first glance, but some details make you fearful?"
"Why are you talking about this kind of thing with me and my girlfriend?" Lumian countered without answering.
The girlfriend referred to Jenna.
Anderson smiled and said meaningfully, "Because I feel that you are very real, more real than the people around us."
Lumian also smiled. "Yes, I sometimes feel that this world is unreal; it's like a huge dream. We seem to be making our own choices, but in fact, we are being pushed and guided by the subconscious of the dream owner. When he wakes up, everything will disappear like bubbles."
Amidst the music of spraying balls, the smile on Anderson's face became more evident.
"There's a time limit for this attraction, we can't stay here forever.
"Have you ever heard of the term 'Battle of the Gods Ruins'?"
Is this confirming each other's identity? Lumian glanced outside the glass cylinder and smiled as he answered Anderson's question, "I've heard of it."
Outside the door of this children's facility, Anthony was waiting there holding Lumian and Anderson's phones.
Anderson smiled and sighed. "It's indeed easier to communicate with you than with a certain someone.
"Some people, their brains might be spouting from their boxing gloves."
Anderson continued, "I've adventured the Battle of the Gods Ruins, come into contact with some dangerous things, which caused me to undergo some changes.
"In sufficiently special dreams, if I receive a strong enough stimulus, I can break free from the dreaming state and maintain a certain level of clarity within the dream."
Is this the reason you discovered the dream city isn't real? Lumian didn't ask Anderson this, but remained quiet.
He still wasn't clear about the exact relationship between the Colorful Hostel and Anderson.
Anderson smiled and said, "That adventure was very exciting, but unfortunately, I can't write it out in certain books; after all, I'm not the protagonist.
"In recent years, I often dream of living in a big city like this, which makes me look forward to sleeping.
"In that dream, sometimes I'm a language teacher, sometimes I'm an unsuccessful painter. They should be the same person, just in different states of life.
"Later, the painter became mute, and his painting skills underwent a qualitative change.
"I was stimulated, woke up in the dream, and gained a certain level of clarity.
"I found that someone was actually giving me money, helping me open an art studio, and even a hotel. Oh, the evil of knowledge, do such good things exist? Of course I had to accept, how could I let down their kindness?"
In other words, Anderson's dream manifestation was corrupted for some reason and became a real Painter, which also stimulated the real Anderson, allowing his consciousness to enter the dream using his own special ability? So, this Anderson dream manifestation split, sometimes he's the cram school teacher Anderson—formerly the strongest Hunter of the Fog Sea. And sometimes he's the mute painter Anderson. The cram school teacher Anderson contacted us because he discovered we're also outsiders? Lumian nodded with some understanding.
This was actually similar to Luo Shan's state, except that the real Rozanne didn't have any special dream abilities, so she couldn't come in person to fight against the power of boons and the corruption of evil gods.
"How was it, my story was pretty exciting, right? Give me a review," Anderson suddenly changed the subject.
Lumian applauded. "What about the sequel to the story? If the real Anderson doesn't actively enter the dream, the mute Anderson in the dream shouldn't affect him."
Anderson shrugged and said with a smile, "Can you be 100% certain it won't have an effect?"
"No," Lumian answered honestly.
Anderson nodded with a look of caring for an uneducated youngling. "Moreover, that dream is interesting and fun. As humans, we need to frequently change our forms of entertainment.
"I told Danitz in the dream to be careful of me turning into a mute at night, but unfortunately, he didn't understand my hint. If I could get some things and disguise myself as Edwina, he would probably be more proactive in using his brain to ponder what I said."
"You painted the mute painter in the painting? You also possess the painting skills that were qualitatively changed?" Lumian asked about last night's events.
Luo Shan also painted another self, and after Franca helped burn it, her condition improved significantly…
Is Anderson using me to "adjust" his own state?
Anderson clicked his tongue and said, "Don't you use the same body during the day and at night?
"The changes in the body are common."
Lumian pondered and asked, "In the dreamscape, the Painter shouldn't be able to make what he paints truly come off the paper, there are too many obstacles."
All abilities should be suppressed to Sequence 7 level, but yesterday's Anderson could freely move around the residential district and could still speak before entering the studio.
Anderson smiled and said, "Dreamscapes always have some special cases and exceptions. If the dream owner symbolizes loopholes, then his dream will inevitably have some loopholes. This is a manifestation of part of his symbolism in the dream, unless he consciously controls it, it can't be avoided.
"The mute Anderson originally didn't exist, he's just another state of mine, but he's also hidden in the dream owner's thoughts and cognition. So once I paint him, he doesn't need to invade from the outside to become real, but he can't leave the studio and is very weak."
Mr. Fool's manifestation once knew a mute Anderson, or imagined Anderson becoming mute? Lumian nodded slightly and asked, "So the one who led me into the studio was you yourself?"
Anderson smiled obviously and said, "Of course, after I entered the studio, while you were looking at those oil paintings, I left through a pre-prepared painting and activated the mute Anderson painting.
"That's my studio, equivalent to a Hunter's home ground, there would definitely be additional arrangements.
"I changed my clothes and pants afterwards, so you didn't recognize me?"
"Why did you change your clothes and pants?" Lumian probed.
Anderson smiled again. "Just kidding."
Is this Anderson's style… Do all successful Hunters have a tendency for pranks? Lumian accepted Anderson's explanation. If it were him, he might do the same thing.
Anderson glanced at the entertainment facility that was almost out of time.
"Now it's my turn to ask, right?
"What do you want to do by coming here?"
This didn't seem like a question, more like a confirmation.
"To wake up the dream owner in the best and most humane state," Lumian answered simply.
Anderson suddenly smiled. "A few days ago, a foreigner came to the cram school to visit. He was as real as you guys."
"What's his name?" Lumian asked, outwardly calm.
At this moment, the balls stopped spraying, and the rotation of the seats quickly slowed down until it stopped.
Anderson stood up and said with a smile, "Zaratulstra."
