Chapter 237 - 236: This... Counts as My Projection?

Chapter 237: Chapter 236: This... Counts as My Projection?

Lloyd stood frozen, pondering for a moment what the ’girl next door’ meant. A sudden whim struck him, and he hurried back to his room before entering his [Thought Realm].

As soon as Lloyd entered, he could feel an invisible, delicate little hand appear before him. It first hooked his chin, then drew two circles over his chest, and finally, slowly reached for his waist...

’What... What is it trying to do?’

’Losing control? Giving in to its primal urges?’

Lloyd jumped in fright, quickly crossing his arms over his chest as he protested:

"Wait... Saint... I’m actually the modest and conservative type..."

Then, he squeezed his eyes shut, gritted his teeth, turned his head to the side, and steeled himself to continue:

"But from the day I joined the Sect, I have been prepared to sacrifice myself for it, so... bring it on!"

But as soon as the words left his mouth, the invisible, delicate hand balled into a cute little fist and bonked him on the forehead.

"OW-WOO↑ OW-WOO↓ OW-WOO↑ OW-WOO-WOO-WOO↑↓↑"

Only then did Lloyd realize he’d gotten the wrong idea...

He immediately understood the Veto Saint’s true intentions. He quickly brought the Storage Bag from his waist into the [Thought Realm] and took out a packet wrapped in oil paper. Inside was a lump of wood-colored wax residue.

Lloyd remembered clearly. Not long ago, this stuff had been a "Greatly Disrespectful Saint Statue" with a smoking hot body and seductive curves. An outlaw of the [Forgetfulness] school had used it as a kind of Mark and anchor to channel their power, which had nearly ended in tragedy.

Thankfully, by relying on passion, courage, friendship, bonds, love, hope, and the power of possibility, he had managed to foil their plot just in time. He melted down the Greatly Disrespectful Saint Statue, leaving behind this pool of wood-colored wax residue, which he had carefully collected.

Because the stuff had dubious origins and was too hot to handle, Lloyd had no use for it at the moment, so he’d just stashed it in his Storage Bag to deal with later.

’Who would’ve thought the Veto Saint would be interested in this?’

Lloyd was still wondering about it when suddenly, the delicate hand inexplicably slapped his own. With a jolt, the wood-colored wax residue spilled from the oil paper, scattering over the grass at his feet.

Next, Lloyd saw the Saint Statue he normally carried slip into the [Thought Realm] on its own and land on the grass before him.

This small patch of grass then began to grow rapidly, sprouting countless unidentifiable little blue-and-white flowers, while decorative white corals also grew at a frantic pace.

In just a dozen seconds, this small patch of lawn had transformed into a dreamlike seabed. The white corals and blue-and-white flowers clustered around a huge, pure, and flawless flower bud. It was as large as a full-grown adult, like a cocoon nurturing something within.

Not far behind the giant flower bud, directly opposite the double-helix tower, the scene—along with the gray, hazy sky—acted as a mysterious backdrop. Before Lloyd’s eyes, it formed a composition that was elegant and beautiful, yet profoundly enigmatic.

"Uh..."

’Even though this is my [Thought Realm], I’m not sure what just happened. Was that a very special—and incredibly draining—[Projection], performed under the Saint’s guidance?’

’But this whole process doesn’t match the knowledge of [Projection] I’ve just learned. Is it some kind of higher-level technique? A High Position method that’s currently beyond my understanding?’

But he didn’t have time to dwell on it. He felt a massive amount of his Spiritual Power vanish in an instant, leaving him almost completely drained. A powerful wave of fatigue washed over him, emanating from his physical body.

His mind grew foggy and his body slowly crumpled before the giant flower bud. He drifted off to sleep, and his form vanished from the [Thought Realm].

According to the textbooks, when the master of a [Thought Realm] leaves, the space is supposed to enter a pitch-black, unobservable state, much like the human subconscious.

But now, even though Lloyd was asleep, the [Thought Realm] remained unchanged. The giant flower bud, just as before, continued to emit a faint, gentle, and immaculately holy glow.

The nearby Tentacle Grass noticed this. Looking startled, it jumped, then quickly reached out its "hands" to carefully tap on the glass enclosure before it.

After confirming its glass enclosure was undamaged and still perfectly solid, it mimicked a human sigh of relief and patted its "chest." Then, it leaned back against the glass, not daring to so much as look at the giant flower bud.

* * *

When Lloyd woke again, he found that night had fallen.

His Spiritual Power was only half-restored, and he still felt weary.

He took the pendant Shandu had given him from his Storage Bag and put it on, hoping it would help his Spiritual Power recover faster.

He hadn’t been allowed to use Holy Artifacts for the "wager," so he’d taken off the pendant and his little vest beforehand and put them in his Storage Bag.

Then, Lloyd hurried back into his [Thought Realm], wanting to see if the recent events had all been a dream.

It wasn’t a dream. The giant flower bud, nestled among the corals and small flowers, was still there, still glowing.

Lloyd thought for a moment. ’Since this is my [Thought Realm], my absolute home turf, there’s nothing to be afraid of.’ With that, he drew closer to carefully observe the thing that had suddenly popped up.

He even boldly reached out and touched the surface of the bud.

It was silky-smooth to the touch and radiated a familiar warmth, like the delicate skin of a childhood sweetheart.

He could also feel a connection to it, much like the [Projections] described in the texts he’d studied.

Normally, he should be able to control it, send it into the real world, and have it help him out with things.

But the problem was...

’Where are its hands?’

Moreover, he could feel a faint life pulse from within, as if it were alive.

’This completely contradicts my training...’

’Creations made by [Projection] are, in theory, never alive. They’re supposed to be illusory.’

’Saint, what in the world are you doing?’

Lloyd asked this in his heart as he placed his hand on the bud’s surface again, trying to use his inspiration to examine its internal structure.

But the next second, he felt a gentle power stir within. It took the form of the familiar, delicate hand, pressing against his own through the wall of the bud.

It was as if it were comforting him, telling him not to panic or be impatient, that they would be able to meet very soon.