Merua saw the whale’s expression twist. She was holding her brother, but there was only distress on her face, with no tears or panic, as one might expect.
Alm and Bruno were completely stunned. They focused on Nenuo; there was a subtle life force in his body, but they couldn’t feel any fluctuation from his soul. No matter where they looked, he seemed to be dead.
Merua spoke seriously. "Sir…"
"What the hell happened?" the whale interrupted, his tone dry.
"Calm down, sir, he’s not dead. Unfortunately, this happened at the worst possible time," she replied with a sigh.
"This body is without soul energy… how is he not dead?" Bruno quickly retorted.
"I know it looks that way, but it’s a relatively common occurrence. I went through it myself a few years ago," she answered calmly, and seeing the whale’s eyes, she was satisfied. She had many doubts about him, but seeing his clear emotions, she was sure he wasn’t what he appeared to be.
"This condition is called the Void Dream. Everyone living on this planet goes through it a few times in their life."
The whale took a step closer to Nenuo, clearly doubtful. He checked his condition again; the body was alive, but without a soul, it meant he was dead. They asked:
"When will he wake up? Tell me everything you know about this."
She nodded. "No one knows much. Basically, the person falls asleep and doesn’t wake up, and it seems like they’re dead. It might take a day to wake up, but there have been records of someone staying in the Void Dream for almost thirty days."
The whale asked, skeptical. "When you woke up, didn’t you feel anything different?"
"The name Void Dream was given because it feels like we’re in the void; no one remembers anything. Even those at the peak of the world’s cultivation don’t notice anything; that time is just lost. I spent almost three days; when I woke up, if people hadn’t confirmed it, I wouldn’t have known I went through it."
Alm and Bruno were very surprised by the name ’Void Dream’. They felt it was something significant, even more so than the Void Forest. The whale asked:
"Has this always existed? Has no one from another galaxy investigated it?"
"As far as I know, it’s been happening since the three nations united with the mission to take care of the Void Forest. The heroes investigated in the past but only said it was something caused by the forest’s influence," she answered calmly.
Alm and Bruno quickly reflected. The optional quest was: ’Conquer the four ancestral inheritances in the void world’. From their feelings, they had a strange certainty that the system was directing them toward this peculiar phenomenon.
"The forest opens tomorrow; he’s unlikely to wake up in time… I’ll take responsibility, sir. This won’t interfere with our expedition," Merua said seriously and gently laid her brother down.
Two figures quickly entered the room: Ruri and Kaiyka, who had been summoned by the array.
’Kaiyka, investigate his soul, find it; it must be somewhere,’ the whale said seriously.
She nodded, approaching, placing her hand on his forehead, completely focused, and closed her eyes.
Something was becoming clearer. Since they arrived on this planet and were still at the Larimar market, Kaiyka had noticed that everyone’s soul was much more powerful than usual. Now that they knew about this strange occurrence everyone was facing, it must all be connected.
’The heroes didn’t find anything wrong and just hushed it up. So, it definitely has to do with the Queen,’ Bruno thought. ’The Void Forest is also weird. Coltia mentioned before that she felt a connection between her laws and that place. The "void" in the name is definitely not a coincidence.’
Alm agreed, and while Kaiyka was focused, the whale gathered the whole group for a meeting in another room.
He explained everything he heard from Merua, leaving everyone stunned. They then discussed their impressions. Everyone understood where he was heading and were thoughtful, until a message came through the array, and the whale rushed to Kaiyka’s side.
’Sir, look at this in his core,’ she said, a bit unsure.
Alm and Bruno focused and investigated. They saw a simple bloodline rune, but in a corner, they noticed something almost imperceptible. A tiny, nearly transparent rune that looked more like an illusion.
’Using all my soul cultivation power, I sensed a subtle soul fluctuation in the rune. It’s like this is the connection of his soul to the body,’ Kaiyka said, thoughtful.
Alm and Bruno did their best to perceive something in that rune, but it was impossible for them. They sighed and asked, ’Can you track where his soul is?’
She focused on the rune for a few seconds, then nodded and said, ’I don’t think it’s possible to just find the location. But... this rune has a subtle connection with the soul power. If I split my divine soul, I’m sure I can invade and go where he is.’
’Going alone is dangerous. We don’t know where this will lead,’ the whale replied, thinking seriously. But there weren’t many options. They would have to take the risk, but there was a chance the Void Forest was also important.
’We’ll need to split the work,’ the whale said through the array, and everyone heard. ’I, Kaiyka, and Coltia are the only ones who can do this. The rest should go to the Void Forest.’
Everyone nodded; plans changed, but Alm and Bruno had full confidence that the group could handle anything in that forest on their own.
Merua was confused by the situation, the whale said he and Kaiyka would stay with her brother, making sure everything would be fine.
The Prince of the Immortal Crane came to visit the twins and confirmed Nenuo’s condition, lamenting the misfortune. This situation was quite common and normalized among everyone; it was something entirely random and could happen to anyone at any time.
The whale insisted on staying to protect Nenuo. The prince was puzzled, but they argued, hinting that they knew about the recent theft at the royal castle. This was an internal secret he shouldn’t have known, but fortunately, Zia had let slip the information, and now it was useful.
He looked at the whale and didn’t have the heart to refuse. The royal castle had been robbed; how could he guarantee Nenuo’s safety? He couldn’t. All the top cultivators were protecting the King and the nation’s treasure. The spies had been caught, but it was still too early to be sure everything was secure.
The prince left, and the whale assured that their allies were enough to handle the situation. The whole group prepared mentally. Without the whale around, it felt like having a mountain on them; but they had to meet his expectations.
Alm and Bruno spent the rest of the day recalling all the stories and tales they had read in the nation’s library. Before, they hadn’t found anything that caught their attention. But now, with this new information, it was like many puzzles fell into place.
’The most popular theme in two-thirds of the stories is about a war between four kings. Sometimes, they are portrayed as four demons or four gods. In every story, there are four forces waging war in a parallel world. Since there are four nations here, it’s understandable to think that’s the reason. But, strangely, the endings are almost always tragic for all sides.’
Bruno commented, and Alm agreed. Souls might not have memories of events, but just like past lives, everything must be stored somewhere inaccessible. Unconsciously, these memories influence people. That’s why these fantasy stories might reflect something dark, giving them a hint.
The day passed quietly.
Merua and the prince met in the courtyard. The whale’s group joined them, and the whale silently said goodbye. Everyone was mentally prepared, and through the array, they could communicate at any time. Coltia left the beast world and landed on the whale’s shoulder. She also had a divine soul and would be useful in the other expedition.
The prince waved, and everyone was taken by a white light directly to the entrance of the Void Forest.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.
The whale, Kaiyka, and Coltia entered the room again. Nenuo was still asleep with no sign of waking. With a nod from the whale, the three focused and split their divine souls. One-third stayed in the body; the rest entered Nenuo’s core.
Kaiyka used all her soul power, and a powerful attraction force emerged from that rune. In the next moment, three... or rather, four souls were sucked into the rune, disappearing into the void.