Circle of Inevitability

Noodle Man danced once more, and Lumian confirmed that the mysterious dance could prevent the black thorn symbol on his chest from activating fully. It produced no terrifying sound, only an illusory whisper.

This was highly advantageous for Lumian's "special" trait in the dreamscape.

However, he discovered two problems:

Firstly, Noodle Man's dance moves were extremely difficult and violated the human body's structure. Only a monster with exaggerated flexibility like Noodle Man could complete them. Although Lumian was a Beyonder and a Hunter with a greatly enhanced body, he had no confidence in replicating them himself. He feared that dancing even once would result in ligament tears, muscle strains or worse, fractures.

Secondly, the dance stirred the surrounding powers of nature and depleted Lumian's spirituality considerably.

After watching it for the third time, Lumian sighed silently, realizing he needed rest. I have to go back and rest after watching this.

A Hunter's spirituality is really useless!

He was almost certain that the hidden existence corresponding to the thorn symbol was closely related to this dream ruin.

The padre had a black mark on his body, and there was a dancing monster that could activate the thorn symbol. It would be surprising to say that it had nothing to do with the hidden existence!

Lumian believed Aurore's guess even more, thinking of the similar symbol on the padre's chest and the dream ruins rebooting along with reality.

The key to resolving the loop might be hidden in the depths of this place, playing a vital role.

Is that why the mysterious lady kept hinting at me to unravel the secret of the dream ruins? The more Lumian thought about it, the more frustrated he became. He raised his left hand, which wasn't holding an axe, and made obscene gestures at the black thorn symbol on his chest.

Ignoring the question of whether the hidden existence could sense or see him, Lumian felt that the problem wouldn't deteriorate any further, given that he had already fallen into a time loop thanks to Him, and the people around him were becoming stranger and more dangerous.

After watching the dance for the third time, Lumian rubbed his somewhat empty head and left the ruins to return to his home on the other side of the wilderness, enduring the slight warmth in his chest.

Before leaving the dream, he attempted to consolidate the dance movements he had memorized and almost sprained his back, broke his knee ligaments and tore his calf muscles.

"Dogsh*t, this isn't something an ordinary human can do!" Lumian cursed and lay on the bed.

As his spirituality was greatly drained, he quickly fell asleep.

...

As Lumian awoke, the sky was just beginning to lighten. The sun had yet to rise, and the crimson moon had lost its luster.

He sat up slowly, feeling the satisfaction of a deep sleep. His exhausted spirituality had been perfectly replenished.

Walking to the window, Lumian drew back the curtains, allowing the light of dawn to flood the room.

In the next moment, his eyes were fixed on the figure larger than an ordinary owl, perched on an elm tree not far away, staring down at him.

Lumian quickly snapped out of his daze and opened his mouth.

"Aurore! Aurore!"

The suspect is here!

Quick, follow it!

Upon hearing the shout, the owl unfurled its wings and soared towards the edge of the village.

It gradually descended and vanished into the forest bordering Cordu Village.

Aurore, dressed in a white silk nightgown, entered Lumian's bedroom seconds later, her face contorted in irritation.

"Is it that owl again?"

Lumian gazed out of the window and replied, "Yes. Did White Paper manage to follow it?"

Aurore pulled at her long blonde tresses and spat, "Why does it always appear at such ungodly hours? I was sound asleep when you woke me up. By the time I could release White Paper, it had flown away."

Lumian shot back, "But you said you couldn't sleep well with something on your mind."

Aurore rolled her eyes at him and sneered,

"Humans tend to feel nervous, uneasy, and fearful at the beginning. Once they get used to it, they become numb to it. Only by sleeping well can they remain alert and rational. If you don't sleep well, it will affect your mental state and signs of losing control will surface."

Lumian's expression was remorseful as he said, "We can only wait for the next time."

After a moment of contemplation, Aurore suggested, "Let's try to identify a pattern in its appearances. We can't keep waiting around all the time. We need to rest and cannot be on guard constantly."

Lumian reminisced about the first few sightings.

"It's always in the latter half of the night and early morning hours…"

"Why only during that period?" Aurore inquired further. "It seems more like an act than a pattern. Think carefully. Did you do anything or repeat the same actions on the corresponding nights when it appeared in the first half of the night?"

"I was exploring the dream ruins," Lumian admitted to his sister as he began to recall. "Before it first appeared, I killed the first monster in the dream. Before it appeared the second time, I activated the symbol on my chest through Cogitation and discovered what was special about me. The third time, I consumed the potion in the dream and became a Hunter. The fourth time, which is today, I discovered a way to activate my specialness in the dream to a certain extent while incurring less damage."

"How did you do it?" Aurore asked eagerly.

Lumian recounted Noodle Man's dance and his attempt.

As Aurore listened, she thought about the owl. After her brother finished speaking, she deliberated and said,

"The owl's visits seem to be related to significant progress in your exploration of the dream."

Uh… Lumian thought for a moment before his eyes lit up.

"Indeed!

"The first time I killed a monster, the first time I displayed my specialness, the first time I consumed a potion and stepped onto the Beyonder path, the first time I found a way to make use of that specialness…

"Similar major developments also have a certain reaction in reality. That owl sensed it and came over to observe? Heh, it smelled something."

Aurore tersely acknowledged.

"In the future, we can deliberately create a similar opportunity to see if we can wait for that owl."

"I believe the next time it appears is after I master the mysterious dance and can truly use the specialness brought about by the symbol on my chest in my dream," Lumian pondered, revealing a malicious smile. "When the time comes, I'll inform you before entering the dream. Be prepared."

Aurore thought for a moment and nodded.

"I hope to figure out who the owl is related to and what role it plays in Cordu's abnormality."

Lumian seized the opportunity to inquire,

"Aurore, uh, Grande Soeur, do you possess any knowledge about that particular dance?"

"As you are aware, my understanding of mysticism is still rudimentary."

Aurore dragged a chair in front of Lumian's wooden table and settled in. After pondering for a moment, she responded,

"Several notebooks have alluded to the existence of large-scale ritualistic magic during the early Fifth Epoch and throughout the Fourth Epoch."

"Those rituals entailed not only numerous sacrifices but also a multitude of participants. They employed specific dances to appease their desired entities in exchange for a response."

"In essence, it was a form of sacrificial ritual and magic. Dancing, from the outset, was believed to influence nature and facilitate communication with deities. Its effects resemble those of Beyonder language and the combination of herbs, essential oils, and other ingredients."

In Aurore and Lumian's world, history was divided into five epochs. The First Epoch was the Chaos Epoch, followed by the Dark Epoch, and then the Cataclysm Epoch. However, Aurore had heard from a pen pal that the Cataclysm Epoch was also known as the Glorious Epoch.

The Fourth Epoch was the Age of the Gods, or the Epoch of the Gods. The Fifth Epoch was the present day, which began 1,358 years ago and was referred to as the Iron Age.

Of the five epochs, the history of the first three remained unverifiable, with only myths and legends surviving. The Fourth Epoch occasionally yielded documents, information, notebooks, ruins, mausoleums, ancient cities, and so on. Nevertheless, history seemed shrouded in a thick fog, with only a faint outline discernible. The theological texts of the seven Churches often recounted stories from the Fourth Epoch, which served as the only source of illumination.

After listening to his sister's explanation, Lumian hazarded a guess.

"That Noodle Man employs dance to appease the hidden entity that corresponds to the thorn symbol. Is it hoping to elicit a response or a boon?

"Perhaps a significant portion of its ritual is absent, resulting in an extremely weak effect. Or is the problem with the dream ruins causing a failure that can only trigger a tiny fraction of the power contained in the symbol within my body?"

"Heh heh, it's as if I'm a god. Having witnessed Noodle Man's dance and being pleased by it, I decided to highlight the symbol and offer a certain response."

However, Lumian had no control over this. It was an automatic reaction of the thorn symbol.

Aurore smiled and replied, "You are more like a carrier of that symbol, a tool, in a sense."

She paused thoughtfully and said, "I suspect that the dance was specifically invented to please or communicate with the hidden entity that corresponds to the thorn symbol. Otherwise, it wouldn't have elicited a reaction from the symbol…

"Furthermore, based on your description, this is not something an ordinary person can accomplish. Only Beyonders with special enhancements can do so.

"Although I am familiar with the names of the corresponding Sequence 9 and Sequence 8 pathways, I have a certain level of understanding of them. None of them can execute that kind of dance, and Noodle Man's performance does not seem like that of a higher Sequence. Otherwise, you would not have been able to escape."

"Perhaps it is not from the 22 pathways, but rather a boon from a hidden entity?" Lumian recalled the mysterious lady's words.

Aurore looked out the window and pursed her lips.

"I wonder if this has anything to do with the Circle Inhabitant or a power equivalent to Sequence 9 or Sequence 8?"

"Probably." Lumian suddenly laughed. "Let me name it. Noodle Man, Circle Inhabitant's corresponding Sequence 9!"

Aurore couldn't help but look up at the ceiling.

The siblings chatted for a while before heading downstairs for breakfast.

After studying Hermes until past ten, Lumian departed with important items.

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