A round sphere stood in the heart of the Voice of Dawn's cabin.
The sphere was remarkably round, like a gemstone.
Below it stood a triangular support, even larger than the sphere itself, covered in dense incantations. Atop it lay strips of cloth, also inscribed with incantations.
This was the ship's forge hall, and Alka stood before the sphere. Lusilia, perched on his shoulders, leaped down, instantly transforming to her normal soul size.
"Did you make it so quickly?"
Hearing Lusilia's words, Alka nodded. "It wasn't difficult at all. It took only a short while to make."
Lucilia smiled and began to wave her hands through the air. Threads of soul-like substance floated out, one after another, merging into the sphere.
Then the sphere floated out from the much larger support, spinning in the air. Strands of soul energy drifted out, like the power of the soul, like clouds and mist.
The swirling mass gathered, growing larger and larger, until it formed a soul mist sphere the size of a human head. This head-sized soul mist sphere instantly matched the size of the support below.
Lucille had Alka help build this thing yesterday.
Its function was very simple: to provide a relay station for Lucelia's soul remote control ability.
As for why a relay station was necessary, it was naturally because they wanted to use it to monitor the state of the soul in the Devouring Mouth.
Could they learn anything from the state of the soul in the Devouring Mouth?
For example, could they determine whether he had created a soul clone, where he was currently, and what direction he was heading?
And, most importantly, whether he had detected the hidden origin within.
The soul sphere was quickly located.
Lusilia closed her eyes and, through the soul sphere, began to probe its secrets.
She soon discovered it.
The Devouring Mouth, far away in the scar of the world, frowned.
Immediately, using the few soul techniques she knew, she reinforced her soul secrets.
The information she could uncover would be very limited.
Lusilia also opened her eyes.
With a hint of regret, she said, "The information we can uncover is very limited. We can only determine his current location, the number of his soul clones, and their general directions."
Simply put, all they could see was a single soul, its very crude state and location.
Clearly, the Devouring Mouth wasn't completely idle; it still maintained a significant amount of soul protection for its own soul.
This was intended to minimize the loss of secrets while the soul threads were being eliminated.
"That's enough. We weren't expecting to gain much, were we?" Alka said with a smile.
Lucelia nodded.
Then she began to recount the other information she had found: "The Devouring Mouth's main soul is still within the World Scar. There are two more soul clones outside, but they're likely quite far away, so we can only sense their general direction."
Hearing this, Alka nodded.
This information wasn't particularly useful for now, but this time they had truly disgusted the Devouring Mouth, and that was enough.
As for whether the origin they had planted within its soul could be cleared, and whether it was any use, we would only know once the Devouring Mouth found a way to completely remove the contents of the soul thread.
If it was truly buried and undiscovered, then their goal would be fully achieved.
The purpose of this transit station was to prevent the Abyss Mouth from finding them while they were exploring its soul, or from using some unknown power to counterattack them.
So they built a staging post, a defensive line in case of trouble, allowing them to disconnect the probe link in a timely manner.
After completing all this, they sealed the soul orb and put it away.
The two returned to the deck.
Alka returned to his room alone, sat on his bed, closed his eyes, and drifted off into a dream.
Upon waking, he saw his own dream world.
His dream world had essentially transformed into a tiny, independently functioning world.
And with little need for Alka to worry about, after expanding, with Alka's subtle manipulation, it began to operate on its own.
It was as if the world itself was spinning.
Strange creatures from the dream world roamed within it.
Alka stared at his dream bubble.
To be honest, his dream bubble was quite bizarre.
It's a bit like the real world within a dream world, or perhaps a fusion of the two.
Because its very existence is quite unique.
He is a real creature, possessing a body, with a soul that resides within it, highly connected.
He possesses an intelligent soul, the ability to dream and enter dreams, and possesses dream bubbles, a quality unique to real creatures.
But he is also a dream creature, the pinnacle of dream creatures. The king of dreams.
Therefore, this unique dream bubble, this unique dream world, is unique to him.
But the problem is, Alka still hasn't discovered what this dream bubble can offer him.
Because it's a dream bubble world similar to reality, creatures within it can neither enter reality nor dreams, only exist within the bubble.
Clouds of gold and silver floated in the sky.
Alka silently flew out of his own world and arrived in his own dream kingdom.
By this time, his dreamland had already become a vast expanse of white. A thick white fog completely enveloped his realm, transforming it into a world of white mist.
These white clouds were all symbols of the dreamland's buildings, operating at full capacity. This time, countless dream creatures traversed the mist, exerting their unique abilities.
The reason the vast dreamland was operating at full capacity was naturally because the scars of the real world were being madly invaded by the abyss. The struggle between them was causing the dreamland to appear to be in an overloaded state.
Alka floated in the white mist, and the flying crystal platform containing his throne automatically flew over. Alka sat on the throne.
After settling steadily, Alka closed his eyes.
With Alka seated on the throne, the efficiency of the entire dreamland soared.
After all, a dream king was the core of the realm.
Sitting on the throne, Alka slowly increased his strength within the dream realm.
Alka had begun improving his strength in this way several years ago, and now he was approaching the ninth stage within the dream realm.
The overall operation of the dream realm would also allow him to increase his strength even faster.
…
"Is Alka still in the dream world?" Simon asked, looking at Sofia.
This kind of question could only be asked toSofia.
Sofia nodded.
Ever since the World Scar began to suffer intense attacks, Alka had spent most of his time training in the dream realm while the ship was sailing.
For no other reason than that it was his realm, and as long as he was there, he could increase the efficiency of the dream realm in stabilizing reality.
This would also help to alleviate the pressure on those resisting the World Scar from afar.
Simon nodded, a little regretfully. He still had some ideas he wanted to discuss with Alka, but they'd have to wait until dinner time to discuss them.
A gigantic crystal dragon swooped down from the clouds and plummeted into the sea.
A giant sea fish was caught and thrown onto the deck. The puppet girls, who had been waiting for it for a long time, swarmed over and instantly transformed into the fish, devouring it.
Then, the dissection materials were cleared and a long line of people carried them into the kitchen. These were fresh ingredients.
The gigantic crystal dragon Ululius also descended directly onto the deck. The moment it landed, it transformed into a crystal point of light, then into a humanoid form.
Jason also emerged from the point of light, having been sitting on Ululius's back.
"Sofia, how long will it take us to reach our destination?"
"Soon, about two or three months."
Hearing this, Jason nodded.
Two or three months was indeed fast.
At this moment, a door opened on the second floor of the stern, and Alka stepped out.
It was rare for Alka to come out at this time, but Sofia still asked Alka, "Are you hungry?"
Because, under normal circumstances, Alka wouldn't have woken up without Sofia calling out to her.
Alka shook her head and asked with a smile.
"Who's going to advance?"
Lucelia, who was playing with the puppet girls on a branch, jumped out at this and gave Alka a strange look.
"How did you know I was going to advance?"
"I'm awesome," Alka said with a smile.
"Since you're out now, I'll advance now."
Lucelia's strength had reached perfection. As long as she continued meditating, it would be time for her to advance.
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately prepared and began their respective tasks. The entire process proceeded smoothly.
They had clearly become accustomed to the sound of dawn, and they consciously paused their movements. Roots shot out from the bottom of the ship, spreading into the surrounding space.
Several elemental cards emerged from Alka's side.
Everyone gathered on the deck, ready to control any possible situation.
Previously, they had thought the only possibility was a storm, but as everyone began to ascend, they realized there was more to it than that.
The environmental changes that occurred would vary depending on each person's situation. For example, when Sofia ascended, the surrounding environment was unusually calm.
Lucille's tiny figure was completely immersed in the pool of magic absorbed by the meditation stone.
As she ascended, a large amount of red energy began to appear around her. All the puppet girls on the deck floated up simultaneously, radiating the same red power they once wielded.
This was the reason Lucilia had become a divine being, the divine essence she had imbued within her was the flag she once held.
This red energy was filled with the victorious spirit of a knight in battle, and then a sound of fighting, like the sound of a battlefield, echoed all around.
No tsunamis or whirlpools appeared.
But countless sea fish and other marine creatures rushed frantically toward the deck.
It was as if someone had blown a charge horn.
This instilled in these fish, though not particularly intelligent, an immense fighting spirit, and they began to attack mindlessly.
Some ordinary sea fish even leaped up and rammed their bodies against the ship.
Countless sea fish, of varying strengths, clashed frantically.
Watching this unfold, Urulius roared loudly. "Roar!"
It was filled with the aura of a superior being at the top of the food chain.
But the problem was that under the influence of the red light's warlike power, these sea fish were completely unafraid of this suppression, having almost completely lost their minds.
The sound of music reached them.
The Voice of Dawn immediately joined in.
A phonograph appeared above the ship and began to play music. Julia played the harp.
The soft and peaceful singing brought a sense of peace, calming everyone.
Under the influence of the music, phantoms of white birds, representing peace, flew through the air one after another.
The red power emanating from the surroundings was suppressed, and the sea fish finally calmed down and began to flee under Ulrius's pressure.
Lucelia's power continued to rise, and the strength of the puppet girls around her who had ascended with her also began to increase.
The advancement did not take long. Lusilia quickly ascended.
With Lusilia's advancement, the others should all reach the seventh stage within the next month or two.
Their overall strength would undergo a significant leap. Since Lusilia was a divine being, everyone watched her transform as she emerged from beneath the meditation stone.
Lusilia maintained a normal human-sized soul form, but it now emanated a faint red glow.
Even the red light from her eyes trailed off as she walked, giving her a strikingly handsome, if uncanny, look.
Even her soul was covered in a layer of pale red soul armor, densely inscribed with incantations.
Wings composed of blood-red lines and mist slowly floated behind her.
Even the surrounding puppet girls underwent some changes.
The power began to condense, and Lucilia transformed back into her puppet form.
With the help of the strange wings of blood-colored energy behind her, she landed on Alka's shoulder.
"So you first mastered your innate ability?"
"I can't say first. Ever since I became a divine being, my innate ability was imprinted directly on me. This time, I'm simply integrating and sublimating it.
I'm primarily mastering the spell sword and soul mastery. Due to their extreme overlap, I can simultaneously advance my mastery."
This is why she has a layer of soul armor, adorned with incantations resembling those on the surface of the spell sword.
Although she hasn't fully mastered it yet, she's not far from it.
Unlike the others who gradually mastered it after their promotion from the Sofia, Lucilia, due to her own reasons, has been deeply mastering the power of the soul from the very beginning. This is why she's significantly superior to others after her promotion.
After listening to Lucilia's words, Alka nodded and looked at the others.
Pororo, who now possessed all his treasures, should be there in the next two days. Matriasa and Juanlu were next.
These three would advance within a week at most. Alka then looked at the others, namely Simon and Julia, who hadn't yet mastered the Scepter-level treasures.
They would probably advance within a month.
To be honest, the three of them had basically reached the sixth stage of perfection, with only the final additions remaining.
It seemed everyone had a busy month.
Unknowingly.
Have they been away from World Scar for so long?
Alka couldn't help but wonder.
Suddenly, the surroundings began to vibrate. Everyone immediately became alert, but they didn't notice the vibrations.
The cause and direction of the noise.
"What's going on? Have you noticed anything wrong?" Jason asked immediately, puzzled.
Everyone shook their heads.
Julia frowned and said, "It's not just the air, the surrounding environment is vibrating. It's becoming... even more chaotic."
The vibrations became increasingly pronounced, even cracks appearing in the air, though no complete destruction occurred.
Alka closed his eyes.
Then he opened them, a golden light flashing in them, and he immediately discovered the source.
They couldn't help but look up at the sky, at something beyond it.
Following Alka's vision, everyone raised their heads.