The pain on Hume’s face eased significantly as he gazed at “Claudia” with profound satisfaction.
Even if she isn’t the Divine Envoy’s daughter, she is a pillar of talent worthy of total cultivation!
Hume sighed inwardly. How had he overlooked Claudia before? To think he had placed his trust in those two traitors instead…
It seemed he truly needed to pay more attention to the Low Priests in the future, ensuring they properly grasped the greatness of their Lord.
They needed to learn from Claudia!
With that thought, Hume deliberated for a moment. He reached into his robes and produced a notebook, handing it to Luo Wei.
“These are a portion of the reference materials and personal notes I compiled when I first authored that book. They should make the content much easier for you to digest.”
He paused briefly before adding, “It also contains several Magic Potion recipes.”
The moment those words left his mouth, the expressions of the surrounding Priests shifted. The way they looked at Luo Wei turned sharp and envious.
Magic Potions weren’t just for ascending through the ranks; different recipes offered a variety of unique effects. No one in their right mind would ever complain about having too many. Beyond the extreme scarcity of supernatural materials, the recipes themselves were worth a fortune.
Luo Wei did not decline. Looking at the notebook in Hume’s hand, she allowed a flicker of irrepressible joy to cross her face.
“Thank you, Lord Hume! With your notes and annotations, I will surely be able to better comprehend our Lord’s wisdom!”
With just three sentences, I got the boss to give me magic potion recipes!
The old me would have scoffed at this, but the new me will study it frame-by-frame!
Who said watching those ’emotional intelligence’ short videos was useless?
Seeing “Claudia” so enthusiastic and eager to learn, Hume felt a wave of paternal pride, nearly moved to tears. Finally, he had found a truly loyal believer who followed their Lord with a sincere heart. He remained entirely oblivious to the growing resentment on the faces of the other Priests nearby.
In their eyes, “Claudia” had officially become nothing more than a “sycophantic brown-noser.”
Hume truly wasn’t cut out to be a leader. He was more of an old academic, intoxicated by his faith in the Lord of Ravings, suited for deep research rather than wielding actual power in an organization. A proper leader, no matter how much they admired someone, wouldn’t reward a new priest with zero contributions right in front of the veterans who had just risked their lives to rescue them.
Of course, Luo Wei couldn’t care less. As long as she got the benefits, she didn’t mind buttering up old man Hume with a few more pleasantries to keep him happy.
Besides, the one the other priests resented was Claudia—what did that have to do with Luo Wei?
***
After receiving Hume’s notes, Luo Wei did not linger in the Shelter.
As the journey through the Virtual-Real Dream concluded, Claudia’s soul gradually returned to its physical vessel. When soul and body realigned, Luo Wei looked down to find the three books she had “borrowed” from the archives and Hume’s notebook clutched in her hands.
The items from the dream had successfully manifested in reality.
“The Virtual-Real Dream…”
Possessing the qualities of both reality and dreamscape—it was a wondrous concept. She wondered what kind of resources the Dream Sanctum had exhausted to create such an ideal utopia. Or rather, how many blood debts had been paid to build it.
By now, Claudia’s body had run nearly ten kilometers, reaching the outer edges of Kolun County. The area was swarmed with fleeing commoners, their faces etched with panic and dread. On the horizon, the first faint light of dawn appeared; the unforgettable night had finally come to an end.
As the Enforcement Guards gradually withdrew, it became clear the grueling battle was over. Many refugees began to walk back toward the slums with trembling steps—no matter how dilapidated, it was still a place to stay.
“Do not linger in the fireless night”—this was an omen written in the cost of countless lost lives.
Luo Wei tucked the books inside her cloak. The bulk made Claudia’s thin frame look several sizes larger, but she managed to keep them hidden.
“Time to go back and get some sleep!”
Luo Wei herself didn’t feel fatigue, but Claudia’s mind was utterly exhausted. Her body had borne the brunt of the night’s exertion. Without a dreamless slumber to recover, the girl would collapse in an instant.
However, on the way back, Luo Wei could still flip through the books using her unique perspective. Just as she did with the Grimoire of Forbidden Curses, she didn’t need to physically open the pages; her vision could weave between them. Though it was a bit more difficult to read without Claudia’s active translation, she treated it as a language exercise.
First, Luo Wei went for her primary interest: the Forbidden Curse Witch. She opened the Collection of “Taboo” Archives (Partial).
[This book serves only as a collection of rumors regarding the ‘Taboo’ archives and does not involve specific classified secrets. Information involving dangerous mysteries has been redacted.]
In other words, the contents were mostly hearsay, not critical classified intel.
“So it’s just an unofficial history…”
It made sense. If it were truly vital intelligence, it wouldn’t be sitting in a common archive room in the Dream Sanctum.
Regardless, Luo Wei didn’t need classified secrets; she just needed to know the public perception of the Forbidden Curse Witch.
[‘Taboo’ archives are divided into ‘Unknowable-Class’ and ‘Untouchable-Class,’ numbered 0 and 1. All information regarding the ‘Unknowable-Class’ involves dangerous mysteries; therefore, only the ‘Untouchable-Class’ is recorded here.]
[Taboo – Untouchable-Class, Rank 6, Serial No. ‘1-06’, Evil Witch Lilith.]
[Human female. Appearance: a hunched crone approximately eighty years old. The creator of Incantations and founder of the magical terrorist organization ‘The Tower.’ She sacrificed half her soul to abyssal demons in exchange for the right to abandon the gods. Upon her manifestation, all flames are tainted by an indescribable radiance.]
[All accounts of her experiences involve dangerous mysteries and cannot be recorded.]
[Currently, the Evil Witch Lilith has been completely exiled beyond the world by the gods, with no possibility of return.]
“Boring. If you’re going to write lore, you could at least make up some juicy stories,” Luo Wei grumbled, turning the page.
[Serial No. ‘1-06-01’, Grimoire of Forbidden Curses.]
[The original tome of Incantations authored by Lilith. The beginning of all incantations, containing the incantations of the ‘Beginning’ and the ‘End.’]
[Any entity that comes into contact with the Grimoire will have their self-perception distorted, becoming firmly convinced that they are the reincarnation of the ‘Evil Witch Lilith’ and attempting to spread its contents. This has caused several large-scale insurrections; for details, please refer to 《████ (Information Redacted)》.]
[Formerly stored in the Truth Academy’s Index of Forbidden Books No. 0. Currently completely lost.]
Things are getting interesting