Chapter 44: A Single Thought of Switching Pathways Broadens Mind and World

After severing contact with Lilith, Hermione’s briefly relaxed mind suddenly tightened once more.

But then she thought to herself, why am I so tense?

In the silence that followed, Amanesis did not continue the topic but instead took the initiative to ask, “What is the ‘Primordial Moon’? And what is that honorable name you mentioned?”

Faced with the question, Hermione sighed, “It is an Outer God, a pillar, a ‘Moon’ that watches over our world.”

Even under the heavy veil of protection, speaking of such matters still sent chills down Hermione’s spine.

To her, the authority of the “Moon” was a true abyss; it was not only connected to the fallen Mother Goddess, this pillar, but occasionally linked to another powerful Outer God known as the “Mother Tree of Desire.”

It was truly a case of madness spreading with contact.

Within the video narrative, only the Goddess of Night held the “Moon” uniquely in the form of a sealed object, thus avoiding contamination—perhaps she even employed other means to isolate the pollution.

Meanwhile, Lilith, the progenitor of the vampire clan, now wielded both the “Moon” and “Mother” paths, seemingly invincible.

Yet, as long as she had not embraced the “Mother Nest” to become a true Old One, the stronger her power grew, the more susceptible she became to the influence of the “Fallen Mother Goddess” in the starry heavens.

Moreover, Lilith was troubled by extraordinary mixed traits; even though she propagated and nurtured the vampire clan, it merely delayed her descent.

If it weren’t for the barrier left by the Primordial Creator still intact in this Second Era, Lilith, the progenitor of the vampires, might have already fallen into the servitude of the “Fallen Mother Goddess” as an ancient god-level puppet.

“The Moon…” Amanesis silently noted this, then sighed, “A power beyond the gods… Then, what about that immense light and shadow?”

Hearing this, Hermione also looked up at the colossal stone statue and shook her head, “That, I truly do not know.”

Was the statue an ancient sun god? Or the “God” himself? Or some other being…

Hermione harbored many speculations, but they required more information to confirm.

“So what is your current situation? Do you already possess power comparable to the gods?” Amanesis stood on the Star Pillar, reaching out to touch the invisible barrier before them.

Or rather, barrier was an inaccurate term. With Amanesis’s every movement, the space on the Star Pillar that they occupied expanded or contracted. This made it so that although they could feel an air wall in front of them, it was forever unreachable.

“Impossible…” Hermione smiled wryly and waved her hand, “I am still the same ‘Dreamer’ at Path Sequence Four; I merely can borrow some special power.”

***

For example, this dream space was stabilized by the source substance known as the “Chaotic Sea.”

The power that can draw others into dreams is also strengthened by the “Chaotic Sea.”

Even the spirituality needed to maintain contact with others is provided by multiple high-sequence traits embedded within the statue’s body.

It’s like the simple things—brewing potions, chanting rituals for teleportation—Hermione was merely levering the other side of the fulcrum.

Of course, Hermione also understood the implications of this in the mysterious world…

At this moment, Amanesis ceased probing the barrier and asked another question, “One last question: why do you call yourself the ‘Sun God’? Isn’t the end of your path the ‘Dreamer’?”

Facing Amanesis’s puzzled gaze, Hermione smiled faintly, “The ‘Sun’ is the end of the path that Oscerus treads. As for why I call myself the ‘Sun God’…”

After a brief pause, her tone grew sentimental, “It’s because here, too, lies the buried authority of the ‘Sun’.”

And the Sun God…

***

Exiting the dream space, the bedroom remained shrouded in tranquil darkness. Hermione opened her eyes; perhaps some change had occurred in her spirit within the Chaotic Sea, for her vision could now penetrate the stillness of the dark.

With this night vision, she saw Amanesis seated beside the bed.

The other was gazing at her, expression vacant and somewhat strange.

Before Hermione could utter a sound, Amanesis dispersed the darkness enveloping the room. At this moment, their expression returned to its usual serene composure. They greeted softly, “I will sleep for a while.”

“Mm.”

Watching Amanesis settle onto the other bed for a nap, Hermione rose from her own bed but did not immediately get down. Instead, she kept the distance between the beds and sat cross-legged, observing Amanesis swiftly fall asleep.

The beauty’s sleeping form was calm and serene, unlike her own habit of sprawling wildly. No matter how many times she witnessed this scene, it always moved Hermione deeply.

After appreciating the goddess’s sleeping posture for a moment, and seeing no sign that Amanesis was succumbing to the influence of the source fortress, Hermione quietly slipped out of the bedroom.

She entered the adjacent study, sighed deeply, and took a wooden chair to sit down casually, reflecting on everything that had happened that day.

***

To her, the communication with the Chaotic Sea was a mixed blessing.

She had gained a wealth of knowledge from the Chaotic Sea, even obtained a special dream space, yet none of these could solve her current weakness.

Originally, she intended to actively awaken the ancient Sun God…

Otherwise, when the “Giant King” came to discuss humanity’s future with her, and those giants used humans for experiments and as food, what could she use to resist?

But now, the ancient Sun God could no longer be awakened…

“If pushed too far, I’ll just fully absorb all the remnants there,” Hermione thought, scratching her head to vent some frustration.

Of course… the consequences of doing so were dire: a small chance she might lose control and become a monster; a greater chance that the God inside her would awaken—the statue contained not only those three unique essences but also the extraordinary traits of “Sun” and “Hanged Man” paths.

If she dared to do so, it would be akin to Zhou Mingrui directly absorbing the “Little Blanket,” becoming a “Heavenly Sovereign” upon landing.

“Did this butterfly just slap away her own strong backing?” Hermione laughed bitterly with a touch of melancholy. After a light sigh, she began pondering how to rapidly increase her strength.

Though she was currently only Sequence Four, far from the level of the gods, if she did not seize and accumulate every shred of hope and effort, she would never have a chance to surpass those gods.

Hermione propped her chin on her hand, thinking deeply. Suddenly, she realized that although she lacked the extraordinary trait of the Sequence Three “Dreamweaver” in the Dreamer path, the Chaotic Sea held the neighboring paths’ extraordinary traits of the “Tri-Headed Sanctuary” and “Justice Mentor.”

At the demigod level, one could transition to neighboring paths and advance. What she needed to do was find a way to extract those extraordinary traits from the Chaotic Sea.

Unlike those “unique essences” that insisted on invading her consciousness, those extraordinary traits were as immovable as bedrock, completely unaffected by Hermione’s awareness.

She knew that Zhou Mingrui later relied on the rituals of “Sacrifice” and “Bestowal” to shuttle items between reality and the source fortress.

So extracting extraordinary traits from the Chaotic Sea…

That seemed doable?