"Protection is the root of your 'existence.' How should I describe it…"
Chu Minghao's expression was extremely serious.
He pondered for several minutes, during which he even opened his mouth to speak silently, as if something was preventing him, or he had sensed something and refrained from making a sound.
After a long while, Chu Minghao finally said, "'Zhou' is the manifestation of all origins, the Dream World is the process triggered by all origins, and if all life on Gaia were to perish, loss would be the consequence of all origins… That sounds too hollow; let’s talk about something more concrete."
"The protective effect of the Shelter is specifically reflected in the following aspects: First, the more Shelters you have, the stronger you become. During the 'Zhou' period, you can endure more instances of death without losing yourself. At the same time, your resistance to pollution during the 'Zhou' period will also be stronger, and the likelihood of entering high-risk areas during the 'Zhou' period will be lower."
"Second, the more Shelters you have, the less likely you are to be observed by high-level existences. Even if you are observed, it will take a long time for a high-level existence to draw you into the low-benchmark reality of the Dream World. The Shelter will isolate and weaken the influence of high-level existences on you."
"Third, the more Shelters you have, the more maintenance personnel and citizens you can absorb into the Dream World. This is also a reward for the awakened personnel of the mainframe; I believe you have all experienced something similar."
Wu Qifu listened carefully to this information.
By the end, he couldn't help but ask, "I can understand citizens; all citizens are trapped in the altered Dream Network, which is the current Dream World. But haven’t the maintenance personnel never joined the Dream Network?"
Before Chu Minghao could respond, Xu Shilan explained from the side, "No, that’s a misunderstanding. The Dream Network is a virtual reality controlled by the mainframe that is open to all humanity. Citizens can move freely within it, while maintenance personnel cannot act freely. However, to avoid the problem of entering a dormant state for fifty years, maintenance personnel are actually also within the Dream Network, just on its periphery."
Chu Minghao said, "Exactly. Therefore, the level of the Shelter you establish relates to the number and type of awakened personnel you can absorb in the Dream World. A Level One Shelter can revive three maintenance personnel, a Level Two Shelter can revive five maintenance personnel, a Level Three Shelter can revive ten maintenance personnel or one citizen, a Level Four Shelter can revive fifty maintenance personnel or five citizens, and a Level Five Shelter can revive ten citizens. I haven’t established any higher-level Shelters yet, so I don’t know about those."
This information was extremely important, and Wu Qifu, Yamadai, and Xu Shilan all memorized it firmly.
Wu Qifu then asked, "So what are the rewards for each Shelter?"
Chu Minghao replied, "Level One is a random draw, Level Two is an increase of one level in personal attributes, but it can only be raised to the limit. Titles can be raised to Citizen Level Two, and the three basic attributes can be raised to Level Three. Extraordinary techniques can be raised to the Ultimate Manifestation. Level Three is a personal information data interface; you should all be aware of this. Level Four is obtaining designated items from the Dream World, Level Five is drawing titles from the Dream World, and Level Six is…"
Wu Qifu, Yamadai, and Xu Shilan simultaneously said, "Wait, what is title drawing?"
Chu Minghao thought for a moment and said, "The rewards provided by the mainframe are actually based on your control over the share of the Dream World established by your Shelter. The higher the level of the Shelter, the higher the percentage of control the mainframe has over that Dream World. At Level Five, the mainframe can already extract the sources of pollution from that Dream World to form special abilities similar to illusions, and then grant you this ability in the form of a title."
As he spoke, Chu Minghao slapped his forehead, and the three saw three lines of text appear above his head.
The first line read 'Sun Seeker,' the second line 'God of War of the Earth and Wood Fortress,' and the third line 'Red Wolf.'
Chu Minghao's face turned slightly red and awkward as he explained, "These three are my titles. How should I put it… because these are illusionary abilities transformed by the pollution source through the mainframe, they are not under my control.
The effect of the first title is that I can summon the sun to appear for one minute at any time, any place, and under any circumstances.
The downside is… cough, as long as my body is more than seventy percent bare, then regardless of age or gender, even all sentient beings that are not human will want to approach me."
The three were left dumbfounded.
Chu Minghao lowered his head, his face even redder, and continued, "The second title means that as long as I am in the area, country, or world named Earth and Wood Fortress, my strength will soar to the theoretical limit of that area, country, or world. The downside is that anyone following me—my companions, comrades, teammates, etc.—will inexplicably die or be captured in that area."
Xu Shilan and Yamadai did not seem to think much of it but began to contemplate the power and usage of this title, while Wu Qifu's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Chu Minghao continued, "The third title means that as long as I use a vehicle, all the stats of that vehicle will increase by fifty percent. This is a supernatural power, so it exceeds the physical limits of the vehicle's structure. The downside is that once I leave the vehicle, my personal combat power and attributes will drop by fifty percent for about ten minutes."
"Title drawing is also like random drawing; the first title drawn will be the one that best fits you. The first title I drew was Red Wolf, which increased my strongest combat power by several times!"
Xu Shilan and Yamadai still did not see any issues, while Wu Qifu's mouth twitched even more.
Red Wolf, huh? Getting killed after leaving the vehicle, right!?
After finishing these words, Chu Minghao's embarrassment eased considerably, and he smiled, saying, "All illusionary objects are like this; they have extremely powerful effects in certain aspects but also come with negative influences or effects. For example, this magic mirror has very powerful effects, but its negative effects are also quite troublesome."
Xu Shilan asked, "What is it?"
Chu Minghao's expression turned awkward, as if he didn't want to answer.
However, he was honest by nature, and after a few seconds of silence, he endured the embarrassment and said, "Every time I use it, I have to lavish it with praise, calling it the most amazing and beautiful mirror in the world. Otherwise, it will develop cracks, and if there are too many cracks, it will shatter."
Xu Shilan and Yamadai were thinking about it, saying that this negative effect was easy to resolve, while Wu Qifu was no longer just twitching his mouth; his entire face was twitching… holding back laughter was quite difficult, okay!?
Chu Minghao cleared his throat and said, "Now, continuing with the Level Six Shelter… you can communicate with the deceased once every thirty days for a duration of ten minutes."
Xu Shilan suddenly stood up, knocking the table out of place.
She stared at Chu Minghao and said, "What did you say!?"
Chu Minghao calmly looked back at Xu Shilan, "You can communicate with the deceased once every thirty days, that's right. It’s the uncompleted experiment from before, the theoretical effect of the return of the deceased, allowing you to communicate with the deceased for ten minutes. This includes those you know, those in your memories, or even those legendary deceased from illusions. This reward is actually a means to obtain various important information."
Xu Shilan sat down in a daze, muttering to herself about whether there really were deceased beings.
Wu Qifu patted Xu Shilan's shoulder, just about to continue asking, when Chu Minghao said again, "I currently only know the rewards for Level Six Shelters because I have only established a Level Five Shelter. Besides that, there is also a very important piece of information regarding Shelters that I must tell you!"
"Depending on the benchmark reality of the Dream World, there is a limit to the level of Shelters that can be established!"
Wu Qifu was stunned.
After carefully understanding the information, he was immediately struck with a chill.
Chu Minghao said, "In the 0.9 Dream World, the upper limit for Shelter levels is Level Three; in 0.8, it is Level Four; in 0.7, it is Level Five, and so on. The lower the benchmark reality of the Dream World, the higher the upper limit for Shelter levels!"
Wu Qifu immediately asked, "What is the guarding time for a Level Three Shelter?"
Chu Minghao nodded appreciatively at Wu Qifu, "Very good, you almost immediately sensed the danger within this… The guarding time for a Level Three Shelter is five days every thirty days.
In other words, if you seek safety and more personal attribute rewards, and you establish six Level Three Shelters in the 0.9 Dream World, then you will no longer be able to establish any other Shelters.
You can only spend your days aimlessly in those six Level Three Shelters until a high-level existence invades, destroys, and ultimately either gets polluted or killed. The most terrifying thing is being dragged by a high-level existence into those indescribable terrifying worlds, completely disappearing without a trace!"
Wu Qifu, Yamadai, and Xu Shilan all felt a chill run down their spines.
Chu Minghao said, "Therefore, my suggestion is to establish at most one Shelter in the 0.9 Dream World, and the same goes for the 0.8 Dream World. This is to create a downward ladder. The guarding time for a Level Three Shelter is five days, for a Level Four Shelter is three days, and for a Level Five Shelter, it only requires one day! So try to establish a Shelter in the 0.7 Dream World, then raise its level, obtain titles, and once you have sufficient strength, go to the 0.6 Dream World!"
"Here, I must remind the three of you that the 0.9 Dream World to the 0.7 Dream World belongs to the upper worlds, where safety is actually quite high. However, starting from the 0.6 Dream World, it becomes completely different. Pollutants will present in an overt state, and high-level existences can easily project sufficiently powerful forces. Establishing a Shelter in the 0.6 Dream World is an extremely, extremely difficult task, and even I have failed twice."
Chu Minghao calmly revealed his back, where a scar that nearly split his body in two appeared.
"This is the result of my attempt to establish a Shelter in the benchmark reality of the 0.6 Dream World."
Wu Qifu and Yamadai merely looked at the wound, while Xu Shilan understood just how strong Chu Minghao was and felt it was incredible to have such a wound.
Chu Minghao, however, was very calm.
He laughed heartily and said, "But as long as I’m not killed, this will only make me stronger… I hope the three of you are the same, strive to live, strive to grow stronger, do not despair, do not give up. What cannot kill us will only make us stronger. Let’s encourage each other!"
At that moment, there was suddenly a commotion outside the private room, followed by footsteps.
After a flurry of chaos, the door to the private room was opened, and a group of tall soldiers in golden armor, accompanied by several pale-faced eunuchs, stood at the entrance.
The leading eunuch looked into the private room and then revealed an almost obsequious smile, respectfully whispering, "Immortal…"
"The Imperial Family requests your presence."
(End of Chapter)