Wu Piwu was the first to step out of the door of the Peace Hotel, followed by Yamadai and Xu Shilan.
The three of them tried their best to maintain natural movements and expressions, as if they were simply returning to this "peaceful" hotel.
After leaving the room, they did not rush to move but began to "naturally" survey their surroundings.
The Peace Hotel had already been mostly constructed; for instance, the warehouse they exited was completed, while the main building was in the process of constructing the second floor.
Villagers and craftsmen were coming in and out of the Peace Hotel, clearly normal indigenous humans rather than nightmares, as they had not ventured into Gaia.
"... If it were merely a building-type shelter or a force-type shelter, even the indigenous people of the Dream World could destroy it. However, an event-type shelter must be penetrated over my corpse to reach Gaia. Unfortunately, this is a special-type shelter," Wu Piwu said softly.
Xu Shilan and Yamadai remained silent.
As they gradually explored the Dream World, they had come to understand the advantages and disadvantages of various shelters.
Special-type shelters offered the best rewards, that was beyond doubt, but they also had their drawbacks: they possessed the regional limitations of building-type shelters and the inability to be destroyed by indigenous forces...
This was an advantage in many cases, but a disadvantage when the nightmares became overwhelmingly powerful, as was the case now.
The three of them silently observed their surroundings, and then, as Wu Piwu took the lead in stepping forward, the other two followed him out onto the courtyard of the Peace Hotel.
This area still belonged to the Peace Hotel; if anything were to happen, they could return to their room within seconds and then return to Gaia.
At this moment, some villagers and craftsmen greeted the three, and they naturally responded.
However, after looking around, they did not see Xu Rongyu, and their expressions turned grim.
"... He wouldn't easily leave the Peace Hotel," Wu Piwu said quietly.
Xu Shilan added, "Yes, based on his identity and behavior in this world, leaving the Peace Hotel would put him in great danger. The horse bandits outside would not spare him, and he should know that we are the greatest surprise in this world... because we are Celestials."
Yamadai remained silent.
The three fell into silence once more.
After a moment, Xu Shilan asked, "Did you not notice anything unusual around?"
Wu Piwu looked up at the sky and shook his head after a while, "No, at least I did not see anything abnormal."
Suddenly, at that moment, the chirp from the little bird on Wu Piwu's shoulder caught their attention, and all three looked at the bird.
This little bird was indeed spiritually aware; however, only Wu Piwu knew that it was actually a demon.
Xu Shilan and Yamadai looked at the bird, unsure of what it wanted to express, and then they turned to Wu Piwu, seemingly wanting him to translate.
Wu Piwu thought for a moment and said to the bird, "So... do you want to tell a story or something?"
The bird paused for a second, then angrily bumped into Wu Piwu's forehead, pecking at his brow incessantly.
Wu Piwu helplessly supported the bird with his hand, "You only made a single sound; how am I supposed to know what you want to express? Besides, don't you usually not speak?"
The bird let out a plaintive chirp.
Wu Piwu nodded, "Indeed, you are a bit too fragile... I don't know if you can consume the designated heavenly treasures; if you can, your strength could also increase."
The bird's eyes lit up, and it chirped excitedly.
Wu Piwu helplessly said, "The situation is urgent; I must first increase my strength. Next time, definitely."
The bird chirped without reservation and then looked up at the sky, chirping continuously.
"Is that so? Then it is probably a deeper 'truth' that I cannot see right now."
Wu Piwu also looked up at the sky with a troubled expression, "But your senses are more acute than mine. If you feel danger, then there must be danger."
Xu Shilan and Yamadai simultaneously remarked, "Wait, how exactly are you two communicating?"
Wu Piwu ignored their comments and looked at the two, "The worst-case scenario has occurred."
Both of their faces darkened; Wu Piwu did not need to explain further.
The worst-case scenario meant that there was no longer any safe place in this world outside of the Peace Hotel.
Yamadai murmured in confusion, "But according to your previous statement, this is the baseline reality of Zero Point Nine, and the pollution source here has an upper limit."
"Yes, so the most likely scenario is that the Mother of No Life has eroded this world and is continuing to do so."
A certain perception flickered in Wu Piwu's heart, prompting him to say this.
He knew it was a kind of sixth sense he had developed.
Ever since he trained his National Art from Dark Energy to Transformative Energy, he had gradually acquired this peculiar sixth sense, which might be a sign of the cicada sensing the autumn wind before it moves.
Although Wu Piwu did not possess the same danger perception as the bird, he also felt that this space was not right, as if it were shrouded by some terrifying entity, and now he had merely received confirmation from the bird.
Xu Shilan and Yamadai recalled the scene when they fought the Half-Paper Man, where they saw hundreds of threads hanging down, and at that time, they felt a great terror was about to descend.
According to Wu Piwu's current explanation, that feeling was likely due to the baseline reality of the Dream World lowering?
"So now... what should we do?"
Wu Piwu asked this question, which was the dilemma the three of them faced, even a dead end.
If the outside space-time had indeed been eroded and altered by the Mother of No Life, it would mean that as soon as they stepped one foot outside the Peace Hotel, they could be eroded into Paper Men, Half-Paper Men, or other terrifying monsters by those countless threads.
Searching for the Yellow Lotus fragments had become meaningless.
Xu Shilan immediately said, "Then we will execute Plan Two: pretend that everything is fine. When Xu Rongyu or any other suspicious individuals arrive, regardless of what they say or whether they are genuine, we will forcibly drag them into the Peace Hotel, thereby penetrating back to Gaia and destroying this shelter!"
Wu Piwu and Yamadai both nodded, then they did not leave the range of the Peace Hotel but sat at the edge, quietly waiting for any figures to arrive.
However, waiting turned into a lonely affair.
The entire day passed, and Xu Rongyu did not appear.
The villagers and craftsmen still seemed unaware of anything unusual; those coming and going were freely entering and exiting the Peace Hotel, clearly not transformed into Paper Men.
This did not improve the mood of the three, as even Wu Piwu, who was usually calm, felt the abnormality, and even the most dull-witted Yamadai sensed something was off.
A peculiar chill was spreading through the world; this was not true physical coldness but a special sensation stemming from the supernatural, seemingly manifesting only in consciousness and soul.
"No, this is not an illusion."
In the early hours of the night, Xu Shilan said with a very grim expression, "Look."
Xu Shilan extended her hand, and her shadow followed her body to her palm, condensing into a mass on her hand.
Wu Piwu and Yamadai could not understand, and Xu Shilan explained, "I mentioned before that shadow puppetry is a form of sorcery, and it is one of the three evils in the Zero Point Seven Dream World. The other two evils, witchcraft and insect poison, specialize in curses and toxins, while shadow puppetry specializes in the transformation of souls. This technique can sense the surrounding living souls, ghosts, wandering souls, and remnants of souls..."
"Because of my technique, my sensing range is very small, and my sensing speed is slow. It wasn't until now that I finished sensing the two shifts of villagers and craftsmen, and then... this shadow ball in my hand is a manifestation of the reaction to all the souls around. The more souls there are, the more prominent the shadow ball will be. Based on the number of protrusions, their shapes and heights can differentiate their 'value,' and now..."
The three focused their attention on the shadow ball, its surface smooth as a mirror, with only three slight protrusions indicating something.
Wu Piwu and Yamadai simultaneously looked at the villagers and craftsmen who were fervently constructing buildings.
They smiled with their wrinkled faces and worked with their calloused hands, even chatting about the future with their fellow villagers while laboring.
"They..."
Wu Piwu said hoarsely.
Xu Shilan nodded affirmatively, "They have no souls, regardless of any definition of living souls, ghosts, wandering souls, or remnants of souls... none at all. Their bodies are real, and something that is neither a Paper Man nor a ghost is causing their bodies to continue all their past actions, just like a remnant shadow of their past behaviors."
Wu Piwu silently observed, and then he suddenly stood up.
Xu Shilan and Yamadai looked at him, and Xu Shilan asked, "What do you intend to do?"
Wu Piwu did not look back at the villagers and craftsmen; instead, he gazed outside the Peace Hotel and said, "The situation is now very clear. The Mother of No Life... let’s just say that whatever it is has eroded this world and is transforming it into a lower baseline reality. This means that some great terror is brewing outside. No..."
Wu Piwu faced the pitch-black night and said, "Perhaps the Mother of No Life hopes to directly drag this Dream World into Baseline Reality Zero Point Two, merging it with its vacuum homeland. In this way, its true form could openly cross this shelter to reach Gaia, and by then, we would absolutely be devoid of life, not a single bit."
Xu Shilan and Yamadai also stood up, standing shoulder to shoulder with Wu Piwu.
Yamadai merely chuckled and patted the pocket at her waist, while Xu Shilan asked, "Yes, exactly. Not even a single Paper Man has shown up. Clearly, the Mother of No Life possesses great wisdom, actively preventing us from dragging any weak anomalies into the Peace Hotel to destroy the shelter. But even so, what can you do? What do you want to do?"
"I die."
Wu Piwu glanced at those villagers and craftsmen who ignored the three and continued to labor diligently, laughing happily.
He then stepped onto the boundary line between the Peace Hotel and the outside world, took out a large handful of N5 bombs, and then, channeling his energy, he began to roar like a lion.
"Mother of No Life, come out and face me! Otherwise..."
"I die!"
(End of Chapter)