Chapter 42: Ruler of Dreams

While pondering, Silas scanned his surroundings in the temple, intending to find some clues.

"The ground is normal, the walls are normal, the bell tower is normal… Wait, what is that?" At the end of his visual sweep, Silas's gaze fell upon the temple's dome.

The entire dome of the temple was woven from twelve massive wings extending from the throne.

Upon it were countless exquisite, almost lifelike reliefs, depicting wolf packs, undead, warriors, skeletal warhorses, and, at the forefront, the Nameless King.

Originally, the reliefs had no particular luster, but now Silas could actually see faint starlight.

This starlight was icy blue, divided into two regions, totaling sixteen points.

Fourteen of these regions were located within the undead-themed sections, their light somewhat dim.

The remaining two lights were bright, situated within the wolf-pack-themed sections.

His divine vision swept forward, and everything instantly became clear.

"These points of starlight represent the source of faith from my subjects and believers; they are the links between them and me. The stronger the light, the stronger the power of faith provided. These fourteen dimmer points of starlight represent Chuck, Pamela, and other deceased souls I have delivered. Because they are already dead, located among the undead, and not in human form, the power of faith they provide is slightly weaker."

"The remaining two represent Helles and Bernice. They are real humans, so the faith they provide is purer and more profound. Their location within the wolf pack imagery also indirectly indicates that the wolf pack consists of my subjects and believers."

Thinking of this, Silas had already devised a method.

He stood up, waved his hand, and grasped the two blue stars from the dome, then strode out of the temple.

Treading on the frost-covered deck, he came to the very front of the ship, then soared into the air. Accompanied by a biting cold wind, he sat upon the back of the giant wolf at the prow.

His hand stroked the wind-like fur of the giant Husky as he looked around.

He could now see that these dreamscapes were not stable. Some were constantly expanding, others contracting, and many, due to various desires and subconscious thoughts, had twisted into bizarre shapes similar to what he had seen earlier.

"Let's go take a look!" Silas patted the giant Husky's back and said calmly.

Awooooo…

With a howl, the giant wolf leaped up, its paws treading on frost and cold air, galloping through space.

"Guards!"

As the giant wolf galloped, the fourteen warriors on the warship leaped down, mounting other spirit wolves. Then, like fourteen azure meteors trailing long streams of spectral light, they followed behind Silas, racing through this world.

Silas turned his head slightly, looking through his mask at the wolf-mounted cavalry behind him, his face full of satisfaction. Such a guard was truly impressive.

The entire space didn't seem very large. After riding the giant wolf and leading his knights for a short while, Silas arrived before the grey wall.

"Ultimately, I still have to test it, just a brief contact." Thinking this, Silas reached out and gently touched the grey wall.

Instantly, countless incredibly chaotic thoughts flooded into his mind like a tide.

Startled, he immediately withdrew his hand, looking somewhat sheepish.

Although his vision was now vast and his thinking advanced, the thoughts within were too distorted and chaotic. They contained everything people saw in their dreams; countless twisted dreams surged into Silas's mind as if they were real.

"With my current body, although I can roam freely within it, my human spirit cannot. Even if I could in a dream, once I leave here, such a massive amount of information would blow up my real-world brain."

Thinking of this, Silas looked down at the two blue stars in his hand, closed his eyes, and, through his mastery over dreams, performed a reverse summoning.

Using the two sources of faith as anchors, the power of dreams quickly and precisely located the dreams of Helles and Bernice within this dream world.

At this moment, their dreams were very calm and simple, appearing as peaceful, rounded ovals, which Silas found rather endearing.

"I won't enter their dreams for now. Let them come to this warship through this." Thinking this, Silas invoked his authority and began to act.

In the real world.

Helles and Bernice were sleeping soundly, huddled together, their mouths occasionally smacking, as if they were eating something delicious in their dreams.

At this moment, some cerulean spiritual energy gradually appeared around them, slowly enveloping their bodies.

The next second, two intangible souls were swept up by the spiritual energy and vanished.

Helles and Bernice felt as if they were having a dream. They dreamed they were riding a storm, traversing a grey world, and then appearing on an icy warship.

Dong!

A distant, resonant bell toll sounded. The two blinked and slowly came to their senses.

They looked at each other, gradually realizing that this might not be a dream.

The magnificent warship, the profound and solemn temple, the resonant bell toll, and the fourteen divine guards before the temple – everything was incredibly real.

While the two were still dazed, a female warrior, clad in tight-fitting heavy armor, with an athletic build, walked out from among the fourteen guards.

"Are you Helles and Bernice?" The female warrior's voice was low, carrying a bone-chilling coldness as she spoke.

The two Demonesses nodded and quickly came to their senses, preparing to kneel in obeisance. The aura of this female warrior was simply too powerful.

The female warrior stopped them. "Halt. I am merely a gatekeeping servant of my Lord. I am not qualified to accept your courtesies."

Hearing this, the two Demonesses' eyes widened. Helles, the more mature-minded of the two, asked tentatively, "Then, this place…"

"Your devout prayers have pleased my Lord. Therefore, you are now qualified to appear here and have an audience with the Lord of Death and Storms, the One True God of the Shadowed Vale and the Abyss, Ruler of Dreams, Master of Death, Sovereign of the Mists. Offer your highest respect, bear boundless gratitude and honor, and step into the temple!"

Hearing this string of titles, the two were completely dumbfounded. At this moment, they only clearly recognized the familiar "Lord of Death and Storms."

And their faith was also the Ruler of Dreams?

Thinking of this, the two somewhat understood why they could suddenly appear here in a dream.

Numbly, the two stepped into the temple.

The moment they entered the temple, both shivered. The immense pressure and terrifying sense of oppression made their spirits incredibly tense.

Their eyes cautiously looked at the obsidian floor as they walked in, filled with reverence, their faces pious.

After taking only a few steps, the two stopped, for this was the most reverent distance and position for them to have an audience with a true god.

After confirming that their demeanor, mindset, expression, position, and posture were all without issue and showed no disrespect, the two respectfully knelt and said loudly, "Great Lord of Death and Storms, your faithful servant Helles Batos (Bernice Sagul) pays respects to the sole faith of us, your servants."