Sword of Dawn

"Will be punished by the upper-level narrator, will be subjected to a sacred and irresistible 'deletion', and disappear in this world..."

Selena frowned again.

"How many people in the entire world believe in the 'Upper Narrator'?" she asked again.

"How can I count?" The gray-robed old man shook his head, "Everyone in the world believes in Him. As many people as there are in the world, there are as many people who believe in the great upper-level narrator..."

"...It seems that the entire No. [-] sandbox has been completely polluted," Archbishop Yuri sighed softly, and said to Daniel next to him, "A church was born in it... This is really unexpected by everyone matter."

"It's not terrible just to have a church, what's terrible is... if this church is behind..." Daniel shook his head halfway through speaking, "From a security point of view, my suggestion is to stop the operation of sandbox No. [-] immediately, no matter what How many secrets are there in it-the weirdness of the situation is out of control, and now is not the time to continue research."

Daniel's suggestion is the most reasonable choice under the current circumstances, but he knows that other archbishops must also be aware of this choice. It's not that they haven't tried to stop the No. [-] sandbox—the key is that this dream that has gone out of control cannot be stopped at all.

And for some reason, these supposedly ruthless cultists are quite resistant to "physically cutting off" No. [-] sandbox by killing all the brain servants. This sounds like the most likely way to work.

This confused Gawain and Daniel very much.

Even so, Daniel had to offer his own advice—a role he had to fulfill here as head of security.

Hearing Daniel's words, Selena didn't speak for a while, and her emotions could not be seen in her deep and calm eyes, while Archbishop Yuri sighed: "Of course we understand, in fact, no one is there now. In the hope that the No. [-] sandbox will be repaired and returned to normal, the consensus of the Supreme Bishops Conference is to stop it, but..."

"It's not that easy to stop the No. [-] sandbox," Selena said calmly. "We have tried many methods, but the No. [-] sandbox refuses to execute any instructions, and our methods have failed."

Daniel hesitated for a moment, and after confirming Gawain's expression from the corner of his eye, he said, "I heard that there is another method that I have never tried... that is to forcibly cut off the nerve cords of all brain servants."

Selena quietly looked at Daniel standing in front of her in the form of a refined middle-aged man, and asked after a long time, "Do you support this method?"

"...I don't support it," Daniel shook his head. "The loss is too great, and from a technical point of view, I'm not sure whether the sudden offline of a large number of brain servants will have an unpredictable impact on the normal mental network—too strong information fluctuations." It could even take down the entire network."

Daniel did not explain from the direction of "conscience" and "mercy", but from a technical point of view, this is to prevent his attitude from being doubted-on the one hand, it is a bit weird to talk about conscience and mercy in a dark sect, On the other hand, he was a ruthless person when he was tortured and half insane, and the upper echelon of the church should understand this aspect of him. He didn't want to show too much in front of a senior archbishop like Selena. personality changes.

"Half of the archbishops also object to this," Selina said after hearing Daniel's reply, "This includes me, His Holiness the Pope, and Archbishop Yuri."

"I know... so I'm actually a little curious, Archbishop Selena," Daniel nodded, and asked while considering his vocabulary, "If you don't start from a technical point of view, if you can accept a higher price, what is the impact on the No. [-] sandbox? Destroying the 'material foundation' at the real level should be the most effective method, the reason why you and the Pope oppose this..."

Daniel didn't say what he said later, but the meaning was already very clear.

Archbishop Yuri cast his eyes on Selena who was holding a lantern, and the latter stood there calmly, his deep and watery eyes fell on Daniel for a long time.

This gaze didn't seem to have any pressure, but it still gave Daniel the illusion that all his secrets were seen through in an instant—if it wasn't for the safety measures set in advance that didn't issue warnings, he might have suspected that the other party was reading him. deep memory.

After staring for nearly ten seconds, Selena calmly withdrew her gaze, and said slowly: "Some things are about to become secrets.

"There are many reasons why we don't adopt the 'effective means' you mentioned, technical aspects, cost aspects, or... compassion, but these are not the most important.

"The main reason is that if sandbox #[-] maintains the status quo, then the 'things' in the sandbox... can at least stay in the sandbox."

A slight coldness floated in Daniel's heart.

"what do you mean……"

"Although it is still impossible to determine what is brewing in the No. [-] sandbox, His Holiness the Pope has already noticed some clues... The thing has undergone a qualitative change, and the No. [-] sandbox itself has also undergone a qualitative change. That is no longer simple. It is a dream. Although the mental matrix formed by the brain servant is the material basis for maintaining the operation of the sandbox, on the other hand, it is also the last shackle of this mutated dream... Breaking this shackle, the dream may disappear, but it is also possible... "

Daniel muttered to himself, adding the second half of Selena's unfinished sentence: "It is also possible to wake up in the real world..."

Selena glanced at Daniel and nodded slightly: "You just need to understand."

Chapter 0765 The Return

Gawain stood by and listened to the conversation between Daniel and Selena, and suddenly he couldn't help but think of his experience in Kantland a few years ago——

Gradually intruding into the dreamland of reality, gradually absurd and distorted reality, a nightmare creature that almost entered the real world...

In this world full of extraordinary power, dreams are often not just dreams, and the boundary between reality and fantasy... has always been blurred.

What Selena and her fellow church members are most worried about right now is obviously that something in the sandbox gets out of control and enters reality, and that thing... I'm afraid it can't be solved by sending an army.

These dead nerds who are obsessed with cutting-edge technology have finally screwed themselves and everyone else in their field of expertise.

"Things brewed in the sandbox..." Daniel's tone also became serious, and he repeated these words softly, but he couldn't help but glance over this eerie and quiet church, and over the bewildered person in his eyes, The gray-robed old man who was standing quietly, "I hope it's not..."

The old mage didn't express his worries, but judging from the deep and solemn eyes of Selina and Archbishop Yuri, it was obvious that they had already thought of something from this church and the "upper narrator's belief" represented by the church. In this weird place, out of common sense in mysticism, no one said things that shouldn't be said.

"We need to report what happened here to His Majesty the Pope," Archbishop Yuri said after a moment of silence. "In addition, it is necessary to preserve this small town and call more people to conduct a more detailed investigation in the future."

Selena nodded slightly, and said thoughtfully: "In addition, regarding this sect that believes in the 'Upper Narrator', their customs and legends also need to be analyzed in depth. Logically, any customs and legends are not based on nothing. generated, they most likely hint at changes that occurred within Sandbox One during the time it was out of control."

She shook the lantern lightly, dispelling the psychological suggestion to the gray-robed old man, and then looked away from the pulpit, looking at the door at the entrance of the church: "Leave here for now."

Daniel and Archbishop Yuri nodded in response, and the four high-ranking priests wearing owl masks also bowed their heads to take orders. A group of people walked towards the exit of the church, and the gray-robed old man who gradually woke up from confusion watched quietly. The direction where the uninvited guest left, after a long time, he showed a smile, stretched out his hand and made a gesture of covering something with his palm, and said gently: "Best journey, the upper narrator will bless you all..."

Gawain stood by the pulpit, glanced casually at the gray-robed old man, followed up with Selena and the others, and returned to the street outside.

In the small town, the night continued, and the chaotic and gloomy sky enveloped the earth. In the scattered houses, the warm and soft lights were still bright, and the radiance with dead silence and strange atmosphere came from those curtains or wooden boards. Leaked through the cracks of the sky, drawing strange shadows on the street.

This made Gao Wen couldn't help having a strange association: the whole town was like a vague dream, full of contradictions and weirdness everywhere, but the people in it could only realize it occasionally when they were sober, and were caught by it. I broke out in a cold sweat.

So... those "testers" who were sent into the sandbox and experienced thousands of years and dozens of reincarnations in the sandbox, did they "wake up" for a moment by accident, and then became aware of this dream? A sliver of truth about the world?After realizing this trace of truth, how do they view the "upper narrator" who created this sandbox world?

Is the old man in the church corresponding to a lost tester in the No. [-] sandbox?Or...is it a self-born "inhabitant" of the sandbox in order to maintain its operation?

"On the day when the bell rings, people who stay on the streets will be sacredly 'deleted'..." Selena seemed to be talking to herself, "but it seems that we have not been affected. It's just that we can't be sure in the real world. In the No. [-] sandbox, will the 'deletion' really happen to those 'residents' living in the sandbox."

"I'm more curious about what the so-called 'deletion' corresponds to," Daniel said with a nod. "After I go back, I will consult the records of the early operation of No. [-] sandbox, and maybe I can find clues."

Archbishop Yuri came to the center of the square. He was still in charge of the navigation and teleportation of the entire team. Layers of light golden runes appeared beside him. "Monitoring team, prepare to unblock, and perform 'dream jump' in 2 minutes."

A voice came from the rune: "The monitoring team received it. Unblock it after 1 minute, and open the dream jump permission after 2 minutes."

Daniel and Selena walked into the range of the rune, and the other four high-ranking priests wearing owl masks arrived soon, and Gawain came to them in a big way, preparing to return to the City of Dreams with the team.

Same as when they came, although the priests couldn't feel Gao Wen's presence, they still adjusted their positions subconsciously, leaving a seemingly normal space for one person to stand.

One of them stepped out of the way a little slower.

Gawain couldn't help but glanced at the high-ranking priest wearing the owl mask. In the last few seconds when the pale golden runes around him were about to take shape, he suddenly felt a bit of disobedience.

four people?

"There's one more person!!" Gao Wen's eyes became sharp instantly, and he reminded loudly.

Daniel's reaction was extremely fast, without hesitation, he raised his hand subconsciously, abruptly interrupting Archbishop Yuri's dream jumping spell, and warned loudly: "There is one more person!"

The light golden rune shattered in an instant, and the jump of the dream that was about to take shape was suddenly interrupted. Archbishop Yuri was stunned for a moment, and then he heard Daniel's warning—as a senior archbishop, he immediately reacted and released the follow-up spell to stabilize The surrounding dreams were shielded, and at the same time, he spoke quickly to the monitoring team behind: "There is a risk of Type II leakage - block the ports in this area!"

The lantern emitting psychedelic light floats in the air, and the light ripples in all directions like real water waves, as if an invisible breeze blows through the soul, everyone feels their spirits clear for a while, a sentence that has been separated for 700 years It came to Gao Wen's ears: "...guard your mind, I will sweep away the shadows!"

This made Gao Wen couldn't help but look towards the direction of the sound - Selina Geer broke up holding the lantern and stood among everyone, with a gentle and peaceful face, but her brows were slightly furrowed, and her eyes were as deep as water.

The attention of the three archbishops soon fell on the four high-ranking priests wearing owl masks.

It wasn't until this moment that the people at the scene suddenly remembered that there were only six people in the team when they set off, including three archbishops and three high-ranking priests. one extra!

The four priests stood together, masks concealed their true expressions, but judging from their tense limbs and slightly accelerated breathing, they were highly tense and fully alert.

With the archbishop watching, they began to examine each other, as if trying to find out who the "extra man" was.

Selena maintained the "spirituality" effect of the lantern, and her tone was serious and low: "Recall, when was it abnormal?"

"After inspecting that hut," Daniel thought for a while, "I can't remember how many people came out at that time, but I remember that it was four voices who made the report!"

Yuri's tone was even more tense and alert: "After entering the church, I clearly saw four figures—but I was completely unaware of the abnormality at the time."

His words made everyone at the scene realize the seriousness of the problem——

Including Daniel, there are three archbishops here!

Every archbishop is a strong person in the field of mind and soul, and an expert who can detect small abnormalities in dreams, but in this "phantom town" formed by the overflow data of the No. [-] sandbox, the three of them went from head to toe. At the end, I didn't find one more person in the team!

This is a spiritual intervention that can affect high-level, even legendary powerhouses!

Although they came out of this "bewildered" state immediately after being reminded, it was still terrifying.

"Start the investigation now," Selina glanced across the four high-ranking priests, and the light of the lantern in her hand gradually changed from milky white to a dusk-like turbidity. "Open your mind and accept the inspection."

The light began to sweep across the four high-ranking priests, and Gao Wen's eyes also fell on them.

The figure of one of the priests suddenly trembled, like a phantom projection with a bad signal.

Pale golden runes condensed in the hands of Archbishop Yuri, and the shaking priest instantly turned into a hazy phantom, which quickly became transparent in the air.

The light beams condensed from the pale golden runes swept over those phantoms, and Gawain seemed to hear a vague screaming and howling. The next moment, the screaming and howling sound matched the hazy voice The phantom dissipated together.

Daniel looked at Yuri: "Is it wiped out?"

There was a strange look on Yuri's face: "It should be eliminated...but the 'feeling' is very strange, unlike any kind of mind that I have eliminated...somewhat like a 'semi-finished product'."

Just when Daniel was about to ask something, everyone heard a voice at the same time——

From the small church behind everyone, there was a sigh that seemed helpless and mocking: "Oh..."

Accompanied by this sigh, the small church with gray-white exterior walls quickly became transparent and illusory under the eyes of everyone, and gradually disappeared into the air.

The lights of the houses in the town also went out one by one with the disappearance of the chapel, and the street lights on both sides of the road dimmed one by one.

The whole town returned to the state when Gao Wen, Daniel and others just entered.

But in the eyes of everyone, this place is several times more weird and dangerous than before.

The lantern in Selena's hand was still emitting a mixed, faint yellow light. Even though the "extra person" who was suspected to have been mixed in had been eliminated by Archbishop Yuri, she also illuminated everyone on the scene with the lantern. After accepting the inspection and confirming that there are no more problems, she slightly let out a sigh of relief, nodded and said, "Leave as soon as possible, this place is weird, and it is not suitable to stay for a long time."

Archbishop Yuri immediately continued to arrange the dream jumping ceremony, and notified the rear monitoring team to lift the alarm.

Gawain also stood among these eternal sleepers again. This time, he checked the number of people around him very carefully, and confirmed that there were no extra people.

The pale golden runes gradually formed and closed.

Before the dream jump started, Archbishop Yuri couldn't help but look around again, and his eyes finally fell on Daniel: "There are no more people, right?"

Gawain looked around, then looked down at himself, and nodded to Daniel: "The number of people is normal, not too many."

Daniel also nodded to Archbishop Yuri: "The number is normal, not many."

"...I want to take a good rest when I go back," Archbishop Yuri smiled helplessly, and said while starting the dream jump, "I always feel that there is an invisible person standing beside me."

……

With light and shadow flickering, the team returned to the square of Dreamland City.

"Archbishop Daniel, it seems quite correct to let you become a member of the Supreme Council of Bishops." After the teleportation, Selina Geer looked at Daniel for the first time, "Your alertness and vigilance prevented us from A danger with unforeseen consequences."

"Checking all parameters and items after each mission is a standard operation for security personnel," Daniel smiled reservedly, "The 'extra person' is actually not very hidden, as long as we check, we will find it—— It's just that it weakens our desire to 'check', and I, just in this regard, have formed an unchangeable habit."

"In short, this reminded us and allowed us to accumulate some experience in dealing with the No. [-] sandbox, which will come in handy in the next exploration," Archbishop Yuri exhaled, "Let's stop here today. "

Figures disappeared in the square one by one.

Gao Wen and Daniel stayed at the end.

"Keep in touch, I will pay attention to this matter at any time," Gao Wen nodded slightly, and was about to leave, "If there is any further exploration, be sure to report."

"Yes, my lord."

Chapter 0766 Dilemma

Gao Wen slowly opened his eyes, but this time, Amber's approaching face was not in his line of sight.

A slight snoring sound was coming from the side.

Looking down at the sound of snoring, he saw that the half-elf lady with pointed ears was lying on the desk, resting her head with her hands, and had fallen into a deep sleep.

This guy, after falling asleep, makes people much quieter.

Gao Wen couldn't help laughing, as soon as his body shook, Hu Po, who was sleeping on the table, woke up suddenly, staring at this side: "Hey, you are back!"

Gao Wen opened his mouth, and just as he was about to speak, Amber started BB loudly: "Hey, let me tell you, I'm not lazy, I just took a nap, you can't deduct my salary for this matter, I The six senses are sharp, and I am always alert when I sleep..."

Gao Wen: "...I haven't said anything yet."

Sure enough, this guy's quietness is only limited to when he is asleep—but with his eyes open, one amber can definitely make more noise than two thousand ducks.

"Didn't I prepare the words in advance to prevent you from saying anything?" Amber wiped the saliva from the corner of her mouth, muttered while looking Gawain up and down, and frowned suspiciously, "But having said that, , It’s been a long time this time—what’s going on over there?”

"I followed Daniel to investigate some things." Gawain nodded, and at the same time, he began to replay the experience of exploring the depths of the spiritual network in his mind. The more he thought about it, the more he couldn't help frowning. With emotion.

This exploration... has really collected too much information, and a lot of information can make him dumbfounded!

"It seems that the harvest is not small this time?" Amber keenly noticed the subtle changes in Gao Wen's expression, "And some things are quite troublesome?"

Gawain nodded slightly: "The situation is special, and a meeting is required. Kamel, Hetty, Wright, Veronica, um... Pittman is also called, plus you."

Amber silently wrote down these names, and immediately noticed that most of these names were related to a certain field.

She raised her eyebrows and twitched her ears slightly: "Is it related to the gods or the rebellious plan?"