Ke-style law enforcement officers

Chapter 401 The Hostility of the Gods

"Is this the legendary enchanted forest?"

After climbing the long Sacman Stairs, Milo and Marshall finally smelled the fresh air purified by the green vegetation, and the chill of the underground world that had been seeping into their bodies through their pores finally faded away at this moment.

Before me lay a scene of countless low oak trees twisting and coiling, their thick branches intertwining and weaving together to block out most of the light from the sky. However, strange fungi emitted phosphorescent embellishments, cleverly propping up the gloom beneath the dappled shadows.

It is said that travelers from the waking world, those dreamers with powerful subconscious forces and skilled at dreaming, enter this enchanting forest after falling asleep, which is the location of the dream world they enter.

But it is clear that those who possess that talent, successfully descend the seventy-step light sleep staircase, gain the gatekeeper's approval, descend the seven hundred-step deep sleep staircase, and finally successfully arrive at the Dreamland are absolutely one in a million chosen ones.

Milo and Marshall had been wandering around the Enchanted Forest for most of the day, but they hadn't seen a single dreamer who had come here naked, or even a trace of a living person. All around them was a primeval jungle.

……

"Alright, that's enough for now."

It seems that Marshall felt that if Milo continued to wander aimlessly like this, he would eventually get lost in the Enchanted Forest.

“I know the way back to Ussa.”

It knew how eager Milo was to return to the sane world, especially now that he had the means to counter Imnar or Engel Korath.

In fact, Marshall also hoped that Milo could go back sooner. No matter what the outcome of Ussa was, it only needed to take one look and give itself a clear answer before it would find a way to return to Rebecca's side.

"Row."

Milo nodded.

He also discovered that the probability of getting lost while walking in this forest was extremely high, as there seemed to be no path to follow. The only traceable feature was the varying density of fungi in different locations.

“A race lives in this forest called the Zorg, also known as the Enchanted Rats. They mostly feed on fungi, but some maverick individuals are also interested in meat, whether it's real flesh and blood or a spiritual body. It's said that many dreamers who enter the Enchanted Forest never leave.” Marshall hopped a few steps forward and turned back to remind Milo.

“Have you forgotten? Sheffield’s memories contain everything about the Enchanted Forest,” Milo said to Marshall, pointing to his head.

The latter suddenly realized, "That makes sense."

Then, its small black shadow darted back and forth a few times in the faint phosphorescence of the fungus, disappearing into the shadow of the oak tree's branches.

Marshall had just left.

Strange noises began to emanate from the previously quiet surrounding bushes.

Milo knew that it was a "language" through which the Zugos communicated with each other—by making different sounds by striking their own bodies.

Perhaps due to the natural fear of felines among rodents, they dared not show any trace of themselves before Marshall left.

Now, many strange eyes lit up under the dappled shadows of the trees, all watching Milo, this unfamiliar visitor. Of course, they might also be considering whether the humanoid creature before them could become food to improve their tribe's diet.

That's obviously not possible.

When Zugo, a squirrel-like creature covered in fine, smooth fur, boldly leaped toward Milo, he slapped it back into the bushes, sending up a series of mushroom-like shimmering waves—a scene that was somewhat dreamlike.

Milo didn't like these ugly little creatures, and he certainly wouldn't tolerate their rudeness on first meeting.

Furthermore, there are some clues in Sheffield's memory that indirectly prove that the news of his first entry into the Enchanted Forest to find the cave he created in his dream, and his subsequent settlement in Uthar City, were all spread by Zugg.

And they did indeed try to eat Sheffield.

It's not hard to see that during the war 170 years ago, the Zugo were on the side of the Visionaries. This is understandable, as they have always been at odds with the cats of Usa, and there seems to be a long-standing feud between the two races.

……

At this moment, in the Enchanted Forest, the Zugos hidden in the shadows of the trees no longer dared to take a step forward, and kept circling around the location of Milo.

They slapped each other's bodies together, the muffled sounds creating a rhythmic harmony with the scattered phosphorescence on the twisted oak branches.

The world of Dreamland itself lacks the intense light of the sun; only faint glows linger in the sky, giving the forest, like its name, a mesmerizing atmosphere.

Perhaps influenced by the intertwined oak branches, the scene in Milo's field of vision began to swirl and undulate strangely, as if filled with eddies and undercurrents.

In a split second, Milo suddenly caught a series of abrupt sounds coming from above.

The sound was different from the Zugo's "language"; it carried the sound of a howling wind, causing the tops of the oak trees to tremble, accompanied by a slight whistling sound. It seemed completely out of place in the psychedelic, ghostly forest.

……

However, before Milo could figure out the source of the strange noise high in the sky, everything in his field of vision began to distort and change.

Like the starry sky in an oil painting, like the murals on the dome of the Garnier Opera House, everything is moving and evolving rapidly in silence.

Soon, Milo could no longer see any complete clumps of grass or oak branches. The phosphorescent light emitted by the fungi had turned into eerie waves and splashes of water, constantly flowing in the air.

The sounds that were originally Zugu patting his body have now become sharp and wild, like the sounds of some untuned musical instrument, or like broken gongs being struck. In short, the sound is very unsettling, and it contains not only chaos and agitation, but also a strong sense of hostility.

Milo couldn't see what was hidden behind this strange scene, but he could clearly feel the presence of hostility from above. He felt as if he was being firmly locked onto by a scrutinizing gaze, which was like a red-hot pair of tongs trying to control him.

This oppressive feeling, like mountains collapsing, was something Milo had only experienced in the starry sky of Glagi's memories. When he turned his gaze to the powerful shadows behind those collapsing stars, the oppressive feeling would come crashing down on him like a tsunami, enough to suffocate him.

……

What Milo saw before him was no longer the Enchanted Forest.

It transformed into a bizarre and ever-changing scene. He saw an ever-expanding abyss, but instead of endless darkness, there were strange, unknown creatures at the bottom of the abyss, accompanied by eerie echoes.

This constant flux would have captivated anyone, but Milo remained increasingly calm.

He squinted, staring at the bizarre scene before him, and uttered a single sentence:

"Did those Zugu betray me?"

Milo noticed that behind this series of illusory, ever-creating and annihilating images, there were shadows of slender humanoid bodies. The various other structures of these shadows indicated that they were not human, because they seemed to have inward-curving horns, bat-like wings, and tails with barbs...

In James Sheffield's undead memories, there exists a race with a similar appearance, a faceless creature called Nightmare.

Individuals of this race existed among the Spirit Visors who fought for the cave and besieged Usa City. However, they usually survived in groups by attaching themselves to powerful beings, such as the Old Gods or Outer Gods in the Dreamlands, or by serving the Great Old Ones.

Milo slowly raised his hand, carefully sensing the powerful force exerted on this space.

He was searching for the source of the power, trying to find the being that was casting hostility at him. But when he followed the power, he found that the other party seemed to be everywhere. It was as if what was truly rejecting him was not a particular life form, but the entire dream world.

"No, that's not right."

Milo frowned.

He quickly realized the error in his thinking.

"This is a subjective world... dreams and reality coexist, so we can no longer use purely objective theories to deduce things... only emotion provides truly clear and traceable clues..."

"Let me see where you are."

Throughout the entire ordeal, Milo did not exhibit the slightest negative physiological reaction or emotional response under immense pressure.

Instead, he accepted the immense pressure, carefully sensed it, and began to search for the source of this pressure with his extremely keen sense of smell.

He spread his five fingers out in mid-air, then slowly clenched them.

The light in the air began to distort and fold, as if Milo had actually grabbed something tangible.

"Even gods and demons have fear, huh..."

A sinister smile began to appear on Milo's face. Then he grabbed a corner of the light screen in the air and tore the scene in front of him apart with all his might!
boom! ! !
The illusory scene collapsed instantly.

In the darkness after the collapse, Milo saw Nightmare creatures circling above the Enchanted Forest.

He also saw at the bottom of the abyss a huge, jagged seashell slowly emerging, surrounded by countless marine creatures.

Inside the seashell was an old man with white hair and a gray beard, his body covered with countless pale blue, dazzling runes.

However, both the enormous seashell and the old man's body appeared to be in a semi-transparent, illusory state.

Milo knew that the old man might be a true deity, but there was no doubt that the scene before him was just a wisp of that deity's will, just like what he and Monquia had encountered at the law enforcement headquarters.

(End of this chapter)