Chrysalis

[It has been proven that the correct ritual in the dream world can send the sacrifice to the real world.]

[The spirituality in the real world is actually slowly disappearing... disappointment...]

[Tried again, let Lin sacrifice another portion of spirituality to depict the ritual in reality, summoning myself... failed again, unable to establish a complete connection.]

...

Bang!

Alan broke his quill pen, smashing his fist on the table.

The setback he encountered this time was quite significant.

If the real world could not accommodate the extraordinary, then no matter what abilities he had, immortality would be impossible.

Even this 'minor ability' might let him live well but could never stand against an army, making him feel very insecure.

[No... I cannot give up!]

[Next... I should try various different elemental paths! At the same time, continually use spirituality, and even... try the awakening ritual...]

[Although spirituality can only remain in my body for a very short time, if accumulated over time, maybe each time it would permanently increase my strength by a tiny, insignificant bit... and after a long time, it might make my physique extraordinary?]

[But there might be some conflicts between different elements and paths, so I must plan carefully and act cautiously.]

After a brief moment of frustration and loss of control, Alan reorganized his thoughts, put away his notebook, and lay down on his bed, starting Dream Entry.

...

Desolate City Diat.

Lin walked through the dark streets, searching for survivors.

After the great catastrophe, the apocalypse arrived, and the insane turned into aberrations, while most of the others were caught off guard and died at the hands of these anomalies.

Even so, life still bore miracles!

Amidst the ruins of this city, besides monsters, there was more than just Lin!

'The Lord liked the essence of 'red' offered last time...' Lin thought silently.

For a mortal to achieve extraordinariness, they first needed to choose a path, then accumulate spirituality, and finally perform a ritual to become truly extraordinary.

She had now reached the second stage of the 'red' path—'Blood Overflowed'!

Mastering the ability to transform her entire body or parts of her body into blood, turning them into weapons.

In addition, she could wield a vast array of spells and rituals.

Of course, because she dared not listen to the murmurs of the being on the moon, her knowledge in this regard was quite lacking.

At the same time, she could invoke the power of 'red' to accelerate her growth.

Currently, Lin was making herself grow at an extremely fast pace, almost indistinguishable from an average fourteen or fifteen-year-old.

'The Light of Redemption needs more followers, the Lord needs more sacrifices...'

She had saved a few people before, but they were all ordinary individuals. Leading them onto the extraordinary path still required time.

Soon, Lin found a new target.

It was a large department store, with barricades made of various furniture and debris at the entrance, and several monsters wandering outside.

'If my guess is right, there should be survivors inside...' Lin licked her lips, her body ready to transform into blood.

At that moment, she sharply sensed something wrong in the air.

A fine powder filled the surroundings, making her feel drowsy.

'Powder...' Lin abruptly looked up; the sky was empty, only faint wing flaps seemed to echo directly in her skull.

'Something's weird!'

Lin took a deep breath and prayed softly: 'Wandering spirit of the unknown void, absolute neutral existence, silent observer... the only redeemer, supreme and exalted light, my lord... I encountered something strange, please grant me luck, grant me courage...'

In fact, she knew well that the Lord rarely responded to oral prayers, let alone such impromptu ones.

But it was an act of devotion.

The Lord might not care about humans, but humans must care about the Lord, for He is the only rational light!

'Hmm... the connection is established faster now? Just oral prayers work, indicating my mystical connection with her is becoming increasingly tight?'

Lin was in luck; this time, Alan happened to be right beside her.

However, he did not intend to respond.

'Faith, the mystical connection... if tight enough, can it let me break the distance limit and hear prayers from afar?'

He thought silently: 'My mystical power can be granted to followers through rituals for various operations, but they cannot purify the mystic. They can only offer spirituality to me... seems this path won't work either.'

Alan felt his mystic energy might be the ultimate manifestation of spirituality.

Unfortunately... its current utilization was too low.

'Also, fixed altars often do not respond to prayers, which is problematic... can I implement intelligent feedback or a message system?'

'But this requires high mystical knowledge. I cannot achieve it unless... Lin extracts wisdom from the Flesh Tree repeatedly, listens to its mutterings, and then I retrieve her to recite the knowledge she learned...'

Alan was somewhat excited but then shook his head, 'This follower is too precious. Doing that too often will be noticed. Better let future followers do it...'

His figure flickered, directly passing through the square, arriving in front of the department store.

Whether it was monsters or powder, they passed through him without leaving a trace.

Alan passed through obstacles into the department store, seeing several disheveled survivors with shotguns, warily looking outside.

At their center, a woman wearing a gray robe, with an oval face and emerald green eyes, was casting a spell.

"I beseech the symbol of life and change, the master of the invisible threads, the great Chrysalis!"

"Please bestow upon me the dust of confusion!"

"Please bestow upon me the invisible threads!"

Outside the department store, Lin was astonished to see those wandering anomalies suddenly freeze, as if they had turned into statues.

Around those statues, there were extremely fine, silk-like threads, connecting them to the ground.

Suddenly...

The many threads pulled taut, slicing through the statues.

Those tiny, transparent lines transformed into the sharpest of blades, instantly cutting the monsters into numerous smooth-surfaced cubes.

"Lady Olivia, thank you so much."

The lady in the gray robe finished the ritual as a group of survivors gathered around, continuously expressing their gratitude.

"It's nothing, Mr. Alder, in this post-apocalyptic world, it's only right that we help each other. Could you please provide me with a quiet room?"

Olivia shook her head, her face slightly pale: "I want to rest well... no need to bring food or water."

"Of course!"

The man holding a hunting rifle, looking to be in his forties with hairy arms, immediately agreed and led Olivia to a quiet room.

Bang!

Olivia closed the door, leaning her entire body against it as her body began to tremble violently.

Underneath the gray robe, one lump of flesh after another rose and moved as if there were small mice scurrying around...

"Hah... hah..." Olivia panted heavily, finally unable to bear it as she fell to the ground, rolling around.

Beside her, Alan watched the scene with a calm expression: "Forcibly using the ritual, huh? Seems like it caused some contamination. But... it looks like she can barely maintain her sanity, though... with some difficulty."

He glanced towards the door, his expression suddenly becoming a bit mysterious.