CHAPTER 168: CHAPTER 139 EACH PERSON’S DREAM_2

Alka summarized the possibilities in the dream. Based on the topic just discussed, Alka asked again, "Do you want to return to your hometown?"

"Yes."

Indeed, I must inquire according to her current state, focusing on topics that interest her in the dream. I need to remember this point, Alka thought.

"When do you plan to go back?"

Julia shook her head. "I can’t go back. I can’t find the way, and going back would harm them."

Alka had initially wanted to ask who ’they’ were, but then he considered that she might not answer if he used that specific term, so he rephrased the question. "Why?"

Upon hearing this, Julia suddenly raised her hand, and a key appeared in her palm. This was the same key Alka had seen before, hanging on her necklace. It truly is something important,

Alka thought.

"Someone is pursuing this key, and I can’t give it up. It’s my mother’s legacy."

Alka continued to ask questions along this line and gradually understood the gist of the situation. He speculated that Julia had originally lived in the same world, or perhaps the same large sea region, as Lucilia—a place similar to the sea region where he currently resided. But because the key her mother gave her might be connected to something significant, she was being hunted by people who wanted to seize it. Alka wanted to ask what the key was, but Julia, in her current state, clearly had no desire to answer. Julia’s current state is one of homesickness, of reminiscing about the past; that’s the theme of this Dream Realm at this moment, Alka deduced. So, he could only continue to inquire in this direction. And that key itself was Julia’s mother’s legacy; she would never hand it over so easily. The people pursuing the key seemed very powerful, so she didn’t even dare to return to her homeland, fearing she would endanger her kin.

This confirms once again that the place where Julia lived isn’t near Lucilia’s family. It’s in another area, living adjacent to a race similar to Lucilia’s. This aligned with the information Lucilia had inquired about earlier, Alka thought.

And it was while being pursued that she fell into unavoidable danger, and under such circumstances, she used a sealed Crystal Stone to seal herself. Afterward, for some unknown reason, she drifted here. This suggests that the two sea regions must be connected by some passage, and surely someone knows about it. Alka felt the Church must be aware of it.

"Your strength is being heavily suppressed, isn’t it?" Alka suddenly asked. He then looked at Julia to see if she would answer. This question doesn’t align with the current theme, but it does match her desire to return home. Strength is a basic requirement for her to return home, Alka mused.

"Yes, I’m even weaker now..." As she said this, Julia’s voice became noticeably somber.

At that moment, the waves suddenly changed, transforming into a vortex that began to spiral around the reef where Julia sat. Julia also suddenly started singing loudly. Her voice was filled with melancholy, singing in an incomprehensible Merfolk language. Alka could clearly discern the longing for her homeland in her song; even he couldn’t help but start to feel a pang of homesickness himself. He quickly found himself resonating with the song’s emotion. The Merfolk’s song was indeed as captivating as the legends claimed.

He shook his head, collecting himself. It seems I won’t be able to learn anything more today. But she hadn’t lied about her strength being suppressed.

Slowly, he ascended high into the air, leaving the bubble. Alka didn’t continue exploring into the rainbow-colored mist. The reason he could transit through Chadite and the others’ dreams in sequence was mainly because they were all physically near him. Furthermore, they had all fallen into a deep sleep due to the Dream Catcher’s pink mist, which allowed Alka to quickly pass through their Dream Realms via the Dream Catcher. Under normal circumstances, drifting aimlessly in the Dream Realm... who knows what accidents could happen? Alka was unwilling to try recklessly.

Thinking this, Alka closed his eyes and controlled himself, sinking back into his physical body once more. His somewhat ethereal form in the real world solidified, becoming tangible. The difference between the illusory and the real was only a matter of perception for him, he mused.

He looked at Lucilia leaning against him, and at Chadite and the others nearby, their heads drooping. The Dreamcatcher Crystal Ball floated before him, and the surrounding pink mist was gradually absorbed back into it. As the mist was absorbed, the few individuals who had been in a deep sleep began to open their eyes and awaken. Everyone looked groggy and sleep-laden, except for Lucilia beside Alka. She was the quickest to wake; the instant the mist receded from her, she opened her eyes. It was as if she had been startled awake.

Noticing Alka’s gaze, Lucilia didn’t even look at him and dove straight into the Magic Mirror. However, Alka still caught the blush on her face. It seems that after regaining consciousness within a dream, everything experienced is clearly transmitted back to the physical body, Alka observed.

He glanced at Chadite and the others. Judging by their just-awakened appearance, they must have genuinely been dreaming. In normal dreams, experiences are often too hazy. They are usually forgotten entirely the moment one wakes up, or if remembered, most details are very vague.

Pororo rubbed his head and asked, looking at the Crystal Ball in front of Alka, "What just happened to me? And what on earth is that Crystal Ball in your hand?"