Chapter 1136: Facing the Tide of Thought

Amon stared steadily at Mimirna before him. She quickly shook off the awkwardness and met his gaze with surprising calmness. “What else? While you were daydreaming over there, I was busy checking all the equipment. Without my help, how long do you think it would have taken you to connect to the network?”

“You’re changing the subject!” Amon wasn’t about to be sidetracked so easily. He kept his eyes fixed on Mimirna. “I’m asking you—what does ‘High-Speed Stag’ mean? I understand that entering the network requires a new name, but you should have at least consulted me on this one…”

“Trust me, Amon, that name isn’t strange at all in the neural network. In a place where everyone can pick a new name for themselves, only a unique, distinctive title keeps up with the times. Haven’t you always wanted to keep pace with this new era the mortals have ushered in?” Mimirna smiled at his displeasure. “And if you think about it, that name actually suits you quite well…”

Seeing that Amon’s expression didn’t soften in the slightest, she shook her head. “Anyway, it can’t be changed now.”

“Can’t be changed?” Amon blinked, then frowned deeply. “Wait—what name did you pick for yourself?”

Mimirna crossed her arms proudly, a coy smile playing on her lips. “The Tower Witch.”

“…Find a way to change my name immediately!”

She shrugged. “Like I said, it can’t be changed… If you really care that much about something so trivial, you can talk to Gawain yourself later.”

Amon felt a twitch at the corner of his mouth but was at a loss for words. After all, he wasn’t a god skilled in rhetoric—especially after being sealed away alone for three thousand years. Facing someone as sharp and humanly awakened as Mimirna, he simply couldn’t gain any advantage through words.

In the brief silence that followed, Mimirna stepped forward a couple of paces. Smiling, she gently patted Amon’s shoulder. “We’ve wasted enough time here. Let’s put aside these trivial matters. Old… Amon, are you ready to see the incredible world the mortals have built?”

Amon nodded instinctively. The next moment, he suddenly felt the light and shadow before him begin to blur. A flood of complex information surged through his mind connection. A false set of senses switched on in the blink of an eye. Just as he was about to speak, darkness overtook his vision—then brightness returned.

Warm light bathed his face. A gentle breeze blew from afar, carrying fresh scents of flowers and grass. Vibrant sounds and shifting lights surrounded him. He looked up to see a lush oak tree standing tall before him. Around it stretched an open plaza, encircled by elegant columns. Neatly trimmed bushes dotted the spaces between the pillars. Further off, he saw rows of tall, beautiful houses lined up neatly. Wide, clean roads stretched out in his view. Groups of people strolled and lingered along these paths, living here with a relaxed ease as if this were truly their home.

Beyond that, he noticed massive beams of light shooting skyward, connecting the heavens to pyramid-like structures. Above, faint shadows drifted—patrolling overseers, it seemed.

The breeze carried a fresh floral fragrance. Amon inhaled deeply. Blinking, he felt his limbs and body respond with genuine sensation. He took a step forward—and his foot landed solidly on the smooth ground.

“Why so quiet? Overwhelmed by the shock?” Mimirna’s voice came from beside him, snapping him back to reality. “Or are you so moved by finally leaving that dark, chaotic place for a vibrant ‘world’ that you want to cry?”

“No… I just never imagined… never imagined it could feel this real,” Amon murmured dreamily. “I remember, many, many years ago, I imagined a scene like this. But I never thought it could actually come true. Here I stand, among passing mortals, the whole world running safely and smoothly… and the breeze carries the scent of flowers from afar…”

“I can’t share your feelings about the latter part, since I haven’t had your experiences,” Mimirna chuckled softly. “But when it comes to the ‘reality’ of this world, I completely agree. This is a dream shaped by tens of thousands of human minds, with hundreds—if not thousands—of ‘shapers’ carefully tending every detail, filling every blank in this dream. Of course it feels real. In fact, the ‘sense of reality’ we experience here even surpasses that of mortals who enter the network. Do you know why?”

Amon thought for a moment, a vague realization dawning. “Because we ourselves were born deep within mortal thought…”

“Yes. Coming here feels like coming home,” Mimirna smiled. “Isn’t it strange? We were born in the tide of thought, escaped from it, and now, through machines, we return to it. As safe observers, we watch the very forces that once twisted and imprisoned us. This place is so beautiful—nothing like those superficially splendid but crumbling divine realms.”

Amon steadied himself, finally breaking free from the emotional pull of this bright, warm world. Listening to Mimirna, he asked instinctively, “What should we do next? Where should we go?”

“Should? There’s no ‘should’ anymore. We’re free, Amon—do whatever you want,” Mimirna shook her head. “Think of this as a real place to rest. Walk around, enjoy the scenery, meet some people, talk about everyday things. This dream city is the highest layer of the neural network, a free hub where mortals can experience another life. They can even participate in building this space through certain city facilities, or visit entertainment areas to try things they normally couldn’t… You can do all that too.

“Don’t worry about accidentally destroying this delicate world. It’s far sturdier than you think, and there’s a powerful ‘administrator’ monitoring its operation. Of course, I sincerely hope you don’t attract the administrator’s attention—that one is far more troublesome than you imagine.”

Amon listened carefully, then suddenly realized something. “You’re not planning to stay and explore with me?”

“Me? I’m going further,” Mimirna waved her hand. “I’ve been here once before, but it was a rushed visit. There’s so much I didn’t get to experience. Plus, the city’s outskirts have changed a lot since then. The builders must have expanded the edges. I want to see that. As for you, just get familiar with this place. We’ll meet again in the ‘Courtyard.’”

“Wait, you—” Amon started to call out, but before his words finished, Mimirna’s figure had already begun to fade into the air. Within a second, she vanished completely.

“…That really was a quick exit.” Amon sighed, but knowing she had helped him a lot, he could only shake his head helplessly. Resolving to at least explore a bit, he slowly walked along the stone path at the plaza’s edge.

Just then, a youthful voice suddenly called out beside him, stopping his steps. “Sir! Is this your first time entering this world?”

Surprised, Amon looked down toward the voice and noticed a small girl sitting on a bench beside the bushes. Her delicate, doll-like face was adorable, looking no older than fifteen or sixteen. Light brown hair cascaded over her shoulders, tied at the ends with several intricate butterfly bows. She wore a pretty white dress, her legs swinging lightly beneath the long skirt. She looked up at him with clear, watery eyes that reflected the bright blue sky—and Amon’s own slightly puzzled face.

“Yes… it is my first time,” Amon said awkwardly. This was his first conversation with anyone besides Mimirna since entering here, and the novelty lingered. “And you are?”

“You can call me Patty,” the girl jumped down from the bench, landing lightly with a happy smile. “I’m an old resident of this world. I was here in its previous version… though it didn’t look like this back then. Ah, never mind that. Do you need any help, sir?”

Seeing her cheerful smile, Amon couldn’t help but return one. This was his first time speaking to a mortal like this—completely different from any exchange he’d had with Gawain Cecil, Kamail, or Belsethia. “How did you know I needed help?”

“My job is to assist travelers entering the Dream City for the first time. This plaza is one of the gathering points for newcomers,” Patty said with a grin. “You’re obviously new to the neural network because you haven’t even hidden your real name—most people don’t roam around the city using their true names, High-Speed Stag.”

Amon froze, then looked up sharply. Floating above his head was a line of softly glowing letters—his title, “High-Speed Stag,” shining brightly. So he’d been wandering the plaza all this time with that name on display!?

“It only takes a thought to hide it,” Patty laughed. “But don’t be discouraged. Your name is unique and recognizable, and it doesn’t look that strange here. In this city, weird names far outnumber proper ones—I see plenty of people running around with names like ‘Aaaaaa’ or ‘1111111’ every day.”

She shook her head with a smile. “That said, many people unfamiliar with the system pick strange names when they first enter. Recently, more and more users have been requesting to change their usernames. The computing center is discussing whether to open that feature…”

“Make sure they do!” Amon said seriously, his expression so grave it startled Patty. “Please tell them—it must be opened!”

“Well… I’ve only heard about it,” Patty said, waving her hands helplessly. “But I’ll ask my mother about it when I get back. She probably knows more…” Suddenly remembering her ‘job,’ she pointed to the elegant columns lining the plaza’s edge. “By the way, sir, since this is your first time here, you might want to start by paying attention to the information flowing through the neural network. See those columns? They’re ‘ports.’ There are many like them throughout the city—some are pillars, others floating crystals on the streets. You can place your hand on one to see what’s happening in the city.”

“Of course, you can also see the latest messages left by people active in this city, and the topics everyone is eagerly discussing—though in reality, these people might live scattered across the entire empire, never able to meet or truly understand one another in their lifetimes. But here, through discussions that span vast distances, everyone is connected. A single topic can spark debate across the whole empire in an instant. If you’re interested, you can enter a place called the ‘Cecil Discussion Forum’…”

Patty babbled on, clearly very familiar with everything about this ‘world.’ Yet much of what she said was exaggerated—the scale and reach of the neural network hadn’t actually spread “throughout the entire empire,” nor was it accessible to everyone. In the real world, only some major cities had neural network access, and almost all cities suffered from a severe shortage of immersion pods and computing centers. The media people were most familiar with were still newspapers and magazines, followed by magical web broadcasts, with the neural network regarded merely as a “novelty in big cities.” But Amone was unaware of these details.

Even if he had known, he wouldn’t have cared.

He approached the nearest pillar with a mix of anticipation and curiosity. After watching how others operated it, he cautiously placed his hand on the pillar.

Instantly, a series of faintly glowing blue text interfaces, auto-playing images, and scrolling news briefs flooded his vision.

Amone stared in astonishment at everything before him. After being severed from the mortal world for three thousand years, he once again felt that sensation of “touching the entire world.” He watched a vibrant world unfold before his eyes—countless events happening, countless people connecting and communicating through this invisible web. Tens of thousands of minds participated, like an immense brain with innumerable neural nodes exchanging signals, tides of thought rising and falling amid the chaos.

Streams of consciousness—thought currents that could be observed, accessed, and even controlled.

Here, he only saw a few interfaces, merely a small “display area” of this vast miracle. But in that moment of contact, his divine wisdom perceived the deeper meaning behind these interfaces. He understood why High Lord Cecil had paid such a tremendous price to build this network, even going so far as to introduce “dangerous elements” like himself and Mimirna into it.

(End of chapter)