[The Energy Dragon of the Deep Sea feels drowsy.] The giant turtle slowly put his head down among the jungle vegetation, toppling thousands of palm trees. [The Energy Dragon of the Deep Sea has fallen into a deep slumber.] The dragon’s shell gently rose and fell, his breathing even yet incredibly loud. With every exhale, bushes shook as if they were caught in a tempest. A Bloodborn executive flapped his wings under the palm tree that the wind from the dragon’s nose kept shaking. —Only the elite concubi who are the best at manipulating dreams were chosen for this unit. There is no need to worry. The executive, who was hovering in an awkward posture, didn’t even blink. He had an odd way of speaking that made him sound like a machine. Well, he might as well be described as a terminal. After all, the concubi had taken over him, giving them access to his memories, thoughts, and body. Uburka looked at him, slightly confused. —Uger, excuse me, but what is your name? The handsome Bloodborn gave a monotonous answer. —We have no name. We simply exist. —That answer tells me nothing new. You could have very well said, “Daddy is a wacko.” —We have no concepts of individuality, only dreams. Anyone can be you or me in a dream. That’s why we are who we are. —Well, I’ll just assume that there are a lot of you. Is that okay? The Bloodborn chose not to answer. —Judging from your silence, I guess you guys are fine with it. Ugor. So, Mist—whatever, how long will that Energy Dragon be asleep? Uburka pointed at the huge creature. People could barely wrap their heads around its insane size. The easiest way to describe it was comparing it to a mountainous island that exhaled roughly once every twenty minutes and then inhaled again twenty minutes later. Snails were crawling along the hillside. —Move, move! Finish the construction quickly, lime!” —All tasks must be completed before the dragon wakes up! —Provide support! We should create as much space as possible so more people can cultivate their aura. Laimu. This guy is constantly moving, so keep that in mind when building! —We need to finish this in one day! Shellmounts were in charge of construction for the operation. Around four thousand climbed onto the monster to carry out their duties. Unlike the other species, which were mainly stuck on the ground, the Shellmounts were good at climbing because they shed sticky mucus. The slightly shaky hillside was just a light picnic course for the Shellmounts. They carried out their construction work, holding tools and lumber with their four or five tentacles. From a distance, they looked just like little people climbing on Gulliver. —Those guys should try not to get hurt during construction. Hundreds of thousands of people, maybe even a million, will come here from all over the continent. This might still fail even if they all suck in his aura. If that dragon bastard wakes up, all of this will be for nothing. The concubi’s response was cryptic, to say the least. Uburka gave the Bloodborn a serious look. —Seven days? You can put him to sleep for seven days? Ugor. That’s ama— —If we use your number system, there are eight hundred thousand of us. All of us are imitating the sea, displaying a very realistic texture of waves to show the dragon what he wants to see. He’s under the illusion that he’s filtering out the worthless by tearing them apart. —All of us are working together to satisfy that dragon’s happiness, console his sadness, and guide him to the origin of his misfortune. There, we encourage him to overcome his trauma and ask him to figure out why he exists and what the purpose of his existence is if he must live on. —Anyway, we’ll let that monster get a good night’s sleep without snoring for now. Over the remaining seven days, the key to this operation is how much of that monster’s aura everyone can absorb. If possible, it would be best if the monster shriveled to the size of a doll. The Bloodborn flapped his wings, seemingly signaling that he was done with the conversation. However, Uburka grabbed the Bloodborn’s leg, preventing it from soaring into the sky no matter how hard it tried. Uburka scratched the back of his head. —I’m sorry. Uger. I still have something to ask you. —As far as I know... Well, hundreds of years ago, when my daddy went to that Phantom Realm of yours or something, weren’t you selfish bastards? The concubi didn’t answer. —As long as you could expand your dream world, you didn’t care if the Fingills, Terras, or any of us from the outside world died. It was enough for you guys to live in the dream world and enjoy your plays forever, so why? What changed that made you cooperate in this great event that will determine the fate of everyone in our world? The concubi stayed silent for a while. —You don’t trust people’s good intentions, Former Chairman. —Sadly, I only trust mine. —That’s only half true. Uburka tilted his head. The concubi smirked. —You trust your father’s, too. Uburka remained silent. —When you get the chance, tell your father that the next time he visits our world, we won’t go down easily like last time. We even put the so-called creator of this continent to sleep. It won’t be any different for your father, even if you and your people see him as a god. The concubi laughed out loud. When Uburka’s grip weakened, the concubi flew into the sky, and hundreds or thousands of Bloodborns followed them. The other Bloodborns had been waiting for the conversation to end in the dark shadows of the jungle. Their wings covered the sky, and they soon disappeared. Uburka smiled bitterly. —Uger. He goes around and captivates people regardless of their species. My daddy is a really shameless charmer. The Shellmounts’s tools clanged from the middle of the jungle. “Amazing! This is so awesome!” We watched the whole thing from the waiting room. The Shellmounts actually completed the construction in one day. The lumber and wooden stairs were in geometric harmony, allowing anyone to easily climb onto the monster’s body. The Inquisitor’s eyes twinkled as he praised the architectural work shown in the hologram. “The architectural knowledge I taught them wasn’t lost even hundreds of years after the empire's fall! Hahaha! This is better than I thought. My children didn’t forget what I taught them!” “After all this time, you finally decided to treat them like your children,” I said sourly. “What are you talking about, Mr. Death King? I have always considered the Shellmounts to be my children! I’m confident that I’ve been cherishing them.” Yes, I had no problem imagining a very sweet father saying, “Guys, this year I brought you a Skian slave as a Christmas gift! Abuse them carefully so they don’t break!” “This is one hell of a sight,” the Black Witch muttered. “Almost all the Terras, Shellmounts, and Skians have arrived. The other species are on the way. It might be possible to clear the stage without any casualties.” The hologram showed the many species gathering from all over the continent. Many of these people could use aura. As the warriors took the lead and swung their swords, the overgrown jungle trees of the wild collapsed like straws. Soon, a road replaced the fallen trees. Like hundreds of fine blood vessels, wide and narrow roads coursed through the jungle. The people walked on them without hesitation. There was no doubt that everyone’s hearts were beating very loudly right now. —Welcooooooome~ You can use the staircase here to climb and start your aura absorption! The Sylvans set up a stall to welcome visitors. Where people gathered, money followed, which the Sylvans were after. Unfortunately, that was simply who they were. —You guys must be tired from all the aura cultivation. Uh-oh. Coincidentally, here is a pile of white ginseng, a famous fatigue reliever! What’s the point of accumulating all this aura if you end up accumulating fatigue, too? A true master never forgets to enjoy life! Have a bowl of white ginseng soup before you go! —It’s really bad for your health if you stay in the lotus position without sleeping properly! You should sleep at least eight hours a day! Still, there are a lot of bad bugs here, and the leaves of trees are sharp. I understand why you guys would have trouble sleeping, but rest assured! Cozy hammocks are ready for you! —Buy our bug repellent! If you apply it to your skin, you will never get bitten! Buy our bug repellent! Actually, they’re a little too energetic. Did they go there to make money instead of cultivating their aura? We all looked in bewilderment at the Countess, who was still in her cat form. She leisurely scratched her chin. “Huh? What are you looking at me for? You should earn money whenever you can. That’s the truth. Money flies, so you have to snatch it if you can. In that sense, I think I’ve raised my children well. I feel like sending my MA members to that world and telling them to learn from the Sylvans.” The Paladin patted the cat on the back and sighed. “Countess... No, forget it. Just stay who you are forever.” The Countess settled down on the Paladin’s lap, looking happy. In contrast to the quiet waiting room for the eliminated Hunters, the people in the hologram video were energetic. “000000! Now is the time!” “Leave it to me, FFFFFF[1]!” Two hundred fifty-six Skians climbed onto the turtle and assumed the lotus position. Every one of them emanated their brilliant aura and started absorbing the turtle’s aura. These so-called True Color Rangers were the Viper’s legacy and also the main reason the Hunters and I cringed very hard. What was with their name? Did you really think that was the best choice of names, Sect Master? “Do you think all two hundred fifty-six of them are the Viper?” the Black Witch asked, looking a bit fed up. “No, he probably only possessed one of them. I think the rest are his disciples or their descendants.” “How do you know that? I can’t really tell the difference here.” After all, we have become rivals now. There was one Skian in particular whose aura intertwined and shimmered in gray and purple. His code name was probably Gray-Something. The Skians’ radiant aura burned like rainbows with him in the center. After choosing to stay in this world on the thirty-sixth floor, the Viper seemed to have established the OJP Sect in this world as well. “Anyway, what’s more important now is that we have a chance to catch a monster deemed invincible,” I said with a smile. Do your best, guys. Drink up all the aura and don’t leave even a drop of broth. Not only the rainbow Skian rangers, but also Terras, Purens, and the warriors and workers of the other species were now at the turtle’s location. They all gathered around the Energy Dragon of the Deep Sea and sat in the lotus position. The jungle became crowded as days passed. Warriors approached and kindly guided those who didn’t know how to cultivate aura. A Terra mother grabbed her child’s hand and climbed the wooden stairs made by the Shellmounts. Neither of the species seemed to think that they had a reason to hate each other. This would have been unimaginable a thousand years ago. However, all the species united to face the arrival of the Energy Dragon of the Deep Sea. The ones who clear the thirty-eighth floor aren’t going to be gods from another world. Even though it was night, the jungle was as bright as a star. The aura generated by countless people burned with red, green, blue, and whatever other colors permeated their thoughts. Thanks to this colorful display, the night sky resembled shiny silk. You guys are the ones who will complete this quest! My cheer reached the children. [The Terras are evolving!] 1. The Skian’s special brigade seems to be using color hex codes for their names... ☜