The Record of Unusual Creatures - Chapter 167

Chapter 167: Group Tour?

Vivian knew about The Plane of Dreams. When Hao Ren returned from seeing Raven 12345, he had told her about the origin of unusual creatures. So, they had their minds on The Plane of Dreams when they heard about The Day of Return.

Even though there was still no concrete evidence pointing to the shadow of The Plane of Dreams behind The Day of Return, as the hometown of all unusual creatures on Earth, it certainly had a defining influence over the creatures worldwide. If the unusual creatures were regaining their power once lost a thousand years ago, then the probability of paranormal activities occurring in The Plane of Dreams would be very high.

If all this was not enough to trigger their concern, then the siren’s prophecy delivered by Bluphlei should have been conclusive proof of evidence. To those in the know, there was nothing like the world of strange species and supernatural powers that would befit the ancient ‘Glorious Imperium’ name.

“Actually, I wanted to ask…” Hao Ren looked at Vivian curiously. “…in theory, you’re supposedly one of the oldest unusual creatures still existing on Earth. Are you sure you don’t remember anything about The Plane of Dreams?”

“Not a thing.” Vivian forced a smile as she shook her head. She was helpless when it came to her early memories. “The earliest memory I have is of a long and chaotic dream—a condition where every one in the Blood Clan would experience after a long period of sleep. And it seems I slept for a very long time. I woke up inside a cave on a mountain range, wearing a very strange and old piece of garment. Then, I saw a primitive tribe having a bizarre ritual just outside of the cave as if they saw me as their god of protection… That’s all I can recall. But, it’s obvious that I’ve been living for a long time on Earth even before that moment at the cave and been in contact with other unusual creatures. The garment on me was way ahead of its time. Humans were still clad in leaves and animal skins while I was clad in an attire made by a half-sheep, half-human tailor.”

Then Vivian sighed. “Don’t count on me. My memory’s worse than Lily’s.”

Nangong Sanba and Nangong Wuyue had a lot to say to each other as if they had not seen each other for a long time. While at times, the siren maiden was violent towards her brother, their relationship was in fact not as bad. She nagged him, reminding him to take care while being out there; it was out of love and concern more than anything else. Lily, still gnawing on a frozen bone, overheard the two’s conversation. She shoved a plate of food towards Nangong Sanba. “Eat, eat…”

“I’ll reheat the food,” said Vivian before she wheeled and walked towards the table. “I’m still hungry.”

It was a bumpy lunch. It was some time past one in the afternoon. Everyone gathered around the table. Hao Ren placed his hand on the cold tail of the little mermaid, trying to quicken the defrosting process. Nangong Sanba took out pieces of paper under his coat. “Actually, the main purpose I came here today is to pass you these. You may need them.”

Hao Ren took them. They were information and photos of people.

“This is…”

Nangong Sanba smiled. “North China is where demon hunters usually reside. The assigned region of each person, their cyclical patrol patterns, rendezvous points, the combat styles of some whom I have frequent contact with and their likes and dislikes are all in there. Although it’s not comprehensive—it doesn’t include their movements as humans and it’s only limited to the veteran demon hunters because anything related to the lower ranks was too scattered and too difficult to collect—it might be useful.”

“My god!” Hao Ren immediately kept the information. “This is damn good intel.”

“Aren’t you feeling a bit of guilt, selling out your ‘teammates’?” Vivian gazed at Nangong Sanba in disbelief. “You’re still a demon hunter after all.”

“I doubt they’ll treat me as their teammate if they know who I really am.” Nangong Sanba was unperturbed. “I know all too well their spirit of extremism; compared to other barbaric but more compassionate creatures, demon hunters are more dangerous. I have to protect my sister from them. And I’m used to collecting intel on the local demon hunter and passing it to her. I’d be happy to give it to you too. I don’t care about them. All I care about is my sister’s safety.”

This guy was a control freak, Hao Ren thought. But, he did not say anything. After all, it was none of his business. As he nodded his head, a question came to mind. “Do you have any information about their major movement?”

“What do you mean by major movement?”

“About the uprising of the other kind… it seems they’re preparing for something big. Any movement on the demon hunter’s side?” Hao Ren tried to extract intel from Nangong Sanba.

“There is indeed something.” Nangong Sanba’s face turned grim. “I heard that the demon hunters in some regions are calling upon the veterans to form small groups to clean up all old ruins, where the other kind once resided several hundred years ago. There’s a good chance that nothing’s going to be found in these places but, they still sent men there anyway. Just a few months back, a group of demon hunters had gone to the Arctic.

“It’s understandable that they want to clean up these ruins. Since the other races are trying to find their lost sacred items, the demon hunters would definitely want to find and destroy these items before the others can reach them. But, why the Arctic?” Vivian frowned. “Frost giants were active in the Arctic but they quickly disappeared. These frost giants left no meaningful civilization. They were a bunch of low-intelligence life form…so, theoretically there wouldn’t be ruins of anything left.”

“That’s nothing I know of.” Nangong Sanba spread his hands out. “I’m just a peripheral rookie. I used to talk as little as possible when I saw other demon hunters to avoid my identity from being exposed. They leaked this information during a normal course of chattering. It might not be valuable.”

“Okay, that will suffice.” Vivian grinned as she nodded to Nangong Sanba. “What you’ve provided is very useful. Definitely worth the lunch.”

Nangong Sanba forced a smile as he got to his feet and tidied his clothes. “I’m done here. I don’t want to bother you any further. The Russians wish for me to go to them immediately. I’ll depart in the afternoon. Wuyue, please take good care of yourself. Be nice to your friends for the sake of our family’s honor—”

Nangong Wuye shoved him out of the door. “I know, I know. Please, go now!”

The living room quieted down again. Hao Ren’s hand was still on the little mermaid but, his mind was not on Earth. Suddenly, he felt a jolt under his hand: the defrosting process was complete. The little one opened her eyes slowly, her tail began to flap on the table and she started to call out her guardian’s name.

Seeing this, Hao Ren’s mind returned to Earth. He held the little mermaid nervously in his hand and examined his own daughter carefully. The little one tilted her head sideways and thought for a moment before she remembered what she was doing prior to the hibernation. She brooded for a while before she opened her mouth and cried—continuing where she left off earlier.

However, Hao Ren felt a sense of relief. From her cry, he knew Lil Pea was doing fine despite the hibernation. She was as fit as a fiddle.

“There’s something I can’t wrap my head around.” While Hao Ren clumsily comforted Lil Pea, Vivian said to Nangong Wuyue, “Sirens are a peace-loving race, right? So, they’re not interested at all in the war on the surface.”

“Yes, basically they are.” Nangong Wuyue nodded. “I am, at least. I’ve never seen other sirens. What I’ve heard of them is basically that—peace-loving.”

“Then, what about news of The Day of Return they brought up from the deep sea?” Vivian squinted. “It would be total chaos. If sirens are truly peace-loving, would they be concerned about the revival of the Mythological Era?”

Nangong Wuyue realized something was amiss after she heard what Vivian said. She tried to put herself into her senior’s shoe of thought. “Could something have happened down there that has a direct connection with The Day of Return on the surface?”

“It’d be nice if I could go down there as well…” Vivian sighed.

“Before that, I want to return to The Plane of Dreams,” Hao Ren chimed in. “Let’s go together. I need to confirm something there.”

Chapter 168: Looking for God

Whether he was a human, a landlord of unusual creatures or the executor of a goddess, Hao Ren could not have ignored the coming of The Day of Return. No matter what the truth was, it had the potential to disrupt the equilibrium on Earth. To stop it or not to stop it, he really did not know—he felt helpless to do so even if he wanted to. He wanted to know what The Day of Return was all about.

The most reliable source of information was the sirens. They were the ones who brought the news to the surface. But, these messengers had since returned to the bottom of the sea. Before the two elders left, they had also mentioned about the event: the last siren left the surface in 1976. Finding these messengers was mission-impossible. There may have been others like Nangong Wuyue’s mum, who discarded her mission but, no one knew where they were. It was like finding a needle in a haystack. Hao Ren had no intention of looking for them for the time being.

Diving to the bottom of the deep sea was very difficult. Even for a siren like Nangong Wuyue, getting close to the forbidden territory was impossible. To top it off, all the unusual creatures and demon hunters were watching the deep sea closely. Any rash movement could bring unnecessary trouble to himself. He needed more intel before he could think of going there.

For Hao Ren, there was one place where he could enter freely and get more intel—The Plane Of Dreams.

The Plane of Dreams may not have provided intel about The Day of Return but, at least, it gave him a better understanding of the unusual creatures on Earth. And, he may even be able to find another perspective to the problem if he was lucky. So, he was quite hopeful.

Hao Ren called for a meeting. Lil Pea hung from his arm and listened while he briefed everyone on his thoughts. He looked at Vivian. “Remember the papers I gave you after I came back from the foreign planet? Now, you can see it with your own eyes. You’re the only rune expert here.”

Hao Ren had jotted down the Letta runes he saw in The Plane of Dreams when he accidentally fell into it during his trip to bring Lil Pea back from the foreign planet. The runes were just normal runes for driving away evil spirits and runes for prayers according to Vivian’s interpretation. But, he felt there could possibly be more runes in The Plane of Dreams. Hence, bringing Vivian along into The Plane of Dreams could prove to be helpful.

Of all of them, Y’zaks was the only person from the other world. He was interested. He smiled. “I’ve heard that the unusual creatures on Earth came from The Plane of Dreams. I wish I could go there. But, is it possible to bring others along?”

“I’m thinking about this conundrum too.” Hao Ren looked down at his hands. “I’ve been entering and exiting The Plane of Dreams a few times with all my clothes and things in my hands. I guess, yes, I can bring things along. Just that, they must be worn, held or have skin-contact. The question is, would this method work on people…”

“All you’ve got is this after all your wild guess?” The MDT had not been talking for a long time. It felt it needed to show itself. “Don’t tell me you’re going to bring people there by ‘wearing’ them like you’re wearing your shirt?”

Nangong Wuyue was elated. “This is entirely possible. The last time, I wrapped him in my tail and it was fit as wearing clothes.”

“Knock it off.” Hao Ren waved his hand in embarrassment. He found his idea ridiculous too. He needed something better before he could bring anyone in there. “MDT, you got any idea?”

“I’m looking into the database. There is some information about The Plane of Dreams in the shared data vault of local universes…”The MDT rambled. “Err, no info about group trips. It’s all solo trips.”

“Why don’t you talk to the goddess?” said Y’zaks in his low voice. “Experience tells me that there are certain risks involved when you engage in projection-like travel to the other world. A slight error can throw people off course. I knew a guy who wore a mithril bracelet and traveled to the human world. He ended up in Pope City and died a painful death.”

Cold sweat trickled down Hao Ren’s back like ice water. He picked the MDT up and got ready to teleport. “I’m seeing Raven 12345 now.”

He got to his feet and before he managed to activate the teleportation, Vivian suddenly pointed at his arm. “Maybe you should put down the ‘bracelet’.”

Hao Ren looked down and Lil Pea’s body was wrapped around his arm like a bandage. She looked up at her dad and their eyes met. She then made a series of sounds before she swished her tail happily. She was simply happy, for no reason. She was either happy or really happy the entire day.

Like a bracelet as Y’zaks mentioned, the little mermaid probably would not interfere with the teleportation but, Hao Ren still pulled her off his arm. “Stay home. You’re too small for me to find if I lose you.”

The little mermaid was dropped on the table. She staggered around but did not cling on to Hao Ren again. Nangong Wuyue had found a chopstick and she used it to divert Lil Pea’s attention so that Hao Ren could activate his teleportation.

In a twist of light and shadow, he was already at the mansion and engulfed by a thick fog.

The sky was cloudy.

“What the hell?” Hao Ren looked up. He had never seen such bad weather at Raven 12345’s place. As the goddess’ residence, the place should have always been filled with light and warmth but, at that time it was gloomy with clouds everywhere. The place was blanketed with grey and black fog as if the building was submerged in a stormy ocean, a lonely island in the midst of a raging sea. The surrounding felt depressing as well as appalling.

Then, there was a crack!

The loud sound almost scared the hell out of him. He saw purple lightning strike across the sky from the southeast like a giant python. Even the cloud was rippled by it.

A chilly wind swept across the garden. Hao Ren pulled his clothes tight to his body. He was a little surprised: what happened to the goddess’ residence?

No one in the garden could tell him what was going on. The arcane servants were nowhere to be found. He pulled up to the front and stood at the door. At least the door looked normal. It swung open silently and a light-filled corridor was exposed.

He felt a sudden relief as he stepped through the entrance which shielded him from the bad weather outside. Inside the mansion, everything was just like the day before—serene. Yet, he could still see the weather outside through the glass wall—a dark cloud was engulfing the mansion and it seemed like it would not be going away anytime soon.

A strange electrical hum was heard several meters away. Balls of blue light quickly converged into a tall, human figure. The human-like figure nodded to Hao Ren. He felt relieved: it was Big Bluey. It looked the same as always.

“I’ve come for Raven 12345,” said Hao Ren.

Big Bluey was taciturn as usual. He just kept nodding and then led Hao Ren to Raven’s office.

As the office door was pushed open, Hao Ren saw a woman with long, silver hair. Her back was facing him. She was standing and looking out through the glass window. Big Bluey then whistled and slowly faded into the air. As usual, Hao Ren walked into the office like he always did and ushered himself into the familiar chair. “Hi, I was wondering about what’s happening outside, all the dark clouds and lightning.”

Raven wheeled round and glanced at Hao Ren curiously. “You’re Hao Ren? The interesting assistant 12345 has been talking about?”

Hao Ren was clueless.

Chapter 169: The Stand-In Goddess of Another Stand-In Goddess

The silver-haired lady turned around and looked curiously at Hao Ren. “So, you are Hao Ren, the fine assistant that 12345 found so interesting?”

Hao Ren was immediately stunned by Raven’s weird behavior before he could even speak. He returned the weird looks of the silver-haired lady, who he was pretty familiar with. “What’s wrong? Did you eat something wrong? And what’s with the storm outside?”

“Oh, outside? Nothing to worry, just a small problem. A rift in the translocation axis. I wasn’t very familiar with this world and slightly miscalculated my trajectory.” The silver-haired lady, who looked exactly like Raven 12345 spoke slowly and gave Hao Ren a faint, graceful smile. “And…I think you’ve got the wrong person. 12345 is not here. I’m her stand-in.”

Her voice was warm and her smile, gentle. She also exuded a grace that belied a majestic presence. Almost like she was the gentle, older sister of everyone’s dreams. The way she spoke totally differentiated her from Raven 12345. Even if she shared the same face as Raven 12345, Hao Ren could tell immediately that she was a different person altogether. He suddenly remembered that there was not only one ‘Raven’ around. They were separated by index numbers. His employer, Raven 12345 was one among countless goddesses, numbered 12345. So… that made the Raven in front of him… another goddess?

“Uhh… yes I’m Hao Ren.” As he realized that the person in front of him was a stranger, he could not help but take on a more professional demeanor to match the lady’s. “And you are…?”

“Oh, you don’t have to be so nervous. You can tell me anything. Raven 12345 has already given me the rundown of things.” The silver-haired lady said as she sat on the chair behind the work desk.

“You can call me, Raven 23333.”

Hao Ren’s sudden “Huh?” broke any pretense of seriousness that he was trying to cultivate.

“Raven 23333. Is this name considered weird in your civilization?” The silver-haired lady said as she rubbed her chin, deep in thought. “Having so many differences between civilizations sure is interesting. So many things that do not have any sense of logic yet, still hold so many important meanings…”

Hao Ren quickly threw on a deadpanned face. He could care less about the name or temperament of the lady in front of him anymore (He would probably get a heart attack sooner, trying to figure things out). “Say…. 12345 isn’t back yet? What’s she up to?”

“Routine inspections, debriefing… the likes. No worries, nothing too big.”

“I heard last time that she dueled someone to the death…”

“Oh, it was during a debriefing that she fought with someone. She has a habit of doing so. Even got disciplined by the Mother before.

“…Right… Let’s get on to business then. I wanted to ask about bringing others into The Plane of Dreams…”

Hao Ren had no idea how much this stand-in goddess of another stand-in goddess (Remember, Raven 12345 herself was a stand-in) knew about what was going on and so, took the time to explain the matter in detail. At the end of it, he also popped another question, “Aside from bringing others into the dream plane… I have another thing bugging my mind, the time I have inside The Plane of Dreams. It’s usually tied to the time I’m asleep and that’s barely a few hours long. Once I’m awake, I’m totally detached from the place. This simply isn’t enough for me to investigate The Plane of Dreams, given its size… Do you think it’s possible to extend the time I’m able to roam around there, using whatever techniques you guys have?”

“Checking out The Plane of Dreams eh? So, you are in charge of this.” Raven 23333 pieced things together. “You want to bring others into the dream plane. That’s not a problem. You just need to use some special tools to initiate mental synchronization. The duration in the plane can also be extended, nothing too difficult. But, who are you bringing into the plane? As this is official business, better not involve any unnecessary civilians…”

“Oh, civilians they are not.” Hao Ren waved his hands. While this Raven definitely had a weird name like the rest of the Ravens, she had an aura of majesty that Hao Ren dared not tread upon. Her calm and measured voice simply sapped away any playful intent that Hao Ren would usually have. “They are the tenants over at my place. Raven 12345 mentioned to bring them along for help.”

“Alright. Follow me then.”

Raven 23333 was all about business. With a wave of her hand, she opened a portal and beckoned Hao Ren to follow. After stepping through the portal gate, Hao Ren realized that he was at a very familiar place; the same room that he first came to perform his physical enhancement.

But this time around, Raven 23333 did not raise the hidden reconfiguration chambers. Instead, she activated another lever in the room. A soft chime rang out, it’s sound similar to that of a wind chime, and a pillar of light appeared in the middle of the room. From it, countless of blue and white lines swirled about and quickly formed into a blurry, rectangular shape. The shape then slowly took form and solidified. Hao Ren quickly realized that these were also reconfiguration chambers but, smaller than the ones he used before. They seemed even more simplified in design, without the messy bundles of wires and plug-ins… They were almost like… coffins.

“I’m using the data-transfiguration tool to create some simple sleeping pods. They should keep you asleep long and well enough while they sustain you. They’re pretty simple to use and come with their own user manual,” Raven 23333 said as she gracefully manipulated the controls. She then looked up to ask, “How many persons are there?”

“Uhh… five. But, can you make a few more as backups? We may need them in the future!”

Hao Ren originally planned for just the current members in his household but, figured that he may be taking in more tenants in the future. The numbers that would need to enter The Plane of Dreams would only increase and he figured it was better to have a few extras. However, as Raven 23333 continued to manipulate the controls, an apologetic smile appeared on her face. “Lets go with five…. If you need more, just apply for them next time.”

Hao Ren was perplexed. “Is there like a limit to this?”

“No… It seems like the data-transfiguration tool is broken.” Raven 23333 stared wearily at the crystalline display in front of her. “I was changing some of the values and using some spells to improve its efficiency but it doesn’t seem to be responding..”

It did not require Hao Ren to be a genius to see that something was indeed wrong. The pillar in the middle of the room had some broken strands on it and an audible buzz rang as it approached the floor. The strands that were supposed to form into the sleeping pods were now writhing about chaotically, creating crackles of lightning in the process. The excess energy started emanating out of the room. An eerie flare grew brighter and brighter, and Hao Ren’s heart almost jumped out at the sight: A gigantic globe of flames was converging at the data-transthingamajigy, expanding in size by the second.

“Hmm.. seems like the whole system has crashed.” Raven 23333 looked up towards the ball of flames. She threw Hao Ren an ever-so-calm look that made him went, “Stop looking at me and do something!” in his heart. She finally lifted her hand up and summoned a bolt of arcane lightning onto the crystalline control panel. “Well, can’t have new ones without getting rid of the old ones. May I be forgiven for this loss.”

The arcane lightning quickly seeped into the data-transfiguration tool and killed the device after frying out its core. At the same time however, Hao Ren heard a loud explosion somewhere far away… He really hoped that it was just common thunder.

“…”

Raven 23333 seemed totally unaffected by the incident and gave the five completed sleeping pods a satisfied nod. “Hmm, it’s done.”

The edge of Hao Ren’s mouth curled into a slight sneer. When he first heard Raven 12345 declare that all Ravens were inept in terms of technology, he thought that the lazy goddess was simply just pushing her responsibilities aside. But now, he saw another Raven, whose mannerisms and presence was what you would expect of a goddess. She destroyed a seemingly priceless piece of equipment. He realized that Raven 12345 was not lying after all. The Ravens being dummies when it came to tech was nothing but the truth.

“You can take all of this back.” Raven 23333 pointed towards the new pods that she had conjured out of thin air. “Go, fix the The Plane of Dreams as soon as you can. Things are getting very messy there.”

Chapter 170: She’s Definitely Screwed Up in the Head.

The five, casket-like sleeping pods lay in front of Hao Ren. He could scarcely believe that these things simply popped out of thin air. As he was looking at the control panels of the pods, something Raven 23333 said caused him to turn his head rapidly in her direction. “Worsening? What’s worsening?”

“The Plane of Dreams. Didn’t 12345 tell you anything?” There was a hint of surprise in Raven 23333’s voice. “Oh…seems like she has her own plans regarding this. It would be remiss of me to divulge too much. Ask her yourself when she gets back.”

Hao Ren’s jaw had yet to complete it’s drop before he hauled it back up and swallowed all the questions he wanted to ask. He pointed at the pods. “Say… How am I bringing this back? I don’t suppose teleportation would work…”

“Use your Dimensional Pocket?”

Hao Ren shook his head. “Ugh… it hasn’t been unlocked yet.”

“Not yet?” Raven 23333 was surprised. “But, based on what I saw in your profile, the authorisation for your Dimensional Pocket should have already been approved… Let me have a look.”

Raven 23333 squinted as her eyes went still for a short moment. An embarrassed expression soon appeared across her face. “Seems like 12345 has forgotten about it.”

“I knew it!” Hao Ren exclaimed.

“Oh well, she’s always forgetful when it comes to things like this. Don’t mind her.” Raven 23333 said as she snapped her fingers. “Let me authorise that for you… and now you have the Dimensional Pocket. It is bound to your soul frequency and can be used within the borders of the empire and where the Imperial Data Network is available. Give it a try. It’s like using the MDT with your mind. You will probably feel disorientated on your first try. It takes a while getting used to the dimensional shift but, the Data Network will help you calibrate that.”

Hao Ren was skeptical that a new ability was unlocked this fast. He though Raven 23333 would have to be pushing pens and papers to get his authorisation approved. He wanted to take a nap in the pod. Excited with his newfound ability, he eagerly activated the Dimensional Pocket. The sensation was almost similar to the first time he activated the MDT. As he focused his thoughts, he felt his senses being pulled into a different subconscious state.

An empty dimension appeared in his mind. The space was independent of sight, touch and hearing, a sensation that was beyond a human’s five senses. That said, being human himself, Hao Ren’s access to the dimension was through thought-signals.

He felt so at ease with the Dimensional Pocket that he did not need to use the user manual. Raven 23333 was right. The Data Network would help in calibrating and processing the storage of items. Hao Ren just needed to set a wide enough space to get things started.

After understanding the ins and outs of the Dimensional Pocket, Hao Ren was really excited. He finally had one to call his own. After working for the Celestials for so long, he finally got one of the abilities most essential to his quality of life. He dreamed of the coming days where he did not have to bother about bringing a luggage anymore…

As the excitement glowed on his face, Raven 23333 threw him a pitiful glance, “It’s hard working for 12345 eh?”

Hao Ren had not snapped out of his euphoria when he heard that and could only answer with a late, “Huh?” He then heard Raven 23333 continue, “Raven 12345 is screwed up in the head and it’s still not cured.”

“Ahem…” Hao Ren coughed as he cleared his throat. He looked at 23333 wearily and thought that the two goddess may have had some unsavory past. “I think 12345 is a pretty decent person. Bad mouthing her at this time…”

“Oh, don’t misunderstand me. I’m on good terms with her. She’s my senior after all. Raven 23333’s face was serious without any hint of humor around. “There’s something wrong with her psyche. A long time ago, when she was in the front lines, her Cognitive Core was damaged. But, because she felt that it was not affecting her work despite being brain damaged, she refused to get it fixed. Even until now she’s pretty neurotic.”

Raven 23333 then sighed deeply. “Haih… After that, she became the oddball among the Ravens. She forwent our graceful spells and started dabbling in techno-sorcery with a fanatic zeal. Even when she fights, she likes to get up-close and personal. I’ve even heard that she took someone’s Zankantou as her personal weapon and called herself an Eldritch Knight… We kept advising her to seek treatment but she simply won’t listen.”

Hao Ren was already stunned silly by then. He never thought that the crazy goddess he teased so much to be really damaged in the head. He took another look at Raven 23333’s face to reconfirm and he did not see a single shred of pretense on her face. He resignedly accepted the fact that his boss was a real lunatic…

“…You guys don’t even let someone that damaged go, eh?” Hao Ren said as he wiped off the cold sweat from his head. “Why did she even come to work? No medical leaves?”

“Well… it doesn’t affect her work.” Raven 23333 waved off Hao Ren’s concerns. “Besides, her situation isn’t all that serious. Aside from the occasional neuroticism, she is one of the better workers. You see her acting normal most of the time, no?”

Hao Ren wanted to quip that Raven 12345’s attitude at work was almost horrible and that the crazy goddess should pop a pill to calm herself down. But after a while, he decided against it. A cured Raven 12345 may just be too different than the one he already knew. He had already gotten used to her willful, random ways. If she reverted to the likes of Raven 23333, who was deadpan serious about everything, he would probably not survive his job…

Also, he was unsure if Raven 12345 was not able to hear him bitching about her. With her current mental state, Hao Ren was sure that she would take revenge on him. If a normal woman was calculative enough, a goddess would be even more so… Not to mention that she was still screwed in the head. He dreaded to think of the punishment she would inflict on him…

Under Raven 23333’s guidance, Hao Ren’s first attempt in using the Dimensional Pocket was smooth sailing. While it took him some time to focus and control the pocket, he finally got all five sleeping pods stored. Since he had nothing else to do after that and thought that any further reports should go directly to 12345, he took his leave.

The storm clouds and lightning outside the mansion seemed to have subsided a little. While the dark mist still encompassed the area, the chill wind was no longer blew. Raven 23333 personally sent Hao Ren out to the plaza of the mansion as he turned back to say his farewells. He then noticed a trail of smoke coming from the back of the mansion.

Hao Ren recalled the meltdown incident in the room previously and the subsequent explosion that followed. He was sure something blew up and lo and behold, the mansion had a new hole thanks to it.

Hopefully Raven 12345 would not take offense at her junior punching a hole in her place.

Raven 23333 stood by the mansion with a smile as he nodded and left. The scene was etched in his mind for a very long time.

While Hao Ren could have simply teleported home, he did not go home straight away. He went to town instead. He quickly paid the electronics store a visit and bought two new items. A solid and reliable MP5 device, and a solar-powered charger.

He needed to plan this trip into The Plane of Dreams properly and he tried to get every possible preparatory work done. He also remembered that he needed to get Becky the Mercenary a music box. He did not feel right being under her care and hitching a free ride along the way. Moreover, he did not even get a chance to say goodbye when he left. He also needed to figure out the matter of the dental issues those silly, black wolves were having. He still had to ask Lily if she had any expertise on that.

Hao Ren was a man of his word and he intended to stay true to that.

He then went into the supermarket to buy a boatload of items; mostly food and drinks. He pretty much spent every penny in his wallet before he called it a day. The amount he bought scared the daylights out of the cashiers. It took him a lot of effort to move his purchases to a secluded spot before he stored everything into the Dimensional Pocket. He figured that having your basic necessities on hand was a smart move.

It was hard to say if this round of binge shopping was done at a whim because of the Dimensional Pocket. This idiot actually wanted to try storing the stone lion statue in front of the supermarket…