Chapter 497 - 494: Nebula Consciousness

Chapter 497: Chapter 494: Nebula Consciousness

’These bizarre-looking star cluster creatures are actually just ordinary resin?’

Zhou Dynasty stood frozen in place for a long time. Only after he saw the starlight on the resin’s surface slowly fade, revealing its original appearance, did he stand up.

"It really is just resin."

After losing its starlight, the resin coiled around the ancient tree flowed down the trunk and onto the ground, releasing a rich, fragrant aroma.

"They’re not living things. It’s more like they’ve been possessed by something..."

Zhou Dynasty said in a daze, staring at the motes of light that had been completely devoured by the Block.

’Is it those motes of light?’

He was also puzzled, unsure of his own guess.

As the motes of light vanished, the feeling of connection he had just experienced disappeared, and he could no longer hear those strange voices.

Meanwhile, Li Luo was anxiously questioning the Block.

After absorbing the river of red light, the Block’s surface was completely undamaged. In fact, it looked much cleaner, as if it had been wiped down.

"Are you okay?" Li Luo patted the Block.

Of course, Mo Ling was fine. He was just a little dazed by the sudden convergence of red light.

He didn’t know why those motes of light had suddenly charged at the Block like a crazed mob.

In the end, the Block was completely engulfed by the red light. The surrounding scenery only reappeared after all the motes had been absorbed into its metal walls.

’A little dizzy from the shaking.’

Mo Ling made the Block tremble to show that he was unharmed.

Li Luo breathed a sigh of relief. She then turned and brought the Block over to Zhou Dynasty’s side.

Zhou Dynasty quickly told Li Luo what he had discovered:

"The true form of those star cluster creatures isn’t the resin. They just possess it, controlling its movements. The motes of light must be their real bodies—the source of those voices we were just hearing."

"Your relic absorbed all the motes of light, so the resin lost its vitality."

However, as Zhou Dynasty was still speaking, the resin on the ground suddenly began to stir again. Then, it abruptly lunged at him.

Mo Ling, who had been watching the resin closely, immediately teleported and severed the resurrected substance.

Still reeling from the shock, Zhou Dynasty stood frozen in place.

’Was my guess wrong? Is this just ordinary animated resin? Then why did it lose its color and vitality after the motes of light disappeared?’

Now, Zhou Dynasty was completely confused.

But then, something Li Luo said gave him a sudden flash of insight:

"Is it possible that the host was animated resin to begin with?"

She looked at Zhou Dynasty and asked, "What did you feel when you came into contact with those motes of light?"

Zhou Dynasty pondered for a moment before answering, "It was like my consciousness was sinking into a great lake. I could feel the ripples in the water, and those ripples were other consciousnesses..."

Zhou Dynasty described his experience truthfully.

"My consciousness was becoming freer, flowing out to other places. I wasn’t just feeling the other ripples; I was also spreading my own, letting other consciousnesses feel my thoughts and ideas."

As he said this, he suddenly realized something.

"The freer the consciousness, the weaker its connection to the physical body becomes. I felt my body grow light. I could still control it easily, but the connection felt much weaker. It was as if other consciousnesses were slowly invading my body, starting to share control with me."

As he spoke, Zhou Dynasty looked at the Block. "I also felt a suction force coming from your relic. If my physical body hadn’t been anchoring my consciousness, I would have been sucked in too..."

Listening to Zhou Dynasty’s experience, Li Luo nodded. "I felt the same way."

The two of them discussed the sensation of the light motes passing through their bodies and finally arrived at a plausible theory:

The animated resin must have originally been independent entities.

But living in the Starlight Forest, they were bound to come into contact with the free-floating motes of light, or become entangled in the bands of faint blue light.

Once the motes entered their bodies, they gradually began to share control with the resin’s original consciousness. As more and more motes accumulated, the resin lost all control of its body, becoming completely submerged in that great lake of consciousness.

Compared to a human’s, the resin’s original consciousness was simpler and more easily replaced. With such a large number of motes, it was easy for them to take over the resin’s body.

Finally, the possessed body would be filled with light motes, taking on that nebula-like appearance. But since the resin couldn’t detach from the ancient tree, it could only coil around it, becoming the bizarre creature they had seen.

When the motes were driven out, leaving only the original consciousness behind, it regained control of its body and attacked Zhou Dynasty...

After coming to this conclusion, a lingering fear washed over them both.

"If we had stayed in those light motes any longer, would our bodies have also become vessels for those consciousnesses?" Zhou Dynasty said, his heart still pounding with fear.

Human consciousness is incredibly complex; although it wouldn’t be replaced immediately, it couldn’t withstand the constant intrusion of the motes forever. Eventually, one’s guard would drop, and they would become just another drop in the lake of consciousness.

"Could this entire forest already be possessed by those motes of light?"

Looking at the bands of faint blue light weaving between the ancient trees, Zhou Dynasty took a deep breath.

"Is this the work of the Eye of the Stars? Did it animate everything just to use these motes of light to possess physical bodies?"

"But why do the motes have consciousness? Did the Eye of the Stars create them using the source of animation?"

At that moment, the two of them finally understood what had been watching them ever since they entered the forest.

It wasn’t the ancient trees, nor was it the air. It was the starlight that filled the entire forest, which had been coveting their bodies all along.

Just like the animated resin controlled by the motes, it wanted to "connect" with the two of them and drag them into that great lake of consciousness.

Suddenly, Zhou Dynasty pinched his palm and said to Li Luo with a serious expression:

"Have you noticed something is wrong? Why can we feel a ’gaze’?"

They had constantly felt like they were being watched, as if something had its eyes on them.

But humans don’t possess such a sense.

Sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch... this strange feeling of being watched didn’t come from the five senses, but from some other perception.

"We haven’t seen any ’eyes,’ but we can feel their gaze. We haven’t heard or smelled anything, yet we can feel their presence right beside us. Why is that?"

It was such a strange thing, yet the two of them had only just now realized it.

This "sixth sense" had unknowingly blended in with their original perceptions, making it feel as natural as if they’d been born with it.

Zhou Dynasty closed his eyes, then covered his ears, plunging himself into silence.

He held his breath and quietly sensed his surroundings. The free-floating motes of light slowly drifted down from the air and landed on his body.

The starlit forest was incredibly peaceful. A gentle breeze brushed against Zhou Dynasty’s body, and the chill of the night slowly seeped in. Even after blocking everything out, he could still feel the presences wandering beside him.

In the ancient trees, in the air, underground, in the drops of water... They were everywhere.

Finally, Zhou Dynasty understood.

"I know what it is we’ve been feeling..."

"It’s their—hearts."