Beaconreach Free Federation.

  Losngel City, Frankenstein Corporation Research Branch.

  Inside a vast, pristine white laboratory.

  A silver-haired, silver-eyed man with obsidian-dark skin stood in silence, arms crossed, expression unreadable.

  His physique was massive—far beyond human norms.

  What should have been coarse, rough skin was instead flawlessly smooth, like polished obsidian, gleaming with dark iridescence.

  He stood frowning, his sharp gaze locked ahead.

  In his eyes, worry and cold indifference intertwined and shifted without pause.

  Suspended in midair before him was a massive, coffin-like glass containment pod, densely covered in evenly spaced perforations.

  Surrounding this enormous pod—

  Dozens of slender black metal probes extended inward from every direction, piercing through the holes to sink deep into a silver-grey, translucent gelatinous sphere that sat at the center. Wisps of cold mist continually drifted from it.

  Peering through the gelatinous mass from the outside, one could just make out the figure of a middle-aged, mixed-race black man lying dormant within.

  That man—was Abram.

  His half-brother.

  Tick ~

  The lab’s sliding doors parted with a quiet hiss.

  A voluptuous woman entered, wearing a sleek white coat and black-rimmed glasses.

  Her hips swayed as she walked, the sharp clicks of her high heels echoing in rhythm across the sterile floor.

  She held a folder in one arm as she made her way over to the dark-skinned man.

  Her long, elegant legs halted in place beside him, heels perfectly aligned.

  Raising her gaze to the silhouette resting inside the pod, she smiled charmingly and said:

  “This multi-layered resin structure, synthesized with mercury-based compounds and sustained by liquid nitrogen cooling, can effectively suspend all high-order brain activity in superpower users—along with the neural operations throughout the body.

  The result? A dual-lock system that shuts down both consciousness and physiology.

  Even if Abram has some ability to bypass physical constraints—without access to his powers, he won’t be going anywhere.”

  The man beside her gave a sidelong glance and smirked slightly.

  “Let me guess... your invention?”

  The mixed-race woman laughed softly, eyes gleaming.

  “Naturally. Without this beauty, how do you think I could’ve captured someone as slippery as Abram? Took me the whole night.”

  “Impressive,” the man said coldly. “When it comes to research targeting our fellow superpower users... You really are a genius.”

  “La la la la~”

  She laughed melodically in place, her chest bouncing with each breath.

  After a moment, catching his cold stare, she pouted in mock disappointment.

  “So boring.”

  Her tone sharpened as she adjusted her glasses, voice now tinged with mockery.

  “What’s with that tone, Sawyer? Why so passive-aggressive? Still don’t believe Abram’s a traitor?

  Are you doubting me? My judgment? Or are you questioning the Boss’s orders?”

  Sawyer Arisandra didn’t flinch. Arms still crossed, he hesitated slightly before replying:

  “I’m not accusing you—and don’t try to label me.

  I just don’t get it. Abram’s always been a coward.

  Why would he, of all people, risk everything to leak intel to the enemy?

  It doesn’t add up. He never cared about politics or ideology.

  He had nothing to gain from doing this.”

  Sawyer shook his head, eyes narrowing.

  “Ever since he returned from the mission to recover the angel’s remains, after leaving Emberlight and coming back to HQ— he’s changed. Grown distant. Cold. Not at all like the jumpy, excitable guy he used to be.

  I’ve got a strong feeling...

  That whatever happened to him—it’s tied to that humanoid nuclear bomb.”

  “Humanoid nuclear bomb, huh...”

  The woman’s eyes narrowed as she let out a playful laugh.

  “What a terrible nickname. You know, it’s basically a meme now.

  Sure, the organization claims some of those destruction videos are exaggerated or fake...

  But if that monkey actually produced a being that powerful—

  Well, that’d be a tale straight out of A Thousand and One Nights.

  Honestly though? I don’t buy it.

  That kind of miraculous power—there’s no way it belongs to inferior races.

  It’s something only we, the advanced human races, are destined to evolve into… and control.”

  “Monkeys…”

  At that word, a glint of cruel ferocity flashed in Sawyer’s eyes. His fingers curled and uncurled—itching to strike.

  He turned to scrutinize the woman, narrowing his eyes.

  “Listen, Miss Supremacist. Spare me the tired racial theories.

  What I’m saying is—this whole situation is off. Really off.

  You’d do well to investigate properly before laying a hand on Abram.”

  “Haha ha.”

  The seductive woman adjusted her glasses, smiling with cold indifference.

  “Sweetheart, I’m not some detective who needs hard proof for every little thing.

  Abram stole classified intel from the organization, and I caught him red-handed.

  That makes him a traitor. End of story.

  If you’ve got a problem with that, take it up with the Boss. Don’t waste your breath on me.”

  “You—!”

  Sawyer’s anger flared. He shot her a glare.

  “Sorren, have you forgotten? It was you who suggested to the Boss that Abram be sent on this mission in the first place!”

  But Sorren seemed entirely uninterested in answering.

  She walked toward the console, her tone distant:

  “His consciousness is currently in a strange state—locked down. I can’t access his memories through psychic means.

  So I’ll have to use more… physical methods.

  Drill past that fragile skull, right into his delicate little brain—to extract what we need.”

  She leaned casually against the console, curves swaying, and tilted her head toward him with a teasing smile.

  “Or maybe… You want to stay and watch the whole process?”

  “Ah ~”

  Sawyer gritted his teeth, sneering.

  “So this is what you’ve wanted all along, isn’t it?

  Finally got the chance to dissect a high-level superpower user.

  I have to wonder—do you even have a shred of humanity left?”

  “Humanity? La la la la~”

  The woman let out a flirtatious laugh, her body trembling with amusement.

  “You, a skinning executioner, talking to me about humanity? Oh, that’s rich.”

  She caressed her chest mockingly, then stopped laughing and tossed a folder onto the counter.

  Raising her eyes, she gave Sawyer a playful wink.

  “What’s the matter? Worried your little brother might die by my hands?

  Relax. I’ll be gentle.”

  “Hmph. What does his death have to do with me?”

  Sawyer snorted.

  “The Boss gave the order—so I’ve got nothing to say.”

  With that, he turned on his heel and strode out of the lab.

  Bang!

  The door slammed shut behind him.

  "Sigh, what a coincidence," Sorren suddenly looked up and announced with a twisted smile, "Abram just so happens to be the 444th person I’ve dissected."

  Crack!!

  A section of the heavy lab door suddenly bulged outward—

  Clearly the result of a violent kick from Sawyer.

  "Ah ah ah ah ah!"

  Inside the lab, the woman clutched her swollen chest and laughed wildly.

  "Sawyer! The damage from that kick’s coming out of your paycheck this week!"

  "Fuck!!!"

  A furious bellow came from the other side of the door, followed by the sound of heavy boots storming off—fading into silence.

  Mockery flickered in Sorren’s eyes as she sneered:

  "Hmph. A mongrel dragged out of the black district’s cesspool."

  Then, turning to the glass container, she giggled:

  "Well then, it’s just you and me now, Abram. Sawyer was worried I’d be too rough— Haha, guess he was right."

  Still grinning, Sorren leaned forward and pressed a switch on the console.

  A series of sharp probes activated, guided by the system, aligning themselves toward the grayish-white resin body sealed inside the glass chamber.

  "You’re not really a spy, are you? Someone’s pulling your strings. Is it neural control? Or something deeper… spiritual domination?"

  Hiss hiss hiss ~

  The probes slithered into the narrow ports in the chamber, inching toward the sphere.

  "To fully suppress both the conscious and subconscious mind of a high-level esper— Even I couldn’t pull that off. What the hell did you go through? I’m dying to know."

  Hiss hiss hiss ~

  The probes crept closer and closer.

  Behind the console, Sorren smiled, seductive and sinister.

  "Come on, Abram. Show me what secrets you’re hiding."

  “You really want to see?”

  A cold voice echoed directly inside her mind.

  Sorren’s face twisted in shock. She spun around, scanning every direction.

  "Who?! Who’s there?! Who the hell are you?!"

  But before she could react—

  A vast, ancient force of spiritual power crashed down on her like a tidal wave.

  The lab twisted. Warped. Became unreal.

  Her surroundings blurred, the scene turning hazy and unrecognizable, as though something had forcibly torn her from the waking world.

  In an instant, Sorren was dragged into a place beyond description— An alien realm that defied logic.

  The lab still looked like the same lab…

  If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  But something deeper than vision whispered to her:

  This was no longer reality.

  Or rather—

  Reality had been buried beneath something far more powerful.

  This place was a phantom dreamscape, shaped by spiritual force.

  Her body here wasn’t physical.

  It was the projected form of her soul consciousness.

  Sorren’s face grew grave. She didn’t act impulsively.

  "A spiritual illusion, huh?" she muttered. "To drag my consciousness into this space instantly— And from such a distance…"

  Her eyes narrowed, glinting coldly.

  "Not bad at all."

  Then, she gave a sly smirk:

  "But as it happens, I know a thing or two about mental power myself. I hate to break it to you— You picked the wrong victim, la la la la~"

  At the mention of this, Sorren’s smile deepened, becoming all the more intoxicating:

  “I didn’t expect that, aside from that damned Lucian, there would be a Psychic Grandmaster of your caliber in this world. What a surprise—no, I can’t wait!”

  She grinned like a thousand-year-old fox spirit hungry for prey:

  “I was just wondering where I’d find a psychic superpower user to dissect and study… and here you are, delivering yourself to my doorstep.”

  “Is that so?”

  A figure of ethereal beauty—half-real, half-illusory—suddenly manifested before her.

  Bathed in an overwhelming holy radiance—

  It was as if a divine being had descended upon the mortal world.

  This was a projection, formed from a trace of Seraphine’s spiritual power.

  “Spiritual projection!”

  Sorren’s eyes narrowed. “So, you must be the one lurking behind the scenes, manipulating Abram. And now you have the audacity to show yourself?”

  She gave a mocking chuckle:

  “Your spiritual intensity isn’t bad—but judging by your actions, you clearly have no idea how psychic combat works.

  Projecting your spirit across such a vast distance, and doing so this early— That’s sheer stupidity. Let big sister give you a lesson: Psychic users are only at their strongest… when hidden in the shadows.”

  She paused—her gaze roaming Seraphine’s projected form—then suddenly froze, as a jolt of realization hit her.

  “No… wait—wrong! You’re Seraphine!”

  Her pupils contracted sharply as she cried out:

  “It’s you!”

  Seraphine responded, calm and poised:

  “Surprised to see me?”

  “Of course I am! The infamous ‘little nuclear bomb’… I’ve been dying to examine your brain and body firsthand.”

  Sorren’s eyes flashed with hungry greed. She let out a soft, manic giggle:

  “That monstrous power of yours… Whatever its true nature, it certainly isn’t weak. Excellent—

  And to think, you’ve come to me of your own will.”

  As the last word left her lips, her eyes narrowed with killing intent—and she shrieked:

  “Spiritual Lash!”

  Crack—crack—crack!

  As Sorren raised her hand, a whip-like stream of psychic energy lashed out, cutting through the air as it surged toward Seraphine.

  "I know your body must be quite strong—after all, it’s the foundation of martial arts. But to me, that means nothing..."

  Buzz ~

  The attack connected.

  But it was like striking air—it passed clean through Seraphine’s body without leaving the slightest mark.

  Seraphine remained motionless, standing calmly in front of the glass container. Her expression was detached, her gaze cold and serene, watching Sorren as if observing a hyperactive grasshopper.

  "...Useless! You! How is your spiritual resistance this absurdly high?!"

  Sorren froze, stunned and bewildered.

  "You think you stand above humanity?" Seraphine’s sword-like brows tightened slightly.

  She studied Sorren’s face for a moment, then gave a soft, almost amused chuckle.

  "So that’s what this is—delusions of superiority. Your ‘chosen one’ complex... you’re clearly not well."

  "Fuck! What do you damned monkeys know?! One way or another, I’ll erase your existence!"

  Rage and panic surged in Sorren’s chest as she stared at the untouched Seraphine.

  Scowling, she unleashed another mental assault.

  "Malicious Dissection!"

  A tall, ghostly giant—pale and skeletal, dozens of palms in height—materialized beside her. It clutched a chainsaw, a scalpel, and a syringe. The floor cracked beneath its feet as it charged at Seraphine, mouth stretched into a bone-chilling grin.

  "Personality Party!"

  From around Sorren, dozens—no, over a hundred—phantom figures erupted. Some laughed maniacally, others wept in despair, and some stood dazed and empty. All at once, they collapsed into a swirling dark purple vortex that let out a bloodcurdling roar as it hurtled toward Seraphine.

  "Neuron Bomb!"

  The air in front of Sorren shimmered. Suddenly, over a hundred skull-emblazoned bombs appeared, bubbling and twitching before launching at high speed like a volley of cursed fireworks.

  "Fox Tail Sword!"

  A heavy gray sword—wide and dull-edged—materialized in Sorren’s hand. With a growl, she hurled it straight at Seraphine.

  In just a fraction of a second—

  An onslaught of chaotic, layered psychic and spiritual attacks converged on Seraphine’s mind.

  Extreme pain stimulation. Multiple personality imposition. Neural system collapse. Instant death hypnosis targeting the core of soul-consciousness.

  "Heh... heh..."

  Sorren grinned with satisfaction. “In this world, I’ve yet to meet anyone who could endure this combo and walk away unscathed—not even you...”

  She hadn’t even finished her sentence.

  The calm, silent Seraphine suddenly erupted—her body expanding into a titanic, blinding vortex of flame and radiance, large enough to engulf half the laboratory.

  In an instant—

  It swallowed everything.

  Every single attack Sorren had launched—devoured without a trace.

  Then, it reverted to its previous form—

  Calm, composed, her posture relaxed and leisurely.

  As if none of the devastating attacks she had just unleashed had ever taken place.

  “…You!”

  Sorren was stunned. Her red lips parted slightly as she exclaimed in disbelief,

  “Your spiritual will… Is it made of titanium alloy or something? It actually devoured everything! How… How is that even possible!!”

  Seraphine gave no response.

  She slowly closed her eyes, silently allowing Sorren’s barrage of attacks to continue hammering away at the strand of spiritual projection she had extended.

  Then, calmly, she reopened her eyes and said, without emotion:

  “The structure of your spiritual power is incredibly primitive—crude and simplistic.

  This spiritual projection I’m using right now holds only one-tenth the strength of yours.

  And yet… I didn’t feel even the slightest hint of pain from your assault.”

  “What?!”

  Sorren’s pupils shrank, and she cried out in alarm, “You… so just now, you were—”

  “Exactly.”

  Seraphine’s expression remained unchanged. “I didn’t bother to defend against any of your flashy, so-called skills.

  I simply let them land—so I could experience their flavor, analyze their construction.

  And the results speak for themselves.”

  She slowly shook her head, eyes filled with quiet disappointment:

  “Flat. Tasteless.”

  “Hmph—Is that so!”

  Sorren’s gaze turned icy. With a sharp sweep of her long, slender arm—

  Buzz ~~

  The laboratory around them shattered into nothing, vanishing from Seraphine’s sight in an instant.

  Beneath her feet, a pitch-black rift tore open with a violent crack.

  Buzz ~

  A terrifying suction force surged upward from the abyss, instantly pulling Seraphine into its depths.

  Whoosh whoosh whoosh ~

  As she fell into the rift, Seraphine felt her body transform— As if she had become a substance with almost no volume, a ghostlike presence in the void.

  In the blink of an eye, she plunged into a seemingly bottomless, narrow passageway.

  Before long—

  She found herself standing in a forest cloaked in ghostly mist.

  Howl!

  Roar!!

  The chilling howls of wolves and deep bellows of tigers echoed all around, sending a cold shiver down the spine.

  The sounds grew louder… and closer.

  It felt like, at any moment, a pack of savage beasts would burst through the mist to tear her to shreds.

  Crunch ~

  As her boots stepped on rotting branches and dried, withered leaves beneath her, Seraphine didn’t panic.

  Instead, a faint smile formed on her lips, tinged with interest:

  “A highly detailed illusion… Vision, hearing, smell, touch—it’s all here. Not bad.”

  Then, Sorren’s voice echoed out, sultry yet cold, drifting from an unseen source:

  “Darling, you’re mistaken. This isn’t an illusion.

  This is the innermost core of humanity’s collective dream—the furthest realm from the waking world.”

  “What you just saw was my Mindscape Realm— The spiritual manifestation of life itself.”

  “In this place, it doesn’t matter how powerful you are in the physical world.

  Even if you could wipe out an entire city with a flick of your wrist—

  Here, that means absolutely nothing.”

  Sorren spoke coldly, her voice laced with malice:

  "In this place, you can’t access the power you’re meant to wield. In the end, you’ll only be torn apart by me."

  "Ah ~"

  Seraphine chuckled softly. "I’m looking forward to it."

  "……"

  "Hmph!"

  Her voice vanished in an instant.

  The very next second—

  From the depths of the boundless mist, hundreds—thousands—of savage beasts came tearing through, launching a ferocious assault.

  But Seraphine didn’t move an inch.

  She stood still, calm and unflinching, making no effort to resist as the beasts came barreling toward her.

  Yet, when the horde descended, snarling and howling—

  They passed right through her.

  Her projection remained untouched, as though they were separated by a parallel dimension.

  "How dull."

  Seraphine shook her head slowly. "If you're going to use a dreamscape to kill, you at least need me to believe these beasts are real. Something this crude? It’s laughably ineffective."

  "……"

  Hidden deep within the forest, Sorren clenched her jaw, eyes burning with silent rage.

  "Hmph!"

  With a sharp, disdainful snort, the thick mist dispersed.

  The towering trees around Seraphine began retracting into the earth, one by one.

  Swish ~ Swish ~ Swish ~

  Suddenly, the distant sound of waves echoed forth.

  In the blink of an eye, the entire forest clearing was wiped away, replaced by a vast, endless stretch of pitch-black ocean.

  Swish ~ Swish ~

  Dark waves rolled across the surface as winds howled freely through the air.

  Looking out, the sea stretched on with no visible end.

  "What you see now..."

  Sorren’s voice drifted across the water, distant and resonant—

  "...is the very essence of my mind!"

  "My mind is the sea—boundless, devouring all that lives!"

  "And you—" her voice sharpened, "you’ll be swallowed by my consciousness, reduced to nutrients for my evolution!"

  Seraphine stood upon the shadowy surface of the sea, her figure steady and poised.

  She calmly surveyed the dark waters around her, absentmindedly stroking her smooth chin, a faint smile on her lips:

  "So that’s what this is..." she mused aloud. "Unlike ordinary mental illusions—this is something deeper. A metaphysical spiritual illusion."

  "This so-called Mindscape Realm... it’s a projection of your perceptions, desires, and worldview—

  materialized upon the spiritual plane."

  "And the essence of your consciousness... the base tone of your thoughts..."

  "Is this filthy, polluted sea."

  Her voice was relaxed—almost amused.

  "You’re thoroughly immersed in your own convictions.

  Heh. Adventure, conquest, plunder... the pirate mythos."

  "Not bad!"

  The sultry voice echoed in return.

  "That’s right, my dear little nuclear bomb... No matter how strong you are physically, in here—it’s meaningless."

  "Only one with a stronger mind, a more dominant essence, can overcome me."

  As her voice faded—

  From the depths of the ocean, massive tentacles—as thick as water tanks—burst upward and coiled tightly around Seraphine’s body, dragging her downward—

  Pulling her into the sea.

  "Gurgle gurgle gurgle..."

  Beneath the silent ocean surface, the water darkened further, growing thick and ominous.

  Seraphine—limp and unmoving like a stunned fish—was tightly wrapped in massive, writhing tentacles, dragged downward into the endless abyss of the deep sea.

  300 meters.

  500 meters.

  1,000 meters.

  3,000 meters.

  10 kilometers.

  In mere seconds, Seraphine’s entire field of vision was swallowed by a suffocating, ink-black darkness.

  The boundless black seawater surged forward like a living, malevolent will—intent on consuming, infecting, and overtaking her very thoughts.

  But this wasn’t water.

  These were emotions—pure, concentrated negativity, almost tangible in form.

  It was a sea of emotions.

  Ignorance. Loneliness. Nihilism. Weariness. Grief. Despair.

  Emotions like venom, gnawing at the soul itself.

  They tore into Seraphine’s thoughts, invaded her mind, battered her spirit, and clawed at her soul—

  Trying to dissolve her, engulf her, erase her.

  For an average high-level superpower user, the impact would’ve been catastrophic. Their consciousness would collapse in seconds, leaving behind an empty, hollow husk.

  Even Vuron, if resurrected and caught off guard, would’ve needed to fight tooth and nail just to survive— and even then, his chances of escape would’ve been uncertain.

  But Seraphine?

  Seraphine, whose mind alone had already far outstripped the entirety of Earth’s civilization?

  To her, this spiritual storm was no more threatening than a weak breeze sneaking in through a door’s crack.

  It didn’t even make her blink.

  To put it plainly— the mental impurities she expelled during her last advancement to Martial Saint, even a single speck of them, surpassed this so-called abyssal sea in both scale and potency.

  In fact, Seraphine found this environment pleasant.

  The tail of the 【Mind】 fish swimming in her sea of consciousness wagged with joy, frolicking as it eagerly absorbed the emotional information around it—growing stronger by the second.

  Truthfully, this was the reason Seraphine had come in the first place.

  The moment she projected a spiritual clone into this laboratory, she felt the 【Mind】 fish within her main body stir slightly— as if it were drawn to something resonating deep within this place.

  A psychic frequency.

  A force synchronized with the soul.

  Otherwise, given how overwhelmingly busy she was—

  Why would Seraphine ever waste her time playing house with this woman?

  She was nothing more than a disposable puppet—

  The kind Seraphine’s main body could erase with a single glance.

  

  Just at that moment—

  Seraphine, who had thus far allowed Sorren to act freely without offering any resistance, finally spoke—slowly and calmly:

  "You truly impress me.

  Thank you… for showing me that beyond the universe built entirely from matter—

  There exists another aspect—no, another dimension—one constructed purely from information.

  I finally understand why the Dimensional Pocket exists, and what it relies on for support."

  Not bad at all.

  Not only had the 【Mind】 been refined to perfection…

  But within this so-called Mindscape realm, created by Sorren herself, Seraphine had unexpectedly sensed a world beyond reality.

  And regardless of what kind of world it was— It represented an escape.

  Seraphine had not forgotten the looming threat of the Shadow of the Unreal.

  In the material universe, Seraphine’s main body slowly opened its eyes.

  Bzzz~~

  While Sorren was still fully immersed, painstakingly maintaining the illusion of the Mindscape—

  She completely failed to notice it.

  A vast, incomprehensibly powerful spiritual force had just descended from the above.

  It tore through Earth’s atmosphere in an instant, pierced the surface, and used Sorren’s Mindscape as a springboard—

  Then leapt—

  Straight outside.

  Leaving behind nothing but an empty shell.

  Gulp!

  It felt like falling into an abyss.

  After breaching Sorren’s Mindscape—

  A portion of Seraphine’s spiritual power entered a realm shrouded in haze—

  A strange and unfamiliar world.

  This was a place overflowing with prismatic brilliance, stretching endlessly in all directions.

  A surreal void, with no sky and no ground.

  Seraphine’s spiritual senses surged forward through this world—

  A space like a colossal, living, three-dimensional oil painting.

  As she drifted, she 'saw' immense clusters of colorful “clouds” hovering in the void.

  These clouds—

  Some were no bigger than a house.

  Others the size of cruise ships.

  A few… as massive as mountains.

  They drifted aimlessly through the darkness—

  Some fast, some slow.

  Sometimes colliding, sometimes passing through one another like phantoms.

  In this vast, endless, dark void—

  Seraphine’s Spiritual Projection sat quietly, cross-legged, unmoving.

  She strained to read and decipher every information in her surroundings.

  At the same time, both her Eye of True Revelation and Chaos Calculation activated on their own, operating at full intensity.

  She wanted to determine exactly what this place was.

  After a long while—

  Seraphine finally came to a realization:

  “This place… is the back of reality.”

  “A realm governed by mental and spiritual forces.

  A domain filled with endless dreams, psychic projections, spiritual illusions—

  The drifting thoughts of all sentient beings.”

  “It’s… not unlike the Warp Space from the Warhammer 40K universe.”

  She turned to gaze at the floating clouds and murmured:

  “These are dream projections from the minds of Earth’s inhabitants…

  Each one born from the collision and fusion of countless fragmented dreams.”

  “As for that woman’s so-called Mindscape realm—

  It’s nothing more than a patchwork of stolen fragments.

  Bits of dreams sliced from countless minds…

  Then sewn together and merged with her own spiritual essence.”

  “Which means…”

  Seraphine mused aloud:

  “This place should be the 【Spiritual Dimension】—

  Subtly referenced in 《Dragonblood》, but never directly described.

  Or perhaps it's more accurate to call it the 【Psychic Dimension】.”

  “And furthermore, if my guess is correct—

  The true form of the so-called Dimensional Pocket must exist somewhere within this illusory layer of space-time.

  It connects to physical reality through some kind of ‘gateway’—

  Allowing the practitioners of the Box of Hephaestus to perceive and access it.”

  Buzz ~

  Within the Ocean of Knowledge, the 【Mind】 fish suddenly accelerated its growth.

  A few minutes later, it began to slow down.

  It wasn’t fully complete—

  But it had matured to nearly eighty to ninety percent.

  Only the final one to half a tenth, dragging at its tail, refused to grow any further.

  “What’s going on…?”

  Seraphine narrowed her eyes slightly.

  Eye of True Revelation and Chaos Calculation instantly activated.

  And within a single second, the answer surfaced in her mind:

  【External major source information is sufficient; internal minor source information is lacking. Unify the internal and external to unlock the secret of the mind】

  “Ah… so that’s the reason.”

  The all-wise Seraphine understood instantly.

  The external ‘major source’ referred to this Spiritual Dimension.

  The ‘minor source’, then, must point to intelligent beings themselves.

  But the question remained—

  How was she to obtain it?

  Buzz ~

  Eye of True Revelation + Chaos Calculation surged into motion again.

  One second later, a complete answer and process formed in her mind:

  【Use peerless mind to pierce the Illusionary Aberrant; use endless pain to crush distorted evil souls. Harvest the innate spirituality hidden within both souls to obtain the internal kernel information of the minor source of the mind】

  “The Illusionary Aberrant… I remember reading something about that in the original work.”

  She recalled:

  It referred to a unique group of beings—those born with the ability to naturally penetrate the Spiritual Dimension with their soul power and harness a particular kind of force.

  “They’re somewhat like the naturally gifted psykers in the Warhammer universe.”

  Seraphine paused in thought.

  “That woman… she fits the description. She should be what’s known as an Illusionary Aberrant.”

  “And as for the distorted evil souls—those must be creatures or entities whose essence is inherently chaotic and disordered.”

  “Using the mind to pierce the soul, and using pain to crush it…”

  She frowned slightly and murmured to herself:

  “Does this mean conventional methods can’t extract the innate spirituality from sentient beings?”

  Her two core abilities activated again.

  After just a few seconds, she had her answer:

  【Soul is illusory in comparison to the body; Awareness is void in comparison to the soul—thus, sentience is the void within the void】

  【That which is of extreme void cannot be grasped by force within the void. Even spiritual power—representing the void nature of soul—cannot truly seize it】

  “Ah… so that’s why it’s so troublesome. Understood.”

  “Still, I need one Illusionary soul, and one evil soul.”

  “That woman outside… she’ll do for now. As for the other…”

  She gazed into the vast, swirling Spiritual Dimension—a distorted, starlit expanse like a cosmic aurora.

  Her voice was calm:

  “No rush. Let’s explore this place a while longer.”

  Having spoken—

  Seraphine’s projection blurred, her form dissolving into a streak of shimmering spiritual light.

  Then, without hesitation, she shot off—

  Racing into the boundless void in a random direction.