Crack!
A sound like something shattering echoed.
Nie Hong instantly opened his eyes.
He gasped for breath.
Mithra was slightly surprised. When she smashed Nie Hong's head, a red dot appeared on his body, then shattered. The red dot reformed, and Nie Hong seemed to have been reset.
Clang.
The throwing knives that had been stuck in his hands flew out, blood splattering around. The brain matter and blood that had been scattered everywhere instantly gathered back together.
That must've been the life lock?
Nie Hong sat on the ground, dejectedly sliding backwards until his back rested against the wall. He looked at Mithra in fear.
Mithra stared back at him.
Silence fell between them, neither of them making a move.
Seeing his fear, Mithra raised the hammer.
Nie Hong flinched. "Don't hit me anymore! Don't hit me anymore!"
Mithra lowered the hammer. "Tell me about the Enchanting Land."
Nie Hong remained huddled for a long time before reacting. "What?"
...
"Okay, let's summarize."
"The Enchanting Land is actually what you call Planet Blue. Planet Blue has a unified federal government. It originally relied on real science and technology to develop its civilization, but one day it suddenly established contact with Dreamland. It was discovered that people from your Planet Blue have the ability to freely travel between the two worlds. It also brought in the power of miracles, changing the trajectory of history."
Mithra's voice was steady and calm.
Nie Hong seemed a little less dejected than when he had been revived, but he still looked apprehensive at Mithra's expression.
"...Yes, that's basically it," Nie Hong nodded in response to Mithra's summary.
"Ugh," Mithra sighed. "It's not 'Earth' but 'Planet Blue.' Oh well, let's endure it. At least this isn't so bad."
"Huh?"
"So, you people from Planet Blue, relying on having multiple lives, are fearless...?" Mithra turned to ask.
Nie Hong's face reddened. He lowered his head and said, "Actually... this is the first time I've died..."
Oh, alright, so he's a fearless kid.
"Will the life lock recover?" Mithra continued, her mouth full.
Nie Hong thought for a moment, then said, "If you can spread the miracle activation organs throughout your body and achieve complete sensory perception, you can add to the life lock's limit. The life locks that have been used up can also be recovered... You can also use a large amount of external sense power to heal. This will require collecting a lot of dispersed sense."
Dispersed sense... Safin had mentioned that before. Besides natural growth, it was a way to supplement sense power. But Safin had also said that supplementing external sense power was very easy to get lost.
"How do you travel between the two worlds?" Mithra asked the next key question.
"Through transmission points. A type of point that only we, the people of Planet Blue, can see. It looks like a small blue-purple cross. For us, they're everywhere in both worlds. The transmission points in Dreamland are interconnected and can be used for transmission, and any point can lead to a transmission point on Planet Blue," Nie Hong explained simply.
"I see," Mithra nodded.
Even though she didn't know if she could use them, based on the description when she exchanged for the Night Eyes, she had a life lock, which meant she was probably considered a person from Planet Blue, or perhaps the Enchanting Land.
She might be able to see those so-called transmission points and go to Planet Blue.
But with these things, it was too easy for people from Planet Blue to travel in Dreamland. She didn't know how large Dreamland was, but it certainly wasn't small.
Being able to quickly travel through these different transmission points was really powerful.
Plus, the existence of life locks.
The people of Planet Blue were excessively favored in Dreamland. If this was a deliberate arrangement, it showed a clear preference for Planet Blue.
Oh well, she was too lazy to think about this. She would figure it out later. Worldbuilding was the most annoying thing.
"Alright, thank you for your explanation."
"You're welcome. Thank you for not killing me," Nie Hong was undoubtedly more compliant than he had been earlier.
It really was better to beat people up.
"There's one more thing I want to ask you," Mithra said.
"Anything I can do, I will do my best to complete!" Nie Hong bowed his head.
"Teach me Ki miracles."
"What?"
...
Just a short while ago, this person had smashed his head, and now she was sitting seriously in front of him, asking about miracles.
Nie Hong couldn't have imagined such a surreal situation.
From a young age, he had heard countless incredible tales about Dreamland. Stories of people exploring its depths, uncovering miraculous opportunities, and ascending to prominence abounded. Every year, new legends were born, and even those close to him weren't strangers to such experiences.
This unending stream of success stories drove countless individuals from Planet Blue, Nie Hong included, to embark on their own journeys of exploration.
Even though schools repeatedly emphasized the dangers of Dreamland, it was hard to suppress the adventurous spirit of the young.
But now, one profound brush with death had seared the reality of those dangers into Nie Hong's heart, leaving him deeply shaken and fearful.
"…That's it," he muttered at last. "When you're first learning, remember that Ki is related to the human body's blood circulation. It's the power contained in flowing blood—it's life, proof of being alive."
Nie Hong awkwardly explained, using his own Ki to guide Mithra in sensing it. The process was clumsy, and though he tried his best, it was clear he wasn't a natural teacher.
Mithra, meanwhile, silently manipulated the throwing knives still embedded in her shoulders.
She activated Stabilize first.
Ding.
The Ki originated in the abdomen and radiated outward, spreading through the body. It used one's own life energy to affect external objects.
This kind of miracle was about unlocking latent potential to enhance oneself. Ki, however, also influenced external manifestations.
Though blood had many special properties, when intertwined with Ki, its essence became more closely aligned with concepts like "circulation" and "movement."
Even with these concepts in mind, sensing Ki was no simple task.
Mithra found Ki to be more elusive than other senses. Even as she actively regenerated and stabilized herself, it evaded her grasp. Unlike the other miracles she'd learned, Ki resisted her attempts to summon it directly.
After a long silence, Mithra opened her eyes. "I still can't do it."
She glanced at Nie Hong without further comment.
Even without words, her stare made Nie Hong sweat. He could feel her doubt—whether he was teaching her correctly.
Panicking, he exclaimed, "Ki miracles are extremely rare and hard to master! It's not my fault! I wouldn't teach you wrong out of spite!"
After a moment's hesitation, he added nervously, "Sometimes, sensing things like this just needs an opportunity. Ki can be much more active under certain conditions."
"Such as?"
"The most relatable examples would be… anger or drinking."
"I don't get angry," Mithra stated flatly.
Nie Hong looked at her, recalling her earlier reactions. From the moment he provoked her to the instant she crushed his head, her expression had hardly shifted.
Quietly, he pulled a small, rectangular, transparent glass bottle from his jacket pocket and handed it over.
"This is…?"
"Liquor," Nie Hong explained. "A type of—"
"I know. How old are you?"
"Twenty-one..."
Mithra clicked her tongue, disappointed she couldn't scold him for underage drinking. She reasonably suspected he was lying, but it wasn't worth pursuing.
She inspected the bottle, tilting it slightly.
[Two-Headed Bottle" Liquor: A common, stable brand of liquor in the Enchanting Land. Ingredients…]
Nothing suspicious stood out.
"I have a very powerful Ki miracle that requires alcohol to use," Nie Hong said hesitantly, scratching the back of his head.
He didn't sound very convincing. Considering how decisively Mithra had attacked earlier, he doubted she'd let him drink mid-battle without knocking him unconscious first.
Mithra twisted off the cap and took a long swig.
The liquor burned all the way down, and her face flushed as her throat convulsed violently. She nearly spat it out, coughing behind her hand.
Nie Hong winced. "Are you okay? I wouldn't dare drink that much in one go—"
Hiss—
A red energy began to ripple from Mithra's body.
Nie Hong's eyes widened.
It actually worked?!
Though his explanation had been true, he hadn't expected such immediate results. He'd been gambling on her reactions, yet she activated Ki just like that!
The energy flare subsided as quickly as it had arisen, leaving Mithra calm and composed once more.
"Ahem. Good," she said with a nod, her tone neutral. "I can feel it now. Teach me the specific miracles."
Nie Hong nodded mutely, too stunned to argue.