Freud and Angor had arrived at the Skyward Tower, a five-story landmark structure Angor found at the Land of Revelation. It was the current tallest building Angor “summoned” into the dream wasteland.
“You work fast. A moment away and we got so many new faces.”
“All for our research.” Freud grinned. “Besides, I like it when it’s not so empty.”
Angor nodded and agreed to Freud’s plan. He also would like Jon to be with more people.
They entered the tower ahead and saw three women wearing the same uniform busily doing some paperwork at their desks.
“I found them on their brink of death,” said Freud. “They were in the same condition as Labor, where they suffered from that deadly plague. They used to be secretaries and are good at management work, so I asked them to keep an eye on all the new and old folks while arranging supplies and manpower.”
Using “nightmare vision”, Angor noticed a sheet with Daruk’s name on it on top of the paper pile. The file showed some basic information about Daruk, which didn’t contain anything worth noticing. It seemed Daruk was a common laborer without any particular expertise.
Compared to him, Daruk’s grandfather possessed an interesting skill—wood carving.
“We allowed them places to live and sleep, and we told them to pay for the rent by honest work,” Freud explained. “So they don’t get lazy and become a burden to the group.”
Angor nodded in consent and went to check several more files. Apparently, Freud did thorough investigations on every “test subject” who joined the community while also observing the condition and completeness of their consciousness.
They heard clanking noises coming from the entrance and saw a group of people carrying several giant crates past the door.
“Oh, they’re responsible for searching for and classifying valuables, books, and other resources we can use. They’re tasked to check through the buildings you brought here on a daily basis.”
“Good job.” Angor gave Freud the look of approval. “You got the whole place in good shape so fast.”
“Heh. I was prepared for such a job when drafting my initial research objectives. I never thought this would come true though.”
“Good thinking. But I can’t let you manage these mortals for too long, that would be such a waste to your potential.”
“Yeah… This is why I want to build a complete society and let them take care of themselves. We don’t know how long their consciousness can survive here. I still need to find more capable hands to ease the job.”
“You’re free to deal with the mortals however you like. Just don’t neglect our original task.”
As they talked, they moved to the balcony on the top floor, which allowed them to gaze upon the whole community. Apart from the Skyward Tower, there were another two eye-catching structures—the golden-colored cathedral and the Ocean Theater, which were located at the far ends of the settlement.
“We don’t have enough people yet, but we can well consider this place a brand new city now. Have you come up with a name for it, Mister Padt?” Freud looked at the well-established colony below with a proud look.
“That man named Labor said something about a new world. I never thought of it in this way before, but now I feel as if I’m actually creating a small world of my own.”
Angor then shook his head. That was ridiculous—this was the dream wasteland with a bunch of people’s minds who could never appear in reality. Nothing here was real. The mini-worlds within Sorcerer’s Gardens were more genuine compared to here.
Although the dream wasteland had other advantages, such as facilitating long-range communication.
“Foundation. We’ll call the city the ‘Foundation’ from now on.”
This was the foundation and the beginning of one of his great ambitions. With a sure footing, he could readily continue pursuing his dreams.
“The foundation of our dream…” Freud muttered.
…
Soon, the new name of their city was passed to every resident.
Most people summoned here did not have a clue what awaited them in the future, or whether their “new lives” were real at all. Knowing the name of their new home had slightly settled their uneasy minds.
“I’m Daruk from Foundation City. This sounds good!” Daruk shook off several kids from his legs and read the notice board.
Even though he and his grandfather weren’t openly treated as slaves, the citizens from Waterford still despised them. He would never have dreamed of owning a house and becoming a true citizen like this.
“Sort yourself out, ya big oaf!” Labor nudged him. “Learn to be proud. I don’t want my brother to see your silly look.”
Daruk let out a silly chuckle. He knew Labor meant well. It was also Labor who welcomed him when he first came.
Meanwhile, Labor was wondering something on his own. Since he came to the city, he asked people several times about where this place was. Yet nobody told him. But today, as soon as the “master of this world” showed up, the official name of the city was determined.
“Foundation… Well, at least everyone likes it!”
…
From today, criminals or respected heroes alike would all discard their past and begin anew in the Foundation City no matter where they came from before.
After naming the city, Angor spent a moment discussing the current result of their project with Freud. All in all, the citizens were meant to help them ascertain the effectiveness of their “consciousness preserve technique”. Angor needed to make sure he could place Jon in dream wasteland in the long run.
“I’m still working on a thorough result. At least nothing bad happened for now. As far as I can see, they are now ‘living’ in the dream,” answered Freud.
“Yeah… But this is still not enough.”
Angor didn’t find it safe to determine Jon as a permanent citizen of Foundation yet, but he was planning to let Jon have a glimpse of the city beforehand, which should be no problem.
After bidding farewell to Freud, he woke up from the dream wasteland and quickly used Dream Enkindle again.
This time, he landed at another spot far away from the Foundation City. The only thing in view was his Gondola sitting in the wild.
He jumped onto the boat and began climbing until he reached the true embodiment of this nightmare domain—the glowing domain sphere.
Since his body had recovered enough, he wanted to try absorbing more power from the sphere. The “Dream Gate” was obviously not the best one he could get. He urgently needed something that allowed him to better secure his dream wasteland.
However, as he touched the sphere and felt its radiating power, he got a feeling that he was not up for it. An unknown instinct was warning him that he was not in his top condition. Forcefully taking another power would only waste it, or worse, it might damage his spirit.
He could feel that he was approaching the climax of his current level. Perhaps that was when he would finally be ready to accept the new power.
“Just a few days…”
With nothing more to do in the dream wasteland, he hid the sphere back in the sky and left.
