"Art of Nature: Aurora Meditation? What’s that? Is it something important to you?"
Nyx’s curious voice sounded as if it were the first time she heard that peculiar name, and with Jacob’s explanation, she could tell it was extremely important to him.
However, Jacob’s eyes flickered violently as if completely awakening into reality, and he instantly realized that just now he had said too much, and it was probably caused by living in the Nightmare as a Zodiac Beast.
"You don’t need to worry too much about it. Anyway, how long was I inside the Primary Nightmare?"
Jacob changed the topic without intending to explain the Art of Nature, since it was also one of his secrets from his previous life.
Moreover, now that he had gotten a clue about the next meditation of the Art of Nature, he wanted to quickly return to Whiteness’s Dreamscape Realm, especially if the scene that he saw was really because of a Dreamy Overlap and part of some other Dream or Nightmare.
"Tsk, and he’s back." Nyx sounded annoyed by Jacob’s indifference, but her voice was tinged with a sense of relief since he was finally being himself.
"Well, if you want to know, it’s been around nineteen years since you entered that Primary Nightmare, and considering the previous time you spent in the Dreamscape Realm, you hadn’t been in your real body for almost eighty years!" Nyx replied nonchalantly as she had always been indifferent towards the concept of time, unlike Jacob.
Jacob’s eyes flickered with a hint of astonishment as he gravely said, "I’ve been inside that Primary Nightmare for almost two decades? But..."
"...it doesn’t feel like that long, right?" Nyx cut him short while scoffing, "The concept of time doesn’t exist within a Nightmare or Dream because they aren’t part of reality. That’s why time in a dream or nightmare always varies, sometimes increasing and sometimes decreasing, depending on the dream’s or nightmare’s nature.
"In our case, like those who infiltrate and devour someone else’s dreamscape, the concept of time can be prolonged or expedited, depending on our proficiency in Dreamscape Law, and how quickly we can find the source of the Dream or Nightmare we target.
"Despite your first time, it only took you nineteen years to fail, but you still made quite a lot of progress, and trust me, I thought it would take over fifty years to reach failure or at least over a hundred years to reach completion. Yet, here you are, I’m quite impressed. I guess my talent is just that monstrous, hehe~!"
Jacob ignored Nyx’s bosting and asked sternly, "Since it’s like this, I understand. How soon can I return?"
"The backlash doesn’t seem severe, so you can start again in a few days. But I would recommend resting for at least a year before you start again. Use this time to reflect on your gains and deepen your understanding of the Dreamscape Law and Nightmare Eater ability." Nyx sincerely advised.
Jacob merely nodded as if he understood and changed the topic, "How are things progressing on your end?"
"Well, if you’re asking about the Nightmare Plan, heh..." Nyx snickered proudly as she furtively said, "Check your lifespan, I know have some ability to keep track of your lifespan. Check it, and you’ll know about my progress."
"Oh?" Jacob’s eyes flickered with a hint of anticipation, and without hesitation, he called, "Cursed Immortality!"
______
[Cursed Immortality: Cursed Immortal Physique (Nine Phases)]
{Current Phase: Third Phase}
---
-First Phase: Body Transformation (Completed)
-Second Phase: Cosmic Crucible Totem Skeleton (Completed)
-Third Phase: Infinity Anatomy of Cursed Immortal
-Stages of Third Phase: Two
-First Stage: Cursed Flesh and Tendons
-Second Stage: Compete First Stage
---
-Inheritor: Jacob Steve
-Current Phase: Third Phase (First Stage)
-First Stage Progress: 0%
---
-Lifespan: 201,755 Years (All Youthful)
---
[Third Phase of Infinity Anatomy of Cursed Immortal: Cursed Flesh and Tendons]
-Cursed Flesh and Tendons: 0%
...
...
...
______
When Jacob saw his lifespan on the first page of the Cursed Immortality, the anticipation in his eyes was replaced with a grim glimmer.
"You only manage to accumulate just over one hundred and ninety thousand years in seventy years?" Jacob berated with disappointment, and a hint of anger, "Are you even taking this thing seriously? The last time I checked, a Legendary King’s lifespan could go up to 100,000 years, and a Legendary Lord’s up to 25,000. So, even if you take around a year to plant and then reap your seeds, it should be much more than just this."
"Whoa...are you hearing yourself?" Nyx retorted, feeling accused and wronged rather than praised for her hard work.
"I’ve been working extremely hard to gather lifespan for you! Although I know it’s somewhat lacking from even what I’ve imagined, it’s still better than nothing. You have no idea what’s going on outside, even though you’ve secluded yourself here.
"Something huge has happened, and because of it, the Star Network and Undying Network seemed to be on high alert, so I need to be very careful not to expose the Nightmare Server. Even Black Mechanic suggested the same.
"Not to mention the activities of Legendary Kings and Legendary Lords within the Virtual Star World have been extremely low for many years now. I’ve hardly seen a Legendary King within the Virtual Star World for almost thirty years now.
"While the Legendary Lords also rarely enter the Virtual Star World, I had no choice but to target those Legendary Nobles, who, by the way, are also getting harder to find, and the Fable Legendary State. Lastly, I even went as far as to target those weaklings below the Legendary Rank!"
At this point, Nyx was screaming with resentment, "I’ve done everything I can while also keeping an eye on you so nothing untoward happened to you, and yet you are still blaming me!"
Jacob was startled after hearing Nyx’s unexpected, violent outburst, and was speechless because he really had no idea about anything, and thought Nyx had been wasting time on gambling while he was risking his life within the Dreamscape Realm.
’I jumped the gun too soon. Could it be because I’m agitated after finding out about the Aurora Light, or I’m still being influenced by the Primary Nightmare?’
No matter what, Jacob knew it was his fault this time, and decided to take a step back, and with a slight mellow tone, he said, "I seem to have blamed you wrongfully. Just what had happened?"
But Nyx seemed to be really angry as she retorted with exasperation, "Hmph, go find yourself!"