Chapter 664 – Dreamweaver World 2

Mo Lan flew in that direction, cold wind whipping past the tips of her hair. She squinted, carefully studying the street layouts and building outlines below.

She needed to figure out where she was, and how long until dawn.

Judging by the hourglass clock beside the city square, there should be about four hours until daybreak.

Mo Lan used the Book of Cards to create a timepiece calibrated to the Dreamweaver World’s timekeeping system, then synchronized it against the hourglass clock.

“Canaan New District First Middle School, Federal Canaan Administrative Office, Canaan City Dream Research Institute, New District Citizen Management Center…”

Using the street signs, Mo Lan finally figured out where she was.

This should be Canaan City, the former capital of the Dreamweaver Federation.

Before the dream realm appeared, Canaan City had been the economic and cultural center of the entire Dreamweaver Federation — the most prosperous city in the world.

It had once been a bustling metropolis, neon advertisements blazing day and night, private flying cars so numerous that travel had to be staggered by time slots.

After the dream realm became connected to the real world, humanity grew increasingly focused on development within the dream realm, which in turn began influencing reality.

People who had witnessed the vast expanses of the dream realm gradually lost interest in the skyscraper-filled metropolis.

Canaan City declined along with electrical technology.

Illusory Dream City, built by the Dreamweaver Federation around the dream realm, replaced Canaan City as the new capital.

There were no forests of steel and concrete there, but rather buildings styled after dreamscapes. Walking the streets were not only humans, but also bizarre creatures materialized from the dream realm.

By comparison, Canaan City’s skyscrapers felt cramped and suffocating, offering a miserable living experience.

Even the people of Canaan City had begun developing southward, establishing a new district there that better suited the needs of humanity in the dream era.

The skyscrapers of the electrical technology age were thoroughly marginalized, becoming an old district that few bothered to visit.

The old district’s public safety, living environment, and everyday convenience all fell short of the new district.

The uppermost floors of the old district buildings had now largely become government welfare housing. The impoverished, orphans, and disabled individuals could all apply to the federal government for free housing.

The lights Mo Lan had seen on her approach came from these residents.

Every day after dawn and before sunset, public flying cars on fixed routes would travel from the new district to the old district, making brief stops on the rooftops of old district buildings.

They would linger only a few minutes, picking up those who needed to go to the new district for work or errands, then depart quickly.

As for the middle and lower floors of the buildings, they were already in a semi-abandoned state.

Some served as hideouts for underground gang members; others were refuges for undocumented individuals or criminals.

Mo Lan was currently undocumented herself. She needed a place to settle down to receive the Dreamweaver World’s task assistance. According to the information she’d read, the knowledge infusion process would involve a period of mental confusion and disorientation — she needed to find a safe place.

The skies of the Dreamweaver World were crisscrossed with various aircraft — private flying cars, cargo robots, patrolling federal air police… Receiving a knowledge infusion on a flying carpet was not a good option.

In the new district, everything was under surveillance. Any activity required identification, rent wasn’t cheap, and she could hardly just produce a room out of thin air.

Whether it was obtaining money or getting identification, neither could be accomplished quickly.

By comparison, the old district’s free housing suited her better.

Even if conditions were poor and things were chaotic, none of that would affect her.

Mo Lan flew back over the old district, her gaze sweeping across the buildings below as she considered which one would be best for temporary shelter.

Even thick reinforced concrete couldn’t block her Witch Sight.

In her perception, the entire old district presented a mottled energy landscape. The power of life flickered like fireflies, Death Force spread like ink stains, and the strange auras of residual magical energy were interwoven throughout.

The old district had virtually no greenery to speak of. The greatest source of both the power of life and Death Force was people themselves.

Using these, Mo Lan could distinguish which areas were most bustling and which were most desolate.

The southern part of the old district bordered the new district, with more public flying car stops. The power of life was most concentrated there — it was likely the most densely populated area of the old district.

More people also meant a greater chance of being disturbed.

Mo Lan eliminated this area without hesitation.

Next was the northern part of the old district. This was farthest from the new district, and the Death Force was thickest here — clearly the most chaotic area of the old district. Gangs, fugitives, and even more dangerous things could all be hiding here.

There must have been quite a few deaths for the Death Force to be this concentrated. Mo Lan eliminated this area as well.

To the east of the old district was a large zoo, its iron cages long since rusted away. In the largest city square, the fountain had dried up, weeds grew from between the paving stones, and the surroundings were lined with unfinished buildings.

Colorful residual Magic drifted through the air.

In the Dreamweaver World’s reality, there was no naturally occurring magical energy in the air.

If a human mage from Valen were here, they wouldn’t be able to use any Elemental Magic at all — only Psychic Magic would still work.

Mo Lan relied on her own Mana for spellcasting and didn’t depend on environmental magical energy, so she wasn’t restricted.

However, her natural Mana recovery was also affected. She had to rely entirely on Energy Storage Cards to restore her Mana.

Under these conditions, the humans of the Dreamweaver World could only recover magical energy within the dream realm.

Clearly, people frequently practiced Magic brought out from the dream realm here.

Mo Lan had no desire to be caught in someone else’s stray Magic during her knowledge infusion, so she eliminated this area too.

Finally, Mo Lan’s gaze settled on the western part of the old district.

The energy field here was relatively calm — the power of life was thin as mist, and the Death Force was no more than a faint shadow.

She used Divination Magic to probe carefully and found a forgotten residential district here.

The matchbox-like apartment buildings were packed tightly together, the gaps between them so narrow that neighbors could practically shake hands through their windows.

Water and electricity to the residential area had long been cut off. Broken pipes hung from the exterior walls like dead vines.

The nearest public flying car stop was three kilometers away — even scavengers couldn’t be bothered to visit this place.

In the entire complex, there wasn’t a single living soul.

The fewer people there were, the safer Mo Lan felt. The corner of her lips curved upward slightly — this was the ideal hiding spot.

She chose a building with a relatively intact exterior and inspected it thoroughly from top to bottom.

The rusted elevator shaft gaped like a monster’s throat. The stairwells were piled with the rotting remains of furniture.

She memorized every corner, every doorway, every room’s coordinates, constructing teleportation routes in her mind for emergencies.

In the end, she chose a windowless room on a middle floor.

The heavy concrete walls blocked out all light and cut off any prying from the outside.