Although Selene suspected that the original owner had used a different, unknown Tantra to communicate with the Old God and make the exchange, and that she hadnât found any notes left by the original owner when sheâd read it before, but⦠what if? She took a few deep breaths, using meditation to relax her mind. Selene rubbed her temples, dispelling her confusion, then touched the cover of the ãShedding of Skinã and gently opened it.
A warm, smooth sensation came from her fingertips. Seleneâs movements were gentle, as if she were caressing her loverâs face, as she touched the pulsating growths on the cover. The detailed text on the yellowed pages entered her eyes, wriggling like parasites that had found their host.
Seleneâs pupils dilated slightly, her gaze lost in the words.
From her legs to her head, her skin was gradually covered in faint scales, like some kind of snake, revealing a strange blue-black color in the lamplight.
The scales stopped spreading when they reached her neck, and then they began to fall off, one by one, landing on the bed and floor, carrying a faint, metallic smell of blood.
After the scales fell off, the tips of Seleneâs ears gradually became pointed and elongated. Her fingers became slender, her skin more delicate. Her hair color also faded somewhat, from dark black to the same gray-white as Richterâs. Her entire body shifted, becoming more similar to, yet also subtly different from, a human⦠If Louise had been there, she would have noticed that Seleneâs appearance was now closer to that of an elf.
Selene was unaware of these changes.
She was no longer in her room. Instead, she saw a vast, magnificent landscapeâtrees stretching as far as the eye could see, but their color wasnât a vibrant green, but a shimmering silver-white.
It was a snow-covered forest. A biting wind howled through the snow and ice. The swirling snow obscured the sky, leaving only a dim darkness.
Selene, looking at the scene before her, pondered.
âShe didnât think sheâd been teleported. She should still be in her room. This scene was probably just an illusion.
Or⦠she had entered the dream world.
The fragments of the thoughts of all beings, the transit station for souls and consciousness.
The reason she came to this conclusion was that she could see the wind swirling the snow, the ice crystals on the canopy, but she didnât feel the slightest chill despite being in this snowy world. This clearly wasnât normal.
â¦If Tantras came from the dream world, then entering the dream world after reading a Tantra seemed normal⦠Louise had told her about something similar. Someone once read a Tantra that recorded the history of the ancient âHewesâ Dynasty, and was pulled into the dream world, witnessing the final prosperity, glory, and collapse of that ancient dynasty, seeing how the Punishing Strait descended from the heavens, dividing the continent and creating the current two human empiresâ¦
It was said that he lived for three hundred years in that dream. When he woke up, he became a leading scholar in the field of history, his authority second only to the immortals who had lived since the Fourth Era.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Is this whatâs happening to me? But what does this scene have to do with the âShedding of Skinâ?
Selene unconsciously reached out to touch her forehead, but as she did, she noticed something unusualâher hand was too small, the proportions were wrong, and there were small scratches on it.
This is a childâs hand! Am I a child in this dream?
After realizing the changes in her body, she noticed more details in the scene before her. She suddenly realized that she wasnât standing on the ground, but floating in the airâ¦
No, standing on something in the air!
She shifted her gaze, seeing more.
Beneath the snow-covered canopies of the forest, countless wooden, man-made structures were emerging. They were grand corridors, stretching out from the shadows and converging on an even more magnificent structure.
It was a temple floating in mid-air, its flying buttresses and the murals on its outer walls its most distinctive features. The upper half was a closed, square structure, with no windows or other openings, only doorways at the end of each wooden corridor. The lower half was a silver-white inverted pyramid, covered in dizzyingly complex patterns.
Floating corridors and temples, ancient wonders amidst a swirling snow.
âWhoaâ¦â
Selene paused, letting out a sincere exclamation.
She was now standing on one of the wooden corridors. Perhaps because of her smaller size, the wonder and shock of this scene were even more pronounced.
A majestic mountain, seen from afar or from above, would also inspire awe in the viewer. But only when you stood at the foot of the mountain, looking up at its cloud-piercing peak, would you realize your own insignificance and feel the overwhelming sense of its untouchable heights.
Selene quickly regained her composure and walked towards the end of the corridor, preparing to enter the temple and explore. After all, this was a dream. Even if she died, she would only wake up in the real world. Taking this opportunity to gather more information was the correct choice.
She walked through the corridor, its walls covered in murals, and entered the temple unhindered.
The interior of the temple was just as impressive as its exterior. Hundreds of wooden pillars rose from the ground, like real trees growing towards the sky. Though their purpose was unclear, they were certainly magnificent⦠But besides that, there didnât seem to be anything noteworthy.
Selene casually wandered around the temple, but couldnât find any altars or statues, which should have been present. Besides the hundreds of pillars, the only noteworthy thing was a sunken floor in the center⦠But there werenât any hidden doors or anything else of interest.
In a sense, this temple was âempty.â
â¦Why?
Was it truly empty, or were some things hidden, requiring certain conditions to appear?
Did she need to press a switch? Did she need to chant the names of the gods? Orâ¦
Selene went to a pillar and tentatively pressed her hand against it.
Nothing happened.
She then chanted a few names she was familiar withââLord of Light and Heat,â âCreator of Mountains, Rivers, and Life,â âPrimal Awakener,â âInfinite and Endless Observer,â âGod of Storms on the River of Time,â âProtector of Spirits and Thoughtsâ¦â
All names of the deities.
Still nothing.
It couldnât be that she had to chant âLord of Sin and Knowledge, Source of Desire and Wisdom,â could it?
Selene stroked her chin, thinking to herself.
A second later, the large pillar next to her changed.
First came a deafening roar from within the pillar. Then, the bark on the surface of the pillar seemed to be burning, peeling off, revealing seven dark holes, from which a pale, dirty liquid flowed, leaving seven trails down the pillar.
As Selene watched, stunned, a series of twisted symbols and drawings appeared beneath the pillar, at eye levelâ
âWe worship the Scholar of Sinâthe long-abandoned God, the God of Death and Desire, who will ultimately replace the Glorious God of this world.â