novelnext Chapter 4431 Platform and Train
Chapter 4431 Platform and Train
Chapter 4431 Platform and Train
Nine stone pillars, each with a different pattern: ancient tree, sun and moon, solitary peak, rushing stream, tall tower, evening crow, clouds and wind, fairy, and dream.
Actually, none of these patterns are particularly unusual; if you try to guess, it's hard to make any connection.
But when Blanche suggested that these patterns might be connected to the concept of "Dawn City," the group, with this answer in mind, tried to apply the formula again and actually found new clues.
“This ancient, verdant tree is somewhat similar to the ancient tree in the sacred courtyard inside the Church of Radiance,” Camillo said.
When he went to investigate information about Uriel and Guleimo, he passed by the Holy Courtyard of the Church of Radiance, where there was an ancient tree at its core.
"The ancient tree in the sacred courtyard seems to be associated with some religious stories... I didn't pay much attention when I passed by."
Camillo paused here, and Guleimo added, "I know that tree. It is said to be a pure branch bestowed by the gods, requiring the purest children to sing for it and the most devout believers to water it. In this way, when the end of eternal darkness comes, it will become a sacred tree that protects Dawn City."
“When I was a child, I sang hymns there as a member of the noble choir. It was then that people in the church told me this story.” After saying this, Guleimo curled his lip: “But this story sounds like a load of rubbish and made up.”
As soon as Gulemo finished speaking, Rigota gently tugged at his sleeve, "Brother, I've already been resurrected in the New World, so maybe that tree really does have some extraordinary abilities?"
Gulemo thought about it and agreed. Just as he was about to nod, Camillo said from the side, "That tree really doesn't have any extraordinary abilities. It's just an old tree with a forced story."
"However, on the other hand, since this tree has been in the Sacred Courtyard since you were very young, and has brainwashed batches of newcomers to regard it as the sacred tree that protects Dawn City... then from a certain perspective, it seems to represent Dawn City as well."
"That does connect with what Blanche said."
After the ancient tree pattern was confirmed to be related to "Dawn City", everyone became even more excited.
Keep trying to find the answer.
Before long, new answers emerged one after another.
"Lone Peak," claimed by Uriel, has an overall shape that closely resembles the summit of the mountain behind Dawn City. Looking at just one peak, Guleimo didn't recognize it at all, but if you make connections with the answer in mind and recall the mountain peaks near Dawn City, the answer becomes clear.
"Benliu," which almost everyone agrees refers to the River of Trouble, which flows through the city and is regarded as the mother river of Dawn City.
"Cloud and Wind" was pointed out by Rigota. Birmingham Eden College once had a college project called "City Songs", in which different departments composed a song for different cities in the Great Sman Empire. The city song represented by Dawn City was "Cloud and Wind".
"Sinking Dream," like "Cloud Wind," doesn't have a general meaning and should theoretically be difficult to associate with Dawn City. However, it was actually the fastest among all the stone pillars to be identified. This is because Dawn City's largest opera house is called the Sinking Dream Opera House.
So far, eight of the nine stone pillars have been identified as being related to "Dawn City," but the association with "fairy" remains elusive, leaving everyone unsure of where to begin.
At this moment, Juanjuan spoke.
"What exactly the fairy refers to is no longer important. Because according to our previous speculation, the fairy is most likely also related to Dawn City."
"Knowing this, we can confirm that the nine stone pillars represent nine anchor points, and that they are anchored to... Dawn City!"
Blanche: "But now that we know this, what should we do?"
Juanjuan glanced at Blanche and said softly, "What they're going to do can actually be gleaned from the information about the dungeon that Angel mentioned earlier."
"The special dream realm 'Dawn Dream' is about to begin."
Current number of participants: 0
"Mission objective: Not yet activated."
"Note: At least nine anchor points are required for the initial activation of Dawn Dream."
After briefly explaining the information about the dungeon, Juanjuan asked Blanche, "What do you think is the most crucial part of this information?"
Blanche instinctively replied, "Precautions."
Nodding wearily, she walked gracefully to Blanche's side and asked, "But we've already found all nine anchor points, so why hasn't 'Dawn Dream' been activated yet?"
This question stumped Blanche instantly.
Seeing that Blanche couldn't answer, Tired wagged her tail gently, "The answer is actually already in the words... What does 'needing nine anchor points' mean?"
"What is needed is to obtain 'increment'."
"Logically speaking, when 'need' is mentioned, it usually starts with the existing stock and then adds more."
"In other words, the nine anchor points we just deduced are not recognized by the copy."
"It is precisely because they do not recognize it that the Dream of Dawn has never been activated."
"So where does the problem lie?"
Blanche felt sweat beading on her back from being stared at so intently. She now had the illusion that she was being interrogated by the teacher during morning reading to see if she understood the meaning of the text.
...I should have known better than to ask the question.
Although she regretted asking the question, Blanche still followed Juanjuan's train of thought and pondered the answer.
"Perhaps the nine anchor points suggested by Wonderland are different from the anchor points we've found?" Blanche said cautiously.
Juanjuan gave her a deep look and nodded gently: "Half right."
"There are only two answers: either, as you said, the nine anchor points required by Wonderland are not the nine stone pillars, but other anchor points."
"Or perhaps the nine stone pillars here are indeed the anchor points we are looking for, but they are not currently effective and we need to find a way to make them effective and become a valid increment."
Juanjuan's explanation was rather obscure, but it essentially conveyed the same meaning: either the stone pillar wasn't the correct anchor point for the instance, and they had chosen the wrong one; or the stone pillar was indeed an anchor point, but it wasn't activated yet and needed to be activated to become a truly effective anchor point.
Blanche asked instinctively, "So, which one is the answer?"
Blanche regretted asking the question as soon as she did. Why couldn't she hold back and ask again? What if Juanjuan tests her again?
Fortunately, this time Juanjuan didn't ask her the same question again.
“I think both answers could be correct.” Juanjuan looked at the nine stone pillars in the hall: “The stone pillars should be anchoring Dawn City. They are indeed anchor points, but they are not necessarily complete anchor points.”
Seeing the confused expressions on everyone's faces, Maomao sighed and explained, "Let me give you a simple example."
"Let's assume these nine stone pillars represent nine train stations on a map: Ancient Tree Station, Sun and Moon Station, Twilight Crow Station, Tower Station..."
"These nine stations are not connected to each other, but they all have a single final destination: Dawn City."
"What do you think is still missing?"
The answer is... the train.
Juanjuan looked at everyone's expressions to make sure they understood the example it had given, and then continued, "So, with nine unconnected platforms, it would take nine trains to reach Dawn City."
"And these nine trains, in my view, are nine mediums, or you could say nine new anchor points."
"It not only revitalized the existing platforms, but also became a new addition."
"Therefore, a stone pillar can be an anchor point, but it is not the only anchor point. An intermediate medium needs to be added to make it a complete anchor point."
At this point, Juanjuan wagged its tail: "See, this is what I meant earlier, both answers are correct."
Blanche thought for a moment and asked, "I think I understand what you mean, but the problem is, the platform is here, but where is the train?"
Upon hearing Blanche's question, Juanjuan gave her a very human-like glare, flicked her tail, and slapped Blanche's instep: "When you ask this question, it means you didn't understand what I meant."
"Since I've already mentioned the train, think carefully about what role the train plays in this situation?"
Blanche was speechless for a moment, on the verge of tears. She shouldn't have asked.
Seeing that Blanche couldn't answer, Juanjuan said helplessly, "The train also points to Dawn City, which means that the train also has attributes related to 'Dawn City,' even more so than the platform."
"Because the platforms are located on the map, they are fixed, and they can't actually go to Dawn City. But trains can. Trains can stop at the platforms and also reach Dawn City."
"Think carefully, what kind of medium possesses both of these characteristics?"
Blanche: "..."
She felt the answer was right on the tip of her tongue, but for a moment she didn't know how to say it.
On the other side, Camillo noticed Blanche's embarrassment. He sighed and couldn't help but chime in, "You, me, him, everyone here is a train."
As soon as Camillo uttered those words, Blanche immediately understood.
It seems that's really the case!
The stone pillar is merely a "platform" located in the secret hall. Although it points towards Dawn City, the platform cannot actually reach Dawn City.
And everyone present was connected to Dawn City, or even currently in Dawn City and its surrounding areas in reality. Wasn't this a ready-made "train"?
In the instance, they are at the "Platform"; in reality, they are in "Dawn City".
They possess both characteristics simultaneously—isn't that what they're referring to?!
Most importantly, there were exactly nine people present!
No, it's eight people plus a cat.
In short, there were exactly nine "trains" on site, which perfectly matched what Juanjuan said!
"In other words, the nine anchor points in the fairyland's hints could very well refer to both these stone pillars and... us!"
Juanjuan nodded: "Yes."
“The answer has been found, but what do we need to do to activate the platform, become a train, and arrive at Dawn City?” Blanche asked again.
Juanjuan: "We can consider this a complete activation ceremony. The nine stone pillars are the foundation that has already been laid out; and we are the practitioners participating in the ceremony."
"If nothing unexpected happens, as long as we follow the fixed rituals, we should be able to activate the setup here."
After Juanjuan finished speaking, she saw Blanche looking at her with bright, sparkling eyes.
"I know you're probably wondering what the fixed rituals are here."
“I can’t be sure either, but I guess there’s some kind of ‘resonance’ between the stone pillar and us.”
"So, let's each choose a stone pillar and see if there is such a 'correspondence,' or rather, the feeling of being chosen in the dark."
"If it exists, it means my speculation is correct."
……
Angell had already arrived when Juanjuan uttered "Anchor to Dawn City" and witnessed the entire subsequent events.
He didn't know if Juanjuan's answer was correct.
However, it must be said that its logic is completely self-consistent.
In this almost empty, secluded hall, Angell couldn't think of any other answers.
Therefore, its guess is most likely correct.
Moreover, what Juanjuan didn't know was that after the last Mr. Sun entered the vortex, the extreme celestial phenomena in the outside world disappeared.
At that moment, nine people entered the main hall of the secret room. —Let's count Juanjuan as one of them.
Nine people, nine stone pillars, nine anchor points.
This perfectly corresponding number is actually the final answer.
After reaching a conclusion, looking back at the process reveals that there's actually very little that can be done. The nine people each responded to the nine stone pillars, making the process essentially a done deal.
After arriving at this answer, Angell couldn't help but feel a little emotional.
He maintained a God's-eye view and was an observer; with a little thought, he could figure out the answer, but it's hard to be as clear-headed as Juanjuan, who remained so clear-headed even when he was in the thick of it.
"This black cat is indeed extraordinary."
……
Inside the secret hall.
Following the advice of the black cat Juanjuan, everyone found a stone pillar.
However, most people did not find any "correspondence" with the stone pillars they found at first. Only Mr. Sun looked at the stone pillar in front of him, seemingly lost in thought.
"I should correspond to... the Sun and Moon Pillars."
The imagery of the sun and moon resonates with the Sun and Moon Wizard, which is why Mr. Sun and Ms. Moon arrived here almost simultaneously.
However, Lady Moon didn't feel any "response" while standing there, but Mr. Sun felt, after reaching out to touch it, that the stone pillar seemed to have some kind of connection with him.
He explained his situation.
Upon hearing this, Juanjuan immediately said, "Then we can basically confirm that everyone should have their own unique stone pillar... Although we don't know how the dungeon selects the corresponding pillar, just like how 'fairy' refers to Dawn City, it doesn't matter. What matters is that we find our own corresponding stone pillar."
Everyone nodded and began to wander among the different stone pillars, trying to find the pillar that "resonated" with them.
Because of the example of Mr. Sun, everyone thought that feeling "echoing" would not be difficult, but after actually experiencing it, they found that it was also very difficult.
Simply touching the stone pillar is not enough to feel anything; one must have an experience similar to "resonance".
This "resonance" is similar to a mental interaction.
For extraordinary individuals, entering a meditative state naturally leads to this kind of interaction.
Therefore, the several extraordinary individuals present quickly found the corresponding stone pillars through meditation.
Lady Moon corresponds to the Raven Pillar, Tired Black Cat corresponds to the Fairy Pillar, Blanche corresponds to the Dream Pillar, and Camillo corresponds to the Lone Peak Pillar.
The remaining few were ordinary people who had never meditated, and they were bewildered when faced with the stone pillar.
At this moment, Blanche stepped forward.
Through "Snowy Owl's Wardrobe," she donned her familiar detective glasses and, in the voice of the great detective Raefel, taught everyone how to meditate and how to interact with the stone pillars while in a meditative state.
About fifteen minutes later.
Sean was the first to sense his own stone pillar—the Torrent—through meditation.
Afterwards, Rigota, Uriel, and Guleimo also gradually entered a meditative state and successfully found their respective stone pillars, which corresponded to: Cloud Wind, Tower, and Ancient Tree.