Chapter 484: This Is Youth

Days went by.

The bookstore had nothing busy going on; it was a leisurely job. Outside the shop, an antique-style alchemical car, spewing smoke, drove by.

"Does the God of Beautiful Dreams awaken the darkness within human hearts, converging into aberrations of the human mind?" Xu Zhi remained seated at the bookstore's entrance. He was merely an observer, his main objective still focused on the gourmet world.

The gourmet species were already relatively complete; it was time to introduce an intelligent civilization.

"As for which humans to choose..."

He pondered continuously, finding it surprisingly difficult to decide this time.

As days passed, Miraki, a high school student, often came after school when there were few people. He gradually grew familiar with Xu Zhi and even called him Uncle Messiah, showing no particular surprise at the name, as many people shared it.

However, Miraki gradually grew distressed.

One day, he couldn't help but confide in Xu Zhi, "What should I do? The class president and Xiya have noticed something strange about me. They think I'm possessed by some mysterious evil god and are planning to go to the church..."

He couldn't help but complain; now that his secret of reading adult books had been discovered, he began to completely open up.

During today's break, Xiya had become weightless. She accidentally fell from the library's upper floor, and he caught her; she felt as light as a fallen leaf.

"I named her aberration 'Heavy Crab'… The Heavy Crab is incredibly heavy and can crush people. It absorbed all of Xiya's weight onto itself," Miraki whispered. "I secretly investigated and found that Xiya's family situation caused her immense pressure, which she had suppressed... It seems this pressure transformed into the Heavy Crab... and now, as she wished, she herself has no 'pressure'."

An aberration formed from pressure, and because of it, she lost her weight?

The person herself floats like willow catkins in the wind?

Xu Zhi found it very interesting. Sitting in the bookstore, he quietly listened to the boy's complaints and silently jotted down notes in a book.

Companion Aberration: 001Name: Heavy Crab, Heavy Stone Crab.Characteristics: Formed from bearing immense, heavy burdens of pressure. Once separated from the host, the host loses all pressure, feeling very light, effectively losing all body weight.

Very interesting...

Isn't it?

It seems that treating the God of Beautiful Dreams as having amnesia has brought a huge surprise.

At the same time, Xu Zhi pondered, "Because of the God of Beautiful Dreams' characteristics, the unique aberrations generated by people around them, though incredibly weak, could they become like ordinary aberrations? Could they absorb others' dark resentments and emotions to grow stronger? Could they cultivate their own aberrations?"

Two more days passed, and Miraki returned to complain again. The naive boy grumbled incessantly,

"I secretly investigated again, hinting around... The evil god the class president possesses—the Obstructing Cat—originated because, in her kindness, she tried to save a white cat hit by a car. It didn't survive and had to be buried by the roadside, leaving her deeply guilty... Now, every night she sleeps, she's controlled by the malicious evil god within her, jumping all over Kad Town, even draining people's vital energy..."

Miraki was almost at his breaking point.

The kind and intelligent class president, a top student, became like this because of him... The guilt of not saving the kitten was merely that—guilt.

And now there are only two people, both kind classmates... This influence might even expand in the future. What if they encounter wicked people who use this power to commit evil?

"It's alright. As long as you're stronger than them, you can defeat them! You caused their existence, so it's up to you to eliminate them!" Xu Zhi handed him a book from the adult world, kindly offering comfort and patting his shoulder. "Young man, become stronger."

Miraki was momentarily stunned, then nodded heavily. He then blushed and shyly opened the book.

Xu Zhi continued to write, recording:

Man-made Aberration: 002Name: Obstructing CatCharacteristics: Generated from inner kindness, resentment, and regret over a dead cat. Transforms into a cat at midnight, controlling the body; specific details unknown.

Another week passed.

Something terrible finally emerged.

It seemed that someone nearby had developed this power and was using it for evil. Their aberration was terrifying, seemingly a type of alchemical bomb that could possess an object and explode. It also came with a terrifying peculiarity: murder cases appeared in town where all victims were women and had lost their hands.

Miraki completely broke down and came to complain.

Xu Zhi smiled, merely encouraging him lightly, "You need companions. Lead them to become stronger together."

Confusion was writ large on Miraki's face.

Two days later, he had no other choice: he brought a beautiful high school girl with an innocent, bewildered expression, who seemed to be his class president. The two teenagers, blushing, secretly began to flip through the books, exuding youthful energy.

Three more days passed, and another person joined them, seemingly Xiya. The trio came daily to quietly read the books, absorbing the desires and dark emotions people left behind in these adult books.

"This guy is truly straightforward; he even brought his crush to curl up in a corner and read books together..." Xu Zhi was somewhat dumbfounded.

Several more days passed.

The influence of the God of Beautiful Dreams continued to spread wildly throughout Kad Town.

Throughout the town, more and more people developed aberrations. Though very weak—not even reaching the first stage and only slightly stronger than ordinary people—these symbionts, who generated aberrations within their hearts, began to try to control their minds...