She could not guess the exact reason, but it was very likely they knew about another World, the one she had transmigrated from. Honestly, she had already been prepared for that possibility, since Violet had been put together right in front of her eyes. There was no way she would have no thoughts at all after that.
Vera had also imagined that one day, after mastering her studies, she would return home in a grand Dragon-king-returns fashion. She had heard that when Spatial Magic was developed deeply enough, a single step could cross the far side of the stars, so crossing between Worlds might not be impossible. If Ham's Spatial Magic could really cross worlds, then with that absurd luck, could he randomly guess his way back to his original World?
"Um, can I ask a few questions?" "…If you can manage to tear down your illegal construction, I might consider it."
Ham knew at a glance what Vera was thinking. He could easily pry open her head and look through her thoughts, but there was no need. "So do the answers count as part of the payment, or is it really just a consideration?" "If you can tear it down, then you will be qualified."
"…Qualified?" What kind of thing was that? Was knowledge about another World some kind of polluted taboo in Otherworld? Vera asked carefully, curiosity mixed with caution. "Is what I want to ask dangerous?"
"It used to be dangerous, but not anymore. You might be one of the exceptions though." The danger was not in the knowledge itself, but in what it was connected to. Back when dozens of remnants still lingered in Abyss, anyone who learned too much about them and the old world could become a source of contamination.
Conceptual Authority worked in an unreasonable way like that. Once it spread, it could directly affect the foundation of World's existence, since the current World was essentially a reflection in light. If the false cognition of Void was overturned, the world could be destroyed as a result.
However, there were always rare exceptions. Certain people who already knew would not be affected and would not overturn World. And the sources of danger had already been wiped out by Belial, to the point that even the ashes were mixed into cement. So when Ham said there was no danger, he was serious, and Vera immediately started sweating.
She was glad she had not recklessly asked earlier. Who knew what she might have turned into if she had heard the wrong thing? This was not paranoia. Based on her knowledge and the materials she had researched from the Empire, some knowledge really did have that kind of power.
Some Gold-level beings who grasped Laws, or true existences at Ascendant Hall and above, could do things like altering rules. Knowledge itself was an excellent carrier for that, so it was not strange at all. "If I fail to rebuild it properly, what level of strength would I need to learn that knowledge?"
She asked this even though she had been dazzled by the opportunity at first. She could not guarantee she could tear down an illegal structure that was obviously not simple. "How strong are you now?" Ham asked, eyes widening.
Vera straightened her chest confidently. "Almost Gold!" At her age, even geniuses supported by massive resources usually capped at Black Iron or Silver. If she had not spent so much time tightening screws, she would have entered Gold already, so why not be confident?
"Not enough." "Then what level do I need? I'm confident I can handle something like Laws…" "One level above Gold. Or three levels above Ascendant Hall. That should be enough. How about it, confident?"
"…Huh?" She did not understand the part about jumping a level above Gold, since she had never even heard of ranks beyond it. But jumping three levels above Ascendant Hall roughly meant White Tier, at least a Sanctum Domain.
In terms of her previous life, that was like founding an entirely new academic field, with your portrait at the start of the textbook and your name carved into history forever. Did such people exist? Yes, and she had heard of one. A thousand years ago, someone named Safas had founded and developed the path of Spatial Magic.
To learn that knowledge, she would need to reach that level? What exactly had she asked for? She was just an ordinary college graduate. Even with a cheat, the main game was not cleared yet, and she was already being asked to solo-create DLC. "You're not lying, right?" "You guess."
She would rather Ham be lying. If just hearing the knowledge required such an impossible height, then what kind of height would it take to truly return home? In the end, she sighed. Honestly, she was not that attached anymore.
After decades here, she had long passed the stage of breaking down at the thought of her hometown. Otherworld had many interesting things, and she lacked nothing here. Her life was pretty good. Wanting to go back was mostly curiosity, and if it did not work out, so be it.
Then a thought struck her. If Ham had not lied, and knowledge required that level, then what about him? "Ham, can I ask? What level are you at? Are you at the level that can hear that knowledge?"
After swallowing, she asked. Ham thought for a moment. "Heh, you guess." "You think I'll guess?" "…Fine. I'm not that strong. I just grabbed onto a big thigh. I'm still a bit short of that realm."
He gestured with his fingers. Vera felt something was off, even if she could not pinpoint it. Ham thought he was not lying. Being short in reverse was still being short.
Although Divine Kingdom and Authority had already been smashed into Shard by Belial with a Red Lotus Dragon, among all forces below the over-limit existences like Belial and God of Darkness, Ham realized he had unexpectedly become a ceiling-level presence. If the other two over-limit forces were counted, he was at least third in the world.
After hearing about the big thigh, Vera relaxed. That explanation was reasonable. But then she looked around again. It was just barren wilderness, with no obvious buildings. "So, um, where is the illegal structure I need to tear down?"
"It's right here. Just move a bit to the side and you should walk into it." She obediently moved aside, but nothing happened. After a moment, seeing Ham's look, she suddenly realized something.
"Are you messing with me?" "No. Do you think demolition pay is that easy to earn? This is the first step. If you are not even qualified to find the target, you are not needed." "Look, Chloe lying there can go in whenever she wants."
Chloe noticed Vera's stare. After a moment of thought, she reluctantly put down her snacks, stood up, and casually took a few steps. Then she vanished in front of Vera. For an instant, it looked as if a slit had opened around her body like Rend, with thick black fog pouring out and swallowing her whole.
It looked frightening. The next moment, Chloe walked back out calmly and lay down again to watch. Seeing this, Vera did not give up. As long as it existed, it was within expectations.
"Then there's nothing I can't analyze and recreate." "I got where I am today through my own effort." "Cheat, come out. Heavenly Craft Creation. Analyze!"
Golden patterns lit up on her forehead, spreading to her eyes. The cheat called Heavenly Craft had several functions, such as Rapid Fabrication she had used earlier with Ham, which could turn raw materials directly into known technical products.
Of course, there was a cost. There were losses, and the analysis function consumed research points, which were hard to obtain. The only way to replenish them was through gaining new knowledge, constant learning, and producing high-tech items.
This cheat could analyze almost everything Vera encountered, except that unknown power furnace. The rest was just a matter of research point consumption, depending on her existing knowledge. For example, Ancient Steel was so expensive that she doubted she could ever gather enough points to analyze it.
Now she did not need to analyze the illegal structure itself. She only needed the hints to find the entrance. After years, she no longer cared where the cheat came from. If it worked, it worked.
"Found it… huh?" After turning around a few times and spending a large amount of research points, she finally found the entrance. It was a pitch-black door, but what she saw made her freeze.
She rubbed her eyes and looked again. "So… Ham wasn't lying?"
Disbelief showed in her eyes. The mark next to the door was one she knew very well. It was the indicator for items made through Heavenly Craft Creation. In other words, this thing had really been made by her own hands.
That meant she had built something this mysterious without even knowing it. What was going on? It could not be that she had a sleepwalking habit. "Can I check the information?"
She tapped the mark mentally. Normally it would show manufacturing data and usage, but this time the golden screen only showed black smears like blockbusterblockbuster. The item label displayed just one simple word.
[Door] Function: …