The Pure Vessel grew in the White Palace, and he was indeed strong enough to suppress The Radiance head-on.
The White King led Hallownest's strongest and wisest bugs, using magic to seal The Radiance into the Pure Vessel's body.
From then on, The Radiance was forever separated from the world in the Dream World.
Hallownest prospered day by day.
But this golden age was built upon piles of bones at the bottom of the abyss.
...
The Little Knight found the White Lady.
The Lady opened her blind eyes.
"Oh! A bug has come. It has traveled a long way to find me. Does it need my help? Or has it coincidentally arrived at this place connected to itself?" The Lady murmured, "Yes, yes, I am waiting for you. No, perhaps that's not quite right. I am waiting for a creature like you. I have a gift, one I've always wanted to give to someone like you. It's only half; after you find the other half, you will gain great power. You will definitely need such great power on your future path."
White light gathered in mid-air, condensing into a white fragment, which the Little Knight stepped forward to pick up.
The Lady continued, "It fought against that child with a gender? She is quite fierce. Her will and body are both very tough, carved from the same mold as her mother, though they didn't share much time together." This was referring to Hornet. "I never envied Wyrm for being disloyal in trade; in fact, I even quite liked that child."
"Oh, it seems it has also met another child. He is very individualistic, full of ideas, and very kind. You should receive his selfless help, and I hope you two can walk the same path." This was referring to Simon.
The Little Knight listened completely and silently departed.
A voice whispered in his ear, "Dream Nail… Dream Essence… Awaken," "White… Palace, go to White… Palace."
Inspired, the Little Knight ventured deep into various parts of Hallownest to seek powerful lingering dreams.
In Queen's Gardens, he defeated Marmu, the guardian of roots and leaves.
In Fungal Wastes, he defeated Elder Hu, who was attacking the Mantis Tribe.
In Howling Cliffs, he defeated Gorb, the Great Mind.
In Deepnest, he defeated Galien, who yearned to be a Knight.
In Kingdom's Edge, he defeated Markoth, the proud warrior.
In Crossroads, he defeated the False Knight's dream—the Failed Champion.
In Ancient Basin, he defeated the Broken Vessel's dream—the Lost Kin.
...
After collecting enough Dream Essence, the whispers in his ear mentioned the Seer, so the Little Knight hastened to Resting Grounds to meet the Seer.
A plump little bug sat quietly by the Seer's leg.
"Ah, Wielder, you have returned. Let me see the Dream Nail…"
The Little Knight displayed the Dream Nail, and the Seer exclaimed, "Yes. The time has come. Wielder, now is the moment for you and the Dream Nail to awaken. The essence you have collected… that hope still lingering in the ancient kingdom. It is pure potential! You must guide them, inject them into the Dream Nail. Raise it, Wielder! Awaken!"
The Little Knight held the Dream Nail high, and a fierce, fiery light surged, as if he were holding a brilliant torch.
The entire Resting Grounds trembled, seemingly bearing witness to this grand spectacle.
A crisp popping sound rang out.
Dream Essence, in the shape of delicate circular patterns, soared into the sky. Rocks, soil, plants—dreamlike pillars of light, like reflections of another world, effortlessly passed through obstacles, reaching straight for the heavens, transforming into a galaxy of stars.
The beautiful scene was fleeting, and the Dream Nail had already awakened, now capable of entering minds protected by the most resilient defenses.
The whispers in the Little Knight's ear urged, "White Palace… King's Soul…"
The White Palace had already vanished into mist.
But the White Palace was truly real.
The King's Idol guarding the gate, its dream protected by the most stubborn will, locked by the deepest seal.
The White Palace was within its dream.
The Little Knight entered the King's Idol's dream with the awakened Dream Nail.
He arrived at what was once the palace square, now a pure white expanse. Metal gleamed with its true luster, white clouds drifted across the clear and bright sky.
Noble and radiant, pristine and brilliant, the residence of Hallownest's King was naturally the most magnificent and prosperous, starkly different from the desolate, grey-black landscape of later times.
The Little Knight walked to the palace gates, where the King's Idol stood solemnly on guard, attacking without hesitation upon encountering an enemy. The King's Idol was indeed Hallownest's most outstanding Guards, essentially the same as the Vessels—bound Void matter, terrifyingly strong.
But the Little Knight was, after all, the Little Knight. His swordsmanship, like a scalpel dissecting organs, gradually peeled away the idol's tough armor, plunging his sharp Nail into that mass of black shadow.
The idol fell, and the Little Knight looked up, his gaze passing over the gate. Beyond it stood towering palace buildings, shrouded in clouds, like a celestial kingdom where gods walked.
The gate gently opened, and the Little Knight stepped into the White Palace.
Soft silver light shimmered, and decorative techniques so exquisite they defied imagination made the place look almost like a futuristic city from science fiction. The palace's style indeed possessed a subtle, restrained elegance and precision, almost too perfect to be real.
Everywhere was luxurious, everywhere meticulously crafted, everywhere rigorously precise.
This was truly a sight that could only exist in a dream.
This White Palace was no longer the historical White Palace.
After the White King's mysterious disappearance, his subjects fell into obsessive madness. Seeing Hallownest's order slowly collapse, the records of the Five Knights and the Pure Vessel were erased by the False King. The former glory was meticulously and gradually purged by schemers. Unwilling royal retainers collectively sealed the great White Palace, located in Ancient Basin, into the Dream World.
Thereafter, all traces of the White King vanished completely; only the King's statues scattered across Hallownest could still recall that supremely wise monarch.
Although the White Palace in the Dream World was a physical entity, it had been assimilated by the dream and could be warped by a powerful will.
The royal retainers waited painstakingly for the White King in the White Palace, but with no results, their increasingly warped minds completely altered the surrounding environment.
The former peace slowly disappeared, the paths became broken, and the current White Palace was filled with traps and mechanisms.
Overgrown thorns, sharp spikes, and rapidly spinning circular saws filled every empty space in the White Palace, making progress here extremely difficult.
The Little Knight walked on the palace's mirror-smooth floor, his posture calm. The murmuring retainers along the way, seeing his white exterior and the noble king's brand, seemed to recall the past in a trance.
That slender figure, too, had walked through his kingdom with such unhurried grace.
The royal retainers all knelt.
Crying out loudly:
"King!"
"My King!"
"My most exalted King of Hallownest!"
--+--
T/N: Although I'm an inexperienced Editor, I do have a Patreon account! Although it seems like I don't have many supporters right now, my webnovel will be released in full every day, and the advanced chapters will be uploaded to Patreon.
It may not be worth it now, but who knows, it might be different in the future. Who knows!
patreon.com/Greyhounds
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