CHAPTER 317: CHAPTER317-THE GENEROUS EMPEROR OF MIND

"This is the Mind Core," the Emperor of Mind explained slowly, his voice carrying a note of reverence. "It is also the single most important location within the Mental Plane."

"So what you mean is... you want me to destroy it?" Daniel asked, his tone tinged with an odd, almost mocking inflection.

The moment those words left Daniel’s lips, the Emperor of Mind’s expression changed drastically—sheer alarm flashing in his eyes.

"No, no! Why would you even have such a terrifying idea?" he said, his voice rising slightly. "The Mind Core is the very object that sustains the existence of the entire Mental Plane. It stores the thoughts of countless living beings."

"If you were to destroy it, those beings would lose everything they have ever thought, every memory, every spark of consciousness they once held."

Daniel blinked at that, momentarily stunned. He had not expected the Mind Core to be of such immense value.

The Emperor of Mind, seeing Daniel’s reaction, continued speaking in earnest.

"In fact, you might not believe me, but if the Mind Core were to be destroyed, all beings of mind within our Mental Plane would perish instantly."

"That is why I’m asking you to help me sever the connection—not to annihilate the Mind Core itself."

"This is something none of us here in the Mental Plane are capable of doing. It can only be done with your help."

"As long as you are willing to aid us in this matter, I will agree to any condition you set forth."

He paused for a moment, then added with a knowing look, "I’m aware that you have already destroyed the Divine Realm and are now destined to be mortal enemies with Goddess of Gold & Silver Aurelia. I believe you might require the assistance of our Mental Plane in the conflicts to come."

Daniel cast a glance at the Emperor of Mind, then shifted his gaze toward the distant Mind Core, pulsing faintly in the space ahead.

"Perhaps I can try to help you... but not right now."

In his mind, Daniel had already formed a potential plan. He recalled a certain God Rank Skill—not one he currently possessed, but one listed within the God Rank Skill Compendium.

[Severing the Shackles]

[Effect: Can sever any and all forms of connection, freeing the target from all constraints.]

Perhaps, with this skill, he could help the Emperor of Mind resolve the problem of the plane’s restrictions.

The Emperor of Mind before him was level 800. From the perspective of sheer level and strength, this placed him on par with, if not exceeding, the Sun God Apollo.

That thought sparked another realization—

It seemed that the highest-level beings in each full plane topped out at level 800.

Half-planes, such as the Divine Realm or the Abyss, tended to cap out at slightly lower levels.

Of course, the Emperor of Angels had been exceptionally powerful, far beyond the league of the Abyss Emperor Malkar. In fact, comparing the two was almost insulting—the latter was laughably weak by comparison. In some ways, Malkar could be considered the shame of the Abyss.

If Daniel could secure the Emperor of Mind’s support, it would mean gaining an additional combatant of Apollo’s caliber on his side.

From what Milla had told him, Aurelia had already received Apollo’s assistance before she became a true god. It was precisely with that help that she had succeeded in her ascension.

And according to Milla, she had heard this directly from the Luck Goddess herself.

Rumor or not, Daniel was inclined to believe it—after all, the Luck Goddess and Aurelia had become gods during the same era.

Drawing his thoughts back to the present, Daniel nodded.

"At the moment, I cannot accomplish what you’re asking. But it won’t be long before I can."

"Until then, I’ll need you to provide me with some help first. I need materials from your realm... and I’ll also need you to send me to other planes."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor of Mind could only give a wry smile.

"I’m afraid I cannot grant the second request. At present, we cannot even leave the Mental Plane ourselves, let alone send you to another one."

"But if it’s materials you need, that I might be able to provide."

He leaned forward slightly, his voice taking on a note of caution.

"I should warn you, however, that the Mental Plane is far more barren than you might think. It’s not easy to find useful materials here."

"In all my years of accumulation, I’ve found that there are really only a few things that could be called ’materials’ in this place."

He began listing them:

"Lost Thoughts, Condensed Emotions, and Mind Ore..."

Hearing this, Daniel’s brows knit together.

He hadn’t expected the Mental Plane to be even more impoverished than he’d imagined.

Using Psychic Perception, Daniel could tell that the Emperor of Mind was speaking the truth.

Indeed, the Mental Plane was a peculiar realm—vast and empty, filled only with countless chests storing thoughts. There were hardly any places that could yield raw materials of any kind.

Given that, Daniel simply asked directly:

"How much of these materials can you give me?"

The straightforward question seemed to put the Emperor of Mind at ease. His lips curved into a faint smile as he replied,

"You can take as much as you like. These things hold little meaning for me."

With that, he raised his hand lightly. A massive portal shimmered into existence, and through it poured an immense stockpile of resources, enough to fill the entire space around them.

[Lost Thoughts (Gold Rank)]

[Effect: Restores any thoughts you have lost upon use.]

[Condensed Emotions]

[Mind Ore]

[Effect: ...]

...

Daniel didn’t bother with false modesty—he swept all the materials straight into his inventory space.

His inventory was enormous, but even so, it couldn’t hold more than a hundred million units of materials, especially since it was already stocked with a vast array of valuable resources.

Still, this wasn’t a problem for him.

He had long since stationed one of his avatars at Winterhold Castle.

While his main body in the Mental Plane used Forceful Convergence to gather the materials, the avatar was busy offloading them into the newly built warehouse back at the castle.

In this way, it didn’t take long at all for Daniel to store away everything the Emperor of Mind had provided.

Then, a thought occurred to him, and he turned to ask,

"By the way, I have another question."

"I want to know—does this plane contain any [Lost Thoughts] from beings of Demigod Rank or higher?"

The Emperor of Mind shook his head immediately.

"No, none exist."

"Demigod Rank beings safeguard their thoughts extremely well. They would never allow any Lost Thoughts of theirs to form within the Mental Plane."

"I see..." Daniel nodded, dropping the matter.

The materials the Emperor of Mind had given him could indeed be used in the synthesis of God Rank Skills.

By that measure, this journey into the Mental Plane had been a complete victory.