Reincarnated as a bamboo rat, it begins its extreme survival struggle.

"Ugh... From this point of view, the advanced template has a huge advantage from the start."

After studying the [Small Animal Template] and [Ancient Beast Template], Bell discovered that the level he had already increased would not drop under normal circumstances. Even if he did drop, the level rewards he had previously obtained would not change after he increased the level again.

Under this mechanism, if Bell keeps leveling up under the [small animal template], even if he pushes his physical strength to the limit every time he levels up, his physical strength at level 20 will still be difficult to keep up with that of an ordinary level 20 human.

Those who possess advanced templates such as the "Hero Template" or "Demon King Template" will receive even more dramatic improvements with each level increase.

If we make a horizontal comparison between a level 20 ordinary human and a level 20 hero, without considering other factors, just looking at the attribute differences provided by the template is enough to create a generation gap between the hero and the ordinary human.

"My current level is not high, and template promotion will be extremely beneficial to my future development."

Following the usual upgrade process, Bell quickly completed the construction of his mental hut while tending to the floating island, which had nearly doubled in size.

Now that the floating island has expanded, the amount of land available for reclamation continues to increase, and the construction land for the spiritual cabins has also been greatly improved.

But compared to these temporarily unusable lands, various floating debris has appeared in the now turbulent and wide Huanhe River.

When Bell encountered the Lantern Clan merchant earlier, Lantern Seventeen had told him to be careful of supplies floating down the Ring River.

However, due to the limited size of Bell's floating island, the wide river was narrowed into a small ditch by the power of the rules when it flowed through his floating island, which prevented the use of many resources hidden in the river.

Now that the floating islands have expanded, more of the river has been revealed, providing Bell with more opportunities to explore.

"There's something swimming in the deep part of the river. If we use a fishing rod, we should be able to catch it."

He buried his large face in the surging river, and Bell could vaguely see a...

The fleeting glimpses of light and shadow were likely dreamlike beings similar to the Lamp Clan.

Unfortunately, the hook on Bell's fishing rod was swallowed by the red-haired woman he caught, and he hasn't been able to get it out yet.

(〃＞ dishes＜

The thought of the sleeping woman who had ruined his upgrade rewards filled Bell with anger, but ultimately he felt helpless.

Even though Bell has become stronger again, his [Information Insight] still cannot detect any information about this woman, only that her life points are 0.

At most, all we know is that the reason this older sister has a life value of 0 is that she is a powerful spiritual being without a physical body, existing in a dream world.

"However, besides the dreamlike creatures deep in the river, there are also many odds and ends floating on the surface of the river."

Floating above the Huanhe River, Bell retrieved a few scattered items from the riverbed.

After floating back and forth over the river several times, he successfully collected two planks, a rope, and a glass bottle.

Planks and hemp rope are the raw materials that can be used to build the Spirit Hut. Of course, you can also create other things according to Bell's ideas, but Bell doesn't have any more ideas yet.

Among the glass bottles that were retrieved, there was one with a rolled-up note, which looked like a message in a bottle.

"Let me see what's written on this."

Bell poured the note out of the glass bottle and studied it with his mental power.

The text on this note is similar to the black jade stone inscribed with information in the City of Bones; its meaning can be deciphered simply by using mental power.

'Sharing Research on River Rings'

'This is the (vague)th time I've dived into the depths of the Ring River and come into contact with the Sea of ​​Depths. This operation was very fruitful; it confirms that the depths of the Ring River are connected to the Sea of ​​Depths, and the source of the Dream World lies within the Sea of ​​Depths.'

'Various materials and energies emerged from the Sea of ​​Depths, carried by the Ringing River into the Dream Realm, becoming nourishment for our survival.'

'As research into the Sea of ​​the Fallen deepens, some scholars have proposed that crossing it leads to another world. This is an interesting idea, but it has not yet been verified.'

Research on the Longzhou River Ring Road is ongoing, and the Longzhou River Ring Road Research Association welcomes anyone with expertise to join us.

The note contained some research on the nature of the Huanhe River. For Bell, the few words he gleaned from this small piece of paper were enough to deepen his understanding of the Huanhe River.

Now Bell is certain of his previous guess: the Dream World originated from the Sea of ​​Depths.

However, this research sharing contains some other interesting information.

The author of this research is a tableware brand called 'Spoon Twenty-Four' from Longzhou.

Based on Bell's understanding of Dragon Continent and the naming format, Bell guessed that 'Spoon Twenty-Four' was most likely a pure dream world life form, just like 'Lamp Seventeen'.

Unlike Deng Shiqi, who specialized in trading, Shao Ershisi devoted himself to the study of the Huanhe River and made good progress.

They even issued invitations to beings on other floating islands to come to Dragon Continent and study the Ring River with them.

"Life in the dream world is also evolving. The theory described by Longzhou researcher Shao Twenty-Four—that 'crossing the Sea of ​​Oblivion allows one to travel to another world'—is somewhat similar to the resurrection of a bodyless ghost from the Sea of ​​Oblivion. Or, to use a more accurate metaphor, this concept is somewhat like the Bamboo Sea Will I encountered before..."

Chapter 149

In Spoon Twenty-Four's notes, besides the "theory of crossing the Sea of ​​Depravity to reach another world," there is also a deconstruction of the origins of various materials in the dream world.

By working backward, Bell could probably guess that the souls of those who die in the real world rest in the Sea of ​​Depths, and are eventually swept into the Dream by the Ring River, becoming a special kind of energy within the Dream.

But compared to the Sea of ​​Depravity where all souls must fall, the Ring River and the Dream are clearly not that powerful.

The Dream is more like an independent space with the Sea of ​​Depravity as its underlying structure, specifically serving a certain special existence.

Without a doubt, the special beings being served are floating island owners like Bell.

Based on his previous conversation with Lantern Seventeen, Bell knew that there were floating islands of all sizes along the long river journey, and each island had its own owner.

"So, what is the purpose of the Floating Island Masters, this special group served by the Dream,? Or rather, what use are we to the Dream...?"

Having found a starting point, Bell continued to delve deeper into his thoughts, while the Ring River continuously drew energy from the Sea of ​​Depravity to power the Dream.

If we consider the real world and the Sea of ​​Depravity as one, then the Dream is like an independent realm attached to the outside world.

"As native dream beings, Spoon Twenty-Four's research has its own limitations; they are unaware of the existence of the real world."

Bell, as the owner of the floating island, has a physical body in the real world and is active in the real world.

His existence is the marker that the Dream World is embedded in. The Ring River, relying on Bell's existence, comes into contact with the Sea of ​​Depth in the real world and draws energy from it to nourish the Dream World.

"So, the reason why you have to enter the Dream World for every upgrade can be explained."

The souls of enemies killed by Bell are pulled into a dream world and converted into experience points.

This was a privilege granted to Bell by the Dream, allowing him to greatly disrupt the Sea of ​​Depths, thereby enabling the Ring River to draw more power from it.

"So, do the other floating island owners besides me also possess such abilities? Assuming they also possess this power, what are these people like in the real world? And where do they come from?"

"Furthermore, if these floating island lords are all beings like me, then why would they allow a dream world life like 'Spoon Twenty-Four' to explore the essence of the Ring River and the Sea of ​​Depravity?"

As the reasoning deepened, new questions quickly arose, causing Bell to feel worried.

But he couldn't solve these new questions, so he could only bury them in his heart, hoping that he would find the answers someday.

Upon opening his eyes in the real world, Bell exited the dream.

Having completed the upgrade, he felt refreshed. The pit that had previously been filled with a mixture of dragon blood and water had now dried up, as Bell's template upgrade had completely absorbed the energy within.

By moving his body and using his powerful mental strength, Bell quickly adapted to the newly enhanced and immense power.

With the [Primal Behemoth Template], Bell's physical strength increased, and his size also improved significantly.

However, Bear Grylls's physical growth was integrated into the "Big Eater" skill, which is not activated when he has a large appetite.

In his "Gastronomic King" state, Bell is still a palm-sized white fur ball. He needs to activate the "Gastronomic King" state to transform into a primal behemoth.

Having incorporated the power of primal behemoths, the skill 【Gluttony】 now has two states.

When the "Big Eater" ability is activated under normal circumstances, Bell's physical body will reveal its true form, transforming from a small fur ball into a giant white bamboo rat. However, this change will not affect Bell's physical strength.

After using food energy, Bell's "Big Eater" state will be fully activated, doubling the strength of Bell's physical body. This is the original power of the "Big Eater".

"Being able to freely control my body shape is good news for me."

With his controllable size, Bell can still transform into a little white mouse and sneak into Edu's pocket to operate covertly within Azure Star City.

Having become a primal behemoth, Bell's body has expanded to a meter long, resembling a small lamb. If his size were beyond his control, Bell would truly be in trouble.

Just getting out of this underground base would take him a lot of effort, let alone going into the city to gather intelligence and handle other matters.

Previously, he could perch on Edu's shoulder or hide in Edu's pocket without attracting much attention. After all, keeping a white mouse as a pet is not a rare thing. In this world, animal trainers have all sorts of animal companions, and the appearance of a white mouse would at most attract curious glances from passersby.

But if a large white rat, over a meter long, were to follow behind a person, the scene would definitely turn heads.

Within 24 hours, Edu will become the hottest gossip topic in Cangxing City.

In this situation, the chances of avoiding trouble are almost zero.

Bell was still planning to cause trouble secretly in Cangxing City, so how could he easily expose himself?

"I should go up and check on Edu. Then, I need to calculate the time and see if there's anything good in the new market. With so much money, I have to find a way to spend it all to realize its value."

Quickly returning to the ground, Bell found that it was noon and Edu happened to be at home.

After a quick conversation with Edu, Bell discovered that he had been asleep for three days, much longer than he had expected, and that he had no awareness of the outside world.

After his mental strength increased, Bell rarely experienced such a complete loss of perception of the outside world, especially when even his sense of time became blurred.

"It seems that the template promotion is much more important than I expected, and it also consumes more resources and time."

Shaking his head, Bell asked what had happened in the past few days and if anything major had occurred.

Edu, who had been focused on his studies and living a very routine life, couldn't offer much information. He only knew that there was a departure ceremony that afternoon.

He felt that he was in better condition than ever before after waking up, and his studies at the music academy were progressing by leaps and bounds, attracting the attention of his teachers.

Bale said this was to be expected, because Edu's physical and mental condition is now far superior to what it was before, and it is no exaggeration to call him a genius.

Bale, who knows Edu's body very well, is now more concerned about the departure ceremony he mentioned.