Cthulhu Panel: One organ mutates every day

Lena smiled, her eyes crinkling, glanced at Wayne, and teased:

"Miss Lillian, how come you and Wayne are the same? Wayne had a nightmare yesterday, and so did you. Could you have had the same nightmare?"

Wayne's lips twitched. To be precise, he had a nightmare during the day yesterday, while Lillian had a nightmare late last night. Coincidentally, he also had a nightmare late last night, but he didn't tell his sister Lena.

Now that Lena is joking like this, what will Lillian say? Does she even remember what happened in her dream?

"The same nightmare?"

Lillian glanced at Wayne with a puzzled look, shook her head, and lightly brushed a strand of hair aside:

"Sister Lena, you have such an imagination. How could you have the same dream twice? Besides, I can't remember what happened in the dream. I just vaguely remember fighting. After waking up... it was like I had done a combat training session. It was easier than a combat training session, but the effect seemed to be much better. Yes, that's it."

Lena covered her mouth and chuckled:

"Well, that sounds pretty amazing. I can train more in my dreams from now on. Hurry up and go have breakfast, it's getting late."

"Okay! You guys go up first, I'll go grab some breakfast! Goodbye, Lena! Bye-bye, Wayne!" Lillian said, then quickly ran into the dining room.

Wei En pondered.

Lillian's expression didn't lie; she truly didn't remember anything from the dream, at most having some vague impressions, and she couldn't even remember if I was in the dream.

This is consistent with the dreams of ordinary people.

But I remember everything that happened in the dream, every detail. Am I still dreaming?

In addition, Lillian said that she felt like she had gone through a combat training session, even better than a combat training session. Could it be that the nightmare not only made my progress panel ten times better, but also made Lillian's combat skills improve many times over?

"Wayne, what are you thinking about? Come on, your team leader and section chief should be waiting for you." Lena smiled gently.

Wei En snapped out of his daze and quickly replied, "Oh, let's go, let's go! It's the first day of my promotion, it's not good to be late."

Upon arriving at the 32nd floor of the Ritz Hotel, Wayne and Lena parted ways.

Wayne encountered Matthew leaving the office of Section 7, Group 2.

Matthew, no longer using the black umbrella in the station, nodded to Wayne and said:

"You've come at the right time. I was just about to look for you. Come with me to see the section chief. Remember, the director isn't here, so this section chief is acting as the deputy director. Whatever the section chief says goes."

The second half of the sentence, "Whatever the section chief says later, goes," was specifically emphasized.

The atmosphere subtly became somewhat serious.

"Okay, I understand." Wayne breathed a sigh of relief and prepared himself mentally.

The head of the Seventh Investigations Division was parachuted in from headquarters and immediately took on the role of deputy director of the Michigan branch, taking over matters related to the face symbol. He had even directly assigned the painter's line to the Seventh Division's First Group for follow-up, which undoubtedly indicated that he had a problem with the Seventh Division's Second Group.

I wonder what the deputy director's attitude will be.

Wayne followed Matthew to the office of the Organization and Administration Section.

"The director's office used to be in the Organization and Administration Section."

Pushing open the door, one sees a tall, slender figure standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, facing the morning light, looking down at the buildings of Central.

After Matthew led Wayne inside, he casually closed the door, stood in the doorway, and didn't go any further.

His tone was respectful: "Section Chief, the messenger Wayne has arrived."

The tall, thin figure turned around, revealing a square but gaunt face, and smiled: "Not bad, not bad, the heir to the Weber family business, indeed a handsome man."

Matthew, the team leader, calls him section chief. Should I call him deputy director or section chief?

Well, he's the head of the Seventh Section after all. As an investigator in the Second Group of the Seventh Section, calling him "section chief" seems more familiar.

Wei En nodded respectfully, "Greetings, Section Chief. My family background is insignificant. You are now my superior, and I will follow your instructions."

With the director absent, whatever the deputy director says goes.

"No, that's not true. Your identity is that of a messenger, and you're a key talent being groomed by the bureau. There's no way you're insignificant," the section chief said with a faint smile.

Wayne observed the smile on his face and only noticed that his face was too thin, so much so that many skin lines were squeezed together when he smiled, but he did not see anything obviously abnormal.

A subconscious thought arose, and the distorted threads before my eyes converged.

[Perception Lv.1 - Observation of the Microscopic] Progress 59.2%

"My [Perception] progress has actually increased by 1%." Wei En's mind stirred slightly.

That makes sense. This section chief is a senior investigator. He might have noticed some potential pollution characteristics from his observation.

"Since our Wei En is being promoted to a formal investigator today, as the head of the Seventh Section and deputy director, I naturally have to do my part according to the bureau's regulations." The section chief pulled out a drawer from his desk, took out a mechanical box, and waved it to indicate that it was for Wei En.

Wayne stepped forward and took the mechanical box.

"The contaminants the bureau provides to the messengers won't be bad. Open it and take a look." The section chief sat in his office chair and glanced again at the mechanical box in Wayne's hand.

When I joined the agency, Team Leader Matthew said that only formal investigators could be equipped with one contaminant, which is a mystery item. Now, I haven't even been promoted to a formal investigator yet, and the agency has already equipped me with a mystery item?

Wayne opened the box, inside which was a string of gray-black beads, semi-transparent in texture, with dark red fine filamentous patterns inside. The surface of the beads was polished smooth, and they were about one centimeter in diameter and roughly the same size.

The section chief explained after seeing Wei En open it:

"This string of beads is made of Soul Amber Wood from the Eastern Continent. It's priceless and unavailable. Even if you ask your sister to go to the underground auction market in the metropolis, she might not be able to get it."

Wayne looked at the string of gray-black beads in the box, but didn't touch them directly. He asked:

"What is this mysterious item used for?"

The section chief interlaced his fingers, his elbow resting on his desk.

"Rumor has it that Soul Amber Wood can nourish the soul. Although this has not been confirmed, this string of Soul Amber Wood has been mixed with some unknown contamination. Wearing it will have a certain protective effect on the wearer's will. You are an information investigator with a relatively low survival ability. This is specially prepared for you by the bureau as a special consideration for you."

It seems they know about my severe contamination in the early hours of the day before yesterday. That's a kind gesture, but since it's a pollutant, they can't just mention the benefits and not the pollution, right?

"Section Chief, the side effect of this string of beads is..." Wei En asked hesitantly.

The section chief continued to explain:

"These kinds of mysterious items with defensive effects are very rare because their positive effects completely outweigh their negative effects. If we were to pinpoint a side effect, it might be that it makes the wearer more unsettled, but you information investigators generally enjoy that state of unease, don't you?"

That's good. At least my will is now protected, and I won't easily do what happened at the cemetery last time.

Only then did Wayne touch the string of beads in the box; he had been waiting for this moment.

"Let me see how much of your old self you can retain."

The moment my fingertips touched one of the gray-black wooden beads, that familiar aura seeped out from it.

[Old Points: 0.20, 0.21, 0.23...]

[Old Points: 0.31]

Growth has ceased.

Only 0.11.

Is it few? Not at all. Because this string of beads contains more than just one wooden bead.

In front of the section chief and Matthew, Wayne stroked each of the wooden beads in his hand, feeling the uneven old aura contained within them, until he had completely absorbed the old aura.

[Old Points: 1.11]