Lin Yu was relieved that Sleepless Sky Huole didn't make him go alone to see her mother, but chose to accompany Lin Yu instead.

He truly had no idea where the current head of the Sleepless Night Family was located.

And the facts proved...

The place where Sleepless Sky Huole's mother resided was indeed quite difficult to find.

After leaving the tea room, the two walked directly to the deepest part of the entire Sleepless Sky Manor—they walked along the corridor for nearly half an hour.

Lin Yu and Sleepless Sky Huole passed by the kitchen where servants were bustling with activity, passed by the winding artificial stream and decorative waterwheel, passed by the garden brimming with Zen aesthetics, passed by the ancestral hall standing with over a dozen white jade statues...

The long corridor grew increasingly silent and straight, and the buildings on both sides gradually became taller, more magnificent, yet monotonous.

From the quaint small wooden courtyards and standalone pavilions at the beginning, they gradually transformed into solemn, towering halls.

Finally—Lin Yu gradually saw a tall, gray-black hexagonal tower standing at the very end of Sleepless Sky Manor.

Its shadow enveloped the corridor and the surrounding buildings, as if it had grown by devouring the other structures.

What puzzled Lin Yu was...

He didn't seem to have seen this building before—or rather, he hadn't noticed it at all.

"Is it some kind of cognitive interference method, or is it simply that the design of the entire Sleepless Sky Manor is too clever?"

Lin Yu's heart was filled with curiosity, but he had no way to ask.

After all... Fu Luo had likely asked about and understood the truth.

Fortunately, however, the two summoned beings perched on Lin Yu's shoulders were well-versed in such matters.

"Ribbit... Director, this building probably used some kind of 'illusion'-type substance during its construction. So, from a certain distance, it interferes with the correct perception of its existence."

"I speculate this is likely a design meant to defend against external attacks. It's not just effective against the 'cognition' of living beings, but can also interfere with the recording and recognition by objective objects... I'm afraid even photography or positioning would find it difficult."

"Ribbit, I've seen this phenomenon before, but something this big... this is the first time!"

Lin Yu nodded. "So the tower itself really is the problem. Is it similar to the type of effect your ink produces?"

Hannah hesitated for a moment. "Ribbit, it seems a bit different. My ink works on optical, appearance-based principles, while this feels more like a 'conceptual'-level creation..."

Old Zheng spoke up, picking up where Hannah left off.

"It's miracle alchemy... In the 'Wasteland world', although it appears now that tech companies dominate and various novel technologies are key, the foundation of this world's tech tree is still 'alchemy'."

"Every noble family that has survived to this day and attained lofty status relies on alchemy—the 'equivalent exchange' and 'miracle creation' of alchemy."

"Corporations decoded the 'equivalent exchange' part of alchemy, turning it into repeatable experiments and theorems with summarized laws, forming 'neo-alchemy' and continuously developing it. However, the 'miracle creation' part remains firmly in the hands of the nobility."

"Without 'miracle alchemy', even the preceding 'equivalent exchange' would be nothing but a castle in the air."

"And the core of 'miracle alchemy' comes from the gods—this is why the Wasteland seems to be the world least influenced by gods, but is actually the one most influenced by them."

"Because in other worlds, gods usually connect directly with specific living beings through religion, spokespersons, or Chosen Ones. But in the Wasteland, especially in this Sleepless City, divine power is transmitted downward through a pyramid-like structure."

"It is precisely because divine power is transmitted downward that the power structure of the Wasteland world is constructed—though this is merely my speculation, the natural high status of the Peerage Nobility likely originates from the gods."

Old Zheng elaborated at length on his analysis of this world.

Lin Yu understood Old Zheng's meaning.

"So, the existence of this building means I have now finally reached the top, separated from the gods by only one person, right?"

"Yes... Therefore, I suggest you put both Hannah and me away."

Old Zheng proposed cautiously.

"Normally, Hannah's disguise is absolutely effective, but when facing an existence that might be a god's spokesperson, it's best to be fully prepared."

"This head of the Sleepless Night Family is likely an existence similar to the Misty Islands Master or Hannah's uncle."

Hearing this, Lin Yu let out a sigh.

"Regardless, [False Face] should still be reliable, after all, it can even deceive the gods..."

The effects of [items] from the 『Death Game』, especially [Class Items], still possess the highest level of priority.

However, the abilities Hannah herself possesses are indeed less reliable in this case.

"In that case, it really isn't suitable for you two to stay out here."

Lin Yu put away Hannah and Old Zheng, allowing them to return to the [item space] in the forms of [Tiny Chef Apprentice] and [Wise One's Active Brain].

"Fu Luo, you've really given me quite a surprise... You're practically 'reaching the heavens' in this Sleepless City!"

"Without even reaching 『First-Tier』, you can actually have connections with the gods..."

Lin Yu genuinely felt a bit of a headache.

Admittedly, the more noble and upper-class Fu Luo's identity was, the more convenience and ease this impersonator would have in acting—if it were Lin Yu himself, how to sneak into Sleepless Sky Huoxing's birthday party and make contact with Alt Mercury would be a thorny problem.

Now, Lin Yu could not only attend openly as a guest, but could even pull Alt Mercury into a private room for a chat if he saw him!

However, Fu Luo's current identity being too "illustrious" had instead created new problems.

The quality of his social circle in Sleepless City was a bit too high.

Paris, Sleepless Sky Huo Shu, Sleepless Sky Huole...

These three were already increasingly difficult to fool and deceive, and now there was even the head of the Sleepless Night Family... and a Chosen One at that!

But with the arrow already on the bowstring, Lin Yu couldn't afford to hesitate now.

Moreover, while Lin Yu had a headache, he still had some confidence.

"What are you spacing out about again?"

The urging voice of Sleepless Sky Huole came through.

"Just thinking about my opening remarks for later," Lin Yu snapped back to reality, immediately fabricating an excuse. "Pleasing and currying favor with your mother is no easy task."

Sleepless Sky Huole sighed.

"That is true..."

The two reached the end of the corridor, at the foot of the hexagonal tower. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Long, wide stone steps, a hundred in number, led to the base of the tower—where a tightly shut metal door stood.

And on either side of the door stood two heavily armored guards.

This place felt less like the residence of the head of the Sleepless Night Family, and more like...

A prison holding a dangerous individual, or a demon-sealing pagoda suppressing evil spirits.