Yes, yes, yes, it's not paranoia, just simple caution.

The giant bull's eyes silently rolled back, understanding a bit about Leon's character, the old stubborn bull didn't bother arguing with this late-stage paranoid human, instead, it lazily lifted its front hoof and stepped out of the Abyss of Ten Thousand Evils, heading upwards... roughly in the direction of the Pure White Land.

In the exploration of the Old Soil by the Clearing Bureau, for a world as chaotic in time and space as the Old Soil, direction itself doesn't hold much significance.

The boundless Astral Realm is like a water-filled balloon, and each plane is like a bubble within the balloon, constantly moving with the flow of the Astral Realm.

The "water" outside the Old Soil is heavier than the "bubbles," so regardless of size, spirit, or material, the planes will only follow the rule to float upward, fixed above the water's surface.

Whereas, the "water" inside the Old Soil is lighter than the "bubbles" and stirs chaotically year-round, causing the planes within the Old Soil to dance wildly along with the "water," almost impossible to determine direction and destination.

If you don't have a compass or star gate like humans do, or a "trail-blazing old bull" to carry you, recklessly leaving your own plane results in endless drifting... even death becomes a luxury.

After all, death is also a very "advanced" rule, it doesn't exist everywhere, it usually accompanies mature and stable material planes.

For Lost Souls cast adrift in the vast Astral Realm, out of touch with any rules, a swift death doesn't exist, only the slow erosion of the body in endless drift, where the spirit is eventually wiped out by eternal solitude, bringing possible peace at the end…

At least that's the theory.

...

What the hell is that?

After relying on the old bull's excellent strides and Taurus's directions provided by the Star Dome Compass, they reached near the Pure White Land.

Looking at the ever-expanding pure white ground in the vast Astral Realm, with countless figures plummeting towards it with relief, bodies perishing into a flower of flesh, souls seeping below the land. Leon couldn't help but frown his eyebrows.

"Are those the ones lost in the Old Soil? Are they being drawn here, ending their lives in the Pure White Land?"

"Moo (pretty much)"

The old bull smacked its lips, looking at the figures falling like raindrops from the Astral Realm, adding tinges of blood to the distant land but ultimately returning to white, then turned around and mooed a few times.

"Moo moo moo moo moo (The Pure White Land attracts Lost Souls, helps them embrace death and then transforms them into Angels. For those unfortunate ones who drifted in the boundless Astral Realm, unable even to die, it's not a bad result.)"

Attracting Lost Souls… helping them embrace death…

Watching the scene unfold, bizarre and cruel yet borderline doing a "good deed," Leon frowned and curiously asked the old bull beneath him:

"Since it can attract Lost Souls who fell into the Old Soil, why not just rescue them instead of letting them fall to their deaths?" 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"Moo moo moo moo (Because many Lost Souls have been drifting for who knows how many years, their original memories have long been worn away, their home planes might not even exist anymore, some even had their thoughts permanently stalled)

Moo moo moo moo (Probably it's seen as more humane than saving a soul full of pain, or a mere shell that has not only lost its memory but whose consciousness is also fading away, to just let them fall)

Moo moo moo moo (When crashing towards their death, those with survival instincts left will naturally save themselves, and those without the will to save themselves are beyond saving.)"

If that's the case... it kind of makes sense, doesn't it?

After hearing the old bull's explanation, while still finding the scene eerie and unsettling, without a better method, Leon temporarily accepted the Pure White Holy Mother's decisions. Then he put the old bull into his dream and closed his eyes, falling towards the Pure White Land.

"Moo moo moo?"

"You little black devil… oh no, I mean I'm not doing anything, just planning to sneak in this way and see what the Pure White Land is all about."

After switching on the Master of Performance badge, mimicking the empty expression of other "Lost Souls," Leon dove sharply towards the pure white ground, softly murmuring:

"A person's words can be disguised, but actions are hard to fake. Whether that Pure White Holy Mother is trustworthy and can be our ally, let's see through her rule over the Pure White Land."

"Moo moo moo? (What if she's been pretending all along and putting on a show her whole life? What then?)"

"If she can pretend to be good for so long, then isn't that almost the same as actually being good, she can still be trusted."

"Moo moo moo moo (True, no matter if she is good or not, you definitely are not good, surely you'll still be on guard against her)"

"..."

You're saying too much!

Facing the old bull who got more sarcastic as they got closer, Leon clicked his tongue and jotted it down in his mind, then, as they got closer to the Pure White Land, he began to struggle slowly and rigidly.

"No way! Something's wrong!"

Amidst the countless motionless Lost Souls in the sky, one person suddenly moved, naturally drawing attention.

Seeing that there was someone worth saving, a determined gaze from the top of a peculiar white tower sent a signal, calling forth a team that went to catch the head-first falling Leon.

"Don't catch him directly with your hands!"

Hastily stopping a subordinate who tried to catch Leon with their hands, the leading female angel spread her cloud-like wings, seriously instructing:

"Even if these Lost Souls appear intact, they could have suffered severe wear and tear from drifting for who knows how long. Catching them directly may kill them, use your wings to gently support them with Holy Light!"

"I… I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

The young angel, who made a mistake, quickly spread its wings, assisting the leading female angel in catching the falling Leon, then sincerely apologized:

"You've told me all of this before, but it's been so many years since I've seen a Lost Soul with consciousness, I… I got too excited…"

"Excitement is okay, being excited to save lives is good, it shows your kind heart, but our job is to save people, regardless of happiness, we must never lose our calm."

Patting the young angel's head, the female angel, as the rescue team leader, carefully examined Leon's appearance before softly asking:

"This... um... Tauren gentleman, do you remember your name?"