Chapter 463

Chapter 463: Humans are the Best Teachers

"Unless what?"

Weeping bitterly, Ain clutched at the last straw, hoping for salvation.

"Unless you deliver your entire body to me."

"Have I not already delivered it to you?"

"Not quite. You only delivered the right to use it to me; the essential ownership of this body is still yours. But I just cannot understand, if I am doing all the work, why do we have to share a single body?"

"But we are one."

"And what does being one matter? Being one means I should work while you take a break?"

Lachesis displayed an emotion called anger, as if a worker owed wages was demanding payment.

"Have you ever thought about who it is that helps you finish all those dull and tedious tasks every day while you indulge in fantasies? It is I who helps you walk and eat when you can’t even be bothered to move. I just want what I deserve; what is wrong with that?"

"…"

Ain’s main consciousness, suddenly reprimanded, found itself speechless for a moment.

He had to admit that what was said made sense. To be fair, if he was the awakened ability and the other was the owner of the body, he wouldn’t want to work for free either.

With the basic principle of empathy in mind, and shedding the intoxication brought on by giving everything up to indulged fantasies, Ain’s inner defenses finally began to give way:

"What would happen if I delivered my body to you?"

A strange expression appeared on Lachesis’s consciousness, as if looking at a fool asking an extremely stupid question.

"What would happen? If you deliver your body to me, you can naturally continue to fantasize and indulge."

A smile appeared on the consciousness’s face:

"I ask you, what is the difference between reality and a dream that you will never wake from?"

Ain felt puzzled; there seemed to be no difference at all.

"Very good, your expression has already given the answer."

Lachesis’s tone gradually softened, as if alternating between a stick and a carrot.

"Then, if you do not realize you are dreaming, is there really any distinction at all?"

Ain did not answer, but this was enough to say everything.

"Promise me, deliver your body to me. Before you immerse yourself in fantasies, I will help you forget the memories of how you entered those fantasies. This way… you can remain intoxicated forever.

"I have already delivered the method of dream control to you, and I once told you, once you master dream control, you become the… in the world of In Dream."

Looking at Lachesis’s mismatched eyes filled with an eerie sense, Ain murmured softly,

"Creator…"

At that moment, his inner defenses completely collapsed.

A massive surge of the will of the mycelium overwhelmed his reason, causing the human brain within this body to fall into a short moment of overload.

This takeover of consciousness even had a certain impact on reality. The factory manager, who had been chattering endlessly about the team leader’s tasks, suddenly felt dizzy.

He couldn’t help but place a hand on his head, lamenting that he had just spoken too much in one breath and felt a bit short of oxygen, while his body uncontrollably leaned back.

He is, after all, an older man, no longer as agile as he was in his youth.

Just as the factory manager of the twenty-second factory had assumed a defensive posture by leaning back, a pair of strong arms lifted him up from his shoulders and waist.

The factory manager looked up to see Ain, with a caring expression, standing beside him, supporting his body.

Ain stood straight, showing no signs of wear despite the long hours of work. Though it was still the same face, it now radiated concern and determination, resembling a top student interning from a university in the inner city.

With both hands exerting strength, Ain gradually lifted the factory manager and then helped him into a soft chair:

"Are you alright? Did you skip breakfast? Do you need me to help you contact a hospital?"

"No, no, I just spoke too hastily. It’s an old habit."

The factory manager waved his hand, indicating that he was fine. He took small sips from his water cup and finally felt the dizziness start to fade away.

"Since that’s the case, I won’t ramble on. What I just said boils down to four words—safety in production.

"Mr. Speaker has stated that every person in Hope City is very valuable and should not be wasted on production accidents; that would be too much of a loss. That’s also why we have assessment standards related to the team leader…”

The factory manager rambled on for a few more minutes and then noticed his own slip of behavior, waving his hand again:

"Everything is fine now; let’s end it here for today. There are two work manuals in the cabinet behind you. You have a week to study them. I will submit the report, and there will be an assessment in a week."

Ain nodded and approached, naturally opening the file cabinet behind the factory manager’s office chair.

He immediately spotted the two work manuals but deliberately slowed his movements, pretending to search while flipping through several documents.

The sound of papers rustling filled the room. The factory manager, who was reading a report, didn’t pay it any mind, but every word in sight had already been stored in Ain’s mind.

Soon, this seemingly transformed young man picked up the two manuals and politely left the factory manager’s office.

Ain, or rather Lachesis, finally gained a body, a human body that exclusively belonged to him.

As for everything that belonged to Ain, it had been completely erased under the overwhelming power of the spirit.

Lachesis was right; Ain would not awaken again and would not remember anything.

However, it was not in the way he had imagined.

After traversing the minds of thousands, if Lachesis truly learned something, it would surely be ranked first—

Lies are humanity’s most powerful weapon.

Second would be—

Speak the truth, but never the whole truth.

The former was used to manipulate humans, while the latter was used to communicate with companions.

Applying what he learned, Lachesis had now achieved temporary results on both sides.

Of course, this was also related to Ain’s foolishness. Lachesis felt that his communication skills were not yet proficient enough, and for now, he could only choose to infiltrate easily persuaded humans.

But that was alright, as there were plenty of such individuals in the outer city.

“Thud, thud, thud.”

With Ain’s body in control, Lachesis stepped down the stairs, returning to the production line.

Taking the body was the real goal; as for the team leader, it was essentially not important, merely a small target for Ain to give up his body.

As the will of the mycelium, Lachesis did not need rest or sleep. While maintaining this visible identity, he also finally gained the ability to act independently in the night.

Ain returned to the vicinity of the production line; the afternoon work was about to begin, and each worker was taking advantage of the last moments of rest.

He poked his coworker beside him.

"What’s the matter?"

"Do you want to eat together tonight?"

"What are we eating?"

"Chicken."