Outside, sunlight filtered through the tied-up curtains, illuminating the depths of the temple and allowing Jiang Bai Mian and Shang Jian Yao to barely make out the figure within the coffin.

He had long black hair, wore white linen clothes, and was as thin as a skeleton, resembling a corpse that had been embalmed and air-dried for many years.

In this state, Jiang Bai Mian couldn't discern his true appearance. Like a bare skull, without the aid of computer reconstruction, she could only tell if it was deformed or atavistic, but not whether it was handsome or not.

If she couldn't sense the faint electrical signals confirming his biological activity, Jiang Bai Mian would have thought this was a mummified corpse that hadn't decayed due to a special environment, rather than a so-called slumbering "god."

Vaguely, she even thought she could smell a faint scent of embalming fluid wafting in the air.

Combined with the current environment, it was particularly eerie.

Jiang Bai Mian's gaze slowly moved downwards, and she noticed a tree branch bracelet on the sleeping "god's" right wrist.

A thought stirred in her mind, and she turned to look at Shang Jian Yao.

Shang Jian Yao, wearing a monkey mask with a hairy face and pointy snout, was staring directly at the corpse-like sleeping "god."

"What are you, thinking about?" Jiang Bai Mian hesitated for a moment before asking.

Shang Jian Yao replied earnestly:

"CPR, artificial respiration, non-cardiac injection."

"..." Jiang Bai Mian confirmed once again that her mental state was fine, and that she and Shang Jian Yao were not on the same wavelength.

After a few seconds, she said, amused and exasperated:

"Didn't the company's precautions say? Unless absolutely necessary, do not touch this so-called sleeping 'god'."

"It only said not to move it," Shang Jian Yao's memory was always excellent.

Jiang Bai Mian snorted:

"Didn't I just say? We have to leave room for error, we have to treat it with higher and stricter standards."

Not giving Shang Jian Yao a chance to retort, she spat:

"I was almost distracted by you and forgot what's important.

"Don't you think this tree branch bracelet looks familiar?"

Shang Jian Yao had already recognized it:

"The fishmen Awakened wear tree branch crowns."

"It seems his power comes from that crown," Jiang Bai Mian pressed. "You should have touched that crown back then. Did you notice anything unusual?"

Shang Jian Yao shook his head:

"It was very ordinary."

"That's right, if it had anything special about it, you wouldn't have left it behind." Jiang Bai Mian looked down at the face of the "corpse," which was only skin and bones, and analyzed thoughtfully, "According to Song's warning, powerful Awakened who explore the depths of the 'Mind Corridor' can leave their aura in the 'Mind Corridor' or the real world, merging with objects or even humans... Originally, the aura was merged into the tree branch crown, but after the fishman Awakened got it, the aura penetrated his body, making him quite powerful? But this also leaves hidden dangers, he was like he was gestating a monster..."

Speaking of this, Jiang Bai Mian suddenly had a whimsical idea:

"If we hadn't forcefully shot him back then, and let the change continue, what would have eventually happened? Would this sleeping 'god' have woken up as a result?

"But if it were really that simple, his former believers could have done it. Isn't it a very reasonable thing to use the god's personal belongings to protect themselves?

"Could it be that the premise of aura merging with the human body is that they are Awakened in the same field?"

This was purely speculative, without much basis, because there were other explanations.

For example, the so-called incarnation of Yama did not know this would happen before falling asleep, and did not leave any words, while the believers revered him, and dared not touch his body or take away his belongings.

Regarding Jiang Bai Mian's guess, Shang Jian Yao proposed a method of verification:

"We'll know if we try."

"...There's no need." Jiang Bai Mian suppressed her urge to act rashly.

She knew what Shang Jian Yao meant:

He and the fishman Awakened were obviously not in the same field, and Jiang Bai Mian herself wasn't even an Awakened. If they took off the tree branch bracelet, they could use it directly, but they wouldn't be merged with the aura, which would explain a lot.

But this was very, very, very dangerous.

Taking a breath, Jiang Bai Mian held her gun in one hand and looked at her electronic watch:

"Nine minutes left."

She had already started timing when she crossed the threshold of the temple.

This also left room for error, no longer treating it as a quarter of an hour, but as thirteen minutes.

Shang Jian Yao seized the time to propose an idea:

"Do you think he can hear us talking?

"If I play music, will he appreciate it? Will there be a song that can make him stand up from the coffin and dance along?"

With you, any strange, eerie, or terrifying scene will become weird and even full of humor... unless you also want to scare people... When Jiang Bai Mian first saw the "corpse" in the coffin wearing a white linen robe, she was a little scared, but now, she didn't know what kind of expression to use to face the target.

After hesitating for a moment, Jiang Bai Mian responded:

"You can try talking, but playing music is, well, unnecessary."

Shang Jian Yao sighed with regret, took a step forward, and looked inside the coffin:

"Can you hear me? If you can, blink."

He said it once in Ashlands language and once in Red River language.

The white-clad, skin-and-bone sleeping "god" did not react at all.

Shang Jian Yao suddenly raised his voice:

"Your hat has been stolen!"

Referring to the tree branch crown.

The corpse-like sleeping "god" was still as if he had been dead for many years.

"It seems useless," Jiang Bai Mian judged.

Shang Jian Yao was still unwilling to give up and shouted again:

"Your wife ran away with someone!"

? This broadcast dares to broadcast anything... Jiang Bai Mian forcibly suppressed her laughter.

The sleeping "god" lying quietly in the coffin still showed no change.

After Shang Jian Yao tried again in Red River language, Jiang Bai Mian sighed:

"If you weren't sure that he had residual human consciousness, and if I couldn't sense faint electrical signals, I really wouldn't believe he was still alive.

"He's been asleep for at least thirty or forty years, right? His body still retains a certain degree of activity. This is simply incredible. Does anyone regularly inject him with glucose and nutrients?"

Even if humans recovered the hibernation ability hidden in their genes, they couldn't do such a thing.

Shang Jian Yao thought for a moment and said:

"Human cryonics."

Jiang Bai Mian was not unfamiliar with this term, and after a moment of contemplation, she said:

"You mean, he used some ability or something to put his body into a state similar to deep freeze?"

Obviously, this was definitely not a real deep freeze, Jiang Bai Mian and Shang Jian Yao only felt a little cold standing in front of the coffin.

"We need to wake him up to be sure," Shang Jian Yao raised his hand and touched his chin.

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly turned his head and looked at Jiang Bai Mian:

"Look..."

"Stop! What 'look, look at me,'" Jiang Bai Mian instantly became alert. "What do you want to do?"

Shang Jian Yao replied frankly:

"I want to try using my Awakened ability on him.

"Look, think about it, my Awakened ability can be used on creatures with human consciousness, and he has residual human consciousness."

Without the help of "Reasoning Clown," Jiang Bai Mian already understood Shang Jian Yao's idea.

To be honest, she really felt that this had practical value and a possibility of success.

"The company only said not to move the body of this sleeping 'god' unless necessary, and I added the condition that it's best not to even touch it..." Jiang Bai Mian said thoughtfully, "Spiritual influence and contact are not within the precautions."

Hearing this sentence, Shang Jian Yao became excited and even took off his mask to give it his all.

Jiang Bai Mian immediately added:

"'Reasoning Clown' won't work, he shouldn't be able to hear you.

"'Affected Sentimentalism' and 'Hand Movement Deficiency' can theoretically both work, but I suggest using 'Hand Movement Deficiency', because the former will directly produce sentimental effects, which may bring unnecessary accidents, while the latter will first establish a connection, and then affect the hands. Well, his hands can't move anyway, so the whole process won't have any obvious changes, which can minimize the risk."

Jiang Bai Mian didn't want to see this "corpse" suddenly sit up.

"Okay," Shang Jian Yao had no objection.

Jiang Bai Mian then took off the rubber glove on her left hand and exercised her fingers.

She said with a smile:

"I won't touch anything here, but I can give you a jolt.

"I'll be closely monitoring your condition later. If anything goes wrong, I'll wake you up."

As she spoke, strands of electricity emerged from her left hand.

Shang Jian Yao glanced at her and turned his gaze back to the sleeping "god" in the coffin.

His mind quickly extended over, connecting with the other's consciousness.

With a roar, Shang Jian Yao's eyes were plunged into darkness.

He felt as if he had returned to the "Sea of Origin," and could only see a few faint lights.

With the help of these lights, he found a window, and in the distance outside the window stood a hazy tower that reached into the clouds.

Under the window, a figure was crawling in the darkness, without the slightest movement.

Suddenly, he raised his head and looked at Shang Jian Yao.

His eyes glowed with a strange light, and his mouth uttered a weak voice:

"Save me!"