Boom!
Soil and rocks flew everywhere, and the spot where
"Such speed, such power! Truly worthy of being a guardian creature specifically corrupted!"
Leylin stood at the edge of the crater, remarking flatly.
"Human, you have angered me! Zoros III will make you pay the price!"
The centipede monster roared, and human faces peeled away from its body, transforming into a swarm of eerie humanoid figures.
"To be honest, compared to the Nightmare Horse that can wield the power of dreams with such proficiency, or the Walking Piano that ordinary laws of power simply cannot restrain, you really are much easier to deal with..."
Leylin stated earnestly as he aimed the tip of the Red Dragon Staff at the centipede.
"Burn, Dragon Soul!"
"Roar!" A terrifying burst of dragon might erupted forth. The red dragon soul at the tip of the staff seemed to suffer some terrible torment—its body suddenly shrank, and even its spirit grew visibly feeble.
Surging streams of crimson energy poured from the tip of the staff, coalescing in midair to form the upper body of an adult red dragon.
"Roar!" This suddenly manifested creature had also reached the legendary tier. Its massive dragon claw swatted the centipede away in a single blow, followed by the terrifying breath of a legendary dragon!
Boom! Boom! Boom...
The ground shook ceaselessly, and even the dark red mist hanging in the air was driven back substantially.
The colossal phantom of the red dragon dissipated, leaving behind only the enormous imprint of the centipede monster carved into the ground.
The creature now looked rather wretched. All of the masked minions it had summoned earlier had been completely annihilated, and even the armor on its body was badly damaged.
"Heh heh… How could the power of the mortal world possibly harm Zoros III?"
The centipede monster had lost more than half of its body, its chest plate shattered, with a fiery red energy core now exposed to the open air. Yet the mask on its head betrayed not the slightest hint of pain. Wisps of dark red mist were being continuously drawn in, mending the cracked mask on its body.
"The power of the mortal world certainly cannot affect dream creatures! But what if it were the power of dreams as well?"
Watching the centipede monster rapidly regenerate, a hint of a triumphant smile flickered through Raylin's eyes.
"Dream Arcane — Void Blade!"
The dark red mist seemed to be drawn by some unseen force, coalescing into a crescent-shaped blade of light in Raylin's hand.
"To break through the first layer of the Nightmare Forest, the first requirement is the Sybil's Sacrifice!"
Nearly two years of analysis had given Raylin a thorough understanding of the outermost layer of the Dream Forest.
"Big centipede, contribute to my success!" The dark red light blade flew from his hand, slicing directly across the centipede monster's exposed red core.
Crack! Crack! Like glass shattering, countless cracks spread across the surface of the core, and with a crisp, sharp sound, the entire energy core exploded violently.
"Woooo... woooo..." The wailing of countless tormented souls echoed in his ears. A flood of bewildered spirits surged from the centipede monster's severed stump — most of these spiritual forms took the shape of natives, though a few familiar-looking pirates were mixed among them.
"With souls as the path, open! The Sybil's Sacrifice!"
Raylin's hands rapidly traced out numerous runes while his mouth chanted ancient syllables.
Hummm... A wave of suffocating energy swept outward as the multitude of souls merged together, forming a corridor shimmering with countless motes of light.
"The witch's blood, the dark raven's feather, and the shadow tome of the Mandala Rite! All the conditions are met!"
Beneath the radiant soul corridor, Raylin inscribed a triangular magic circle with his own blood and placed several items upon it in sequence.
Rumble! A muffled, thunderous roar rolled across the sky — Raylin's actions seemed to have triggered some kind of chain reaction as a bolt of purple lightning slashed down from the heavens!
Crack! Boom!!!
The soul corridor collapsed instantly, and a scorched crater appeared in the ground. The earth trembled and rumbled as though a magnitude-eight earthquake had struck.
"Did it work?"
The dust and smoke cleared, revealing Raylin's silhouette.
He waved his hand, and a dark red gust of wind immediately swept the dust aside, revealing a devastated landscape.
The massive centipede monster and the earlier magic circle had both vanished without a trace. The entire stretch of ground had cracked open, revealing an abyssal fissure of unfathomable depth!
"The power of the maze lock has been broken, revealing the entrance to the lower level!"
Without a moment's hesitation, Raylin jumped into the fissure. The surging darkness engulfed him instantly, like the gaping maw of some monstrous beast.
Rising air currents roared ceaselessly in Raylin's ears. Faint specks of luminescence flickered through the darkness, drifting like fireflies.
"According to my previous research, there are a total of three natural maze locks surrounding the remnants of the Nightmare
Within the Nightmare Forest, the creatures that appeared still largely abided by the rules of the material plane. But as one descended deeper, the Nightmare contamination would grow increasingly severe, and even the power of the laws themselves would begin to warp.
By Raylin's estimation, in the three innermost core layers where the power of dreams was at its absolute peak, there would likely be no boundaries left between time and space — just a chaotic jumble of wills and concepts.
After all, at the height of its power, the force of dreams could twist space and time without the slightest difficulty.
"It's just… the legacy of an ancient Nightmare Wizard — no matter what, I have to see it for myself…"
Tap, tap!
In a daze, Raylin's feet had already landed on solid ground. The faint sensation transmitted through his soles made him momentarily stunned.
"This isn't rock… it's… hardwood flooring?"
Raylin raised his head. Warm sunlight streamed through the windows into the room, illuminating an enormous amount of dust suspended in the air, giving everything a hazy, foggy appearance.
"Little Adi! Master Borifelt is coming to recruit apprentices this time — you absolutely must succeed!"
Before Raylin's eyes appeared a kindly Western couple. The husband was reading the newspaper while drinking coffee, and the wife was placing a fried egg onto the plate of a small red-haired boy, carefully instructing him as she did so.
"What's going on?"
Raylin's brow furrowed slightly, a creeping unease rising in his heart. When he tried to move, he discovered he had no strength whatsoever — as though he were nothing more than a spectating ghost, able only to watch everything unfold passively.
"A dream! I'm inside a dream! This must be the second layer of the maze lock — the countless dream worlds!"
Suddenly, understanding flooded Raylin's mind.
"So this is… the memory-dream of that Nightmare Wizard from his youth?" Raylin watched the small boy sitting in a high-backed chair, eating ravenously. The child's leather boots hung a good distance above the floor, his little legs swinging back and forth — a rather comical sight.
"I know, Mother!"
The red-haired little boy answered quickly, finishing his portion of food in no time.
"Later I'll take you to the master's place — remember to mind your manners! Darling, can't you say a few words?" The wife glared reproachfully at her husband.
"Mm! Good luck!" Only then did the husband, buried in his newspaper, raise his head to reveal a rather bewildered-looking face.
"Oh! Supreme Wizard, save me! I can't stand it for another moment! Don't you know how important today is for our little Adi?"
The wife looked like she was on the verge of a complete breakdown.
"Of course, of course! Isn't it just Borphelt? I once—" A nostalgic gleam crept into the middle-aged man's eyes.
"Spare me the old stories about your so-called adventures. All you are now is a ticket inspector on the city transit line…"
Clearly, even the wife didn't believe a word of her husband's talk.
"I'm done!" Adi shoved his cutlery aside and kicked his chair back as he stood up.
"Oh! Wait—your milk! Your milk!"
The housewife-like woman shouted after him from behind.
Little Adi ran fast, leaving his mother far behind as he dashed out of the massive tube-shaped apartment building.
But then came the horrifying explosion and flames… Shards of glass sliced across Adi's cheek, leaving a hideous cross-shaped scar on his face.
Raylin found himself watching it all unfold like a movie, witnessing the tragedy play out yet utterly powerless to do anything about it.
"No! If I disregard the cost, perhaps I could…"
Raging flames tore straight through his body without producing any effect whatsoever. But in Raylin's eyes, the phantom image of a Taglian Wyrm surfaced — and a terrifying devouring force coalesced in his right hand in an instant, seizing a shard of glass.
Boom!
The immense power made him feel as though he had grabbed a dragon's claw. The entire world seemed to press down on him, pushing him away.
"Even within a dream, alterations are not permitted — or perhaps the memory is simply too deeply ingrained…"
A look of probing curiosity flickered in Raylin's eyes.
......
Then, the entire world froze abruptly, the void plummeting without end.
"Hey! Kid, are you awake yet?"
The scene shifted. Little Adi opened his eyes and reached up to touch his cheek — only to suck in a sharp breath as a searing pain shot through him.
"Don't bother looking — your face is ruined... hee hee... but it actually doesn't look half bad. Suits my taste quite nicely..."
The ancient voice dripped with mockery, yet seemed to gather every scrap of evil in the world into itself, making one's blood run cold.
Little Adi looked up to see a humanoid silhouette that appeared to be formed from countless clumps of black mass pressed together.
"Heh heh... for your father's sake, I'll give you one chance. Survive, and you'll become my disciple — the Nightmare Wizard's disciple..."
The dark figure burst apart the moment it finished speaking, revealing pack after pack of gaunt, black wolf-like creatures on either side, their eerie green eyes making Little Adi shudder to his core.
This time, Raylin was prepared. He watched coldly as Little Adi fought the creatures, his eyes devoid of grief or joy, with only the faint, intermittent flicker of the Chip's glow.
"This must be some minor world close to the Dream Realm. The way Wizards pick their apprentices is rather... brutal."
Raylin reflected that, back when he was still an ordinary person, he wouldn't have stood a chance against these creatures either.