Under such torment, the goddess still had not died. With the last bit of strength she had left, she looked toward Xi Yu and mouthed two words:
“—Run.”
“Get away! Get away!—”
The scene before him stabbed straight through Xi Yu’s heart. He violently unleashed another attack, already completely out of his mind.
The little spiritual power he had left was rapidly depleted, yet even after the illusion was shattered, it simply reassembled itself.
Again and again, he watched his mother being eaten alive by the Demon King, along with that severed arm lying discarded on the ground.
Xi Yu’s expression became hideous and twisted.
With his spiritual power exhausted, he could no longer destroy the illusion. He rushed forward like a madman, desperately trying to snatch his mother back, but his hands simply passed through the illusion.
Again and again.
Xi Yu was powerless.
All he could do was watch helplessly as the living person was gnawed away until nothing remained but bones.
He collapsed beside the bones, kneeling as he grabbed his own hair and let out a sharp, ear-piercing scream.
After a while, a jingling sound came from behind.
Xi Yu looked at Little Lanxing approaching with the hair ribbon in his hand, his eyes filled with hatred and pain.
He screamed at him, his voice hoarse with anguish.
“Why did you leave…? Why did you leave her!!!”
“She had nothing but divine bones and no spiritual power at all! Why didn’t you protect her!!!”
Little Lanxing couldn’t hear him.
He merely picked up the hair ribbon from the ground and held it tightly in his hand.
His small face was numb and cold.
Xi Yu was in so much pain that he could barely breathe.
He was going to kill the demons!
He was going to kill every single demon!
They deserved to die!
They deserved to die!
He deserved to die too!
Why…
Why had he listened and gone to return the immortal fruit?
Why had he been so young back then, so ignorant that he didn’t understand how tempting a goddess with divine bones but no spiritual power would be to the demons?
Why…
Why hadn’t he protected her?
“Mommy… Mommy…”
“Don’t leave me…”
Xi Yu closed his eyes.
Large tears rolled down his face.
His chest hurt so badly that he could hardly breathe, and it felt as though all the blood in his body had frozen.
Why couldn’t he die?
Why did it hurt so much?
Why couldn’t he die…
Xi Yu trembled violently, and he was terribly cold.
But in the next second, someone covered his eyes from behind, and a warm chest pressed against his back.
“Master, guess who I am?”
Xi Yu was still trembling.
He couldn’t escape the pain.
The person behind him blocked his view, allowing him not to face the blood covering the ground.
When the person behind him received no answer, he seemed somewhat dissatisfied. He rested his head against Xi Yu’s shoulder and asked again in a coquettish voice,
“Master, Master, guess who I am?”
There was no need to guess.
In the entire Three Realms, the only person who could call him “Master” was Zhiluoyi.
Xi Yu’s consciousness was pulled back.
But the wound that had been buried deep within him for tens of thousands of years—a wound he could never speak of to anyone—had been ripped open, exposing rotten flesh, bones, and blood.
The pain was still unbearable.
Xi Yu didn’t even dare pull down the hand Zhiluoyi had placed over his eyes.
This was an illusion.
The Realm of Deep Dreams.
It could awaken the people and things that mattered most to a person—the things they could never bear to lose, the things that caused them the most pain, the things that brought them the greatest happiness.
Everything that had left a mark deep within their hearts.
There weren’t many demons capable of summoning the deepest fears buried within a person’s heart.
The ancient Dream Demon, Lijin.
It took the form of mist and wove dreams.
It could not take a person’s life, but it could trap them forever within a dream.
“Master, why aren’t you saying anything?”
The person behind him had already moved in front of him, and the hands covering Xi Yu’s eyes were removed as well.
A tall, slender young man dressed in moon-white brocade stood before him.
His features were breathtakingly handsome.
He tilted his head, his phoenix eyes curving into crescent moons.
But Xi Yu’s gaze went past him, toward what lay behind him.
The pear trees that had been stained red with blood had transformed into vast, lush Soul Trees.
Vermilion fruits hung from their branches, exactly like the one Xi Yu had never gotten to eat.
“Master!”
‘Zhiluoyi’ called out, his voice now filled with grievance and sadness.
“Why are you ignoring me? Did your disciple do something wrong and make Master angry?”
Xi Yu plucked an immortal fruit and placed it in ‘Zhiluoyi’s’ hand.
Then he picked another one and ate it himself.
The fruit was juicy and refreshing, with a crisp sweetness.
After eating the immortal fruit, Xi Yu forced himself to calm his emotions.
The Realm of Deep Dreams had three layers.
What he had just experienced was the first layer—the Realm of Pain.
It took genuine pain from the depths of one’s heart and forced the person to experience their deepest fears all over again.
Its purpose was to destroy the person’s sanity.
The second layer was the Realm of Pleasure.
It intertwined with the first layer, taking the person or thing that had brought them the greatest happiness throughout their long life and presenting it before them.
After immense grief, the person would be rescued by the one they cherished most.
Its purpose was to weaken their psychological defenses.
Xi Yu looked at ‘Zhiluoyi’ and beckoned to him.
“Come here.”
‘Zhiluoyi’ walked over and crouched in front of Xi Yu, looking up at him.
“Master~”
He dragged out the word “Master,” twisting it around eighteen different times.
Xi Yu raised a hand and lifted ‘Zhiluoyi’s’ chin, studying his face.
Everything within a dream was an illusion.
But Zhiluoyi truly had been the only person capable of making Xi Yu feel happiness, anger, sadness, and joy after his mother’s death.
There had been little anger or sorrow.
Most of it had been happiness.
Many times, Xi Yu felt that Zhiluoyi should really have been a soft, sweet little dumpling rather than a small snake covered in purple scales that looked cold and intimidating.
The day Xi Yu found Zhiluoyi, the boy had just transformed into human form.
He had been surrounded and attacked by several demons.
After Xi Yu casually rescued him, the little thing had sobbed and clutched his clothes, refusing to let go.
Afraid that another demon might suddenly attack, Xi Yu took him back to the heavens and raised him as a pet.
He raised him for tens of thousands of years.
So it wasn’t strange that the second layer was Zhiluoyi.
“Master~ What are you—”
Smack!
Xi Yu slapped ‘Zhiluoyi’ across the face, interrupting his words.
…………………….
Xi Yu’s slap wasn’t particularly light or heavy.
There was no real intent to punish him.
It was more like teasing.
‘Zhiluoyi’s’ face turned slightly to the side, but his hand swiftly caught the wrist Xi Yu was about to lower.
He tilted his head up and rubbed his cheek against Xi Yu’s palm.
His raven-black lashes trembled, and his pupils were pitch-black.
“Master, that hurts.”
As ‘Zhiluoyi’ spoke, the corners of his eyes turned red, but there was unmistakable delight in his gaze.
Xi Yu gave a soft laugh.
“You ungrateful disciple.”
After all the love he had given him, the little brat was actually coming into his dreams to torment him.
The dream woven by an ancient great demon was extraordinary.
Every blade of grass and every tree could be made indistinguishable from reality.
Even knowing that the Zhiluoyi before him was fake, Xi Yu was still overcome by longing.
It had been so long.
He hadn’t seen his disciple in far too long.
Xi Yu suddenly understood why fans liked collecting little photo cards and standees.
When you couldn’t be close to someone, you entrusted your longing to something false.
Xi Yu tapped ‘Zhiluoyi’ lightly on the head.
The next moment, the person who had been acting spoiled against his knees suddenly vanished.
“Master!”
A clear, cool voice came from behind him.
When Xi Yu turned around, the surrounding environment had changed again.
The stone stool beneath him had transformed into white jade.
Layers of watery-blue gauze hung down to the floor, concealing the mist rising from the warm pool.
Xi Yu turned around and propped his head up as he watched.
‘Zhiluoyi’ was standing there with his upper body completely bare, anxiously pushing aside the gauze.
Purple scales shimmered across his waist and abdomen.
“Master, I’m sick! Come take a look!”
This layer of the dream was different from the previous one.
He wasn’t merely observing it like an outsider.
He could interact with ‘Zhiluoyi.’
Using the image of Zhiluoyi that existed within his heart, the dream had constructed this entire scene.
It was as though the separation and death of the two master and disciple had never happened.
There was another difference from the previous layer as well.
Everything in this layer had never actually happened.
It was entirely written according to Xi Yu himself and the image of ‘Zhiluoyi’ within the illusion.
Xi Yu stared straight at ‘Zhiluoyi.’
If this had been the past, he absolutely would not have waited outside while the little brat bathed.
Normally, Xi Yu would be the one bathing while the little brat waited outside.
It was a bad habit the little brat had developed after some fearless person had barged in and offered himself to Xi Yu’s bed.
But it had been too long.
He had gone far too long without seeing Zhiluoyi.
So he was willing to play along with him within the illusion and say nothing that would ruin the mood.
“Let me see where you’re sick.”
Mist swirled around the warm pool.
Whenever the little brat bathed, he liked to let his snake tail show.
A human upper body with a snake’s tail—it had a rather unique charm.
Xi Yu had never particularly cared for snakes.
He only found them cold and slippery.
But Zhiluoyi’s snake tail was exceptionally beautiful.
It was a deep purple, with scales shimmering in a dazzling array of colors.
After all, half of his true form had been manifested, so there were scales along his waist, abdomen, and shoulders as well, like gemstones adorning his body.
Even the pupils embedded in those long, narrow eyes had turned purple.
When he spoke, he stared straight at Xi Yu.
He was truly captivating.
If the little brat hadn’t suddenly whipped his tail around and splashed water all over Xi Yu’s face, Xi Yu might have given the pretty boy a little more patience.
But now, Xi Yu wiped his face and gritted his teeth.
“Do you believe I’ll give you two solid punches?”
“Master! I’m sick!”
‘Zhiluoyi’ looked pitiful, afraidly wrapping his arms around Xi Yu’s neck.
His entire body was trembling, and he pressed his face against Xi Yu’s neck.
He freed one hand and pointed toward a certain spot on his snake tail.
“It hurts here. Two strange things have grown.”
Xi Yu already sensed that something was wrong the moment he heard ‘Zhiluoyi’ mention “strange things.”
But his gaze had already been drawn there, following the place ‘Zhiluoyi’ was pointing toward.
A section of scales on the smooth snake tail had flipped open.
Xi Yu’s face instantly became burning hot.
It was as though his blood had been boiled by flames.
Every patch of skin visible on his body turned intensely red.
“Master, what’s wrong? Your face is so red.”
“Master, what’s wrong with me? I feel so uncomfortable. It hurts.”
‘Zhiluoyi’ brazenly raised his snake tail.
Apparently afraid that Xi Yu couldn’t see clearly enough, he even manipulated that strange part of his tail and moved it closer to Xi Yu.
“It hurts so much. Did I get hit by some kind of curse?”
‘Zhiluoyi’s’ voice was filled with panic.
Xi Yu was just as panicked.
Seeing it getting closer and closer, he hurriedly tried to pull the little brat’s arms away from his neck.
As he tugged, he explained,
“No… It’s not an illness. It’s spring.”
What on earth had he raised?
He and Zhiluoyi had spent tens of thousands of years together before, and nothing like this had ever happened.
Had the little brat really been this ridiculously innocent and clueless in his mind!?
This layer of the dream was woven according to the Zhiluoyi that existed within his subconscious.
Xi Yu absolutely refused to admit that, deep down, he thought the little brat was this ridiculously innocent and clueless.