Chapter 13

“This is a dream!”

As Lu Fang spoke those words, it was as if he had flipped a switch—he immediately remembered everything.

The Wujiang River was attacked by a Super Ninth-Rank Demon King; two Great Confucians came to rescue.

He and Li Yu, unable to withstand the influence of the Great Confucian’s ink treasure and the quasi-Demon Sovereign’s relic, fled far away—and encountered Ying Li.

Li Yu, wounded, summoned the Great Confucian’s ink treasure to drive back Ying Li, then Lu Fang carried her and ran for his life.

And then… they entered a cave and fell asleep?

But why is this dream so… strange!

“We’re in a dream!”

Li Yu, who had been chewing dried rations in the cabin, suddenly cried out and rushed out—she too remembered everything.

Lu Fang and Li Yu exchanged glances, both chilled down their spines—what kind of situation was this? Where was there a dream so utterly real?

“What’s going on?”

Lu Fang asked the question first.

Li Yu’s expression shifted, then she suddenly struck—punching Lu Fang square in the nose.

“Ow, ow—!”

Lu Fang clutched his nose, startled—why did he feel pain in a dream? Was this not a dream… but then…

“Pain means it’s real!”

A mocking voice rang out.

Above the Wujiang River, a man with a pair of wings sprouting from his back appeared out of thin air; black mist demon markings glowed brightly on his face and neck.

“It’s you!”

Li Yu recognized the demon, her face darkening.

Lu Fang frowned—this must be a dream, because they couldn’t possibly be on the Wujiang River now, and the Ink-Brush Book Realm had appeared here too.

But if this were a dream, why were Li Yu and Ying Li here? Why did the pain not wake them up…

“I told you—even if you weren’t injured, you still wouldn’t be my match.”

Ying Li landed triumphantly on the water’s surface.

Li Yu’s expression flickered, then she hesitated:

“I once read in an ancient text that a Demon Sovereign called the Dream Demon King once emerged among the demons, awakening the ancient ‘Nightmare’ bloodline, capable of entering dreams to kill—until he was slain in a dream by the Sage Zhuang.”

“If I’m not mistaken, the demon markings on your face are the imprint of the Dream Demon King.”

“Hahahaha… you guessed right!” Ying Li stroked the markings on his face, a hint of pride in his expression.

To be recognized and marked by even a fragment of the Dream Demon King’s lingering will—even among the demon race’s many prodigies—was unique.

If he had no right to be arrogant, who did?

“I give you two choices: die, or become my pet.”

Ying Li had an odd obsession and thrill at the thought of taking the daughter of a Great Confucian of the Great Zhou as his pet.

“Shut up!”

Li Yu snorted, extending her palm—the Great Confucian’s ink treasure, the Square Inkstone, did not manifest; not only could she not summon the ink treasure, she couldn’t even use her righteous qi.

“Hahahaha… feeling helpless? In the ‘Nightmare World,’ you can’t even use righteous qi—afraid?”

Ying Li’s grin twisted wildly; seeing Li Yu still struggling uselessly to summon righteous qi, he sneered:

“Don’t waste your energy. As long as your rank is lower than mine, once I pull you into the ‘Nightmare World,’ you’re at my mercy.”

To prove his power, Ying Li raised his hand—and the heavens trembled. A mountain dozens of zhang tall rose from the ground nearby.

The majestic, towering peak floated upward like a paper kite, drifting gently above Ying Li.

Here, Li Yu couldn’t even summon righteous qi, yet Ying Li effortlessly summoned a mountain dozens of zhang tall into the air.

Boom!

Ying Li casually hurled the mountain into the Wujiang River—splitting the river in two with the sheer weight.

“Have you ever seen the Yellow River fall from the sky?!”

Ying Li, like a performer with an audience, spread his wings wide and looked up.

Splash!

From the dark, storm-laden sky, a torrent of Yellow River water poured down like a colossal waterfall, drowning and destroying Mount Luojia and the Wujiang River alike.

This sight was truly awe-inspiring—making one feel how insignificant humans were before the power of heaven and earth.

“Mmm… truly beautiful!”

Ying Li was delighted by his own devastation, especially at the stunned expressions on Li Yu and Lu Fang’s faces—he felt pure bliss throughout his body.

“A fifth-rank demon shouldn’t be able to cause something like this,” Lu Fang asked uncertainly.

“Normally, a fifth-rank demon couldn’t do this,” Li Yu affirmed.

Lu Fang hesitated, then ventured:

“So… he’s using some kind of dream power? If it’s dream power, maybe we can use it too?”

That means he used a power similar to that in dreams—if it’s a dream power, can we use it too?

Li Yu gave the answer.

She had been trying since the beginning—so far, not only could she not control dream power, she couldn’t even summon righteous qi.

“You want to use Nightmare power too?”

Ying Li burst into mad laughter.

Even he, granted the Dream Demon King’s lingering will and the imprint of dream control, had spent a hundred years of relentless failure and painstaking cultivation to achieve this.

A weak human dared to think he could use Nightmare power to defeat him in the Nightmare World?

A weak human dares to think they can defeat him with nightmare power in the Nightmare World?

Li Yu sighed deeply and looked at Lu Fang: “I’ve dragged you into this.”

“Mm.” Lu Fang nodded seriously.

Li Yu rolled her eyes, exasperated: “I’ve realized you’re really… insufferable!”

“Then why don’t you just accept his offer?” Lu Fang raised an eyebrow. “Hey, Birdman! You want to take her as your pet—that’s none of my business. Why not just talk to her and let me go?”

“Then just agree to his terms,” Lu Fang said, raising an eyebrow. “Hey, birdman! You want to take her as your pet? That’s none of my business. Why don’t you two talk, and let me out first?”

Ying Li’s eyes blazed with murderous intent—he was about to strike and obliterate Lu Fang.

Then—something unexpected happened!

A ripple appeared in the space beside Lu Fang—and the Book Spirit Yan Chixia materialized.

A ripple stirred in the space beside Lu Fang, and the Book Spirit Yan Chixia appeared.

Ying Li’s pupils dilated, his face filled with disbelief.

In the Nightmare World, how could this weak human summon a Book Spirit? He should be unable to even use righteous qi!

“It seems I’m… a little special in the Nightmare World.”

Lu Fang pointed toward a patch of the ruined Mount Luojia, testing: “Look—what’s that?”

The spot he pointed to was a pitch-black expanse of Ink Heaven and Ink Earth, with books and their spirit-figures glowing in various hues—the Ink-Brush Book Realm.

In this Nightmare World, the Ink-Brush Book Realm existed like something transcendent—untouched by dream power, as if the Yellow River water and rain deliberately avoided it.

This anomaly was glaringly obvious—Li Yu and Ying Li should have noticed it long ago.

The only reason they hadn’t was one possibility: only Lu Fang could see the Ink-Brush Book Realm.

Li Yu looked up—saw nothing unusual. She turned to Lu Fang, her eyes filled with confusion and sudden hope.

If he could summon a Book Spirit… maybe he could…

“If I’m not mistaken, the Nightmare World is a shared dream among the three of us. Since it’s my dream, then it’s simple.”

Lu Fang cleared his throat, mimicking Ying Li’s earlier gesture—he raised his right hand above his head and shouted: “Pen, come!”

Lu Fang cleared his throat and imitated the earlier gesture of Ying Li, raising his right hand above his head and shouting, “Bring the pen!”