“But you overestimated the ‘mortals’.”
The Celestial Dragon said, “You claimed that if ‘mortals’ united as one, they could rebel against the ‘gods.’ But the reality is, the people here will never unite. I told you—mortals are weak and selfish. They will never be willing to be the first corpse smashed against the mountain. That’s why, despite their numbers and their so-called ‘divine arts,’ they will never dare to defy me.”
“And now?” Qi Xia asked.
“Now?”
“Look.” Qi Xia pointed to the countless skeletal remains scattered throughout the city. “With ‘Endless Rebirth’ backing them, they can crash against that mountain without hesitation.”
“But you know the truth too, don’t you, White Sheep?” the Celestial Dragon retorted with a smirk. “This is all just surface-level. Those ‘things’ trust you so blindly because they aren’t even human. From a distance, they look like living people charging at the mountain—but in reality, they have no thoughts, no consciousness, not even faces to carry emotions. How are they any different from the flesh and blood you casually conjured to attack me?”
“Flesh and blood…?” Qi Xia chuckled softly. “No, they aren’t just flesh and blood. They’ve always been the residents of this place.”
“Ridiculous. If you replaced them with actual living people, do you think they’d still be this united?”
The Celestial Dragon slowly lowered his gaze, observing the countless bodies that had shattered against the colossal mountain before falling onto the streets.
“They would,” Qi Xia answered. “Because whether in my dream or in the ‘Land of Finality,’ these relentless people share one thing in common.”
“Oh?” The Celestial Dragon’s lips curled. “Do enlighten me.”
“Their leader is me,” Qi Xia said. “I will use ‘Endless Rebirth’ to lead everyone forward—until you are completely annihilated.”
“‘Endless Rebirth’…”
The Celestial Dragon fell silent, raising his eyes to the sky, where the mountain blotted out the sun.
Indeed, the mountain had stopped moving. The faceless figures merely raised their hands, motionless.
They couldn’t shatter this mountain in the sky, nor could they move it. So the best they could do was hold it up—until they collapsed from exhaustion.
For the first time, the Celestial Dragon hesitated.
He had already used his willpower to sustain a powerful ‘Dreamwalk,’ and now he was maintaining ‘Prime Matter’ at near-full strength. Did he really need to expend even more willpower—to unleash ‘Disintegration’ and ‘Ingenuity’ at full force?
Though the chances of killing White Sheep would rise significantly, his own strength was already limited within the opponent’s dream. If he exhausted all his trump cards now… his own ‘Awakening’ would be jeopardized.
If he failed to wake by the tenth day… the consequences would be far more dire than the current situation.
And yet, despite everything, the fact that someone who only possessed ‘Endless Rebirth’ could actually counter his ‘Prime Matter’ was beyond his expectations.
Had this mountain appeared not in a dream but in the real ‘Peach Garden,’ even if every ‘participant’ combined their ‘divine arts,’ stopping it would have been nearly impossible.
“White Sheep… I think I’ve discovered something interesting,” the Celestial Dragon said, grinning again. “Everyone knows you’re clever. Why not enlighten me?”
“Of course,” Qi Xia replied. “What has you stumped?”
In response, the Celestial Dragon casually flicked his wrist. A rough iron stone materialized in his empty hand, carved by the wind as it fell, transforming into a crude spear by the time it landed.
He caught it and lazily hurled it toward Qi Xia.
The spear tore through the air like a bullet.
Qi Xia crossed his arms in front of him as flesh rapidly sprouted along his forearms. Before the spear could strike, a living shield had already formed before him—a grotesque barrier of bone and muscle, complete with terrified eyes and a trembling mouth.
*Thud!*
The spear impaled the shield, eliciting a beast-like scream from its mouth.
“It seems you lack any means of ‘attack,'” the Celestial Dragon observed with amusement. “Despite your apparent combat experience… all your tricks are for defense or restraint… am I wrong?”
Qi Xia’s expression darkened slightly as he tossed the ‘shield’ aside.
“You have no way to kill me,” the Celestial Dragon continued. “Even if we fought all night, you’d just be scrambling to defend against my attacks. Isn’t that right?”
“What’s your point?” Qi Xia replied.
“You’re more afraid of losing than I am.” The Celestial Dragon laughed. “White Sheep… you know exactly how fragile your body is. One careless touch from me, and not only would you suffer severe injuries, but your ‘will’ would waver. So even if you’ve simulated this scenario countless times… you’ve only ever planned for defense.”
“Perhaps you’re right,” Qi Xia admitted bluntly. “Or perhaps my ‘Endless Rebirth’ just isn’t strong enough yet.”
“What a shame…” The Celestial Dragon lowered his head. “I was going to give you the perfect opportunity to hone it—but someone ruined it.”
“The perfect opportunity…” Qi Xia frowned, realization dawning. “You mean the endless ‘Celestial Moments’?”
“Of course,” the Celestial Dragon said. “I had already arranged it… Tonight, the entire ‘Peach Garden’ would have been bathed in blood. It would have been your chance to shine. With a few more trials, I could have taken your fully maddened self to the ‘New World’… But now, someone interfered and disrupted my plans.”
“Oh?” Qi Xia feigned ignorance. “Who would dare?”
“Who else but Azure Dragon?” the Celestial Dragon said dismissively. “He woke up all the ‘Celestials,’ terrified that I’d invade anyone’s dreams… And yet, even though the hours of the Rooster and Monkey have long passed, I can still enter the dreams of many ‘participants.’ That means the Celestial Rooster and Celestial Monkey haven’t acted… He made such a grand move, yet he doesn’t realize I came straight for you.”
“But at the cost of a ‘Celestial’ dying,” Qi Xia pointed out. “Someone worked tirelessly for you, only to end up dead.”
“What does that have to do with me…?” The Celestial Dragon smirked. “Look at how weak you are now, White Sheep… Even if tonight’s ‘Celestial Moments’ were thwarted, you still got your training. Isn’t that wonderful news? Why not think of a way to thank me?”
Qi Xia knew this was no blessing. His ‘Endless Rebirth’ couldn’t be wasted on something so trivial—the side effects would drive him completely insane, possibly even make him agree to the Celestial Dragon’s demands.
“Celestial Dragon, I might as well be honest with you now,” Qi Xia said. “I truly have no way to kill you—but you can’t kill me either. If we keep this up… ask yourself which of us is in greater danger.”
“Oh?”
“Someone is waiting for me outside,” Qi Xia said with confidence. “Can you say the same?”
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