“So if you want to kill me, you must destroy the world,” Qi Xia added. “This world carries the will of my past. It was built upon the obsession of ‘killing you,’ so you’ll feel an overwhelming murderous intent emanating from the entire world.”
Tianlong slowly rose to his feet, staring at Qi Xia in disbelief.
Even though Tianlong’s mind far surpassed that of ordinary people, he still couldn’t comprehend the meaning behind those words at this moment.
“A world built for the sole purpose of ‘killing me’…?”
Qi Xia didn’t respond. He stood up and walked away without looking back. Tianlong felt his mind in utter chaos but could only follow.
The two traversed nearly the entire amusement park before arriving at a massive, theater-like structure made of flesh and blood.
The round, thick-walled building resembled a giant frog crouched on the ground, its bloody maw gaping open as if waiting to swallow anyone who entered.
“For a long time, I came here every day,” Qi Xia said, gazing up at the enormous flesh structure.
“How long… is ‘a long time’?”
“I don’t remember,” Qi Xia replied. “Perhaps tens of thousands of days.”
“Tens of thousands… of days?” Tianlong still felt Qi Xia had lost his mind. “Bai Yang… you…”
Ignoring him, Qi Xia led the way inside. The entrance opened into a narrow, pitch-black corridor, like the throat of some monstrous beast.
After passing through the fleshy hallway, they emerged into a vast crimson clearing. The entire structure pulsed slowly, as though they had stepped into the belly of a gigantic creature.
As Tianlong surveyed the clearing, he noticed the small flesh-covered square was riddled with battle scars. Countless wounds were deeply embedded in the walls—healed, reopened, and healed again, as if tens of thousands had fought here for years.
At the center of the clearing sat a cross-legged figure—one without a face.
Seconds later, Tianlong realized something was wrong. The figure’s clothes, hair, even the faint vermilion mark between its brows—it was identical to him.
“What… is this… thing?” Tianlong asked, his voice trembling with disbelief.
“It’s you, as I created you,” Qi Xia answered plainly. “For tens of thousands of days, I fought you here every single day.”
Hearing this, Tianlong felt a chill crawl down his spine, but he had no words in response. The reality of this world was far more twisted than he had imagined.
“Do you remember?” Qi Xia said calmly. “What you asked me the first time we fought.”
Tianlong froze, recalling that moment. Back then, he had asked Bai Yang—
*”Your inner world was only just completed a day ago, yet you fight as if you’ve been battling like this for years.”*
“You were half-right back then,” Qi Xia said. “Except it wasn’t years—it was decades.”
Qi Xia stepped forward, and the faceless “Tianlong” in the distance seemed to sense his approach. It lifted its head and rose, adopting a battle stance.
It said nothing, merely standing with its hands behind its back.
“He simulates your fighting style here,” Qi Xia explained. “Except the ‘divine techniques’ he unleashes are still made of flesh.”
Tianlong stared at the figure, his entire body turning cold.
“This is what ‘Tianlong’ looks like in my memory,” Qi Xia said with a faint smile. “Unfortunately, after fighting him for so long, I’ve long forgotten your face. Every time I try to recall you, all I see is this faceless monster.”
“So that’s why I appeared without a face in your dream?” Tianlong paused, still confused. “But how could you have had decades…?”
Qi Xia turned back, his expression unchanging. “Tianlong, would you like to hear a story?”
“What… kind of story?”
“A story about ‘eternity.'”
Tianlong fell silent for a long moment before nodding. “Fine.”
“To tell this story would take an ‘eternity.'”
A flicker of hesitation crossed Tianlong’s face, but here, in this place where he was utterly powerless, what choice did he have?
He couldn’t kill Qi Xia, nor could he escape.
“A story… spanning ‘eternity’?”
“Perhaps not true eternity,” Qi Xia shook his head. “Time does have an end. But for an ordinary person like me, it might as well be ‘eternal.'”
Qi Xia walked forward, and the faceless Tianlong was abruptly swallowed by a fissure that split open beneath its feet.
Then Qi Xia sat down, crossing his legs and facing the spot where the faceless figure had vanished.
He showed no trace of hostility, leaving Tianlong feeling as though he was facing something utterly incomprehensible.
“Tianlong, if you want to know the truth of this place, then dream the dream of the entire world.”
“Wh—”
“If you want to know what this place is, how to escape, why you lost, what ‘eternity’ truly is… then dream this world’s dream,” Qi Xia said. “The entire world is a living being. Its dream holds all my memories—and the story of ‘eternity.'”
The building fell into absolute silence, as if time had stopped. The only sound was the slow, rhythmic pulse of the world itself.
To know everything… he had to dream the world’s dream?
“Or perhaps…” Qi Xia hesitated briefly, “after experiencing ‘eternity,’ you’ll finally understand what a ‘god’ truly is.”
Those final words struck a chord in Tianlong’s heart, deepening his hesitation.
“Bai Yang, if I enter this dream… will I ever wake up?”
“You’ll wake after ‘eternity’ has passed,” Qi Xia replied. “Though for you, it might be better to remain asleep forever.”
Tianlong stood silently for a long moment before finally stepping forward and sitting cross-legged in front of Qi Xia.
The two faced each other, a few meters apart, like two figures engaged in some eerie philosophical debate.
“I will endure ‘eternity.’ And you?”
Qi Xia slowly closed his eyes. “I’ll be right here, waiting for you.”
After a long deliberation, Tianlong took a deep breath and, with the last of his “faith,” activated “Dreamwalking.”
The moment the ability took effect, he finally recognized the familiar sensation.
The world he was in *was* reality—and the earth beneath him *did* have a dream.
Bai Yang hadn’t lied.
In a daze, Tianlong realized he had seemingly become Bai Yang.
No—more accurately, he had become Qi Xia.
He had returned to “Taoyuan.”
He was leading the “participants” in rebellion… against Tianlong?
Yes, he wasn’t Tianlong. At this moment, he *was* Qi Xia.
This segment of the dream didn’t begin with the origin of “Taoyuan” but rather with the final day—the day of full-scale rebellion.
Such a brief day… how could it be called “eternity”?
“Is this… the memory from earlier?” Tianlong murmured.
*No, it isn’t,* Qi Xia’s voice echoed faintly from the void.
Tianlong stiffened, then chuckled softly. “You can hear me?”
*Indeed. As I said—this world is me.*
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage