Chapter 680: Whose Dream

Thinking carefully, isn't this very strange?

In Qi Xia's dream, everyone has no faces, but she does.

The people in the dream have no movements at all, but she does.

She can see, hear, and feel.

So, she absolutely knows what the "bean sprouts" and "eggplant" she prepared are.

Compared to her, Qi Xia seems more like a supporting character in this dream.

His expression is blank, his demeanor wooden, and he can't even distinguish his surroundings.

He agrees to everything the girl in white says and obeys all her commands.

What's the difference between him and those faceless people on the street?

"This is bad..."

Xiao Cheng quickly stood up and went to the window, carefully examining the crack.

He took a deep breath, knowing there was only one last option.

He slowly moved his hand and placed it over the crack.

It all depended on his own "belief."

Though this seemed even more absurd than letting Qi Xia see him, theoretically, he had succeeded before.

That was in someone else's dream, using "belief" to change the environment.

Xiao Cheng had lied.

In that middle-aged man's dream, he had plucked a blade of grass, but immediately felt regret, so he put the broken grass back and kept insisting it was unintentional.

In just a few seconds after letting go, he saw the blade of grass was perfectly intact.

Yet, even so, when the man woke up, he was still dazed and disoriented, as if his mind had collapsed.

Xiao Cheng often had grand fantasies about his "echo." If one day he could master "dream entry" to perfection, not only would every dream's owner be able to see him, but he could also create things freely in the dream—a wonderful prospect.

However, Qi Xia's dream shattered many of Xiao Cheng's fantasies. In this dream, his abilities were very limited.

If that crack on the glass was truly a fissure in Qi Xia's psychological defenses, what would happen if he fixed it?

Xiao Cheng covered the crack with his palm and closed his eyes slightly, silently repeating in his mind, "This is just a complete piece of glass."

But before he could repeat it three times, a chill ran up his wrist.

He suddenly opened his eyes and saw a pale hand gripping his own.

The touch was icy cold, yet as strong as a vice.

"Don't do that."

A gentle voice slipped into Xiao Cheng's ear like a ghost.

In disbelief, he turned his head to look at the girl in white standing before him.

She was holding a plate of charred, chopped hearts, smiling sweetly at Xiao Cheng.

"What... what?"

Just those two words, and Xiao Cheng's voice cracked, sounding unnaturally hoarse.

"Don't do anything unnecessary." The girl in white said with a smile, "I'm Yu Nian An. What's your name?"

"I... I... Cheng..."

"Xiao Cheng?" Yu Nian An asked with a gentle smile, gently moving Xiao Cheng's hand away from the glass.

Though her movements were slow, Xiao Cheng felt as if a truck was dragging his arm.

"Come here."

Although Yu Nian An's voice was very soft, Xiao Cheng felt like he was facing a vengeful spirit, unable to resist.

What on earth was this bizarre situation?

The dream's owner shouldn't notice his existence no matter what, yet this girl seemed to have discovered him long ago.

Why was she more powerful than the dream's owner?

Yu Nian An dragged Xiao Cheng away from the window as if he were a piece of paper, then placed the plate in front of Qi Xia and softly said to him, "Xia, the eggplant is ready too. Eat up first."

At that moment, Xiao Cheng was trembling all over, almost envisioning his own death.

"An, aren't you eating?"

Qi Xia asked.

"I have something to handle." Yu Nian An gently patted Qi Xia. "Be good, you eat first."

Qi Xia nodded, picked up his chopsticks, and dug in heartily. He never turned around, seemingly indifferent to everything happening around him.

"Yu... Yu Jie..." Xiao Cheng croaked, "I... I mean no harm... I just saw that Qi Ge wasn't doing well... so..."

"But you're not being honest." Yu Nian An said, "What do you want to do?"

Xiao Cheng realized this might be his last chance. Trying to kill people in a dream was delusional; he couldn't even block their casual swings, let alone their punches.

"Yu Jie... listen to me. Qi Ge is dreaming right now, and his dream has been disrupted. Dreams reflect a person's psychological state, so his mindset has been damaged too." Xiao Cheng tried to explain everything as quickly as possible. "I came here to help Qi Ge fix the crack in his mind... so I really mean no harm..."

"Oh, fix it." Yu Nian An nodded, then continued pulling Xiao Cheng's arm toward the kitchen.

In an instant, Xiao Cheng felt his arm being twisted, causing him to cry out in pain, but he had no hope of struggling free.

"Yu Jie! Everything I said is true!"

Xiao Cheng used his left hand to support his right arm, trying desperately not to let it break, but his voice was already hoarse from fear.

Once in the kitchen, Yu Nian An let go, and Xiao Cheng fell to the ground.

But she didn't do anything else; she just turned on the faucet and started washing the pot.

"Xia is eating outside. Don't disturb him." As Yu Nian An washed the pot with sticky black blood, she asked softly, "After you fix the crack... what will you do next?"

"Truthfully..." Xiao Cheng got up from the ground, looking serious as he said, "I think once that crack is fixed, Qi Ge will regain some sanity, and then I can get out!"

Yu Nian An paused her washing for a moment, then turned her head and said, "Xiao Cheng, that crack can't be fixed."

"What...?" Xiao Cheng stood there stunned. "What do you mean by 'can't be fixed'?"

"This is beyond your understanding; it's hard to explain." Yu Nian An picked up a steel wool pad and scrubbed the grease off the pot forcefully. "If you try to fix it, I'll kill you right here."

Xiao Cheng blinked, finding the situation hard to comprehend.

"Yu Jie... did I not explain clearly enough?" He seemed to calm down a bit. "Are you Qi Ge's lover? He's sick, very seriously ill! If we don't fix that crack, he might lose his mind completely!"

"I know, that's why it can't be fixed." Yu Nian An said softly.

"You..." A strange answer suddenly dawned on Xiao Cheng. "Did you do this on purpose?"

Yu Nian An smiled at Xiao Cheng without denying it.

Only then did Xiao Cheng realize how absurd the whole thing was...

"Yu Jie... are you the real owner of this dream?!"