Mysterious Dreamscape

Mysterious Dreamscape

The thunderous roar of the waterfall continued to pour down with undiminished force as always, but there were no longer any beasts nearby.

Ever since that day, most of the beasts in the vicinity had migrated far away. That dragon's roar, brimming with majesty, had filled them with profound fear. Dragons were the kings of all beasts, and the pressure that existed in their bloodlines and souls had left them deeply uneasy. They assumed that a king had taken up residence in that jungle.

Beside the pool, where splashing water flew in every direction, Old Ent sat with his brows furrowed, silently staring at Chen Yun lying on the ground. He had maintained that position for two days and two nights. He had neither moved Chen Yun nor washed the grime from his body. Old Ent knew that Chen Yun could not be moved in this state, as the slightest mishap could cause irreparable harm. He could only rely on himself to slowly awaken.

Fortunately, after two days, Chen Yun's breathing had gradually stabilized, but he still had not regained consciousness. There was nothing Old Ent could do, so he could only continue keeping watch over him.

During those two days, Old Ent had constantly pondered one question: Why had he clearly heard that dragon's roar, yet found nothing when he hurried back—not even the slightest trace? There were no marks of an attack on Chen Yun, either. Could it be that the Giant Dragon had shown mercy and spared Chen Yun?

At that thought, Old Ent shook his head. The Giant Dragon's loathing of humanity had existed since ancient times. Even with Old Ent's vast knowledge and intelligence, he still could not make sense of it.

Meanwhile, deep within the unconscious Chen Yun's soul, scene after scene flashed by—shocking images of a world filled with the aura of primordial antiquity. Giant mountains rose everywhere, piercing the clouds, while the earth lay barren and all kinds of ferocious beasts ran rampant.

A group of strange humans, roughly two hundred in number, wore clothes woven from branches and vines. They were called strange because some had dragon horns growing from their heads, their entire bodies covered in dragon scales, with enormous dragon tails trailing behind them. Others had several Phoenix Feathers atop their heads and a pair of dazzling wings on their backs. Some had furry faces with a striking character for "king" on their foreheads, while others were wrapped from head to toe in a thick, armor-like shell, with an especially tall protrusion rising from their backs.

Yet all these people had one thing in common: human faces. There were old and young among them, strong men in their prime and beautiful women, and they were all desperately running in the same direction.

Not far behind them was a vast, densely packed horde of humans riding various ferocious beasts, so numerous they could not be counted. Each of their faces bore strange, ghostly-green markings that looked as though they had grown there naturally. The markings converged at their glabellas, forming raised hexagonal protrusions whose tips shimmered with a faint, eerie light. Their eyes were uniformly pitch-black, radiating such a deep darkness that one glance seemed enough to drag the soul inside.

They all wore identical black robes. Their high-speed charge made the robes snap loudly in the wind. Looking at the group ahead, every one of them wore an expression of mockery, amusement, and bloodlust, while the strange weapons in their hands—part halberd, part blade—buzzed incessantly.

After only a few minutes—or perhaps merely an instant—the strange humans ahead were overtaken. A swath of black shadows swiftly surrounded them. The strange humans quickly formed a battle circle, protecting the elderly and children within, while the men and women in their prime who could fight stood on the outside.

"Roar!" "Chirp!" "Awooo!" "Wuu—!" At once, the roars of dragons, cries of phoenixes, bellows of tigers, and rumbles of tortoises rang out. The two sides rapidly clashed, and in an instant, shouts of slaughter erupted as flesh and blood flew everywhere. The sight was utterly tragic and horrific. Although the strange humans possessed astonishing individual combat strength—each could be said to be a warrior capable of taking on ten opponents at once—

There were simply too many enemies. Before long, nearly a hundred members of the tribe had fallen. Watching his people drop one after another, a strong man in his prime, clad in Azure Dragon scales and standing three or four meters tall, threw back his head and let out a long cry. His voice was thick with grief and desolation, while bloody tears streamed from his scarlet eyes.

Chen Yun stared blankly at the scene. As one strange human after another died horribly, even their corpses hacked into pieces, he heard the middle-aged man's mournful roar. For some reason, a wave of sorrow surged uncontrollably through his heart, as if he had lost his own family. If a soul could shed tears, Chen Yun would have been drenched in them at that moment.

"Roar—roar—..." One tragic, furious roar after another resounded through the heavens, shaking even the earth. Suddenly, torrential rain poured from the murky sky, as if Heaven itself were weeping for them...

"Daddy! Ah!" A child's tender, shrill scream rang out. A child who looked about five or six years old was chopped apart by a dark, eerie weapon.

"No—!" The strong man from before let out a furious, grief-stricken roar, watching helplessly as his son's tiny body burst apart in midair.

"Ah! Why? Why! Could it be that Heaven truly means to destroy our tribe?" The man's resentful question echoed across the sky.

"Roar!" Suddenly, a sorrowful dragon's cry rang out from the distant horizon. A moment later, a streak of Azure Light shot straight over.

The moment the strange humans heard that dragon's cry, wild joy erupted among them. Their faces became intensely animated. "Old Ancestor! It's Old Ancestor!" A chorus of delighted cries rang out.

As a gale swept over them, a dragon several hundred zhang long appeared before their eyes. Its entire body was covered in azure scales, while streams of liquid-like golden radiance flowed across it. Its azure dragon horns glimmered with a chilling, eerie light. It floated in the air just like that, its enormous shadow descending like an abyss, while its vast Dragon Might, rolling like waves, shook the soul.

Several hundred of the black-clad figures even died on the spot as their bodies collapsed. The others turned pale and spat blood without cease. Azure Dragon's enormous eyes swept downward, and when it saw that more than half of its people had already perished, a cold yet sorrowful radiance burst from its eyes.

"Roar!" A resounding dragon's cry, cold as the depths of midwinter, descended upon the side of the black-clad figures.

"Hmph!" A cold snort came from above the clouds. It sounded like the demonic voice of a fiendish god from the Ninth Heaven, and in an instant, the pressure carried by the descending dragon's cry was shattered.

That cold snort also sent Chen Yun's soul into turmoil. A violent tearing sensation surged through him, and his soul seemed about to collapse. Suddenly, his consciousness went black, followed by a dizzying whirl...

"Hmph." A muffled groan rang out. Chen Yun struggled to open his eyes. At the same time, a cool breeze swept past, and the first thing he saw was Old Ent's wrinkled face, filled with concern.

"G... Grandpa, what... what happened to me?" Chen Yun asked weakly. The cold snort from the dream had seemed like a demonic claw gripping his soul. If he had not suddenly awakened, his soul might have dispersed within that dream. The thought was terrifying. At that moment, he was extremely weak and found it difficult even to speak.

When Old Ent saw him awaken, he finally relaxed. He smiled and said, "It's good that you're awake. Rest properly for now. Once you've recovered, you'll know everything."

"Oh!" Chen Yun answered before turning his head and falling asleep again. Seeing this, Old Ent shook his head helplessly, while a trace of guilt flashed through his eyes. He let out a deep sigh, picked up Chen Yun, and walked toward the edge of the pool.