Devouring

The ancient, dark oil painting frame floated in the dim dreamscape. Inside the painting, the sealed doll-like girl was utterly bewildered by the current situation.

"This shouldn't be! I've already broken free from this thing's control and even have a body in the real world!" Eileen circled around within the painting. "I accepted having to carry this painting around when I was 'outside,' treating it like extra luggage. But why is it worse in the dream world… Theoretically, shouldn't I be freer after entering a dream?"

She looked up, staring directly at Yu Sheng.

"You're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? I also thought you should be freer after entering a dream," Yu Sheng spread his hands. "I wanted to see what you looked like at 1.67 meters, but you're still just a flat cutout."

Eileen appeared very agitated, losing even the interest to bicker with Yu Sheng. After circling the chair in the painting an unknown number of times, she finally resigned herself to sitting back down. She then casually grabbed the fluffy plush bear and began to rub it vigorously in her arms.

"Now I'm trapped with this guy again… But, it's okay. At least I have the freedom to move around in the real world. The dream world isn't that important, right? Not that important."

"...Sometimes I really envy your optimism," Yu Sheng remarked with genuine emotion.

Eileen immediately bared her teeth at him, but whether in reality or in dreams, her snarling threats never held any real deterrence.

Yu Sheng then stepped around the oil painting floating in the air and approached the sleeping silver fox.

"What's next? Am I going to lie on her tail like last time? And then we both 'sink' down together?"

"It's the same as last time, but this time the connection will be more 'direct.' I'll find a way to keep Huli's consciousness in a state close to wakefulness. This will make it easier for you to communicate with her and later perceive her surroundings," Eileen said, floating to Yu Sheng's side. "But at the same time, 'Hunger' will notice you. It will come looking for you… I can't help you with what happens after that. Contact and struggle on the consciousness level can only be handled by yourself."

She paused at this point, as if to reassure Yu Sheng, and added, "But I can be a last resort. Once I sense your mental state rapidly destabilizing, I will forcibly 'pull' you out. It will be as uncomfortable as waking up abruptly last time, so you should be mentally prepared."

"...Honestly, I really don't want to go through that again," Yu Sheng sighed immediately, but then quickly nodded. His previous resolve hadn't wavered at all. "Alright, let's begin."

He once again found a stable indentation between the fox's large tail, then caught Eileen as she jumped directly from mid-air. The man and the painting, leaning against the fox tail, began to sink down again in the hazy dreamscape.

Perhaps it was due to the previous connection, but this second descent was even faster and smoother than Yu Sheng had imagined. He barely felt a flicker before his vision stabilized, and he saw the demon fox girl's figure.

She was squatting quietly amidst a pile of rubble, staring blankly at something in front of her.

Yu Sheng's perspective shifted behind Huli, and following her gaze forward—

He saw a massive wreck, resembling the aftermath of a large aircraft crash. Twisted metal frames and broken decks still vaguely hinted at its former grandeur. Faint wisps of light, like lingering spiritual energy, drifted slowly between the shattered remains.

The entire wreck had fallen at the foot of a mountain. The collapsed and melted rock had almost swallowed it, fusing it into the mountainside. Even a glance revealed the astonishing impact of the crash.

If the passengers had all been ordinary humans, there might not have been any survivors.

Yu Sheng glanced at the crash site with astonishment but didn't forget his original purpose. He approached the demon fox girl and spoke softly to avoid startling her, "Huli."

The ears on Huli's head perked up instantly. She then abruptly stood up and scanned her surroundings, as if trying to locate the source of the sound. After failing to find anything, she hesitantly replied, "... Benefactor?"

"It's me. Stop looking, I'm directly contacting your consciousness."

"Benefactor! You're really here! I thought I misheard last time… Benefactor? What's happening?" Huli's face showed surprise. She still instinctively scanned her surroundings with her eyes. "I, I was spacing out in the valley, and suddenly I came to this place. Am I, dreaming? Is this a dream?"

"Yes, I… I used some methods to forcibly guide your dream. This is the only way I can contact you—but now is not the time to explain the details," Yu Sheng said quickly. "Listen, Huli, I'm going to save you. To do that, I need to open a special door, and I need your cooperation—do you trust me?"

"Come, save me?" Huli was stunned for a moment, then suddenly reacted, shaking her head vigorously. "Don't, don't come here, Benefactor. It was hard enough for you to get out. This valley is very strange. Once you enter, it's hard to escape! You, don't come! Please don't..."

Yu Sheng interrupted the somewhat flustered girl. "I have a way! Huli, listen, I have a way. I've already found a stable method to enter and exit that valley. Now I just need your cooperation to open that door. Don't worry about that monster, I can handle it—do you understand? I'm very powerful, and I've found a helper this time, who is also… well, powerful."

Yu Sheng tried to comfort Huli, attempting to put her mind at ease. However, a hint of confusion appeared on Huli's face. Her thoughts were slow, and she seemed to struggle to keep up with Yu Sheng's words. After a long while, unsure how much she had understood, she finally asked with a puzzled expression, "So, Benefactor, are you also an Immortal?"

Yu Sheng had no idea how Huli's thoughts had jumped to that conclusion.

But he could be.

"A very powerful Immortal," he tried to make his voice sound as reliable as possible.

The demon fox girl then smiled.

"Benefactor, what should I do?"

"You don't need to do anything. Just focus on perceiving your surroundings from now on. You'll feel someone peeking into your mind, and even feel someone looking at your surroundings through your eyes—don't resist, that's me."

"Okay."

Yu Sheng felt a slight relief in his heart. The conversation with Huli had been easier than expected. The next step… he just needed to deal with the second problem.

"Eileen," he called out softly in his mind, "Let's begin."

The next second, accompanied by a slight dizziness, Yu Sheng felt an indescribable… pull.

A completely new "connection" appeared, established between him and Huli. Unlike the subtle link established through blood before, he could clearly feel that this newly formed connection was more robust, and more… forceful.

A part of his consciousness detached from his control, merging into a series of new perceptions. It was as if his nerves had suddenly connected to an entire set of extra limbs. Although the sensations transmitted were somewhat vague and delayed, he still… began to feel the aura around Huli.

Cold, decaying, carrying the stench of all things withering. The wind stirred in the valley, blowing through the dark forest.

The night was eternal, and Hunger endured.

The demon fox girl stood in the forest, her eyes wide open, trying hard to look around.

She didn't really understand what Benefactor was doing, nor did she know if staring intently at her surroundings was the right thing to do. She was simply trying her best to follow Benefactor's instructions according to her own understanding.

Then, she felt the "connection" Benefactor had mentioned.

She was startled, but she didn't feel any malice.

Huli had always been able to keenly sense even the slightest malice, but this time, no malice was transmitted.

She only felt a little reassured, and even… her stomach didn't seem as hungry.

The moment the overwhelming sense of Hunger and the tide of madness suppressed deep within that Hunger surged towards him, Yu Sheng felt as if a colossal wave had crashed down upon him—like a collapsing mountain in the pitch-black night sky. Hunger and madness were almost tangible, like a vast shadow, like solidified darkness, instantly engulfing every inch of his perception.

Yu Sheng didn't even have time to call out Eileen's name. In the nick of time, he desperately tried to remember the "characteristics" of the valley that Huli had conveyed, and then he was completely submerged by the chaotic black tide.

However, deep within the black tide, he found himself still conscious.

Hunger gnawed at his soul, and his soul withered and died. Yu Sheng watched in the dark, raging tide as "he" was devoured in an instant, his perspective like that of an indifferent bystander.

The Hunger receded, and the withered, dead soul awakened once more. Yu Sheng opened his eyes in the darkness, momentarily unsure if he had experienced another "death" or if it was just a fleeting illusion of being devoured.

He wandered in the depths of the darkness, unable to sense the passage of time or the end of space, not even sure if he was truly moving.

He could only feel... a gaze fixed upon him.

Not a single gaze, but the entire dark chaos was a part of that gaze.

He was like a speck of dust, as small as a needle's tip, being watched and submerged by the boundless, hungry gaze.

And then, after an unknown amount of time, he finally glimpsed within the deep darkness... colossal, floating limbs, or perhaps shadows.