Chapter 33

The black arched doorway was only a dozen meters deep.

Lin Sheng moved forward cautiously, his breathing light as he strained to listen to the sounds around him.

Dong.

Suddenly, a dull sound, like a tolling bell, echoed from within Black Feather City.

Lin Sheng's footsteps faltered.

Dong. Dong. Dong.

The tolling continued, one after another, until it ceased after the fifth strike.

Lin Sheng stood rooted to the spot, listening intently for any shift in the surroundings.

After several long minutes, hearing nothing, he gripped his sword and began to inch forward once more.

Soon, he passed through the doorway, and the view ahead opened up.

Decaying, dilapidated grey-black buildings and streets stretched out, with scraps of unknown black fabric drifting in the wind. A lone signpost stood by the side of the road.

Lin Sheng ignored the sign, turning without hesitation to walk straight down a street to his right.

His sneakers moved from the black soil onto the hard, gravel-strewn street, the surface feeling rough and uneven beneath his feet.

The main road to the right was paved with coarse cobblestones, flanked by blackened stone buildings that looked as if they had been ravaged by fire.

Most of these structures were two or three stories tall, resembling ordinary homes or small villas rather than shops.

At regular intervals along the main road, stone lamp posts stood upright.

To Lin Sheng's surprise, the lamps were actually lit with a pale yellow glow; within their square shades, candle flames flickered and danced in the cold wind.

They weren't lit before. He recalled his previous entry into the city; he hadn't seen these streetlights illuminated back then.

A chill ran through him, and Lin Sheng quickly began to look for a place to hide.

Glancing left and right, he soon spotted a row of buildings on the right where the doors and windows were nothing but broken, pitch-black holes—perfect for slipping into to hide.

Yet, those dark, gaping voids also made his heart tremble. Who knew what dangers might be lurking inside?

Standing on the street, he looked ahead. The street, illuminated by the lamps, was empty, desolate, and deathly silent, stretching out until it vanished into the distance.

If I don't move now, it'll wake up. Lin Sheng steeled himself, gripped his sword, and strode forward along his planned route.

Pat, pat.

Even though he tried to keep his steps light, the sound of his feet continued to echo against the street surface.

Hiss.

Suddenly, a faint, static-like noise, as if someone were whispering in his ear, drifted from ahead.

Lin Sheng's expression changed. He quickly found a broken window to his right and slipped inside in a single stride.

He crouched down, hiding his entire body beneath the wall of the window frame.

Hiss, hiss.

The sound approached rapidly, growing closer and closer.

In the middle of the street, a massive shadow, two stories tall, appeared in the district, moving sluggishly as it dragged a long, serpentine tail.

Its entire body was swarming with countless black, ant-like insects, which covered it so thoroughly that its true form was obscured.

Through the insects, one could vaguely discern a humanoid outline in its upper body.

On its head, a face flickered with a massive, black-red snake tongue, and three pairs of black eyes, resembling rotting tree hollows, were embedded in its face.

These eyes were currently scanning the surroundings with greed.

Lin Sheng peered out slowly and silently through a crack in the window frame.

Gulp.

He couldn't help but swallow, not daring to move a muscle.

The monster slithered past quickly. It had the upper body of a human and the lower body of a giant python, its long, thick tail covered in smooth, pitch-black scales.

The cobblestones on the street rubbed against its scales, producing the hissing sound Lin Sheng had heard earlier.

Any debris blocking the monster's path was easily crushed beneath it.

Lin Sheng didn't even dare to breathe, terrified of drawing the monster's attention.

With a monster of this size, let alone fighting it, even escaping successfully was a question.

The hissing sound slowly faded into the distance.

Even after the silence returned, Lin Sheng didn't dare move for a long time.

The sheer size of the monster had terrified him. Against a creature of that caliber, he feared he would have no choice but to die if discovered.

Only after the hissing had been gone for several dozen breaths did he slowly stand up from the windowsill.

"Young man, have you... seen my Justin?"

Suddenly, a woman's voice filled with trepidation drifted out from behind Lin Sheng.

Lin Sheng gave a start, abruptly standing up and spinning around.

His Black Sword swished through the air, pointing behind him.

Only then did he realize that the place he had crawled into was a dilapidated room resembling a living room.

In a corner of the room, by a doorway leading to other chambers, stood a pale-faced woman.

The woman appeared to be in her forties, looking haggard and anxious.

Her eyes were sunken with heavy dark circles and bags, her gaze somewhat vacant and unfocused. She wore a gray cloak similar to a nun's habit, which also covered her head.

"Young man, have you seen my Justin?" the woman asked again.

Lin Sheng's heart was on guard.

Yet, he breathed a sigh of relief; this was the first time he had encountered someone who could speak within the dream.

It gave him a faint sense of security, knowing that communication was possible.

In this vast dreamscape, empty and deathly silent, he had spent so much time alone that he often felt a sense of panic deep down.

Fortunately, he had finally met someone he could talk to.

Lin Sheng narrowed his eyes, confirming that the woman's hands were hanging at her sides with no obvious weapons hidden, and only then did he slowly approach.

"Hello, I don't know who this Justin you're talking about is. However, if you can give me some clues, perhaps I can help you find him."

He replied slowly, using the local accent of Black Feather City. Every word was enunciated clearly.

The language used in this dream was Guren Language. Having absorbed so many memory fragments, his spoken language felt a bit stiff at first, but he quickly became proficient.

Upon hearing this, the woman's unfocused pupils gradually constricted, fixing entirely on Lin Sheng.

"Can you really help me find him?"

"If you can provide some clues and assistance," Lin Sheng answered cautiously.

"If I help you, will I be able to find Justin?" the woman pressed.

"I think so. It's possible, it's possible to find him."

"When can you find him!? When!!? I want to find him now, right now! You go help me find him! Will you!? Will you!!? I need to find Justin right now, now!!! Now!!! Now!!!" The woman grew more and more agitated as she spoke, drawing closer with every word.

She began to gesticulate wildly, her arms flailing about, her eyes turning increasingly red.

Suddenly, her head exploded!

Before Lin Sheng could even respond, he saw a bang!

The woman's head burst open like a balloon.

The explosion sprayed a large amount of black, sand-like fluid, which gathered on the ground into thin black lines. They hissed softly as they surged rapidly toward him.

Densely packed black lines instantly filled the entire room, rushing at him frantically from all directions—above, below, left, and right.

"Damn it!!" Lin Sheng didn't have time to think. His scalp tingled as he turned and leaped out through the window.

The moment he lunged out, countless black lines surged frantically from the window behind him, giving chase.

Lin Sheng rolled a few times on the ground, knelt on one knee, and looked back. His face turned green, and he scrambled to his feet and bolted.