The Dream Realm had no strict up, down, left, or right; even distance was utterly false, unreal.
If the Solar System were placed in the Dream Realm, Earth might be orbiting the sun one moment, then somehow end up beyond the Solar System the next.
Hawkins opened the Chat Group with a slight headache. Ai Miye was comforting Asmodeus in the group.
Ai Miye: Asmodeus, you've already done very well. If it were me, I definitely wouldn't dare go in again.
Asmodeus: Yeah, but I hope I can do more. At the very least... I have to make sure you and Brother Hawkins leave the Dream Realm safely!
He truly wanted to help. Resurrection was something he had never even dared imagine in the past. If Hawkins had not been the one to resurrect him, he simply would not have believed anyone possessed the power to bring back the dead.
Because of that hand, he was deeply afraid of the Dream Realm. But now that he had been back inside it for some time, it no longer seemed quite so terrifying.
Moreover, after observing it carefully, he discovered that the Dream Realm was incredibly wondrous, filled with sights he had never seen before.
He had fallen into a boundless Nebula and reached out to pluck the stars, only to discover that he could not touch them at all. They seemed within arm's reach, yet in truth were separated by a thousand miles.
Everything existed here, yet it also seemed as though nothing existed.
From time to time, he seemed to hear someone whispering by his ear, but when he listened closely, he found that there seemed to be nothing at all.
If he had to put it into words, he felt as though he had fallen into an illusion, where everything was a hallucination—until he saw a sun, and then his body was burned to death by it.
When Hawkins resurrected him again, he emerged with lingering fear written all over his face. "I'm never sunbathing again."
"Asmodeus, are you alright?" Ai Miye looked at Asmodeus worriedly.
Asmodeus's body was trembling. He had experienced yet another new way to die. Whether he was killed by pirates, crushed to death by a hand, or burned alive by the sun, he never wanted to experience any of them a second time.
But he knew perfectly well that there was no other way. Among the three of them, only he could die over and over again.
Although Ai Miye could likewise be resurrected if she dared go out and died, the problem was that she had never died before, and she was only a child. Asmodeus simply could not let her go.
Therefore, this was a responsibility he could not shirk.
He comforted Ai Miye for a few moments, then discussed things with Hawkins. After confirming Hawkins's Curse Power recovery speed, he left Eternal Space once again.
Because only if Hawkins did not die could he truly be resurrected, rather than merely remain alive for a short while.
After dying again and again, Asmodeus discovered that his fear of death was growing fainter and fainter. From trembling and crying in terror at the beginning, he gradually became numb. He could even chat in the group while calmly facing death.
Starting from the point of departure, he fell in every direction at least ten times. Hawkins gradually figured out the situation in the surrounding area.
Falling upward would lead to the sun. Falling downward would lead to the black hand. Falling left would lead to a mass of black mud. Falling right would lead to a black hole.
The other directions each held their own dangers as well. All things considered, falling downward was actually the safest.
Although that black hand was enormous and terrifying, it was the only attack that could be dodged.
Through Asmodeus, Hawkins carried out several more tests and confirmed that Curse Power possessed an extremely powerful disruptive effect in the Dream Realm. He had merely injected a portion of Curse Power into Asmodeus's body, yet after Asmodeus left Eternal Space, the Curse Power inside him caused him to veer off course once.
This meant that as long as he possessed Curse Power, Hawkins could move through the Dream Realm.
After making thorough preparations, it was finally Hawkins's turn to act.
He stood before the exit of Eternal Space. Ai Miye tightly gripped his hand and said worriedly, "Hawkins, you have to come back!"
"Don't worry. I'll take you out of the Dream Realm. I promise!" Hawkins rubbed her head with his other hand and smiled faintly.
Asmodeus gritted his teeth. "Brother Hawkins, how about I come too? If you run into trouble, you can push me out. Even if I can only block it for a moment, it'll still help."
"No. Stay here with Ai Miye," Hawkins refused.
He knew very well that after he left Eternal Space, Ai Miye would definitely be very worried. If someone stayed behind to keep her company, she certainly would not be so afraid.
Hawkins was not one to drag his feet. After refusing Asmodeus, he stepped directly into the Spatial Passage.
In an instant, he felt as though he had entered a weightless space from one with gravity. Then he saw the Dream Realm—but before he could use Curse Power to move, his body seemed to be rejected by some force and was suddenly flung out of the Dream Realm into the real world.
Bang!
Hawkins appeared in midair and immediately adjusted his posture on instinct. Then he landed heavily on the ground with a loud crash.
He swiftly surveyed his surroundings. Once he confirmed that the environment posed no threat, he gave a bitter smile. "So living people are directly rejected by the Dream Realm..."
Inside Eternal Space, Asmodeus stared blankly at the video. Recalling what he had gone through earlier, he would have burst into loud tears if Ai Miye had not been beside him.
"Asmodeus, you're the bravest!" Ai Miye glanced at Asmodeus sympathetically and kindly comforted him.
Asmodeus felt like crying without tears. He forced a smile. "Yeah, thanks."
By then, Hawkins had also figured out where he was. He was currently on a beach near House Town, and it would take about fifteen minutes of walking to return to House Town.
He opened the Chat Group and asked Ai Miye whether she wanted to come out. However, knowing that Asmodeus would not come out, Ai Miye temporarily refused.
Once Asmodeus left Eternal Space, Hawkins would need to continuously pour out Curse Power to maintain his existence. Thus, unless necessary, Asmodeus had to remain in Eternal Space.
Hawkins understood Ai Miye's choice and said nothing. After closing the Chat Group, he headed directly toward House Town.
Elsewhere, inside a house in House Town, Mark and the others were hiding in a storage room. Mark carefully treated Arthur's wounds, occasionally covering his mouth with his sleeve as he took deep breaths.
Five days had passed since Hawkins and Ai Miye disappeared.
But just an hour ago, they had been attacked by an unknown enemy.
Mark did not know where the attack had come from. Qiao Si was the first to be attacked. Her brain was blown apart, and she died aboard the Black Knife. Then the two children, because they had stood in front of him, had their abdomens pierced through on the spot, dead beyond any possibility of revival.
He had flown into a rage at the time, yet he had not found a trace of the enemy. After Arthur's arm was hit, he had no choice but to lead everyone away and evade the enemy's attacks.
He was not afraid of the enemy's attacks.
After all, breaking through Curse Power protecting his body was not so easy. But Arthur, Jennie, and the others could be targeted far too easily.
He could not possibly wait for Hawkins to return and find only him and a ship full of corpses. When that time came, he would have no way to explain himself to Hawkins.
"Wah... Qiao Si is dead. She's dead."
In the corner of the storage room, Jennie was covered in dust and grime. Hugging her knees, she wept softly.
In truth, she had always been grateful to Qiao Si. Back then, in order to survive, she had betrayed Qiao Si's loyalty. Yet not only had Qiao Si not been angry with her, she had chosen to continue protecting her wholeheartedly.
Only at the moment Qiao Si died did she realize that Qiao Si was not merely her guard, but also her best friend—perhaps even the sister closest to her heart.
"Stop crying. If you really want to avenge Qiao Si, then find the enemy's location. Can't you dream? Hurry up and dream!" Annoyed by the crying, Mark raised his head and snapped at Jennie.
Jennie's crying immediately quieted. She squeezed her eyes shut, but the scene of Qiao Si being shot in the head kept replaying in her mind.
She opened her eyes and said softly, "I can't fall asleep. Every time I close my eyes, I see Qiao Si being killed."
"..."
One should never have expected anything from a spoiled young lady like this. He let out a deep breath, then rose to his feet and paced back and forth.
Honestly, this enemy's blow had hit him hard. The earlier Meteor Hammer incident had already taught him that beyond the heavens were more heavens. Now, he was experiencing just how powerless he truly was.
If the captain were here, what would he do?
A thought could not help surfacing in Mark's mind, but his pride immediately forced him to fling it away.
The problem was that the enemy was hidden in the dark while they were exposed in the open. As soon as they dared show themselves, the enemy could attack them, while they did not even know whom to strike back at.
Drawing his sword and looking in all directions, his heart was filled with bewilderment.
Elsewhere, Hawkins returned to House Town. The moment he reached the harbor, he smelled blood. He quickened his pace slightly and returned to the Black Knife, the smile on his face gradually fading.
Qiao Si's corpse was one thing, but the corpses of those two children made him angry.
"Mark and the others aren't here. They should be hiding somewhere."
Hawkins looked around and quickly made his judgment. At the same time, he found no signs of a fight.
Like the previous attacker, the enemy should have used a long-range attack. Moreover, Mark had not found the enemy, so he had been left with no choice but to take everyone into hiding in House Town.
Following the footprints on the ground, he quickly determined where Mark and the others were hiding.
However, he did not immediately enter that house. Instead, he continued searching for the enemy.
Since the enemy had attacked, there would definitely be traces left behind.
Hawkins returned to the Black Knife and used the corpses of Qiao Si and the other two to determine the angle of the enemy's attack. Yet when he looked in that direction, he could not see any enemy.
The enemy was not a block of wood. He would definitely move.
Suddenly, Hawkins sensed something approaching. He sidestepped, and a barrel not far behind him instantly exploded.
Atop a house thirty meters away, the pupils of a long-haired middle-aged man abruptly contracted. His body was completely transparent, and he held a long blowpipe in his hand.
This was the first time he had encountered an enemy capable of evading his attack.
In the past, he had only ever missed his targets. Never had an enemy dodged one of his attacks.
Because his attack was actually air. He could compress air in his mouth into a cannonball, then fire it at his target through the blowpipe.
Air was formless and traceless. Enemies were often struck before they could even react, dying without knowing what had killed them.
"Son of Pirates is even more troublesome than the intelligence suggested!"
The middle-aged man narrowed his eyes and gently drew in a breath, preparing for a second round of attacks.