Dream

The room was thick with an ambiguous air.

Several lightly clad, beautiful women surrounded Li Baling, embracing him from both sides as he reveled in delight.

Suddenly.

A strip of black cloth covered Li Baling's eyes.

"Young Master, come catch us."

One of the women giggled.

"And if I catch you?"

Li Baling revealed a lecherous grin.

"Then we'll naturally let Young Master do as he pleases."

"Young Master, hurry over and catch me."

The chorus of sweet feminine voices set Li Baling's heart racing. He rose to his feet in feverish excitement.

Even with his eyes covered, he could still hear them.

He spread his arms and pounced forward, only to grab empty air.

A fragrant breeze brushed past his nose.

"Young Master, you were just a little short." The woman laughed with unrestrained abandon.

Li Baling, even more impatient now, lunged again and once more caught nothing.

He chased the laughter of those young women around the room, yet failed to catch a single one.

But after a while, the room fell eerily silent.

Li Baling assumed the young women had all hidden themselves.

He was no fool. Quietly, he lifted the black cloth over his eyes a little.

"Hmm?"

"Where did everyone go?"

Li Baling tore off the black cloth completely, only to find that the young women were nowhere to be seen.

The entire room was empty. He was the only one there.

"Those little wenches are cheating! How dare they toy with me!"

Somewhat angered, Li Baling left the room, intending to get to the bottom of it.

The moment he stepped outside.

He saw only two bright red lanterns hanging by the doorway.

There was no one in the courtyard either. It was empty and gloomy, with a chilling air.

"Where did everyone go?"

Li Baling walked out of the courtyard and suddenly glimpsed a pink figure flash past in the distance.

"Think you can escape me this time?"

Li Baling eagerly gave chase.

He pursued it into a waterside pavilion, but the pink figure had vanished again.

"Strange. How did it run so fast?"

Li Baling was panting heavily from the chase.

Whoosh—

Suddenly.

A damp, icy breath lightly blew against his neck.

"Young Master, we're behind you."

An exceptionally gentle voice sounded from behind him.

Li Baling instinctively tried to turn around!

Suddenly, he felt countless icy hands pressing down on his head.

Splash—

Caught completely off guard, his head was shoved straight into the pond beside him!

"Ahhh!!!"

Li Baling tried to resist, only to discover that something wet had bound both his hands and feet. He could not move at all before his entire body was thrown into the pond.

As he struggled in the water, he saw corpse after corpse with deathly pale faces soaking at the bottom of the pond.

Those corpses seemed to notice Li Baling as well. They revealed sinister smiles and stretched out pale, rotting hands, continuously dragging him downward.

"No!"

Li Baling screamed as he jolted awake from the bed in terror.

The instant he opened his eyes, his eyeballs were webbed with scarlet blood vessels.

"I can't take it anymore!"

"I really can't endure this!"

Li Baling was seized by a deranged frenzy of terror.

He got out of bed and searched through the cabinets like a madman for something.

Then.

He found a pair of scissors.

Without any hesitation.

Li Baling raised the scissors and stabbed them straight toward his own neck.

"Baling!"

Li Tong rushed into the room and tightly grabbed Li Baling's hand.

"Father!"

"I really can't bear it anymore."

"Just let me die!"

"I haven't slept in ten days."

"I'm in so much pain."

Li Baling collapsed against Li Tong and cried with red-rimmed eyes.

"It's alright!"

"I'll definitely cure this strange illness of yours."

Li Tong did his best to soothe Li Baling and keep him from doing anything foolish.

"Master, Young Master Qin and Young Master Zhao have come to visit."

A guard reported from outside the room.

"Qin Yang?"

"You watch over Young Master first. I'll go take a look."

Li Tong had the guards enter, take away the scissors in Li Baling's hand, and help him back to bed to rest before leaving.

The main hall of Li Mansion.

Qin Yang and Zhao He stood about casually.

"My two worthy nephews have come to visit, yet I failed to welcome you from afar."

Li Tong hurried inside.

"Uncle Li, have you not been resting well lately?"

Qin Yang asked with a slight frown.

Li Tong's complexion looked exceedingly wan, and he appeared exhausted.

There also seemed to be more white in his hair.

"Alas, it's all because of Baling's situation."

Li Tong sighed softly.

"Uncle Li, we came to see Baling."

"How is he doing?"

Zhao He asked with concern.

"You two are thoughtful."

"But Baling's strange illness truly is a headache."

"So many days have passed. We invited many renowned doctors from the city, but it was still useless."

Li Tong sighed repeatedly.

"What illness is it exactly?"

Qin Yang frowned slightly.

From Li Tong's tone, he seemed to sense a trace of despair.

"An illness where he keeps having nightmares."

"It would be better to let Baling tell you himself."

Li Tong said gravely.

He led Qin Yang and Zhao He to Li Baling's room.

"Baling."

"How did you end up like this?"

Seeing Li Baling's current appearance, Zhao He was startled himself.

Li Baling simply did not look human anymore.

His cheeks were hollow, his cheekbones jutted out sharply, and his eyes were blood-red, making him look utterly terrifying.

Qin Yang frowned as well.

"I... I don't know either."

Li Baling lay on the bed, lightly patting his own head.

"Ever since Qing Tian Festival, every time I sleep, I have nightmares."

"Day or night, as long as I fall asleep, I have nightmares. I simply can't sleep."

Qin Yang calculated it. "Then you haven't slept for ten days?"

"Yes." Li Baling answered weakly.

"Ten days without sleep... no wonder you've become like this."

Zhao He said in horror.

"What do you dream about?"

Qin Yang asked.

"I only vaguely remember appearing in a room every time, with many women surrounding me. Then all those women disappear, and I keep searching and searching."

"As I search, someone presses my head into water."

"In the end... some terrifying things eat me."

As Li Baling recalled the dream, his expression was fearful and despairing.

"It's only a dream. Does it really frighten you that much?"

Qin Yang frowned.

"Brother Qin... you don't understand."

"That dream is too real, too terrifying."

Li Baling kept shaking his head.

"Many women."

"I remember that on Qing Tian Festival, you went to Huaxiang Tower in the Inner City?"

Qin Yang suddenly recalled this matter.

"Yes. That day, I stayed at Spring Orchid Courtyard in Huaxiang Tower until very late before returning. That night, I started having nightmares."

Li Baling nodded.

"Zhao He, you went too, didn't you?"

Qin Yang asked.

"No. Something came up that day, so I couldn't make it."

Zhao He shook his head.

"Then who else went?"

Qin Yang asked Li Baling.

"Han Zhiye, Yi Hai, and Zhang Zhengde."

"The four of us went together."

Li Baling forced himself to recall.

Qin Yang's former self knew all of these people. They were all idle young masters who loafed about all day.