The dream world had moved to the island, but the beach scene was still in the distance. Qingmu could tell that there was a clear boundary between there and here, and they were definitely not the same complete dream world.
The Crow cawed, "How did you do that?"
Qingmu said, "This is a method to return to one's past dreams after a series of dream transitions. It can be called Dream Residue, but it requires extremely strong Mental Power and very precise control. In reality, the space just now was not a real space, but a memory landscape, that is, traces of memories that the consciousness has accessed. With these traces, it is easy for you to return to the dream you just had."
"Sometimes, after waking up from a dream, people can fall asleep again and continue the dream because they unintentionally use Dream Residue; their subconscious finds traces of memories they've accessed. However, usually, the two dreams are only connected in terms of context, while the details can differ significantly because memory traces cannot be fully restored. But Meimei memory images are so vivid, like 'pictures,' that you might mistakenly believe that space still exists."
The Crow said, "I know, but how did my niece do that? Her Mental Power isn't that strong."
Qingmu also found it strange and asked, " Meimei, did your father teach you this?"
"Teach me what?"
"Let me teach you how to dream."
Do you need to be taught how to dream?
"It wasn't an ordinary dream; it was a lucid dream."
What is lucid dreaming?
"It's like you right now, knowing you're dreaming."
"Does anyone not know they're dreaming when they're dreaming?"
Meimei's expression turned strange, as if she were answering a very silly question.
Qingmu then realized that Meimei was a natural lucid dreamer. Such people are not uncommon, but many natural lucid dreamers often experience mental problems because they cannot distinguish between reality and dreams. Furthermore, lucid dreaming is extremely taxing on Mental Power; without special training methods, a person's body and mind will become increasingly weak. Therefore, many people who had lucid dreaming abilities in childhood either died young, developed mental illnesses, or gradually lost this ability as they grew older—this is also a form of self-protection for the body.
However, Meimei not only appeared perfectly normal, but also displayed incredible dream-related abilities. She knew about Qingmu and the Crow the moment they entered her dream, and she could even retain traces of her memories when she moved between dream spaces.
The most difficult thing is that she said Situ didn't want her to dream of him, and she actually managed not to dream of Situ. You see, the subconscious doesn't lie. When she misses her father, she should be able to retrieve all her memories of him. Unless one has extremely strong Mental Power to change the basic rules of dreams, it's impossible to control the content of one's memories and thus control the content of the dream space and the dream world.
These extraordinary abilities are simply unbelievable if they weren't taught by Situ.
"You just said your dad doesn't let you dream about what he looks like, so how did you manage to do that?"
"I just don't want to think about what he looks like."
But you clearly miss him.
I miss him, but I don't necessarily have to think about what he looks like! He could be a flower, a leaf, or a cloud.
As Meimei spoke, she picked a flower from the ground, raised her hand, and the flower turned into a leaf. The leaf fluttered in the wind, drifting farther and farther, higher and higher, until it became a cloud floating in the sky.
"When I was little, my dad often played hide-and-seek with me in my dreams. He never appeared in his own form; he would turn into a fish, a bird, a snake, or something like that. He even turned into a house once! Later, I tried to imitate him by turning into other things so he could find me, but he always found me right away."
Qingmu grew increasingly astonished. It wasn't surprising that Situ could break through the limitations of dream rules and change her appearance at will, but it was truly amazing that Meimei could do it. Don't underestimate this simple trick of picking flowers, turning them into leaves, and then into clouds. It's not easy to do in a dream. Among the people Qingmu knew, at least someone like Du Juan could do it. The Medicine Granny definitely couldn't do it so easily and skillfully.
Unless she is...
"Godfather, I'll tell you a secret."
"What?"
"My dad doesn't let me dream about him and Mom, but I miss him terribly when he's not around, so he prepared a very secret place for us to meet. In that place, I can see him. I just asked my dad if I could dream about Mom there since I won't be able to see her as often anymore. Dad said yes!"
Where?
Meimei pointed to a small wooden house on the beach in the distance and said, "That's it."
Qingmu said, "How can this little cabin be a secret?"
Meimei said, "My dad built this house for me. He spent a long time building it on the beach. Dad said that no one but me can come in here, not even him or Mom."
"Really?" Qingmu found it very strange. How could he not be able to enter a house in a dream?
"Of course it's true!" Meimei ran towards the wooden house, and the dream space shifted back to the beach and the book.
Meimei climbed up the wooden ladder, opened the door of the cabin, and called back from the doorway, "Godfather! Uncle Crow! This is it!"
Qingmu began to carefully observe the wooden house. His powerful Mental Power swept through it like a scanner, and in theory, everything in the dream space should have been displayed clearly before his eyes. However, the house was like a black hole in a bright light; he couldn't see anything inside.
It's normal if Meimei didn't open the door, because the internal structure of the house hasn't been built yet in the dream space. But since Meimei has opened the door, she must have already built the interior of the house, at least the part near the door should be visible.
This room truly has a magical quality.
He suddenly remembered that when he first entered the dream, he sensed the fluctuations of Meimei's consciousness, so he knew that Meimei was in that room. This was not a normal phenomenon.
Generally speaking, the scenes in a dream change as the subconscious mind recalls memories; what the conscious mind sees is the entire space of the dream. Meimei is in the cabin; she can't see the world outside. Her entire dream space is that cabin. However, the dream that Qingmu and the Crow saw when they first entered was the entire beach.
Qingmu whispered to the Crow, "Did you see anything?"
The Crow didn't speak, but suddenly, like an arrow released from a bow, it shot off, its body becoming a blur as it passed through the wooden house. It circled in the air, Guagua twice, and returned to the Qingmu log, saying, "Oh dear, it seems... it flew too fast; I didn't see anything."
Meimei was still standing at the door.
Qingmu asked with a smile, "Would you like to invite me in for a bit?"
Meimei glanced into the house, then looked at the Qingmu outside, seemingly troubled. "You all have to keep this a secret!"
Qingmu said, "Of course."
Meimei waved to them, then went into the wooden house first, her small body disappearing in an instant.
Qingmu didn't climb the ladder. To him, Meimei's Mental Power wasn't strong enough. He could break through and change all the rules of the dream space, and he also had enough power to support the spatial tremors caused by the change in rules.
He stepped into thin air and in a single step, he crossed the sandy beach and entered the cabin.
However, all he saw before him was nothingness, so nothingness that even darkness was invisible.