I've already said this isn't a life simulator!

Mei believed that each of the fusion warriors had the ability to break free from the dream. In fact, both Xiwang and Daisy Dobia had previously shown signs of "waking up." Daisy Dobia showed signs later, while Xiwang showed signs at the same time as Sakura. However, in the end, only Sakura woke up, while the other two were trapped in nightmares and even experienced physical problems.

Therefore, Mei came to inquire about Sakura's specific situation, but the answer she received was not helpful... It now seems that the Eighth Herrscher is intentionally targeting the Fusion Warriors, and Sakura has managed to avoid the Herrscher's targeting, either by luck or for some other reason.

"...Let's temporarily halt research on drugs to wake people up. Others can't withstand the Herrscher's targeting. What about the progress of our exploration of the Dream Realm?"

Mei rubbed her head wearily, and after sorting out her thoughts, she spoke.

"Observer No. 24 has been confirmed dead, and Observer No. 25 is ready."

“Then let’s continue. We need to find the physical coordinates of the Herrscher and destroy it to officially end this Honkai… Alicia, go to the Abyss and find Aponia. Ask her for help. I’ll get permission from above. Also, contact Mebius and tell her to prepare for the fusion warrior surgery immediately. The requirement is to use the genes of Moyuri. As for the candidates… let the higher-ups find them!”

"learn."

Mei made arrangements one by one, striving to resolve this "collapse" as soon as possible... The ability to make people fall into a beautiful dream and then die peacefully is far too dangerous for people nowadays.

"Is there anything I can do for you, Doctor?"

Sakura asked.

"Prepare for battle, Sakura. You need to go there immediately after we obtain the physical coordinates of the [Eighth Herrscher] and eliminate it."

"it is good."

Sakura nodded in agreement; with her abilities, she was perfectly suited for this task.

"........."

After everyone dispersed, Sakura turned back to look at Xiwang, who was still trapped in a nightmare, gently took his hand, and whispered something.

"...Thank you, Wang."

Although her memories of the dream had become hazy, she still had some recollection of the final scene she saw, the final things she realized, and the final rain that fell.

In addition to what Dr. Mei said earlier, that she and Wang both showed signs of "about to wake up," and considering all of this, the truth of the matter... is not hard to guess.

Being able to fall into the same "dream" and accept such an intimate identity within it... even if it's just a dream, Sakura is happy.

"……Thanks."

Sakura smiled again, her voice filled with pure joy, and then... composed herself, suppressing that happiness in her heart, and got up to leave.

Whether for their duty or for the sake of their loved ones... this "collapse" must end.

We will defeat the Honkai... definitely.

Sakura gripped the knife tightly and walked forward resolutely.

…………

………………

Dreams are a magical place.

It is the place where people are closest to death, and also the place closest to so-called "fate." Therefore, people can see their deceased relatives in their dreams, or even do something as miraculous as "foresight."

Ultimately, dreams are based on the person themselves. Everything in a dream can change depending on the person's mental state, knowledge, experience, and memories, and will tend to different directions according to the subconscious.

Seeing deceased relatives or friends in a dream is simply a figment of one's imagination, created out of longing for those relatives or friends and based on one's own impressions of them. Similarly, "precognitive dreams" are merely the brain's projections of the future based on existing information—nothing more.

A pleasant dream is when the brain, based on existing information, guides an event toward the person's expectations or even the most ideal state. A nightmare, on the other hand, is the opposite, causing an event to unfold in a negative direction.

Although dreams originate from reality, because they are based on the act of "thinking," they are often not bound by objective factors in reality. Therefore, dreams are often given many things that do not exist in reality, and thus dreams possess elements of fantasy, illusion, and unreality. People use this to distinguish between reality and dreams.

So, when a dream is crafted to be almost indistinguishable from reality, how can one distinguish whether they are dreaming?

When your dream world is infinitely better than reality, or even exactly the life you dream of, how can you make up your mind to wake up?

【I do not understand】

In the pure white "dream," she... it expressed its own doubts.

[I clearly designed your dream according to your ideal scenario... You get married to the person you love, and she doesn't mind the other person you have feelings for. They both care about you, and they're even willing to live under the same roof... I even made that other person your lover your partner. What's wrong with that?]

Even the biggest star is quite fond of you, and even little girls are eager to get close to you... If you want, you can easily build a harem without worrying about wealth.

They're even willing to accept your "hobby" and bring you those... "medicines" when you forget about them.

It looked puzzled, examining the candy box in its hand before casually tossing it behind it, letting it disappear into the air.

[It's already come to this point, what more could you possibly want?]

But the only response it received was azure water blades.

[Don't waste your energy, what's in front of you is just a phantom... and after losing "Rain's" home ground, your threat is far less than you imagine.]

It calmly said that in the "dream," or rather, the spiritual world, it possesses overwhelming power, easily canceling scenes and changing the weather.

You answer my questions, and I'll let you leave, how about that?

Its response was a deep blue water jet.

I'm not controlling anyone you care about right now, and theoretically I have no grudge against you. I even arranged for you and her to be in the same dream, and I didn't stop you from sending her away. You could even say I did you a favor. So why not answer my questions a little?

"........."

The azure attack paused slightly before launching an even more ferocious assault.

【This is really troublesome... You're unwilling to immerse yourself in the dream, yet you're also unwilling to answer my questions, which puts me in a difficult position】

It rubbed its forehead in slight distress.

"Then... I can only ask you to die."

So it raised its hand and gently pushed Xiwang in its direction. With its movement, Xiwang's body fell backward uncontrollably, crashing into a gap that had appeared out of nowhere and plunging into the abyss.

Then, the surroundings returned to their original pure white state.

"...Shouldn't this be resolved by now?"

In stark contrast to its previous relaxed and composed demeanor, it cautiously stepped forward, first tentatively treading on the restored pure white area with its paw, and then patting it with its hand, as if to confirm that the area had been solidified.

[Okay, okay... as long as that guy enters my nightmare...]

It wiped away non-existent sweat from its forehead as if still shaken, muttering to itself.

[Damn it, how can this guy's mind and memory be so heavy, even heavier than those old fogies? I've confirmed it, it's only been a little over twenty years...]

When it first came into contact with Xiwang's dream, it was able to confirm that Xiwang's memories were only a little over twenty years old. However, when it tried to manipulate the dream and insert some things into the memories, it discovered that this guy's spirit and memories were ridiculously "deep," to the point that it took a lot of effort to give him an impression of a "lover."

It wasn't difficult to pull him into the "dream," so why has the follow-up become so troublesome... I want to resolve it but can't, and I can't kick him away.

It's like a large sack full of books on top of a bookshelf. It's easy to pull it off the shelf, but putting it back on is incredibly difficult. You try to open the sack to lighten the weight, but you find that you can't open it properly, and you can't even puncture it... It's really frustrating.

Fortunately, it still has a way. It can drag him into his most feared nightmare and continuously weaken his spirit. When he is at his weakest, it can solve this big problem in one fell swoop.

Chapter Thirty-Three: The Angel Arrives Bringing Rain and Lilies

tick-

It was the sound of liquid dripping, very crisp, coming from beneath me.

tick-

My nasal cavity was filled with the metallic smell of blood, a strong odor that made me instinctively want to vomit, but surprisingly, I didn't feel that much of a vomit.

tick-

My hands were bound and raised above my head. I could feel the rope around my neck. I was suspended in mid-air, and the gravity from the ground kept pulling me down. I was only supported by a crooked, broken stool at my toes, which barely kept me from being strangled by the rope.

Blood began to flow from the wrists at the top, branching out along the arms, and then slowly flowing to the sides of the head, covering the ears along with the arms. It then soaked through the rope around the neck, causing it to swell and further compress the breath. It continued downwards, flowing to the chest, weaving through wound after wound, constantly replenishing with fresh blood, and finally sliding down the legs and feet, flowing along the broken bench into the basin at the bottom.

"........."

Xi Wang was all too familiar with all of this.

And what follows is...

rustle--

A slight sound came from nearby, as if someone was approaching, followed by a burning pain in the wound.

"Humph……"

The pain from the coarse salt rubbing against the wound made Xi Wang cry out in pain. Her throat almost instinctively wanted to scream, but her body was too weak to even make a sound, and she could only let out a soft groan that was hard to understand.

Ah... Xi Wang is familiar with this, all too familiar with it, this kind of thing.

The feeling of being on the verge of death due to hunger and blood loss, as well as this physical pain.

"You're awake? Indeed, you're a strong and good child."

It was his voice, that damn guy's voice!

"........."

With difficulty, I lifted my eyelids and made out the figure in front of me through the blur.

In the dim light, all that could be seen was that nauseating robe and that repulsive cross pendant.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid... it's over."

He gently stroked his head with one hand, while frantically rubbing the wound on his chest with coarse salt in the other.

"I will take care of you, don't worry."

He said this, then let go of her hand, took out medicine from the medical kit, slowly applied the medicine to himself, and then bandaged himself up.

"Your lips are so dry... Haven't you had any water? You're such a naughty child."

As he said this, he took out the basin at the bottom and slowly poured the dark red blood into a bowl. Then he forced his mouth open and poured the dark red blood in. The fishy smell of blood flooded his nerves again, almost overwhelming his consciousness.

But I still managed to pull through.

"Ha ha……"

When he took the bowl away, Xi Wang even chuckled twice with a hint of mockery, as if to say—that's all?

"...I hope you can stay this strong afterward."

His body stiffened slightly for a moment, then he casually untied the ropes binding Xi Wang.

"But I believe you will, won't you?"

With a dull thud, Xi Wang's small body collapsed softly to the ground, barely breathing. He ignored it, knowing that Xi Wang would be able to get up on his own by tomorrow or the day after, and all he needed to do was feed him some leftovers—much easier to raise than cats or dogs.

"Well then, see you tomorrow, [hope]...hehe."