I open my sore eyes, my head heavy and muddled. In the dream, Mona Ouyang said nothing—I just woke up. I don’t know how long I spent dreaming of Basil Bertram sitting under that old tree, but it must’ve been a long time. By the time I realized it, the dream was already over.
Mona Ouyang told me to go back first; he’d figure out a practical solution and come find me. Nobody knows where Basil Bertram went. Mona Ouyang said he looked into Leah King’s memories in a dream—those memories weren’t artificially altered, they changed on their own.
Mona Ouyang didn’t tell me why. When I got up, my head was pounding—I barely slept at all. Yesterday I drove all day, and then spent the night trapped in that kind of dream.
The only thing I can do now is wait—wait for Mona Ouyang to find a workable solution.
When I went downstairs, I found the house full of people—all Underworld Denizens. My parents seemed to be discussing something with them. I saw several Underworld Agents from Haven City, each with their own subordinates. I didn’t join them downstairs; instead, I stayed in the third-floor living room, ate the breakfast my mom left for me, and started watching TV.
I watched a drama starring Leah King that aired not long ago. Yuna Ji seemed to love this show, but after a while, I turned off the TV.
"This is no time for leisure and distraction."
I muttered to myself. I had to find Basil Bertram—he’d helped me before. Ethan Zhang had also told me that, among the Seven Ghost Sovereigns, Basil Bertram was the most approachable and easiest to talk to. He’d helped Ethan Zhang a lot.
I started to feel restless. I turned on my computer and searched for information about trees. As I skimmed through the results, it was clear—trees have lifespans, and when a tree’s time is up, it dies and withers away.
I carefully recalled everything I saw in the dream. Suddenly, I stood up—it felt like I was on a small hillside, surrounded by countless purple flowers. I checked, and the purple, ball-shaped blossoms I saw in the dream were hydrangeas.
That place was beautiful—a small hillside, with Basil Bertram leaning against the old tree. It was like he’d become his old self again, a hint of sorrow in his eyes. He wore a simple gray-white long robe, his hair tied up, quietly resting against the tree. He really looked like someone on the edge of death.
I started searching for places with large patches of hydrangeas. I found several gardens and some private spots. I compared the pictures one by one, matching them with what I saw in my dream.
It was lunchtime when my mom came over.
"Such beautiful hydrangeas. Why are you suddenly interested in flowers, Ruoxi?"
My mom sat beside me with a smile. I immediately started talking about what I dreamed last night—about the place where Basil Bertram was. Only now did I realize there were huge patches of hydrangeas around him. Before, I’d just focused on Basil Bertram himself.
"Hydrangeas mean hope, Ruoxi."
I blinked.
"Maybe it's just an image your mind made up? After all, it was a dream."
I shook my head without hesitation. That shouldn’t be the case. Besides, Mona Ouyang clearly said this was a precognitive dream. It happened because I’d been to the forest of trees to the west, always searching for Basil Bertram. I’d also been in contact with Leah King—maybe, without realizing it, my own instincts and the power Basil Bertram left in Leah King created a connection between us. That’s why I had this precognitive dream.
"Alright, Ruoxi, eat first. You can look more after you finish lunch."
In the dining room, my dad had already finished cooking. I looked at him, puzzled—he almost never cooked before. But it looks like he’s been learning with my mom lately. I tried some and it was actually pretty good.
"Your cooking’s gotten better."
"Of course! I’ve been cooking every meal lately."
My mom shot my dad a glare, and he quickly grinned and explained.
"Eat, eat. Daughter, I really think you shouldn’t get involved in all this. I’m just worried about your health."
I shook my head.
"I have to do something. Basil Bertram helped me and Qingyuan a lot in the past."
After lunch, I kept searching through pictures, but I couldn’t find any place that matched what I saw in my dream. I sorted out a few similar spots—I’d looked at nearly a thousand pictures, most taken with phones, and there were still more to go.
After a while, my eyes were exhausted. I decided to nap and get some rest, then look again when I woke up.
When I woke up, it was already past five in the afternoon. I wiped away some drool, saw the blanket covering me, and the shadow of someone in front of me—I jumped in surprise.
"Awake?"
Mona Ouyang said, his tone weird and sarcastic. I got goosebumps all over and pressed my hand to my forehead as I sat up.
"Did you find a way?"
"You could say yes, or no. But you have to do it. No one knows where Basil Bertram went. His subordinates have already been contacted—they’re searching for him everywhere."
I let out a sound of surprise.
Then Mona Ouyang told me that Basil Bertram left without a sound, avoiding everyone. His wife was the first to notice he was gone and started searching for him, bringing all their subordinates. They’ve already begun a citywide search in Haven City. The Underworld’s Yama has checked the records—there’s no sign of Basil Bertram entering the Underworld, so he must still be in the world of the living. The key point is that Leah King, Basil Bertram’s daughter, suddenly lost her memory and her memories are being corrected. That’s because the power Basil Bertram marked in Leah King’s body is fading away.
Maybe in past lives, the soul in Leah King’s body really was Basil Bertram’s daughter, but their bond ended in Basil Bertram’s lifetime. He did all this just to make up for his daughter. Once Basil Bertram’s power disappears, it means he’s completely gone from this world.
"Did he say anything before leaving?"
I asked. Mona Ouyang replied.
"Only Basil Bertram’s niece, Jingyu, knows. On the day he left, he said some strange things to her."
"What exactly did he say?"
I asked right away.
"Everything I should’ve done, everything I wanted to do, I’ve already finished."
I immediately thought of Basil Bertram’s face in the dream—he looked relieved, almost at peace. There was sadness, but mostly, he seemed joyful to be free.
"This isn’t a joke. If Basil Bertram’s gone, things will get bad."
"Why?"
I’d just asked when Mona Ouyang went silent, clearly not planning to tell me.
"At a time like this, what’s there to hide?"
"The dream will tell you tonight. This absolutely can’t be known by anyone else."
I stared at Mona Ouyang, confused. His face was serious, one hand pressed to his forehead—the same look Redhair had when he heard Basil Bertram was missing.
It was clear Basil Bertram’s situation was anything but ordinary. Around six in the evening, we were eating dinner when I suddenly felt a chill. I turned and saw Yunmei and Old Lady Nong had arrived.
"Still no news?"
Yunmei asked straight out. Mona Ouyang gave a resigned sigh and shook his head.
"Where did Yin Choujian go at a time like this?"
I was at a loss for words, not sure what to say.
"Don’t ask, Yunmei. Yin Choujian is handling something—he probably won’t be back soon."
I let out a sigh of relief. Mona Ouyang might be strange, but he’s sharp. He clearly wasn’t planning to tell the other Ghost Sovereigns about Yin Choujian being trapped.
After dinner, we gathered in the living room. I kept browsing hydrangea pictures on my computer and had narrowed it down to six. After confirming the locations of two of them, my dad found the phone numbers of the Underworld Agents near those spots and called them, asking them to go take videos and send them to me so I could check.
"That’s not a bad idea. If you can pinpoint the place, maybe you’ll find Basil Bertram. It’s way more reliable than chasing after precognitive dreams."
Yunmei said coldly. I looked at Mona Ouyang—he nodded and sighed.
"Precognitive dreams are dangerous. If you’re not careful, you might never come back, Lan Ruoxi."
Right away, my parents looked at me, their eyes clearly telling me not to go. I shook my head—they could only sigh helplessly.
About ten minutes later, the first video arrived. It was a park, and there was a big tree in the middle, but no hillside. The hydrangeas were reddish and pink, not the pure purple I saw.
Soon the second video was confirmed—it wasn’t the right place either. Some pictures couldn’t be matched to any location, so I kept searching through the endless hydrangea photos, my eyes dry and sore.
"I can’t do this anymore. I’ll have to keep searching tomorrow."
I lay down on the sofa. Mona Ouyang sighed.
"Don’t rush. Try this method for a few days. I came over to let you know you should go to Leah King’s house. With your instinctual coexistence, I’ll be able to sense how much of Basil Bertram’s power is left in Leah King. Tonight, I want to check carefully."
I looked at Mona Ouyang, confused. It was already ten at night.
With no other choice, I called Leah King. We’d exchanged numbers before, but she’d only sent me a smile emoji. I replied with one too, and we hadn’t talked since.
"Leah King, it’s Lan Ruoxi. Can I come over to your place now? Is it convenient? There’s something I want to talk to you about."