Mona Ouyang once warned me: never interfere in someone else's dreamscape, because I lack that power.
Under the blazing sun, Samantha Chen was earnestly working on repairs at the mortuary. I could only stand aside, anxious. After all, although the revenant couldn't act during daylight, it had already absorbed a considerable amount of foul energy. Soon, it would break through the ward set by Master Mason, and the yellow talisman on its forehead had already fallen off.
I dreaded what would happen tonight—once the revenant broke free. Yet Samantha Chen remained oblivious, her face lit up with a smile as she continued working, pouring her whole heart into the task at hand.
Thinking carefully, maybe this had always been Samantha Chen’s dream, ever since she was a child—watching her father's silhouette, her eyes and ears soaking in his work. Or perhaps, deep down, she truly loved this craft.
Samantha Chen approached the repairs with utmost care, polishing every detail. Kenneth Lane had said that when they brought the old master last night, the mortuary was already to the Guo family’s satisfaction, no further work needed. But Samantha still insisted on finishing it.
Night fell. Samantha Chen ate some of Kenneth Lane’s cooked food, drank a little wine, and then went straight to sleep.
When evening came, I kept watch inside the mortuary, quietly observing the coffin that held the revenant. A wave of foul air billowed out, and the coffin slowly creaked open, followed by a guttural exhale. I drifted closer, releasing baleful energy—yet in an instant, it recoiled back into my body. A shriveled hand reached out from the coffin, and I swallowed hard.
With a loud bang, the coffin lid flew off completely. In a rush, the shriveled revenant leapt out. I stared at my hands in confusion—my strength remained, but I couldn't release it.
Thuds echoed as the revenant circled the room after escaping the coffin, then leapt toward the main entrance.
With a crash, the main door shattered. The revenant jumped outside, sniffing the air as if searching for fresh blood. I felt puzzled—blood-sucking revenants shouldn’t be common in these times. I remembered Luantian Xuekui mentioning this once before.
Ordinarily, the birth of these Blood-Sucking Revenants requires extremely harsh conditions; they don't come into being easily. But now, the revenant seemed to have caught a scent and leapt toward Samantha Chen's room.
I rushed into the room, intending to wake Samantha Chen. But she'd been drinking and was sleeping deeply, oblivious to the commotion. My anxiety mounted.
With a crash, the fragile door was smashed open by the revenant. Samantha Chen remained asleep as the revenant bounded toward her, the thudding growing louder. It reached her side, mouth agape, exhaling a foul breath, and its teeth slowly moved to bite her.
Suddenly, the Mud Shovel Samantha Chen was clutching erupted with a yellow glow. Instantly, the revenant was blasted backward, flying out the door. I stared quietly at the Mud Shovel beside her pillow—it was a tool David Chen used often in the past.
The revenant didn't give up. It straightened and kept leaping, coming up to Samantha Chen again, seemingly aware enough to avoid the Mud Shovel by her pillow.
I smiled, remembering how we used craftsmen's tools to deal with Xiao Hei before. I sat down, still unable to wake Samantha Chen. Suddenly, everything around me froze—the world felt as if time itself had stopped. My eyes widened; this phenomenon was happening again.
Mona Ouyang had told me about this—it was a sign the dream was about to dissipate. Yet, once a dream begins, if it can't continue, part of the dreamer's memory will vanish within it.
I grew frantic, scanning the room. I had to get the dream moving again. I flew out of the house, thinking that if nothing else worked, I'd have to use the Dream Token. But the dream hadn't ended yet, and the Dream Token could only be used when the nightmare was over—Mona Ouyang had warned me many times about this.
All I could do now was keep searching for a solution. I released faint strands of Specter Web, extending them outward to probe my surroundings.
Gradually, I sensed something was wrong. It was as if something was blocking half the dream. Suddenly, with a bang, I turned my head—the revenant in Samantha Chen's room lunged at me, its long black nails stabbing toward me. I dodged quickly and landed to the side, letting my killing aura burst forth.