"You say it's meaningless, Ethan Zhang."
Wraith Thirteen roared, his eyes wide with fury. He yanked his fist out of my chest with a sickening rip, then gripped my throat tightly with one hand.
"The one who's meaningless is you, Ethan Zhang. Tell us—where is Dream hiding?"
I smiled faintly, silently calling out to the part of me that was ghost within.
"Do you really want to do this? Soon, you won’t be able to get up, Ethan Zhang."
"It doesn't matter. I have to beat this guy first, or else nothing means anything."
As I spoke, a wisp of black mist seeped from Wraith Thirteen’s grip on my throat. With a crack, I dissolved into a cloud of black smoke, drifting around him.
Instantly, Wraith Thirteen lashed out madly, punching at the air around him. He couldn’t touch me—I was already fully ghost, black smoke swirling and scattering under his furious blows.
"Hmph. Ethan Zhang, ghost power is useless against me."
Wraith Thirteen stood still. At my command, the black smoke streamed toward his body. I realized with a jolt—he was searching for my ghost soul.
But in that instant, a plan formed in my mind. With a thought, I sent part of the black smoke drifting away. This was a trick Zhao Yuyang had taught me—in real combat, you have to use your brain.
"Found it." Wraith Thirteen lunged for the drifting black smoke, reaching out to grab it.
"Now!"
I shouted, and the smoke instantly gathered behind Wraith Thirteen. My form slowly emerged from the haze. I could feel myself nearing my limit—the ghostly smoke would soon dissipate. Amidst the blackness, a flicker of crimson light appeared. In the hand I’d shaped, flames ignited—the Phoenix Blade materialized in my right hand.
A jolt shot through me as Wraith Thirteen’s hand seemed to grab something invisible. I bit down in pain—he’d seized my ghost soul. At the same moment, I drove the Phoenix Blade toward his back.
"Take this arm, then!" Wraith Thirteen bellowed, swinging his left hand back. With a blast, his left arm was incinerated by flame and vanished. But he had my ghost soul firmly in his grasp, and I felt my ghostly power draining away.
"No killing intent at all, Ethan Zhang. That’s why you’re losing."
My form slowly became visible again. Under Wraith Thirteen’s control, he seized my throat once more. His entire left arm had turned to ash.
"Ethan Zhang, you possess Instinct, yet you don’t even realize it. Ha! In battle, it’s not about winning or losing—it’s about the desire to kill with every strike. That’s killing intent. And your attacks have none."
I stared at Wraith Thirteen in shock. He shouted these words like a lesson, but I could feel his murderous intent as clear as day.
I’d felt this before—when fighting Yin Choujian. Whether in the apartment block or the Forest of Desire, every one of his attacks was saturated with killing intent.
"Amitabha. All good deeds are illusion, all evil acts are illusion; the body is a cluster of foam, the mind a gust of wind; illusion springs from rootless, unreal nature. Swastika Mantra, Brahma..."
Suddenly, I heard a burst of Buddhist chanting. Wraith Thirteen, still gripping me, was pierced at the chest by golden rays like needles.
With a cry, Wraith Thirteen let go, clutching a shaft of golden light and yanking it from his body in agony. As I landed, I saw Henry Cole emerge from behind a building, hands forming Buddhist mudras, rushing toward us.
"Now, Ethan Zhang! Finish him!"
Henry Cole shouted. With my last trace of yang energy, I drew the Phoenix Blade and leapt from the ground, slashing at Wraith Thirteen’s chest.
With a thunderous crash and Wraith Thirteen’s scream, a gash split open across his chest. He flew backward, landing with a crash among the ruins.
Henry Cole spat blood and collapsed to one knee. I rushed over, but he waved me off, refusing my help.
"It’s... it’s someone from Brahma. How could this be..."
Wraith Thirteen writhed in pain on the ground, unmoving. I had no time for him—I was focused on Henry Cole.
"Ethan Zhang, you have to go. You must awaken someone—he is the King of Dreamborn. If you wake him, there will be a way. This Dream Realm has two pillars: the King of Dream Wraiths and the King of Dreamborn. The King of Dream Wraiths should still exist."
"How do you know that?"
"I saw records in a basement in the west of the city. The Dream Realm is incomplete now, twisted and broken by the power of the Endbringer Shard. We must restore the world’s normal function."
I nodded. Even without Henry Cole’s explanation, I’d already guessed—the King of Dreamborn was likely among the hundred or so Dreamborn left. I had to find him.
"Don’t worry about me. Go—only you can awaken the King of Dreamborn. You possess Instinct, while I must exhaust myself just to use my old techniques. Go, Ethan Zhang."
I nodded and ran toward the west side of the city. Most of the Soul-Stealing Ghosts had gone north, to Nathan Ouyang’s residence. It seemed they wanted to find him together.
Just now, I’d noticed something strange: no matter how fierce the fight between Yin Choujian and Wraith Zero, it stayed inside the city. The Soul-Stealing Ghosts seemed to realize it too—once you enter Dream City, you can’t leave.
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All this chaos is likely tied to Mona Ouyang and to Dream City itself. I have to find Mona Ouyang and get answers—otherwise, no matter how long we hold out until the fourth morning, it’ll be useless.
So much time has passed, and I’ve noticed something odd—the sky is gray, but visibility is high, like the moment night falls. Yet now, as I look up, it’s still the same. Time has stopped.
I was nearly at the city center when, suddenly, something flew in from the east. I stopped short as a figure plummeted toward me.
With a crash, the ground caved in before me, sending up a cloud of dust. Through the haze, I heard coughing—Yin Choujian, battered and torn, climbed out of the pit.
"Brother, looks like you handled things over there pretty smoothly, huh?"
"Didn’t expect your strength to have faded this much, Boss Yin."
It was Wraith Zero, floating before us. He glanced at me, and I warily scanned the surroundings—the Soul-Stealing Ghosts had all gone to Nathan Ouyang’s place, leaving none nearby.
"You all seem anxious, Three Eyes. Did something big happen outside?"
Yin Choujian replied quietly. I saw a flash of cunning in Wraith Zero’s eyes.
"Boss Yin, call out Dream. We’re running out of time."
Yin Choujian raised his hand and tossed over a Ghost Soldier. I caught it quickly with one hand.
"Go, brother. Do what you need to do. I’ll hold out here a little longer."
No sooner had Yin Choujian finished speaking than Wraith Zero swung a fist, smashing it into Yin’s face. His arm stretched like a rope, coiling around Yin and slamming him to the ground.
I stared in shock—Yin Choujian had no chance to resist.
"Ethan Zhang, where is Dream? Tell us now."
I said nothing. Yin Choujian’s eyes held a smile, urging me to go. I summoned my baleful energy, shaping it into wings, and flew west.
With a crack, I glanced back to see half of Wraith Zero’s body explode. He stared at Yin Choujian in disbelief.
"Boss Yin, I didn’t expect you could still use your Blood Baleful Power. But it’s useless against me, as you know."
As Wraith Zero spoke, his body instantly regenerated. A flurry of punches landed on Yin Choujian.
"Go now, brother!" Yin Choujian shouted as he was hurled away.
I didn’t look back. I found the courtyard where Mona Ouyang had entered and flew over. Soon, I landed inside, entered the inner room, found the hollow floor tile, opened it, and shouted loudly.
"Mona Ouyang!"
For a long moment, there was no response. Just as I began to wonder, a violet light flared—a rope-like purple strand yanked me inside. I cried out in surprise.
"What are you shouting for, Ethan Zhang?"
The floor tile slid shut. I stared in surprise—inside the room, Mona Ouyang stood with both hands raised, a fist-sized, multicolored space hovering before him. He looked strained, as if holding it up.
"What are you doing?"
"Don’t bother me, Ethan Zhang. I’m trying to create a new dream passage. Right now, the urgent thing is to get the Nightmare Stone back."
I stared blankly at Mona Ouyang, then asked, word by word.
"Tell me—what’s bothering you?"
Mona Ouyang turned and glared at me viciously.
"My problems aren’t for you to meddle in, Ethan Zhang."
"Why is it, when you clearly care most about your Hundred Ghosts, when you know their weaknesses but won’t tell me, and now they treat you like this, you—"
"I’m a forgetful person. Don’t nag me, Ethan Zhang. Such a trivial thing, and you’re giving me a headache."