An ancient black-frad oil painting floated in the murky dreamscape. Inside the painting, Irene is confused about the current situation.
“This doesn’t make any sense! I’ve already broken free from this thing’s control and even got myself a body in the real world!” Irene paced in circles within the painting. “I accepted having to lug this painting around out there—as if it’s extra baggage—but how co things are even worse in the dream world? Theoretically, shouldn’t I be freer here?”
She looked up, staring directly at Yu Sheng.
“You’re asking ? Who am I supposed to ask?” Yu Sheng shrugged. “I thought you’d be freer in the dream too. I wanted to see what you look like at five foot six, but you’re still a paper doll.”
Irene huffed, too annoyed to even bicker with him. After circling the chair inside the painting countless tis, she finally gave up and sat back down, grabbing a fluffy teddy bear and squeezing it tightly.
“Now I’m stuck with this bear again… But it’s fine, I guess. At least I can move freely in the real world. The dream world isn’t that important. Yeah, not that important.”
“Sotis, I really envy your optimism,” Yu Sheng remarked sincerely.
Irene imdiately flashed him a toothy grin, but whether in reality or in the dream, her threatening gestures never had any real effect.
Yu Sheng stepped around the floating painting and approached the sleeping silver fox nad Foxy.
“So, what’s next? Sa as last ti—I lie on her tail? Then we both ‘sink’ down?”
“Sa as before, but this ti the connection will be more… direct,” Irene explained as she floated beside him. “I’ll try to keep Foxy’s consciousness close to awake. That way, it’ll be easier for you to communicate with her and perceive her surroundings afterward. But at the sa ti, Hunger will notice you. It will co for you… What happens after that, I can’t help you with. Any contact or struggle on the level of consciousness—you’ll have to handle on your own.”
She paused, then added reassuringly, “But I can be your last line of defense. If I sense your mind destabilizing rapidly, I’ll forcibly pull you out. It’ll be just as unpleasant as last ti when you woke up suddenly, so you’d better be prepared.”
“Honestly, I’d rather not go through that again,” Yu Sheng sighed but quickly nodded, his resolve unwavering. “Alright, let’s get started.”
He found a comfortable spot nestled among Foxy’s large tails, then caught Irene as she hopped down from mid-air. Together—a person and a painting—they leaned against the fox’s tail, sinking once more into the drowsy depths of the dream world.
Perhaps because of their previous connection, this descent was even faster and smoother than Yu Sheng had imagined. He felt a brief mont of disorientation, and when his vision cleared, he saw the figure of the fox girl.
She was quietly crouching amid scattered rubble, staring blankly at sothing ahead.
Yu Sheng moved to stand behind Foxy, following her gaze.
He saw a massive wreckage, like the remains of a large aircraft that had crashed. Twisted tal fras and broken decks hinted at its forr grandeur. Faint glimrs—like lingering spirits—drifted among the shattered debris.
The entire wreck had settled at the foot of a mountain. Collapsed and molten rocks had almost swallowed it, rging it into part of the mountainside. Even at a glance, one could tell how catastrophic the impact had been.
If ordinary humans had been aboard, perhaps none would have survived.
Yu Sheng stared in shock at the crash site but quickly rembered his purpose. He approached the fox girl and spoke softly to avoid startling her. “Foxy.”
Foxy’s ears perked up instantly. She jumped to her feet, looking around in search of the voice. Unable to find the source, she hesitantly asked, “Benefactor?”
“It’s . Don’t bother looking around; I’m connecting directly to your consciousness.”
“Benefactor! You’re really here! I thought I imagined it last ti… What’s happening?” Foxy’s face lit up with surprise, though she still instinctively glanced around. “I was just daydreaming in the valley, and suddenly I’m here. Am I dreaming?”
“Yes, I used so thods to guide your dream. Only like this can I contact you—but now isn’t the ti to explain the details,” Yu Sheng said quickly. “Listen, Foxy, I’m coming to rescue you. To do that, I need to open a special door, and I need your cooperation. Do you trust ?”
“Rescue ?” Foxy was montarily stunned before shaking her head vigorously. “No, don’t co! You finally got out, Benefactor. This valley is strange—once you enter, it’s hard to leave! You mustn’t—”
“I have a way!” Yu Sheng interrupted gently. “Foxy, listen to . I’ve found a stable thod to enter and exit the valley. I just need your help to open that door. Don’t worry about that monster; I can handle it. Do you understand? I’m quite powerful, and I’ve even brought so… well, powerful friends this ti.”
He tried to reassure her, doing his best to make her feel at ease. Foxy looked a bit confused, her thoughts seemingly sluggish as she tried to keep up with his words. After a mont, she asked hesitantly, “So… you’re an immortal, Benefactor?”
Yu Sheng blinked, not expecting her to jump to that conclusion.
But he could roll with it.
“A very powerful immortal,” he said, trying to sound convincing.
Foxy broke into a smile. “Benefactor, what do you need
to do?”
“You don’t need to do much; just focus on sensing your surroundings. You might feel soone peering into your mind or looking through your eyes—don’t resist; that’s .”
“Alright.”
Yu Sheng let out a small sigh of relief. Convincing Foxy had been easier than he’d expected. Now… he just had to face the second challenge.
“Irene,” he called softly in his mind, “let’s begin.”
The next mont, a slight dizziness washed over him, and Yu Sheng felt an indescribable pull.
A new connection ford between him and Foxy. Unlike the subtle link they’d established before, this one was stronger and more… forceful.
Part of his consciousness slipped out of his control, rging with a flood of new sensations. It was like his nerves had suddenly connected to an entirely new set of limbs. Though the feelings were sowhat vague and delayed, he began to perceive Foxy’s surroundings.
Cold. Decay. The stench of rot and decline. Wind swirling through the valley, rustling the dark trees.
Night eternal. Hunger everlasting.
The fox girl stood among the trees, her eyes wide as she took in her surroundings.
She didn’t fully understand what her benefactor was doing or if simply staring around was enough. She was just trying her best to follow his instructions.
Then she felt the connection he had ntioned.
She started slightly but sensed no malice.
Foxy had always been keenly aware of even the slightest ill intent, but this ti, there was none.
Instead, she felt a comforting reassurance. Even her constant hunger seed to lessen.
When the overwhelming hunger and suppressed madness surged toward him, Yu Sheng felt as if a colossal wave was crashing down—a mountain collapsing in the pitch-black night. Hunger and frenzy, almost tangible, like a vast shadow or solid darkness, engulfed every inch of his perception in an instant.
He didn’t even have ti to call out Irene’s na. In that critical mont, he focused all his effort on recalling the features of the valley that Foxy had shared. Then, the frenzied darkness swallowed him whole.
Yet, deep within the dark tide, he found that he was still conscious.
Hunger gnawed at his soul, causing it to wither and die. Yu Sheng watched as “he” was devoured in an instant within the dark frenzy, his perspective that of a detached observer.
As the hunger receded, the withered soul awakened once more. He opened his eyes in the darkness, uncertain whether he’d just experienced another death or if it had all been an illusion.
He drifted through the depths of the void, unable to sense the passage of ti or the boundaries of space, unsure if he was even moving at all.
All he could feel was… a gaze fixed upon him.
Not just a single gaze—the entire chaotic darkness was part of that watchful eye.
He was like a speck of dust, tiny as a needle’s point, subrged under the endless, hungry stare.
After what felt like an eternity, he finally glimpsed sothing in the depths—a massive, floating limb or perhaps a shadow.
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