The Dream isn’t a Dream
The bright sunlight woke Mu Yu up. It took him a while to recall the source of his headache.
“Brother Mu Yu. Brother Mu Yu, are you all right?”
The voice was familiar. She was anxious and shaking him. Mu Yu tried opening his eyes again. “Tian Ran? Where am I?”
Mu Yu sat up and placed his hand down. Feeling grass, he swayed it. Tian Ran asked, “D-do you recognise me?”
“Huh? … Yes… You’re Tian Ran, aren’t you?”
“Watch out, Tian Ran. He’s no longer the same Mu Yu you knew.”
Mu Yu looked over Tian Ran’s shoulder and beamed. “Qiao Xue? Thank heavens. I’ve been searching for you!”
Spotting Lie Shang, Cheng Yan and Xiang Nan standing beside Qiao Xue, Mu Yu shook his head to test if he was dreaming. His seniors would’ve given him a heads up if they were going to Second Realm. There was no way he wouldn’t have recognised them if they were present during the teleportation.
Tian Ran jolted when Mu Yu grabbed her arm. He could feel her warmth. She was convincingly real. He pinched himself, and it hurt. That was unnecessary because the radiating pain on the back of his head said all there was that needed to be said.
“How much do you remember?” questioned Tian Ran.
“What’s that supposed to mean? I didn’t lose my memory. You’re Tian Ran. We’re at Second Heaven, aren’t we? I remember entering a valley and getting clobbered over the head. By the way, do you have any ideas to leave Second Ream without the jade piece? That crook, Shi Dengtian, ruined mine.”
Tian Ran looked to Qiao Xue. Their eyes read, “Oh no.” Tian Ran stood up and backed off from Mu Yu. “Stop joking, Mu Yu. We never went there. We’ve always been here, haven’t we? Don’t scare me. Elder Shi Dengtian is your shifu. Why would you label him a crook?”
“What in heaven’s name? Yeah, I must be dreaming.”
“Brother Mu Yu, hear me out. This isn’t a dream. Whatever you think is real and however you perceive the world isn’t real. We’re the real people, and this is real. That insidious Feng Haochen brainwashed you.”
Mu Yu scrunched his face.
“Mu Yu, come here.”
“Shifu, you’re in my dream, too?!”
Seeing Mu Yu take off toward Feng Haochen excitedly, Tian Ran cried, “Don’t go! He’s an illusionist, not your shifu!”
“A what sionist? Ah, whatever.”
Mu Yu didn’t see any harm in speaking to his shifu if it was just a dream. His shifu appeared just as he remembered, composed and wise. He could clearly sense vitality flowing through everyone. He was positive his vitality readings were always correct and, therefore, didn’t suspect them. He inquired, “Shifu, are you well?”
“I’m glad you’re all right. It’s complicated, but they want to kill me,” Feng Haochen declared whilst smiling.
“Why would they want to kill you in my dream?”
“Mu Yu, do you not recognise me anymore?”
Hearing the voice he hated, Mu Yu aggressively looked over to see Shi Dengtian sitting underneath a tree, hand gripping his chest and blood trailing down from his lips. He scolded himself for feeling sympathetic for a split second. Lying next to Shi Dengtian was Shi Minghui, left hand and chest bloody. That was the same place Mu Yu thrust Shadow Splitter Sword through Shi Dengtian before the latter started popping pills.
“How could I forget you and what you did? I don’t need you ruining even my dreams! You want revenge for your nephew? I might as well kill you since this is a dream!”
“Don’t!” Tian Ran cried.
Tian Ran jumped in front of Shi Dengtian before Mu Yu’s sword could run through him. As a result, he impaled her.
“Tian Ran, what are you doing?” Mind blanking out, Mu Yu instinctively caught the girl he treated as his sister and held her in his arms. “Why did you jump in the way?”
Mu Yu was more confused than ever. Tian Ran caressed his face with her hand as she faded. Everything felt so real that he began questioning if he really was in a dream. She struggled to wipe her blood from her mouth. Affectionately gazing into his eyes, she explained, “If you ever find out the truth, you will regret killing him. I don’t want you to live in the anguish of regret and self-loathing.”
Tian Ran clasped Mu Yu’s hand and asked, “D-did you like me in that dream of yours?”
Mu Yu’s brain had trouble processing everything. He stopped to contemplate Tian Ran’s question. He never considered it before. He would be willing to protect her with his life. Having said that, he treated her purely as his younger sister. From the moment she called him her brother, he was willing to be there for her in times of joy and duress. He realised he didn’t want to let go of her when she hugged him. It begged the question: did he really only view her as his sister.
“I do,” Mu Yu replied, not even knowing why he felt that way.
“I-I’m glad to hear that.”
Tian Ran shut her eyes with a blush and a smile.
Mu Yu: This is a dream. This is a dream. I’ll find her when I return to reality and ask her if she likes me. Why, though, is my heard throbbing?
Qiao Xue appeared listless after hearing Mu Yu’s answer to Tian Ran’s question. She approached Tian Ran and took the latter off him. Mixed emotions going through her mind, she pursed her lips and retreated to Shi Dengtian’s side. Trembling, she inquired, “Do you not remember anything at all? Is Tian Ran’s sacrifice not enough to call your memories to the surface?”
“This is just a dream, isn’t it?” Mu Yu racked his brains for evidence pointing to the falsehood of the people and scenes before him. He screamed in his head, “Where does the problem lie?!”
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