Chapter 18: Ascent of the Dream Core

Bai Yu squeezed the trigger.

A silver bullet, imbued with terrifying spiritual energy, hurtled towards the monster before her.

Simultaneously, it unleashed a recoil that a human body simply could not withstand.

Even with the tenfold amplification granted by Night’s Kin, the sudden, violent kick still caused Bai Yu to falter for a full second.

Bai Yu glanced at the pistol in her hand with a flicker of surprise, its sheer power bordering on that of a hand cannon.

The bullet, carrying an unnerving pressure, detonated within the monster’s grotesque form.

Blood and gore erupted as the terrifying impact shattered the monster’s entire upper torso.

The tenfold amplification, granting her extraordinary dynamic vision and precise bodily control, now showcased its full, formidable might.

A flash of white light emanated from the necklace around her neck, and the spiritual essence of the fallen monster was swiftly absorbed by Bai Yu.

Sensing the surge of spiritual energy within her, Bai Yu offered a faint smile.

“I hadn’t anticipated that even the monsters within this dream would possess spiritual energy.”

This revelation caught Bai Yu by surprise, hinting at the extraordinary origins of the dream itself.

Rather than fleeing, Bai Yu fixed her gaze upon the monsters descending from the blood-red sky, lost in thought.

The advancement of a Mystic required three specific conditions: spiritual energy, knowledge, and a ritual.

However, apart from the raw spiritual energy, she was utterly unaware of what specific knowledge or particular spiritual essence was required.

While the ritual remained a mystery, the dreamscape she currently inhabited teemed with unknown knowledge, its unsettling whispers constantly reverberating through her mind.

Could it be that her [Stars] spiritual core was actively drawing in the necessary knowledge?

If that were the case, she would be fulfilling two of the conditions simultaneously.

With another raised hand and a single shot, she obliterated yet another monster, sending large chunks of flesh scattering in every direction.

Yet, Bai Yu’s form remained pristine, untouched by even a single drop of blood.

“If that’s the case, then provide me with ample spiritual energy.”

Bai Yu sprinted towards the horde of monsters, Night’s Kin operating at full capacity, the spiritual energy within her body burning with frenzied intensity, pushing the amplification slightly beyond its perceived limits.

[Be mindful of your spiritual energy, your current consumption is immense.]

Moweila warned, sensing an unsettling shift in Bai Yu’s current state.

As monsters gathered in a surging, mountainous tide, Bai Yu plunged headlong into their midst.

Bai Yu’s form blurred into a dark streak, hurtling into the tumultuous tide of grotesque, twisted humanoids.

In a single instant, monsters began to fall in swathes, like wheat before a scythe, as [Morpheus’s Whisper] unleashed a barrage of shots in every direction, at an unimaginable rate and from impossible angles.

The bullets, like a chorus of low, rhythmic sighs, wove a magnificent symphony within this blood-soaked world.

At the very center of this gruesome stage, the girl’s combat stance resembled a dancer beneath a moonlit sky, every movement of her body appearing utterly natural, executing the most precise and flawless actions.

The spiritual energy was consumed with even greater ferocity; the pistol’s physical ammunition had been depleted, and now it fired by drawing directly from her spiritual reserves.

The twisted monsters that Bai Yu cut down dissolved into spiritual energy, replenishing her dwindling reserves.

However, this replenishment was far from sufficient to match her current rate of expenditure, as the absorbed energy primarily served to raise her maximum capacity rather than directly restoring her spiritual essence.

[Bai Yu, stop.]

Moweila’s voice was laced with urgency; Bai Yu’s eyes had now turned a terrifying blood-red, mirroring the ominous moon hanging in the sky.

[Night’s Kin] was pushed to its absolute limits, its control and application reaching a terrifying, unprecedented peak.

Bang!

Another shot rang out, directly shattering three distant monsters as they lunged towards Bai Yu.

Amidst the frenzied chaos of battle, Bai Yu, utterly consumed by the fight, seemed to finally register the severe depletion of her spiritual energy.

Her scarlet eyes narrowed slightly, and then, with a swift motion, she flipped the pistol, gripping it by the handle in reverse, and began to bludgeon the monsters with its eerie, blue-hued barrel.

The pistol’s barrel, crafted from some unknown material, folded a monster in half with Bai Yu’s forceful strike.

The impact sent the monster flying straight into the distance, its momentum knocking several other creatures aside.

Yet, in that precise instant, a smaller monster from her blind spot seized the opening, its sharp claws lunging for Bai Yu’s neck, intent on tearing her to shreds.

Bai Yu’s extraordinary dynamic perception registered the attack, but given her current predicament, she knew she would be struck regardless.

A resonant hum vibrated through the air!

With a crisp, ringing sound, a golden, translucent shield materialized around Bai Yu, sending the charging monster recoiling violently upon impact.

Even so, the immense force of the impact still reverberated through the shield to Bai Yu, instantly jolting her back to full awareness, her blood-red eyes receding to their normal hue.

“What have I…”

[The dream’s insidious influence consumed you in a frenzy of slaughter. Ignore these mere ants; I sense it—the dream’s core has manifested. Shatter it!]

“The core?”

Bai Yu immediately scanned her surroundings; Cecilia’s protective emblem would not last much longer, and she urgently needed to find a way to escape this dream.

Raising her gaze, Bai Yu spotted a distant tree through a momentary break in the monstrous encirclement.

More accurately, it was a colossal tree composed entirely of flesh and blood, piercing the sky in this sanguinary world, seemingly nurturing some unknown form of life.

“That must be it.”

Though she had no idea what it truly was, her intuition screamed that it held the key to escaping the dream.

Pushing with all her might, with Night’s Kin amplification fully engaged, Bai Yu launched herself high into the air.

Below, the monsters could only stare blankly as Bai Yu soared through the sky, hurtling towards the colossal tree.

Landing steadily, with the monsters now far behind her, Bai Yu sprinted towards the tree without a moment’s hesitation.

The monsters’ speed was no match for Bai Yu’s, and they were quickly left far behind.

The closer she drew to the tree, the more distorted Bai Yu’s vision became; both the ground and the sky began to spawn an endless array of grotesque and deformed anomalies.

[Maintain your composure; that thing is exceedingly dangerous.]

“I know…”

Bai Yu felt a wave of exasperation; she wasn’t blind, after all. The thing practically had the word ‘danger’ emblazoned across its non-existent face.

Though, come to think of it, it didn’t seem to possess a face at all.

The chaotic whispers persisted in Bai Yu’s ears, utterly disorienting her, while the [Stars] spiritual core continued its insatiable consumption, like a bottomless pit that could never be filled.

Bai Yu no longer cared whether this phenomenon was beneficial or not; her paramount objective was simply to escape this accursed place.

Reaching the base of the tree, she observed its colossal form, towering like a skyscraper into the clouds, its trunk entirely composed of grotesque flesh and blood, seemingly erupting directly from the earth itself.

Bai Yu glanced over her shoulder, knowing the monsters would inevitably catch up.

With no other escape route, Bai Yu had no choice but to ascend the tree.

She retreated a few paces, then, with a running start, began to scale the massive trunk, defying gravity as she sprinted upwards.

She was genuinely thankful now that she had chosen Night’s Kin as her ability; had she opted for anything else, even a thousand lives would not suffice in her current predicament.

Bai Yu sprinted vertically up the tree trunk, simultaneously battling the relentless pull of gravity and remaining vigilant for any anomalies in the fleshy bark.

‘Why does a dreamscape still adhere to something like gravity?’ she mused, ‘In a world of profound mystery, why must science still hold sway?’

Just as Bai Yu relentlessly searched for clues to escape the dream while scaling the trunk, an abrupt and terrifying transformation occurred.

The grotesque, fleshy branches on the tree suddenly began to writhe, their tips elongating into gaping, blood-stained maws that snapped and lunged at Bai Yu like ravenous demons.