Martin Variety in American Comics.

Chapter 355: The Ruined Kingdom (Please subscribe, read, comment on the monthly ticket)

Morpheus blew out a puff of yellow sand, then stepped back a few steps and watched the two old men fall into a deep sleep.

"I was going to punish Alex alone, but his husband insisted on being punished as well, so I gave him what he wanted."

"I see!"

Martin nodded to Murphys, not misunderstanding anything.

Although the two old men fell to the ground and fell asleep, they did not really die, but fell into a dream.

Alex was forced to face what he had been avoiding all his life until he had the courage to face it, and Woody stayed by her husband's side as she wished, walking with him in the dream.

"You gave them a much kinder end than I thought!"

Martin looked at the bodies of the two old people and thought about how to deal with their funeral.

Their consciousness sank into an eternal dream, and their bodies had lost their meaning and were no different from corpses.

To ordinary people, they are already dead.

Martin didn't want the bodies and identities of the two men to be used by irrelevant parties, but they had no children or relatives, so how could he bury them in peace?

Murphys didn't realize this. He stared at Martin and asked, "You think my actions are kind. If it were you, how would you deal with them?"

Martin's thoughts were interrupted. He felt Morpheus' curiosity about him and showed his two rows of white teeth: "If it were me, I would let Alex face his pain and force him to end it with his past self in the material world."

"What's the difference?"

Morpheus looked puzzled. He knew everything about human beings, but there were some things that he could not understand without experiencing them.

"If there is a difference, it is that my method is more cruel. It is very likely to drive Alex to death, and he may not be able to face his past."

Martin stroked his chin and thought for a while, then answered Morpheus' question with some regret.

Over the decades, the trauma of accidentally killing his father had accumulated to an unbearable level.

Alex was an old man who was about to die. He might not be able to bear such pain due to the excitement and die directly.

“Although it is cruel, people always have to learn to face their own trauma in order to move towards the future and change the painful past.”

As Martin spoke, he thought of a way to deal with the bodies of the two old men.

He turned to look at Morpheus and pleaded, "I'm going to meet with their housekeeper and tell them how to deal with the bodies of the two old people. I hope you, Mr. Morpheus, are not in a hurry to leave the material world."

"What do you want to do?" Murphys was awkward with Martin.

Decades of imprisonment gave him a strange view of humans, but the blessing from death made him feel a certain favor for Martin.

This master of dreams never hides his emotions; everything is written on his face.

Martin smiled softly: "Don't be nervous. I don't have the habit of repaying a favor. It's just that the crow described the dream so exaggeratedly, so I want to go with you to take a look. Well, this request is not too much, right?"

"Would someone like you be interested in my dream kingdom?"

What Death can see, Morpheus can certainly see as well.

Although Martin is full of dreamy atmosphere, there are many things in it that Morpheus feels unfamiliar.

Some he loved, some he hated, and quite a few terrified him.

Through these he could be sure that the human in front of him did not belong to this world.

"Of course!"

Martin did not admit his identity, but just said: "Your dream is also special to me, why wouldn't I be curious?"

Morpheus didn't think much about it. Out of trust in death, he didn't doubt Martin: "Okay, if you insist, I can wait a little longer, but don't delay it for too long."

"Don't worry, time is precious to me too, I won't drag it out."

Martin nodded to him, then he carried the bodies of the two old men and was about to walk out of the basement when he suddenly turned around and said, "Can I borrow your dream sand for a while?"

Morpheus didn't ask why. He took out a handful of sand and put it in Martin's hand, and said, "The method of use is very simple. Just blow it at the person."

"Thank you!"

Martin felt that Murphys was becoming more and more like a young man, doing things directly and without any disguise.

He clenched the sand in his hand, carried the corpse out of the basement, and saw the manor's housekeeper and a group of security guards guarding the door.

"you"

The butler instantly recognized the body carried on his shoulders and was about to shout.

The guards were even more straightforward. They just pulled out their guns and pointed them at Martin. They would pull the trigger immediately at the slightest sign of trouble.

But no matter whether they were experienced guards or inexperienced housekeepers, they didn't have time to react before the yellow sand hit them in the face. Then the world in their eyes became unreal, their eyes were blank, and they stood there in a daze.

These are ordinary people, without any magical protection on them, and have no resistance to Morpheus's Dream Sand.

Morpheus lost the three magical artifacts he carried with him, but his magic power was not enough to make up for the damaged dream kingdom. To ordinary people, he was still no different from a god.

"Remember, these two old people died of sudden illness, and before they died, they entrusted the housekeeper with the responsibility of handling their affairs. There is nothing in the basement, only an empty room."

Martin did not weave any complicated lies. Although Morpheus's dream sand was very useful, the more complicated the lie, the easier it was to reveal flaws.

It is normal for an elderly person to die of an acute illness, and there is no need to add other factors.

As for what happens next, we can ask Bruce for help in buying the manor and using it as the alliance's secret base, while also taking care of the old man's funeral.

"You can go!"

Martin put the old man's body down and waved to the people who were bewitched by the Dream Sand. They left the basement door in confusion.

Only after they left the corridor did they regain consciousness, and then bursts of crying were heard in the manor.

"Ugh!"

Martin sighed, feeling mixed emotions about the end of this tragic family.

Then he went back to the basement, and Murphys was standing there, like a black wooden stake stuck in the floor, without any change.

"My life is over, leaving only a corpse. Why bother with it anymore?"

Murphys opened his mouth to question Martin's meaning.

"Funerals are for the living to see, just think of it as a way to put my mind at ease!"

Martin didn't say much, he just gave a simple explanation and ended the topic.

"Now we can go to the dreamland. I'm looking forward to seeing what your kingdom looks like." "Come with me!"

Morpheus spoke in a cold tone. He waved his hand and fine yellow sand fell from his fingertips, gathering in the air to form a door covered with relief carvings.

“How fancy!”

Martin complained in his mind, watching Morpheus push open the door, releasing a strong light and wind pressure.

Morpheus was not affected at all. He walked straight in and merged into the light.

Martin followed closely in his footsteps and felt a strong pulling force. His five senses suddenly failed and he could not feel anything. His body was suspended in the air with nowhere to gain support.

It was not until he fell to the ground with a plop and swallowed a mouthful of sand that he felt his five senses returned to normal.

"Bah bah bah!"

He stood up, spit out the sand in his mouth with effort, looked around, and found himself in the desert. The sky was split into several different parts, all of which appeared distorted.

"This is not the way a good journey should start. I thought there would be a grand banquet to welcome me here!"

Martin's complaints went unanswered.

Morpheus looked at the rolling sand dunes around him with a sad expression on his face.

The dream was created by him. The moment he escaped, he felt that the kingdom was falling apart due to the lack of a master.

But Morpheus didn't expect the situation to be so bad. The good things that once existed were no longer there.

"This used to be a beautiful ocean, where countless people dreamed of swimming freely. But now it has turned into a barren desert..."

Morpheus' lips trembled. He had not given up his responsibility to him, so he felt pain because of the scene before him.

Martin sighed when he saw Morpheus like this. He had hoped to ease the other party's tension with some jokes, but it was completely useless.

"Instead of standing here grieving, why don't we find someone as soon as possible to find out how bad the dream was, so that we can find a way to make up for it."

Martin raised his right hand, looked at his fingertips, and felt that time had stopped temporarily.

However, this is a dream after all, so it is normal that the concept of time does not work here.

"Thank you!"

Morpheus was brought out of his sadness after being reminded by Martin. He didn't dare to quickly identify the direction and walked out directly.

With every step he took, the space around him began to distort. A distance of hundreds or even thousands of meters was compressed into one step, and he easily crossed it.

Martin looked at the distorted scenes around him and felt that it was a bit like the "shrinking the earth by a thousand miles" described in traditional Chinese magic, but in fact it was just a manifestation of the illusion of a dream.

When people are dreaming, they often ignore the limitations of time and space, and this is also true in dreams.

Although Morpheus, an honest man, did not like Martin who took the initiative to visit the Dream Kingdom, he still fulfilled his promise seriously and always took Martin with him.

They soon passed through the barren desert, with nothing in between except endless sand dunes and raging winds.

The crow, who originally wanted to comfort Morpheus, became silent after seeing this scene.

The current situation of the Dream Kingdom is worse than they imagined, and it is not just a little bit worse.

"This is the gateway to the heart of the kingdom."

Morpheus stopped, and Martin looked forward and saw a huge wall that was against the sky and extended to the boundless earth at both ends, dividing the dreamland into two spaces.

At the top of the wall hangs a suspended thread made of white clouds. The pain and joy that countless people have experienced in their dreams are all displayed on this wall, turning it into one of the countless reliefs, inconspicuous but indispensable.

The images of the Endless Family members are carved on the gate. Fate, death and dreams are closely linked together, while the other members appear somewhat scattered.

The feats that the Endless family members had performed were surrounded by their images, appearing together on this huge wall, like green leaves surrounding a flower.

"What an incredible wall! I have been to many worlds, but I have never seen anything like it."

Martin was not bragging. He could feel the feelings of all living beings about dreams from the huge wall in front of him by closing his eyes.

Morpheus responded to Martin's compliment with just two words: "Thank you." He was becoming more and more anxious and just wanted to know as soon as possible what his kingdom had become.

He stretched out his hands to push the stone door that was hundreds or even thousands of meters high, but before he could do anything, the door opened by itself, and a dim light appeared from the gap.

A black woman in a suit and round glasses came out holding a book thicker than a brick.

"You are finally back, my lord. I thought you had forgotten this country."

"This is my housekeeper, Lucien. She is in charge of managing my network when I am not in the Dream."

When Morpheus heard the sarcasm from his butler, much of his anxiety disappeared.

"Strictly speaking, when you were in your dream, I was also in charge of this kingdom."

Although Lucien was a created life, she was still cynical about her creator.

After saying this, the butler, without even looking at his master's embarrassed expression, turned around, pushed the door open a little more and invited them in.

After passing through the gate, the dim light disappeared, replaced by a desolate scene. The trees were withered, there were no birds or animals, and the fertile fields were overgrown with weeds. The once prosperous kingdom was now only a pile of ruins.

The palace built specifically for the Lord of Dreams has collapsed for the most part, and is covered with plants such as ivy.

"Since you left, no one has been able to maintain the existence of the Dream Kingdom. Some people left, while others held on and waited, only to disappear in the end."

Lucien explained the current situation to her master with complaint.

"I and a few other people are lucky. We have made it this far and are finally waiting for your return."

Back then, when Morpheus set out to hunt down Nightmare, many people, including Lucien, advised him that such a move was too risky and the result would be the same if he handed it over to someone else.

At that time, Morpheus had just dealt with the incident of the Dream of Thousand Cats and became very weak, so it was not suitable for him to act casually.

But the stubborn master of dreams did not accept these advices and insisted on going to the human world, and this was the final result.

"I'll make up for it!"

Morpheus felt extremely guilty as he saw that everything familiar no longer existed.

Even if he is the master of dreams, if he restores the kingdom to its former prosperity, those lives that have passed away waiting for him will never come back.

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(End of this chapter)