The Nightmare Experience of a Useless Person

She felt as if she were locked in a small, dark room, as if plunged into an ice cave. She couldn't even feel her own body anymore; only a sliver of consciousness remained, clinging to life...

The room was large and empty, making the sounds of Mangya and Baiyang Baitao seem very far away. Bai Chan tried hard not to fall asleep and tried to find their faint sounds.

Finally, she found it. It was a crack, a faint light piercing the darkness, and a steady stream of warmth squeezed in from the opening—the breath of the desolate wilderness. She was overjoyed and tried her best to get closer to the crack, letting the familiar warmth enter her body.

Gradually, the gap widened, and blinding white light filled the entire world. The warmth became scorching, coursing through Bai Chan's internal organs. Her strength was replenished, and she seemed to be able to move her fingers again. The sounds around her ears became clearer.

"Hakuzen, Hakuzen, Hakuzen!"

The little fox opened her eyes and saw Bai Yang crying and wailing. She slowly twisted her toes, hooked her fingers, and her body returned to normal, but... but whose cold hand was this beside her? A bad premonition swept over her, and she hurriedly got up.

"A vast, desolate place!"

His eyes were tightly closed, his cheeks were pale, and beneath his disheveled clothes, his once delicate skin was burned beyond recognition...

"Mangya exhausted his spiritual power to save you, so... he's a good person. We misunderstood him before."

Bai Chan knelt down, pressing his face close to his lover's. He could feel his faint breath there; at that moment, he was like a dying fish, each breath on the parched earth accompanied by excruciating pain.

She ignored Bai Yang, remaining in that position as if afraid Mangya wouldn't be able to catch his breath. Two streams of hot tears fell on Mangya's cheeks and flowed down his neck.

"If it weren't for me, if it weren't for me, if..."

She remembered, remembered their first encounter at Linmengyuan, his hair fluttering gently in the wind, turning to reveal a handsome face, remembered Mangya's adorable annoyance at being unable to do anything about her, remembered the melancholy in his eyes when he talked about his origins, remembered the intoxicating crimson clouds in the dream world, remembered his gentle smile at the wedding banquet...

Everything was spiraling out of control, and she was merely a puppet, led to happiness, only to have it snatched away before she could even touch it.

Who is it? Who is pulling the strings? Who is toying with her?

The person beneath him stirred. He wanted to laugh, to put on a relieved and joyful laugh, but at this moment, he couldn't. Mangya never imagined that he, who had always done whatever he wanted, would have a conscience, a conscience that would ache because of a fox's tears.

Everything was clearly going smoothly according to his plan...

But he could only lower his eyes, his face full of apology. The selflessness and deep affection he put on, even with his body covered in wounds, made him seem even more despicable and shameful.

He recalled his first encounter with the little fox, his feigned innocence as a woman, his merciless beating after being offended by her, his feigned weakness to gain her pity, his ruthless advances on their wedding night to retaliate against her teasing, his deliberate luring of her into the Abyss of Dreams while feigning innocence, and her leaping into the murky abyss...

He also remembered Bai Chan's innocent and radiant smile when she embraced him, the warm, wine-scented scent of her in the dimly lit back room, the tears welling in her eyes whenever she looked up, the moment his headdress collided with hers when they drank the nuptial wine, and how her daily companionship had banished his loneliness...

"Otherwise..." Mangya raised his hand, wiping away Bai Chan's tears and gently smoothing her furrowed brows, "Otherwise, you should leave, leave this place."

Go far away, so he doesn't see you.

"It would be best if you hated me for the rest of your life, then I would feel better." He didn't say this aloud. A lowly sinner has no right to seek ways to alleviate his suffering; he deserves to be tormented.

If he cuts his losses now and lets Bai Chan go, he can still greedily see the little fox a few more times while she's in his dreams...

The person in his arms lost control and burst into tears.

"Don't cry, my wife. I won't die. I've just lost a little spiritual power. I'll be alright, really..." He tightened his left arm, holding the little fox even closer, pressing her cheek against his chest, letting her tears flow into his heart. "Such a weak husband, do you still want him?"

"Yes, I want it." The little fox's voice trembled, but it couldn't calm itself down.

She didn't know why things had suddenly turned so bad, why she had been living a perfectly good life, yet she had been bewitched into searching for a non-existent wine, why the waters of Linmengyuan had dissipated her spiritual power, and why she couldn't do anything right, always feeling like she was being led by the nose...

She wanted to grasp happiness, break free from all this chaos, and start anew, so giving up became inevitable.

Let's go, let's leave this place. She misses home and wants to go home with her lover.

"Today, Bai Chan, the ninth daughter of the Bai family of Qiuyeping, cuts off one of her own tails for you, in exchange for your freedom. May you ride the wind and ride the clouds in this life, and have all your wishes fulfilled." She smiled, a relaxed smile.

It's done; the final step of the plan.

"don't want!"

Mangya no longer wants freedom; he only wants the little fox to be safe...

His attempts to stop her were futile. With a swift stroke of the knife, blood splattered everywhere. The loose, severed tail seemed to come alive, feeding on Bai Chan's blood and, with the help of a strand of white hair from Mangya, transforming into human form.

It looks exactly like Mangya; I hope it can be mistaken for the real thing.

"Leave him here, let's leave." Bai Chan raised her eyes and gestured for Bai Yang and Bai Tao to come forward and help. Enduring the pain of losing her tail, she no longer had the strength to support Mang Ya.

"Will this really work?" Jiang Zhiyang looked worried, but Yu Qingjun just shook her head. If only everything were that simple.

"It's no use, my wife, you..." Tears welled up in his eyes, and he shook his head helplessly. He didn't want it anymore! He didn't want to leave now!

According to his plan, he only needed to peel off the divine core and inject it into the body of the tailless fox. That extremely weak but immortal shell could then replace him and stay here in his place.

He could then break free from the shackles of Heaven's will, reveal his ugly face, and swagger out of this Dream Abyss, letting that unlucky fox take his place as the caged bird. But now, he doesn't want it anymore, he doesn't want anything at all...

"Even if it doesn't work, I'll still give it a try. Baiyang Baitao, let's go now."

"Okay." Yu Qingjun, who had been silent, spoke the first words. She didn't know if what she was doing was right or wrong. The situation had already exceeded her ability to handle it, but looking at Bai Chan's appearance, she only wanted to do whatever it took to fulfill her wish.

The rough fabric rubbed against the numb skin, and blood seeped continuously from the wound. It hurt terribly, but the physical pain paled in comparison to the heartache. This being, the master of the Dream Abyss, whose very nature was greed and desire, now felt utterly insignificant and ashamed.

He deserves to die...