There's a big problem with dreams in this world.

After arriving at the cave entrance, which was buried under rubble, Lu Qing looked up at the cliff above the cave and could clearly see signs of damage. The bodies of the Guiji cultists, who should have been lying nearby, had disappeared without a trace, leaving only traces of blood on the snow.

Those corpses were probably carried away by wild animals in the forest. To them, it was probably... a gift from nature.

The four quickly cleared away the rubble at the entrance and then entered the cave.

As soon as they entered, a pungent smell of blood and a putrid stench of decay filled their nostrils.

Although Lu Qing had encountered similar smells many times before, she still frowned, finding it hard to get used to.

The Pope raised his left hand and snapped his fingers lightly. A pale yellow, glowing ball appeared in his hand and then floated beside him.

This is probably the Light Illumination spell that any mage in this other world would use, or is it called the Light Sphere spell?

Having already acquired more than one method of night vision, Lu Qing shook her head and then carefully observed the environment inside the cave.

It was similar to the cave she remembered, with an overall oval-shaped structure and traces of wind and sand erosion on the walls inside.

The cave is very large, otherwise it wouldn't be able to accommodate the enormous body of the Void Worm. Or, is it possible that this cave was actually dug out by the Void Worm?

The group walked deeper into the cave, and soon arrived at the deepest part of the cave, where the Pope saw what he was looking for.

Deep within the cave, the corpse of a massive monster lay sprawled on the ground. This monster possessed a thick, menacing keratinous shell, which not only provided it with powerful defense but also aided it in digging burrows and attacking its prey.

In fact, when facing larger animals, the Void Worm can completely mimic the movements of snakes, using its body, which is covered with a sharp exoskeleton, to tightly coil around its prey until the prey dies.

By this time, the enormous creature had died deep inside the cave. Judging from its appearance, the fatal wound was likely a gruesome gash cut open in its abdomen.

The crack was enormous, almost slicing the Void Worm in two. It's hard to imagine what kind of attack could pierce through the Void Worm's sharp exoskeleton and split its flesh like that.

Besides the corpse of the Void Worm, the group also saw... Char's corpse, which was completely disintegrated and unrecognizable.

"Bang!!" Although he had expected it, the Pope still couldn't help himself when he saw the terrible scene before him, and slammed his right hand hard against the rock wall next to him.

"......"

Knight Myron glanced silently at the Pope, knowing that the Pope would recover quickly with his composure, so he said nothing.

When he was on the battlefield, many soldiers died even more tragically than him, but unlike him, the Pope lost his loved ones, so it was inevitable that he would lose control of his emotions.

After a while, the Pope let out a long sigh, his expression unreadable, and said, "Collect the parts that are still recognizable as human, and then go find the Soul of Resentment."

Before leaving, they had considered the possibility of finding Charles's body, so they brought a container with them. However, they did not expect that Charles's body would be placed inside the container in this way.

Lu Qing felt a little nauseous, but perhaps because she had experienced so much, she felt no discomfort other than this reaction. Thinking about it this way, she felt a complex emotion that was hard to describe as melancholy.

"Leave Charles here for now, we'll take him back when we return. Myron and... Hao Meng, could you two stay here and watch over him, or you can take Charles back first?" the Pope said, looking at Myron and Hao Meng.

"Hmm?" Myron frowned, wondering if the Pope had lost his mind due to the shock. What was the point of sending the two of them back at this time?

“I have something to discuss with Her Highness the Princess privately,” the Pope explained, noticing Knight Myron’s confusion.

"What is it that I can't even hear?" Sir Myron pressed.

“It’s not that I can’t let you hear it…” The Pope was silent for a moment, then looked at Lu Qing and said, “Could you wait for me a little while, Your Highness?”

“Of course,” Lu Qing nodded.

"Let's go, I'd like to have a little chat with you," the Pope said to Knight Myron after hearing Lu Qing's reply.

“Alright.” Knight Myron also wanted to know what the Pope wanted to do, so he nodded and walked with him outside the cave.

“That should be about right. Now, tell me, what do you want to do?” Knight Myron said after stopping.

“A trial.” The Pope stopped and turned to look at Knight Myron.

"Trials?"

"That's right, a trial related to psychic abilities."

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Chapter 500: o(*////▽////*)q

"Hey, Hao Meng, didn't you feel anything when you saw those things just now?" After Knight Myron and Charles left the cave, only Lu Qing and Hao Meng remained inside. Lu Qing looked at Hao Meng with some curiosity and asked.

"Uh, me? Me?" Hao Meng didn't expect Lu Qing to ask her this question. Without thinking too much, she truthfully expressed her feelings.

"I don't really feel anything, it's just... I think it's a bit excessive," Hao Meng said.

"Have you seen similar scenes in other dream worlds?" Lu Qing asked. She didn't know if Hao Meng was like that, but she had indeed seen many similar scenes in other dream worlds, so she had become somewhat used to it.

"I... I guess it's something I was born with." Hao Meng thought for a moment, hesitated for a while, and then continued, "I don't know why, but ever since I first entered the dream world, no matter how bloody the scene is, I don't have much of a reaction to it."

"Including the first time I killed someone..."

“I’ve seen experienced people on the forum say that when you kill someone for the first time or see a bloody scene, some instinctive physiological reactions are unavoidable, but I haven’t experienced any of those feelings.”

"Why?" Lu Qing couldn't help but ask. No matter how you looked at it, Hao Meng's personality shouldn't have led to this reaction, she thought.

"I don't know either, no, actually I have a few clues." Hao Meng walked to Lu Qing's side and sat on a clean rock next to her.

She gently removed her helmet and placed it on her knees, then tossed her long hair, which had been bound by the armor, and whispered with her head down:

“I’ve had nightmares since I was a child, but strangely, no matter how many nightmares I have, I never enter the dream world.”

"Then, you were like that last time too..." Lu Qing recalled the last time when Hao Meng was still unconscious after emerging from the dream world. She took Hao Meng to her home, and when she woke up the next day, she found that Hao Meng's body was cold and her face looked slightly painful.

She subconsciously asked Hao Meng if she had a nightmare, but then realized that dreaming in this world would trap one in a dream world. Hao Meng nodded after hearing her words.

"Yes, I had that nightmare last time too." Hao Meng gently closed her eyes, her long, dark eyelashes trembling slightly as she said, "I'll never forget that nightmare. It's haunted me since birth—darkness, loneliness, and even my voice couldn't escape..."

As Hao Meng recalled her nightmare, her body trembled slightly. It was clear that she was terrified of the dream. If, as Hao Meng said, the dream had haunted her since childhood, then her social anxiety might not be so incomprehensible.

"Mengmeng~" Lu Qing looked at Hao Meng and suddenly called out softly.

"Hmm... Ah!" Hao Meng subconsciously raised her head when she heard Lu Qing's words, but Lu Qing pulled her over and she fell into her arms.

The petite body was in his arms, but there was no soft and warm feeling, because Hao Meng was wearing heavy metal armor all over her body except for her head.

Lu Qing could now understand why a girl would like full-body armor and a sword and shield, and why she had such extreme social anxiety.

It was precisely because of that cold, deep, dark, and lonely place in her nightmares that Hao Meng became so insecure and used heavy armor to "protect" herself.

"You've worked hard," Lu Qing said, gently stroking Hao Meng's hair.

"I, I, I..." Hao Meng only realized what had happened at this moment, and found herself lying in Lu Qing's arms like a child!

"It's okay, it's just the two of us here now anyway," Lu Qing said with a smile.

"No, I..." Hao Meng subconsciously tried to break free from Lu Qing's embrace because it made her feel very shy, but at the same time, a strange feeling rose in her heart.

It was a kind of security different from that given by cold armor; it was warm and endearing.

"Sniff..." Hao Meng sniffed and smelled a faint floral fragrance. The scent was so enticing that she couldn't help but sniff it a few more times. However, she soon realized what she was doing.

She was actually smelling someone else's scent while in their arms—how could that be so perverted! But, but, the scent really smelled wonderful. Thinking of this, Hao Meng couldn't help but sniff it a couple more times.

o (* //// ▽ //// *) q

"Is this scent coming from Lu Qing?" Hao Meng looked up at Lu Qing's face and wondered.

"Hmm, what's wrong?" Lu Qing had no idea that the scent of the dreamy black rose perfume from the small house on her body had captivated Hao Meng.

"No, no, no..." Hao Meng blushed and explained when she saw Lu Qing looking at her, immediately remembering her infatuated behavior. Then, she suddenly remembered something and quickly said:

"I...I...I have something I want to show you," Hao Meng stammered.

"What is that?" Lu Qing assumed Hao Meng was just shy because she was holding her in her arms, and didn't realize anything was wrong.

"Yes, it's a skill," Hao Meng said softly, then shared her skill panel with Lu Qing.

【Drawing the Soul of Black (Red)】

Children's hearts are pure, and it is precisely because of this purity that they are more easily tainted by darkness.

You didn't intend to witness the abyss, yet you're forced to accept it.

"It was a dream. I dreamt that I was drowning in the deep ocean, unable to see a single ray of light."

"It's as if some terrifying monster lurks in the darkness, ready to tear me apart and devour me in an instant..."

["I shrank back in fear, afraid to make a sound. Fear made me tremble all over, and tears gradually blurred my vision. I was lost in the darkness, and in the darkness, I became one with the darkness..."]

"A red skill!? Is it a talent skill?" Lu Qing exclaimed, her eyes widening the moment she saw the skill panel.

"Yes, this skill has existed since I first entered the dream world," Hao Meng nodded slightly.

Not many people know about this skill of hers, because it's a red-level skill. Even she herself doesn't know what the effect of this skill is, but... unless it's someone she's very close to, she won't tell them.

"Is this skill the reason why you often have nightmares, Hao Meng?" Lu Qing frowned as she looked at the skill.

“Abyss…” She stared at the two words on the skill panel, lost in thought.

P.S.: Double update! You won't see the women's clothing part, which is a real shame.

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Happy Lunar New Year's Eve!

Happy New Year's Eve!

Ahem, about the update...

Due to a variety of reasons, including relatives coming over for dinner and the constant setting off of firecrackers at night, I simply couldn't write it down.

Tomorrow, definitely! Tomorrow, definitely!

*sobs* QWQ

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Chapter 501: Please, another me!

In the minds of ordinary people, the abyss probably refers to a deep, dark, and bottomless pit, or the abode of demons in the internet, a world in another dimension of the normal human world.

In fact, the abyss does exist in another world. According to Wayne, the place where humans usually live is the real world, but above the real world is the spiritual world, and the dream world is the manifestation of dreams in the spiritual world when humans are sleeping.

In addition to the real world and the spiritual world, there is the Shadow Realm, which is filled with shadow power and is difficult for even dreamers to detect, and the Nightmare Realm, which is much deeper than the Shadow Realm.

The name Nightmare Realm is just what humans call it. The Wayne calls this layer the Abyss. Lu Qing had also come into contact with creations related to the Abyss and even absorbed them, thus gaining the form and power of the Black Rose Vampire.

However, the Black Rose Vampire form was not brought about by the item [Light of the Abyss]. To be precise, it was the mark left on her by the unknown being in the darkness that absorbed the Light of the Abyss, resulting in the Black Rose Vampire form.

As for Hao Meng's red skill, its use is not yet apparent. Perhaps Hao Meng's previous statement that she is not uncomfortable with bloody scenes is the effect of this skill. However, besides the explanation of the skill's effect, it is also possible that it is just her innate personality.