Chapter 92: A Beautiful Dream

He had finally come to his senses.

What had felt unreal was not unreal at all. Looking at Elder Zhou’s miserable state today, was this not the very outcome they had both long desired? Now that Zhou had been brought to heel, the two of them together could easily take him down. What was there to be unhappy about? Ah, stop thinking so much. You always wear that troubled look, day after day.

Qing Yun waved a comforting hand at him.

Lin Hao thought it over and felt that it made sense, so he left with Qing Yun.

When he returned to the doorway of his own room, he saw that, because of his status and standing, the sect master had even assigned him two guards.

The moment Lin Hao came back, the two of them bowed respectfully and said, "Senior Brother, may we ask whether you would like a meal or some tea? If there is anything we can do for you, just give the word."

Lin Hao was taken aback by the spectacle.

Once he recovered, he hurriedly said, "No, no need. I’ll be alone for a while. You don’t need to busy yourselves."

With that, he turned and went into his room.

Sitting in a chair with his chin propped on one hand, he murmured, "What exactly did I forget? I keep feeling that what I’ve forgotten is terribly important, but I just can’t remember."

And so Lin Hao kept pondering over what it was he had lost from memory.

Thus he lived within the illusion for several days.

Everyone he met treated him with utmost respect, and with Qing Yun’s help, he had even driven Elder Zhou out of Clear Wind Sect.

Within the sect, Lin Hao grew more and more esteemed.

One day, while practicing his sword, he suddenly used a technique from the Azure City Art. After completing the entire set of that familiar sword style, a sharp pain stabbed through his head.

He crouched to the ground, and before his eyes flashed scene after scene from the past.

With his eyes shut, Lin Hao sat dazed for a long while, when a voice suddenly rang in his mind: "Please remain calm, Host."

Those words brought Lin Hao fully back to himself.

He opened his eyes, and a fierce light flashed within them. He remembered it. At last he remembered what he had forgotten.

He had forgotten the system. Forgotten everything about Azure City Sect. Forgotten it all.

He was not living in a real world at this moment, but inside an illusory realm.

With that thought, Lin Hao rose to his feet, picked up the Swallowing Clouds Sword, and strode outside.

The two guards at the door saw him like this and stepped forward. "Senior Brother—"

Before they could finish, Lin Hao struck with a single sword and severed them cleanly at the waist.

The two bodies split in two, then dissolved into specks of light, scattered away by the wind and vanishing without a trace.

Seeing this, Lin Hao’s gaze hardened, a cold smile tugged at his lips, and he strode toward the great hall where he had first appeared.

When he arrived, Qing Yun was already there, and so was the sect master.

Seeing Lin Hao barge in without a word, both of them showed displeasure.

Qing Yun asked, "Junior Brother Lin Hao, what brings you here?"

Lin Hao only gave a cold smile and said nothing. He rushed forward and fought Qing Yun at once.

With a clang, his sword came crashing down toward Qing Yun.

Fortunately, Qing Yun reacted quickly and dodged it.

But surprise flickered in Qing Yun’s eyes as he said in disbelief, "Lin Hao, have you lost your mind?"

"I have indeed lost my mind," Lin Hao said. "You’ve all driven me mad one by one. This is all illusion, all of it! Now I finally understand—you never existed in the first place."

As he spoke, Lin Hao pressed the attack, the Swallowing Clouds Sword flashing in his hand.

A dragon of strange fire roared forward in a thunderous surge, hurling itself toward Qing Yun.

For a moment, Qing Yun dodged in utter embarrassment.

The sect master above also shouted from the side, "Lin Hao, what are you saying? Believe me, I can strip you of your office as elder right now!"

"Fine, then strip it," Lin Hao said with a scoff.

He struck out with a palm toward the sect master.

The sect master had no time to guard against him, and with that single blow, he was shattered apart and vanished from sight.

Seeing this, Qing Yun knew he had been exposed, and instead a cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Standing where he was, he looked at Lin Hao and said, "I did not expect you to awaken so quickly."

"So you’ve finally shown your true face. Say it—who are you, really?" Lin Hao demanded sharply.

"Me? I am just me." Qing Yun smiled faintly at him. "You are actually one of the fastest to wake within the Mystic Realm Sect. You surprise me. To have awakened already at the second trial..."

"Qing Yun" gave him a smile.

"So this really is all an illusion, then?" Lin Hao said in understanding.

The moment he finished speaking, the entire great hall began to change. Little by little, everything upon it was transformed beyond recognition.

It became the same hall Lin Hao had first entered in Mystic Realm Sect.

Above the hall hung a plaque bearing three words: Mystic Realm Sect.

Yet the Qing Yun before him did not change.

Lin Hao frowned. "Why do you still not reveal your true form?"

"Do you not think these past few days have been very pleasant?" Qing Yun asked, ignoring his question and instead speaking seductively. "I have helped you fulfill the desires of your heart. Don’t you want to remain here forever? Stay here, and you can realize your wish, become a man above others, and never be bullied again."

"Hmph. What you have woven is indeed a beautiful dream, but it is still false beyond measure. A success never truly won through hardship is meaningless."

Lin Hao gave a cold laugh, and by then his heart no longer wavered at all.

He did not find the dream beautiful in the slightest; in fact, it disgusted him.

Without another word, Lin Hao drew the Swallowing Clouds Sword.

With a sharp flash, he flew toward the false Qing Yun.

"Take this!"

In a few swift strokes, Lin Hao unleashed his Azure City Art, fused with the Moonlit Blade Style.

This was the first time he had used this sword technique of his own creation.

The swordplay was fierce and lethal, each strike aimed to kill, without a single weakness. In an instant, the false Qing Yun gained no advantage over Lin Hao whatsoever and was battered into a miserable retreat.

Before long, numerous wounds had opened across his body.

Then, after the false Qing Yun was wounded once more by Lin Hao, he suddenly let out an enraged roar.

With a thunderous howl, Lin Hao was sent flying back by a violent explosion.

The man’s entire body burst apart. With several cracking detonations, the false Qing Yun’s true appearance was finally torn free.

He had become monstrously huge, a faceless demon whose voice had also turned rough and savage.

He glared at Lin Hao with fury in his eyes and said, "Boy, you are the second person ever to make me this wretched. I admire your courage, and your strength is not bad either. But staying in this place is simply too boring. Those cowards who came in here were not even worth my effort. You, however, have caught my interest. Stay here and keep me company!"

As he spoke, several horns sprouted beside him.

He lifted a foot and stomped toward Lin Hao with booming steps.

Each step cracked the ground beneath him.

Lin Hao could feel the earth trembling.

Seeing this, he cautiously retreated and stared at the monster. "Dream on. Today I will shatter this illusion and see how you plan to keep me here."

With that, Lin Hao’s expression turned resolute. He hurled the Swallowing Clouds Sword upward, and poured all his spiritual power into it.

The sword instantly expanded many times over.

When the creature’s tendrils reached toward him, Lin Hao controlled the Swallowing Clouds Sword and unleashed a Swallowing Clouds Slash.

One of the monster’s tendrils was severed at once.

But the false Qing Yun was not easy prey. Even after Lin Hao cut off one of the tendrils, the monster endured the pain and immediately slapped Lin Hao hard across the back from behind.

With a muffled grunt, Lin Hao staggered back several steps and spat out a mouthful of blood.

He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, then looked at the monster with one tendril missing. Its eyes burned with rage, while Lin Hao met its gaze with a cold smile.

"I will cut off every last one of your limbs, little by little."

Then Lin Hao sent the Swallowing Clouds Sword soaring skyward again. Suddenly gathering every ounce of spiritual power he had, he channeled strange fire through his left hand and spiritual power through his right, sending both into the sword.

The Swallowing Clouds Sword spun furiously in the air.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—the flow of spiritual power gathered toward Lin Hao from all directions.

Flames licked across the blade.

Soon, the sword’s rotation became impossible to follow with the eye.

Then Lin Hao suddenly drew it back and hurled it toward the monster.

"Ten Thousand Arrows Pierce the Heart!"

With that cry, what seemed like hundreds and thousands of Swallowing Clouds Swords shot at the monster.

"Ah!"

The monster howled in agony as its tendrils were severed one after another by the rain of swords, leaving the ground splattered in horrifying pools of blood.

At last, seeing the moment had come, Lin Hao grabbed the nearest Swallowing Clouds Sword, shot forward like an arrow, and thrust the blade straight into the creature’s heart.

After one final wail, the monster’s body crashed to the ground and vanished into nothingness.

Only then did Lin Hao finally catch his breath and let out a long sigh of relief.

Just as he was about to stand up, the ground began to shake violently, rumbling like thunder.

The surroundings shifted.

Instinctively, Lin Hao closed his eyes and was swept into a vortex.

When everything finally settled, he opened his eyes and found himself outside the gates of Mystic Realm Sect.

He had come out.

Staring blankly at the scene, Lin Hao was still somewhat dazed.

At that moment, the guards stationed outside Mystic Realm Sect were all looking at him in disbelief.

Lin Hao had actually walked out of Mystic Realm Sect in just two days. No one had expected that.

One of them stepped forward and nudged him. "Senior Brother, wake up!"

"Ah? What is it?" Lin Hao asked unconsciously.

"You’ve already come out of Mystic Realm Sect. Congratulations. Someone has already gone to report to the senior brother. As for you now, what would you like to do?"

The guard asked.

After hearing the guard’s words, Lin Hao felt as though he had returned from another world. Looking at the bright sun outside, he murmured, "I’m out? I really came out?"

"Yes, you have come out of Mystic Realm Sect. We admire you greatly. Aside from the senior brother, you are the second person to emerge in such a short time. We wonder what you experienced inside..."