Chapter 83 Birth
"Mushroom, think about it—if this were really a dream, wouldn't the logical approach be to throw you into a new environment, hide some of your memories, and make you unaware you're dreaming? Wouldn't that be simpler?"
Hearing Xia Feng's words, Mushroom froze.
"Doesn't that make sense?"
"I—" Mushroom opened her mouth, blinking in confusion. No, that couldn't be right. Maybe the device couldn't hide her memories?
No, that didn't make sense! If it couldn't even do that, the device would be completely useless. The more she thought about it, the deeper her frown became. Her mind felt like it was about to explode!
Seeing Mushroom's distressed expression, Xia Feng grew impatient and sighed. "Don't overthink it. This is reality."
"I—" Mushroom suddenly realized she might have been overcomplicating things, but she was still terrified that this might actually be a dream.
She lowered her head in frustration.
"Have you figured it out?"
"I… I don't know. I can't tell."
Xia Feng: "…"
Mushroom's state reminded Xia Feng of a thought experiment called "The Brain in a Vat."
The experiment imagined a scenario where a person's brain was placed in a vat of nutrient fluid, connected to a supercomputer via neural pathways. The computer fed the brain simulated sensory inputs, creating a flawless, bug-free virtual reality indistinguishable from the real world.
So how could that person ever know if they were in a vat or in reality?
The answer, of course, was—
They couldn't. It was an unfalsifiable hypothesis.
And since it couldn't be proven, there was no point obsessing over it! Xia Feng realized that sometimes, overthinking was pointless. With a flick of his wrist, he pressed the blade against his own throat and smiled faintly:
"Let's return to the core issue, Mushroom. You don't actually want me to die, do you?"
"!" Mushroom's pupils contracted violently.
The moment she saw the thin line of blood form on Xia Feng's neck from the blade's edge, her heart nearly stopped. Her face paled, and in that instant, she understood everything.
Yes, even if there was a 99% chance this was a dream—even if Xia Feng wasn't real—she couldn't gamble on the remaining 1%.
So there was no need to think so hard, no need to weigh the consequences! She shouted frantically: "Okay, okay, fine! I admit it! I admit Yue Hongli is my mother, happy now?!"
"!" Wang Jue had been on the verge of slamming the red button in impatience, but he hadn't expected Xia Feng's sword trick to force a confession so quickly?!
He was instantly overjoyed, ecstatic, grinning from ear to ear!
Good, good! Xia Feng, you've done well! Wang Jue smirked and turned his gaze toward the woman in the red dress.
Xia Feng, equally stunned, followed his line of sight.
The woman in red tilted her pale chin upward slightly, and the black ribbon across her delicate nose began dissolving—whoosh—transforming in an instant into dark, swirling mist that dispersed into the air!
At the same time, the entire space visibly distorted, as if the atmosphere itself had gained weight and substance. The pressure alone was enough to choke the three people present.
"Bzzz—"
As the waves of energy surged, the pristine red dress fluttered wildly, her black hair whipping through the air. A faint golden light seeped from between the woman's slightly parted eyelids.
Inside the glass coffin, the woman in the phoenix gown also had golden light spilling from beneath her long lashes. She pressed her hands together, her enchanting face turned toward the red-clad woman in the distance.
Whish—
Both opened their eyes at the same time, their irises completely flooded with gold. Before Xia Feng and the others could process what was happening, the woman in red disintegrated into countless crimson motes of light, swirling toward the glass coffin.
They poured into the eye sockets of the woman in the phoenix gown.
At the same time, a dark golden cross mark appeared between her eyebrows, but in an instant, it twisted into a pitch-black ※ symbol. The interplay of light and shadow writhed across her face, shifting between holiness and allure.
Witnessing this, the prince's breathing grew ragged. Hands trembling, he forced his way through the crushing waves of invisible pressure, step by step, until he reached the ice-blue glass coffin. His gaze locked onto the woman inside with feverish obsession.
Then, as if struck by realization, he suddenly whirled around to glare at Xia Feng, lips peeling back into a grin. "So that's it! Now I understand what you're planning!"
"Ah?"
"When the princess awakens, her eyes will blaze with golden light. The moment that light fades, the first person she sees will be imprinted as her master—bound to her will."
The prince studied Xia Feng with newfound suspicion. "No wonder your attitude shifted so abruptly. You're waiting to steal her from me, aren't you?"
With a dark chuckle, he flung out his hand. The translucent barrier enclosing the space abruptly darkened to an opaque black, cutting off Xia Feng's line of sight.
Now, the princess couldn't see the outside world either.
For added insurance, the prince angled Mushroom's cabin away, ensuring the princess wouldn't catch even a glimpse of her.
Perfect. Now, nothing could go wrong. Satisfied, the prince turned back to the coffin, anticipation burning in his eyes.
Xia Feng stood beyond the barrier, his eyelid giving an involuntary twitch. The prince's caution was impressive—and utterly pointless.
The moment the prince explained the imprinting ritual, everything clicked into place.
The first face the princess sees upon waking becomes her master. He'd already lived through this once before.
During the second dream.
His first descent into the dream had ended with zombies hounding him to the outskirts of Pingshan Hospital. The second time, he'd ventured inside—and found her, trapped in that glass coffin.
Their exchange from the dream surfaced with crystalline clarity:
"Are you my unborn wife?"
"Ah? I have a husband."
Back then, her eyes had been flooded with gold. But as he drew near, the radiance dimmed, revealing irises like rose-tinted gemstones—wide with shock and curiosity.
That must have been the moment of imprinting. Yet without the completed birth ceremony, the bond had remained dormant, leaving him unaware.
But here's what defied logic:
This woman had somehow bypassed the birth ceremony entirely, forging the master-servant link within the dream itself. It was absurd!
The prince likely never imagined the birth ritual wasn't a requirement for imprinting—just one possible trigger. The bond could form without it.
If he ever learned the truth, his rage would be legendary.
Only two mysteries still nagged at Xia Feng: Why him? And how had she pulled it off? Even in the dream, the princess had seemed just as bewildered as he was.
His musings were cut short as words unfurled in his mind:
[The imaginary curse shatters. Existing worldpower acknowledged by the 'World'—]
[Synchronization: 100%]
BOOM!!!
The blackened barrier exploded. A pillar of golden light erupted upward, vaporizing the roof and lancing into the sky.
Through the warped space, Xia Feng glimpsed the unfolding scene:
The ice-blue glass pavilion dissolved like sugar in water. Suspended within the golden column, the woman in phoenix robes floated, her hair swirling in the radiance.
Then—the light in her eyes guttered out.
Rose-red irises, sharp and vulpine, blinked once. Twice. Taking in the world with childlike wonder.
The prince, barely containing his glee, stepped forward—directly into her line of sight. Yet instead of recognition, her head tilted in confusion. Her gaze slid past him, searching.
(End of this chapter)