An hour later—
The towering walls of Lotus City finally came into view beneath the moonlit sky.
Whoosh!
Two figures crossed over the city walls without slowing.
Wind gathered beneath their feet as they raced silently across the rooftops.
The city below remained peaceful.
Most homes had already extinguished their lanterns.
Only a handful of streets still showed signs of life.
Above Ling Yue—
the invisible white-scaled lizard quietly observed the city.
His golden eyes slowly shifted toward the eastern district.
A familiar presence.
His gaze narrowed ever so slightly.
*Hm...*
*I was just about to come find you.*
Without making a sound—
he lifted himself from Ling Yue's head.
His tiny body disappeared into the night.
Not even the slightest ripple remained.
Only after several moments—
Ling Yue blinked.
"...Huh?"
Her hand instinctively reached toward the top of her head.
"...Senior?"
She abruptly stopped running.
Seeing her suddenly come to a halt—
Ling Wei immediately landed beside her.
"...What's wrong?"
Ling Yue looked around instinctively.
"...Senior..."
"...He's gone."
Ling Wei frowned.
"...Gone?"
She nodded.
"I can't feel him anymore."
She touched the top of her head again.
"...He isn't here."
Ling Wei's expression immediately turned serious.
"...What do you mean..."
"...Senior isn't on your head anymore?"
"...Yeah."
Ling Yue slowly lowered her hand.
"He must've left just now."
Ling Wei instinctively swept his gaze across the surroundings.
The rooftops.
The quiet streets below.
The endless night sky.
Nothing.
After a long moment—
he let out a helpless sigh.
"...We can't exactly go looking for him."
"If Senior doesn't want to be found..."
"We have no way of knowing where he is."
He paused before asking,
"...Did he say anything beforehand?"
Ling Yue slowly shook her head.
"...No."
"He didn't say a single word."
Silence settled between the siblings.
The cool night breeze drifted quietly past them.
Ling Yue looked toward the direction they had originally been heading.
Then her gaze wandered across the endless sea of rooftops surrounding them.
"...Do you think..."
"...Something happened?"
Ling Wei pondered the question for several moments.
Then slowly shook his head.
"...No."
"What could possibly happen to him...?"
"He wouldn't simply disappear without a reason."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"...If he left..."
"...Then he probably has something he wants to do."
Ling Yue stared into the empty night for another few moments.
Then she sighed softly.
"...You're right."
"...It's Senior after all."
She smiled helplessly.
"He always does whatever he feels like."
Ling Wei couldn't help but chuckle.
"...We've gotten used to it."
Ling Yue laughed quietly as well.
"...Yeah."
She looked upward one last time.
"...Senior."
Only silence answered her.
The two siblings exchanged a glance.
Then—
wind gathered beneath their feet once more.
Whoosh!
They shot across the rooftops again.
Completely unaware that, several districts away—
the tiny white-scaled lizard had already vanished into the darkness.
His golden eyes remained fixed upon a single destination.
A destination he had intended to visit from the very beginning.
---
Beyond the outer districts of Lotus City—
where the streets had long since fallen silent—
a tiny invisible figure drifted soundlessly through the darkness.
Lizarius flew only a few feet above the rooftops.
His golden eyes never wavered from the path ahead.
Gradually—
he descended.
Without making the slightest sound, he slipped into a narrow alley.
He approached a modest residence tucked away from the city's main roads.
Warm light seeped faintly through a shuttered window.
Voices.
Struggling.
His gaze effortlessly pierced through the wall.
Inside—
a woman hung suspended by her throat.
Her hands desperately clawed at the invisible force constricting her neck.
Her body convulsed violently.
Yet the most horrifying part...
Wasn't the strangling.
Her flesh visibly withered.
Her skin rapidly dried and shriveled.
Her once-dark hair faded into gray within seconds.
The vitality within her body continuously flowed into the man standing before her.
Her struggles gradually weakened.
Then—
they stopped.
Thud.
Her lifeless body collapsed onto the floor.
Beside her...
Already lay four more corpses.
Or rather...
What remained of them.
Two adults.
Two children.
Every one of them had been reduced to dried husks.
Standing over the bodies—
Ling Hua calmly adjusted his sleeve.
His expression never changed.
There wasn't the slightest trace of guilt within his eyes.
He reached into his storage pouch.
A small black bottle appeared in his hand.
Removing the stopper—
he slowly poured a dark liquid over the corpses.
Sssss—
The bodies immediately began dissolving.
Skin.
Bones.
Clothing.
Everything melted into black sludge before rapidly evaporating.
Within moments—
nothing remained.
Not even a drop of blood.
No evidence.
No trace.
Ling Hua gave a satisfied nod.
He returned the bottle to his storage pouch.
Then quietly approached the window.
Creak...
He eased it open just enough to slip through.
His body flowed outside like a shadow.
He had barely taken a single step—
When—
"...!"
An overwhelming force seized him.
His body shot backward.
Bang!
The window slammed shut on its own.
Inside the room—
Ling Hua hovered helplessly several feet above the floor.
An invisible force imprisoned every part of his body.
He couldn't move.
Couldn't struggle.
Even circulating his spiritual energy had become nearly impossible.
His pupils contracted.
*Impossible...*
*Who's there?!*
His eyes darted frantically around the room.
His heartbeat quickened.
Cold sweat slowly trickled down his forehead.
"...Who's there?!"
"Show yourself!"
Silence.
Then—
directly before his face—
space itself rippled.
A tiny white-scaled lizard slowly materialized.
Its body was scarcely larger than a human hand.
Snow-white scales reflected the warm lantern light.
Golden eyes regarded him without the slightest emotion.
Ling Hua froze.
His own terrified reflection stared back at him within those ancient golden pupils.
*What...*
*...What is this thing?*
Before another thought could form—
Lizarius spoke a single word.
"...Look."
The golden pupils deepened.
Like endless abysses.
The instant Ling Hua's eyes met them—
**Nightmare Gaze** activated.
The room vanished.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Ling Hua's body remained suspended in midair.
Completely motionless.
His pupils lost all focus.
Only vacant, lifeless eyes remained.
The tiny white-scaled lizard hovered silently before him.
His golden gaze never left Ling Hua's.
No movement.
No struggle.
Only absolute stillness.
---
Within Ling Hua's consciousness—
Darkness.
Endless darkness.
Then—
the world slowly began to take shape.
Mountains.
Forests.
The familiar streets of Lotus City.
Everything appeared astonishingly real.
Ling Hua frowned.
"...Where..."
Before he could finish speaking—
BOOOOM!!
The heavens split apart.
An overwhelming pressure descended.
His body froze.
He couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe.
Couldn't even scream.
From every direction throughout the city—
dry, withered figures slowly emerged from the darkness.
Their crimson eyes glowed ominously beneath the shattered sky.
Ling Hua's pupils contracted violently.
*What...*
*What is this...?*
Every single pair of crimson eyes was fixed upon him.
They didn't move.
They simply stared.
Yet the moment their gazes locked onto him—
his body instinctively began trembling.
Not because of pain.
Not because of spiritual pressure.
But because of instinct.
The primal instinct of prey standing before a predator far beyond its comprehension.
---
Outside—
Lizarius quietly observed.
His golden eyes remained perfectly calm.
Within them—
faint ripples occasionally surfaced.
Dream fluctuations.
Exactly as he had predicted.
*The target remains partially conscious.*
*But the mind has been isolated.*
*Interesting.*
*The dream continues to produce fluctuations.*
His previous simulations had been correct.
Nightmare Gaze did not completely erase awareness.
Instead—
it forced the target into a nightmare while leaving a portion of their consciousness active.
Enough to perceive.
Enough to experience.
But not enough to distinguish illusion from reality.
*Interesting.*
He quietly analyzed every fluctuation.
Every subtle change within Ling Hua's soul.
Every reaction produced by the nightmare.
This ability...
Was functioning exactly as the System's simulations had predicted.
The dream itself wasn't merely an illusion.
It was a bridge.
A bridge leading directly into a target's subconscious.
Now—
the results had finally been confirmed through reality.
*Nightmare Gaze can forcibly drag a target into a nightmare, rendering them unconscious while simultaneously creating a pathway that allows Lizarius to enter and observe their subconscious.*