“Lord, everything is ready. Are you… prepared?” Margas bowed toward Duke Sigismund, who sat cross-legged at the very center of the massive Abyssal magic array.

Encircling the formation were nearly a hundred slaves, stripped of all five senses and fixed like puppets at each energy node.

Among them were even a few demon soldiers who had recently violated military law.

“Begin.” Sigismund finished speaking and tilted back his head, downing the vial of “Dream Elixir” in one gulp.

He was no fool. That mysterious enemy was certainly no idiot either. Though he had laid a trap, if the absence of Dream Elixir caused suspicion, then it would have been a blunder that ruined everything.

At the right moment, he would release it—only then would no flaws be exposed.

The power of the Abyss was incompatible with the real world. Unlike ordinary arrays, Abyssal formations dissipated constantly and could not be maintained for long. Success in luring the opponent into the trap with a single strike was the best solution.

Consciousness sank into the dream.

When Sigismund opened his eyes again, what appeared before him was that all-too-familiar shack of rotten boards, and the three children who forever struggled in vain to catch frogs in the brook beside it.

Above this scene stretched a translucent film.

Beyond it, faintly visible, was the grand blood clan city conjured by the Dream Elixir.

This was the deepest layer of his true dreamscape. But unlike Inanna, who could not fully command her thoughts within dreams, Sigismund possessed far stronger dominion. With a wave of his hand, the scenery dissolved.

In its place rose a black Gothic vampire throne, shadowy and imposing, in a vast, cavernous hall.

…

Boom—! Boom—!

Footsteps shook the dreamscape itself. A colossal, impossibly huge blue Puji stomped across the “neutral buffer” of Otherdream and barged into the phantom blood clan city!

It swung massive mycelium tentacles. Though its movements seemed lumbering, each carried terrifying power and speed.

Wherever the tentacles passed, spired buildings collapsed like toys, and wandering demon phantoms were crushed flat with ease.

Lin Jun brimmed with confidence!

After all, this time he had shoved in two fingers!

The Puji behemoth raged through the city, relentlessly battering the hardened protective shell.

The tremors were so violent they pierced layer upon layer of dream and reached Sigismund’s perception.

Though separated by a thin film and illusion, he could clearly sense the upheaval was far more violent than ever before.

He was just wondering when to dispel the dream—

Crack!

The “sky” above suddenly shattered!

“There you are! Found you!” A voice, brimming with pure, heartfelt joy, rang out from beyond the broken firmament!

And then, from the rift in the heavens, giant fungal tentacles thrust through!

They clawed and tore at the broken edges, brutally widening the gap, trying to rip open the entire “sky”!

Below, Sigismund sat on his throne and gazed upward at this godlike invasion. Instead of fear, a deep laugh rumbled from him.

Once again, he had wagered on the edge of death—and by the narrowest margin, cheated the Reaper! Just like before!

This mysterious foe actually had the means to break through the dream’s defenses!

Had he not gambled everything today, the outcome would have been dire.

The gigantic Puji slammed down into the shadowed hall. Its form shrank somewhat to adapt, but compared to Sigismund on the throne, it was still an oppressive colossus, its shadow nearly engulfing him whole.

Facing this suffocating presence, Sigismund showed no panic. He lifted his head, crimson eyes fixed on the Puji.

“I am truly curious… Just who are you? To show such unwavering loyalty to the Saint-Claire family, willing even to risk your life in such dangerous dream duels! You possess such extraordinary mental strength, yet hide behind this… foolish, laughable guise! At this final moment, would you not grant me an answer?”

His voice was soft—here, words were unnecessary.

“You’re the one who looks stupid!” Deafening!

A massive tentacle slammed down!

“That is truly a pity.”

In the next instant, an absolute void of blackness appeared between him and the Puji, devouring all light and hope! Boundless darkness surged forth like a bursting dam, flooding the entire dreamscape!

Around Sigismund, a thin yet unyielding translucent shield flared wildly, barely holding the darkness at bay.

Meanwhile, in the Crimson Spire’s ritual chamber in reality—

Two slaves bound at the magic array’s nodes suddenly had their heads burst like balloons, spraying red and white across the runes.

Then, like dominoes toppling, more captives’ heads exploded one after another! In mere seconds, over a dozen sacrifices died the most gruesome deaths—and it had not stopped yet!

Even with scapegoats buffering him, Sigismund himself suffered terribly.

As Margas had warned, even the mere leakage of Abyssal power was lethal.

His brain felt as if hammered by an unseen sledge, dizziness and agony blacking his vision, ringing in his ears, his entire soul quaking violently.

But he clenched his teeth and endured through sheer willpower.

Through the writhing curtain of darkness, he could just barely make out the immense Puji’s form—frozen in place since the flood of shadow began, utterly motionless.

Whether he lived or died, Sigismund burst into wild, triumphant laughter!

…

The moment Lin Jun touched the darkness, a bizarre piece of information drilled into his soul.

[Hardness 7, density 2.8 grams per cubic centimeter]

Before he could even grasp what was happening, more and more chaotic streams of data flooded into his consciousness!

[Average height increased by 1 centimeter]

[#########]

[Arona Leech: 3,758,056]

………

[Average mana concentration increased by 2.1%]

[Project Ark progress: 245%]

…

[Sara Lambert]

[#########]

…

[Justice (Acquisition Requirement: Harvest Phase, Justice Value above 8000, Evil Value at 0, Hero difficulty reduced by 50%)]

[1+1=3]

…

…

…

The endless flood poured in. It felt somewhat like when he had contacted the Dungeon Core, but fundamentally different.

The Dungeon Core’s information, though mostly incomprehensible, at least carried strict internal logic and connections.

This torrent from the darkness was nothing of the sort: not only vast in quantity, but messy and patternless, most of it corrupted nonsense.

These harmful scraps of data surged in through the contact point, rapidly draining the processing capacity of Lin Jun’s very soul!

Even with his current spiritual strength, he calculated he could last no more than ten minutes under this scale of bombardment.

For now, though the garbage information rained on him, it had not yet disrupted his thoughts or movements.

Clearly, this was a meticulously prepared trap! Since that was the case, why batter his head against it?

Just as Lin Jun prepared to strategically withdraw, the pitch-black void between them—the source spewing darkness and chaotic data—suddenly… shut down!

In less than half a minute.

The darkness vanished. The dreamscape reverted to the castle hall, though far more ruined than before.

In front of Lin Jun, the vampire knelt half-collapsed beneath the throne, one hand on the floor, the other clutching his head, muttering incoherently.

Huh?

Maybe no need to retreat?

He nudged the vampire with a massive tentacle. The man tried to react, but seemed utterly powerless.

“Heh heh.”

“Take my smack!” The giant tentacle crashed down!