CHAPTER 681: FINAL CYCLE

Alas, eager as Shen Nianzu was, high-level Cycles were not always available.

Especially in recent times; for some unknown reasons, high-level Cycles had been mysteriously vanishing one by one— by ’vanish’, he wasn’t talking about the case where the option was grayed out, just waiting for the right period when it would be available again. They were truly, bizarrely gone and could not be found anymore.

Almost like... like those Cycles had ceased to exist.

At first, Shen Nianzu had not paid much attention to it, but after hearing Noir’s warning last time, it was hard not to overthink.

He wanted to contact the man and asked for more details, but Noir’s phone was always unreachable, which meant that he was most likely inside the Cycle.

Feeling a little doubtful, Shen Nianzu did a little investigation and the result shocked him— since graduating from university, there were no more traces of Noir! This kind of thing was almost inconceivable in the current hyper-digital era. Whenever you went, there would be CCTVs along the streets. Even when buying food or daily necessities, most people would pay with WeChat or cards instead of using cash. Let’s assume that he was using cash, there should also be a record of money withdrawal in the system, no??

But the trail Noir left behind stopped after he graduated from university— or more precisely, since Gu Luoxin’s death. It was like his entire person had dissolved into foam and disappeared quietly amidst the busy stream of society without so much as a ripple.

He couldn’t have... spent all his time in the Cycles, could he?

The more Shen Nianzu dwelled on it, the more he felt like this was something Noir would do. Damn it! Even machines needed rest and maintenance every so often, not to mention humans! Okay, maybe he was no longer a human, but still...!

Alas, there was nothing Shen Nianzu could do to intervene.

Even Jin Jiuchi told him, "You worry too much, Nian’er. He knows what he’s doing."

"But..." Shen Nianzu retorted with furrowed brows, "Don’t you think his behavior is too..." self-destructive, was what he wanted to say. But the words just spun around his tongue without being spoken aloud. That’s right, Noir’s tendency to do extreme things was starting to worry him. After losing Gu Luoxin, he would be devastated if something were to happen to Noir too!

Contrary to him, however, Jin Jiuchi didn’t look the least bit worried at all.

"Pssh, we nightmare creatures are not so fragile, alright?" Jin Jiuchi waved a dismissive hand, utterly carefree and unperturbed. "I assure you, he definitely won’t die until he resurrects Xinxin. And after that, it’s even more unlikely for him to die!"

Brash, but still a sound logic nonetheless.

Shen Nianzu couldn’t help but narrow his eyes at Jin Jiuchi, prompting the latter to cup his own face with both hands to mimic a blooming flower. "What is it, Nian’er?" he asked while batting his lashes sweetly. "Can’t get enough looking at the handsome me?"

Shen Nianzu resisted the urge to smack the narcissistic husky senseless. "Are you sick?" he decided to voice the doubt inside his heart. "Or did you hit your head too hard in the previous Cycle we entered? Something’s not right. You’ve been getting a little too smart lately."

Jin Jiuchi fell silent at that. "...Is that an insult, Nian’er?"

"No." Shen Nianzu flashed a dazzling, innocent smile and patted Jin Jiuchi, this dangerous man-eating flower, gently on the cheek. "I’m complimenting you."

Then he walked away before the man could react, feeling smug for successfully getting back at him.

In the end, Shen Nianzu didn’t even need to wait until he heard the news from Ying, because following the dominos effect caused by the Nightmare’s action, only one available high-level Cycle remained:

THE NIGHTMARE CITY

Just looking at the name alone, it almost felt like a gesture of invitation from the Nightmare itself. A bad omen through and through.

Even Jin Jiuchi, with his beast-like instinct, couldn’t help but complain, "Why does it feel like a trap, Nian’er?"

Shen Nianzu’s brows had been tightly furrowed since learning the name of the Cycle, and then hearing Jin Jiuchi’s words, a wry smile tugged across his lips. "So what if it’s a trap? Even knowing that, we still have to enter." Adding that to the Legendary test they would have to take, this Cycle would become twice—maybe a hundred times more perilous. But did they have any other choice?

If there’s one good thing to speak of, it’s that Shang would definitely enter the same Cycle, making it more convenient for him to exact his revenge.

With that confirmation, Shen Nianzu began to relax. In the next few days, he and Jin Jiuchi spent their time being lovey dovey and sticking to each other all day long, watching movies while snuggled together in bed, making love, going on walks whenever the weather permitted, taking countless photos along the way— just like how an ordinary couple would.

It’s like they were trying to make up for all the hardship and grief they had endured this past half a year.

Shen Nianzu also checked in on his parents often to make sure they were safe and sound abroad, taking every chance to let them be more familiar with Jin Jiuchi.

After his last breakdown, Jin Jiuchi’s image in their eyes had improved significantly, no longer as estranged as before. Shen Nianzu could tell that they were starting to be fond of this cheerful and not-so-bright husky, which made him feel very gratified.

It was unfortunate that the Nightmare’s shadow loomed behind this simple happiness like the heavy dark clouds that gathered above the city, casting a gloomy and foreboding air.

The night before their departure, Shen Nianzu ended up hearing an unexpected message from Ying:

"The Divine Oracle said what...?" Shen Nianzu was stunned.

On the other end of the phone, Ying let out a long, weary sigh—frustration, fear and urgency all tangled in her voice. "His condition is quite unstable right now, so it’s difficult to extract more information from him, but the gist is... he said this might very well be the final Cycle that would determine everything. And that, the Nightmare..." she forced out through gritted teeth. "The Nightmare is coming. It’s coming to claim and plunder our world. Fuck!"

Shen Nianzu felt his heart sink with a loud thud as he met Jin Jiuchi’s inquiring eyes. "...the final Cycle?"

He had guessed the Nightmare must have an ulterior motive in arranging this Cycle, but this... this was far worse than anything he had imagined!

"The Divine Oracle said there’s no more chances..." Ying’s voice reached his ears through the static buzz, sounding fuzzy and muffled, or perhaps it was his mind that was still ringing from the shock. "We have no more chances. If we lose this time, then the Nightmare..."

The Nightmare would truly descend into their world.

Shen Nianzu heard her unfinished words, sending a wave of chill through his heart.

If... If the Nightmare descended here, their world would be finished... truly finished! Even now, it was still trying to force its way in by dragging more and more people into the Nightmare Cycle. And once it succeeded, Earth would be turned into a literal hell! They could not allow this to happen— no matter what!

Shen Nianzu heard his own voice asking, sounding numb and distant. "Is there a solution?"

Ying took a deep breath. "To be completely honest, I have no idea if this is truly a solution. But the Divine Oracle said this before he passed out. The Nightmare City, as in the Cycle you’re going to enter tomorrow—"

Shen Nianzu subconsciously held his breath, the ominous foreboding in his heart brewing stronger and stronger.

Then he heard Ying finish her sentence, her tone unbearably heavy:

"—is the origin of the Nightmare."