Chapter Seventeen: Dreams Growing Ever Stranger

Qin Mengxue was dreaming again, and this time the dream was even more bizarre and fantastical. In the dream, she found herself walking through a deep, narrow alleyway. It was already evening; the last rays of the setting sun softly bathed the earthen path, making everything seem exquisitely calm and beautiful.

She kept walking forward, on and on, until finally, she stopped at the entrance of a large courtyard house, going no further.

The courtyard was immense, its dark wooden gates shining with polished brass knockers. Stepping inside, she saw elderly people lounging under the shade of a large tree, chatting as they enjoyed the evening air. The men were playing chess beside a rockery, the clatter of chess pieces echoing loudly. The women bustled back and forth between the kitchen and the washbasin, bowls in hand, as though dinner had just ended.

If one listened closely, there was the sound of children laughing and playing. Following the sound, she saw a boy and a girl. The boy was handsome, the girl quite pretty, but at this moment, the boy wore a scowl and refused to let go of the girl’s braids.

The little girl’s face was flushed from being teased, and she swung her small fists in an attempt to hit the boy, but he was nimble, dodging left and right, evading every blow while still gripping her braids tightly.

Everyone in the courtyard was happy and content, and as Qin Mengxue walked among them, she too felt a wave of happiness. Yet, strangely, it seemed as if no one in the courtyard could see her. Each person continued busily with their own affairs, and even when she stood right in front of them, no one paused to speak to her.

Time ticked by. Just as the courtyard’s inhabitants were preparing to rest for the night, suddenly, one torch after another flew in from outside the walls!

Immediately, the torches ignited! The courtyard’s men, women, and children were thrown into a panic, though there was still some order. A venerable elder began directing people to extinguish the flames and sent others outside the walls to see what was happening.

Yet, those who went to investigate scarcely reached the main gate before it was as if some great force struck them; each one spat blood and was hurled back violently, landing heavily on the ground!

The elder’s face turned grim at the sight of his people’s battered return. He shouted angrily, “Who are you? Why have you harmed my family?”

A burst of wild laughter rang out from the gate. “Ha ha ha ha! Old man, why don’t you guess? If you guess right, I’ll tell you!” The voice was followed by five masked men stepping through the gate, and behind them came more, armed with machetes and even firearms.

“Despicable! Who are you? Do you not even have the courage to show your face?” The elder’s eyes flashed with despair at the intruders’ numbers, but determination quickly replaced it.

“Tsk tsk, old man, you’ve got quite the family! What if all these people die tonight—will your home become a sea of blood?” one of the masked leaders said, his tone dripping with malice.

“How dare you! The dignity of the * family is not yours to trample!” A young man in the courtyard couldn’t hold back and shouted out. Qin Mengxue couldn’t catch the family’s name clearly.

Qin Mengxue watched silently as all this unfolded. When the torches were thrown in, she cried out in alarm, but just as before, no one paid her any heed, as if she didn’t exist at all.

The fire had engulfed the entire courtyard, yet she felt no heat.

It was like watching a lifelike scene through a VR headset: present, but powerless to change anything.

Bang! A gunshot rang out. The young man who had just spoken up had his head burst open in a spray of blood and collapsed to the ground.

“Oh dear, sorry! You seemed so hot-headed that my gun just went off by accident,” one of the masked men said mockingly, holding a pistol.

“Bastards! All members of the * family, listen up! Some of you protect the women and children! The rest, fight them to the end!” Even the elder, usually so composed, was furious after seeing his kin killed so casually.

The old man seemed to be a formidable fighter. He charged at the five masked men and engaged them, creating a one-against-five melee!

The five masked men didn’t dare take him lightly and fought back at once, ordering the others behind them, “Kill them all! Leave none alive!”

“Yes!” Without hesitation, the rest charged into the courtyard, attacking the family.

Gunshots filled the air, the clang of blades and swords resounding ceaselessly!

Flames blazed, screams of agony and shouts of rage echoed, bodies fell one after another. The courtyard had become a living hell.

Though the elder fought valiantly, age and exhaustion took their toll. In a moment of carelessness, one of the masked men seized his chance and struck a heavy blow to the old man’s chest, sending him flying, blood pouring from his mouth.

Lying on the ground, the elder struggled to lift his head, gazing around the devastated courtyard, his heart full of despair and sorrow.

The family had few weapons; one by one, men and women alike were slaughtered. Even infants were not spared—one was dashed to the ground before the old man’s eyes, its delicate head bursting like a watermelon.

Blood flowed in rivers, bodies piled high. The elder’s face twisted in anguish as he watched his family die helplessly, his bloodshot eyes threatening to weep blood.

“Old man, how do you like the gift we’ve given you?” The five masked men approached the elder.

“Monsters! Why are you doing this? What has our * family ever done to you?” the elder roared.

One masked man bent down and whispered something in the elder’s ear. Whatever it was made the old man furious. “Scum! I would rather die than tell you!” he screamed.

With a sudden surge of strength, the old man lunged up and bit savagely at the masked man’s groin.

“Ah!” The man, caught completely off guard, screamed in pain, and in a frenzy, pulled out his pistol and shot the elder in the head at point-blank range.

The gunshot blew the old man’s head apart; his now-headless corpse crumpled to the ground.

Qin Mengxue screamed, her stomach twisting with horror at the bloody scene. It was all too real.

She crouched down, clutching her mouth, utterly at a loss.

But the slaughter did not cease. Women knelt, begging for their children’s lives, but their pleas were met only with swinging blades and flying bullets. The men fought on desperately, choosing to die standing rather than live on their knees.

No one knew how long it lasted. Finally, with the last man’s head rolling to the ground, the massacre ended.

“Damn it, that old man never told us where the thing was!” one masked man cursed, surveying the carnage.

“We didn’t find it. Let’s get out of here before dawn—if the authorities are alerted, we’re in trouble.”

“Right! Leave three men to clean up, then burn the place down!”

“Okay, let’s move!”

The masked men retreated swiftly, vanishing in moments, leaving three behind to tidy up.

These three, grinning perversely, found several beautiful women among the dead.

“Heh heh, didn’t expect so many pretty women in this * family,” sneered one with a monkey-like face.

“Yeah, too bad they’re dead,” agreed a fat man.

“We have to clean up anyway—why not enjoy ourselves while there’s still some warmth in the bodies?” the last one suggested, his eyes gleaming green.

Watching their depravity, Qin Mengxue was filled with fury and revulsion, but nothing she did could affect what was happening.

The three dragged away their chosen corpses, and just as they were about to proceed, a loud wail pierced the air.

It startled not only the men but also Qin Mengxue.

Following the sound, she saw a small girl kneeling on the ground, face in her hands, weeping. Looking closer, Qin Mengxue realized in shock that it was the same girl the boy had been teasing earlier.

Seeing that the source of the cry was merely a little girl, the three men relaxed. But soon their faces twisted with even worse lechery.

“Hey, there’s a live one!”

“Yeah, never had one that young before.”

“How about it?” “You know what I mean...” The three crept toward the girl, their faces filthy with lust.

Qin Mengxue, seeing this, panicked and tried to grab a stone to throw at them, but no matter how hard she tried, the stones slipped right through her hands.

Her eyes filled with helplessness.

Suddenly, a small figure sprang from nowhere, arms spread wide to shield the girl.

It was the boy who’d pulled her braids. Clearly, he had hidden with the girl during the massacre. For some reason, the girl had run out, sobbing, and the boy, seeing her in danger, abandoned his hiding place to protect his childhood friend.

The three men sneered at the sight of the boy. “Trying to be a hero, kid?”

Ignoring their threats, the boy stood firm, arms wide, face determined. The girl, sensing the danger, clung to him from behind, trembling with fear.

“Oho, a pair of little lovebirds!” said the monkey-faced man, reaching out to grab the boy by the neck.

Seeing this, Qin Mengxue turned pale and screamed, “No!”

But at that instant, the scene cut to black, as if the power had gone out.

Qin Mengxue awoke with a start from the dream.

She sat up in bed, clutching her blanket, her head buzzing, unable to recall what she had dreamed. Half-awake, she rubbed her sleepy eyes, still feeling dazed.

But the next moment, she felt a gaze fixed intently on her. She turned hurriedly to the side.

There, squatting by her bedside, was a man she had never seen before, smiling at her.