Chapter 6 - 3: Daily Life

Chapter 6: Chapter 3: Daily Life

An unordinary day began with asking for leave from the supervisor.

Shi An had actually considered it—why not just quit and be done with it? Alas, looking at his meager savings, he could only bow to reality.

Shi An didn’t know how difficult the living environment of Dream Descenders was, but he generally knew how hard it was to move a single step in this society without money. He decided to wait until the Safe Zone showed its true potential. Didn’t the middle-aged man say it? The Nightmare World changed his destiny; there must be wealth to be found inside.

"But before that, I must investigate and understand more information about the Nightmare World, Dream Descenders, and Dream Curse Objects," he thought. "This will help with the operation of the Safe Zone. Furthermore..."

The Safe Zone, Nightmares, the middle-aged man—all of these only appeared in his dreams. Although Shi An firmly believed his dream was far from ordinary and that the Nightmare World was more than a mere dreamscape, he still felt the need for proof.

"I still need more corroborating evidence. Nightmares are dangerous, so what about in reality? Is the peace in reality an illusion?"

He recalled his past twenty-plus years of life; it had been plain and safe, and he was completely unable to find a single thing that was out of place. He racked his brain for strange and bizarre rumors or gossip but still couldn’t recall any. The Nightmare mentioned by Hajilu was already the most bizarre rumor he had heard in his entire life. Moreover, after last night’s verification, this rumor was very likely true.

"Wait, since Old He’s disappearance is related to a Nightmare, then... Hajilu said he also had a Nightmare. Is Hajilu going to bite the dust?"

Thinking of this, Shi An’s brows furrowed. He immediately picked up his phone and called his close buddy, Lu Fan.

BEEP—

BEEP—

BEEP—

The connecting tone echoed in the quiet rented apartment, sounding somewhat piercing. Shi An’s heart gradually sank. Did something really happen?

If Old Lu had already been marked by a Nightmare, then the moment he fell asleep last night, he would inevitably be pulled into a Fallen Dream! Although Old He had experienced several Nightmares before disappearing, and the middle-aged man had also said that initial Nightmares would last for a period of time, what if?

Just as Shi An was preparing to make a trip over there personally, the call finally connected.

"Hello, Hajian? What are you doing up so early?" Lu Fan seemed to carry a bit of resentment from being woken up.

Shi An was speechless. It wasn’t early anymore. Had this guy skipped work again? But that wasn’t the main point. He asked, "The Nightmare you mentioned last night, you didn’t have it again, did you?"

"Ah? Oh? You mean the Nightmare I mentioned yesterday? Hey, you were right. It was definitely just my own paranoia. That’s why I had a baffling Nightmare the day before yesterday. After talking it out with you yesterday, I was totally fine. I slept like a baby.

"As for Old He’s matter, the Nightmare thing is definitely a rumor. I reckon Old He ran into some trouble in reality. Let’s just wait for the investigation results."

"Is that so? Alright, then it’s nothing. Go back to sleep."

Shi An hung up Hajilu’s call and stroked his chin in deep thought. It seemed Old Lu wasn’t entangled by a Nightmare.

Although Dream Descenders were said to possess powers beyond Ordinary people, according to the middle-aged man, they were still an unfortunate group. They often encountered ominous events, and the slightest carelessness would lead to disappearance or a tragic death. Not having a Fallen Dream was a good thing, he thought.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the line, Lu Fan hung up the phone with a complex expression.

He wasn’t lying in bed at all. Instead, he was wearing a rather sci-fi-looking combat suit and a pair of goggles. His expression was somewhat exhausted, yet mingled with excitement and worry. The excitement stemmed from his experiences and power, while the worry was for the future.

He looked at the young man sitting on the opposite sofa and said, "Is it okay that I said it like that? Can I really not reveal a single detail about the Nightmares? My friend is definitely not a blabbermouth."

The young man sighed helplessly, "Brother Lu, you need to understand one thing. Knowing and understanding Nightmares is absolutely not a good thing for Ordinary people. Besides, blocking all information related to Nightmares is a regulation from the higher-ups to maintain social stability."

Lu Fan actually understood this, which was why he had spoken like that on the phone. Of course, the one he trusted wasn’t the guy in front of him, even if this young man was from the official government department, the Countermeasures Bureau. The one Lu Fan trusted was his own biological sister.

He never expected that his sister was also a Dream Descender, and even a mid-level executive in the Countermeasures Bureau. It was simply absurd!

Dream Descenders, relying on Dream Curse Objects, could possess extraordinary powers. He and Hajian had made a pact not to forget each other if one struck it rich, and naturally, he hadn’t forgotten An Oldtie when it came to these extraordinary powers.

However, he thought, "Setting aside the fact that Nightmare entanglements are random events, Dream Descenders are widely known as unfortunate people. The extraordinary powers unleashed through Dream Curse Objects come with all sorts of hidden prices."

In summary, being a Dream Descender wasn’t exactly a good career. It was actually a good thing for Hajian not to know about Nightmares. Lu Fan felt it was a pity that he couldn’t let his good brother step onto the path of the extraordinary alongside him, and this was definitely not just because he wanted to show off his newly acquired powers to his buddy.

Back in his rented apartment, after hanging up Hajilu’s call, Shi An didn’t know what to do for a moment.

The Safe Zone was currently upgrading, making the dreamscape temporarily inaccessible. Go to work? He had already asked for leave, so there was absolutely no way he was going in.

"I should go check out Old He’s place," he thought. "Hajilu’s Nightmare was just a false alarm, but there’s a huge probability that Old He’s disappearance is connected to a Nightmare."

Shi An naturally knew where Old He lived; the few of them had just gathered together the week before last. Who would have thought that in the blink of an eye, Old He would disappear without a trace. Between the future and accidents, he didn’t know which would arrive first.

Shi An let out a long sigh. After eating breakfast, he hopped onto his electric scooter—which boasted a top speed of twenty-five kilometers per hour—and sped off to Old He’s residence.

"Happiness Apartment, Building Four, Room 1404."

Shi An found the landlady. He explained that he was Old He’s classmate and brought out a group photo of them on his phone as proof. The landlady didn’t make things difficult. She took out a key and opened the door.

She sighed, "That kid Hu, how did he just disappear out of nowhere?"

Shi An asked, "Did the police come to investigate?"

"They came," the landlady replied, "but Hu disappeared so abruptly. This room is also completely clean without any clues. Sigh, young man, do you think Hu might have gone back to his hometown?"

However, there were absolutely no signs inside the room of Old He having packed his things to leave. Still, there were many possibilities for a disappearance. According to normal logic, he was either murdered or met with an accident while visiting some remote place. If Shi An hadn’t clearly known that Old He had a Nightmare, and wasn’t aware of the information about Dream Descenders, he would never have imagined that Old He disappeared because of a Nightmare.

"Speaking of which, where is Old He’s family? I remember Old He’s parents are still alive, and he has a younger sister in college, but it seems his family hasn’t come looking for him?"

Shi An’s relationship with Old He wasn’t as tight as his bond with Hajilu, but the two were naturally quite familiar. He had heard Old He talk about his family situation many times. Shi An still remembered that Old He’s hometown was in...

It was in...

"Where was it again?"

He should have known, but for a moment, he actually couldn’t recall it. His brain seemed to have jammed, absolutely unable to think of the answer. Brain degradation after the college entrance exams—this kind of situation did occasionally happen. If he couldn’t think of it, he wouldn’t force it. It wasn’t anything important anyway.

Unable to find any clues at Old He’s place, Shi An soon left. He rode his electric scooter to the park by the Jiang, walking aimlessly along the pedestrian boardwalk.

He gazed out at his surroundings. There were quite a few people in the park. Elderly folks were practicing Tai Chi, lovey-dovey couples walked past hand in hand, and children were playfully chasing each other around. The landscape was picturesque, and the nation enjoyed peace and prosperity. Yet, the vast majority of people would never know that beneath this peaceful everyday life, terrors like Nightmares actually existed.

"Those who don’t know won’t fear. This is also a kind of happiness, I suppose."

However, if given the choice, Shi An would choose to face it head-on. Besides, since he was in charge of the Safe Zone, retreating or escaping was no longer an option for him. The Safe Zone was still upgrading. After the upgrade, there would surely be significant changes. Visitors would inevitably increase, and he would get busy when the time came.

This current peaceful, Ordinary everyday life was very precious. Shi An cherished it deeply.

"I hope the peace and ordinariness of the real world can be maintained forever," Shi An murmured softly, looking at the sparkling waters of the Jiang.

Suddenly, a thread appeared in his mind, and then abruptly snapped.

An image blossomed before Shi An’s eyes.