Chapter 68 - 65: Coming to the Nightmare World Feels Just Like Home~

Chapter 68: Chapter 65: Coming to the Nightmare World Feels Just Like Home~

Shi An began to practice his control over his Curse Objects.

He checked his inventory. Currently, he had a few Curse Objects in hand: the Invisible Corridor, Pitch-Black Shoe Covers, Red Veil, Peaceful Headband, and Steel Rod Bones, along with a number of Incomplete Level Curse Objects.

He had two containment slots. Slot number one contained his only Rare Level Curse Object, the Invisible Corridor. Slot number two alternated between his remaining Complete Level Curse Objects as needed. Normally, he kept the Steel Rod Bones contained there to enhance his baseline physical resilience.

"For practice, I will mainly focus on the Invisible Corridor," Shi An decided.

He had previously only tested it slightly in the bathroom of his rented apartment. After that, he hadn’t dared to experiment further, terrified of disturbing his neighbors.

He reached out his hand. On his wrist, the true form of the Invisible Corridor Curse Object manifested. Cold, sinister Curse Power circulated around the bracelet before surging into his body. Finally, it channeled through his open palm and released a short distance in front of him.

Instantly, ripples of space vibrated outward in expanding rings.

The Invisible Corridor possessed the Ability to manipulate space, which was exactly how Shi An had developed this "Spatial Vibration."

"However, this isn’t a true Curse Art after all," he thought. "Its power is highly scattered. At most, it can knock away some Ordinary tables and chairs. Using it to fight against Ghosts is completely impossible."

Shi An continued experimenting. A myriad of ideas had piled up in his mind.

Soon, he executed one Ability after another: "Spatial Wall," "Close But Far Away," "Spatial Binding"...

Naturally, however, these were mostly just flashy Tricks. They had some use, but not enough to be truly practical.

"To properly develop and utilize it, I still need to start from the Curse Object’s core function," he reasoned.

In just half an hour, he had explored a myriad of creative variations with the Invisible Corridor. Although he considered the various Abilities he had developed to be mere Tricks, they were only useless against Ghosts. If used against weak humans or Ordinary Dream Descenders, just a fraction of that Spatial power would be enough to completely suppress them.

After all, having contained the Curse Object, Shi An was currently equivalent to an expert at the Peak of Control Stage Great Perfection, lacking only the necessary experience and Combat Techniques. No, he was even stronger than someone at the Control Stage Great Perfection. His development of the Curse Object was at 100 percent, and he remained entirely immune to its side effects. As for experience and Combat Techniques, he could quickly make up for them through high-frequency practice.

Fight! Practice to the bitter end!

Shi An activated the Invisible Corridor time and time again. When he grew tired, he would pause to catch his breath, replenishing his stamina with the milk tea and small cakes that Nether Robe had brought over from the store.

Once! Ten times! A hundred times!

Today was Saturday, and the Countermeasures Bureau granted its members time off when there were no active missions. Shi An simply locked himself in the Training Ground, continuously triggering and utilizing his Curse Objects, practicing as if he would go on until the end of time. He suffered not a single shred of side effects from using his Curse Objects. So why should he ever stop?

Practice! Practicing as if his life depended on it was the only way!

Shi An became increasingly proficient with his Curse Object control and power application. He entered a state of pure flow, free from distractions, completely forgetting both himself and the outside world. In his eyes, there was only the Invisible Corridor. Only the Invisible Corridor remained!

Curse Power circulated and surged within his body, its speed increasing, charting ever more complex and profound pathways.

At a certain moment—

HUM!

A profound sense of comfort washed over him, as if all his meridians had suddenly been unblocked. Guided by a sudden flash of intuitive insight, Shi An extracted a massive amount of Curse Power from the Invisible Corridor Curse Object. He sent it flowing along those profound pathways before condensing it into a transformative force.

Once again, he released it outward!

Instantly!

The ground shifted, the walls transformed, and space warped. The Spreading changes instantly formed a concentric, square-shaped corridor. Immediately following were a second, a third, a fourth...

Dozens of concentric corridors intertwined and interlocked, forming a massive, chaotic maze. The maze itself was far larger than the training room. The space within was distorted, and the corridors could shift at any moment. Its walls were extraordinarily sturdy, layered one after another. Even if someone managed to break through the first layer, they would only fall right into the second.

This was...

"A Curse Art—Infinite Corridor!"

"An exclusive Curse Art created based on the Rare Level Curse Object, the Invisible Corridor!"

Having developed this Curse Art through a sheer stroke of inspiration, Shi An implicitly understood exactly how to use it. It created a massive spatial trap. At the same time, Shi An could overlook the entire Infinite Corridor from above, freely adjusting its internal space and orientation.

"Compared to using a Curse Object’s power in an Ordinary way, a Curse Art’s greatest advantage lies in its condensation!" he realized. "If the corridor space was previously built from hard wooden boards, now it’s made of reinforced concrete."

Ghosts could easily tear through the former. The latter, however, was strong enough to hold them back for a significant amount of time. Combined with the Infinite Corridor’s endless, nesting Traits, trapping a Ghost to death wasn’t entirely impossible.

"Me? Utterly defeating a Ghost Level powerhouse?" he wondered. "Have I unknowingly become this powerful?"

This thought lasted for all of three seconds. In the very next moment, his body felt as if it had been completely hollowed out.

The Infinite Corridor shattered with a crash and vanished. Shi An’s face turned deathly pale, and his legs gave out.

"Ying?"

Nether Robe couldn’t fathom why this human was so incredibly weak. Perhaps humans were just naturally weak. Even so, it used Candle Shadow Flash to fly over, grabbing Shi An just as he was about to collapse.

Then, it poked him. Still warm. He didn’t look dead yet. As long as he wasn’t dead, everything was fine.

Shi An, however, truly felt like he was at death’s door. It was unbearable. It felt exactly like sprinting ten thousand meters non-stop, collapsing from exhaustion, but having nowhere comfortable to actually lay down. Using a Dream Curse Object truly spared him from side effects, but it still required an immense expenditure of energy.

"Casting a Curse Art consumes a massive amount of Curse Power and a small amount of stamina," he panted out mentally. "Before Refining a Curse Object, the Curse Power is supplied by the object itself, but the stamina comes from one’s own body."

Shi An had consumed the Treasure Medicine Blood Ganoderma, so his physique had already grown much stronger. However, compared to those fiercely tempered warriors in the Second and Third Refinements Realms, he was a delicate little girl at best. Not to mention, he was casting the exclusive Curse Art of a Rare Level Curse Object.

Shi An slumped to his hands and knees in total defeat.

"Even so, that doesn’t change the fact that I’m a genius capable of independently developing a Curse Art," he thought. "As expected of me!"

***

"This is infuriating! How can a genius like me be unable to learn a single Curse Art!"

One person’s sorrow was completely disconnected from another’s.

At the Wizard’s House.

Ever since clearing the large-scale Nightmare, Xi Xue had crossed into the Control Stage. The very first thing she did upon entering the Control Stage was... try to learn a Curse Art!

If Profound Sword could master the basics of a Curse Art in the Control Stage, why couldn’t she, Xi Xue, do the same? She refused to ever be inferior to anyone in her life.

And yet, she couldn’t learn it. Several days had passed, and she still hadn’t grasped the entry requirements for this Universal Curse Art.

"That’s completely normal. You didn’t really think you’d learn a Curse Art in just a few days, did you? That wouldn’t just make someone a genius, that’d make them a monster!"

A female college student around Xi Xue’s age, known as "Peaches," walked over from the doorway. Both of them studied under the same teacher and were equally matched rising stars at the Wizard’s House... or rather, they used to be.

Peaches huffed. "I’ve packed and prepared everything you asked for. Now tell me, when are you taking me to the legendary Safe Zone? As long as I can get to the Safe Zone, I’ll be able to clear Nightmares, and I can cross into the Control Stage too, hmph!"

Legend had it that Safe Zones appeared randomly across the Nightmare World. Legend had it that the protection of a Safe Zone was absolute; even Ghosts couldn’t leave the slightest scratch on its floor-to-ceiling windows. Legend had it that Safe Zones were stocked with ample supplies. As long as one reached it, surviving in the Nightmare World for a dozen hours, or even several days, would be no problem at all.

Peaches had actually been a bit skeptical, but looking at how incredibly strong Xi Xue—who used to be slightly inferior to her—had become, she felt that the legends had to be true. As long as she could reach that place, she could definitely latch onto the Manager’s coattails.

Xi Xue got there first? So what, she herself had the superpower of wealth!

"You’ve got everything ready? Then let’s leave right now," Xi Xue said, adjusting her gear.

Afterward, the two of them each took a Dream-Dropping Treasure Pearl from their Sealing Boxes and put them on, keeping them close to their bodies. They scrolled through their phones while waiting quietly.

Before long—

DENG!

Their phones vanished at some unknown point, and the two found themselves sitting on decaying logs and withered branches. The cawing of crows echoed in the air.

Xi Xue looked around. Aside from her and her teammate, Peaches, two unfamiliar Dream Descenders were standing a short distance away. However, in stark contrast to the anxiety and dread the other two felt at suddenly dropping into a dream, Xi Xue was overflowing with unbearable excitement.

"I’m finally back in the Nightmare World. It really does feel just like coming home!" she exclaimed eagerly.