Chapter 140: Shallow Dream Layer

"But none of that matters. What matters is that nightmares only operate in the Middle Dream Layer and Deep Dream Layer. They never appear in the Shallow Dream Layer."

"Wait a minute." I looked at the hypnosis master's chat messages, not quite understanding a few things. "Master Fantasy, what do you mean by the Middle Dream Layer and Deep Dream Layer? Are dreams actually divided into different layers?"

Master Hypnotist Fantasy: "Just like light and deep sleep, when you're in the Shallow Dream Layer, you are perfectly aware that you're dreaming. You can even end the dream and force yourself to wake up by jumping from a high place, lying on train tracks, or using other extreme methods."

"The Middle Dream Layer is completely different. You can't distinguish dream from reality. Even if you eventually realize you're dreaming, it's impossible to wake yourself up by any method. Someone has to wake you from the outside."

"The most terrifying state is the Deep Dream Layer. Very few people have ever experienced a dream like this. If a dream is a higher-dimensional space created by the brain, then the Deep Dream Layer practically touches another world."

"Once you enter the Deep Dream Layer, you believe the dream is reality. You won't suspect a thing. Furthermore, people in the Deep Dream Layer cannot be awakened by external forces. If you get lost in the Deep Dream Layer, you will be imprisoned there forever."

A cold sweat broke out on my forehead as I read the hypnosis master's explanation. Thinking it over, this seemed even more terrifying than your average legend about ghosts and monsters.

"Is there absolutely no way to escape?" I asked, unwilling to give up.

Master Hypnotist Fantasy: "There is only one way. Another person must enter her Deep Dream Layer, tell her the truth, and bring her out."

"If you have no other questions, I'll continue with our previous topic. A nightmare can only operate in the Deep Dream Layer and Middle Dream Layer. After entering the dream, Streamer, you stood there in a daze for a minute. That one minute was incredibly coincidental."

I was completely baffled. "I was only spaced out for a minute? But I spent a full hour inside that nightmare!"

Master Hypnotist Fantasy: "Don't panic, Streamer. That is exactly my point. The flow of time within a dream is impossible to gauge, almost like triggering a miniature wormhole. The fact that you can confidently say you spent an hour in that previous dream is already an incredible feat."

I flushed slightly. If that nightmare room hadn't been filled with alarm clocks, I probably wouldn't have noticed the passage of time either.

"According to our research, the time dilation between different dream layers is typically 60:1. That means if you spend 60 minutes in the Middle Dream Layer, only one minute has passed in the Shallow Dream Layer. And in the real world outside the dream, only a single second has gone by!"

Reading his message, everything suddenly made sense. "Are you saying I was pulled into the Middle Dream Layer just now?"

"Yes. That is the only way to explain the time discrepancy and why you encountered a nightmare."

This livestream viewer with the ID 'Master Hypnotist Fantasy' had to be a formidable expert in real life. His expertise differed from Daoist master Wan's. He took a completely different approach, using scientific methods to explain the structure of the Dream Realm. While I still didn't understand some of the technical jargon, I at least gained a general understanding of how dreams worked.

"Master Fantasy, what do you suggest I do now to wake up from this dream?"

Master Hypnotist Fantasy: "We are currently in the Shallow Dream Layer. If this were your own dream, you would only need to jump from a high place to wake up. Unfortunately, this is someone else's dream. The only way to escape is to have the dreamer herself wake up."

I glanced at Huang Xue, who was still fast asleep. "Master Fantasy, are you telling me to wake this woman up?"

"Waking her directly carries a massive risk. It's like violently waking a sleepwalker—it would cause irreversible damage to her body and brain. If she already has a congenital illness or a fragile, sensitive nervous system, she's highly likely to suffer immediate brain death or become lost in the dream forever."

I stopped my outstretched hand. "Then what should I do?"

"The safest method is for you to personally enter the Middle Dream Layer, locate her consciousness, tell her this is a dream, and wake her up."

"Enter a dream again?"

"To be precise, she is currently having a dream within a dream. You need to hurry. If she falls asleep in the Middle Dream Layer, she will very likely be dragged into the Deep Dream Layer by a nightmare. Our chances of escaping will be even slimmer then."

After reading the hypnosis master's message, I hesitated. I had just escaped the Middle Dream Layer, a place almost entirely overrun by yin souls. Recalling my terrifying experience in that room, I simply couldn't muster the courage to go back inside.

"Is there no other way?"

Master Hypnotist Fantasy: "Hurry up. The most agonizing death in this world isn't having your heart devoured by ten thousand insects or suffering death by a thousand cuts. It is dying in a dream."

After sending that final message, the ID 'Master Hypnotist Fantasy' vanished from the stream chat entirely.

"Dreaming within a dream is one thing, but I have to enter that dream within a dream to save someone? Doesn't that sound completely ridiculous?" I walked over to the sleeping Huang Xue. The Paulownia Mulberry Talisman, drawn on human skin, was still stuck to her forehead.

"I experienced the horrors of the Middle Dream Layer firsthand. A weak woman like her has probably been scared half to death. I'm afraid even dying would become a luxury in there."

Having made up my mind, I didn't hesitate any longer. I copied the method Daoist master Wan had taught me earlier, searching the star vortex for the seventh star of the Big Dipper—Yaoguang!

I focused all my willpower and consciousness on it, reciting the incantation for entering a dream once more: "The Great Dream Awakens to Ask Where We Are Now, Entering the Mulberry Once Brings Three Thousand Years!"

Only the sleeping Huang Xue and Sakurako remained in the empty sanatorium room. After I entered her Middle Dream Layer, Sakurako suddenly revealed a bizarre expression I had never seen before. She peeled the Paulownia Mulberry Talisman off Huang Xue's forehead, glanced out the door, and her body slowly vanished.

About ten seconds later, the sanatorium room door was pushed open, and a pair of twins walked in.

They were demonically handsome, though the older brother had a massive birthmark on his face.

The two quickly stepped up to Huang Xue, staring at her sleeping form in hesitation.

"Brother, this woman's dream keeps making me feel a bit uneasy. And this is only the Shallow Dream Layer. Do you think we'll run into any unexpected situations?"

"It's hard to say. I keep feeling like someone beat us to the punch and entered her dream ahead of us."

"Brother, do you think they're also here for the ancient painting left by the Buddha? After all, the Heavenly Yi Noble is hidden in there..."

"I'm more curious about how they entered her dream. This woman's fate star is protected by the Heavenly Yi Noble. If we didn't have the ancient painting left by the Buddha to guide us, even we Twin Boys wouldn't have been able to get in. Our opponent's strength shouldn't be underestimated!"

"Brother, what's our next move?"

"She's sleeping within a dream, which means she's entered the Middle Dream Layer. At this point, we have no choice but to go in and investigate."

The two exchanged a look, clasped their hands together, and gripped the Double-Faced Buddha Pendants hanging around their necks.

"The realms divide the five elements, the laws connect yin and yang, binding the spirit and enslaving the soul; the Twin Boys enter the dream!"

...

Opening my eyes, the first thing I saw was a small face baring its canines, trying hard to put on a fierce expression but actually looking rather cute.

The face was small, but God seemed to have shown her special favoritism, pouring a one-in-a-million beauty into it.

"So beautiful," I sighed with heartfelt admiration, only to suddenly realize this wasn't the time to be appreciating a pretty girl.

I took a step back, putting some distance between myself and the woman in front of me. Things were going much smoother than I had imagined; I had spotted Huang Xue the moment I entered the dream.

She was sitting on the bed in the middle of the sanatorium room, defensively clutching the quilt to cover her beautiful, nightgown-clad figure.

She gripped a phone in both hands, glaring at me viciously. "What are you doing sneaking into my room in the dead of night? The security guards are right outside. If you're thinking of doing anything to me, I advise you to drop the idea!"

Seeing Huang Xue's nervous demeanor, I sighed inwardly. Sure enough, she had no idea she was in a dream.

"Huang Xue, the situation is a bit complicated, so I'll keep it brief. You are currently in your own dream. You might not realize it, but that's because you've entered the Middle Dream Layer. You are having a dream within your own dream!"

Her reaction to my words was extremely straightforward. She dialed 110 without hesitation and screamed toward the door, "Help! Someone come quickly! A perverted lunatic sneaked into my room!"