Since he had been with Jian Chou earlier, and they had just split up to search separately, when Fùjiànshēng saw Jian Chou walking over with Xie Buchen, he didn’t think much of it. He simply assumed that Jian Chou had encountered Xie Buchen while searching for others, and thus they had met up with everyone.

But before he could open his mouth to ask, he suddenly noticed that everyone else’s expressions were not quite right.

The moment they saw Jian Chou, the scene became somewhat quiet.

Where they stood was a massive ruin.

Earlier, Luye Laozu had stood here and shattered the towering wall with a single palm strike, creating a great commotion that had drawn everyone to seek out the source of the sound.

Behind Great Emperor Baihe stood many people, their gazes fixed on Jian Chou. They looked at her, then at Xie Buchen standing beside her, whose expression showed no abnormality. Their brows furrowed as Great Emperor Baihe cautiously asked: “Has young friend Xie been with young friend Jian Chou the entire time?”

Jian Chou’s eyebrows immediately arched.

Upon hearing this, Xie Buchen instantly sensed the extraordinary nature of this question. However, he couldn’t immediately understand the key point behind Great Emperor Baihe’s inquiry, and simply said: “We encountered each other in this realm just now, and came over together with Fellow Daoist Jian Chou.”

“…”

“…”

“…”

The entire scene fell silent, with almost everyone exchanging glances at that moment.

Fùjiànshēng’s face showed several traces of astonishment. He was about to say that Jian Chou had clearly been with him just now, but at the moment he was about to speak, Great Emperor Baihe’s expression when asking the question flashed through his mind like lightning, and he sensed something was amiss.

Luye Laozu, however, began laughing beside them. While others weren’t paying attention, she wagged her finger at Jian Chou with a playful expression that seemed to say, “You’ve played too big and gotten caught—let’s see what you’ll do now.”

Jian Chou acted as if she hadn’t seen it.

When she decided to use this extraordinary method, she had already anticipated that someone would surely discover some clues, but for her, this wasn’t a problem at all.

She wore an expression of not understanding why Great Emperor Baihe would ask such a question, showing slight confusion. She even swept a strange glance at the people who were examining her, directly asking in return: “I was in the middle of fighting with Fellow Daoist Xie earlier when we were scattered, and shortly after encountered each other in this realm. Throughout the journey, I haven’t fought with Fellow Daoist Xie again. Is Great Emperor asking this because you’re worried I might harm Fellow Daoist Xie?”

Just hearing her response and counter-question, and seeing that expression of calm composure hiding a hint of faint mockery, Luye Laozu silently praised her in her heart.

Truly worthy of being the most outstanding among the new generation of the Primordial Realm!

This reaction speed and unshakeable composure could truly deceive anyone.

She acted as if she had done nothing at all, interpreting Great Emperor Baihe’s question as doubt about why she and Xie Buchen were walking together.

Great Emperor Baihe clearly hadn’t expected her to deny it so categorically, because to each of them, the Jian Chou they had encountered felt completely real.

Heaven knows how horrifying it was when everyone gathered together!

Everyone said they had encountered Jian Chou!

Now Jian Chou’s response instantly threw everyone into confusion, with Fùjiànshēng examining Jian Chou and Xie Buchen with an extremely hesitant gaze.

“It seems everyone has encountered some incomprehensible events?”

Luye Laozu thought for a moment, then decided to quickly end her spectating state. After all, they were still within the Pangu Desolate Domain, and who knew when they could get out—better not to waste time on such matters.

“I suspect you all encountered young friend Jian Chou?”

Everyone hadn’t expected Luye Laozu to speak so directly. They were all stunned for a moment, glanced at Jian Chou with some wariness, then nodded in acknowledgment.

Jian Chou cooperatively displayed some surprise.

She frowned: “Encountered me?”

“It seems young friend Jian Chou herself knows nothing about this matter.” Luye Laozu concluded the matter with a single sentence, incidentally clearing Jian Chou’s name. “We have inexplicably fallen into this realm, and observing its condition, it doesn’t seem to truly exist, but rather like a grand dream that has drawn us all in. As such, whether what we saw earlier was real or illusory, or rather, what purpose the one hiding behind this dream has, is very much worth discussing.”

A dream!

Given their cultivation levels, they had all seen much of the world, and they had harbored suspicions earlier. Especially the realm they were in itself didn’t conform to any logic. So although they had almost simultaneously encountered Jian Chou, the existence of dozens of Jian Chous with basically identical strength was fundamentally impossible according to common sense.

If it was a dream or illusion, that would actually be the most likely possibility.

However, upon hearing Luye Laozu speak this way, Great Emperor Baihe’s brow didn’t relax in the slightest. Instead, he observed Luye Laozu for a moment, keenly sensing her intention to help Jian Chou deflect and change the subject.

But Luye Laozu calmly met his gaze.

This actually made his suspicions diminish somewhat, since although her temperament might be unconventional, she had never been unreliable in important matters.

Daidai, however, moved closer and walked several circles around Jian Chou.

Her beautiful eyes shimmered with flowing light, and her enticing snow-white body beneath the light pink gauze was like carved mutton-fat jade, half-concealed and half-revealed, stirring one’s imagination.

She stopped directly in front of Jian Chou, carefully studying her face, as if wanting to clearly compare it with what she had seen earlier, saying only: “If it’s a dream, it’s far too realistic…”

Jian Chou let her look, but her gaze passed over her to fall on the surrounding scenery. After looking around, she said to Great Emperor Baihe: “Throughout this journey, I’ve been almost entirely with Fellow Daoist Xie, never leaving his side until now. Yet you all say you encountered me, which I find somewhat puzzling. However, just now, I suddenly remembered something I’d like to ask you about.”

Looking at her now, Great Emperor Baihe could only think of the extremely eerie countless “Jian Chou’s Tombs” he had seen in the mirror earlier.

But at this moment, he showed no sign of it.

He asked curiously: “What does young friend Jian Chou wish to ask?”

“Earlier, you mentioned that you specifically left a Long Night Slip for that Elder Tianmo Meng who lived to escape the Desolate Domain sixty thousand years ago, but never waited for this person.” Jian Chou’s eyes flashed as she posed her prepared question. “But I want to ask—did this person truly not come?”

Elder Tianmo Meng!

Just these five characters suddenly startled everyone.

But some people had already considered this possibility.

Great Emperor Baihe was thorough in his thinking and naturally followed Jian Chou’s words: “Young friend Jian Chou suspects that Elder Tianmo Meng has already entered the Desolate Domain and is secretly causing trouble. What we are experiencing now is this person’s handiwork.”

Jian Chou nodded.

The rest need not be said—everyone could guess.

Only Daidai was a beat slower, looking confused. She raised her eyes to sweep across everyone, actually saying: “But I know all the female cultivators here—where is this ‘Elder Tianmo’? Did this person enter the Desolate Domain before us?”

Everyone was stunned upon hearing this.

But Xie Buchen had already furrowed his brow tightly, and for once, his normally indifferent and cold eyes flashed with impatience as he said: “Who said Elder Tianmo Meng must be a woman?”

As soon as these words fell, many gazes turned toward him.

Daidai looked even more flattered, as if she hadn’t expected him to respond to her words, completely ignoring his less-than-pleasant tone.

After a moment, she realized what Xie Buchen had said.

But before she could furrow her willow-like brows to argue with him, Xie Buchen suddenly seemed to sense some presence and looked toward the right side of the horizon.

Something seemed to have swiftly passed by there.

If he remembered correctly, that was precisely the direction “Yìnghuǐ” had departed earlier.

At this moment, the flash of thought in his mind was incredibly swift.

That trace of presence was too fast and too faint—if not for his divine soul having an unbreakable connection with that stick of incense, he probably wouldn’t have sensed any clues.

There was no room for the slightest hesitation!

“Please excuse me for a moment.”

Before anyone could even react to what was happening, Xie Buchen had already grasped the ink ruler in his palm and taken flight!

The speeding shadow left a dark trail across the horizon.

In the blink of an eye, he was already far away!

“Young friend Xie…”

What was this about?

What was he pursuing?

Everyone’s minds went blank for a moment. Before they could voice their questions, he had already disappeared.

Only the murderous aura and killing intent that had risen in that instant still lingered in the original spot.

Jian Chou turned to look in the direction he had pursued, showing no surprise whatsoever: Now things were getting interesting—Yuèyǐng went to find Fu Chaosheng, and Xie Buchen went to pursue Yuèyǐng…

“What’s with young friend Xie?”

Not understanding, everyone instinctively looked at Jian Chou.

Jian Chou said: “I’m not sure either, but when I encountered Fellow Daoist Xie earlier, we were ambushed by Yìnghuǐ from Fēixié Tiān. Perhaps Fellow Daoist Xie sensed his presence and went to pursue and kill him.”

This answer was far too perfunctory.

However, in their current situation, none of them would choose to follow and see what was happening. First, because Xie Buchen had already said “excuse me,” and second, because the urgent matter at hand was still this “dream.”

Besides Yìnghuǐ, Yuèyǐng was also absent.

Jian Chou had already mentioned that they had been ambushed by Yìnghuǐ earlier. Perhaps Yìnghuǐ held a grudge for Jian Chou’s earlier killing of his avatar, so he attacked—this wouldn’t be surprising. But the fact that Yuèyǐng, whose cultivation was not low, was also absent, made everyone somewhat hesitant and uneasy, discussing it among themselves.

Great Emperor Baihe had obviously considered this point, but after listening, he shook his head and said: “Our suspicion that all these experiences are dreams created by Elder Tianmo Meng is not impossible. However, the ‘dream’ we’re currently in cannot be sustained by an ordinary cultivator’s cultivation. Even if we combined all our cultivation levels, we might not be able to create any corner of this realm. I feel that the architecture in this realm is quite familiar—I’ve seen it in my memory before, just much smaller.”

At this point, he actually looked at Luye Laozu and Jian Chou.

“Do Fellow Daoist Luye and young friend Jian Chou have any impression?”

Asking if they had any impression?

Jian Chou didn’t speak.

Luye Laozu also glanced at her before answering Great Emperor Baihe: “Great Emperor, are you referring to that ruin in the eighteenth layer of hell in the Extreme Domain of the Primordial Realm?”

Great Emperor Baihe had also originated from the Primordial Realm and had some connection with Kunwu. Luye Laozu needn’t be mentioned—she had once killed her way into the Extreme Domain in rage, causing heaven and earth to turn upside down. Jian Chou was the unprecedented Extreme Domain Hell King, the Ninth Palace’s King of Equality, who had already entered the eighteen layers of hell when she participated in the competition for the cauldron.

There had indeed been a ruin there.

On the other side of the ruin was a vast jungle, and between them on the wasteland stood the altar that had once housed the Mitian Mirror.

Great Emperor Baihe raised his hand to point at this ruin, which remained majestically shocking even in its collapsed and destroyed state, saying: “Although the architecture in this realm is not the same as that place, and is much larger, some of the patterns are extremely similar. When Great Lord Pangu led the human race’s migration, they initially thrived in the Primordial Realm. During the long night, to avoid warfare and severe cold, they lived underground year-round. The ruin in the eighteenth layer of hell in the Extreme Domain was a relic left by ancient ancestors. I suspect that where we are now is not Elder Tianmo’s dream, but Great Lord Pangu’s dream!”

Only Pangu could sustain such a magnificent dream!

And only Pangu would dream of such a ruin!

Without seeing, without thinking, how could one dream?

Cultivators from the Upper Ruins had never seen such architecture—even in dreams, they couldn’t dream of these things. And the dreams that ordinary cultivators could create were all illusions, unable to be as real as this current dream, actually containing all of them within it!

No one knew why the Great Lord had led the human race’s migration, or what had happened in His homeland, but after Great Emperor Baihe’s deduction, almost everyone imagined some grand and magnificent scene, their hearts shaken by it.

Only Jian Chou remained calm, even indifferent.

In this moment of external silence, she actually asked: “But how can the dead dream?”

In that instant, everyone froze.

But just an instant later, they all broke out in cold sweat—

The dead don’t dream.

Those who dream are all people who are sleeping!