After a brief standoff between the two, Nan Xian's fear and panic gradually subsided. She suddenly realized that the black snakes that appeared in her dreams before were all enormous, while the one in front of her, although it looked no different, was the size of a normal snake.

Moreover, the black snake in the dream never gave me any chance to react. It would chase after me as soon as it saw me, but this one did not do that. Instead, it stopped in place and "confronted" me.

Could it be that they are not the same black snake?

This guess flashed through Nan Xian's mind. She hesitated for a moment, keeping a close eye on the little black snake's movements, and slowly stood up from the grass.

The little black snake slowly raised its head following her movements, hissing as it flicked its tongue.

It was very perceptive; no matter which way Nan Xian moved, it could immediately follow, just like Nan Xian's shadow.

It followed her wherever she went. When she ran, it sped up. Strangely, even though Nan Xian was fast enough and it could catch up with her every time, it never took the initiative to approach her and always kept a distance from her.

Things became intriguing. Nan Xian couldn't understand why it was following her, and she became increasingly uneasy, with large beads of sweat sliding down her face.

The meadow seemed to stretch endlessly, with the same green expanse extending into the misty distance.

Nan Xian began to run towards the thick fog with all her might. Her strength was being used up very quickly here, and soon she was panting heavily, her heart pounding like a drum in her ears.

"Huffing and puffing—"

Suddenly, her right foot tripped over a protrusion on the grass, and she fell forward instantly, crashing heavily to the ground.

The grass gave her some relief, and after a brief period of pain, she regained the strength to support herself.

However, just as Nan Xian stood up again and subconsciously turned around, she was shocked to find—

The little black snake that had been following closely behind him had disappeared.

She froze on the spot, a familiar sense of fear instantly enveloping her. She dared not even breathe loudly, focusing all her attention on her ears, not daring to miss any slight sound around her.

"hiss--"

The sound came from beside her ear.

Nan Xian turned her head, and a huge black snake stood behind her, almost face to face.

"ah!"

"Thump!"

Nan Xian suddenly jumped up from her seat, her head hitting the roof of the car. She immediately burst into tears from the pain, wincing and clutching her head.

Ding He was secretly reading Ming Xianzhen's fanfiction when she was caught off guard by the noise. She was so startled that she almost jumped up herself.

"Sis? Oh dear, what happened? Why is she running into the car by herself!"

Nan Xian didn't have time to answer her. The giant snake's close-up attack still made her feel lingering fear. She cautiously scanned her surroundings and only let out a heavy breath after confirming that there were no small black snakes around.

Thank goodness, it was just a scary dream within a dream...

"Ouch!" Ding He carefully parted Nan Xian's hair and saw that she had bumped her head and had a bump. She frowned with heartache. "This needs to be treated quickly, otherwise you won't feel well tonight. We're at the hotel. Sis, wait a moment, I'll go call a doctor for you!"

Nan Xian's head was indeed throbbing, and she hummed softly as she leaned back in her seat.

A short while later, a figure silently got into the car.

Nan Xian opened her eyes as if sensing something, somewhat startled. "Why are you here?"

Diao Yu reached out and closed the car door, while also pulling up the partition curtain between the car and the driver's seat.

"My lord, are you injured?" He immediately noticed that something was wrong with Nan Xian.

She pointed to her head and smiled wryly, "I bumped into it by accident."

"It's alright, I'll help you." Diao Yu knelt on one knee in front of her, said "excuse me," and raised his right hand to place it lightly on Nan Xian's head.

A faint silver light shone from his palm, falling on Nan Xian's head. She immediately felt much better in the throbbing pain, followed by a warm sensation. As the warmth dissipated, the pain was completely gone.

She raised her hand and carefully touched it, then looked at Diao Yu with delight: "Amazing! There was such a big bump just now, and it's gone!"

"It's nothing, I'm just glad you're alright." Diao Yu withdrew her hand and sat down next to Nan Xian.

As soon as he sat down, he suddenly frowned, twitched his nose slightly, and looked down at Nan Xian's pocket.

"Sir, why do you smell like—that person?"