Su Yan clutched Shalltear's hand tightly, and they sprinted toward the mysterious castle Vereesa had described. It wasn't long before they reached their destination. From afar, the castle seemed to bear the weight of a thousand years of history, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.

As he approached, the courtyard at the castle's entrance appeared unkempt and desolate. Weeds grew wildly, some even exceeding half a meter in height, like a vast sea of green. Without hesitation, Su Yan raised his foot and gave it a powerful kick. With a resounding "bang," the rusty chain on the gate snapped instantly. He strode inside.

When they arrived at the main entrance of the castle, they found it tightly shut. However, this small obstacle was nothing to Su Yan. He leaned slightly to the side and kicked hard. With a dull thud, the heavy door opened.

Shalltear, who had been following him, had her eyes wide open, sparkling with excitement and admiration. She stared at Su Yan intently, praising him non-stop, "Wow, you're so handsome! Look at all those solid muscles on you, so full of power!" Then, she shifted her gaze to Su Yan and continued, "And those perfect proportions, you're simply a walking hormone! If those guys dared to appear before you, you'd definitely beat them to a pulp. They'd be completely vulnerable!"

Hearing Shalltear's series of praises, Su Yan couldn't help but turn his head to look at her, and said with a smile: "Alright, alright, I haven't started fighting yet, where did 'those guys' come from?" Shalltear stuck out her long tongue mischievously, a blush appeared on her face, and she showed an embarrassed expression.

Su Yan then stepped into the castle. It looked utterly dilapidated and dark, as if all light had been mercilessly blocked out. Rotting furniture lay everywhere, emitting a nauseating odor. The ground was thick with dust, which flew into the air with every step.

The place was utterly dilapidated. The wooden planks beneath his feet had long since rotted away, making a terrifying "crack! crack!" sound with every step, as if they could break at any moment. Su Yan moved forward cautiously, his brow furrowed, his eyes narrowed, and he thought to himself: How could this Xavius live in such a horrible environment? He's so wronged! Shalltear, standing by, also had a look of disgust on her face. She pinched her nose and complained, "Oh, the smell in here is so terrible! It stinks!"

Hearing this, Su Yan turned back to look at Shalltear, bewildered, and asked, "Where does it stink? Why can't I smell it?" Shalltear extended her hand, pointed somewhere nearby, and said, "It might be coming from that direction. That rotten, disgusting smell is nauseating!" Su Yan quickly looked in the direction Shalltear pointed, and soon noticed a shabby cabinet in the corner ahead. It looked rickety, as if it would fall apart at any moment.

Without hesitation, Su Yan quickly approached the cabinet. As he approached, the "crackling! crackling!" sounds grew louder and clearer. Simultaneously, the entire cabinet began to shake violently, as if something was hiding within. Seeing this, Su Yan decisively raised his sword and swung it with all his might. With a resounding "bang," the incredibly solid blade instantly split the seemingly safe cabinet in two. Instantly, a massive rat burst out from within, swift as lightning, vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye.

Then, a strong, pungent stench hit him. Looking closely, he saw a pile of bloody, mangled flesh scattered on the ground. This must be the source of the stench.

Shalltear frowned slightly and said doubtfully, "Is there really anyone here? I don't think even monsters would like this kind of place." As she spoke, she looked around at the dilapidated environment with disgust.

Su Yan didn't immediately respond to Shalltear's question. He remained silent, his eyes scanning his surroundings warily. Indeed, the area before him looked utterly dilapidated and desolate, as if neglected for over a decade. A pervasive air of decay and decay permeated the landscape. However, when it came to their target—Xavius—common sense couldn't simply guide their deductions. After all, he was the dreaded Nightmare King, his whereabouts elusive and unpredictable, constantly wandering the illusory dream world. Perhaps he was simply impossible to find in reality.

Shalltear turned her gaze to Su Yan and asked anxiously, "So what should we do now? Where can we find this guy?" Su Yan pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "If there's really no other way... then let's go to sleep."

Hearing this, Shalltear was stunned, her pretty face instantly flushed. She glared at Su Yan in annoyance and said in a delicate voice, "Sleep? You said that so suddenly, I'm not mentally prepared at all!" Su Yan sat down cross-legged as if nothing had happened and replied calmly, "What preparation is needed? Just close your eyes and go to sleep."

Shalltear couldn't help but feel a surge of anger at Su Yan's composure. She sat down beside him angrily, muttering, "Hmph, good! I'm so pissed off! He's actually sleeping like this!"

Su Yan didn't take Shalltear seriously at all, and in the blink of an eye, he quickly fell into the mysterious dream world. However, to his surprise, despite being in the dream, he looked around and found that he was still in the eerie castle. However, the scene before him had changed drastically.

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!