Falling Dreams Playing Games 2

The world depicted on the mural is completely different from the outside world. Here, birds sing and flowers bloom, mountains are verdant and waters are clear, making it a wonderful place to relax and unwind.

The people inside the mural saw Huaiwen enter and warmly pulled her along, inviting her to pick peaches together. Huaiwen was led by them to the peach tree, but she felt that this game couldn't be that simple.

Sure enough, when Huaiwen arrived at the tree, she realized that what looked like a peach tree from a distance was only three or four meters tall, but now that she was at the foot of the tree and looked up, it seemed to be reaching for the sky!

Huaiwen tried to fly upwards, but her magic seemed to be restricted here, and she couldn't fly at all.

The people in the mural saw that Huaiwen wasn't tall enough to reach the peaches, and they all sighed. Huaiwen glanced at them and came up with a plan: he would have them pile up one by one.

Huaiwen's idea was good, but the people in the mural, even if they were all together, wouldn't amount to more than a tenth of the peach tree. How could they possibly pick them?

Huaiwen was at the bottom, but those standing on top swayed, and the child at the top fell down. Huaiwen, with his agility, managed to put the two people above him down.

He rushed over again and caught the child. Fortunately, neither of them was injured, but Huaiwen's bottom hurt from the fall.

The child thanked Huaiwen and followed the two boys and girls happily. They figured that Huaiwen, who had fallen on his bottom, probably wouldn't be able to pick any peaches, so they sat down again.

Undeterred, Huaiwen decided to ease the pain in her buttocks and think of other good solutions.

She sat under the peach tree, watching the people in the mural chatting and laughing. They seemed to be discussing Xuan Ye. So Huaiwen shifted her position, moving closer.

Those people glanced at Huaiwen, their faces showing some surprise, but they quickly dispersed. They didn't avoid Huaiwen; they said, "The city lord has been very angry lately!"

The child in the mural asked why.

The boy in the mural said that someone had damaged the city lord's magic array. He has to redo it. Sister Qingye said the city lord isn't in the city today.

Huaiwen silently averted her gaze to avoid meeting the boy's eyes. Otherwise, she would feel too guilty! However, she also understood why Xuan Ye hadn't forced her to agree immediately that morning. It turned out he was going to repair the magic array; no wonder he hadn't been seen in the afternoon.

They then chatted some more, and the city lord seemed a bit strange.

The child then asked what was strange.

The boy thought for a moment and said he didn't know either. Because Sister Qingye hadn't said. They thought the city lord was strange because his behavior seemed different from before.

The child pressed on, asking what was different.

The boy didn't answer; it was another girl who did. She said, "Because the city lord sent Sister Qingye to find the painter."

The boy frowned and said, "Then what's strange about this? The city lord also asked Sister Qingye to find a painter before. This mural of ours was also painted by a painter, it's just that the city lord made us 'come alive'."

The girl shook her head and retorted, "It's different. The city lord didn't want to set up any new games this time. Besides, there are several other places with murals besides ours, so there's no need to set up any more games with murals."

The boy pouted, lost in thought. The child imitated him, but still asked, "Then why did he do that?"

Who knows?

They didn't know.

Everyone here has this question.

Huaiwen didn't know Xuan Ye, but from these brief conversations, she could sense that the people in Zuimenglou were very close. Xuan Ye wasn't as heartless as outsiders said; at least he would give the people in the murals "life."

There's also that demon named Qingye. The people here respect and like her very much. She should be the second-in-command of this Drunken Dream Pavilion. Xuan Ye seems to entrust many things to her with confidence.

As for why Xuan Ye wanted to find a painter, Huai Wen understood it even less than anyone else here.

After thinking it over, Huaiwen cautiously asked the three people in front of him, "May I bother you for a moment?"

They exchanged a glance, then nodded. Huaiwen thought for a moment and asked, "Has anyone who's played this game ever succeeded?"

The three nodded and then shook their heads, and then the girl replied, "He was going to succeed, but he fell and died."

Huaiwen raised an eyelid, meaning that someone climbed a tree to pick peaches, but fell and died.

She turned to look back at the peach tree behind her, which stretched endlessly. How long would it take to climb it? Then she looked back at the three people in front of her.

They didn't just happen to be here. There must be something they need.

Huaiwen then asked, "Are there any other places with peach trees besides here?"

The boy nodded and said yes. Huaiwen asked him if he could lead the way, and they nodded. So the three of them skipped and hopped ahead, leading the way, with Huaiwen following behind them, feeling a strange sense of ease and joy.

Perhaps it's because the world depicted in these murals is free from worldly turmoil, clean and pure.

Halfway there, the three of them kept glancing back at Huaiwen. Huaiwen noticed this and jokingly asked them what they were looking at.

The boys, girls, and children just giggled. Huaiwen squinted, puzzled. She shouldn't have gotten mud on her face when she caught the child...

They stared intently at Huaiwen, which made her involuntarily reach up and touch her face. Finally, the girl said with a grin, "Sister's face isn't dirty."

"Then why do you keep turning back?"

They looked at each other and exclaimed in unison, "It's because you're so beautiful."

Huaiwen was taken aback, then smiled faintly.

She thought, these murals are still...too...cute.

As they walked, they saw another peach tree in the distance. From afar, it looked to be two or three meters tall. But as they got closer, it seemed to stretch endlessly, just like the previous peach tree.

Huaiwen looked up again, wondering why the tree looked normal in height from a distance, but so tall when she got closer.

Things appear larger when closer and smaller when farther away.

If she stands far away from the tree, does the tree not seem so tall?

Huaiwen glanced at the three people in front of her and saw them start playing shuttlecock. She had another idea. She borrowed their shuttlecock and walked back, with the three following behind her.

When Huaiwen estimated the peach tree to be only two or three meters tall, she stopped. She smiled and asked, "Would you like to play shuttlecock with me?"

The three of them were naturally willing and excited. They had been "living" here for so long, and no one had ever come to play with them before.

The four of them played like that, going back and forth, having a great time. After playing for a while, Huaiwen took the shuttlecock and said to them with great enthusiasm, "Let's eat peaches together."

With a flick of his heel, Huaiwen sent the shuttlecock flying from his foot, hitting the pink peach squarely. With a "crack," the peach fell to the ground. Huaiwen shouted, "Catch it!"

The three of them ran around in a daze, trying to catch the peaches that Huaiwen had kicked down with the shuttlecock. Huaiwen was very good at kicking the shuttlecock; in no time, she had kicked down half a tree's worth of peaches.

The three children happily accepted the peaches. Finally, they handed the biggest and sweetest peach to Huaiwen. The child, biting into the juicy peach, exclaimed excitedly, "Wow, peaches are so sweet!"

"Sister, you're amazing! You can pick so many peaches."

"Sister, you won!"

Huaiwen held the peach in her hand, nodded slightly, and looked at the three vibrant "people" before her. She suddenly became more determined in her belief—that the world should be free of disasters and harm, and that they should be restored to peace and tranquility.

Suddenly, Huaiwen's vision went completely black. When it came back to light, she was already outside the mural. She walked closer and looked at the three people in the mural, who were eating peaches and waving at her.

Huaiwen smiled. The games in Lingshan Xuanye weren't actually the dead ends they were rumored to be. This game was actually quite therapeutic and very simple.

"Congratulations, sir, you have completed the game."

Huaiwen turned to look at the little demon, and heard him ask, "Would you like to continue playing, sir, or would you like to pay and end this?"

"Keep playing."

The demon nodded, then waved his hand, and a door appeared. The demon gestured for Huaiwen to push it open and go inside.

As the lacquered wooden door was pushed open, Huaiwen entered the new room.

This is a round room with a high-hanging roof. The entire room is predominantly dark green, giving it a gloomy and eerie feel, which is quite frightening. In addition, there are a total of ten doors in the room.

"It's a door again," Huaiwen thought.

"Bang—" Another door was pushed open, one after another. They looked at each other, trying to determine whether the other was friend or foe.

Ten people were prepared, and the door was also closed. They heard a sound coming from above.

"Welcome back to the game, esteemed guests. Your next task is to find the entrance to the third level. You may team up or go solo. If you succeed, the reward will be quadrupled from the total amount earned in the previous round. Of course, the reward is given on a first-come, first-served basis."

Someone asked, "If we team up, the profits are split equally; if we don't team up, I get everything by myself, right?"

An affirmative answer came from above.

Everyone was initially laughing and saying that if they won, they would make a fortune, and even if they split it, it would be quite a lot. But now, it seems that selfish motives are taking hold more.

Then a man in blue stepped forward and shouted in a strong, clear voice, "Everyone! Everyone says that the games at Drunken Dream Tower are fierce and brutal, and I think you all know that you're here either for money or something else. Every level is very difficult. So I'd like to find some companions. If you're willing, you can team up with me, Lan, and win!"

This powerful statement quickly won everyone's approval. Even though everyone had their own plans, who could predict what would happen in the game later? It was always better to be conservative.

Huaiwen glanced around at everyone present. She could tell that, including herself, six people were human, and the rest were demons. However, those demons all disguised themselves as humans, making them impossible to detect without some level of cultivation.

The man in the blue shirt was particularly charismatic; he said a lot of things, and both humans and demons believed him to some extent.

Soon a new sound came from above.

"Everyone, now please push open that door and go win your victory."

The moment the words left his mouth, a new circular door appeared directly in front of them. The man in blue stepped to the front and shouted, "Alright everyone, let's cheer each other on!"

The door was pushed open, and those inside could only see the darkness beyond. No one knew what lay beyond that darkness. Everyone awaited the first brave soul to step forward!

Someone shouted for the man in blue to step forward first, after all, he had just given a passionate speech. But there was a hint of evasion in the man in blue's eyes, and he shouted, "I told everyone to unite, but you want me to die alone so that I can clear a path for you."

Someone countered, "That's not how it works. You seem to be much stronger than us. Besides, if you want us to unite, you have to set an example; otherwise, no one will be convinced."

The man in the blue shirt sneered, "Hilarious! Absolutely hilarious! Don't make excuses for your selfishness!"

"I think you're just a coward, scared now!"

An argument ensued, threatening to escalate into a full-blown brawl. Huaiwen shook her head and stepped forward. She walked straight to the door, turned to face everyone, and said, "I'll go first, you all follow behind."

In an instant, everyone fell silent. Pretending nothing had happened, they lined up in an orderly fashion, following behind Huaiwen. Then Huaiwen announced, "I'm going in." After that, everyone held their breath, straining their ears to hear what was coming from behind the darkness.

But they heard nothing.

Finally, after discussing that there should be no problem, and with the urging voices from above, they went inside, filled with fear of the darkness and the unknown.