☆, Chapter 17: So Many Charming Villains

However, this is the nightmare's illusion, which is most adept at manipulating the deepest emotions in people's hearts, evoking their most primal fears, anger, or pain, and breaking down their psychological defenses. (It is said) that no one has been able to escape from it for hundreds of years.

Shen Qingqiu had always wanted to complain about this point in the original work. Since it was so impressive, it was easily debunked by Luo Binghe and Ning Yingying, two half-grown kids, with their melodramatic pleading. You idiot, don't be so disrespectful to the Demon Clan seniors!

Luo Binghe suddenly rushed forward, seemingly trying to break free from the group of homeless children beating him, but his fists passed right through their bodies, unable to dispel the illusion. His punches and kicks continued to rain down on the small body.

Shen Qingqiu intercepted Luo Binghe's fist in time, steadied him, and calmly said, "See? You can't touch them. This is just a trap set by the nightmare demons."

If it were the Luo Binghe after he gained superpowers, ten thousand dream demons would be nothing more than trivial tricks in his eyes. But the current Luo Binghe, whose demonic bloodline has not yet awakened, is already deeply mired in dark memories and dreams. All he can see is his own powerlessness.

Suddenly, the scene in the alley where the two were located distorted and transformed into another scene.

Shen Qingqiu knew things were going badly; he had been caught off guard and had been killed twice in a row!

This is a dilapidated little house. Inside, there is only a bed, a crooked little table, a dim oil lamp on the table, and a small stool.

A haggard old woman lay on the bed, struggling to sit up, but unable to. A small figure rushed in from outside; Luo Binghe, barely ten years old with a childlike face, supported the woman, the jade pendant still around her neck. He said anxiously, "Mother, why are you getting up again? Didn't you say you just needed to rest?"

The woman coughed and said, "Lying down won't help, so I might as well get up and wash the clothes."

Xiao Luo Binghe said, "I've already helped Mother with all the work. Mother, just lie down and wait for me to brew your medicine. Once you've taken the medicine and feel better, you can go back to work."

Shen Qingqiu already knew about this plot, but when it actually unfolded before his eyes, he couldn't remain unmoved.

The woman's face was ashen; she was already terminally ill and wouldn't live much longer. She smiled and patted Luo Binghe's head: "Binghe is such a good boy."

Xiao Luo Binghe raised her face and forced a smile, asking, "What would you like to eat, Mother?"

The woman said, "I'm losing my appetite more and more these days. I'd like to try that white porridge that our young master poured last time, but I don't know if there's any left in the kitchen."

Xiao Luo Binghe nodded vigorously and said, "I'll go ask my mother!"

"Just ask. If there's nothing left, just make some other light soup or broth, anything that can fill your stomach."

Xiao Luo dashed out like a gust of wind across the icy river. The woman lay down for a while, then took out a needle and thread from under her pillow and began to do needlework.

The lights in the room grew dimmer. Lost in thought, Luo Binghe reached out to grab something. Shen Qingqiu grabbed his hand, her voice sharp: "Luo Binghe! Look carefully, this is not your mother, and you are no longer that child who could be humiliated and powerless to fight back!"

One of the destructive forces of nightmares is that the more agitated the trapped person's mind is, the greater the damage to their sanity. In Luo Binghe's current state, his condition is extremely unstable, posing a significant threat to his primordial spirit.

Secondly, you must remember that you must never attack the "characters" that appear in your dreams.

All "people" are manifestations of the dream host's own consciousness and mind. Attacking them is essentially attacking your own brain. Many people, unaware of this or unable to control their emotions, attack the "people" who have harmed them in their dreams, and thus fall into a deep sleep.

Judging from the current situation, if Luo Binghe falls into a deep sleep, Shen Qingqiu will also be trapped in his dream.

The surrounding scenery shifted unpredictably. One moment it transformed into Xiao Luo, begging a richly dressed young master for a bowl of porridge for his adoptive mother at the Ice River; the next, it shifted back to his early days at Qingjing Peak, where his fellow disciples ostracized and harassed him, his small figure laboriously wielding a rusty axe, carrying a bucket of water, climbing the long stairs slower and slower; his only treasured jade pendant had been stolen and was nowhere to be found…

A series of chaotic scenes piled up one after another. At this moment, Luo Binghe could see and hear nothing but these scattered images and memories. All he could feel was the resentment, despair, pain, helplessness, and rage of those moments, all of which exploded into a jumbled mess in his chest and mind.

This nightmare is a collection of all the hardships and wounds in this young man's short life of just over ten years, and Luo Binghe is completely trapped in it! His breathing is extremely unstable, and his eyes are abnormally red.

Shen Qingqiu felt that standing next to him was really dangerous!

The only way to break free from the nightmare's attack is to resolve the inner conflicts within one's own consciousness; then the nightmare will crumble on its own. Luo Binghe clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles cracking, and a faint spiritual energy flowed through his body.

Shen Qingqiu noticed that his aggression was increasing and said sternly, "Calm down! Don't attack the illusion. Even if you hit it, you'll only hurt yourself!"

Koro Ice River was completely deaf to his words. He raised his right hand, and a fierce strike flew out from his palm, aimed directly at the group of people laughing wildly in the illusion!

Shen Qingqiu cried out inwardly, but no matter how painful it was, his body wisely rushed forward to block the illusion and deflect the attack.

At this moment, Luo Binghe was slightly shorter than him, and was hit in the lower abdomen.

In an instant, Shen Qingqiu felt as if he had been kicked by an elephant's leg, his vision went black, and if this were not a dream, he would probably have already spat out a mouthful of blood...

As expected of the protagonist!

Shen Qingqiu was in tears. He was just a junior disciple, so why could he unleash such powerful critical hits… It seemed that ever since he activated his OOC (Out of Character) ability, not only had he achieved nothing, but all he did was block attacks, block attacks, and block attacks again, constantly acting as a selfless tank!

With Luo Binghe's attack, the surrounding illusions shattered, and figures and objects broke into countless fragments like glass. The illusion they were in transformed into a remote, desolate forest. A solitary, cold, golden moon hung high overhead, the sky a deep blue.

As soon as the illusion dissipated, Luo Binghe regained his senses. He stared blankly at Shen Qingqiu, who was unable to stand and was kneeling on one knee. Then he looked down at his palm and saw a trace of residual spiritual energy flowing through his fingertips. He vaguely remembered what he had just done, and his face turned pale.

Luo Binghe rushed to Shen Qingqiu's side, supporting him, both anxious and regretful: "Shizun! Why...why didn't you fight back!"

With Shen Qingqiu's spiritual power, he could easily return the attack with a critical strike. The collision of the two spiritual energies would not only neutralize Luo Binghe's attack but also reflect it back.

Shen Qingqiu said from the bottom of his heart, "Silly child." He smiled weakly, "...I only did this because I didn't want you to get hurt. If I fought back and hurt you, what would be the point?"

Hearing his master's weak voice, Luo Binghe felt like killing himself with a single blow. "But now it's Master who's been injured... This disciple deserves to die!"

Not long after the three battles with the Demon Realm, my master was injured again because of me, this time directly hit by him!

Seeing the child's face filled with self-reproach and sadness, Shen Qingqiu, unusually kind, comforted him, saying, "My cultivation is stronger than yours, so it doesn't matter if I take a few more blows."

Luo Binghe would rather Shen Qingqiu beat and scold him fiercely to vent his anger, or ignore him and make sarcastic remarks like before, he would feel better. But Shen Qingqiu was so gentle and soft-spoken, leaving him speechless and at a loss for what to do.

After a long pause, Luo Binghe said in a low voice, "It's all my fault."

No, no, no, it's not your fault. You did go for the cute, gentle, and innocent girl route in the beginning, so how can I blame you?

Shen Qingqiu assumed that Luo Binghe was once again caught up in his overly kind-hearted indecisiveness and self-reflection, so he patiently advised him, "It's none of your business. The demons of the Demon Realm are despicable and impossible to guard against. However, if you never want to encounter something like this again, the only way is to become stronger."

This is a world of immortals and monsters where the strong prey on the weak. Becoming stronger is the only way to avoid being swept away by the tide and becoming cannon fodder in this world!

Luo Binghe had a sudden thought, but without saying a word, he looked up and stared intently at Shen Qingqiu.

Shen Qingqiu's heart skipped a beat.

Luo Binghe's obsidian-like eyes reflected a brilliance more dazzling than the reflections of stars and the moon.

That...that look in his eyes!

The protagonist's eyes are filled with "unwavering faith" and "burning fighting spirit"!

Could it be... that I've become the guiding star on the protagonist's path in life?!

Luo Binghe knelt upright beside Shen Qingqiu and said in a firm voice, "I understand."

Shen Qingqiu: Wait a minute, what did you understand this time? Can you please stop only saying half of what you mean? Tell me the rest!

He didn't notice that Luo Binghe didn't refer to himself as "disciple" in his words. Luo Binghe clenched his fists and spoke again, saying each word clearly: "From now on, this kind of thing... I will never let it happen a second time."

The days of having my master protect my weakness and helplessness, and having my master get hurt because of it... will never happen again!

Shen Qingqiu responded with a calm "hmm".

...What's going on? Why am I suddenly getting this feeling of "it's so reassuring to be protected by the protagonist"?!

"Don't be so calm! This person is going to turn you into a human stick in the future! Wake up, Shen Qingqiu!"

While Shen Qingqiu felt satisfied with becoming the protagonist's mentor on his life's journey and gaining maximum vanity, he also had a somewhat unpleasant feeling.

Damn it. The original premise was that the protagonist's belief in "becoming stronger to protect those important to him" should have been triggered after he saw the female lead, injured and panting softly, looking pitiful. So, system, you're not actually adding all the female lead's scenes to my role, are you?