Chapter 445: Dream Blade
Aiwass has been having a strange dream recently.
He staggered through the blazing maple forest, and the maple leaves looked like flame butterflies fluttering their wings.
His body was covered in burns and blackened by smoke. He seemed to be searching for something, or fleeing from it.
I looked up inadvertently, and saw only a dark red in the night sky that was illuminated by the fire.
There was no sun or moon in the dark red night sky, only a huge, bleeding wound.
The wound looked like it had been pierced by a sharp blade, or pierced by a spear. Black, sticky blood dripped out of the wound, forming a thin waterfall.
For some reason, in the dream, Aiwass insisted on going to the bottom of the waterfall despite the burns.
But each time, Aiwass couldn't get there.
Because as he gradually approached that direction, he would always stumble and fall due to exhaustion. Then he would suddenly wake up, and the clear dream would fade into a moment of panic and worry, leaving only a few vague memories in his mind.
This time, perhaps because Aiwass took the "Dream Tincture" before falling asleep, his dream became more stable.
He walked a long, long way and finally reached the bottom of the wound.
It was a small, empty plain nestled in a dense forest. Blood flowing from a wound in the sky had formed a vast lake, and within that lake sat a small island. Atop this empty island, lone, pierced a two-handed sword, stained pure black by the cascading, sticky blood.
Aiwass looked at the two-handed sword intently.
He approached there in a daze.
But at this moment, he suddenly heard the growl of a bear behind him.
"roar--"
Aiwass' pupils suddenly shrank.
He looked back, but his perspective suddenly became shorter.
It was as if he was no longer a human being, but a skinny four-legged beast.
And in the maple forest behind him, which was burning with flames, a giant bear with flames all over its body and scarlet pupils was slowly approaching him.
As it approached, with its heavy steps, Aiwass felt the ground around him shaking more and more violently. The entire world continued to shatter and collapse, and increasingly fierce flames shot up into the sky. From behind Aiwass, more and more black blood flowed, frothing with white foam, gradually engulfing Aiwass.
The moment Aiwass looked at the giant bear, he saw a human-like smile on the giant bear's face.
"——Anyone who uses a knife will be killed with the blade."
A low voice sounded in Aiwass's heart.
These words were suddenly engraved in Aiwas's heart as clearly as if they were carved by a knife or an axe, and they were painful to the touch like scorch marks caused by fire.
Then, an intense feeling of fear came over Aiwass.
He suddenly opened his eyes and broke free from the dream.
"...Xiong Tiansi?"
Aiwass blurted out while the memory was still there.
But Aiwass soon realized that he would never forget that moment.
He felt a dampness and an itch on his chest. Only when he reached out to touch it did he feel the pain. It was like a mosquito bite.
——Evans unbuttoned his clothes and found three fresh scars on his chest.
It looked like three knife wounds, or like the marks left by a bear's claws tearing through flesh.
The blood had just stained Aiwass's white fox fur pajamas and had not even soaked through it - it was obvious that he had been injured not long ago.
It was when Aiwas woke up that the wound appeared on his chest; or rather, it was because of this wound that he suddenly woke up.
"Lily."
Aiwass sat on the bed and called softly.
Just two seconds later, Lily walked out of the servants' room next door, barefoot and silent. The soft red carpet made no sound.
She looked inquiringly at the wound on Aiwas' chest, her expression suddenly becoming serious and tense.
Lily immediately lit a candle and handed it to Aiwass.
Aiwass reached out and grasped the flame, closing his eyes and praying devoutly. The room, once illuminated by the candlelight, suddenly became dim again. The flame in Aiwass's hand trembled violently. The shadow cast by Aiwass through the candlelight became distorted and devilish.
In Lily's eyes, the scar on Aiwas' chest was healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
But soon, Lily suddenly opened her eyes wide -
The "Fire Worship" technique that could heal almost all injuries seemed to have suddenly lost its effect...
The wound on Aiwas's chest had merely stopped bleeding. It hadn't healed, but had formed a scab, covered with a layer of amber-like residue. But if he tore at it too hard, the wound would bleed again.
Obviously, Aiwass could feel this too.
At this moment, a hint appeared in front of Aiwass.
[You have obtained the characteristic: Authority - Brand One]
[Authority - Brand One: Xiong Tiansi swung down the claws of the future, declaring that this blow would end your life. This is the first brand, and the number cannot be seven—]
Your chest will always be considered a "weak point", regardless of whether you effectively protect it; you will always be detected and hunted by Xiong Tiansi and his apostles; when you fight the target who is hunting you, the battle will always be considered a "duel"
...It's Xiong Tiansi's hunting ritual.
Instead, Aiwass breathed a sigh of relief, opened his eyes, and released his hand that was holding the candle.
The light in the room became stable again.
"What's the matter, Aiwass?"
Lily asked anxiously in a low voice: "Is something wrong?"
"It's not a big deal."
Aiwass answered easily.
He chuckled and pointed to the scar on his chest. "This is the mark Xiong Tiansi inflicted on me. He swore to kill me with a single blow this vicious."
—Tear the chest apart with ferocious claw strikes!
If his attack had truly landed, the only thing left on Aiwass's chest would not be just this shallow scar.
Therefore, this dream was just a routine preview of a hunt.
Aiwass had been waking repeatedly from his dreams because he instinctively sensed danger even in his dreams... But until he officially accepted this notice, that nightmare would haunt him forever, preventing him from resting properly and from achieving advancement in his dreams.
Aiwass had vaguely guessed this, so he used the Dream Tincture to stabilize his dream and accepted the challenge.
It was obvious that Xiong Tiansi was very satisfied with Aiwas's choice.
He even smiled!
The mark left by Xiong Tiansi now is like the dotted line that was nailed in advance with a needle when saying "Please cut along the dotted line".
Not only had he predetermined Aiwass's death, he had even chosen the method of his death... and had pre-determined the final blow. It was as if he had never considered the possibility of failure, let alone the utilitarian idea of "just killing him would be enough."
"This is the style of the former Pillar of Power, Supreme Heaven..."
Aiwass sighed, "The stronger one is, the stronger he is. The stronger one acts without hesitation, without regret, and without second thoughts. When victory comes, the stronger one will gain and dominate everything of the weaker one..."
That was the basic law of the world before the birth of "authoritarianism".
The former Supreme Heaven had long since died and was resurrected in the dream world. He was once again promoted to the Ursa Major and possessed a new constellation.
The mark Xiong Tiansi left on Aiwas's chest was designed to allow his followers and apostles to easily locate Aiwas. It was like firing a flare at prey, ensuring they could always find its direction no matter how it tried to escape.
After all, He is a celestial being and cannot easily descend to the mortal world. Therefore, He needs His apostles to hunt down Aiwass in the material world.
But when Aiwass was branded by Xiong Tiansi, he felt relieved.
Because that means something else—
Since you marked me...
Does that mean you can't kill me right now?
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
