IWOL Chapter 368: The Dream

Three days later, Cui Zuojing once again entered the Pure White Realm from his dream. The flow of the Pure White Realm was not much different from reality, to the point that it was almost synchronized. The Supreme Council was a transcendent force in the whole void. As the highest force of life, they could interfere with different worlds.

Previously, Cui Zuojing spent more than three years in the Pure White Realm, but only a bit over an hour passed in reality. One reason was that his body was sealed with the power of time and the other factor was because of the council members. Adjustments were also made, allowing the Wonton Insurgency to awaken to reality only three days later.

Aside from these exceptions, the world’s time was now basically synchronized, so as long as he entered a dream, he could stay as long as he could dream.

It was late at night when Cui Zuojing arrived. Fu Zhe knew that he was coming, and he waited by the fireplace in the hall, reading a book. Victor, Wang Que, and Luo Yan had just returned from a box. At surface level, everything seemed the same as usual, but Cui Zuojing still keenly noticed the unusual atmosphere in the castle.

He chatted with Fu Zhe but Fu Zhe seemed to have something on his mind. Cui Zuojing thought about it suspiciously for a while. Suddenly, everything made sense. He looked upstairs. Usually, if Fu Zhe didn’t sleep in, Cerberus wouldn’t rest either. Although the man was usually quiet like a transparent person, the silence in the castle was a bit too much now.

“Where’s that person?” Cui Zuojing asked.

“He’s gone.” Fu Zhe held the teacup with a calm expression and took a sip, his eyelashes drooping, covering his eyes.

Cui Zuojing gave a meaningful “Oh.” Suppressing his crazy curiosity, he asked as normal as he could. “Why is he gone?”

“Seeing that he wasn’t pleasing to the eye, I drove him away.”

“In what way wasn’t he pleasing to the eye?” Cui Zuojing asked.

The heart-stitched bear jumped off the sofa and happened to pass by Fu Zhe. He held Fu Zhe’s empty teacup on the top of his head with one hand and sent it to the kitchen.

Fu Zhe changed the subject. “Where is Dong Zheng?”

“He’s not coming. Right now, he’s busy every day and if dreaming had to wait, then he’s too tired to come.” Cui Zuojing would not be led by his nose and turned the topic back to him. “Tell me about it, maybe it will help?”

Fu Zhe sighed and told Cui Zuojing what happened that day.

“Although he won’t admit it, he still considered me as Morality in his heart. I can’t accept it.”

Cui Zuojing put his arms on the round table and rested his chin on them. He said, “In the gambling abyss, I discussed this issue with Dong Zheng. This is really a conundrum. I would feel like I’ve become my own substitute…To what extent has Morality merged with you now?”

“It has been completely merged.” Fu Zhe paused and said, “I need a way to wash away all of Morality’s memories, so that they won’t affect my judgement.”

“Affect your judgment?” Cui Zuojing blinked. “You don’t know whether you really like Cerberus? Or are you worried that those feelings are only from the moral fragment?”

“Both.”

“It seems that the focus now is to determine your feelings.” Cui Zuojing took in Fu Zhe from head to feet. Suddenly, his eyes flashed a sly look. Before Fu Zhe could react, he grabbed Fu Zhe’s wrist, leaned forward, and sat on Fu Zhe’s lap in a single move.

Fu Zhe: ………………

He was caught unprepared and subconsciously wanted to lean back away, but then Cui Zuojing directly hugged him. After leaving the Pure White Realm, it took Cui Zuojing about three months to recover his 24-year-old appearance, and so his body shape was basically similar to Fu Zhe. The recliner shook and creaked under their combined weight.

Fu Zhe was not accustomed to having too much physical contact with people, but there was nowhere to hide. Cui Zuojing’s chin rested on his shoulder, and the soft black hair at the top of his ears rubbed against the side of Fu Zhe’s neck. Fu Zhe raised his hands up, not knowing where to put them.

“How do you feel?” Cui Zuojing’s voice rang in his ears, sounding as if he was holding back a laugh. “Dong Zheng likes me holding him like this the most.”

“You’re so heavy.” Fu Zhe, who was being hugged, patted his back lightly, crying, “Get off.”

Fu Zhe was 13 years older than Cui Zuojing, who, when he first came to the Pure White Realm, was the same age as the students he’d taught in school. As a result, he’d always regarded Cui Zuojing as a student and a younger brother. He had no special feelings toward him at all.

Cui Zuojing didn’t get off. He merely straightened and made it so that most of his weight was not on Fu Zhe’s legs. He continued to half-sit on Fu Zhe and said seriously, “If it’s Cerberus holding you earlier, would you have felt differently?”

Fu Zhe leaned back against the recliner, raised his eyes, and looked at him for a long time. Finally, he softly said, “Yes.”

“Then you have him in your heart. Desire and hope are the most direct manifestation of loving someone. As for whether these feelings are caused by the morality fragment, you can make a hypothesis. If you met a person like Cerberus in the past, would you like him?”

Fu Zhe fell into silence. If things had gone on as usual and he suddenly met someone who was willing to accompany him and take care of him and was so infatuated, he would have no resistance at all.

Cui Zuojing observed his expression and roughly understood. “Look, in fact, after getting rid of the Morality factor, you yourself also need Cerberus.”

“But what about him? It’s been so long, but he still acts as if he’s still Morality’s slave. Even if I can recognize my feelings for him, can he distinguish between his feelings for Morality and for me?”

“I don’t know about this. You have to ask him yourself. Anyway, that dog is a clever man, he ought to understand.”

Fu Zhe laughed in spite of himself. “You give others such a strange nickname.”

“Isn’t he just like a big dog following you around all day long? As for the slave aspect of it…it’s probably hard for him to get rid of it so easily. After all, in the box he was in, he was borned a slave. Since he was a child, that concept was deeply instilled in him. Honestly, I didn’t expect you to care about it this much. Being the master of a slave isn’t so terrible; you can just treat it as role-playing every day.”

Fu Zhe didn’t know whether he ought to laugh or cry, but Cui Zuojing’s words really gave him a clear direction. He had always been annoyed that Cerberus was still positioning himself as a slave, but aside from asking Cerberus not to call him Master, he had never taught Cerberus what the normal way of getting along was.

Cui Zuojing stared at his expression and knew that his words had hit home. Fu Zhe was never an indulgent person. He was just more serious and earnest and always needed to be clear about his own actions.

As Fu Zhe was thinking about it, he suddenly heard Dong Zheng’s faint voice, “Should I not be here?”

Fu Zhe raised his head. Dong Zheng, who had just fallen asleep, was standing not far away, looking slowly from Cui Zuojing to him. The look in his eyes was unreadable as his gaze finally fixed on Fu Zhe’s hand on Cui Zuojing’s back.

Fu Zhe hurriedly let go, and tried to explain, “We are—“

Cui Zuojing deliberately said, “Yes, you are superfluous. Why bother us?”

He said this, but he still got off Fu Zhe’s legs. He looked at Fu Zhe and said earnestly, “Although there are people who can accompany you, it’s more complicated when it comes to emotional matters. But no matter what decision you make in the end, I will support you.”

After Dong Zheng and Cui Zuojing went to District Xll to look for Allen, Fu Zhe went to the bedroom to rest. He lay on the bed and closed his eyes. The words Cui Zuojing had said to him were still on his mind.

This was the fourth day that Cerberus was gone. He had become accustomed to the company and meticulous care of the other person. Suddenly, he admitted to himself that it was a lie to say that he wasn’t uncomfortable.

Where was Cerberus now? What was he doing?

Victor had said that when Cerberus left, he barely took any luggage. He’d lived inside a box and then at the castle. Could he adapt to a life of wandering alone in the Pure White Realm?

Fu Zhe had to admit that Cerberus had already taken a place in his heart. He would miss him unconsciously, and he would also have strands of concerns for him.

“…Mr. Fu.” Someone seemed to be calling him.

“Mr. Fu, I’m sorry, but I still want to tell you that I have found the person I am really looking for.”

There was a fog in front of him, and Cerberus’ voice rang in his ears, too far away for him to reach. Fu Zhe looked hard and finally managed to see the man not far away. The figure standing behind him was incredibly familiar; he looked exactly like what Fu Zhe would see in the mirror every day.

Cerberus stood close to the man, protecting him behind him like the most loyal knight. He seemed to be guarding Fu Zhe, for fear that he would make some radical move.

“Really?” Fu Zhe smiled a bright smile. His bamboo flute wasn’t on hand, and he couldn’t use it to cover up his emotions. He could only tighten his hands into fists, saying, “In that case, you can go.”

“I found the Master of Chaos and used my soul as a bargaining chip to ask her to return the last remaining space power to you and strip away Morality. Thank you very much for this period of time. Take care. From now on, I won’t bother you anymore.” Cerberus bowed to him. Those honey-colored eyes had looked at him with affection many times, but now, they no longer belonged to him.

Morality turned around first, and Cerberus followed, leaving without hesitation. Fu Zhe watched as the man’s back moved further and further away. He wanted very much to ask him to stay, but the pride in his bones wouldn’t allow him to make a sound, so he could only watch as Cerberus finally disappeared into the distant fog.

As if he’d never appeared in his life in the first place.

Fu Zhe woke up suddenly and felt the softness of the bed under him, only to realize that it was a dream.

He squeezed his eyes shut and calmed his panic-stricken breathing. His forehead was covered with a thin layer of cold sweat.

The room was completely dark. Except for himself, no one saw his embarrassment at this moment. With a light movement of his finger, the night lamp inlaid on the wall lit up, slightly illuminating the foot of the bed and the pendulum clock on the wall.

It was four o’clock in the morning, and there were faint voices talking outside. It should be Victor and the others coming out of a box. Fu Zhe wasn’t sure whether Luo Yan had anything to do with the dream just now, or better yet, maybe he just didn’t want to admit that he would take the initiative to dream about this all on his own.

The night light was slowly extinguished and everything returned to darkness. Fu Zhe was very sleepy, but couldn’t sleep for a long time. He lay quietly, silently digesting the mixed thoughts the dream had brought to life.

At the same time, in the Arrow of Revival.

Cerberus finally climbed all the way up to the Gates of Heaven. He looked down. The tall height made it difficult for him to breathe. This was human fear of falling to their death, an instinct engraved in their genes.

As the sun slowly sunk into the horizon, it cast a splendid fire that set the clouds ablaze.  When looking at it from a high altitude, it looked so huge that he felt as if, if he stretched out his hand, he could touch it.

Chang Hui was sitting above the Gates of Heaven, her feet hanging in the air, swaying. The little white beast was sitting obediently at her side.

Cerberus took a deep breath. Forcing himself not to look down, he walked toward her.

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