Chapter 395

“It’s coming soon.”

If he’d heard Leon’s question ten minutes ago, the tall and skinny man would’ve probably not even bothered to grunt a response, and if he was feeling irritated, he might’ve even thrown in some sarcastic remarks just to relieve some stress.

But now, he pointed upwards with his finger, gazing at the Nightmare River pouring into the night sky, patiently explaining:

“Within the range of Soulfall Black Abyss, the Nightmare King cannot truly be killed. It’s one of the more cautious types among the evil gods. To avoid being wiped out by the Bureau, it usually doesn’t leave the boundaries of the Soulfall Black Abyss.”

“And those black waters of the Nightmare River are another form of extension of the Soulfall Black Abyss. As long as it doesn’t leave the Nightmare River’s range, it can infinitely resurrect itself even after being killed.”

“According to past records from the Bureau, once the waters of the Nightmare River fully spread out and provide it with a sufficiently safe foothold, that’s when its true arrival will happen.”

When the river spreads out? After hearing the Scorpion Bureau Director’s explanation, Leon looked up at the stormy night sky, still unsure what “fully spread out” meant. Just as he was about to ask again, he suddenly realized his limbs were slightly cold.

Then, in the pitch-black night sky of the Capital City without any stars or moon, large snowflakes began to fall abruptly. Nearby rivers inexplicably started freezing over.

“Be on guard, the real elites are about to descend, and there’s more than one.”

After glancing at the nearby dried-up riverbed for some reason, the tall, thin man furrowed his brows, lips cracked and dry. He then kicked aside a box near his feet, retrieved a token and held it tightly. After pondering for a moment, he took out a crown carved with a dog’s head and carefully placed it on his own head.

“Woof!”

A cheerful bark echoed, and as the Scorpion Bureau Director adjusted the dog-head crown, a large dog wearing a crown of thorns appeared silently beside Leon.

“This time, the nightmares coming aren’t like the previous batch. I may not be able to protect you all the time.”

After piercing through the throat of a pale doll with his sword and executing hundreds of Dream Realm creatures, the tall man holding the token gave instructions:

“This dog is an Anomalous Item named ‘Crown Thorn Hound,’ which can carry part of my will. Remember not to leave this dog’s side. If I get caught up with the nightmares… woof… woof woof!”

Before the Scorpion Bureau Director could finish speaking, a gust of hot wind brought a cloud of arid yellow sand onto him, turning his subsequent words into muffled barks.

Meanwhile, Leon, only two steps away, suddenly felt a bone-chilling cold rush through his nose and into his lungs, sharply outlining every organ inside him.

Then, the world around him changed abruptly—from the waiting area near the Yunhe Canal dock in the Capital City to a snowy mountain trail. All around were icy ravines and trees broken apart by the fierce winds.

“Woof… If I’m tied up, this dog can temporarily protect you. Once I deal with the trouble over there, I’ll come find you.”

After finishing the Scorpion Bureau Director’s sentence for him, the large dog with the crown of thorns glanced around and continued speaking: “Be careful. The nightmare targeting you seems to originate from a folk legend of Frostland Country. Those foolish people believed that the Winter Spirit transforms into a beautiful woman with pale skin during the coldest winter nights, luring travelers deeper into the snowstorm until they freeze to death in the mountains.”

“Understood.”

Rubbing his arms covered in goosebumps from the cold wind, Leon couldn’t help but edge closer to the warm dog before asking,

“Mr. Edward, what’s going on over there? What exactly are these nightmares?”

“Woof… My situation is similar, but I have six nightmares, namely the Green Surge Leviathan, the Human-faced Forest Spirit, the Plague Maiden, Blood Coral, Swamp King Snake, and Sand Dune Giant Worm.

These six monsters seem to have been enhanced by the Nightmare King specifically to hold me down. They don’t confront me directly but expand their corresponding nightmares instead, running endlessly through deserts, oceans, swamps, and forests.”

After recounting his predicament, the dog lifted its hind leg to scratch its chin and, while sniffing Leon, continued advising,

“My six nightmares are a bit troublesome. I’m not sure how the Nightmare King did it, but they might have been fed large amounts of True God flesh, giving them partial divinity, making them a little harder to kill.

Just hang in there a bit longer. Once I find and eliminate all six of them, I’ll break the dreams they’ve created and go save you… Damn! How does this worm keep escaping so well?”

“…”

If I’m not mistaken, he’s no help either…

Though it doesn’t really matter. With my luck, expecting to pass unscathed by relying on someone else was impossible anyway. I didn’t count on him being dependable from the start.

Looking at the dog who suddenly left mid-sentence, scratched against a dead tree, and then lifted its leg to pee, Leon couldn’t help but sigh. He waited for it to finish urinating nearby while observing the valley ahead.

Based on known intelligence, this snow-covered valley is a nightmare world sustained by the Snow Maiden’s abilities. In other words, I’ve been forcibly dragged into her dream.

However, although the Snow Maiden is the master of this dream, she’s still a nightmare born from folklore, so she can’t act freely like me—turning into Ultraman or Saiyan whenever I want. She must follow certain rules and stay close to her own legends.

According to the legends of Frostland Country, she doesn’t directly attack travelers. Instead, she stirs up violent snowstorms, using the cold to pressure the traveler’s willpower and then tricks them into stepping into the snowstorm, eventually freezing them to death.

As long as I remember this, staying put in a mountain hollow or somewhere safe, avoiding walking straight into the snowstorm, I should be relatively safe. Besides, there’s still the Scorpion Bureau Director’s dog here…

Hmm… Speaking of dogs, where did it go? Is it still peeing? And why am I venturing into the mountains in such harsh weather with a dog? Wouldn’t it be better to stay warm at home? Unless… am I actually a hunter? Oh yeah, what’s my name again?

(End of Chapter)