Dream Ghost

The moment Lin Ye's hand touched Lin Yuan's chest, the branches and leaves of the World Tree trembled simultaneously. It wasn't the wind; it was some deeper vibration originating from the roots, as if this giant tree, which had lived for countless millennia, sensed something—an ancient consciousness was peeling away from its trunk, while another young consciousness was filling the void.

Lin Yuan's body began to glow. It wasn't the purple light from Lin Ye's palm, but a warm, golden light, like the last rays of sunlight at dusk. The light spread from his chest to his shoulders, from his shoulders to his arms, from his arms to his fingertips, until finally his entire body became a soft golden halo, like an oil lamp about to burn out, burning with all its might in its final moments.

"Don't resist." Lin Yuan's voice came from the ball of light, calm as if he were teaching his son to ride a bicycle. "My fragments of consciousness will automatically merge into your consciousness. You just need to accept it. No need to analyze, no need to interpret, no need for rules to interfere. Just accept it."

Lin Ye closed his eyes. His consciousness was like a vast ocean, while Lin Yuan's consciousness was like a river. When the river flowed into the ocean, there were no waves, no towering surges, only a slow, irreversible merging. He could feel his father's presence—not fragmented memories, not vague emotions, but a complete, living personality. Lin Yuan's joys and sorrows, his fears and courage, his regrets and pride, all transformed into warm water, seeping little by little into the depths of Lin Ye's consciousness.

He saw a study. It wasn't large, with bookshelves stretching from floor to ceiling, crammed full of books. A little boy of seven or eight sat at the desk, holding a yellowed notebook, his brow furrowed, as if reading a difficult book. A man stood behind him, bent over, pointing at the notebook. It was Lin Yuanzhou, young Lin Yuanzhou, his hair still black, his back still straight, his voice deep and patient.

"This is our family rule," Lin Yuanzhou said. "Each generation must write down the rules of dreams and pass them on to the next. Your great-grandfather wrote the first book, your grandfather wrote the second, and I wrote the third. When you grow up, you will write the fourth."

The little boy looked up, his eyes filled with curiosity and a hint of defiance.

"Why our family? Can't we remember other people's names?"

"No one else has our talent. The Lin family's consciousness frequency naturally resonates with the rules of dreams. What others take ten years to learn, we can learn in a year."

"Does that mean I'm better than others?"

Lin Yuanzhou smiled and ruffled his son's hair.

"Being capable isn't about surpassing others. It's about protecting others."

The scene shifts. Lin Yuan has grown up, now eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing the association's old-fashioned uniform, standing in front of the teleportation array. Chen Xuan stands beside him, much younger than he is now, with black hair, no wrinkles on his face, and a fearless, youthful glint in his eyes.

"Are you sure you want to go?" Chen Xuan asked.

"Sure."

"No one has entered the first seal for over three hundred years. Nobody knows what's inside."

"That's why I'm going." Lin Yuan stuffed a black anchor into his pocket. "My dad said that the Lin family has guarded the seal for generations. Not the 'place,' but the 'rules.' As long as the rules exist, the seal exists. If the rules don't exist, the seal doesn't exist. I'm going to check if the rules are still there."

"Your father's rule is from three thousand years ago. Times have changed."

"The rules won't change." Lin Yuan stepped into the teleportation array, glanced back at Chen Xuan, and said, "Wait for me to come back."

He didn't return. The scene shifted again. Lin Yuan stood beneath the World Tree, its silvery-white trunk emitting a soft light behind him. His body began to become transparent, disappearing bit by bit, starting from his feet.

"This is the only way." He spoke to the air, as if someone were listening, but there was no one else in the scene. "The seal is weakening, and the World Tree is withering. Someone needs to inject their consciousness into the trunk to reactivate the seal. I am the last generation of the Lin family, and this is my responsibility."

His body became increasingly transparent, like a piece of melting ice.

"Take care of someone for me," he said. "She doesn't know what I've done. Her name is Shen Ruo. My son isn't born yet. Take a look and see if it's a boy or a girl. Tell Shen Ruo, I—"

He didn't finish speaking. His transparent body transformed into a ball of golden light, merging into the silvery-white tree trunk. The seventh seal on the trunk lit up—a thin golden line stretched from the roots all the way to an unseen height.

The scene ended. Lin Ye opened his eyes and found himself kneeling on the grass beneath the World Tree, his hands supporting him on the ground, tears falling drop by drop onto the blades of grass. His palms were still glowing, and the purple marks had deepened considerably, from light purple to a deep purple, like the color of ripe grapes.

[Devour/Inheritance Completed]

[Target: Lin Yuan - Consciousness Fragment - Completeness 73%]

[Rule analysis in progress - no analysis needed, bloodline resonance will complete automatically]

[Gained Ability: World Tree Perception (Can sense the state of the World Tree's seal, covering the entire Dream Continent)]

[Gained Ability: Rule Writing (Can temporarily create new rules in dreams; duration depends on the complexity of the rules)]

[Gained Ability: Bloodline Resonance (Can inherit all fragments of consciousness left behind by the Lin family unconditionally, regardless of level difference)]

[Fragment Evolution: Scroll Level (3%) → Scroll Level (31%)]

[Residual consciousness: 4% → 6%]

Lin Ye knelt on the grass, his hands supporting him on the ground, panting heavily. His residual consciousness had only increased by two percentage points, because the fragments of his father contained no fear or pain, only experience and memories. Those experiences and memories were like a thick book, turning page by page, each page telling him—who you are, where you came from, and where you are going.

He stood up, wiped away his tears, and looked up at the World Tree.

On the tree trunk, the seventh seal disappeared. It wasn't shattered, nor dissipated; it had fulfilled its purpose. The fragments of Lin Yuan's consciousness had been detached from him and merged into Lin Ye's consciousness, so the seal was no longer needed. However, six seals remained on the tree trunk, each one fainter than the last, counting upwards from the roots. The first seal was almost invisible, the second was also faint, the third was slightly more noticeable, and the fourth, fifth, and sixth deepened in that order.

Six seals, six Night Watchmen. Lin Yuanzhou's father, Lin Yuanzhou's grandfather, Lin Yuanzhou's great-grandfather... going back to the first generation of Night Watchmen three thousand years ago. Their consciousnesses still slumber within the tree trunk, waiting to be awakened or inherited.

Lin Ye didn't touch those seals. Not now. His current level was 31% of the Scroll level, still a long way from becoming a Dream Domain Master. The fragments of consciousness within those seals were older and more powerful than Lin Yuan's; with his current consciousness capacity, forcibly inheriting them might cause him to explode.

He turned around and found Chen Xuan, Su Wanning, and Gu Yan standing not far away. They didn't approach; they just stood there, watching him. Su Wanning's eyes were red, and Chen Xuan's expression was complex, as if he were seeing an old friend's child finally grow up. Gu Yan's face was expressionless, but the illusory image at the edge of his consciousness projection faded slightly—not from depletion, but from stabilization, as if he had seen something that reassured him.

"Are you alright?" Su Wanning walked over.

"It's alright." Lin Ye's voice was a little hoarse. He cleared his throat. "I saw my father."

"I know," Su Wanning said, looking at him. "Your expression has already told me."

Lin Ye didn't ask what her expression was like. He knew. He had seen the same expression on his father's face—that complex emotion that welled up from the bottom of his heart after seeing the person he wanted to see, saying the words he wanted to say, and doing the things he needed to do, a bittersweet feeling that made him want to cry and laugh at the same time.

Chen Xuan walked over and stood in front of Lin Ye, looking at the deep purple mark on his palm.

"Thirty-one percent for roll-to-roll," he said. "That's higher than mine."

"How long have you been stuck in the late stages of Dreamweaver?"

"Five years." Chen Xuan's tone was calm, but Lin Ye could detect a hint of resentment beneath the calm. "My fragments have never awakened. I may never awaken them in this lifetime."

"Not necessarily," Lin Ye said. "My father has a fragment of memory about you in his consciousness."

Chen Xuan looked at him.

"What memories?"

He said, "The fifth fragment isn't unawakened; it's waiting for you to be ready. The fragment has a spirit, and it will choose the most appropriate time to appear. It's not that you're not qualified; it's just that the time hasn't come yet."

Chen Xuan remained silent for a long time. The wind rustled through the branches of the World Tree, and the luminous crystals swayed gently in the canopy, producing a clear, chiming sound. The sound was beautiful, as if someone were singing from afar.

"What else did your father say?" Chen Xuan asked.

"He said that your daughter—Chen Zhihan—her consciousness was not destroyed by the Dream Weavers. They are storing her in a processing plant, along with other fragments of consciousness. Her completeness may not be high, but as long as it exceeds 30%, there is a chance to recover."

Chen Xuan's hands began to tremble. The man who dared to face the rules of time alone in the Dream Continent, the man known as "Iron Man" in the association, Chen Xuan's hands were shaking. He didn't speak, but simply put his trembling hands into his pockets, turned around, and faced away from everyone.

Lin Ye didn't go over. He knew Chen Xuan needed to be alone for a while. Some things, no one else could help with; you had to process them yourself. Just like how he was processing his father's memories, he walked forward while tears streamed down his face.

Su Wanning walked to Lin Ye's side and said softly, "We should go back. Although your remaining consciousness is only six percent, inheriting Lin Yuan's fragments has consumed a lot of your mental energy. You need to rest."

Lin Ye nodded. He took one last look at the World Tree—the silvery-white, star-studded giant tree that supported the entire Dream Continent. The six seals on the trunk remained, quiet and silent, like six long-healed scars.

"I will come back," he whispered, "and bring you all back."

He activated the anchor point.

The white light engulfed everything.

When he returned to the association headquarters, the light from the teleportation array hadn't completely faded yet, and Lin Ye already sensed something was wrong. Not danger, but a change. His World Tree perception was automatically activated, like a newly activated radar scanning the entire Dream Continent. He could sense the World Tree's condition—its trunk was stable, its canopy lush, and its roots deeply embedded. But somewhere in the trunk, there was a tiny crack.

It's not a crack in the seal. It's a crack in the tree trunk itself. It's like something is gnawing inside the trunk, expanding outwards from the inside.

"The World Tree is injured," Lin Ye said.

Zhou Zhou stood up from the control panel and adjusted his glasses.

"What?"

"Someone is inside the World Tree." Lin Ye closed his eyes, carefully sensing the location of the crack. "Not on the surface of the trunk, but inside. It could be some kind of creature that can penetrate the rules, or—someone has already implanted their consciousness into the World Tree."

Gu Yan's expression changed.

"Impossible. The World Tree was sealed by the first generation of Night Watchmen with their lives; it cannot be invaded from the outside."

"It's impossible from the outside, but possible from the inside." Lin Ye opened his eyes. "What if someone was inside from the very beginning? Three thousand years ago, when the first generation of Night Watchmen sealed the World Tree, was it possible that—the Dream Weavers were also inside?"

Gu Yan fell silent.

Chen Xuan walked back from the corridor, his hands no longer trembling, and his expression returned to its usual composure.

"We'll talk about this when we get back," he said. "The teleportation array isn't the place to discuss this."

Several people walked out of the teleportation array, through the corridor, and into the conference room. The conference room was small, with a long table, a few chairs, and a map of the Dream Continent hanging on the wall. Lin Ye sat down at the table and drew the information that the World Tree had sensed on a piece of paper—the shape of the trunk, the location of the cracks, and the faint, irregular fluctuations of consciousness around the cracks.

"These fluctuations aren't human," he said. "nor are they from dream creatures. It's a consciousness frequency I've never seen before. It doesn't seem like it's attacking the World Tree; it's more like—it's communicating with the World Tree."

"A dialogue?" Su Wanning frowned. "Is the World Tree conscious?"

"Yes," Lin Ye said. "It's not human consciousness, it's the tree's consciousness. It's slow, deep, like a sleeping person talking in their sleep. That frequency is talking to it, trying to wake it up."

What would happen if the World Tree were awakened?

Lin Ye looked at his drawing and remained silent for a few seconds.

"If the World Tree awakens, it will take root anew. Its roots are in the real world, and its branches are in the Dream Continent. If it moves even slightly, both worlds will experience earthquakes. Not physical earthquakes, but earthquakes of the rules. The physical rules of the real world will be disrupted, and the dream rules of the Dream Continent will be reshaped. At that time, the abilities of those who enter dreams may become ineffective, dream creatures may go out of control, and the seal of primordial fear—although it has been lifted, if the World Tree moves, the fragments of the seal may be reactivated."

"You mean the primal fear might return?" Su Wanning asked.

"I don't know. They might come back, or they might not." Lin Ye put down his pen. "But one thing is certain—if the World Tree awakens, the Dream Weavers' three-thousand-year plan will have succeeded. They don't want to break the seal of primordial fear, nor do they want to destroy the World Tree. What they want is for the World Tree to 'move.' Once the World Tree moves, the boundary between reality and dreams will blur. In that blurred state, they can do anything—enter anyone's dream, extract anyone's consciousness, and no one can stop them."

The meeting room remained quiet for a long time.

Gu Yan leaned back in his chair, his eyes closed, as if deep in thought. Chen Xuan stared at the map on the wall, his gaze falling on the location of the World Tree—the deepest part of the Dream Continent, below the Forbidden Layer, a place unmarked on the map.

"Do you have a way to stop it?" Chen Xuan asked.

Lin Ye looked at the deep purple mark on his palm.

"Yes. But it will take time."

"how long?"

"I don't know." Lin Ye stood up. "I need to find that thing inside the World Tree first. Only after finding it can I find a way to stop it. Before that, I need to become stronger."

He walked to the door and stopped.

"Team Leader Chen."

"Um."

"I'll help you investigate your daughter's matter. Once the World Tree issue is resolved, I'll go with you to find her."

Chen Xuan looked at him, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

"it is good."

Lin Ye walked out of the conference room and into the corridor. It was already dark outside the window, and the light from the streetlights shone through the window onto the floor, like an orange river. His shadow stretched long on the floor, like a growing tree.

He looked down at his shadow and suddenly a phrase came to mind—the roots of the World Tree are planted in reality, while its branches reach into dreams. And the Lin family, generation after generation, is the trunk that connects the roots and the branches.

The deep purple mark on his palm shone quietly in the streetlight, like a small, inextinguishable star.