Chapter 37: The Potential of the Dream Guiding Art
“Last night, I dreamed I was living in a Golden Crisp Cake Cave, eating and sleeping all day. My parents didn't care about my schoolwork at all; they just wanted me to grow up happy, saying that all their family assets would be mine, letting me be a happy Landlord (Pig) Wife.”
“I also dreamed that I cultivated into a Great Demon, and found several Boar Demons, each with thick, glossy fur, fat and strong. They were all incredibly wealthy and pampered, spoiled, and loved me. I gave birth to litter after litter of cute, obedient piglets, and owned ten thousand acres of fertile land, hmph!”
Fu Shaoguang's heart twitched upon hearing this.
Did you really think you were the Pig Charmer, Mary Pig?
“What time did you wake up?”
“I just woke up before coming to the Demon Academy.”
“Did you not wake up in between?”
“How did you know? That sleep last night was so comfortable, I didn't even wake up hungry. What's the deal? Can the Dream Guiding Art even tell that?”
“The Dream Guiding Art isn't that mystical; I guessed it. This technique is merely a catalyst. What dream occurs depends partly on the dream-weaving ability of the caster and partly on the subconscious desires of the recipient. Once you wake up, the spell is interrupted. You had two consecutive dreams, but I only wove one. The latter dream was clearly a daydream, which is why it was so disorganized.”
Zhu Yun glared: You're talking about organization to a demon like me? Was it you who didn't wake up, or was it you who didn't wake up?
Seeing Fu Shaoguang's gaze turn toward Gongyang Yang, Zhu Yun coiled her pink little pig tail into a cinnamon roll and murmured: “Who says daydreams can't come true?” Her right front chubby hoof dug a small hole in the ground. At this moment, a spark ignited in her heart.
Gongyang Yang put down the Bamboo Slip and said unhurriedly: “I dreamed I owned a bookstore with tens of thousands of volumes, I dreamed I was admitted to the Demon Academy and became a Demon Master, educating all living beings. I also dreamed I taught several Great Demons, making the Yushan Demon Clan famous far and wide, becoming a Holy Land worshipped by all demons, meh meh meh!”
He involuntarily stood up on his hind legs, raising his two front goat hooves high, his eyes burning with fire. Zhu Yun was stunned, her pig eyes wide with disbelief. This Silly Goat actually had a wilder imagination than her. Should I praise your lofty ideals? Or call you delusional?
What was even more unbelievable to her was that Fu Bug nodded in agreement and said: “Where there's a will, there's a way. A good young man should aim high. I believe your beautiful dream will certainly come true.”
Zhu Yun's pig mouth couldn't close. Are you two serious, or just messing around? Seeing the two demons look at her in unison, Zhu Yun instinctively wiggled her rear, her pig tail uncurling and curling again, and she opened her mouth to encourage them:
“Silly Goat, just based on how you can't walk past a book, you'll definitely get what you wish for someday. When that time comes, I'll rely on you to look after my eldest cub, second cub, third cub, and youngest cub. Make sure you teach them to become Great Demons and revitalize my Old Zhu Family.”
Gongyang Yang nodded repeatedly, tears welling up in his eyes, deeply moved. Although teaching a bunch of piglets in the future would be extremely stressful, it didn't matter. Those who are capable should take on more work; he would just treat it as raising (goat) pigs.
Fu Shaoguang was slightly stunned. He had only woven the dream of Gongyang Yang becoming an Instructor at the Demon Academy; the rest was entirely the result of his own free expression. His affirmation was merely to avoid crushing the kid's confidence, purely offering a word or two of encouragement, but he didn't expect the two demons to take it so seriously.
Although the dreams were hard to describe, the feedback from the two demons was concrete and provided a lot of information. While the Instructor hadn't arrived, Fu Shaoguang quickly sorted the information. The effect of the Dream Guiding Art was better than expected. The later deviation was not much related to him; it was mainly the work of the recipient's own desires.
This showed that the Dream Guiding Art could stir up certain desires in living beings. If he wove pleasant dreams, it could evoke good intentions, causing goodwill to automatically amplify, piling joy upon joy. What about weaving nightmares?
Fu Shaoguang shivered at the thought. He felt that this technique had higher potential than he had imagined. The Golden Spider Demon Instructor hung upside down from the beam, and Fu Shaoguang temporarily focused his mind and concentrated on his studies.
Back home. Fu Shaoguang continued to ponder, organizing his thoughts and recording his insights and various hypotheses on the Bamboo Slip. At midnight, the Qi collection was complete. He repeated his old trick, took out two hairs, cast the Dream Guiding Art, and the hairs turned into dream smoke, floating out of the courtyard.
It turned out that Zhu Yun and Gongyang Yang had willingly offered themselves to help Fu Shaoguang continue verifying the effects of the Dream Guiding Art. Fu Shaoguang naturally didn't want his friends to suffer, so he decided to let Zhu Yun rest for a few days before tutoring again, and also promised to let Gongyang Yang look through the books Headmaster Ji Mo had given him.
Out of goodwill, he only wove two minor nightmares: a tiny spark of fire and a thin bamboo pole. As for how effective they would be, that depended on the two demons' fate.
Before going to sleep, Fu Shaoguang wove a pleasant dream for himself, preparing to personally experience the power of the Dream Guiding Art. Vaguely, he felt as if he was falling into a mist. He found himself in a bamboo forest. Green bamboo led into a secluded path, and green gauze brushed against her clothes as she walked.
A graceful figure held a green gauze umbrella, walking barefoot on the bluestone path. Her snow-white feet were delicate and small. A gentle breeze blew, swaying the bamboo forest, lifting her black hair and her green robes. The Concept was beautiful, and the scene was vivid. The next moment, Fu Shaoguang was stomped to death. He woke up abruptly.
He found himself back in his courtyard. Thinking of the scene just now, Fu Shaoguang felt lingering fear. He had only woven a pleasant dream where he hoped to be valued by Empress Yuli and receive more rewards, yet the pleasant dream had turned into a nightmare.
“Fortunately, it was just a dream.”
Looking at the scattered stars and bright moon outside the window, Fu Shaoguang temporarily lost the desire to sleep. He flew out of his room and basked in the moonlight in the courtyard to relieve the stress of the nightmare. Unexpectedly, a giant scallion-white hand descended from the sky, and he was easily taken away without any ability to resist.
When he reappeared, the surroundings were pitch black. As the black cloth was lifted, a faint green candlelight shone in. A beautiful and intelligent face appeared before him—it was Empress Yuli. At this moment, her face was stern as she said:
“Little Bug, obediently stay locked in this cage and write the chronicles of the great sage for This Old Mother. As long as you serve me well, you won't lack for anything. Otherwise, This Old Mother will find you a bunch of female Mayflies and make you contribute your last bit of strength to the great cause of racial continuation.”
Saying this, she let go. The black cloth blocked the light. Candlelight rose inside the black cage. Fu Shaoguang was so frightened that he woke up again. Opening his eyes and looking around, he was suspicious and feared he was still dreaming. A third layer of dream? Or was it over already?
It wasn't until he took out a needle and sharply pricked himself, feeling intense pain, that he realized this was not a dream. Lying by the window basking in the moonlight, Fu Shaoguang calmed his mind while his thoughts churned. Judging from his personal experience, it was best not to use the Dream Guiding Art on himself. What was uncertain was whether casting the spell on oneself caused a reverse effect, or if it always triggered adverse reactions?
After careful consideration, Fu Shaoguang felt none of that mattered. He wasn't afraid of nightmares. Nor was he afraid of the nightmares continuously worsening. Rather, he felt it was unnecessary. Truly, truly, truly! He even felt he wouldn't need to do this again in the future. Nightmares affect sleep and mental health, interfere with a pleasant mood, and impact the effectiveness of health preservation. Rounding up, nightmares equal chronic suicide. Absolutely unacceptable!
Inside the bamboo house, Yu Li woke up. Rubbing her brow, she murmured: “This Nanke Wine is potent indeed! Drinking just two liang made me dream of locking that Little Bug in a small black cage and pressing him for updates. That was quite satisfying! If I added some razor blades and put insect repellent next to it for deterrence, it would be even more thrilling.”
The following evening, the Three Demons reunited at the Demon Academy, all looking listless. Zhu Yun and Gongyang Yang looked at Fu Shaoguang with complicated expressions. When he asked for the details of their dreams, their faces instantly turned fearful, and they looked ready to cry.
“Fire! Such a huge fire! All my tens of thousands of books burned completely, clean away, sob, sob, sob.”
“Beating! Endless beating! My parents gave me a mixed doubles beating for a month, breaking sixty bamboo poles.”
When discussing the dreams, the two demons' gazes were accusatory. If this guy hadn't lured them with postponed tutoring (and books), how could they have fallen for it?
Fu Shaoguang felt a tiny bit of pain. Definitely not conscience pain! Rather, it was pain for what his two friends had experienced. “What about you? Why do you look like this?” Zhu Yun asked. Gongyang Yang listened.
Fu Shaoguang coughed lightly and said, “To share the hardship, I also wove a nightmare for myself last night.”
Zhu Yun:!!!
Gongyang Yang: <(*￣▽￣*)/
They didn't know why. Despite being touched, they really wanted to laugh.
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