Lucid Dreamer: Dream Hunt

Chapter 4: Master?!

The final bell of the morning rang, as if breaking a seal. The classroom instantly erupted into a clamor as students, like a released flood, surged toward the cafeteria. Soon, the noise faded, leaving behind only empty desks and chairs… and Lu Ziyan, leaning on his crutch, unable to move quickly.

His homeroom teacher treated him like a top-priority case. Despite his repeated assurances that he was fine, she insisted on arranging for classmates to bring him lunch in shifts. It made him a little uncomfortable, but he couldn't refuse her kindness.

Footsteps sounded, and someone walked in carrying two clear plastic lunch boxes. It was the new art student transfer, Qing Wen. He was undeniably handsome, with a head of black hair that looked effortlessly stylish and sharp, almost mixed-race features that gave his face a sense of depth. It was just that his eyes always seemed a bit lazy, like a cat that hadn't quite woken up, exuding the distinct, laid-back aura of an art student.

At No. 18 High, aside from the Monday flag-raising ceremony, wearing the school uniform wasn't mandatory. Qing Wen dressed casually, even a bit sloppily. The sleeves of his oversized shirt were so long they covered half his hands, yet somehow, the whole look came together with an unintentional sense of fashion. Lu Ziyan noticed his hands—fair, with long, slender, well-defined fingers. They looked like they were made to hold a paintbrush or a carving knife. If he were a girl, he might have developed a crush on Qing Wen just because of those hands.

The guy had a unique vibe, a blend of lazy and slightly melancholic artistry. It wasn't that there weren't other boys at school who tried to imitate this style, but they all came off as forced and clumsy in comparison. When Qing Wen first transferred, he caused a stir among nearly all the girls in the school, but just like Xu Liusè, he was a lone wolf, like a male version of the "ice queen." Lu Ziyan grumbled internally: one of them is an unapproachable iceberg, the other is too melancholic to talk to anyone—they really are a match made in heaven. No wonder neither of them has any friends.

However, his way of rejecting people was different from Xu Liusè's. She was direct and cold; Qing Wen, on the other hand, was more like he didn't hear or see you. He neither accepted nor explicitly refused, simply carrying on as he pleased. It was said that no fewer than a dozen girls had confessed to him, openly or secretly, but he remained shrouded in a fog, impossible to read. Who knows how many were still holding on to that hopeless expectation.

"Hey, Lu Ziyan, right? Your lunch." Qing Wen walked over and placed the lunch box on his desk, his tone as flat as if he were saying, "The teacher wants to see you in the office." Before Lu Ziyan could even thank him, he turned and went back to his own seat.

After sitting down, he took out his sketchbook and began to draw again. Midway through, he habitually raised his right hand and gently bit the second knuckle of his index finger.

This tiny movement made Lu Ziyan's heart skip a beat. He knew that gesture all too well—a "Reality Check Trigger"! He was using the sensation of pain to confirm whether or not he was in a dream.

Lu Ziyan was instantly energized. He had been wondering how to strike up a conversation with this strange guy, and he hadn't even said thank you yet. This was the perfect opening.

He picked up his crutch and tap, tap, tapped his way over to Qing Wen's desk.

"Qing Wen, thanks for getting my lunch. Sorry for the trouble."

Swoosh— Like a startled rabbit, Qing Wen slammed his sketchbook shut. A flash of panic crossed his face before he quickly reverted to his usual lazy demeanor. "Oh, you're welcome."

"What are you drawing? So secretive?" Lu Ziyan feigned curiosity.

"Nothing, just an OC," Qing Wen said, his tone a bit unnatural.

"OC? What's that?" Lu Ziyan looked blank.

"It's... an original character. A character I designed myself..." Qing Wen's expression was slightly awkward, as if he wasn't used to discussing this with people.

Lu Ziyan sighed internally. Welp, the conversation was about to die. Better just get straight to the point.

"You're... practicing lucid dreaming, aren't you?" he asked, lowering his voice.

"Huh?" Qing Wen's head shot up. The laziness in his eyes vanished, replaced by surprise and immense interest. "How did you know? You know about this stuff too?"

"Know about it?" Lu Ziyan put on a deliberately smug air. "I'm a seasoned lucid dreamer. So, maybe I can give you some pointers."

Qing Wen's eyes lit up instantly, as if he'd just found a long-lost brother in arms.

He immediately shoved his sketchbook into his desk and pulled out a book with a cover wrapped in plain paper—clearly contraband for school. It was titled How to Have a Lucid Dream. Lu Ziyan chuckled to himself. Definitely a rookie, still reading introductory stuff like this.

"This is great! To be honest, I'm practicing lucid dreaming for my OCs!" Qing Wen suddenly became a chatterbox, his excitement palpable. "I want to create a real world for them! I feel like my dream is about to come true!"

He eagerly opened his sketchbook again to show Lu Ziyan his "children." Lu Ziyan listened as he explained the world of "Saltlands"—where salt was a precious, magic-infused resource that everyone had to ingest regularly to avoid "salt deficiency"—and looked at the character in the red coat, "Carsejaw," hailed as a once-in-a-century genius mage of the Hua'an Empire. Then there was "Ji Chen," an executioner from the "Necromantic Sect," whose sister had accidentally ingested dragon's blood... He nodded along, but inwardly he thought the whole setup was a bit cringey.

"See? As long as I can completely master lucid dreaming, I can create the Saltlands, and Ji Chen and Carsejaw can become real, living people!" Qing Wen's face was full of hope, his eyes shining with idealistic light.

"Yeah, the world-building is pretty solid, and the character designs are exquisite..." Lu Ziyan started with an affirmation before his tone shifted, becoming serious. "But, I have to warn you, the world of lucid dreams isn't just a playground for making your dreams come true. If you're not careful... it can get you killed."

"Killed? What do you mean?" The excitement on Qing Wen's face faded, replaced by confusion.

"What stage are you at now?"

"I've gotten pretty good at knowing when I'm dreaming and changing things in the dream, but it always feels... unstable. Like I could lose consciousness at any moment and fall back into a regular dream."

"That means your connection to the dreamscape isn't strong enough yet. More practice will fix that." Lu Ziyan's heart sank. It seemed Qing Wen knew nothing about the dangers of the dream world. He took a deep breath and decided to tell him the truth. "But more importantly, dreams aren't isolated islands. They can connect to each other through 'gates,' weaving together into a vast 'Dreamworld.'"

He briefly explained the existence of the Dreamworld and its most dangerous predators—the Asura.

"So you're saying... a lot of people's dreams are actually connected? They form a public world? And there are monsters called Asura in there that steal people's hearts? And then in the real world, you get Bloodthirst Syndrome and die? The nightmares ordinary people have about seeing 'unclean things' are actually encounters with Asura, and they only wake up before they die because their connection to the dream isn't strong?" Qing Wen processed this information, his face a mask of shock.

"Exactly. Once you establish a stable connection to the dreamscape, it means you've willingly stepped into that world, and you've also become a potential prey for the Asura. You have to think carefully about whether you want to continue down this path," Lu Ziyan warned solemnly.

Qing Wen fell silent, looking down at the meticulously drawn characters in his sketchbook. But after just a few seconds, he looked up, the hesitation in his eyes gone, replaced by a determined light.

"Yeah... that's a little scary," he admitted, but there was no hint of retreat in his voice. "But I'm going to continue. I won't regret it! Lu Ziyan, please, help me!" He had naturally started using his first name.

"Just call me Ziyan! So, from now on, we're friends?" Lu Ziyan smiled. He was genuinely happy. In that bizarre and fantastical Dreamworld, he finally had a companion he could talk to.

"Yeah, friends!" Qing Wen broke into a sincere smile as well.

Just then, Lu Ziyan's Bluetooth wristband vibrated slightly. The screen showed a new friend request. The ID was "Birch."

Was it Birch? He had just remembered that he had been so busy with his hospital discharge yesterday that he had forgotten to add him.

"Sorry, Qing Wen, I need to reply to a message." Lu Ziyan hobbled back to his seat on his crutch and carefully retrieved his phone from a hidden compartment in his backpack. At No. 18 High, that thing was absolute contraband. A phone inside the walls of the school was more dangerous than a turd in a pressure cooker. Getting caught with one on any inch of school grounds would have consequences worse than having your leg broken by a slide tackle.

He quickly pocketed the phone, made an excuse about going to the bathroom, and tap-tapped his way to the restroom.

Hiding in a stall, he accepted the request.

Birch: Lu Ziyan? This is Birch!

Lu Ziyan: Yep, that's me. Hi!

Birch: Which district are you in? I'll see which seafood place is closest. I'll come over to your area tomorrow, Saturday.

Lu Ziyan: Jiangbei District. I go to No. 18 High. But unfortunately, we don't get the day off on Saturday, only the evening is free.

Birch: No. 18 High? What a coincidence! I'm right across the street at Xianlan High!

Lu Ziyan was a little surprised. It was Xianlan High, diagonally across from his school. Unlike the small and run-down public Capital No. 18 High, Xianlan was a prestigious private school that boasted of "mass-producing legal elites, senior engineers, and top athletes for the nation." The young masters and misses there were all from wealthy and influential families, every single one a future star.

Birch: Then let's do Luxurious Coast tomorrow night! I go there a lot. The seafood is flown in fresh daily and prepared on the spot by the chefs. It's delicious.

Lu Ziyan searched for the name. Luxurious Coast... a high-end restaurant in the southwest corner of Jiangbei District. The average cost per person... his eyelid twitched—two thousand yuan! He instantly slapped the "rich second-generation" label on Birch. Although he'd had the thought of "fleecing a fat cat," he felt a bit embarrassed by how enthusiastic and proactive the other guy was.

Lu Ziyan: Isn't that a bit too expensive...? How about somewhere cheaper?

Birch: It's not so bad. Last time my sister and I went, it was just over five thousand. Oh! Did I say three hundred yuan before? I was just saying whatever. Just take it as a joke. I'm going on my lunch break, bye-bye. I'll pick you up at the school gate tomorrow after your evening class!

Without giving Lu Ziyan a chance to refuse, Birch had made the decision.

Lu Ziyan stared at his phone, his feelings a complicated mess. A rich kid from Xianlan High... why was he so excited about a twenty-thousand-yuan reward? Shouldn't that amount be nothing more than pocket money to him? He couldn't quite figure it out.

Buzz-buzz— The phone vibrated again.

It was a message from Tian Xiaokai, with a photo attached.

The photo was clearly taken on the sly, from an awkward angle. In the frame, Xu Liusè was quietly bent over her desk, working on problems. The sunlight streamed through the window, gently falling on the side of her face, accentuating her cool and serene temperament, making her look almost ethereally beautiful.

Tian Xiaokai: So gorgeous. Just you wait, she'll be mine.

Lu Ziyan was speechless. He replied with "Good luck" and locked the screen.

He put his phone away and walked out of the restroom, slowly making his way back to the classroom. However, right at the classroom door, he saw someone who absolutely should not have been there—Xu Liusè.

She was standing quietly by the hallway, as if waiting for someone. This was completely out of character. According to Xu Liusè's habits, she should have been sitting at her desk, working on problems without fail at this time. Only people like Tian Xiaokai would have nothing better to do than stand in the hallway and enjoy the scenery.

Lu Ziyan muttered to himself and reached for the classroom door.

But Xu Liusè silently blocked his path.

"Lu Ziyan."

Xu Liusè was calling his name!

Even just standing there, she looked like a meticulously composed black-and-white photograph—beautiful, but with a sense of distance. But Lu Ziyan knew very well that this "picture" was by no means as harmless as it appeared.

"What is it?" Lu Ziyan asked warily. He wanted nothing to do with this iceberg.

"Are you interested in working for the Rectification Association? My master is very interested in you."

Xu Liusè's voice was cool and flat, without a hint of inflection, as if she were discussing the weather.

But those words struck Lu Ziyan's ears like a silent clap of thunder.

The Association?!

His mind went blank. Birch's sunny yet slightly neurotic face flashed through his mind! That rookie Rectifier who was obsessed with "earning merits"! Xu Liusè... she was also with the Association? And... "my master"?!

That word sent Lu Ziyan's thoughts completely off track. Master? In what sense? A direct superior? Or some kind of stranger, more unspeakable relationship? The expression on his face became a colorful, uncontrolled mess.

"Your... your master... what do you mean?" Lu Ziyan swallowed hard, feeling like a rabbit cornered by a big, bad wolf.

Xu Liusè had no intention of answering his question. She simply continued to issue her commands in that same flat, emotionless tone: "After evening self-study, go to the south gate of the school. Look for a car. Someone will be waiting for you."

"A car? What car? What's the license plate number? What model?" Lu Ziyan pressed, trying to grasp onto some concrete information.

Xu Liusè didn't answer. She just gave him a faint glance, her eyes deep and cold, as if they could see through all his panic and speculation. Then, without hesitation, she turned and walked away, leaving him with her indifferent back.

Lu Ziyan was left alone, leaning on his crutch, frozen in place. His mind was a tangled mess, completely lost in the afternoon hallway.