Chapter 83: Birth
“Mushroom, think about it. If this is truly a dream, wouldn’t the correct method be to place you in a new environment and hide some of your memories so you wouldn’t even realize you’re dreaming? Wouldn’t that be more convenient?”
Xia Feng’s words startled Mushroom.
“Doesn’t that make sense?”
“I…” Mushroom parted her lips slightly, her confused gaze blinking. No, that’s not right. Perhaps this device couldn’t hide my memories?
No, that’s not right either! If it can’t even hide memories, then this device is too useless. The more she thought, the deeper her frown grew. She felt her brain was about to explode!
Seeing Mushroom’s conflicted expression, Xia Feng felt anxious for her. Helplessly, he said, “Don’t overthink it. This is reality…”
“I…” Mushroom suddenly realized she might indeed be overthinking things, but she was also afraid she was actually dreaming. She regretfully lowered her head.
“Have you thought it through?”
“I… I don’t know. I can’t tell.”
Xia Feng: “…”
Mushroom’s state inexplicably reminded Xia Feng of a thought experiment called ‘Brain in a Vat’. The experiment postulated a scenario where a person’s brain is placed in a vat filled with nutrient fluid, connected to a supercomputer via nerve endings. The computer transmits information to the brain according to a preset program, allowing the brain to experience completely real perceptions within a perfect, bug-free world simulated by the supercomputer.
So, how would that person distinguish whether they are in the vat or in reality? The answer is naturally—they can’t distinguish at all. It’s an unprovable hypothesis.
Since she couldn’t distinguish, why bother distinguishing! Xia Feng realized that sometimes, there’s no need to consider or dwell on so many things. He directly flipped his knife and held it at his neck, smiling slightly. “Returning to the essence of the matter, Mushroom, you probably don’t want me to die, right?”
“!” Mushroom’s pupils contracted sharply. Seeing the slight trickle of blood on Xia Feng’s neck where the blade lightly touched, her heart nearly leaped out of her chest. Her face turned ashen, and she instantly understood everything. Yes, even if the probability of this being a dream was 99%, and Xia Feng was fake, she didn’t dare to gamble on the remaining 1%.
So, there was no need to think so much, let alone consider the consequences! She quickly shouted, “Okay, okay, okay! I admit it, I admit Yue Hongli is my mom, alright!”
“!” Earl had been waiting impatiently and was about to press the red button when, with Xia Feng’s threatening gesture, Mushroom immediately conceded?! He was overjoyed, ecstatic, and beaming! “Good, good, good, Xia Feng, you’ve done well!” Earl’s lips curled, and he looked towards the Woman in Red Dress.
Xia Feng’s heart leaped, and he looked at her at the same time. He saw the Woman in Red Dress slightly lift her fair chin, the black silk ribbon on her faintly glowing jade nose slowly disintegrating. With a swoosh, it instantly transformed into wisps of ink-black dust waves that rippled outwards!
At the same time, the entire space distorted in a way visible to the naked eye, as if the air had substance and weight. All three people present were suppressed, struggling to breathe.
“Buzzing—”
As the dust waves surged, her immaculate, immortal red dress fluttered in the wind, her black hair danced wildly, and a faint golden light overflowed from between her slightly closed eyes. In the Glass Coffin, the woman adorned in the Divine Phoenix Immortal Robe also had golden light overflowing from beneath her eyelashes. She clasped her hands together, her captivating immortal face mirroring the Woman in Red Dress looking up in the distance. Swish—
Both opened their eyes simultaneously, their gazes filled with golden light. Before Xia Feng and the others could understand what was happening, the Woman in Red Dress instantly dissolved into fine red light and flowing streams, drifting towards the Glass Coffin. It poured into the eyes of the woman in the immortal robe.
At the same time, a dark gold Cross mark appeared on her forehead, but it instantly changed into a dark black Symbol (Asterisk). As light and darkness flowed, it twisted and transformed repeatedly, making the woman’s little face appear both sacred and eerily alluring.
Witnessing this, Earl’s breathing grew more rapid. Trembling, he walked step by step towards the ice-blue Glass Coffin, enduring the layers of invisible dust waves spreading out, gazing enraptured at the woman inside. As if struck by an idea, he suddenly turned his head to look behind him and grinned, “So that’s how it is. This King suddenly understands what you intend to do!”
“Huh?”
“When Princess Consort awakens and opens her eyes, her pupils will be filled with golden light. When the golden light recedes, the first person she notices will pledge allegiance to her and be at her disposal.” Earl looked thoughtfully at Xia Feng. “No wonder your attitude suddenly changed. You’re trying to find an opportunity to compete with this King for the Princess Consort?”
Saying this, he let out a light chuckle. With a wave of his hand, the Boundless Field barrier turned from transparent to black, isolating Xia Feng’s line of sight. The Princess Consort could also not see the outside. To be safe, Earl also adjusted Mushroom’s pod, so the Princess Consort couldn’t see Mushroom either.
Thus, there would be no imperfections! Earl confidently returned to the front of the Glass Coffin, his gaze full of anticipation.
Xia Feng stood outside the barrier, the corners of his eyes twitching. Earl was indeed cautious, but it was useless. When Earl explained the method of pledging allegiance, Xia Feng understood everything. The first person the Princess Consort notices upon awakening and opening her eyes pledges allegiance to her. He had actually experienced this before. It was during his second dream!
His first dream involved being chased by zombies and arriving outside Pingshan Hospital. His second dream was entering Pingshan Hospital and seeing the woman trapped in the Glass Coffin. He clearly remembered the conversation in his dream.
“Are you my unborn wife?”
“Huh? I have a husband.”
At that time, the woman’s eyes were indeed filled with golden light. When he approached, the golden light receded, revealing a pair of rose-red pupils that stared at him with surprise and curiosity. He must have pledged allegiance around that time. However, the birth ritual wasn’t complete, so he hadn’t received any information.
But this matter was very strange. This woman could bypass the birth ritual and directly meet and pledge allegiance in a dream. It was outrageous! Earl probably wouldn’t have expected that the birth ritual wasn’t a necessary condition for pledging allegiance, but a sufficient one. Allegiance could be pledged even without the birth. If Earl knew such a thing existed, he would have exploded.
The only two things still puzzling Xia Feng were why it was him, and how the Princess Consort managed to do it. After all, in the dream, the Princess Consort’s state seemed one of bewilderment, not knowing what had happened.
Just as Xia Feng’s thoughts flashed, information appeared in his mind.
[Void Curse broken, ‘World’ recognition obtained for ‘Existence Force’—]
[Linkage Degree: 100%]
“Boom!!!” The pitch-black Boundless Field shattered, and a terrifying pillar of golden light melted through the roof, shooting straight into the sky. As space twisted, Xia Feng saw the scene within.
The ice-blue Glass Coffin gradually dissolved. The woman in the Divine Phoenix Immortal Robe stood amidst the pillar of light, her black hair flowing. However, the golden light in her eyes quietly receded, revealing rose-red, slightly upturned eyes. She blinked curiously, observing this world.
Earl grinned, suppressing his joy, and walked forward. His figure entered the woman’s sight, but she tilted her head slightly, appearing somewhat confused, and began to look around.
