Chapter Twenty-One: The Sound of the Flute-Fadiga Eterna(Viver sozinho por dez anos)

Having lived with "Mother" for a few days, Hong Lei naturally did not believe her hypocritical claims about closing down the brothel. He exploited her weakness—her intolerance for being interrupted—and provoked her relentlessly.

As expected, faced with his repeated insults, Mother’s nose began to distend, two sharp tusks protruded from the corners of her mouth, and coarse, stiff bristles began to emerge from her skin.

She lifted her head and asked in a hoarse voice, "I knew ahead of time that you were coming, sister, and I prepared the finest tea. Why are you so ungrateful? Could it be that you fear I’ve poisoned it?"

Hong Lei thought to himself, *as expected*, and as he looked at her near-mutated form, his smile grew even more provocative.

"Heh, don’t be angry, sister. To be honest, I’ve brought something good for you today as well."

With that, he pressed his hands against the table and slowly stood up, then suddenly transformed his hands into palms and struck the wooden table with a violent, gale-like force.

With a loud "bang," the table shattered into dust. Amidst the thunderous sound, Hong Lei’s palms met those of Mother, who had fully transformed into a pig-demon.

"Sister, had I known it would come to this, I should have minced you into filling and made you into meat buns years ago."

Mother no longer hid the ferocious hatred in her eyes, speaking through gritted teeth. A foul, black aura exuded from her body, coating her already filthy frame in a layer of sludge, while a pungent, salty, and damp stench permeated the room.

The temperature in the chamber rose due to this viscous miasma. She gripped Hong Lei’s hands, and the sticky, foul energy surged toward him.

"Mother, you practice immortality and meditation every day; how is your aura still so filthy?" Hong Lei chuckled, a cyclone of energy manifesting around his body.

Two distinct, clashing energies tangled within the reception room, and a fierce battle was on the verge of erupting.

***

"Mother Xin!"

Wu Que looked at the figure and felt a surge of joy. He hurried over and pulled open the doors to the reception room.

The moment the doors swung open, he felt as if his breathing and heartbeat had stopped. The floor of the room was crawling with Mother Xin.

They possessed Mother Xin’s face, but their limbs were gone. Their faces and bodies were covered in dark green scales, and snake tails sprouted from behind, slithering across the floor.

Seeing him enter, the Mothers Xin stared with long, thin, diamond-shaped bloodshot eyes, opened their fanged maws, and let out a piercing shriek.

"You foolish child, didn't I tell you to run? Why did you come back?"

"No... no, no!!!!"

Horrified by the hellish scene, Wu Que stumbled backward. He tried to take deep breaths, but a sound like grinding aluminum plate escaped his throat.

The nearest Mother Xin slithered to his feet, using her head to push him toward the door. Her eyes were vacant, and she muttered repeatedly, "Run, child, run..."

The Mothers Xin wailed as they crawled toward him. Agonized, Wu Que leaned against the door, his face covered in tears and saliva. He roared, drew his black blade from behind his back, and began hacking madly at the empty air.

"You evil spirits, don't try to deceive me! Don't try to deceive me!!!!"

He knew the real Mother Xin was likely already dead, but he could not bring himself to swing his blade at those faces.

Wu Que’s spirit was on the verge of collapse when a hoarse voice came from behind him.

"She truly dotes on you. Even after being skinned and broken, she didn't give you away."

"Oh my, have I interrupted your touching mother-daughter moment?"

Wu Que spun around to see Hong Xing standing in the hallway behind him, grinning sinisterly.

Compared to her polished elegance when they first met, she was now disheveled, her red dress stained with blood. The only thing that remained unchanged was the ruthless cruelty in her eyes.

"Don't you love her the most? I've sent so many to you now; why aren't you thanking me?"

With that, her figure drifted like a ghost toward the grand hall at the end of the corridor.

"Hong Xing!!!!!"

With bloodshot eyes, Wu Que gripped his black blade and gave chase like a madman.

Rushing out of the corridor, he looked up and saw Hong Xing standing atop a golden snake.

"I’ll kill you, damn it!!!"

Following the golden scales bursting from the snake, Wu Que leaped to Hong Xing’s side, gripped his blade with both hands, and thrust it into her chest.

With a "squelch," green blood flowed from Hong Xing’s chest. Sensing her life force fading, she burst into loud laughter.

"Hahahahahaha!!!"

Her eyes were filled with fanaticism, and a chilling smile played on her lips as she spoke, word by word: "The sacrifice has begun."

Watching the deranged Hong Xing, Wu Que gradually regained his composure.

One of the three giants of the brothel, the mastermind behind the world's mutation—could she really be defeated so easily by his blade?

"No, it can't be this simple."

With a blank expression, he pulled the blade from her chest, tearing open her long robes in the process.

Seeing what lay beneath, even the battle-hardened Wu Que felt his stomach churn.

There was no human torso—just bursting scales, a sliced-open belly, and hollowed-out organs. The abdominal cavity was stuffed with filth, forming the vessel of a woman cursed for a lifetime.

She was nothing more than a container.

Hong Xing continued her frantic laughter, murmuring a song: "Eeya, eeya."

"Golden boy and jade girl stand on both sides, offering my mortal flesh to open the immortal gate."

"Old Ancestor Hongjun claims the heart, the eternal serpent immortal enters the mortal realm."

"Eeya, eeya."

The soft chanting ended abruptly as Wu Que decapitated Hong Xing with a single stroke.

Her head rolled off the golden snake and fell into the warm water pool on the first floor. Yet, the prostitutes and patrons acted as if nothing had happened, continuing their sordid affairs.

"Something is wrong... everyone’s state is wrong."

He had been blinded by hatred earlier and failed to notice the anomaly in the brothel. Before he could ponder the strangeness of the establishment, the system’s notification tone sounded.

"Congratulations, Dream-Mender, for successfully killing the Dream Demon—Hong Xing. The Dream Demon Compendium has been updated.

Important locations unlocked: 4/4 (Brothel, Chuma Street, Old Residence, New Residence).

Dream fragments collected: 2/3.

Dream Demons killed: 4/6.

Nightmare eradication progress: 65%."

Wu Que stared intensely at the task bar, his heart in turmoil.

"The number of Dream Demons in the brothel is constantly changing."

With Hong Xing’s total death, the number of Dream Demons had increased from five to six. Since he knew there was only one Dream Demon on Chuma Street, there had to be at least one more in the brothel.

*Is it Mother?* Wu Que pondered. *No... that’s not right. Dream fragment 3 hasn't been unlocked yet.*

*There is another nightmare in this brothel besides Mother!*

As Wu Que fretted, the reward screen split in two before him:

1. 30 Random Attribute Points.

2. Blade Master: Passive skill. Significantly increases proficiency with bladed weapons, helping the Dream-Mender master various blade techniques.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Wu Que clicked "Confirm" on the second option, for as Hong Xing died, a bizarre, haunting flute melody began to echo from all directions.

The flute music was eerie and melodic; as it entered his ears, Wu Que felt his mind descend into chaos, immediately followed by an intense surge of hatred.

The music was affecting his sanity!