Bai Hehuai recognized this face—it was the man holding the Buddhist staff she had encountered when leaving the Medicine Mansion. Yet in the dream, he appeared younger. His features could have been considered handsome, but his extreme thinness lent him a haggard look. He set down the smoking pipe in his hand.
"Su Zhe, I'll make you a promise. If we manage to survive and leave this place, you may depart the Dark River and reunite with your wife and daughter," The Head said slowly.
"No need. My very existence is the greatest trouble in their lives. After this ordeal, whether I live or die, just send them word that I perished here," the man replied, taking a drag from his pipe.
"Wife and daughter..." Bai Hehuai murmured softly before stepping toward the man. She bent down, intending to grab his collar.
But the illusion spun violently at that moment, throwing Bai Hehuai to the ground and sending her sliding into a corner of the room. The Head drew the Sleeping Dragon Sword and charged forward, while Su Zhe tightly gripped the Buddhist staff before him. Then the scene shifted—Bai Hehuai and the others now stood amidst a blazing inferno. The Head's sword was drenched in blood, surrounded by corpses. As for Su Zhe, a long blade was embedded in his shoulder, blood slowly seeping out and staining his robes crimson. He pulled out his smoking pipe from his robe, but his hand trembled, and the pipe clattered to the ground.
"How pathetic. Just this little scene, and my hands are already shaking," Su Zhe muttered with a self-deprecating smile.
Bai Hehuai rushed past the corpses toward Su Zhe. At that moment, Su Zhe slowly turned his head. His gaze was slightly unfocused as he looked ahead before finally going completely blank. Just before losing consciousness, he whispered, "A-He," then collapsed backward.
This utterance of "A-He" was directed toward Bai Hehuai's position, but she knew that in The Head's mental world, no one present could see her. Bai Hehuai reached Su Zhe's side and bent down, finally spotting a small claw-shaped mark beneath his neck.
The Wen family's unique poison—Life-Claw. Even after being cured, the victim would forever bear this claw mark on their body, impossible to erase no matter what.
"This is the mark I left on him. Even if he flees to the ends of the earth, even if he never dares to face me again in this lifetime, he will never forget me."
These were the words Bai Hehuai's mother had spoken to her before dying.
"So it really is him. He's still alive!" Bai Hehuai laughed.
"Who are you?" The Head suddenly spoke from behind her.
Bai Hehuai froze. In illusions, no one should be able to see her, as these were all scenes from the past. But there was one rare exception—if the subject of the Soul Transference Technique also became self-aware within the dream, they could perceive Bai Hehuai!
"Who are you?" The Head repeated.
Bai Hehuai's body stiffened as she slowly turned to face him, deliberately lowering her voice: "This is a dream."
"A dream?" The Head frowned.
"Yes. I'm merely a passerby in your dream." Step by step, Bai Hehuai retreated backward. If she could leave quickly and escape The Head's sight, she might still avoid causing serious consequences.But things did not go as she had hoped. The Head quickly rose to his feet, drawing his sword. "Who sent you here?" He leaped forward, slashing downward with his blade. Bai Hehuai swiftly dodged.
"Ghost Shadow Steps—you're from the Su Family. A member of the Su Family has betrayed me!" The Head thrust his sword again.
Bai Hehuai leaned back, the blade grazing past her chest. Her foot slipped, and she fell hard onto the ground. Damn it... If I'm killed in this illusion, does that mean I die for real? My master never mentioned this... A flurry of thoughts raced through Bai Hehuai's mind, but her legs felt like lead, refusing to move.
"No, the Su Family betrayed me long ago." The Head raised his sword, murmuring to himself. "Why am I still so surprised..."
Bai Hehuai's lips twitched slightly. She knew this was the Head's current memories influencing his past self in the illusion. Memory confusion meant the Soul Transference Technique had encountered a major flaw, most likely resulting in the Head in the illusion committing suicide with his own sword.
Unless the Head's will was as unshakable as stone, as unyielding as steel.
How many in this world could reach such a state?
But the Head's eyes gradually shifted from confusion to ferocity. He looked down at Bai Hehuai beneath him and growled, "You—who are you, really?"
"I—I'm Bai Hehuai, the Miracle Healer treating you." Bai Hehuai stammered. "I came here to find a way to cure you."
"Then why do you know the Su Family's martial arts?" The Head roared, swinging his sword down without hesitation.
"Ah!" Bai Hehuai screamed as her consciousness was instantly ejected from the dream. She opened her eyes, glanced at the sweat on her palms, and exhaled in relief. At least she was still alive—apparently, dying in the illusion only expelled her. But then she realized something and immediately looked up, only for a pair of aged yet powerful hands to seize her.
"I'll ask you again. Who. Are. You!" The Head demanded in a low voice.
Bai Hehuai grabbed the Head's wrist but couldn't pry it away. Struggling, she pleaded, "Head, I mean no harm!"
"I saw it—you know the Su Family's martial arts. And you used the Soul Transference Technique to dig through my memories, not to find a cure as you claimed." The Head tightened his grip.
"Misunderstanding..." Bai Hehuai gasped. "Head, let go, and I'll explain everything."
"No need. You all want to uncover the secrets of the Dark River, but those fools from the three families never realized—some secrets, the more you know, the quicker you die." As he finished speaking, the Head suddenly coughed violently. He released Bai Hehuai, bracing himself on the ground as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Bai Hehuai also collapsed, breathing heavily, but she still tried to explain. "Head, I—"But after spitting out that mouthful of blood, The Head reached out and drew the Sleeping Dragon Sword by his side. Bai Hehuai finally realized that at this moment, after enduring successive betrayals, The Head could no longer maintain trust in those around him. The kindness he had shown earlier was merely a forced facade! Now that The Head's mental state had collapsed, all his actions would veer toward the most extreme path.
"Die!" The Head swung his sword.
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