Chapter 21: The Vision

Intricate, winding patterns traced a deformed sense of beauty across her skin. Dark purple blood blossomed like bewitching Equinox Flowers, staining her cheeks with filth. Her seductive eyes were now filled with a desire that could only be described as putrid.

“Come… come closer to me. Just a little closer…”

“Come here… let us ascend to the heights of ecstasy together and share in this pleasure…”

The sultry voice snaked into her ears. Sato Minako stared fixedly at Luo Wei as the pink mist around them began to take on a purplish-black hue. Amidst the shifting passions was a temptation nearly impossible to resist; even a member of the same sex would find themselves involuntarily sinking into this atmosphere.

This was exactly how Virginia had been defeated.

Her invisibility was useless against such wide-scale pollution. In the brief moment her mind faltered, she had fallen into Sato Minako’s embrace, sinking into total ruin.

Now, Sato Minako intended to repeat the trick on Luo Wei. She wanted Luo Wei to be submerged in her embrace and deformed lust, turning her into a… Human Cauldron.

Luo Wei couldn’t help but use that term to describe Sato Minako’s ability. In a cultivation setting, this would be the wicked Dual Cultivation methods of the Joyous Union Sect, only here, it was manifested as a literal disease.

The thought of Sato Minako’s body being covered in “decorative” scars that were actually concentrated syphilis and other pathogens made Luo Wei’s skin crawl.

How is this different from someone fighting with a mop dipped in literal shit? This is purely a magical-psychological attack!

Fortunately, the maid puppet created through the “Life” Pathway possessed inherent traits sufficient to resist such malignant viruses. It wouldn’t be infected. Even if it were, Luo Wei felt it wouldn’t matter much if she had to discard this puppet; she had plenty more back in her “Wonder House.”

At Sequence 6, Sato Minako had already stepped into the true transcendental realm. Her diseases had evolved into concepts. Just as Hathaway’s Aphasia had become so disordered after her ascension to Sequence 6 that she couldn’t even speak, the current Sato Minako was a walking pathogen. Simply being near her was enough to contract a venereal disease.

She didn’t even need to actively release these pink and purple-black mists. As long as she loosened her restraint over the diseases within her, they would naturally spread and permeate the air.

“…A Succubus?” The corner of Luo Wei’s mouth quirked. Nightmares are also sometimes called a type of succubus, aren’t they?

Luo Wei stopped her advance and took a slight step back.

She looked as though she was preparing to flee.

Sato Minako’s eyebrows arched as she gave a charming, coquettish smile. Her graceful body suddenly dissipated into the foul mist.

Simultaneously, her voice whispered directly into Luo Wei’s ear.

“Come, embrace me… and find paradise in my arms…”

Sato Minako had always been able to move through these filthy mists. Everything she had done just now was merely teasing Luo Wei.

What she didn’t know was that everything she did was laid bare before Luo Wei’s eyes. Although Luo Wei’s Starfire had only burned briefly to avoid detection—extracting only a partial Information Stream—it was more than enough to handle the current situation.

After all, knowing Sato Minako’s past wouldn’t help much here. Moreover… Luo Wei really didn’t want memories of Sato Minako’s “Dual Cultivation” sessions being shoved into her brain. Even a glimpse felt like it would rot her retinas.

Just as Sato Minako believed victory was within her grasp, she was stunned to find that she had lunged at nothing.

The “Rita” in her arms vanished like water vapor, turning completely invisible.

What happened?

Sato Minako didn’t panic; she simply narrowed her long, slender eyes.

In reality, these mists were an extension of her own body, acting like countless eyes watching everything within the fog. Theoretically, nothing should have been able to escape her notice.

Unless… it was another transcendental ability.

Although Sato Minako’s expression remained unchanged—wearing that same suggestive, half-smile—she grew cautious in her heart.

The mission she had received was only to deal with Virginia. The information she possessed only covered Virginia and the Crimson Troupe. There wasn’t even a mention of that strange girl in the hood from earlier.

Sato Minako appeared dissolute, but her mind was quite meticulous.

She had vaguely sensed that the hooded girl was extremely dangerous, so she had tactfully avoided contact. That girl wasn’t the target anyway… and she was too ugly for Minako’s tastes.

But when she saw “Rita,” she hadn’t felt that warning of danger. Plus, “Rita” was undeniably beautiful.

Regardless of who they were, even the most debauched woman would seek out a partner with superior beauty. Sato Minako was no exception.

Upon seeing this maid as perfect as a work of art, Sato Minako couldn’t restrain herself. She desperately wanted to have a proper taste of her.

And yet…

“It seems I’ve misjudged. I didn’t expect Her Highness Cassandra to have someone like this under her command…”

Sato Minako’s eyes slanted upward as her gaze swept inch by inch across the surroundings.

She could sense the maid’s presence was close—right beside her, in fact—yet she couldn’t find her.

For some reason, a strong sense of cognitive dissonance began to surround her, though she couldn’t find the source.

Luo Wei stood less than ten meters away from Sato Minako, watching her quietly.

A faint, beautiful hallucination drifted around Luo Wei, slowly spreading outward until it began to envelop Sato Minako and her mist.

The “Dream” Pathway, Sequence 7: Dream Thief. A Dream Thief’s dreams could already exert a powerful influence on reality.

Old Man Hume, who could be considered Luo Wei’s teacher, was a veteran Dream Thief. The “Dream of Trials” he had created using his transcendental abilities was the nightmare of every Dream Sanctum believer, proving his dream-weaving skills were peak-tier.

One step further would be the true transcendental realm: Sequence 6, Night Cuckoo—leaving the physical body behind to become a part of the dream itself.

Luo Wei was able to use the Dream Thief abilities thanks to Claudia.

To make the Shelter descend into the Spectral Kolun County, the Divine Envoy had performed an Ascension ritual for Claudia. In her final moments of repentance, Claudia had offered everything she was to Luo Wei.

Although Sato Minako was keeping an eye out for the source of that strange feeling, she couldn’t pinpoint it immediately. She was unaware that her opponent possessed Dream Pathway abilities.

“Eh?”

At that moment, Sato Minako suddenly realized something. She whipped her head around, her pupils shrinking instantly.

Virginia… was gone!

“Who wants to fight a walking pathogen? I just came here to save someone,” Luo Wei grumbled.

Using the dream as cover, she had managed to steal away the dying Virginia right under Sato Minako’s nose.

It had to be said, Virginia’s condition was truly horrific.

A normal person staying in that pink mist for even a few moments would fester into a puddle of pus. Yet Virginia had been held tightly in Sato Minako’s arms for a long time, and likely… had even engaged in “negative distance” contact.

After all, Virginia was quite pretty—a youthful, beautiful girl who wouldn’t look out of place in a JK uniform.

Consequently, Virginia’s entire body was riddled with infection. Her beautiful face was covered in purplish-black ulcerated patterns, and through her petite frame, one could almost see her internal organs dissolving into sludge.

The only reason she remained alive was the pendant on her forehead. It emitted a faint glow, sustaining the last flickering ember of her consciousness.

She was, after all, someone for whom a cold, wicked woman like Princess Cassandra would show concern. She certainly possessed many life-saving Holy Artifacts to have held on this long, earning her the title of a legendary “Poison Tank.”

“Mission accomplished. Time to bounce.”

Luo Wei left a dream behind to stall Sato Minako, intending to withdraw immediately.

But at that moment, Sato Minako suddenly began to laugh softly.

“Giggle… how interesting. It’s been so long since I’ve encountered something this fun…”

“Miss Maid, you are the most interesting little sister I have ever met… I like you so much. I have never liked someone this much before…”

Really? Should I flip through your memories and check?

Luo Wei mocked her internally. She didn’t care what kind of fit Sato Minako was throwing; if she could leave, she was leaving.

She’d have to be insane to tangle with such a filthy thing. No matter how brave a warrior was, they would look distressed when facing a mop covered in shit.

Furthermore… Sato Minako had, after all, stepped into Sequence 6, entering the realm beyond mortals. Relying on Dream Thief powers to stall her for a bit was one thing, but a direct confrontation wouldn’t be enough.

Luo Wei hurried, using a solidified dream to wrap Virginia as she prepared to depart.

“How heartless. We meet by chance, and yet you want to abandon me… you haven’t even… you haven’t even told me your name…”

Sato Minako suddenly began to sob. Her weeping was enough to make any listener’s heart break for her. She cried like a wilting flower in the rain, consumed by inconsolable grief.

If Luo Wei hadn’t known her true nature, she really would have thought this was a poor woman abandoned by a heartless lover.

A moment later, Minako’s voice turned hoarse and then shrill, sounding like countless terrifying voices overlapping in a bone-chilling shriek:

“No, no… she can’t leave, and neither can you!”

“I really didn’t want anyone to see me like this… I truly wanted to leave my most beautiful self in your heart. But you abandoned me! How could you abandon me?! How dare you abandon me!”

By now, Sato Minako wasn’t talking to Luo Wei anymore. She was speaking to some other entity in her hallucinations, or perhaps someone who had existed in the past.

However, her towering rage and resentment were all being vented onto Luo Wei.

“So, stay here and stay with me! I can’t go back anymore. I’m no longer who I used to be. You stay… stay and be with me forever!”

As Sato Minako’s madness reached its peak, her flesh began to undergo Soul Distortion.

The purplish-black patterns that had covered her were repulsive to Luo Wei, but as mere tattoos, they actually held a certain aesthetic, like blooming black Equinox Flowers.

But now, the Equinox Flowers were being torn apart. Her pale body was completely swallowed by the purplish-black lines. She began to swell slowly, countless green veins bulging, and her graceful figure became covered in hideous tumors.

She opened her eyes—still those seductive, almond-shaped eyes—and looked longingly toward Luo Wei’s direction, even though she was staring at what should have been empty space.

“Found… you! He-he-he-he!”

Seeing this, Luo Wei’s scalp went numb.

This is Sato Minako’s true current form.

The beautiful, moving appearance from before was just a restrained facade.

Sato Minako was already terminally ill. The disease had eroded and twisted her physical form. If she hadn’t lacked the corresponding ritual to guide her, she would likely have already ascended to Sequence 5.

Having revealed her true form, Sato Minako could lock onto Luo Wei’s position through pure instinct. She had firmly memorized Luo Wei’s scent, intending to let her cravings and lust run wild on her.

There was no running away.

“I didn’t want to do this,” Luo Wei sighed. “She is still a minor… wait, she counts as an adult, right?”

There was no time to worry about whether someone was of age.

“Open the door—release Cleo!”

Luo Wei took a step back. An ancient, ordinary door appeared out of thin air. She had already notified Clecia—who had been playing with assembly-line maid dolls in the Wonder House—via the Candlelight link.

Virtual shadows surged in the air. Countless soft tentacles unfurled, and the ash-white eyes embedded within them snapped open. A frail young girl sat cross-legged on the ground, her face filled with excitement and anticipation.

This was Clecia’s first battle.

She had been looking forward to doing something for her Sister Wei, but because of her terrifying appearance, she had been stuck in the Wonder House, leaving her in a bad mood.

………

Though she appeared deranged, Sato Minako still maintained the judgment of a Transcendental.

The instant Clecia appeared, Minako sensed the girl’s essence: a Horror.

A “Horror” was a twisted thing that the physical world could not tolerate—an enemy of civilization, an existence outside the bounds of order.

And such an existence… was being commanded?

Before Sato Minako could wrap her head around this, Clecia began to expand her presence. She swallowed the dream Luo Wei had created and reshaped it into a small, enclosed dimension that shrouded the area.

Since the moment of her birth, Clecia had been a part of the Spectral Kolun County.

Even though the Spectral Kolun County had been saved by Luo Wei and turned into ash—with no trace left in history—a piece of that unpassed reality remained within Clecia’s body.

She was the Spectral Kolun County.

Within this zone, the sun in the sky grew dim. It opened like a massive eye. Every bit of heat and dazzling light vanished, replaced by a cold, desolate gaze.

“This is a Vision… Truly… a Horror…”

Sato Minako began to tremble slightly.