A Girl Dies Every Day in Her Dream Life 189

Chapter 189: Deception, Concealment, and Betrayal

Within a secluded, isolated space, a faint, illusory soul was trapped.

The phantom was slightly bent over, as if embracing something, its demeanor even…

Gentle.

This was the word that came to Nangong Ling’s mind.

But to describe the Shadow of Withering as “gentle” was chilling.

The Shadow of Withering… was named as such because it was a soul formed from the essence of withering, its very existence causing withering to spread.

Withering was an even more destructive law than immortality, a calamity that couldn’t be unleashed upon the world.

The reason Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er hadn’t dared to use their full strength to destroy this distorted space of the ancestral land was that they were worried the Shadow of Withering would use this opportunity to spread withering to the Great Thousand Worlds.

And there was no shortage of withering believers in the Great Thousand Worlds.

They worshipped withering, believing it to be the destined end of the world, and worked towards this goal, even facing the combined forces of all other factions, their efforts continuing from the ancient era to the present.

In a sense, their inheritance was also ancient…

If these withering believers obtained the Shadow of Withering, not to mention the danger the entire Great Thousand Worlds would face, even the ancient clans, including the Nangong clan, would struggle to survive.

“Although it’s good that the Sacred Soul has calmed down, but it feels…”

Nangong Wan’er stared intently at the seemingly peaceful Sacred Soul. This was a sealing space she had created with her law, and she had personally sealed the Sacred Soul within.

But neither before nor after the sealing had Nangong Wan’er seen the Sacred Soul act like this.

“You have a bad feeling, right?”

Nangong Ling rubbed her temples. “But it’s better than the Sacred Soul breaking free… Last time, we couldn’t rest for two hundred years, constantly resisting it.”

The active Sacred Soul would continuously contaminate the distorted space of the ancestral land with the will of withering. Currently, the will of immortality within the ancestral land was still balanced and didn’t affect powerful beings like Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er.

But if the Sacred Soul continued to rampage, and all the will of immortality was converted into the will of withering, spreading throughout the space…

Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er would have to face the worst-case scenario, forced to destroy this space, to save themselves.

Because such a spread would eventually reach the real world, and even sacrificing their lives wouldn’t be enough to stop it. They couldn’t fight against the will of withering that filled the entire ancestral land.

“Hopefully.”

Nangong Wan’er sighed.

But…

How long would these uncertain days last?

Tens of thousands of years?

Hundreds of thousands?

Or… an entire era?

And what was even more tragic was that their efforts meant nothing to the outside world.

The long years they spent here were but a fleeting moment outside.

Even if they could contain the Sacred Soul for an entire era, only a few hundred years would have passed in the outside world.

“There will be a way.”

Nangong Ling said softly.

She stood up and walked towards the place where she had seen her sister’s phantom.

“Change is better than no change. It can’t get any worse. And now, through Xiao Mian’s phantom, we know a bit about the outside world, which is good enough.”

“Yes.”

Nangong Wan’er nodded.

It was because of this that she could regain her hope.

Otherwise, the unending obsession would gradually consume Nangong Wan’er, turning her into a mindless zombie.

Just as Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er were about to return to the location where the phantom had appeared, a soft, dreamlike murmur stopped them.

“Home…”

“Going home…”

“What!” Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er, hearing this, immediately looked at the sealed Sacred Soul.

The Sacred Soul was the same as before, still in an embracing posture, with that chilling gentleness, as if the voices they heard were just an illusion.

But they couldn’t be.

With their strength, they wouldn’t be misled by illusions.

“What did you hear?”

Nangong Ling asked.

“It seemed to be… going home?”

Nangong Wan’er whispered.

“Yes… it seems we both heard it.”

Nangong Ling took a deep breath. “Is she trying to trick us with this ‘going home’ plea? But this trick is too… simple…”

Or to put it bluntly, too low-level.

It wouldn’t even affect an ordinary person with strong willpower, let alone Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er.

Just as they were puzzled, a similar voice echoed again.

“Children… going home…”

“You… finally… return…”

Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er exchanged glances, their expressions serious.

Putting aside the fact that the Shadow of Withering was a calamity that spread withering, as the Sacred Soul worshipped by the Nangong clan for generations, she had been a great ancestor during her life.

Just how great, they didn’t know, there were no records, only that she had willingly sacrificed herself, and after her death, only a wisp of her soul remained, less than a ten-thousandth of her former self.

If not for the efforts of their ancestors, even this wisp of soul wouldn’t have been preserved.

Therefore, Nangong Ling couldn’t understand the Shadow of Withering’s murmurs.

“Children, going home?” Nangong Wan’er frowned slightly. “This shouldn’t be referring to us… What is the Sacred Soul trying to say?”

“I don’t know, the Sacred Soul is from the ancient era… unfortunately, there aren’t many records of the ancient era, even the ancient clans don’t have much.” Nangong Ling sighed.

Nangong Ling wasn’t like her sister, Nangong Mian. She wasn’t uneducated and had studied many ancient records, considered quite knowledgeable.

At the same time, the phantom continued to make sounds, but they were like meaningless syllables, fragmented and chaotic.

Even so, Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er still tried to memorize these syllables, trying to find some pattern or meaning within them.

Unfortunately, there was none…

Further attempts only led to confusion.

Just as Nangong Ling was hesitating whether to continue recording, the Sacred Soul’s voice suddenly stopped, as if stuck, and silence fell.

“Hmm?”

Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er looked up at the Sacred Soul and were surprised to find that the originally dim Sacred Soul seemed to have brightened slightly.

“This is…”

They immediately became alert.

Was it about to become active again?

Nangong Wan’er even started condensing the Law of Space, trying to reinforce the sealing space.

As they watched intently, the Sacred Soul slowly stretched its body, and even its dim eyes seemed to regain some light.

A dazed expression appeared on the Sacred Soul’s face, then it looked at Nangong Ling and Nangong Wan’er, seemingly puzzled.

“Did I… come to the wrong place?”

…

In the corresponding time in the outside world, a while ago.

“Jiao!”

Nangong Mian shook Luo Xue, trying to wake her from her half-asleep state.

Dreaming in this place wasn’t a good thing… Who knew what might enter the real world through dreams.

In their current situation, not to mention a Soul Transformation or Ascension level expert, even a Nascent Soul cultivator would be too much for them…

After Nangong Mian, risking her life, brought Luo Xue to the phantom, Luo Xue instantly fell unconscious, making Nangong Mian quickly carry her back to the raft.

Fortunately, after checking, Nangong Mian didn’t find anything wrong with Luo Xue. Her soul was intact, and there were no signs of the will of immortality. She seemed to be just sleeping.

Nangong Mian thought it was fine to let Luo Xue sleep for a while, but then Luo Xue started talking in her sleep.

“Expulsion,” “cage,” “home”…

Meaningless words, understandable individually, but not together.

This made Nangong Mian panic. Sleeping was fine, but dreaming was too dangerous.

And Luo Xue’s condition was worsening, as if she was sinking deeper into the dream.

The blood-red seawater, filled with the will of immortality, lapped against the raft, almost reaching Nangong Mian’s heels, but she didn’t care.

After Nangong Mian’s persistent attempts to wake her up, Luo Xue finally opened her eyes.

After a moment of confusion, she regained her senses.

But Nangong Mian was still shaking her.

“Wake up, wake up…”

“I’m awake.”

“Stop dreaming, come back…”

“…I wasn’t dreaming.”

“Wuwuwu… even in her sleep, she says she’s not dreaming…”

Luo Xue was speechless. If not for her consciousness just returning and still disoriented, she would have already given Nangong Mian a piece of her mind.

After a while, Nangong Mian finally stopped, looked down, and met Luo Xue’s annoyed gaze.

“Are you done yet?”

Luo Xue’s expression was one of exasperation, making Nangong Mian feel a bit embarrassed.

“I’m done, I’m done… I thought you were talking in your sleep, so I waited until you stopped before looking.”

“…Let’s just say you were being kind.”

Luo Xue’s eyelid twitched, then her expression turned serious. “However, I should thank you. If not for you, I might have been trapped in that memory for a long time…”

“What memory?” Nangong Mian looked towards the phantom. “The Sacred Soul’s memory?”

“Yes, everything she experienced.”

Luo Xue touched her chest, as if still feeling the burning sensation from the memory.

The Sacred Soul had died from a burning arrow, falling into the endless void—the deep space mentioned in the post-apocalyptic world.

This arrow, carrying the Sacred Soul’s last wisp of will, had been preserved, and the Nangong clan’s worship over the years had nurtured this wisp of will until it manifested in human form.

“A’Mian, help me,” Luo Xue looked at Nangong Mian and said in a deep voice, “I need to contact the Sacred Soul again, closer this time. Please.”

“Are you crazy?” Nangong Mian’s eyes widened. “You almost died just from touching the phantom’s finger, and you want to get closer?”

“She… won’t harm me.”

Luo Xue’s eyes flickered, looking at the phantom with a complicated expression.

“Are you sure?” Nangong Mian crossed her arms, her tone skeptical. “Is she your mother or your father, to be so sure she won’t harm you?”

“In a sense, she’s both.” Luo Xue lowered her head slightly. “I didn’t expect… to see all of this at this time…”

“…Really?” Nangong Mian was stunned. “Wait, if that’s the case, are you really an ancestor?”

“I’m… not an ancestor, this is just… forget it.” Luo Xue gave up on explaining. She felt that with Nangong Mian’s brain, it would be useless.

She composed herself and said,

“Want to hear a story? A story about rebellion, concealment, and betrayal?”

“…Why do I have a feeling that after hearing this story, you’ll turn into the villain?”

“Heh… there is a villain, but it’s not me.” Luo Xue said softly.

“Just tell me already, if you can convince me, I’ll take you there.” Nangong Mian rolled her eyes. She didn’t think these stories were interesting.

She had already heard enough about the chaotic events of the ancient era. Many storytellers liked to talk about it.

Since all the ancient sects were gone, they could make up whatever they wanted, but it was always the same old tropes, repeated over and over again.

“Don’t rush, I’m still organizing my thoughts.” Luo Xue pondered for a moment, then said, “Before telling the story, I have to tell you that I… am not actually from the Nangong clan.”

“My real name is Luo Xue, not the one from the southern barbarian lands. Just consider it… a coincidence.”

“Huh? You’re… not?” Nangong Mian was stunned. Then what about the token?

“I borrowed it,” Luo Xue took out the Nangong Token and handed it back to Nangong Mian. “You can take it back, I probably won’t need it anymore.”

The reason Dugu Xue gave her this token was that she wanted to sever her ties with the past, to no longer live as Princess Xue, so Luo Xue returning the token to the Nangong clan was also returning it to its rightful owner.

“But, but…”

Nangong Mian took the token, still confused.

How could this be…

“With this explained, the story will be much easier to tell.” Luo Xue smiled faintly. “Actually, I’m also not from this world. Or to be more precise, my hometown is… the exiled land of this world.”

“Those descendants of the ancient sects, sealed away from the world during the ancient era, because they fought against an unknown enemy.”

“The deception, concealment, and betrayal experienced by the Sacred Soul… reveals the truth of the cage.”