Back to the present—Xiao stood watching Chen Meng rampaging through the monster horde and muttered to himself:
"Why isn't Lord Chen Meng just controlling all of them?"
Truth was, Chen Meng could have.But why didn't he?Because fighting was fun!
While Chen Meng was wiping out the monsters, the other four Yakshas were already on their way.
"Yingda, slow down! You're so anxious you might as well put on your Yaksha mask already."
Vanan tried to calm Yingda down as they hurried forward. Fuxue and Minuo followed silently behind.
"Look, over there!"
Yingda suddenly stopped and gasped.
Vanan, Fuxue, and Minuo quickly joined her. In the distance, a vast swarm of monsters loomed. A thick purple mist lingered around them.
"Could this be Lord Chen Meng's doing? Let's go!"
Fuxue immediately donned his Yaksha mask and charged ahead. Minuo, Vanan, and Yingda followed suit.
They soon reached the outer ring of clustered monsters, preparing to strike—when Xiao suddenly intercepted them.
"Xiao! Are you alright?"Fuxue asked anxiously.
"I'm fine. Stand down—these monsters are already under Lord Chen Meng's control."
Trusting Xiao's judgment, the four Yakshas removed their masks.
"Xiao, where is Lord Chen Meng?"Minuo asked.
"Inside. Come with me."
Xiao took the lead, guiding them around the controlled monsters. The other four exchanged glances, then followed.
Soon, they saw Chen Meng—one hand gripping a Whopperflower, the other repeatedly slapping it, all while chanting under his breath.
"So you call yourself a Whopperflower? Pretending to be flora just to fool people? Take this! And this! Let my palm educate you!"
Xiao was clearly used to this, but the other four Yakshas were stunned.
Minuo turned to Xiao and asked,
"Um… what exactly is Lord Chen Meng doing?"
"I have no idea. That's the fifth Whopperflower he's slapped."
The group decided not to comment and walked up to Chen Meng. Sensing their approach, he finished off the Whopperflower and turned to greet them.
"You're here."
Chen Meng waved casually. After the five Yakshas bowed, Fuxue asked,
"Lord Chen Meng, why did you gather all the monsters in one place?"
"For easy cleanup after use. These monsters are the stronger ones I picked out. I let them wipe out most of the weaker ones first, and then I stepped in to take out the tougher ones myself."
Chen Meng explained, then pointed back in the direction they had come from.
"You must've seen the group of monsters standing near the exit. Their job is to stop any stragglers from escaping."
With that, Chen Meng stretched out his left hand, palm open. The purple mist around all the controlled monsters floated toward him, gathering into a glowing orb. Once the mist left their bodies, the monsters all collapsed.
After absorbing the orb, Chen Meng spoke:
"Alright, let's head out."
He led the way. The five Yakshas silently followed.
Minuo lagged at the rear, examining the monsters before they merged into the ley lines. Once done, she returned to Fuxue's side. He glanced at her and asked quietly:
"How were the monsters?"
Xiao, Vanan, and Yingda stepped closer to hear her report.
"The wounds were caused by other monsters, but none were fatal. Also, I noticed that the controlled monsters had empty eyes, like soulless puppets."
Fuxue fell silent for a moment, then asked Xiao:
"Xiao, is Lord Chen Meng's control the same as that… dream's control?"
Xiao thought for a moment and replied:
"No. What Lord Chen Meng controls lacks self-awareness—they only follow commands. I suspect he doesn't just control the body, but the mind too."
"Then does that mean… if someone is touched by Lord Chen Meng's power, he could kill them at any moment just by willing it?"
Yingda shivered as she spoke.
The five fell silent.
It seemed likely that once Chen Meng's power entered someone's body, they became little more than a puppet under his control.
"This feels like it's beyond the scope of the Dream Authority… Should we tell the Lord?"
Fuxue hesitated, then said,
"Let's go back first. I imagine the Lord is already waiting at the residence."
While the Yakshas discussed, Chen Meng walked ahead, lost in thought as he absorbed the energy.
Inside the purple orb wasn't just his own power—but also the complete memories of each monster, from birth to death, along with all their inner thoughts.
Chen Meng noticed something: all of their memories stopped at the moment they were controlled. After that, there was nothing—no thoughts, no awareness, as if their consciousness had died, leaving only a hollow shell to be manipulated.
He'd always thought his control simply trapped enemies in an illusion. But now… it didn't seem that simple.What puzzled him more was—why hadn't this happened during his earlier patrol with Fuxue?
"System, why didn't those monsters have any memories back then?"
"…Because you didn't reclaim your power like you did just now."
Thinking back, Chen Meng realized that was true. One mystery solved—on to the next.
"System, be honest with me—is this really the Dream Authority you gave me? This feels way beyond its scope."
"Well think about it—Lesser Lord Kusanali can lead people into dreamscapes built from memory. You're at least half a Dream Archon. Totally makes sense."
As Chen Meng pondered that, the system silently pulled a hammer from the void and bonked him with it.
Suddenly, it all made sense.
"Right! I am the Dream Archon. Perfectly logical! ＜（＾－＾）＞"
The system wiped nonexistent sweat from its brow as Chen Meng, now in high spirits, quickened his pace.
Soon, the group returned to Guili Assembly.
"Lord Chen Meng, come back with us. The Lord is likely waiting at the residence."
Fuxue turned and invited him.
Just as Chen Meng was about to agree, Morax suddenly appeared before them.
"No need. I'm already here."
"Greetings, Lord Morax!" ×5
The five Yakshas bowed in unison.
"Morax? What brings you here?"
Chen Meng looked a bit surprised.
"And it's not just Morax—I'm here too!"
Guizhong suddenly popped out.
Chen Meng looked at her calmly and said,
"You're here too, Guizhong."
"Why aren't you surprised at all?"
Guizhong puffed up indignantly.
"With your personality? Of course you'd show up."
Chen Meng replied matter-of-factly.
"So I'm just someone with nothing better to do in your eyes?!"
Guizhong glared at him, pouting angrily.