Chapter 58
Linda snappel. “No shit”
Her Gilded Core was here. No matter what, she’d have to come back for it.
With that, she strode away.
Claudio was left standing there alone.
Dermot goaded, “She just insulted you. Aren’t you mad?”
Claudio frowned. “Are you jealous because she cares about me?”
Dermot just stared at him, lost for words.
What the hell is he even talking about?‘ Dermot thought.
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Claudio glanced around the space locked down by the five Gilded Cores and murmured, “She left half her cultivation here.”
A smile tugged at his lips as he spoke.
Dermot was dumbfounded. ‘Bro, are you still half–asleep or something? She’s obviously trying to trap us both so we can’t go out and stir up trouble!‘
All she did was swap a small cage for a bigger one.
But seeing Claudio totally clueless, Dermot just kept quiet. The hangover from that fresh dream was no joke. The guy still hadn’t shaken it off.
‘No clue what kind of dream that girl spun up for him, but it sure left a mark, Dermot thought.
As soon as Linda stepped out of the dreamscape, she found herself in the middle of a lush forest.
The soft earth under her feet and the fresh, earthy smell of grass and foliage made her feel like she’d truly returned to the woods. She glanced up at the sky.
The sky was bright. There was no sun, but it was still strangely bright.
‘I really did make it out,‘ Linda thought. After all, there was no sky in dreams.
But the peak where the Hermit’s Sanctum once stood had been leveled, and the sanctum itself was gone.
Linda frowned, lost in thought. ‘What was that treasure the old Dream–Weaver mentioned? Is it just Dermot? Doesn’t seem like anything special, she thought.
Dermot thought, ‘Wow, so now you’re discriminating against spirits?”
“Everyone, let’s combine our power! We can break through this place and wake them up!” someone shouted.
“Got it!” everyone shouted back.
With a unified roar, a thunderous commotion erupted.
Linda glanced up and saw, in the ruins ahead, a spectrum of spirit light converging into a single beam. It shot skyward and crashed straight into a swirling gray vortex.
The vortex had shrunk, now only about 10 feet wide.
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Chapter 38
Taking all the hits, it was starting to break down. And leading the charge was Matthew.
Emmett, who’d been chilling in a rock, jumped onto Linda’s shoulder. “That guy’s got some real skills.”
The spot they were targeting was right at the heart of the dreamscape.
Linda gave a self–deprecating look. “Yeah, he’s the top disciple of Azure Spire.”
Noticing Linda was upset, Emmett kept quiet.
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Linda soared over on her sword, drawing closer to their group as she searched for Laura and the others. When she finally spotted them standing off to the side, looking isolated from the rest, her expression darkened.
“Linda!”
Laura. Craig, and Rafael all looked up at once, their faces lighting up with joy when they saw Linda. They started waving excitedly. “Linda! Over here, we’re right here!”
Linda landed and asked, “Are you guys alright?”
Rafael replied, “We’re fine. Before, we had no idea what was going on. It was like we got dragged into some kind of battlefield and started fighting, but then, all of a sudden, we snapped out of it.”
Rafael let out a laugh. “Looks like luck’s on our side after all. The three of us are totally fine.”
Laura and Craig nodded, then quickly asked, “Are you alright? Where’d you disappear to?”
Linda let out a sigh of relief. ‘Guess they managed to break free, she thought.
“Just now… well,” Linda began, a wry smile tugging at her lips.
Neil scoffed. “Oh, please! You guys really think you can just ride on luck? This was all Matthew’s doing. If he hadn’t busted that formation, we’d be just like those poor souls over there, totally at someone else’s mercy.”
Neil jabbed a finger at the dozen or so people still knocked out, his face clouded with annoyance. He shot Linda a dirty look
too.
Linda glanced at the unconscious group, her expression steady. They looked like they were still lost in a dream. They were definitely the ones who got the short end of the stick.
Matthew sensed Linda’s arrival and turned to look at her. His gaze was sharp and cold, but there was also a flicker of something complicated in his eyes.
He still resented Linda for trapping him in that corridor, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something different about her.
Rafael shot back, spitting on the ground. “Just because you say he busted the formation, it’s gotta be him? I say it was Linda! Seriously, have you got any shame?”
He continued, “We all snapped out of that dream together, got dumped here together, and found the way out together. Now you wanna call him some big hero? Since when does a hero wake up at the same time as everyone else, looking all fresh and chipper?”
“But look at Linda. She’s all roughed up, her aether’s running on fumes, and she looks like she just crawled out of a warzone. For all we know, she’s the one who shattered the dream and dragged us out,” Rafael said, puffing up with pride.
Laura and Craig nodded, dead serious. “Exactly.”
Everyone else was speechless.
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Chuter is
You guys.” Neil and the others were at a total loss for words.
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Rafael dropped another bombshell. “Don’t forget, Linda was the one who cracked the third layer of the Hermit’s Sanctum’s defenses She got into Cloud Cave way before your precious Mathew ever did. Linda’s the real MVP here!
Laura and Craig nodded emphatically, “Exactly!”
Even Linda, usually so composed, gave a little cough. But when he saw the way those two were looking at her with those puppy–dog eyes, she swallowed her modesty and said, “Yeah, I ke it.”
The crowd went wild. They’ve totally lost it.
“Well, damn, I’ve seen shameless before, but this is next–level
“Always hogging the credit, huh? If you’re so good, why don’t you come over and break this dream? Didn’t you say you did it? Come on, let’s see it!”
“Let’s see if she even dares to step up. We’ve got a whole crowd throwing everything we’ve got at it, and we still can’t crack it. She’s just some Aether–Stoking Phase rookie. What a joke.”
“Hold up, how did an Aether–Stoking rookie even get in here? I thought the minimum requirement to enter the Dream- Weaver Fens was Foundation Establishment. How’d she sneak in
“Probably got in through the back door, or just snatched some poor disciple’s spot.”
“I can’t stand people like that. Just hogging a spot and doing nothing!”
Rafael was shaking with rage, ready to throw hands, but Linda stepped in front of him and the others, shielding them with a cold glare. “So, if I crack this thing, you all admit I was the one who broke the dream?”
“Let’s see you actually pull it off,” someone mocked.
Linda shot Matthew a look. “Let’s make it clear. If I open it, every single one of you has to slap yourselves ten times and say, ‘Linda, I was wrong‘ three times. Then maybe I’ll forgive you.”
“So, what do you say?” Linda challenged.
Everyone sucked in a breath. “Wow, talk about shameless.”
Linda shot them a glare so fierce that Neil nearly jumped out of his skin, totally forgetting whatever comeback he had.
Linda pressed, “So, are you in or not?”
“If you’re too chicken to take the bet, then you’d better apologize to my seniors,” Linda said, her gaze sweeping over the crowd. Her eyes seemed to cast a spell. Anyone who met her gaze felt their heart skip a beat.
“Because I was the one who unraveled the threads of your dreams and set you free. I’m the one who pulled you all out of that mess. Go ahead. I totally earned it,” Linda announced.
Matthew opened his mouth to protest, but Linda cut him off with a frosty glare. “Don’t think you’re special, Matthew. I saved you too, even though I really didn’t want to.”
Everyone looked like they were about ready to explode.
Craig thought, ‘Whoa, Linda’s got some serious verbal combat skills!‘
Rafael thought. Teach me your tricks!‘
Laura thought, “That’s my little junior!”
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