Gundam, celestial horse, and the Feathered Serpent God hovered in the air as they gathered at the periphery of root area.
Yu Hao said, “Everyone’s here, listen to my explanation ba.”
Yu Hao started explaining to them what the Golden Crow Wheel had told him, while the rest listened quietly. During which, tens of thousands of rotten monsters climbed down the trunk and hurriedly plunged into the fog. Under the cover of this fog, they formed a troupe as they passed through the fog area to attack the Great Wall.
A loud noise suddenly rang out from the Great Wall far behind them; a dark titan giant rose from within the fog, wielding a giant hammer that it then used to smash the city wall with.
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“…So, I have to find Zhou Sheng.” Yu Hao said at last.
“Where are all these monsters coming from?” Fu Liqun asked with a frown.
Chen Yekai said, “Every dreamscape’s boss, the darkness in ordinary people’s hearts.”
In the area controlled by the world tree, billions of dreamscapes had already withered away.The gatekeepers and the bosses of those dreams, all of them had already been drawn away, and were madly laying siege to the Great Wall.
“Let’s set out ba.” Ou Qihang said.
Yu Hao raised the scepter in his hand, illuminating the subconscious world, and expelling the fog. At the moment the moonlight burst out, Ren Chong, who was at the top of the tree, instantly discovered them. He roared madly, “Still going to put up a desperate struggle?!”
Within a split second, tens of thousands of monsters under the huge tree rushed toward Yu Hao. Chen Yekai shouted, “Cover him!”
Yu Hao didn’t hesitate any longer; he spread his wings out and flew to the cave at the tree roots. Ou Qihang, Chen Yekai, Huang Ting, and Fu Liqun followed behind as they protected Yu Hao.
“Guard this place!” Yu Hao shouted, then stabbed the scepter right into the ground at the entrance to the cave at the tree roots. With a ‘buzz’, the scepter released a bright light that cleared the surrounding fog, while the other four immediately guarded the entrance of the cave. Yu Hao tucked his wings in and instantly shot into the darkness like an artillery shell, flying towards that little bit of light in the bottom most depths under the tree.
Right after he entered the dark passage, sounds and light all instantly disappeared.
A boundless expanse of darkness was just like the deepest part of the sea of subconscious. Yu Hao’s wings shattered, turning into luminous feathers that dissipated all over the air. After losing the scepter, the power of the moonlight rapidly drained away from him, and his consciousness gradually blurred. Between heaven and earth, a tranquil and gentle marine snow fell, but right at the deepest part of the sea, there was a faint, flickering light that always guided his way forward.
“Zhou Sheng.” Yu Hao muttered, “Quick, wake up, I’m waiting for you…”
The sea was both ice cold and dead silent. Heat was dissipating rapidly from his body, he had difficulty breathing, and it was hard for him to keep going. He saw that the light was still very far away, very far away…
“Zhou Sheng—!” Yu Hao cried out in pain.
Along with that cry, countless scenes flickering with a golden lustre erupted all around Yu Hao, revolving around him and warding off the chill of this whole ice cold world!
In the conference room, a red-haired Zhou Sheng pulled Yu Hao to one side and swung out to strike with an earth-shattering punch. Yu Hao hid behind Zhou Sheng, looking a little flabbergasted.
Yu Hao kept falling towards the light in the sea.
Yc atja vjs, Itbe Vtfcu mjgglfv Te Ljb’r UU yjur bc tlr yjmx, vgjuufv Te Ljb’r ieuujuf, jcv fnfc mjgglfv j mjgvybjgv ybz bc tlr rtbeivfg jr tf abbx Te Ljb jkjs ogbw tlr vbgwlabgs jcv lcab jcbatfg yelivlcu. Te Ljb kjamtfv rlifcais ogbw yftlcv.
Ca atf abq bo Za. Kljcdlcu, Itbe Vtfcu rabgwfv jmgbrr atf rerqfcrlbc yglvuf ktlif Te Ljb ujhfv ja tlr yjmx.
“What I saw the most, and what left the deepest impression on me, was your back…” Yu Hao whispered sadly in the light.
Riding a bicycle as he rushed through the finish line in the sunset; the chilly feeling of being sprayed with water; the stifling hot dormitory in the summer, and Zhou Sheng standing on the ladder, touching his forehead carefully, Yu Hao turned around to face the wall while feeling sour…
Until that day, they sat quietly opposite each other with the radiance of twilight streaming into the ferris wheel…ding ding dong dong, the jingle rang out at the deepest part of his mind—
“Zhou Sheng!” Yu Hao heard the music coming from the bottom of the sea and shouted desperately.
Zhou Sheng stood in the middle of the ocean floor, holding the heart-shaped music box in his hand. He looked up with a blank and bewildered expression, like a child who had experienced a very long wait and didn’t know where the future lay.
“Zhou Sheng—!” Yu Hao’s tears spilled out, drawing an arc and disappearing in the sky.
“I was so fortunate to have met you, but I’ve already lost all rights to cry for you…”
The kiss on the ferris wheel, accompanied by the millions of fireworks exploding in the background; in a summer night, Yu Hao skateboarded through the open space in the park. When he looked back, he saw Zhou Sheng following him appearing very careful.
“I’m wearing a helmet, don’t worry…”
“Look ahead, don’t look back!” Zhou Sheng bellowed immediately.
“To see that you were always the one standing right in front of me...”
In their rented apartment, Zhou Sheng removed his hands that were covering Yu Hao’s eyes; on the dining table, there was a huge bouquet of blooming roses and lit Valentine’s Day candles. Surprise filled Yu Hao’s eyes.
Amidst the snow swirling through the sky, Zhou Sheng held Yu Hao’s hand, and in the warm private room, he turned his head sideways to kiss Yu Hao on the cheek in front of his parents. Yu Hao blushed unconsciously.
“Are you the one or were we not meant to be…”
“Yu Hao! Yu Hao! Fuck this god damn rail!”
Yu Hao stood in the carriage and abruptly looked back, only to see Zhou Sheng’s suit fluttering in the wind as he dashed across the platform, all the way to the end before he had no choice but to stop.
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When he saw him again, Zhou Sheng was holding an iron rod as he faced the pursuers amidst the cold winds and snow. Yu Hao still thought he was dreaming as he staggered out of the bushes. Zhou Sheng raised his hand angrily, the pursuers dispersed in an uproar, and only then did he turn around furiously and hugged Yu Hao.
“I hope we get another chance someday…”
At home, Zhou Sheng hugged Yu Hao as they danced under the warm lamp light.
“All I can do is pray...“
“Yu Hao?” Zhou Sheng murmured, raised his head and looked up at Yu Hao, who was falling obliquely from the sky. He muttered to himself, “Yu Hao…This is for you.”
He faced the dark sky, holding up the ball of faint light that illuminated the subconscious world with both hands.
“Zhou Sheng.” Yu Hao choked back a sob.
In an instant, Yu Hao touched the light with one hand. Within the music of the music box, the totem changed its form, then a flare spread out and enveloped the whole place; the colour of the world changed as well, and boiling golden flames flooded the heavens and earth!
Yu Hao opened his eyes wide in the intense glare; within the flames, the memory fragments that were lost were being reconstructed at a rapid rate!
“Had another nightmare?” Zhou Sheng turned his head sideways and asked.
Yu Hao lay on the sofa in Zhou Sheng’s home, his eyes wide open as he kept gasping for breath.
“What did you dream of?” Zhou Sheng frowned.
“That room…” Yu Hao gasped for a moment, then calmed down. He said, “I don’t know why, but I’ll dream of it now and then.”
“General?”
In the dream world of the Great Wall, Yu Hao stared in disbelief at the General clad in armour who had appeared once again. General snapped his fingers in front of Yu Hao, and the scene of the cement room in the back mountains appeared, then it was burned until nothing was left by golden flames.
“Since it’s all in the past, don’t think about it anymore.” General murmured.
“Why do you know I was having nightmares…You’re Zhou Sheng! Did I guess right?” Yu Hao asked in a hurry.
Just as General was about to leave, he suddenly turned around. Yu Hao murmured, “It’s you! Only you would know what I dreamt about…Wait, what did you burn? Is it my memory? I’m confused…”
“You shouldn’t have said that.” General said in a low voice inside his helmet, “Now I have to erase this portion of your memories as well.”
“I’ll still feel it!” Yu Hao said anxiously, “You admit it? Zhou Sheng! It’s you!”
Yu Hao rushed forward and hugged Zhou Sheng tightly. Zhou Sheng said a bit angrily, “Stop it!”
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“Let me see…” Yu Hao pressed, “I just knew it was you!”
Yu Hao’s hands were trembling. He looked up, reached out and took off Zhou Sheng’s helmet, revealing Zhou Sheng’s familiar face. His brows were slightly furrowed as he looked down and gazed at Yu Hao, inexplicable anxiety and unease evident in his eyes.
“Good bye.” Zhou Sheng said calmly. He wrapped one arm around Yu Hao and snapped his fingers with his other, erased another portion of his memories, put on his helmet, then said, “Goodnight.” After that, he forcibly ejected Yu Hao from the dream world.
Night fell on the Great Wall; fireworks exploded brilliantly one after another.
Two chairs were placed on a terrace. Yu Hao and Zhou Sheng sat side by side, quietly watching the fireworks that were rising from the Great Wall.
“Ai.” Zhou Sheng suddenly said, “You really like Gege?”
“Gege?” Yu Hao was baffled. “I don’t ah, why do you ask that?”
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Zhou Sheng held his forehead with one hand and said helplessly, “I’m talking about me!”
Yu Hao, “……”
Yu Hao’s face instantly flushed red, but he didn’t want to deny it either. This sort of conversation was really too embarrassing.
“You…don’t talk about it anymore.” Yu Hao said sadly, “It’s all your fault that my feelings were transferred!’
Zhou Sheng draped an arm around Yu Hao’s shoulders, saying, “It’ll transfer away. You’ll meet the right person for you. Setting aside the question of whether I’m straight or not, you definitely wouldn’t want to date me.”
“Why?” Yu Hao’s embarrassment was slightly alleviated. He asked, “You’re really good ah.”
Zhou Sheng didn’t say anything. Yu Hao said, “You’re the best, you’re practically…a sun that shines with a brilliant radiance.”
Zhou Sheng laughed. Yu Hao said, “I…I don’t know how to describe it, I…”
“Okay, don’t be so corny.” Zhou Sheng was actually blushing a little now. He said, “Stop, watch the fireworks ba.”
“I know you don’t have any feelings for me.” Yu Hao said, “But I still feel very blessed to be your friend. Don’t think too much about it, I won’t…”
Zhou Sheng snapped his fingers, Yu Hao’s memories scattered out and burned up in the golden flames.
Yu Hao, “???”
Zhou Sheng said, “I said, the fireworks are really beautiful!”
Yu Hao said in a daze, “Oh…”
Zhou Sheng, “Take you out to buy clothes tomorrow?”
Yu Hao had wanted Zhou Sheng to stop spending money, but after thinking about it, he said with a smile, “Okay.”
Under the Great Wall, the autumn breeze blew as they ran and jumped between the walls. Yu Hao was breathless as he really couldn’t keep up with Zhou Sheng.
“Punch, turn sideways, kick!” Zhou Sheng ordered, “Don’t pretend to be dead, come on!”
Yu Hao said, “Let me take a break, we can get tired in dreams too!”
Zhou Sheng, “Letting you learn, yet you don’t want to; what if I’m not by your side at times?”
Yu Hao said helplessly, “I didn’t say I wouldn’t learn, but aren’t we together all the time?”
Yu Hao walked towards the stake, and Zhou Sheng sat on the city wall. Yu Hao turned his head sideways to look at him, yet there was a hint of a smile in Zhou Sheng’s gaze.
“Who wants to be with you everyday?” Zhou Sheng said, “Could you not be so lovey dovey and sticky?”
Yu Hao glanced at Zhou Sheng, didn’t answer, and faced the stake as he practiced in earnest.
Zhou Sheng stared for awhile, then continued, “Ai? You’re angry just because of that?”
Yu Hao answered, “I’m not. You’re right, we’ll part one day.”
Zhou Sheng fell silent. Yu Hao thought about it, then said, “What do you think we’ll be like in ten years? Will we go to different places? You should go to a first-tier city, right? I may stay in Ying City, find a job, celebrate the New Year and festivals, give you a call to ask about how you’re doing, you’ll get married and have a baby…”
“You’ll have your boyfriend too.” Zhou Sheng said, “Let me guess, what would your future boyfriend be like?”
Yu Hao said, “I won’t find a boyfriend. I don’t want to look for one anymore.”
Zhou Sheng laughed and said. “You can use me as a comparison to find one.”
Yu Hao stopped talking again. Zhou Sheng said, “You know what, Yu Hao? If you were a girl, I would definitely woo you, and I’d do anything to succeed in wooing you.”
Yu Hao said, “Stop talking about it!”
Zhou Sheng sighed again, “But if you were a girl, you wouldn’t like me.”
Yu Hao said, “I don’t want to learn how to fight. After learning how to, you won’t care about me anymore.”
Zhou Sheng held his forehead with one hand and could only snap his fingers in the end, saying, “Never mind, never mind, let’s ride the roller coaster ba.”
“Qjla!” Te Ljb lwwfvljafis rjlv, “Vlcmf P’w ublcu ab obgufa atlr jcskjs, kts vbc’a…”
Cr tf rqbxf, Te Ljb ifjqa abkjgv Itbe Vtfcu, ktb kjr rlaalcu bc atf mlas kjii, jcv ygjhfcis ragjvvifv Itbe Vtfcu jmgbrr tlr kjlra. Itbe Vtfcu tjvc’a gfjmafv ktfc Te Ljb tjv jigfjvs xlrrfv tlw bc tlr ilqr obgmfoeiis, ajxlcu tlw jibcu jr atfs gbiifv vbkc atf mlas kjii jcv ofii vbkc.
Zhou Sheng, “!!!”
When the flames burned Yu Hao’s memories, Yu Hao revealed a blank expression for a brief moment, then snapped out of his stupor and shouted loudly. Zhou Sheng shouted as well. Yu Hao immediately spread his wings out, taking Zhou Sheng along as he made a sudden about-face and flew back to the city wall.
“We fell just now?” Yu Hao said with slight trepidation, “Were we parkouring? It’s still too dangerous.”
Zhou Sheng, “……”
Yu Hao, “Why do you look so weird?”
“Fuck me!” Zhou Sheng said angrily to Yu Hao, “Fuck!!!”
Yu Hao, “Why are you flaring up??”
Zhou Sheng practically couldn’t do anything with Yu Hao at all. He turned around, wiped his lips, then pinched his lips, all the while looking irascible. When he turned around to look at Yu Hao again, a bunch of question marks could be seen above Yu Hao’s head.
The golden flames was burning more and more intensely, setting the entire world on fire. All the dissipated memories were converging once again amidst the flames; countless scenes and images swept by quickly, and finally paused at one instant——
——Zhou Sheng ran quickly, jumped into the air, and unleashed a slam dunk.
Yu Hao felt like he got struck in an instant. He stared blankly at Zhou Sheng, and time seemed to stop. When Zhou Sheng landed, he was immediately knocked into and fell to the ground.
The flow of time recovered in an instant. Yu Hao instinctively wanted to run up to take a look at him, but after taking two steps out, he realised that Zhou Sheng seemed like nothing had happened as he staggered a few times before standing up. Zhou Sheng ran beyond the three-point line and inadvertently caught a glimpse of Yu Hao, who was passing by. He proudly raised an eyebrow at him, and brazenly flirted once with this boy he didn’t know who was just passing by.
Light revolved around Zhou Sheng’s body, then paused at a certain evening: after running 30 kilometres, he was sweating from head to toe. He looked at the stands, and Yu Hao had fallen asleep while leaning against the railings. Zhou Sheng took off his sports T-shirt, wrung his sweat out of it, threw it over his shoulder, then went up the steps to look at him.
In the sunset, Yu Hao slept soundly while wearing his earphones. His brows furrowed deeply, as if he had some troubles that couldn’t be resolved. He had fair skin, messy hair, very long eyelashes, and ruddy lips. Half of his face was hidden in the shadows, and his slim yet delicate face was so beautiful it looked like the silhouette of a bird flying past a mountain range, like the arc of a meteor drawn as it streaks across the night sky.
Zhou Sheng took his phone out and casually took a picture of Yu Hao sleeping soundly, then patted him.
“Wei, wake up!”
Yu Hao shifted uncomfortably, and he hadn’t opened his eyes before Zhou Sheng left the stand and walked away by himself. From then on, he would see Yu Hao sitting on the stands almost every day.
“Wei.” Yu Hao whispered in the golden light, “Have you slept enough?”
In an instant, Yu Hao’s hand passed through the light of the totem and grasped Zhou Sheng’s wrist firmly. Both of them embraced each other in the golden light.
A gentle breeze blew; the golden light retracted, then spread out endlessly between the heavens and earth, turning into wheat fields that connected with the horizon.
Zhou Sheng bowed his head and looked at Yu Hao, who was in his arms, then looked up at the sky again. At the same time, both of their bodies was set ablaze. Yu Hao lifted his hand, and a music box appeared within. Amidst the jingling of the music, countless memories on earth began recombining themselves, constructing the surface conscious world.
Outside the tree of the world.
Dark monsters advanced dauntlessly in waves. Ren Chong’s indignant voice resounded through the sky.
“Just a motley crew! You’re still not giving up?!”
“There’s too many!” Fu Liqun said, “We can’t finish killing them no matter how many we slaughter!”
Fu Liqun and Ou Qihang stood in front to ward them off; Huang Ting and Chen Yekai stood in front of the shining scepter and guarded the entrance of the cave. Huang Ting shouted, “Hold on!”
Chen Yekai said, “You have to find their weak point! These are all dark thoughts from ordinary dreams! They’re not hard to kill!”
Huang Ting, “Don’t just fly around, get down and kill monsters!”
Fu Liqun, “You guys have AOEs that can blow up a whole area, and Xiao Ou even has a Gundam! I fucking…”
Fu Liqun rode his celestial horse and dragged away the monsters that were besieging them. Ou Qihang followed behind to shoot his cannons, while Huang Ting began releasing his fireball arrays and bombed their enemies indiscriminately.
More and more monsters appeared, and they were even abandoning the Great Wall as they returned to the world tree as reinforcements.
Ou Qihang shouted, “All of the monsters are coming!”
“Hold on!” Chen Yekai shouted.
“He should have woken up by now ba?”
“This nap of his is really long…But why do I still seem to be waiting…”
“Un? What are you waiting for?”
“Waiting…I don’t know either. I always feel like something’s missing…”
Yu Hao raised one hand in the darkness, a light glimmering in his palm.
In the grand world of consciousness, the Great Wall suddenly disappeared!
Amidst earth-shattering cries, the Great Wall turned into silver white light particles that swooshed over, forming a starry river that shot swiftly into the entrance below the world tree, then disappeared without a trace.
The dark titan giant made one last swing down with its hammer, but it staggered and smashed harshly into the ground.
The fog broke through the border, advancing rapidly as it invaded the billions of dreamscapes guarded by the Great Wall!
“Is this it?” Yu Hao held a ball of silver white light with both hands and lifted it up to Zhou Sheng’s face. A totem appeared in Zhou Sheng’s hand. Yu Hao placed his hand on Zhou Sheng’s palm; two balls of light merged, then emitted a dazzling glare. Zhou Sheng lowered his head and kissed Yu Hao on his lips.
“Integration of permissions, activation of the World mode.” The Golden Crow Wheel’s voice rang out.
The Great Wall collapsed, and the fog billowed. Seeing as how the barrier was lost, the dark monsters gushed toward the entire world like a tide. Chen Yekai rode his Feathered Serpent God and soared into the sky, but millions of demonic birds assembled by black flames flew from the tree, wreaking havoc and tearing apart everything in sight.
“Nicky!”
“Yu Hao’s scepter disappeared!”
What came next was a ray of golden light bursting from the cave at the bottom of the world tree that broke through the void—
In the dream of that world, the one who was dreamed of awoke.
Gundam, celestial horse, and the Feathered Serpent God hovered in the air as they gathered at the periphery of root area.
Yu Hao said, “Everyone’s here, listen to my explanation ba.”
Yu Hao started explaining to them what the Golden Crow Wheel had told him, while the rest listened quietly. During which, tens of thousands of rotten monsters climbed down the trunk and hurriedly plunged into the fog. Under the cover of this fog, they formed a troupe as they passed through the fog area to attack the Great Wall.
A loud noise suddenly rang out from the Great Wall far behind them; a dark titan giant rose from within the fog, wielding a giant hammer that it then used to smash the city wall with.
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“…So, I have to find Zhou Sheng.” Yu Hao said at last.
“Where are all these monsters coming from?” Fu Liqun asked with a frown.
Chen Yekai said, “Every dreamscape’s boss, the darkness in ordinary people’s hearts.”
In the area controlled by the world tree, billions of dreamscapes had already withered away.The gatekeepers and the bosses of those dreams, all of them had already been drawn away, and were madly laying siege to the Great Wall.
“Let’s set out ba.” Ou Qihang said.
Yu Hao raised the scepter in his hand, illuminating the subconscious world, and expelling the fog. At the moment the moonlight burst out, Ren Chong, who was at the top of the tree, instantly discovered them. He roared madly, “Still going to put up a desperate struggle?!”
Within a split second, tens of thousands of monsters under the huge tree rushed toward Yu Hao. Chen Yekai shouted, “Cover him!”
Yu Hao didn’t hesitate any longer; he spread his wings out and flew to the cave at the tree roots. Ou Qihang, Chen Yekai, Huang Ting, and Fu Liqun followed behind as they protected Yu Hao.
“Guard this place!” Yu Hao shouted, then stabbed the scepter right into the ground at the entrance to the cave at the tree roots. With a ‘buzz’, the scepter released a bright light that cleared the surrounding fog, while the other four immediately guarded the entrance of the cave. Yu Hao tucked his wings in and instantly shot into the darkness like an artillery shell, flying towards that little bit of light in the bottom most depths under the tree.
Right after he entered the dark passage, sounds and light all instantly disappeared.
A boundless expanse of darkness was just like the deepest part of the sea of subconscious. Yu Hao’s wings shattered, turning into luminous feathers that dissipated all over the air. After losing the scepter, the power of the moonlight rapidly drained away from him, and his consciousness gradually blurred. Between heaven and earth, a tranquil and gentle marine snow fell, but right at the deepest part of the sea, there was a faint, flickering light that always guided his way forward.
“Zhou Sheng.” Yu Hao muttered, “Quick, wake up, I’m waiting for you…”
The sea was both ice cold and dead silent. Heat was dissipating rapidly from his body, he had difficulty breathing, and it was hard for him to keep going. He saw that the light was still very far away, very far away…
“Zhou Sheng—!” Yu Hao cried out in pain.
Along with that cry, countless scenes flickering with a golden lustre erupted all around Yu Hao, revolving around him and warding off the chill of this whole ice cold world!
In the conference room, a red-haired Zhou Sheng pulled Yu Hao to one side and swung out to strike with an earth-shattering punch. Yu Hao hid behind Zhou Sheng, looking a little flabbergasted.
Yu Hao kept falling towards the light in the sea.
Yc atja vjs, Itbe Vtfcu mjgglfv Te Ljb’r UU yjur bc tlr yjmx, vgjuufv Te Ljb’r ieuujuf, jcv fnfc mjgglfv j mjgvybjgv ybz bc tlr rtbeivfg jr tf abbx Te Ljb jkjs ogbw tlr vbgwlabgs jcv lcab jcbatfg yelivlcu. Te Ljb kjamtfv rlifcais ogbw yftlcv.
Ca atf abq bo Za. Kljcdlcu, Itbe Vtfcu rabgwfv jmgbrr atf rerqfcrlbc yglvuf ktlif Te Ljb ujhfv ja tlr yjmx.
“What I saw the most, and what left the deepest impression on me, was your back…” Yu Hao whispered sadly in the light.
Riding a bicycle as he rushed through the finish line in the sunset; the chilly feeling of being sprayed with water; the stifling hot dormitory in the summer, and Zhou Sheng standing on the ladder, touching his forehead carefully, Yu Hao turned around to face the wall while feeling sour…
Until that day, they sat quietly opposite each other with the radiance of twilight streaming into the ferris wheel…ding ding dong dong, the jingle rang out at the deepest part of his mind—
“Zhou Sheng!” Yu Hao heard the music coming from the bottom of the sea and shouted desperately.
Zhou Sheng stood in the middle of the ocean floor, holding the heart-shaped music box in his hand. He looked up with a blank and bewildered expression, like a child who had experienced a very long wait and didn’t know where the future lay.
“Zhou Sheng—!” Yu Hao’s tears spilled out, drawing an arc and disappearing in the sky.
“I was so fortunate to have met you, but I’ve already lost all rights to cry for you…”
The kiss on the ferris wheel, accompanied by the millions of fireworks exploding in the background; in a summer night, Yu Hao skateboarded through the open space in the park. When he looked back, he saw Zhou Sheng following him appearing very careful.
“I’m wearing a helmet, don’t worry…”
“Look ahead, don’t look back!” Zhou Sheng bellowed immediately.
“To see that you were always the one standing right in front of me...”
In their rented apartment, Zhou Sheng removed his hands that were covering Yu Hao’s eyes; on the dining table, there was a huge bouquet of blooming roses and lit Valentine’s Day candles. Surprise filled Yu Hao’s eyes.
Amidst the snow swirling through the sky, Zhou Sheng held Yu Hao’s hand, and in the warm private room, he turned his head sideways to kiss Yu Hao on the cheek in front of his parents. Yu Hao blushed unconsciously.
“Are you the one or were we not meant to be…”
“Yu Hao! Yu Hao! Fuck this god damn rail!”
Yu Hao stood in the carriage and abruptly looked back, only to see Zhou Sheng’s suit fluttering in the wind as he dashed across the platform, all the way to the end before he had no choice but to stop.
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When he saw him again, Zhou Sheng was holding an iron rod as he faced the pursuers amidst the cold winds and snow. Yu Hao still thought he was dreaming as he staggered out of the bushes. Zhou Sheng raised his hand angrily, the pursuers dispersed in an uproar, and only then did he turn around furiously and hugged Yu Hao.
“I hope we get another chance someday…”
At home, Zhou Sheng hugged Yu Hao as they danced under the warm lamp light.
“All I can do is pray...“
“Yu Hao?” Zhou Sheng murmured, raised his head and looked up at Yu Hao, who was falling obliquely from the sky. He muttered to himself, “Yu Hao…This is for you.”
He faced the dark sky, holding up the ball of faint light that illuminated the subconscious world with both hands.
“Zhou Sheng.” Yu Hao choked back a sob.
In an instant, Yu Hao touched the light with one hand. Within the music of the music box, the totem changed its form, then a flare spread out and enveloped the whole place; the colour of the world changed as well, and boiling golden flames flooded the heavens and earth!
Yu Hao opened his eyes wide in the intense glare; within the flames, the memory fragments that were lost were being reconstructed at a rapid rate!
“Had another nightmare?” Zhou Sheng turned his head sideways and asked.
Yu Hao lay on the sofa in Zhou Sheng’s home, his eyes wide open as he kept gasping for breath.
“What did you dream of?” Zhou Sheng frowned.
“That room…” Yu Hao gasped for a moment, then calmed down. He said, “I don’t know why, but I’ll dream of it now and then.”
“General?”
In the dream world of the Great Wall, Yu Hao stared in disbelief at the General clad in armour who had appeared once again. General snapped his fingers in front of Yu Hao, and the scene of the cement room in the back mountains appeared, then it was burned until nothing was left by golden flames.
“Since it’s all in the past, don’t think about it anymore.” General murmured.
“Why do you know I was having nightmares…You’re Zhou Sheng! Did I guess right?” Yu Hao asked in a hurry.
Just as General was about to leave, he suddenly turned around. Yu Hao murmured, “It’s you! Only you would know what I dreamt about…Wait, what did you burn? Is it my memory? I’m confused…”
“You shouldn’t have said that.” General said in a low voice inside his helmet, “Now I have to erase this portion of your memories as well.”
“I’ll still feel it!” Yu Hao said anxiously, “You admit it? Zhou Sheng! It’s you!”
Yu Hao rushed forward and hugged Zhou Sheng tightly. Zhou Sheng said a bit angrily, “Stop it!”
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“Let me see…” Yu Hao pressed, “I just knew it was you!”
Yu Hao’s hands were trembling. He looked up, reached out and took off Zhou Sheng’s helmet, revealing Zhou Sheng’s familiar face. His brows were slightly furrowed as he looked down and gazed at Yu Hao, inexplicable anxiety and unease evident in his eyes.
“Good bye.” Zhou Sheng said calmly. He wrapped one arm around Yu Hao and snapped his fingers with his other, erased another portion of his memories, put on his helmet, then said, “Goodnight.” After that, he forcibly ejected Yu Hao from the dream world.
Night fell on the Great Wall; fireworks exploded brilliantly one after another.
Two chairs were placed on a terrace. Yu Hao and Zhou Sheng sat side by side, quietly watching the fireworks that were rising from the Great Wall.
“Ai.” Zhou Sheng suddenly said, “You really like Gege?”
“Gege?” Yu Hao was baffled. “I don’t ah, why do you ask that?”
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Zhou Sheng held his forehead with one hand and said helplessly, “I’m talking about me!”
Yu Hao, “……”
Yu Hao’s face instantly flushed red, but he didn’t want to deny it either. This sort of conversation was really too embarrassing.
“You…don’t talk about it anymore.” Yu Hao said sadly, “It’s all your fault that my feelings were transferred!’
Zhou Sheng draped an arm around Yu Hao’s shoulders, saying, “It’ll transfer away. You’ll meet the right person for you. Setting aside the question of whether I’m straight or not, you definitely wouldn’t want to date me.”
“Why?” Yu Hao’s embarrassment was slightly alleviated. He asked, “You’re really good ah.”
Zhou Sheng didn’t say anything. Yu Hao said, “You’re the best, you’re practically…a sun that shines with a brilliant radiance.”
Zhou Sheng laughed. Yu Hao said, “I…I don’t know how to describe it, I…”
“Okay, don’t be so corny.” Zhou Sheng was actually blushing a little now. He said, “Stop, watch the fireworks ba.”
“I know you don’t have any feelings for me.” Yu Hao said, “But I still feel very blessed to be your friend. Don’t think too much about it, I won’t…”
Zhou Sheng snapped his fingers, Yu Hao’s memories scattered out and burned up in the golden flames.
Yu Hao, “???”
Zhou Sheng said, “I said, the fireworks are really beautiful!”
Yu Hao said in a daze, “Oh…”
Zhou Sheng, “Take you out to buy clothes tomorrow?”
Yu Hao had wanted Zhou Sheng to stop spending money, but after thinking about it, he said with a smile, “Okay.”
Under the Great Wall, the autumn breeze blew as they ran and jumped between the walls. Yu Hao was breathless as he really couldn’t keep up with Zhou Sheng.
“Punch, turn sideways, kick!” Zhou Sheng ordered, “Don’t pretend to be dead, come on!”
Yu Hao said, “Let me take a break, we can get tired in dreams too!”
Zhou Sheng, “Letting you learn, yet you don’t want to; what if I’m not by your side at times?”
Yu Hao said helplessly, “I didn’t say I wouldn’t learn, but aren’t we together all the time?”
Yu Hao walked towards the stake, and Zhou Sheng sat on the city wall. Yu Hao turned his head sideways to look at him, yet there was a hint of a smile in Zhou Sheng’s gaze.
“Who wants to be with you everyday?” Zhou Sheng said, “Could you not be so lovey dovey and sticky?”
Yu Hao glanced at Zhou Sheng, didn’t answer, and faced the stake as he practiced in earnest.
Zhou Sheng stared for awhile, then continued, “Ai? You’re angry just because of that?”
Yu Hao answered, “I’m not. You’re right, we’ll part one day.”
Zhou Sheng fell silent. Yu Hao thought about it, then said, “What do you think we’ll be like in ten years? Will we go to different places? You should go to a first-tier city, right? I may stay in Ying City, find a job, celebrate the New Year and festivals, give you a call to ask about how you’re doing, you’ll get married and have a baby…”
“You’ll have your boyfriend too.” Zhou Sheng said, “Let me guess, what would your future boyfriend be like?”
Yu Hao said, “I won’t find a boyfriend. I don’t want to look for one anymore.”
Zhou Sheng laughed and said. “You can use me as a comparison to find one.”
Yu Hao stopped talking again. Zhou Sheng said, “You know what, Yu Hao? If you were a girl, I would definitely woo you, and I’d do anything to succeed in wooing you.”
Yu Hao said, “Stop talking about it!”
Zhou Sheng sighed again, “But if you were a girl, you wouldn’t like me.”
Yu Hao said, “I don’t want to learn how to fight. After learning how to, you won’t care about me anymore.”
Zhou Sheng held his forehead with one hand and could only snap his fingers in the end, saying, “Never mind, never mind, let’s ride the roller coaster ba.”
“Qjla!” Te Ljb lwwfvljafis rjlv, “Vlcmf P’w ublcu ab obgufa atlr jcskjs, kts vbc’a…”
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Zhou Sheng, “!!!”
When the flames burned Yu Hao’s memories, Yu Hao revealed a blank expression for a brief moment, then snapped out of his stupor and shouted loudly. Zhou Sheng shouted as well. Yu Hao immediately spread his wings out, taking Zhou Sheng along as he made a sudden about-face and flew back to the city wall.
“We fell just now?” Yu Hao said with slight trepidation, “Were we parkouring? It’s still too dangerous.”
Zhou Sheng, “……”
Yu Hao, “Why do you look so weird?”
“Fuck me!” Zhou Sheng said angrily to Yu Hao, “Fuck!!!”
Yu Hao, “Why are you flaring up??”
Zhou Sheng practically couldn’t do anything with Yu Hao at all. He turned around, wiped his lips, then pinched his lips, all the while looking irascible. When he turned around to look at Yu Hao again, a bunch of question marks could be seen above Yu Hao’s head.
The golden flames was burning more and more intensely, setting the entire world on fire. All the dissipated memories were converging once again amidst the flames; countless scenes and images swept by quickly, and finally paused at one instant——
——Zhou Sheng ran quickly, jumped into the air, and unleashed a slam dunk.
Yu Hao felt like he got struck in an instant. He stared blankly at Zhou Sheng, and time seemed to stop. When Zhou Sheng landed, he was immediately knocked into and fell to the ground.
The flow of time recovered in an instant. Yu Hao instinctively wanted to run up to take a look at him, but after taking two steps out, he realised that Zhou Sheng seemed like nothing had happened as he staggered a few times before standing up. Zhou Sheng ran beyond the three-point line and inadvertently caught a glimpse of Yu Hao, who was passing by. He proudly raised an eyebrow at him, and brazenly flirted once with this boy he didn’t know who was just passing by.
Light revolved around Zhou Sheng’s body, then paused at a certain evening: after running 30 kilometres, he was sweating from head to toe. He looked at the stands, and Yu Hao had fallen asleep while leaning against the railings. Zhou Sheng took off his sports T-shirt, wrung his sweat out of it, threw it over his shoulder, then went up the steps to look at him.
In the sunset, Yu Hao slept soundly while wearing his earphones. His brows furrowed deeply, as if he had some troubles that couldn’t be resolved. He had fair skin, messy hair, very long eyelashes, and ruddy lips. Half of his face was hidden in the shadows, and his slim yet delicate face was so beautiful it looked like the silhouette of a bird flying past a mountain range, like the arc of a meteor drawn as it streaks across the night sky.
Zhou Sheng took his phone out and casually took a picture of Yu Hao sleeping soundly, then patted him.
“Wei, wake up!”
Yu Hao shifted uncomfortably, and he hadn’t opened his eyes before Zhou Sheng left the stand and walked away by himself. From then on, he would see Yu Hao sitting on the stands almost every day.
“Wei.” Yu Hao whispered in the golden light, “Have you slept enough?”
In an instant, Yu Hao’s hand passed through the light of the totem and grasped Zhou Sheng’s wrist firmly. Both of them embraced each other in the golden light.
A gentle breeze blew; the golden light retracted, then spread out endlessly between the heavens and earth, turning into wheat fields that connected with the horizon.
Zhou Sheng bowed his head and looked at Yu Hao, who was in his arms, then looked up at the sky again. At the same time, both of their bodies was set ablaze. Yu Hao lifted his hand, and a music box appeared within. Amidst the jingling of the music, countless memories on earth began recombining themselves, constructing the surface conscious world.
Outside the tree of the world.
Dark monsters advanced dauntlessly in waves. Ren Chong’s indignant voice resounded through the sky.
“Just a motley crew! You’re still not giving up?!”
“There’s too many!” Fu Liqun said, “We can’t finish killing them no matter how many we slaughter!”
Fu Liqun and Ou Qihang stood in front to ward them off; Huang Ting and Chen Yekai stood in front of the shining scepter and guarded the entrance of the cave. Huang Ting shouted, “Hold on!”
Chen Yekai said, “You have to find their weak point! These are all dark thoughts from ordinary dreams! They’re not hard to kill!”
Huang Ting, “Don’t just fly around, get down and kill monsters!”
Fu Liqun, “You guys have AOEs that can blow up a whole area, and Xiao Ou even has a Gundam! I fucking…”
Fu Liqun rode his celestial horse and dragged away the monsters that were besieging them. Ou Qihang followed behind to shoot his cannons, while Huang Ting began releasing his fireball arrays and bombed their enemies indiscriminately.
More and more monsters appeared, and they were even abandoning the Great Wall as they returned to the world tree as reinforcements.
Ou Qihang shouted, “All of the monsters are coming!”
“Hold on!” Chen Yekai shouted.
“He should have woken up by now ba?”
“This nap of his is really long…But why do I still seem to be waiting…”
“Un? What are you waiting for?”
“Waiting…I don’t know either. I always feel like something’s missing…”
Yu Hao raised one hand in the darkness, a light glimmering in his palm.
In the grand world of consciousness, the Great Wall suddenly disappeared!
Amidst earth-shattering cries, the Great Wall turned into silver white light particles that swooshed over, forming a starry river that shot swiftly into the entrance below the world tree, then disappeared without a trace.
The dark titan giant made one last swing down with its hammer, but it staggered and smashed harshly into the ground.
The fog broke through the border, advancing rapidly as it invaded the billions of dreamscapes guarded by the Great Wall!
“Is this it?” Yu Hao held a ball of silver white light with both hands and lifted it up to Zhou Sheng’s face. A totem appeared in Zhou Sheng’s hand. Yu Hao placed his hand on Zhou Sheng’s palm; two balls of light merged, then emitted a dazzling glare. Zhou Sheng lowered his head and kissed Yu Hao on his lips.
“Integration of permissions, activation of the World mode.” The Golden Crow Wheel’s voice rang out.
The Great Wall collapsed, and the fog billowed. Seeing as how the barrier was lost, the dark monsters gushed toward the entire world like a tide. Chen Yekai rode his Feathered Serpent God and soared into the sky, but millions of demonic birds assembled by black flames flew from the tree, wreaking havoc and tearing apart everything in sight.
“Nicky!”
“Yu Hao’s scepter disappeared!”
What came next was a ray of golden light bursting from the cave at the bottom of the world tree that broke through the void—
In the dream of that world, the one who was dreamed of awoke.
