(Are we in a dream… or is this reality?)
Zheng asked himself in a murmur. He was lost, not knowing if this was a dream or reality. If this was reality, why did he fall asleep? Why did his team forget MoLi? If this was a dream, why could he use his Qi and Blood Energy? He didn’t even have trouble refining his Qi.
HongLu said, “I watched through A Nightmare in Elm Street multiple times. I noticed a phenomenon, which I call the three worlds. Which three worlds? First, the reality we are in. This world is lighted by sunlight. Nothing will happen. A world with only humans. This world is safe. You can have fun and laugh. The second world is the safe dreams. Freddy will enter the dream of his target. He plans events and people who the target had experienced and encountered. In the third movie, the protagonist is locked in a sanatorium. However, when she falls asleep, she suddenly finds herself back in her home at a time in the past. She is waiting for her mother to come home. The rock music from the radio is loud enough to disrupt the neighbors. In her past, the first thing her mother did after she returned was to turn off the radio. The same events occur in the dream. The protagonist thinks Freddy is the dream.”
HongLu paused. The team was drawn by his explanation. LiuYu quickly said, “I also saw this scene though I don’t remember the details.”
“The events that follows…” HongLu twirled his hair. “Her mother repeats her words but Freddy suddenly appears as her mother’s guest. He slices off the mother’s head. Yet, it is still talking. The protagonist screams at the horrifying scene.”
HongLu held out two fingers. “This is the second world, the safe dreams. Freddy enters your dream, manipulates your dream, up until he attacks you. From that point on, he becomes omnipotent in your dream; he can’t be killed. That’s the third world, the despair dreams.”
Silence fell upon the team as they pondered.
Some time passed before Zheng spoke, “What is the difference of the second and third world? Aren’t they both dreams manipulated by Freddy?”
“Yes and no.” HongLu glanced over the team, pausing for a moment on someone specific. “Why will there be a safe dream? If Freddy can manipulate a person’s dream at will, he can easily kill that person. Why didn’t he? Because of entertainment and madness? Because of the desire to torture? Or is it something bigger? I think he has no other choice.
“If we view a dream as an intact egg, the first thing you need to kill the person inside is to break through its shell. I think Freddy doesn’t have the ability to kill a person in his own dream. A dream is the domain of that person, where he is invincible. Much like how you are the god of your daydreams. This explains the origin of the safe world.
“Freddy uses various ways to break through this shell. Terror is his most used tool. There’s also sexual temptation which he used in the third movie. He will also lower your guard with pieces of your memory and then shatter this memory. He will kill the one most beloved to you. He will do everything to break open your heart. The moment he achieves it is the moment you enter the despair dream. In there, he manipulates the world, and you!”
Shivers ran down their spines from hearing HongLu’s analogy. Sleep wasn’t the issue anymore as long as they were in this world. Freddy might grasp the weaknesses within them at any moment then drag them into the despair dream. There was no use knowing his attacks. Everyone had their own weaknesses and their defense must be weak in this respect. An attack might meant death.
Zheng frowned then turned to Xuan. “What do you think? Just speak what’s in your mind. I hate it when you are silent. At least let us know if you have a plan.”
Xuan calmly shook his head. He continued eating spaghetti without a word. HongLu explained for him, “This is just a speculation. If we are all dreaming the same dream, this is the safe dream. Freddy can’t attack us. However, he can listen to what we are talking, see what we are doing. I suspect he can even reach into our heart to seek our weaknesses. That’s why Xuan can’t speak even if he has a plan. The reason I spoke is because I am taking a risk. I am betting Freddy can’t attack us in the current dream. He would have killed me for saying so much, so I won. Either we are currently not in a dream, or he can’t kill us in the safe dream. But he’s listening.”
(Xuan is staying silent to prevent Freddy from knowing his plan… but there’s another possibility. If it turns out that way, I can only…)
HongLu looked over the group again. He pulled off two strings of hair, pointed one at Zheng and the other at Xuan. “Then I will make a conclusion.”
The team finished their breakfast. Everyone was feeling a weight oppressing their hearts. They did not have the mood to think much knowing that they were in a dream and Freddy didn’t have to wait for them to fall asleep. Kampa, Zero, and WangXia inspected their weapons right after eating. Given that they brought the weapons into the dream, they might be able to damage Freddy here.
HongLu said as he saw people began to leave, “We don’t know why we would forget the people near us. We don’t know why Zheng can remember MoLi. It might be because he witnessed her in the despair dream. From now on, carve the people around you into your heart. Don’t lose your memory of them. Secondly, don’t think of the things you desire, the things you fear, the things you worry, or even Freddy himself. They are the crevices of your soul… I have said everything that needed to be said. My responsibility is completed. What’s left falls on you, Zheng. How would you as the leader lead us through the thirty days in this dream?”
Zheng looked at Xuan then at HongLu. He gritted his teeth then said, “We can’t split up since we are going to get attacked at any time. The night watch tactic is useless. It’s ridiculous that you wake up at the next day after chasing Freddy. I think we should all stay in the same room. We can sleep but four people need to stay awake at a time. And Soul Link.”
Lan asked, “There’s a use to Soul Link?”
Zheng shook his head. “I don’t know yet. However, Soul Link allows you to sense unrest happening in someone’s mind. Alert everyone who’s awake as soon as you sense it. That person might be under attack. That’s it then. We don’t know if our weapons are effective against Freddy in the dream. The only thing we can do is stay alert. Xuan, Heng, and YinKong, go buy a house while it’s noon. It’s best if we can move in tonight. Rent one if you can’t buy one in such a short amount of time. We can’t afford to split up again. Freddy will take us out one by one. And lastly, live on!”