Chapter 138 Never Break a Promise

Adonis clearly understood the transformation that had occurred within Ji Ning, yet he felt no surprise at Ji Ning seizing the initiative in such a short span of time. Ever since he had touched upon that realm, nothing in the world could move him anymore. He remained entirely motionless; no matter how beautiful the glass marble a child wielded might be, it could never injure an adult.

A spear formed of glacial crystals coalesced in Ji Ning’s hand. Without looking at the man in the trench coat, he hurled it straight up into the sky. This single strike condensed every ounce of energy he could currently muster within his body, and the moment it left his hand, SCP-CN-655 imbued the energy spear with a commandment at the level of the laws governing the world’s origin: it was bound to hit its target.

The spear seemed to break through the dimensional wall, appearing instantly before Adonis’s chest. According to the laws of physics, such invisible speed must produce a sonic boom as it breaks the sound barrier, but the air remained completely silent. This had already surpassed the concept of "speed." Driven by pure energy and regulated by SCP-CN-655, the dreamscape formed a transient spatial connection between the point where the spear was thrown and Adonis’s chest, acting much like a miniature wormhole—a realm that Gungnir in mythology could never hope to reach.

Yet the imagined scene did not materialize. Adonis raised his right hand slightly and, as if by pure coincidence, pinched the tip of the spear. The energy, which uncontrollably radiated a tyrannical intent, grew as docile as a pet in his grasp.

He spoke calmly, "I do not understand why there are people like you, why you must resist. You chose to reject a beautiful world for the sake of others. Not a single shred of sanity would lead anyone to make such a choice."

"False things are false in the end. No matter how real they seem, they remain fake," Ji Ning said coldly, while SCP-CN-655 surged darkly within him.

"By what measure do you judge truth from falsehood? Before you remembered your past, were you not living quite well in the dream world? The so-called reality you constantly speak of is merely another form of falsehood. As far as I know, no one’s life is entirely devoid of pain, and fate has never been smooth sailing. Those high and mighty deities view you as ants; no one pities your suffering. The salvation promised by religion is merely people who have lost their campfires in the long night gathering together to keep warm. The strong stay strong, the weak grow weaker, and every yearning for the future turns into endurance. Society itself is nothing more than a spiderweb, where those at the top naturally enjoy everything created by those at the bottom while coveting the space to climb higher. If there is anything eternal, it is likely humanity's cruelty toward its own kind. This world can never become like a fairy tale where everyone lives happily ever after. There are always people struggling in the painful long night. Such a world is perhaps only cherished by those top-tier beings who enjoy offerings, but who speaks up for the nameless? Who considers what they want? Who cares what kind of life they wish to lead?"

"I am not a bad person. You stop me, believing that my so-called salvation is merely self-deception on my part. But at least they can leave this painful world and live happy lives in dreams. You can pull them out of dreams, but can you go into the real world to save those who are being tortured? No, you will do nothing. You sit on high, continuing to observe the ordinary people of this world, not believing you have any obligation to do anything for them. To you, those are merely the trivial experiences of others. But to those tortured by fate, it is a struggle through a hopeless long night. When the world is despair-inducing, death is the eternal haven. Do you really think my dream is a worse choice than suicide?"

"The vast majority of people in this world do not want reality; they merely want peace of mind. Lies grant them peace of mind, so they choose lies. Tell them the truth, and they will spit on you instead—and that is merely the final resistance they can muster against their own lives."

Ji Ning’s ice-blue pupils suddenly dilated. He realized he truly could not refute Adonis’s words. While he faltered, Adonis released his grip on the spear. Although the spear was imbued with the law of absolute hit and was indeed shortening the distance between them, Adonis, standing in the realm of a demigod, found neutralizing such triviality effortless. As the architect of the dream, he directly altered the flow of time around himself. Though the spear continually approached him, it remained subject to the local temporal flow; this process could take the next second or the next century. As long as he wished, the spear would remain suspended in an unreached moment until the next Big Bang.

A vortex-like spatial gate appeared behind Adonis. Without saying anything more, he cast a calm glance at Ji Ning, left behind a single sentence, and turned to step through.

"However, I will not force everyone to understand. The choice has always been in their own hands."

Only then did Ji Ning realize that with Adonis’s strength, if he wished, there was no need to fight at all. In his manifested state, a mere thought would have been enough to destroy Qin Mo’s spiritual body. Inflicting injuries on Qin Mo was precisely the multiple-choice question Adonis had personally posed.

What is called a god is merely toying with the mortal realm.

The last time he had felt such panic and fury was his very first encounter with the SCP Foundation, when the young boy's worldview was upended, leaving behind only shock and terror. Now, that lingering emotion enveloped him once more.

Qin Mo had already awakened in his arms. Facing those limpid eyes, Ji Ning could not utter a single word. Before entering the dream, he had made solemn promises that he would never forget her, yet in the blink of an eye, he had forgotten everything completely. Even just now before Adonis, he had failed to choose her. Compared to Qin Mo’s profound affection for him, Ji Ning felt like a misbehaving child at that moment, the guilt rendering him unable to face her.

"Did you remember?" Qin Mo reached out and stroked Ji Ning’s cheek. In an instant, a myriad of emotions surged within him, and he finally decided to comfort Qin Mo with a well-intentioned lie.

"I'm sorry." Ji Ning lowered his head slightly, his face full of apology. Though his mouth was full of deceit, his remorse was entirely genuine.

"Did you drive Adonis away?" Qin Mo’s complexion remained pale, her voice betraying her weakness even as she asked.

Ji Ning nodded and pointed toward the spot where Adonis had just departed. "That fellow pulled open a portal and went *whoosh* right out of here."

Qin Mo fell silent for a moment, then spoke softly, "Since you didn't remember, why did you still help me?"

Ji Ning could not speak. He pulled Qin Mo tightly into his embrace. Every boy has moments of such stubborn obsession; whether this world was real or fake meant nothing—he only wanted to hold the girl in his arms without regard for the consequences. "The moment he made a move against you, I suddenly figured something out."

"What is it?"

"For a long time, I felt like I was searching for something. When I imagined you might vanish, I suddenly understood what was missing. Not someone else, but you. In seventeen years of life, perhaps I was simply waiting for this moment when you needed me, like a valley waiting for an echo."

An embrace that barks open the heart is too profound; Ji Ning held her too tightly, yet Qin Mo still smiled happily. "I knew it. No matter what, you would still make the same choice. But that speech just now sounded really nice. So, what is the truth?"

***

"Too many loopholes. He kept claiming to be the embodiment of my desires, but why would he appear only at this moment? Shouldn't he have appeared in my dream at the same time as you? And your strengths are severely disproportionate; I don't believe, according to his claims, that you could maintain a balance with him. And what about those men in black trench coats? Remember? When that guy in the shopping mall shot at me, he didn't care whether the bullet would hit me or not..."

"Perhaps he was unable to appear simultaneously with me because of my own limitations? Perhaps it was precisely because I entered the dream too early that my strength fell far short of his? Perhaps those men in black trench coats are not under his control?"

"Do you really want to hear the absolute truth?" Ji Ning knew Qin Mo far too well. Sure enough, the conversation after Qin Mo's awakening proceeded precisely as he had anticipated.

"Yes."

"I like you, so I can talk myself into finding ten thousand reasons to stand on your side."

"At first, I didn't realize how important you were to me. I simply chose what was supposedly correct, as I always do. But that correctness wasn't what I truly wanted. Halfway there, I had already made the real decision. I originally intended to kick him and run away with you. In fact, even without all those things you mentioned, I would still have done this. Choosing the real world or choosing the false you—it sounds like an easy choice, but I have never been a rule-abiding person. You like me, and I like you. I can feel the love in your eyes for me and this warm embrace, and that is enough. So screw the world; even if you really are just my illusion, I will save you."

"Even at the cost of you potentially becoming like me?" The corners of Qin Mo’s lips curled upward slightly.

Ji Ning shrugged. "If I go crazy, I go crazy. I've always been a stubborn guy. The path I choose, even if it's wrong, I'll walk it to the very end and shout to everyone: so what if it's wrong? I'm happy to do it! I hope my life is wonderful and peaceful, but the price cannot be without you."

"I'll forgive you just a tiny bit. The way you are right now makes me love you so much..." Qin Mo grew increasingly weak. Although Ji Ning’s spiritual power was constantly repairing the injuries on her body, Adonis and he were simply not in the same league of energy purity.

Ji Ning held her in his arms, letting her lean against his steadily beating heart. Perhaps what he said could not strictly be called a lie; he genuinely loved the girl in his arms.

Watching Qin Mo gradually slip into unconsciousness with a smile on her face, Ji Ning knew that was shock induced by blood loss. Yet he felt no panic; instead, for a long time, he felt a trace of peace.

He leaned down and kissed Qin Mo’s cheek, whispering softly, "Don't be afraid, it's all over." Then he closed his eyes, urging the collapse of the dreamscape with all his might.

The foundation of a dream's construction relies not merely on the sustenance of spiritual power; the dream master's firm belief is equally indispensable. The moment you realize this is merely a dream, your dream begins to cave in.

The endless crowds in the city simultaneously halted what they were doing. Solemn and dignified, they watched the steel jungle dissolve like water. From the sky to the earth, everything was blown away by will like dandelions, peeling away piece by piece and detaching.

When Qin Mo opened her eyes, what she encountered was still pitch darkness. However, unlike the desolation before entering Adonis's dream, she could distinctly feel that someone was holding her tightly.

Feeling deeply at ease, she touched the authority ring on her left hand, and once again stood before that brilliant ball of light. This time, however, she was not alone.

Ji Ning yawned, wanting to rub his eyes. Then, seeming to discover that someone was in his arms, he deliberately paused for a moment before lowering his gaze to meet those affectionate eyes.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Ji Ning continued to yawn, then very naturally tightened his embrace, acting as if nothing had happened.

"Did you forget so quickly?" Qin Mo looked at Ji Ning in disbelief. She had keenly guessed that this fellow might make up excuses to avoid reckoning, but without evidence, she wasn't an unreasonable girl, so she could only glare at him with puffed cheeks.

Ji Ning blinked and said somewhat uncertainly, "It feels like I had a strange dream. Hmm, I can't remember. Oh well, is this Adonis's spiritual world?"

Qin Mo curled her lips. The second before, he had been holding her and saying such touching words; the next second, he had forgotten them completely. But at least she hadn't forgotten.

Ji Ning reached out to touch his own legs and began to chatter incessantly, "It's been so long since I felt what walking is like; it still feels rather strange. If I'm not mistaken, you're currently infiltrating dreams according to the original plan to wake everyone else up, right? I knew you'd look for me first..."

"Can you really remember nothing at all?" Qin Mo asked a second time.

Upon receiving a negative answer, Qin Mo gave Ji Ning a resentful kick, tossed out a "Don't bother me," and closed her eyes to begin searching for the dream radiance representing Catherine and the others.

Only after Qin Mo closed her eyes did Ji Ning quietly let out a breath of relief, thinking that if he had admitted to remembering everything, wouldn't Qin Mo have started settling accounts right from the moment of "little guardian Ji Ning"?

***

Watching Qin Mo, who had her eyes closed and was wholeheartedly sensing the spiritual body, Ji Ning reached out and waved his hand in front of her, tentatively calling her name. There was no reaction. Relieved, he kissed Qin Mo on the forehead.

"Thank you."

Qin Mo, still with her eyes closed, curved the corners of her lips upward slightly. "You're welcome. After all, you did call me older sister."

Ji Ning was so startled he nearly cried out. Although he screamed inwardly that things were going south, his expression retained not a single flaw. "What older sister? When did I ever call you older sister?"

Qin Mo opened her eyes and looked at Ji Ning with suspicion. She firmly believed that this fellow had recovered his memories the moment he attacked Adonis, but out of bashfulness, he had simply acted like an ostrich burying its head in the sand.

She let out a lingering sigh. "I thought you had remembered. I suffered quite a bit in the dream to find you. Alas, it's a pity only I remember." Her expression was full of grievance, as if she had much more to say than words could express.

Ji Ning detested Qin Mo looking at him like this the most. He stood rooted to the spot, at a loss. Apologizing felt too distant; embracing her felt too perfunctory.

At a glance, Qin Mo saw right through his embarrassment. Feigning sadness, she shook her head. "Anyway, only I remember. Do you know how dangerous your dream was? It was full of weird monsters, and I crossed mountains and rivers, covered in wounds, just to find you. But it was worth it. After I found you, even though you were trapped in the dream and forgot even me, you still fell in love with me at first glance and made so many, many vows to me. You surely haven't forgotten those vows, have you?"

Ji Ning nodded. "I haven't forgotten." *What monsters?* he thought to himself. *Honestly, even the only danger—the trench-coat man—followed you here.*

Qin Mo shot him a resentful glance. "You're lying to coax me again. You clearly remember nothing."

Ji Ning was momentarily choked for words. Before he could speak, Qin Mo, acting as though she had been wronged, turned away and refused to look at him.

"You said you'd treat me well for a lifetime, that you'd love me forever..."

Ji Ning nodded in agreement. "I do have an impression of that. I will never break my promise."

"And you said that once we returned to the real world, you'd spend twenty-four hours a day accompanying me, inseparable, and that you'd be completely obedient to me..."

Ji Ning thought about it. In the real world, he already spent most of his time by her side anyway, and a guy in a wheelchair couldn't offer much resistance either. Based on his understanding of Qin Mo, she had always been gentle and considerate, never asking him to do anything against his will; this condition didn't seem so bad either. "Well, that was probably something I said."

"You also said you'd accompany me to read in the morning every day, take a nap with me at noon, go shopping with me in the afternoon, and hold me to sleep at night."

"Shopping is the kind of thing that's fine for a day or two..." Ji Ning felt a mild headache coming on. He had always yearned for freedom, but not the kind of freedom that involved accompanying Qin Mo on shopping sprees. Although he didn't have to carry any bags, she liked to treat him like a living doll, making him try on any outfit she found attractive, regardless of whether she actually bought most of them in the end. She was simply obsessed with this dress-up game. Ji Ning knew that perhaps it was because she loved him so much that she wanted to see all the things she liked tried on him. Once or twice might be fine, but over time, Ji Ning had grown nearly numb to this behavior, escaping it whenever shopping was brought up.

Qin Mo’s eyes rippled with emotion, shimmering like water. "You clearly promised. Oh well, it's not the first time someone has gone back on their word. Someone was certainly very happy to go shopping with me in the dream, and even kept taking the initiative to hold my hand."

Ji Ning grew agitated. "It was only once, and you were the one who asked for it! You can't just fabricate things out of thin air..."

Some words, once spoken, could never be taken back. Qin Mo raised her head, the corners of her lips curling up into a mesmerizing, alluring smile, yet her gaze carried a playful amusement.

If forgetfulness could serve as an excuse, then the price of piercing this window paper meant paying an even heavier compensation.

Facing the shivering Ji Ning, Qin Mo naturally showed no mercy. After all, this was a rare opportunity, and a guilty Ji Ning was easy putty in her hands.

Yet in the end, Qin Mo did not force any further conditions upon him. The reason was simple: she loved him more than she loved herself.