Chapter 110

Chapter 110

Hui Cui looked at the evil god who appeared on the door of the bookcase against the wall.

The last time they met was over a week ago, when this evil god seized the power of dreams and, finding no answers from Hui Cui, immediately expelled him from the dream, leaving Hui Cui to deal with the mess in reality.

After that, He disappeared, seemingly leaving Spire City, but Hui Cui had an intuition that He was still here, somewhere nearby.

He must find Him.

To do so, he needed to observe Him, even though he could barely discern the appearance of this evil god.

The existence of this evil god seemed conceptual, perhaps He had no body except for those eyes. The descriptions that came to mind—“young,” “male,” “with a face, torso, and dressed”—were merely false perceptions shaped by His distortion.

But Hui Cui continued to observe Him, especially those uniquely clear eyes.

In the dream the last time, the seed of the evil god initially had silver eyes. After seizing the power of dreams, when He reappeared, His left eye had turned pink.

The transfer of power could alter certain characteristics of a deity until they were fully integrated with it.

The Bellringing Frost Crow Church and the Tribunal had records of such occurrences, and Hui Cui, with his access, knew that the Art Power possessed by the deceased monarch was obtained by killing an evil god. Before that, the bronze bell symbolizing the end of life at His feet was plain, without the intricate patterns it now bore.

Knowing this, Hui Cui felt no surprise when he saw the change in the evil god seed's features last time.

But as the days passed, Hui Cui, often recalling their encounter, became increasingly preoccupied with something.

This preoccupation grew after reviewing Lin's dream investigation report.

Now, as he gazed at the left eye of the evil god seed, which had turned pink due to the absorption of the dream power, his concern resurfaced.

Why the left eye?

The eye that Lin, under the curse of the Conch Blower, had been affected was also the left eye.

That curse might not have truly been eliminated, but rather hidden in a place Lin himself was unaware of. Lin's frequent dreaming and his forgetting of the dream he had personally told Hui Cui about, even after being warned to be cautious of dreams, were manifestations of this curse.

But the most terrifying aspect of this curse was its connection to Lin and the evil god seed before Hui Cui, which the evil god seed had exploited.

Hui Cui's heart sank.

Of course, outwardly, his expression remained unchanged. Calmly putting down his pen, he calmly picked up the crimson revolver and asked:

"Are you referring to your confession of illegally tracking the Tribunal investigation team, illegally probing into the confidential work of the judges, and illegally infiltrating the Spire City Court Headquarters... among other acts?"

Lin, who had never read minds before out of sheer nervousness, heard a series of analyses: "..."

Lin, feeling numb: "Ah?"

I didn't, I haven't, I'm wronged!

Lin, frightened, snapped off the mirror's mind-reading function, no longer looking at the different reflections of Hui Cui, nor listening to the long speeches they gave out of worry, caution, and tension.

Otherwise, if he continued to listen, he would start to suspect that Hui Cui might directly say to him, "You are the Eye in the Mirror, aren't you?"

And what does it mean to forget the dream you told me yourself? How come I don't remember?

... Wait, on the night Bai Li took office, he did talk to Hui Cui about some things related to dreams.

What did he say again? Damn, he really can't remember!

If he can't remember, why does the Chief Judge, who has so much work every day, still remember!

Lin was speechless, not daring to imagine that this incident could serve as evidence that he was still under the curse of the Dream God.

Forget it, think positively; at least the Chief Judge doesn't know the name "Eye in the Mirror," so he can't actually say, "You are the Eye in the Mirror."

Lin consoled himself but couldn't help asking, "Illegally tracking... the Tribunal investigation team?"

Illegally infiltrating the Spire City Court Headquarters, specifically the Chief Judge's office, was undeniable; he was caught red-handed. As for illegally probing into the confidential work of the judges, while he didn't quite understand it, based on the Chief Judge's line of thought, did he think the Eye in the Mirror was monitoring Lin through the curse to control the Tribunal's movements?

Fine, Lin didn't want to discuss how he monitored himself. He could admit to these two charges, but... illegal tracking?

He really didn't do that, sir!

Lin's innocence almost radiated from his eyes, but Hui Cui didn't believe it.

"If you didn't illegally track them," the white-haired Dover Birdman's fingers gently tapped the handle of the crimson revolver, his icy pink eyes exerting immense pressure, he asked, "then appearing before me five minutes after the team returned to the headquarters, was just a coincidence, Your Highness?"

"Ah, ha-ha," Lin, who was part of the team, said with a thick face, "it was a coincidence, right?"

As he said this, he was surprised, not understanding how Hui Cui knew they had returned to headquarters five minutes ago.

Was the Chief Judge omniscient? Or was the investigation of hypersomnia a top priority for the Tribunal?

Or perhaps, the first use of the "gift"—the self-moving battlefield auxiliary terminal—was highly significant?

After being surprised, Lin realized belatedly that the credibility of the Eye in the Mirror with Hui Cui · Dover had dropped significantly because of this not-so-coincidental coincidence.

... Can we redo this report? Maybe erase Hui Cui's memory or blur his impression of this conversation?

Sigh, no, he can't, he shouldn't do that.

He had come to the Tribunal seeking cooperation. Whether erasing memory or blurring impressions, if discovered by Hui Cui later, it would damage his credibility.

His main goal today was to address the two existing cases of suicidal hypersomnia and potentially more in the future.

The Tribunal undoubtedly cared deeply about this issue, giving him a chance to take the initiative.

... Yes, even if it meant using himself as a stepping stone.

Lin regained his composure, raising his hand to replicate the reflection of the leather chair beneath Hui Cui in the mirror. As he sat down, he absorbed the respect emanating from countless judges.

Instinctively, he mirrored Hui Cui's posture, but unlike Hui Cui's expressionless face, Lin wore a smile.

"Strange," the Evil God remarked, "I thought you would be more concerned about the innocent citizens facing death threats rather than that still healthy ritualist."

"Are you openly admitting to holding the citizens hostage?" Hui Cui asked, clicking off the safety of his revolver.

"You are truly wronging me," the heterochromatic-eyed Evil God spread his hands, "I am as eager as you to find out who has stolen my authority. It should have remained intact here."

With that, He winked at Hui Cui with His left eye.

Hui Cui couldn't help but recall another left eye, glossy and trembling in pain.

If not for the Evil God Seed mentioning the theft of authority, he might have already aimed his gun at Him.

"These two cases of suicidal somnambulism are not related to me," Lin, who could not read minds, earnestly stated, "I cannot even trace the source of the curse in dreams, which is very peculiar...

"The two patients had no contact with anyone or anything carrying the curse of dreams in reality, so it must have been through their dreams. There are indeed traces of contact in their dreams, but when I followed them, I only found broken wheel tracks, abruptly vanished footprints, and half-remaining ropes... In short, whatever brought the curse of dreams has vanished without a trace."

After explaining, Lin noticed Hui Cui had not spoken and continued:

"I want to catch it, and you need to catch it too, right?"

Faced with the straightforward question, Hui Cui finally responded.

He maintained a respectful demeanor towards an Evil God expressing goodwill and asked, "What are your terms?"

"I will send people to remove the curse of dreams from the patients with suicidal somnambulism," Lin immediately offered his prepared exchange, "and in return, you must share all relevant information with me."

He paused, adding more weight to the scales, "Not just the patients in Spire City, but if similar cases appear in other cities, you must share that information as well."

This was Lin's most important goal.

If the Silver Moon Maiden were to cause trouble, she would certainly target Spire City.

If She were planning some kind of terrorist attack, Lin would take it on directly, but She had created a condition of suicidal somnambulism.

The Silver Moon Maiden was not like Mirror Eye, a deity who had only illuminated a small part of the map; Her followers were spread throughout the dark sides of every city. Lin dared not assume this condition would only appear in Spire City.

Damn, if She were simply causing attacks, Lin would be powerless to intervene and would leave it to those higher up. But using an unknown source of Dream Magic to curse ordinary people—Lin, who was already called the Lord of Dreams and the King of Dreams, had to respond!

He did not want rumors to spread and suddenly find himself blamed, gaining a group of followers who hoped he would curse others with nightmares!

It would lead to contamination!

Lin grumbled inwardly, maintaining his smile as he waited for Hui Cui's response.

His and the court's goals aligned, and there were precedents of the Six Pillar Gods collaborating with weaker Evil Gods. He was confident his request would not be refused.

Hui Cui spoke.

To Lin's surprise, he added conditions.

Hui Cui said, "Remove the curse from Lin, a member of the Spire City Court."

Lin's inner thoughts: Ah?

This was Lin's second "Ah" filled with confusion today. He had to start considering whether an Evil God was indeed monitoring him through some curse, and if his position might leak crucial information.

But neither the judge nor the Evil God seemed particularly interested in the work content.

Lin was puzzled, and at the same time, the outline of the investigation report he had already drafted floated through his mind.

"...Due to sudden pain in the left eye and a foreboding feeling, requested immediate investigation by fellow team members..."

After today's events, Lin had already planned to pretend he was still under the curse.

Hui Cui's assumption saved him the effort of laying the groundwork.

In the future, he needed to be more careful not to reveal any flaws... but this curse was indeed a good excuse...

Like a reflection in the mirror, the Evil God, who had assumed the same posture as Hui Cui, closed His eyes and then opened them again.

His smile appeared more intriguing to Hui Cui, as if He had discovered a weakness, and He firmly stated:

"I refuse."