Dream Core

“Don't talk nonsense!”

Before Yu Jin could respond, Mrs. Xia cut the child off.

Without even turning her head, she warned in a low voice:

“The officers are just here to do some investigating. If they ask you questions, Xiao Jie, just answer them honestly. But don't talk about those baseless fantasies of yours, do you hear me?”

The child in the bedroom shrank back, not daring to answer.

Yu Jin was utterly speechless at Mrs. Xia's warning. If parents couldn't do the right thing, how could a child be expected to do it right when they just copied their parents' behavior?

Thus, he corrected:

“We're older brothers, not uncles.”

“...?”

Mrs. Xia blanked for a moment, unable to find a reply.

Taking advantage of Mrs. Xia's brief daze, Yu Jin called out to the bedroom again:

“Did Mommy and Daddy hit you?”

Xiao Jie cast a wronged glance at his mother, nodding with tears in his eyes. “They...”

“Xiao Jie!”

Mrs. Xia shrieked once more. Spreading her arms to block the entire doorway, she turned back to look at the child and snapped harshly:

“I said, don't talk about those baseless fantasies of yours! Tell the truth!”

A red glint flickered across the tips of Yu Jin's hair for a fraction of a second, but he held himself back.

Patiently, he said:

“Ma'am, acting like this will only confuse the child even more. True, children always have unrealistic fantasies, but these fantasies aren't completely meaningless; they're a part of how they perceive and express the world. Adults don't have to fully understand, but you can't completely dismiss it either. If you truly want your child to stay away from terrifying nightmares, I suggest... you quiet down for a moment. It's all for the child, alright?”

Mrs. Xia whipped her head back around, her expression dark. The skin on her face was stretched so tight that it even cracked open in places.

Something seemed to be writhing in the blood beneath her makeup, and tentacles could occasionally be seen flickering from the edges of the cracks.

Yu Jin blinked, and both the cracks and the tentacles vanished once more.

Torn, Mrs. Xia repeatedly looked toward the bedroom. After a brief moment, she fell silent.

She loved her child.

Yu Jin could tell.

It was just that there was a problem with the way she expressed her love.

Seeing Mrs. Xia back down, Yu Jin addressed the room again:

“Did anything happen recently? You can tell me anything, especially about your fantasies.”

Xiao Jie stole a glance at his mother, then timidly shook his head.

Seeing this, Yu Jin sighed.

The lingering fear of maternal authority was still too strong. As long as Mrs. Xia stood at the door, it would be impossible to get anything useful out of Xiao Jie.

This wouldn't do; he had to find a way to get her away.

Yu Jin pondered for a moment, then gave Tang Yaoting a look behind his back.

Tang Yaoting understood immediately. He cleared his throat a few times, putting on the air of a Bureau agent.

“Ahem. Well, ma'am, come over here. I have a few questions for you.”

Mrs. Xia remained completely still, having no interest in Tang Yaoting.

Seeing himself ignored, Tang Yaoting's face darkened, and his tone turned sharper:

“You're not coming over, are you? Fine. I found some rather concerning documents in the crevices of your sofa. The contents seem to be related to the Disciples of Eternal Night. I suspect that your family of three is secretly worshiping Nightmares. If you don't want to explain yourself, I will just write this into the report.”

Reports really were wonderful things; one could stuff just about anything into them.

This was probably the sharpest weapon in a clerk's hands. Without lifting a finger, they could drown their enemies in words.

Worshiping Nightmares was a capital offense. To put it simply, it was an upgraded version of treason.

The "enemy" they colluded with was the Nightmare that brought disasters to the world, and they betrayed all of humanity.

Tang Yaoting didn't use this trick often. If Mr. Xia's attitude hadn't been so terrible, he wouldn't have resorted to his ultimate move right off the bat.

In the past, this trick had worked wonders against stubborn troublemakers. But today, just as Tang Yaoting was waiting smugly for Mrs. Xia to come over and explain herself, what he got instead was not an explanation, but two roars from a man and a woman!

Mr. and Mrs. Xia had been triggered.

Whether it was the excessive pressure that completely enraged the couple, or because Tang Yaoting had exposed their relationship with the Nightmare, the moment Tang Yaoting finished speaking, Mr. Xia grabbed his baseball bat and charged madly toward him.

Mrs. Xia went even further, completely abandoning her guard over Yu Jin, screaming as she lunged at Tang Yaoting with blood-red eyes.

On his way forward, Mr. Xia's baseball bat transformed into a bone blade sliding out from his wrist. Mrs. Xia's face also cracked inch by inch, shooting out terrifying, twisted tentacles.

Yu Jin was startled, but he reacted immediately, taking the opportunity to step into the room.

Before entering, he shouted at Tang Yaoting, “Run!”

Tang Yaoting was incredibly sharp in this regard. When it came to survival, his brain worked faster than anyone else's.

Seeing that Yu Jin had succeeded, he didn't say a word and turned to run.

As he ran, he even drew their attention to keep them focused on him, shouting:

“Look at that! Did I hit the nail on the head or what?! Just you wait! Once I get back to the Bureau, I am absolutely writing this down in my report!”

Enraged, Mr. Xia chased after him right out of the house. Mrs. Xia stopped halfway through her pursuit, suddenly turning her head back toward the bedroom. Seeing that Yu Jin had already slipped inside, she let out a piercing shriek and rushed back at lightning speed.

But by the time she reached the doorway, Yu Jin had already closed the bedroom door.

She hammered at the door like mad, her screams growing increasingly distorted.

“Come out! Get out here! Agent Yu, you promised me you wouldn't go in! You promised! Why couldn't you keep your word?!”

Standing before the bedroom door, Yu Jin watched the wood rattle violently under the immense force without ever yielding. A look that said “as expected” washed over his face.

Mr. and Mrs. Xia couldn't enter this bedroom!

Otherwise, the cozy atmosphere of this bedroom wouldn't be in such stark contrast to the battle-damaged style outside.

He let out a sigh of relief.

To be honest, Yu Jin wasn't worried about Tang Yaoting being in danger. Although his friend was "slightly flawed" when it came to intelligence, his performance in the niche field of survival was "impeccable."

And he had finally found the opportunity to have a proper chat with this child who was likely the Dream Core.

Yu Jin turned to look at Xiao Jie, only to find the boy staring at him unblinkingly with slightly bloodshot eyes.

In those complex eyes, there was nervousness, curiosity, and perhaps even a hint of excitement?

And other emotions that even Yu Jin couldn't quite put into words.

Xiao Jie asked again:

“Are you an agent of the Bureau?”

“Is that very important?” Yu Jin was somewhat puzzled by Xiao Jie's persistence.

“Yes, it's very important.”

Excited, Xiao Jie wanted to stand up. Perhaps realizing his reaction was inappropriate, he paused, then sat back down and wrapped his arms tightly around his legs again.

“It's very important to me. If you're not a Bureau agent, I can't trust you.”

Yu Jin smiled.

Regardless of whatever other issues Mr. and Mrs. Xia had, at least their safety education was decent; the child knew that under these circumstances, he could only trust the authorities.

Yu Jin didn't think much of it and nodded.

“Allow me to introduce myself. Post-Disaster Investigation Team, Yu Jin.”

Xiao Jie stared blankly, surprised.

“Why the Post-Disaster Investigation Team? Shouldn't it be the Special Response Squad of the Special Operations Group?”

The moment he heard this, Yu Jin's eyes narrowed slightly.

People in reality would never wonder why the visiting Bureau agents weren't from the Special Response Squad. This was because the squad specifically dealt with Nightmare Disasters and mostly only appeared in dreams. Those who actually visited citizens in reality were only Bureau field agents and the Post-Disaster Investigation Team.

This was basic knowledge taught at every stage of education. In this day and age when Nightmare Disasters were rampant, Haicheng's disaster education was exceptionally rigorous.

It was impossible for the child in front of him not to know this. Therefore, there was only one reason why he would ask such a strange question.

In a serious tone, Yu Jin asked:

“You know you're in a dream, don't you? Are you waiting for the Special Response Squad to rescue you?”

...