Before Shen Bai could even react, the sound of an opera singer’s voice rang out from within the dense fog.

"In the dream, I do not know I am dreaming; outside the dream, I know I am myself..."

As the operatic voice rang out, Shen Bai saw a voluptuous figure approach from a distance.

The surrounding white fog seemed to part for her, scattering in all directions.

As the figure came into focus, Shen Bai saw Long Yan in an opera costume, a Flower Spear in her hand, stopping before him.

"Shen Bai, long time no see."

Long Yan traced her red lips with a finger, her tone carrying a hint of seductive charm, her eyes like limpid autumn waters.

Shen Bai glanced around and saw that Amber hadn’t Entered the Dream with him either. He then drew Cold Moon from his waist and lightly ran his fingers along the blade.

"Landlord Long, you didn’t come here to reminisce. You came to take my head, didn’t you?"

Things had already reached this point; Shen Bai knew that words were useless.

A hint of regret appeared in Long Yan’s eyes. "To be honest, I really don’t want to kill you. Even though I have now unleashed the most primal desires in my heart, I still find myself admiring you. How about we make a deal?"

Shen Bai smiled. "You want to talk? What are the terms?"

Long Yan took two steps forward, leveling her Flower Spear. "Submit to me. After I take control of the entire Peach Opera Garden, I will treat you well. All you have to do is embed yourself in the Observatory, like a nail."

Hearing this, Shen Bai raised an eyebrow. "Landlord Long, you’ve really thought this through. But why should I agree? What’s in it for me?"

"Not killing you is the greatest benefit." Long Yan twirled her Flower Spear into a flourish. "Of course, in the future, if I control the Peach Opera Garden, spread its opera across the world, and use that to control even more factions... at that time, I might let you become the second person, subordinate only to me."

Shen Bai shook his head. "I’m not a big fan of being called ’second person.’ I much prefer the title of ’Ding Shou’."

Upon hearing this, Long Yan’s gaze turned cold. "It seems you’ve chosen to do this the hard way."

Shen Bai shook his head. "I’ll take anything in this life, but I won’t be forced. If you want to make me, Landlord Long, you’ll have to prove you have the skill."

This time, he was well and truly trapped. After all, Long Yan’s plan had taken everyone by surprise.

They had all thought Long Yan’s goal was to lure the tiger from the mountain by making a large number of common people Enter the Dream. They never imagined she would meet Shen Bai in a dream instead.

Shen Bai circulated the Qi throughout his body, and a terrifying aura erupted from him.

Crimson Sword Qi suffused with righteous power flared, and the Buddha’s Light from his left hand shone like a scorching sun.

Behind him, a three-meter-tall Dharma Golden Body materialized, emanating a solemn and dignified air.

Dao Text and shadows moved in tandem, while the Qi inside Shen Bai’s body formed a complex Array.

At this moment, Shen Bai had pushed his presence to its absolute peak.

Shen Bai had never imagined he would fight Long Yan at this moment.

But since it was happening, he had to bring himself to his peak condition.

At this moment, Shen Bai was also excited.

He had grown tired of fighting others in the Meridian Realm. Now, facing Long Yan, he was curious to see what the outcome would be.

He wasn’t one to sit back and wait for death, so even in such a dire situation, the will to fight in his heart had not been extinguished.

Long Yan sighed, a trace of pity in her eyes. "I truly do admire you, but you don’t appreciate it. In that case, I will just have to destroy you here in this dream."

Since things had come to this, there was no point in continuing the conversation.

At that moment, waves of bone-chilling killing intent emanated from Long Yan.

The Flower Spear in Long Yan’s hand became a blur as it shot straight toward Shen Bai.

Along with the spear’s thrust, Long Yan’s voice reached Shen Bai’s ears.

"This spear of mine embodies the role of a General in the army. How can you possibly block it?"

As she thrust the spear, besides the bone-chilling killing intent, a bloody aura began to spread.

Shen Bai felt as if Long Yan had transformed into a battle-hardened General, and her spear was like a charging army of thousands.

"What incredible Spear Technique!"

The hair on Shen Bai’s body stood on end. He struck with both fist and sword, simultaneously activating the Explosive Speed Attribute of Divine Hundred Miles.

This was Shen Bai’s ultimate move, with all of his Divine Powers poured into it.

In an instant, their attacks collided.

A DEAFENING BOOM made the misty area churn violently, like a pot of boiling water.

Immediately after, the churning fog swirled ceaselessly.

Shen Bai took a few steps back, a slight raise to his eyebrow.

The white light of his Bright Jade Evil Body had vanished.

"Shen Bai, you are no match for me. Even if you can perform an Adversity Strike, it’s still not quite enough. I am two Grand Realms above you."

Long Yan glided forward gracefully, her Flower Spear held inverted, dragging a deep fissure in the ground behind her.

"I’ll give you one more chance. Don’t betray my admiration for you."

"To hell with your admiration!" Shen Bai cursed, flicking Cold Moon with his finger, producing a crisp ring. "Landlord Long, once your Heart Demon is gone and you’re back to normal, you’ll probably look back on today and feel like you’ve committed social suicide."

"Social suicide? What does that mean?" Long Yan asked.

Shen Bai activated Divine Hundred Miles, blurring into an afterimage as he lunged. "You don’t need to know what it means. All that matters is that today, I will be the one who wins."

"That might be the best joke I’ve ever heard," Long Yan sneered.

Her Flower Spear danced, leaving afterimages as it continuously clashed with Shen Bai’s longsword and fists.

As their attacks intensified, the wounds on Shen Bai’s body multiplied at a visible rate.

Fighting someone two Grand Realms above him, even Shen Bai was outmatched.

Long Yan seemed to already see Shen Bai’s end. She shook her head, looking quite regretful.

But just then, she noticed something was wrong.

Shen Bai’s eyes had remained calm the entire time.