Three days later, at dusk, the entire Helford Manor was quiet. In the past, this time was the most leisurely and lively time of the day, with farmers who had finished their work wandering around.
They would gather in taverns in villages and towns near the manor, buy the cheapest ale, and brag and chat with friends.
Children also play to their heart's content at this time of day, and no one will supervise them.
But today is different .
Whether it was the most naughty child, the most daring hunter, or the ordinary farmer, they all locked themselves and their families in the house more than an hour before nightfall.
Parents will hug their children tightly, and children will hold their parents' arms tightly.
Everyone's eyes were filled with fear. They would stand by the window, vigilantly looking at everyone who was still wandering outside, and curse in a low voice that they were the vanguard of the devil.
There are still some elderly people who still hold on to the old beliefs. At this time, they will pray sincerely to the non-existent God, asking the non-existent power to protect them and their families.
Even though night has not yet arrived.
But the stage for disaster has been set, the curtain of fear has been lowered, and the silent curse is swirling back and forth in the sky like a ghost, and the uneasiness hidden in it is also laughing wildly.
The anxious atmosphere was like a rainstorm.
As the night approaches, it is washing away everyone's mind madly. The horrific thing hidden deep in the nameless abyss has not yet appeared, but many people have collapsed to the ground unable to resist the fear in their hearts.
The suppressed sobs, rude howls, and strange singing came from behind every closed door of the manor. They merged with the fear and formed an invisible muddy current.
Against the backdrop of the increasingly dark sky, it hovered around the manor like a low pressure area.
Depressed.
Low.
It makes people feel a little breathless.
Except for the neurotic howling of some hounds in the manor, the whole world seemed to be quiet.
“Ouch!”
The shrill cries of the crows echoed in the light alternating between dusk and night. These birds with unknown seemed to be called upon by some force, flapping their wings and flying over from all directions.
They perched on the eaves, on tree branches, at the edge of the well, and even on the top of the stationary windmill, there were a few black guys standing.
They looked up and down with their black eyes, as if filled with some kind of malice.
Legend has it that crows can smell the approaching scent of death.
Perhaps, their unusual gathering today is called upon by their future death.
The crows gathered in greater and greater numbers.
The shrill voices grew louder.
It was like a group of uninvited evil guests, whispering about how to rob the local owners, and no one would rush out of the house to drive them away at this time.
So these guys with shrill cries flew around triumphantly, as if they were the owners of the manor that was being rebuilt.
"Bang"
Suddenly, a low gunshot was heard, and the fat crow, which was the largest, had the harshest cry, and was the least vigilant, was hit by the flying bullet and turned into a bloody mist.
Bloody feathers were flying everywhere; the death they had been waiting for was coming!
It came without any warning.
The crows were startled and flew away. In just a moment, the whole manor became quiet again and fell into that stagnant silence.
"Fu"
Jiang Xia blew out a smoke ring, put down the old-fashioned hunting rifle in his hand, picked up the red wine beside him, and continued to look at the changes in the manor in front of him.
Those crows are so noisy.
They disturbed Lao Jiang's enjoyment of the "scenery", so Lao Jiang responded with a bullet.
He was standing by the window of his room.
This is the most luxurious house currently renovated in the manor.
The Countess kept it, and furnished its interior with the most luxurious ornaments that could be procured in the country.
There are small wool tanned carpets, real crystal chandeliers, beds with a strong aristocratic style, and extremely exquisite repairs, and there is a fireplace with flames burning.
There are also paintings hanging on the walls that the Helford family has collected over the past few hundred years.
This house has never been open to the public since it was renovated. It was originally prepared for the most distinguished guests of the Helford family. Old Jiang is not a person who likes to enjoy himself.
But he had to admit that this house specially reserved for him was very comfortable to live in, and from the small protruding balcony, he could see the whole picture of the manor.
Standing here and looking around, it feels like patrolling your own territory.
"Shua"
A cold and gloomy wind blew when the last ray of light in the evening faded away, and the windmill in the distance began to squeak again.
At this moment, all the barking of dogs stopped abruptly.
The last sound in the manor also disappeared.
Night falls.
Lao Jiang looked up as if he sensed something. The sky was not yet completely dark, but when the clouds dispersed, the faint red moon had arrived as promised.
In the past, it was surrounded by a dark red ominous mist around the moonlight.
But tonight.
But the entire moon disk was dyed scarlet, as if it had been bathed in blood.
"'It' is coming."
In the chip communication, the low voice of old Saan sounded in the public frequency band, and the old hunter said in a warning tone:
“The change is about to happen, be prepared.
The moment the first ray of scarlet moonlight shines on the earth, the world will be pulled into a nightmare. No matter what changes you encounter, don't panic!
Those changes are based on everyone's experiences and the darkness in their hearts. Those weird dreams are you.
Don't try to fight them.
As long as you stay awake, they can't hurt you.
Don’t go out!
Stay indoors and don’t rush into other people’s dreams.”
The old hunter's voice became vague, as if the chip communication was interfered by some unknown force, and his voice became intermittent.
"Protect...yourself! Don't blindly follow... power . If you are defeated...in the Red Moon Dream...you will be finished..."
"Buzz"
All that was left in the communication was a noisy busy tone.
Jiang Xia shook his head and took the initiative to turn off all the communication bands of the chip. He put the red wine in his hand to his lips, waiting for the sweet and sour liquid to flow into his mouth.
A ray of scarlet moonlight sprinkled down from the sky.
Everything in front of Boss Jiang became blurred at this moment, as if he was in a world made of fog, and now, this world began to collapse.
Reality and illusion were forcibly merged together. With Lao Jiang’s own eyes, the entire manor under the night sky was quickly “melted” as if evaporating.
The low-rise houses, the deserted streets, the castle with its foundation just built, and the creaking windmill in the distance, these real objects all look like ink paintings dipped in water.
Constantly being distorted and erased.
After a few breaths, all that was left in front of Boss Jiang's eyes was a thick fog with faint red moonlight sprinkled in it, as if the fog was glowing.
To be honest.
This scene is actually quite beautiful.
"I haven't slept yet... So, the Red Moon Dream is actually just an adjective?"
Jiang Xia put down the wine glass, reached out and pinched his cheek. He could still clearly feel the pain, and the soul in his sea of ​​consciousness was not stimulated, which meant that he was still sober.
But the scene seen with the naked eye is definitely not normal.
He frowned, took out a gorgeous pearl bracelet from the ring, put it on his right wrist, then placed the round pearl at the bottom of the bracelet in front of his eyes and flicked it with his fingers.
This is the mirage pearl he bought from the Hongyan Society at a high price.
A magical tool that can create a small illusion. It has no realm restrictions and is very convenient to use. Its only drawback is... it is expensive.
He observed the clouds flowing inside the Mirage Pearl, and then looked at the scarlet clouds in front of him that completely enveloped him. There were some differences in details between the two, but the flow of spiritual energy between them was very similar.
"So, this is a large illusion?"
Jiang Xia raised his head, trying to find the red moon in the sky, but when he looked up, there was no sky above his head, only a cloud that covered everything.
He seemed to be in the clouds at this moment. No matter where he looked, there was only a cloud of mist, isolating him from the entire world and the entire reality.
“A fantasy world that is large enough to cover the entire Red Moon World. It seems to rely on the moon as a carrier, but it ignores the time zone division of the entire planet.
According to Old Saan, every Red Moon Dream will erupt at the same time all over the world.
So, when the Red Moon Dream erupted, it was actually just some kind of power related to dreams that gave the moonlight in the present world an obscure symbolism? "
Jiang Xia stroked his chin, trying to see the truth of the red moon dream before him.
But after a few minutes he gave up.
The cultivators in the Qi training stage had limited Dharma eyesight, and with their mortal bodies, they could not see any clues about the scarlet mist before their eyes. However, with his experience of using the Mirage Pearl, Lao Jiang could be sure that the illusion had already fully unfolded at this time.
Or, find the center of the formation and destroy it.
Otherwise, you can only persist in the illusion until it ends.
Well, these two choices are for ordinary people. For Jiang Xia, he has a third choice. His spiritual mind sank into his sea of ​​consciousness and swept across the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree, which had not changed but had two small flowers blooming.
This strange tree forged by starlight is not affected by the illusion of the outside world at all. As long as Lao Jiang thinks about it, he can still escape from the Red Moon Realm and return to the Bitter Wood Realm, or return to the Wasteland.
With a foolproof retreat plan, Boss Jiang naturally did not panic.
He casually pulled out the sun emblem on his neck that could be used twice more, held it in his hand, injected a little spiritual power into it, and a scorching flame wrapped around his left arm.
There were also ignited electric arcs, covering Jiang Xia's body like a layer of electric clothes. From time to time, there was a chance that blue and purple electric arcs would jump along his body.
This magical power is really useful.
There is just a small drawback. When activating the power of controlling electricity, Lao Jiang's hair will be stimulated by the electric arc and stand up. Fortunately, he does not have long hair.
Otherwise, it will form the legendary "anti-gravity hair".
Jiang Xia turned around.
The house that was supposed to be connected to the small balcony behind him no longer existed, and there was only a cloud of smoke behind him. Lao Jiang also noticed that there was a figure standing in the smoke in front of him.
Perhaps he shouldn't have stepped into the smoke.
But Lao Jiang just sneered, took a step forward fearlessly, and stepped into the smoke. The next moment, the surrounding scene immediately rotated and changed, and the hazy smoke was quickly shaped into another scene.
He had already recognized the familiar figure in the smoke.
"Shua"
The changes in the Red Moon Dream were extremely rapid. The moment Lao Jiang raised his foot and touched the ground, the surrounding scene had already changed.
The night wind blew, making Lao Jiang's hair shake.
There was a bright moon shining high overhead, and there was dead silence all around, but the foothills under the moonlight were so familiar, as if Boss Jiang had stepped back from the Red Moon Realm to Fengshan Street in the Kumu Realm.
Behind him was a group of shacks that emanated a decadent stench.
In front of him, under the shining moon, a young man wearing a coarse cloth gown full of patches, holding a book in his hand, was staring at Jiang Xia fiercely with a look that looked as if he wanted to devour someone.
He wanted so badly to pounce on him and swallow Boss Jiang whole in one gulp!
That was definitely the look of an enemy who murdered his father and was his mortal enemy.
"Evil ghost, today, I will..."
"Bang"
Before the man had finished speaking, Lao Jiang's right hand flashed with light, and a black Colt jumped into his palm. He raised his hand, aimed, and fired, all in one go.
The flying bullet shot over and blew up the man's head along with his words before he could finish speaking.
The headless corpse staggered to the ground, splashing warm blood.
The two were very close to each other, and the blood hit Lao Jiang's cheek, then he gently wiped it off with his hand. He tilted his head and looked at the corpse in front of him that quickly turned into mist and dissipated.
He blinked his eyes with a gentleness of "reuniting old friends" and even a hint of strange joy.
He said:
"Long time no see, loser. I regretted that I couldn't teach you how to convince others with reason. Today, I finally made up for it."
"you!"
"Scholar Jiang" reappeared in the moonlight. When he heard what Boss Jiang said, he was about to scold him, but then he saw Boss Jiang raise his hand and shoot.
"Bang"
The classic just now is reproduced again.
This time it was even worse, he didn't even finish half of his sentence.
When Jiang Shusheng showed up for the third time, he had learned his lesson and turned around to run, but was kicked from behind by Old Jiang. He fell to the ground in a mess and was then ridden on from behind by Old Jiang.
The hot muzzle of the gun was pressed against the back of his head.
There is also Jiang Xia's low voice.
"Don't worry."
"The night is still long, we have plenty of time to reminisce about the past... Jiang Ziheng! Or, I'll call you by a more appropriate name."
"Hello, my pretending 'Inner Devil'..."
"Bang"