Chapter 65: Tier 2 Nightmare!

Chapter 65: Second-Stage Nightmare!

After crushing George, the boar-headed nightmare continued its pursuit of the remaining three.

Lanya dragged Lisa forward in a desperate sprint. Fecia seemed to have some kind of acceleration spell—her speed was no slouch. Yet before a second-stage nightmare, all three were still too weak.

In the blink of an eye, the creature caught up once more.

A massive chain-mace came crashing down, casting a shadow over their heads.

Lanya shoved Lisa aside and leapt in the opposite direction.

Fecia’s face twisted with terror.

Boom!

A burst of blue light erupted from her body, blocking the nightmare’s strike.

Levi was slightly taken aback—apparently, Fecia carried a defensive magical artifact. So she really did have connections.

Defensive magical artifacts weren’t cheap. Levi himself had once wanted to buy one but couldn’t afford it. Even the cheapest disposable type cost at least fifty or sixty gold coins.

Fecia frantically pulled out a scroll and tore it open.

Violent surges of wind element exploded outward. In an instant, dozens of emerald wind blades shot forth from before her.

Levi’s eyes narrowed. “A second-stage wind spell? A magic scroll?”

“Damn rich,” he muttered inwardly.

Second-stage magic scrolls, inscribed with high-level spells, were extremely valuable. And since they were consumable, few could bear the expense of purchasing them.

Fecia truly was a wealthy heiress.

“Pity it’s an area-of-effect spell.”

The wind blades engulfed the boar-headed nightmare. Fecia stared wide-eyed, hope flickering across her face.

When the magical radiance faded, the wounded boar-headed nightmare stood before her—bleeding from countless gashes, yet utterly unfazed.

Within mere breaths, its injuries healed completely.

Despair filled Fecia’s eyes.

Boom!

She was smashed into pulp, blood spraying in all directions.

This time, she had no trump card left.

The boar-headed nightmare absorbed the nightmare energy born from her terror, wearing an expression of grotesque delight, then strode toward Lanya and Lisa fleeing in panic.

Whoosh!

A fireball, half a meter in diameter, shot from the side and struck the unguarded nightmare.

Boom-crash!

The nightmare was thrown backward, half its shoulder blown apart, disintegrating into a swirl of gray mist.

Sssss!

A hissing sound rose as the scattered mist rapidly retracted, reconstructing the boar-man’s form.

In moments, most of its wounds were restored.

Levi’s gaze hardened.

A second-stage nightmare was indeed not to be underestimated.

Its regeneration far surpassed that of first-stage nightmares.

Whoosh!

Another fireball hurtled toward the beast. The nightmare swung its chain-mace to intercept.

With a thunderous boom, the mace shattered, and the nightmare’s arm exploded into fragments.

Gray mist burst outward—then halted instantly, rushing backward like time itself reversed.

At that moment, one small fireball after another rained down without pause.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Under the relentless barrage of fireballs, the nightmare staggered backward, its form fragmenting again and again under the continuous assault.

Suppressed, it could no longer heal.

“Roooar!”

The nightmare let out a deafening roar and revealed its true form.

Rolling waves of gray mist billowed from its body, flames blazing within, sparks flying like stars.

It resembled a demon risen from a scorched hell.

The nightmare devoured the fireballs, charging toward Levi, its body glowing red-hot, growing brighter by the second.

“Aaargh!” After absorbing numerous fireballs, its form swelled dramatically, becoming a crimson mist sphere five or six meters across.

With a thunderous explosion—BOOM!

It detonated. A red mushroom cloud surged into the sky.

Levi raised his arm to shield his eyes from the blinding light.

Scorching heatwaves swept down the street, hurling stones and wooden planks into the air.

Only when the inferno subsided could Levi finally see his surroundings.

The nightmare had exploded mid-charge.

The devastating blast flattened nearby houses, leaving a crater six or seven meters wide.

It had taken twenty-one small fireballs to inflate and rupture the beast—the explosion even more terrifying than a fully charged fireball spell.

Killing a second-stage nightmare had drained nearly half of Levi’s mana.

The nightmare core fell from midair, severely damaged, unable to regenerate for now.

As Levi prepared to destroy it, he paused, hesitated, then withdrew his power.

He picked up the floating nightmare core resting in the center of the crater.

It was a polygonal crystal, its colors shifting endlessly—a dreamlike gem, shimmering like enchanted glass.

This was the first time he had ever obtained a complete nightmare core.

After acquiring the Great Dreamwalking Art, Li Wei had learned much about nightmares, dreams, and the Church of Yubis.

In reality, nightmare cores were relatively rare magical materials—

useful for summoning nightmares, casting illusions, setting up dreamlike arrays, or crafting enchanted artifacts.

Li Wei once read in a book of a peculiar method:

feeding a nightmare core with spiritual energy could cultivate a loyal nightmare servant.

After a moment’s thought, he returned to his room.

Sitting quietly, he cradled the shimmering, ethereal core and slowly released his spiritual force into it.

Soon, the severely damaged core stirred back to life.

The gray mist, which had vanished since his foundational meditation technique reached perfection, reappeared within the room.

Tendrils of haze floated forward, devoured by the core.

A pull emanated from within the core, actively drawing in Li Wei’s spiritual energy—

and the pace quickened, growing faster and faster.

Li Wei sensed something wrong.

This was no longer feeding—it was being consumed.

“Damn! A second-tier nightmare core is too powerful!”

Without hesitation, he severed his connection.

“Hngh!”

Cutting off his own spiritual link sent a sharp pain through his head; he grunted low in his throat.

Yet he forced his eyes open, watching as the core underwent violent transformation.

Having absorbed his spiritual energy, the gray mist gradually took on a humanoid shape—resembling Li Wei himself, almost uncannily.

“Is this… a nightmare servant?”

He studied the misty figure before him.

Deep within, he could sense the fragments of his spiritual force swallowed by the core.

But compared to the might of a second-tier nightmare core, his spiritual power was far too weak—he could not control this nascent servant.

He felt it clearly now—the core still devouring his essence.

Once his spiritual energy was drained completely, he would lose all command. The core would awaken fully, becoming a true nightmare once more.

Seeing this, Li Wei acted without delay—

he struck, dispersing the humanoid mist.

Boom!

A fireball exploded against the form, shattering it into nothingness, revealing the core pulsing at its heart.

He seized it. Stripped of the mist, the core’s power rapidly waned, retreating once again into dormancy.

“With my current spiritual strength, controlling a second-tier nightmare servant is too dangerous. Better to destroy it than leave behind a threat.”

“In reality, nightmare cores are rare treasures—but in dreams, they’re everywhere. No loss worth mourning.”

“The only pity… is that I cannot take the core out of this dream.”

He cast another fireball, obliterating the core entirely.

A streak of radiant light shot into his body—

the proficiency of Great Dreamwalking Art increased by seven hundred points.

(End of Chapter)