Manifested Seed (1)

[What is your plan? You know you can't come into contact with the seed, remember?]

"I know."

[Then, how do you plan to stop it?]

"I just need to be careful to not touch the seed," I said and hurried toward the defensive line.

On the way, I saw dozens of Jane plushies rushing forward like soldiers prepared for war.

It was funny seeing dozens of colorful plushies marching to war like soldiers, but when all these plushies had my face, it became slightly disturbing.

I think it's better for my mental health if I don't think too much about it.

I followed the plushies and finally arrived at a seemingly endless corridor. The corridor was filled with plushies armed with swords and spears that advanced forward with determined expressions.

They were facing an encroaching curtain of dark mist that slowly advanced, devouring the corridor and swallowing everything in its path.

The plushies tried to stop the dark mist. They fought it with their weapons, lit it up with fire, and rose walls to stop its advance, but the darkness was unstoppable. The plushies' efforts could at best slow it down a little bit.

Moreover, countless snake-like roots and rootlets came out from the dark mist and attacked the plushies, creating a weird and creepy battlefield.

Every second, dozens of plushies were torn apart. The barriers created by the plushies were quickly destroyed, and their weapons seemed harmless against their enemies.

I stared at the battlefield and closed my eyes.

[What are going to do?]

I ignored the demon and crouched down, putting my palm against the floor.

I tried to communicate with the soul power of this dreamland.

It was hard at the start, but I had experience communicating with the soul power of Saphire and Scarlet. Even without a contract, I should be able to do the same now that I am in my sister's dreamscape.

Soon, I touched Ley's consciousness.

'Give me control. I'll help you to fight the seed.' I communicated my intentions.

I felt my sister smile. Next, the entire dreamscape fell under my control.

Immediately, I felt a sense of omnipotence and control over everything around me.

It was similar to when I controlled my own dreamscape. Now, this place was under my command.

[Tsk, tsk, the talent of the two of you when it comes to souls is enviable.]

"How long do you think Ley needs?"

[Ten minutes if she is fast, one hour if she is slow.]

"Easy."

The next instant, the dreamscape shook.

But this time, it was not due to the seed. 

Dozens of statues appeared from the walls and the floor. Some of them were cats, others in the shape of lamias, but most of them were knights holding spears in their hands.

They gazed at the encroaching dark mist and charged fearlessly.

Soon, the statues and the roots clashed!

The cat statues clad themselves of fire, the lamia statues froze the roots around them, and the knight statues burned them with lightning.

Soon, the roots and rootlets let out screeches of fear and pain.

Seeing that, the plushies cheered and charged too, attacking the smaller rootlets.

The addition of the statues made the battlefield even. It seemed like the seed was finally going to be stopped.

Unfortunately, it was not that easy.

Not even one minute after the statues appeared, a shriek of anger came out of the dark mist.

The shrill shriek made the entire dreamscape vibrate. It was so sharp and grating that I was forced to cover my ears.

In the next instant, seven giant roots burst out of the mist.

These python-like roots were much more powerful than the previous ones. They easily skewered the statues in front of them, tilting the battlefield in favor of the darkness again.

Dozens of statues were crushed in just a second. Some statues tried to jump on the roots and hug them to stop their charge while the rest of the statues attacked, but the python-like roots easily smashed them to pieces. 

I frowned. With a thought, a giant arm burst out of a wall. It grabbed one of the giant roots and pressed it against the floor.

However, the root quickly wrapped itself around the arm and constricted it, crushing it into pieces in an instant.

[You won't be able to destroy them. It's better if you aim to suppress them.] The demon advised.

I grunted in answer and controlled the dreamscape to create more giant arms.

The arms moved deftly, several arms grabbing one of the python-like roots and stopping its movements.

The strategy seemed to work. Despite the giant root twisting and struggling to break free, it could not get rid of the arms.

I sighed in relief and applied the same strategy to the rest of the giant roots.

Once more, the battle fell into a stalemate.

I let out a tired sigh.

"How long has it been?"

[A bit shorter than ten minutes.]

"Less than I thought. However, the situation is not bad. I should be able to hold out for a couple of hours."

[Do you really think so?] The demon asked with an amused smile.

I was startled.

"What do you mean?"

The demon did not reply. Instead, he looked at the dark mist.

At that moment, I heard footsteps.

A figure walked out of the darkness.

It had muddy brown skin, its body was covered with countless rootlets-like appendages, and its face was dirty and distorted, but it bore a strange resemblance to Ley.

As soon as the figure appeared, the dark mist surged up. It quickly expanded, devouring a great part of the corridor in an instant.

The statues and plushies were unable to fight against it. As soon as they came into contact with the dark mist, they were corroded and turned into soil where new roots were born.

[[[Su… rren… der.]]] The figure slowly articulated with a distorted and shrill voice.

I let out a bitter laugh, but my eyes shone with a determined light.

"Make me."

The figure stared at me for several seconds and nodded.

[[[As… You… Wish…]]]

In the next second, countless roots surged toward me.