The dream world remained suspended high above the endless City of Light.
Far below—
countless vehicles flowed along glowing roads like rivers of stars.
Towering buildings stretched toward the heavens.
Brilliant lights illuminated the eternal night.
Aircraft crossed the sky like silver streaks cutting through the darkness.
To Ling Yue—
it resembled an immortal kingdom.
A civilization beyond imagination.
A realm so advanced that it seemed detached from reality itself.
She stared downward in complete disbelief.
Meanwhile—
the golden-eyed young man remained perfectly motionless.
His attention wasn't on the city.
Nor was it on Ling Yue.
His thoughts had already turned inward.
Back toward something else.
Toward the projection the System had shown him earlier.
Toward the simulation space hidden within his own consciousness.
The place where time flowed differently.
Slower.
Far slower.
A training environment generated entirely within the mind.
A subconscious construct.
Lizarius's eyes narrowed slightly.
*The simulation exists within my consciousness.*
*This dream also exists within consciousness.*
*Different consciousness... but consciousness nonetheless.*
The thought lingered.
Examined.
Analyzed.
Dissected.
Compared.
Then another thought emerged.
*If time can be altered there...*
*Can it be altered here as well?*
Silence followed.
No answer came from the System.
Because this was no longer a question of information.
It was a question of understanding.
Application.
Experimentation.
The lizard slowly raised a hand.
Below them—
the city froze.
Instantly.
Cars stopped moving.
People halted mid-step.
Aircraft became motionless in the sky.
The entire dream world became perfectly still.
Ling Yue immediately noticed.
"Huh?"
Her eyes widened.
Everything had stopped.
Completely.
The city looked less like a living civilization and more like a painting suspended in time.
Frozen.
Silent.
Unmoving.
Lizarius ignored her reaction.
His focus remained elsewhere.
Soul Perception spread throughout the dreamscape.
Examining every layer.
Every fluctuation.
Every strand of subconscious energy supporting the world around them.
Slowly—
he began adjusting them.
Not forcefully.
Not recklessly.
Carefully.
The same way one adjusted spiritual energy during cultivation.
The same way one manipulated gravity.
Tiny changes.
Tiny corrections.
Tiny experiments.
The dream trembled faintly.
Then stabilized.
Nothing happened.
Several minutes passed.
Then—
the frozen city suddenly accelerated.
Cars moved once more.
People walked.
Aircraft resumed their paths through the sky.
Everything continued as before.
Except—
something felt different.
The movement was faster.
Subtly.
Yet undeniably.
Lizarius observed carefully.
Analyzing.
Calculating.
Comparing.
Then—
a faint smile appeared on his face.
The first genuine smile Ling Yue had ever seen from him.
"*Interesting.*"
Ling Yue stared.
"...What happened?"
The young man didn't answer immediately.
Instead—
he continued watching.
The city accelerated further.
Vehicles became blurs.
Pedestrians became flowing streams of motion.
Day and night began cycling repeatedly.
Once.
Twice.
Ten times.
A hundred times.
The sun raced across the sky.
The moon followed close behind.
Buildings weathered.
Repaired.
Expanded.
Changed.
Entire sections of the city transformed.
All within moments.
Ling Yue's eyes nearly popped out of her head.
"W-What is happening?!"
Lizarius finally spoke.
His gaze never left the rapidly evolving city below.
"Time."
Silence.
Ling Yue blinked.
"...Time?"
The golden-eyed young man nodded.
"A dream is ultimately a mental construct."
"The simulation created by the AI operated on similar principles."
His eyes gleamed faintly.
"I wanted to determine whether the same concept could be applied here."
Far below—
what seemed like an entire year passed in mere seconds.
Then several years.
Then decades.
The city continued changing.
Growing.
Evolving.
Like a living organism adapting to the passage of time.
Ling Yue stared in complete shock.
"You can speed up time?"
Lizarius shook his head.
"Not exactly."
His gaze remained analytical.
"I am not accelerating time itself."
"I am accelerating dream processes."
The distinction meant absolutely nothing to Ling Yue.
But Lizarius understood the difference perfectly.
Reality remained unchanged.
Outside—
perhaps only a few minutes had passed.
But within the dream—
the subconscious was processing information at a vastly accelerated rate.
A dangerous realization.
An extremely valuable one.
Because if perfected—
dreams could become training grounds.
Research facilities.
Simulation chambers.
Places where years of experimentation could occur while only hours passed outside.
The possibility caused countless thoughts to race through his mind.
Then—
suddenly—
the dream trembled violently.
CRACK.
A fracture appeared across the sky.
Lizarius immediately stopped.
The accelerated city froze.
The crack slowly spread.
Like glass buckling under unbearable pressure.
His eyes narrowed.
*I see.*
The dream was destabilizing.
Ling Yue's subconscious simply wasn't strong enough to support such extensive manipulation.
Reasonable.
This wasn't his dream.
Nor was it his mind.
Pushing further risked damaging the dream structure entirely.
The city below dissolved.
Lights vanished.
Buildings crumbled into white mist.
The entire world reverted to an endless white expanse.
Silence returned.
Ling Yue remained frozen in place.
Still trying to process everything she had just witnessed.
Meanwhile—
Lizarius had already reached a conclusion.
*Possible.*
*But inefficient.*
*The dreamer's mind becomes the limiting factor.*
*To fully utilize such a technique...*
His golden eyes slowly narrowed.
*I would need a dream realm of my own.*
For the first time—
the Dream Crawler bloodline truly captured his interest.
Not because of infiltration.
Not because of observation.
But because it hinted at something far greater.
A place where thought itself could become a tool.
A place where imagination could be weaponized.
And where time—
while never truly changing—
might become something close enough to be useful.
The endless white dreamscape remained calm.
The reconstructed city had already vanished.
Only infinite white space stretched in every direction.
Ling Yue still hadn't fully recovered from the shock.
Meanwhile—
Lizarius continued thinking.
Analyzing.
Calculating.
Testing possibilities.
The accelerated dream process had already proven possible.
The only question remaining was—
how far could he push it?
The young man raised a hand.
A moment later—
gigantic numbers appeared in the sky.
Floating high above the dream world.
Like a colossal celestial clock.
00:00:00
Ling Yue stared upward.
"...What's that?"
The lizard glanced at it.
"A timer."
"...A timer?"
"To measure dream-time."
The numbers immediately began moving.
00:00:01
00:00:02
00:00:03
Ling Yue watched silently.
Nothing else changed.
The white dream world remained still.
The giant numbers continued counting.
Seconds passed.
Then minutes.
Meanwhile—
Lizarius focused inward.
*System.*
*Since the timer started, how much time has passed outside?*
The response arrived instantly.
**[Elapsed time in reality: 1.03 seconds.]**
Silence.
The giant timer continued moving.
00:03:12
Three minutes.
Twelve seconds.
Lizarius stared.
Then slowly smiled.
A smile far more dangerous than before.
"*Is that so...*"
Ling Yue suddenly felt uneasy.
Whenever he used that tone—
it usually meant he had discovered something.
Something potentially terrifying.
The golden-eyed young man gazed upward at the floating numbers.
Calculations rapidly formed within his mind.
Then—
he spoke aloud.
"Interesting."
Ling Yue looked over.
"What is?"
Lizarius continued observing the timer.
"If the ratio remains stable..."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"One minute in reality corresponds to approximately three hours here."
Ling Yue froze.
"...What?"
The lizard continued.
Completely ignoring her growing confusion.
"Therefore—"
The giant numbers shifted.
New calculations appeared beneath them.
**1 Minute Outside = 3 Hours Inside**
**1 Hour Outside = 7 Days 12 Hours Inside**
**24 Hours Outside = 180 Days Inside**
**≈ 6 Months**
The glowing equations floated across the white sky like heavenly laws.
Ling Yue stared blankly.
Then stared some more.
Then eventually gave up trying to understand.
"...Six months?"
The lizard nodded.
"Approximately."
Silence.
Ling Yue looked at him.
Then at the calculations.
Then back at him again.
"...Senior."
"Hm?"
"If that's true..."
She hesitated.
Then continued.
"...Couldn't someone cultivate for years inside a dream?"
The question caused Lizarius to pause.
A moment later—
he nodded slightly.
"A reasonable assumption."
Ling Yue's eyes widened.
Then—
the lizard calmly shattered her hopes.
"Unfortunately not."
"...Why?"
"Because time is not actually accelerating."
The calculations vanished.
The white dreamscape rippled faintly.
"This is accelerated thought."
"Accelerated dream processing."
"Accelerated subconscious activity."
Ling Yue blinked.
To her—
those sounded like the exact same thing.
Lizarius continued.
"A cultivator cannot increase spiritual energy through imagination."
Silence.
"...Oh."
Her excitement instantly deflated.
That made sense.
Even dreams couldn't create spiritual energy from nothing.
The lizard continued thinking aloud.
"Combat simulations."
"Technique analysis."
"Memory review."
"Research."
"Comprehension training."
His eyes gradually brightened.
"Those should all be possible."
Now that—
was far more interesting.
Because cultivation wasn't solely about absorbing spiritual energy.
Understanding mattered.
Comprehension mattered.
Mastery mattered.
And all of those things could potentially be accelerated.
The possibilities multiplied rapidly.
A cultivator could spend months analyzing a technique.
Experiment with countless combat scenarios.
Practice ability control.
Study formations.
Review memories.
Refine battle instincts.
All while only minutes passed outside.
Ling Yue didn't fully understand the implications.
Lizarius did.
And that made the discovery infinitely more valuable.
The giant timer continued ticking overhead.
00:04:27
The dream remained stable.
No new cracks appeared.
No signs of collapse emerged.
The ratio remained steady.
At least for now.
The lizard stared at the numbers for several moments.
Then slowly nodded.
*Useful.*
*Extremely useful.*
And for the first time since obtaining the Dream Crawler bloodline—
he began wondering whether dreams could become something far greater than merely a place to observe others.
Perhaps—
they could become a place where he evolved himself.
The endless white dreamscape remained quiet.
High above—
the massive timer continued counting.
Its glowing numbers drifted across the heavens.
00:05:13
00:05:14
00:05:15
Ling Yue stared at it.
Then at the vast empty world surrounding her.
Then back at the calculations floating nearby.
**1 Minute Outside = 3 Hours Inside**
**1 Hour Outside = 7 Days 12 Hours Inside**
**24 Hours Outside = 180 Days Inside**
Her heart began beating faster.
The implications slowly settled in.
Then struck her all at once.
*Six months...*
*Six entire months...*
Her breathing quickened.
To a cultivator—
time was one of the most valuable resources in existence.
Talent mattered.
Resources mattered.
But time?
Time was irreplaceable.
And now—
a place seemingly existed where half a year could pass while only a single day elapsed outside.
Ling Yue immediately rose to her feet.
Without hesitation—
she bowed deeply.
"Senior."
The golden-eyed young man glanced toward her.
"Hm?"
Ling Yue lowered her head respectfully.
"If this junior may ask..."
She hesitated briefly.
Then continued.
"...am I permitted to cultivate here?"
Silence followed.
The lizard looked at her.
Then looked away again.
As though the question carried little significance.
"Do as you wish."
His voice remained calm.
"I do not intend to leave anytime soon."
He paused.
"There are still many things I have yet to explore."
Ling Yue's eyes brightened instantly.
"Thank you, Senior!"
The excitement in her voice was impossible to hide.
For the first time since entering the dream—
genuine joy outweighed her fear.
The lizard simply nodded.
Then returned to his thoughts.
Ling Yue quickly retreated several dozen meters away.
Not because she feared disturbing him.
But because she genuinely wanted to begin immediately.
The moment she stopped—
the dream reacted.
A weapon rack materialized beside her.
Then another.
And another.
Swords.
Spears.
Sabers.
Staves.
Dozens of weapons appeared.
Perfectly crafted.
Perfectly detailed.
Ling Yue blinked.
She glanced toward the lizard.
"...Senior?"
Lizarius looked over briefly.
Then understood.
The dream was responding to her expectations.
Interesting.
The subconscious was participating in the dream's construction.
Useful information.
Ling Yue interpreted the phenomenon very differently.
She immediately bowed again.
"Thank you, Senior."
The lizard merely nodded.
Outwardly calm.
Inwardly—
his thoughts were entirely elsewhere.
*Interesting.*
*The dream responds to her desires.*
*Environmental generation appears partially autonomous.*
His gaze lingered on her for a moment.
Not as a servant.
Not as an ally.
Not even as a subordinate.
But as data.
An experimental variable.
A participant.
The first test subject.
A living example through which he could study dream manipulation.
Dream stability.
Time acceleration.
Subconscious construction.
And perhaps—
the long-term effects of extended dream exposure.
His golden eyes narrowed slightly.
*Let's see what happens.*
Far away—
Ling Yue had already picked up a sword.
The young woman immediately began practicing.
Slash.
Step.
Turn.
Thrust.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Every movement repeated tirelessly.
Months of training potentially lay before her.
Meanwhile—
the golden-eyed young man sat down within the endless white expanse.
Watching.
Observing.
Learning.
The dream world remained stable.
The timer continued moving.
And for the first time—
both occupants of the dream pursued entirely different goals.
Ling Yue sought strength.
Lizarius sought understanding.
Yet neither realized that the dream itself was slowly becoming something neither had originally intended.
A realm suspended somewhere between imagination and reality.
A realm shaped by thought.
A realm governed by possibility.
And with every passing minute—
Lizarius's control over it continued to deepen.