Suppressing a Nightmare with a Turn of the Hand—Not Nearly Thrilling Enough!!!

"Purge Qingyang!" When he saw the message Huang Tian had sent, Zhou Zhenhong's heart quaked. Those two simple words weighed as heavily as a mountain, for the risks involved were far too immense! Although nightmares were categorized into four ranks—Xiong, E, Xie, and Sui—that did not mean a lower-rank nightmare posed less danger than a higher one. Every nightmare possessed its own unique rules. If one failed to identify the underlying pattern, even a Rank 2 dream expeller could meet disaster in a Sui-rank nightmare. Furthermore, resolving a nightmare incident inevitably required drawing upon one's bonded dream relics. Using them repeatedly deepened the corrosion, putting one's very life in jeopardy... Deeply moved, Zhou Zhenhong quickly typed a reply: "Mr. Huang, I admire your determination and righteousness, but you must preserve your strength for the future. All six of these nightmares are confined to specific areas and pose little immediate threat. There is no need for you to risk yourself in person—" Huang Tian: "For now, they are localized, but no one can guarantee they won't change later. Besides, I know what I'm doing. I won't gamble with my life." Zhou Zhenhong hesitated. What Huang Tian said indeed made sense. Nightmares were utterly unpredictable. Just when one assumed one was anchored in place, it might abruptly shift elsewhere two or three months later and claim more lives. He pondered for a moment. "Mr. Huang, since you are determined, I won't stand in your way. I shall accompany you so we can look out for each other." Huang Tian: "No need. I move faster alone. I'll make quick work of them." Zhou Zhenhong was taken aback, faintly catching Huang Tian's drift. The man did not seem to take these nightmares seriously at all, even speaking of making quick work of them. Zhou Zhenhong cautioned: "Nightmares are bizarre and unpredictable. You must proceed with utmost caution, Mr. Huang." Huang Tian: "Rest assured, I understand." Zhou Zhenhong: "In that case, I will inform everyone at the Qingyang branch about your intervention. They will do everything they can to support your actions. If you need anything, just tell them. In addition, I will send you a dossier on the nightmares for your reference." Ding-dong~ A file arrived. Huang Tian tapped it open and found intelligence concerning the six nightmares. It was not overly detailed, offering only general descriptions, such as the killing rules of a particular nightmare and what would happen once its dream domain manifested. Huang Tian: "Thank you." Zhou Zhenhong: "It is I who should thank you! Above all, please be careful. If anything goes awry, withdraw immediately. Your life comes first." Huang Tian: "I will." Inside the room, Zhou Zhenhong turned off his phone and glanced out the window at the sky. Night had long since fallen. Walking to the window, he gazed into the distance. Traffic flowed like a winding dragon beneath flickering streetlights. On either side of the avenues, shops shone with stark white or warm amber glows. Pedestrians strolled the sidewalks in groups of two or three, laughing and chatting, devouring late-night snacks, or gulping down milk tea in absolute contentment. Farther out stood a cluster of tall office towers. Some were completely dark, while others still showed scattered illuminated windows, where solitary silhouettes could be seen buried in their work. This city was prosperous, bustling, and weary... Yet behind this prosperity lurked nightmares hidden from the public eye. What was worse, nightmares were growing increasingly frequent. Perhaps in the next second, the next moment, an apocalyptic nightmare would descend and devour everything. Zhou Zhenhong rolled up his left sleeve, revealing an arm as withered as dry wood, and sighed softly. "Xiao Yun and the others are gone. How much longer can I hold out?" The next day, the sun shone brightly and the spring breeze brought a gentle warmth. Outside a dilapidated kindergarten, Wang Guangming paced back and forth beneath a large tree. Behind him stood several young people wearing matching gray uniforms. A young man with a crew cut leaned in and asked curiously, "Brother Wang, I heard our branch got a new dream expeller? And that he offered to take care of this nightmare?" As he spoke, he glanced back at the kindergarten and took a sharp breath. "This place is vicious. It killed quite a few people when it first appeared. Good thing it doesn't move..." Wang Guangming shook his head. "The dream expeller you're talking about didn't join our branch. He simply volunteered to clean up the nightmares in the city. Brother Zhou instructed us to assist his operation." The crew-cut youth scratched his head and sighed with feeling. "So there really are righteous folks out there among the common folk..." Since joining the Dream Expeller Association, they had occasionally dealt with civilian dream expellers. Far from proactively handling nightmare incidents, it was already a blessing if those individuals kept a low profile and didn't cause trouble. More often than not, they considered themselves superior beings, chosen by heaven—arrogant, overbearing, and stopping at nothing to satisfy their selfish desires... Brother Wang waved a hand. "Don't say that kind of thing from now on. If word gets out, it'll stir up trouble." The crew-cut youth sighed. "Understood." With nightmares posing an ever-growing threat, civilian dream expellers were a force that needed to be united. As long as they didn't cross the line, the association generally turned a blind eye to them in exchange for their support when needed. Honk, honk— A car horn sounded. Wang Guangming and the others looked up to see a white car drive over and come to a gentle stop. A clear-featured young man stepped out and walked straight toward them. Wang Guangming's heart stirred. He strode forward to greet him, extending both hands. "Hello, Mr. Huang. I am Wang Guangming, deputy captain of the emergency squad of the Dream Expeller Association's Qingyang branch." The emergency squad reported directly to Zhou Zhenhong, the branch head. There were no dream expellers among them; they were all ordinary humans—or rather, not entirely ordinary. They had received professional training, were adept fighters, possessed a working understanding of nightmare rules, and could even enter a dream domain to support a dream expeller if necessary. "Hello." Huang Tian shook his hand, then shifted his gaze forward toward the kindergarten. Most of the pink plaster had peeled from the exterior walls, exposing the gray-green concrete underneath. The iron gate was mottled with rust, and several windowpanes were shattered. Looking inside, the blue slide had faded to a dusty off-white, split down the middle by a long crack. Only one seat remained on the swings; the empty chains swayed in the breeze, gently clinking against the crossbar with dull clangs. Following his gaze, Wang Guangming sighed. "This Chenghong Kindergarten was running just fine. A year ago, a nightmare suddenly descended. The teachers and children inside..." He shook his head, unable to bring himself to finish. The young men around him looked equally somber. Huang Tian swept the place with his divine sense and felt an intense, bone-chilling cold within the kindergarten. He stepped forward. Wang Guangming followed closely, asking, "Mr. Huang, how would you like us to support you? We have five skilled operatives here, along with ten spirit candles and incense sticks—" "No need. It is enough for me to go in alone." The others paused in surprise. They weren't offended; after all, they weren't dream expellers and had never coordinated with Huang Tian before. Going in with him might well have made them dead weight. Yet from Huang Tian's tone, they sensed an immense confidence—a rare quality among dream expellers and emergency squad members, who lived on borrowed time. Before every nightmare incident, everyone had to write a will in advance, leaving the atmosphere stifling and grim... Wang Guangming hesitated for a moment before saying, "Well... we won't go in with you, but please take these spirit candles. They should be of some use." With a wave of his hand, the crew-cut youth brought over a small bag containing ten spirit candles and sticks of spirit incense, which looked no different from ordinary candles and incense. Huang Tian did not decline. Taking the bag, he gave them a nod, walked up to the kindergarten's iron gate, and pushed it open. "Mr. Huang, please be extremely careful!" Wang Guangming said earnestly. The youths beside him looked equally solemn. Huang Tian turned back and smiled faintly. "Wait here a moment. I'll be right back. By the way, have the car ready. As soon as I'm out, we'll head to the next nightmare's location." With that, he stepped calmly into the kindergarten. The moment he crossed the threshold, a thin layer of gray mist instantly rose, completely blanketing the buildings within. Everything grew indistinct, and Huang Tian's silhouette vanished entirely into the fog. The group outside stood stunned. The crew-cut youth clicked his tongue. "Mr. Huang is brimming with confidence. It feels less like he's going in to fight a nightmare for his life and more like he's going on a spring outing." Wang Guangming rapped him on the head and said sternly, "Mr. Huang just doesn't want us to worry. Can't you see that?" At those words, everyone's mood turned somber once more. Indeed, in this world, who didn't tread lightly when facing a nightmare? Any ease and nonchalance had to be an act. The crew-cut youth murmured, "Mr. Huang is a good man, just like Brother Zhou. I hope he makes it out safely." No one else spoke, their eyes fixed on the mist-shrouded kindergarten. "Awoo-oooh—!!!" Suddenly, shrill, harrowing wails drifted faintly from within the kindergarten, sounding like someone sobbing and screaming in agony. Wang Guangming's expression changed, his muscles tightening. Everyone held their breath. The cries inside lasted only a few seconds before cutting off abruptly. A few seconds later, another piercing screech rang out. Merely hearing the faint echo of that screech made their skin crawl and sent a cold shiver through their bodies. The crew-cut youth couldn't help stepping forward, standing on his tiptoes and craning his neck to peer inside, longing to pierce the gray fog and see what was happening. Wang Guangming clenched his fists, lips drawn into a tight line. "Aaargh—!!" Another unearthly shriek tore through the air, but this time, it vanished the instant it began. "The mist! The mist is dissipating!!" a sharp-eyed youth suddenly cried. Everyone looked at once. Sure enough, the mist over the kindergarten was dispersing, gradually revealing the mottled pink walls. At this sight, their faces fell. There were only two explanations for the mist dispersing: either the nightmare had killed Huang Tian, or Huang Tian had eliminated the nightmare. Yet Huang Tian had been inside for less than two minutes! How could he possibly have resolved the nightmare? He probably hadn't even grasped its rules yet... Despair settled over the group. Wang Guangming sank dejectedly to the ground and slammed his right fist hard against the dirt, gritting his teeth. "Nightmares! Damned nightmares!!" Tap, tap— Suddenly, a crisp, steady cadence of footsteps echoed from the kindergarten. Everyone snapped their heads up, staring in utter disbelief at the open iron gate, where a young man stepped leisurely into view. "What's the matter? Sulking after just two minutes? Sounds like you think I wasn't fast enough dealing with the nightmare," Huang Tian joked. Wang Guangming's mouth fell open. After a dazed pause, he leaped to his feet and let out a roaring cheer of excitement! As soon as he shouted, the others erupted in cheers as well; from a distance, one might have thought a troop of monkeys was hollering in wild celebration. Huang Tian smiled and tossed the bag of spirit candles and incense back into Wang Guangming's hands. "Let's go to the next one." Wang Guangming caught it clumsily. "W-well, resolving a nightmare here must have cost you a great deal of energy. Why not rest for the day and go tomorrow?" "It was merely a Sui-rank nightmare. Getting rid of it was as easy as turning over my hand. Barely a warm-up, really—hardly enough to drain my energy. If anything, it wasn't nearly thrilling enough." The group exchanged bewildered glances. True enough—from the moment Huang Tian went in, barely two minutes had passed. What kind of massive exhaustion could there be? Wang Guangming composed himself. "Then we'll drive you to the next nightmare's location. However, if you feel any mental discomfort, you must stop immediately. Nightmares can be dealt with at any time; there's no rush. Safety comes first." Huang Tian nodded without another word. Seeing this, Wang Guangming told the team, "Withdraw all personnel stationed around the kindergarten. There's no need to post guards here anymore. The rest of you, come with me and Mr. Huang to General Temple." General Temple, like the kindergarten, was also a Sui-rank nightmare. Anyone who stepped inside would be decapitated with a broadsword by an anomaly—a place of terrifying notoriety. "Yes, sir!" Everyone snapped to attention and dispersed to their tasks. "Mr. Huang, after you," Wang Guangming said with utmost courtesy and respect. Huang Tian nodded and followed him into a black SUV, with the crew-cut youth taking the wheel as driver. Soon, several cars started up and headed southeast toward General Temple. Inside the vehicle, Huang Tian closed his eyes to rest, guiding the pure spiritual qi he had just absorbed to circulate through his meridians in a full heavenly circuit before slowly converging into his Huangting. As long as he remained silent, neither Wang Guangming nor the driver dared utter a sound. The crew-cut youth focused on driving, occasionally glancing at Huang Tian in the rearview mirror. Meanwhile, Wang Guangming unlocked his phone and sent a message to Zhou Zhenhong: "Brother Zhou, Mr. Huang successfully resolved the nightmare at Chenghong Kindergarten." Zhou Zhenhong's heart skipped a beat, and he replied immediately: "So fast?!" Wang Guangming: "It took barely two minutes. It was as if he just took a brief stroll inside and took care of the nightmare in passing." Zhou Zhenhong was overjoyed: "Haha, wonderful!! To think Mr. Huang possesses such formidable strength—he's very likely a Rank 2 dream expeller! With Mr. Huang backing us, our Qingyang City won't have to worry so much about new nightmare incidents for a while. By the way, are you heading back now?" Wang Guangming: "No, we're driving to General Temple. Mr. Huang said... er, it wasn't nearly thrilling enough." Zhou Zhenhong: "??!!!" What does "not nearly thrilling enough" mean? Does it mean what I think it means?