Alex opened his eyes and was dazed for a long while before he was certain that he was back in reality.
He took the remaining movie tickets out of his backpack; they were all slowly dissipating. This dream entry had consumed five tickets in total. Chen Luoqiu's influence on the dream world had prevented him from leaving, causing the tickets to be consumed automatically.
Ultimately, he had woken up once the tickets were exhausted.
Alex felt a bit melancholy, a bit relieved, and also a bit worried. If he hadn't woken up this time, he might have truly been trapped in the dream. But since the reason he escaped was that he ran out of entry tickets, what about Chen Luoqiu? She controlled the dream world, and everything in it was up to her. What if she was unwilling to wake up?
This thought made Alex's heart heavy, but he couldn't find a solution for the time being. The top priority was to find Chen Luoqiu's corresponding identity in reality as soon as possible.
She had been fine before, but then she suddenly turned dark. Perhaps some pressure in reality had become unbearable for her.
What kind of pressure could it be?
Alex thought worriedly.
He got out of bed, went to the window, and pulled back the curtains.
Alex let himself be bathed in the warmth of the morning sun. Looking at the rising sun, a new day had begun.
"Alex, are you awake? Today's breakfast is delicious. If you're not up yet, I'm coming in to wake you."
Freya's voice sounded from outside the door. Her voice was low, and without giving him a chance to respond, she twisted the door open.
Freya walked in with a look of delight, like a fox that had stolen a chicken. She quickly cast her gaze toward the bed, but was surprised to find it empty.
Turning her head, she saw Alex standing by the window, fully dressed. Freya was startled, and as if having a guilty conscience, she said weakly, "Alex, I came to wake you up. Since I couldn't wake you from outside, I took the liberty of opening the door. It's not like I wanted to sneak in and do something bad."
"Yes, that's it," Freya nodded emphatically, as if she had convinced herself.
Alex looked at her with an exceptionally gentle gaze. "Thank you. I woke up a bit early today. Breakfast is ready, right? I happen to be hungry."
He had slept very deeply that night, and upon waking, he was famished. Alex couldn't wait to put some food in his stomach.
Freya was stunned for a moment before reacting, nodding quickly. "Breakfast is ready, but it's still a bit hot. I'll dish it out and let it cool for you. Go brush your teeth first, Alex."
"Okay, thanks." Alex nodded, passed by her, and left the room.
Freya was still in a daze. After a while, she touched her forehead and muttered strangely, "I didn't get scolded. Alex seems very gentle today."
Not dwelling on it, Freya also left the room immediately.
While eating, Freya kept quietly observing Alex, feeling that he seemed a bit different, though she couldn't put her finger on exactly how.
"Did he suddenly become more mature? Or something else?" she wondered, uncertain.
"I'm heading out."
As Alex prepared to leave, Freya handed him his schoolbag and intentionally rubbed his face, saying gently, "Go on then, don't be late. Don't worry about Xiao Kou; I've already sent people to look for her."
Alex's gaze was a bit strange, but he nodded and said nothing.
Watching his figure disappear from sight, Freya then blissfully sniffed the hand she had just used to rub Alex's face. She said in a cloying voice, "Damn it, his skin is actually smoother than mine. Ah, I can't help myself."
She put her finger into her mouth.
Alex didn't see Freya's obsessive behavior. Honestly, seeing Freya again felt a bit awkward because he kept recalling what her face in the dream had done to him.
They had been nearly at the final step. Because Chen Luoqiu had read his memories, she had imitated Freya very successfully, and those shameful actions left Alex with a sense of guilt.
There was also Chen Luoqiu's imitation of Xiao Kou in the dream, but since Alex didn't have any memory of what Xiao Kou looked like grown up, that Xiao Kou must have been fictional.
Walking to the door of Kiara's house, Alex waited for a while and picked up Xiao Fu. While talking to her, he couldn't help but look behind her, remembering that brief glimpse in the dream.
That apron-clad figure was likely also played by Chen Luoqiu to tempt him, and the corresponding identity in reality was... Xu Lanhui, Kiara's mother.
If he had gone in then, would there have been certain developments?
Alex felt strange inside. Fortunately, Xiao Fu was simple-minded and didn't notice anything.
Fearing he might reveal some flaw, Alex urged Xiao Fu to walk faster.
At noon, Alex obtained a list of all the students from a school official, which included their photos.
He began to check them one by one. Chen Luoqiu was about the same age as him, likely high school age, and might even be a student at the same school.
After finishing his check, Alex put down the list and said to the middle-aged man in front of him, "I also want the student lists for all the high schools in the city. Can that be done?"
"It's a bit troublesome," the middle-aged man thought for a moment before adding, "But it shouldn't be a big problem."
After some compensation was paid, the middle-aged man went to investigate.
Alex held his phone and searched for the legend of fengyun hualong online.
Looking at the various shared links that came up, he was a bit hesitant. If Chen Luoqiu wasn't in the same city as him, finding her would be very difficult. Moreover, he was worried about her current situation, and once he got more movie tickets, he would inevitably have to enter the dream again.
However, Chen Luoqiu's dream was now full of uncertainty, and she had more time to prepare. If he entered again, Alex couldn't guarantee he wouldn't get lost.
Thinking about these things, Alex couldn't help but feel frustrated.
"I miss you, I miss you, I miss you every day..."
Suddenly, a girl's sweet singing voice drifted over, drawing Alex's attention.
This was the rooftop; usually, no one came here.
He followed the sound and noticed a girl with a ponytail hiding in a corner, doing... wait, when did she come up?
"Hmph, Yu Xinyao, Miao Meiyuan, Yan Bianman, I know you guys always sit here."
She pulled up her pants and let out a huff, but when she turned around and saw Alex standing there, her resentful face instantly turned pale with fright.
Alex felt incredibly awkward. Just as he was about to say something, the girl shrieked, covered her blood-red face, and crouched down. She said in a pained, muffled voice, "You saw everything, didn't you? You think I'm shameless, a bad woman, right? Please don't tell anyone, I'll agree to anything."
As she spoke, she peeked at Alex through the gaps in her fingers with utter desperation.
Alex felt she might be taking him for some kind of indecent person and was currently imagining all sorts of sordid details, though he had also subconsciously done the same just now.
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