AEKMEM chapter 76

Chu Heng replied assertively that he was the “head of the family.” However, after answering Shen You, he glanced guiltily at An Qiao on stage.

An Qiao felt that Chu Heng’s gaze carried a guilty connotation.

He narrowed his eyes slightly.

What mischief had Chu Heng done now?

Before he could think further, the third competition began.

This match was against the S-rank Ghost Flower.

The Ghost Flower has high medicinal value, but it is also extremely dangerous and difficult to approach—let alone pick. Anyone who gets close to it will be affected by its poisonous mist and pulled silently into a dream state. In milder cases, people experience hallucinations and believe they are in a nightmare, revealing their true nature. In more severe cases, they fall into a permanent slumber within the nightmare and die silently.

An Qiao looked at the Ghost Flower before him and found it interesting.

Since it can give people nightmares, could it also give them sweet dreams?

The Ghost Flower shivered inexplicably.

The scent emanating from the person in front of it was pleasant, making the flower feel close and submissive. But, for some reason, this person made it feel dangerous; it had a very bad premonition.

Was this person going to eat it?

Thinking of this possibility made even the usually domineering Ghost Flower tremble.

An Qiao glanced at the trembling ghost flower in front of him, speechless.

This flower was really timid. He hadn’t even done anything yet, and it was already so scared.

What if he used his mental power to convey his wish for sweet dreams to the Ghost Flower? Wouldn’t it be scared half to death?

First place was still too conspicuous. If the Ghost Flower had given him the flowers at the beginning and completed the advancement task first, it would have attracted too much attention. However, waiting there for twenty or thirty minutes would have looked foolish and boring.

This time was perfect for having the Ghost Flower create a beautiful dream for him.

Vaguely sensing An Qiao’s request, the Ghost Flower was practically in tears. Create a beautiful dream? It only knew how to play pranks and give humans nightmares, not beautiful dreams!

However, it dared not object and could only tremble and comply tearfully.

An Qiao closed his eyes, imagined the characters and scenes he wanted to see, and waited expectantly for the Ghost Flower to create his dream.

Soon, he entered a dream and returned to the Elven lands.

Inside a grand and magnificent palace, the scene was arranged for an elven wedding—the grandest and most prestigious wedding of the elven king and queen.

An Qiao stood in the palace, dressed in his finest attire. He gazed toward the palace gates, awaiting the arrival of his “queen.”

While becoming the crown princess wasn’t out of the question, he longed to marry Chu Heng as his “queen.”

After waiting anxiously for a while, footsteps sounded—his queen was about to appear!

An Qiao’s eyes lit up.

However, the next second, he froze.

The magnificently dressed “Queen,” Chu Heng, stunned everyone. But why was Chu Heng wearing women’s clothing?

The dream continued.

…

An Qiao groggily awoke from the dream woven from ghostly flowers, his expression quite strange.

Lacking any common sense, the Ghost Flower probably thought the “Queen” should be dressed in women’s clothing. While diligently weaving the dream according to its preconceived notions, it created an unexpected scene:

Chu Heng in women’s clothing…

An Qiao banished the image from his mind and narrowed his eyes slightly as he glanced at the Ghost Flower before him.

Realizing it had messed things up, the Ghost Flower shuddered and piled all the flowers from its branches in front of An Qiao. Then it stood obediently and quietly to the side.

An Qiao: “…”

His eyelids twitched.

He had planned to coast through the third qualifying match and aim for a top-three finish. Now, with the Ghost Flower’s move, it’s impossible for him to remain inconspicuous!

Sure enough, after a moment of stunned silence, the audience erupted in gasps of disbelief and murmurs of discussion.

Initially, everyone assumed that An Qiao’s strange charisma was ineffective against the S-rank exotic plant. They saw him being pulled into the dream by the Ghost Flower and assumed he would be humiliated.

But, as An Qiao gradually sank into the Ghost Flower’s dream, most were certain he was doomed.

Although it was unclear why An Qiao wasn’t having nightmares, the fact that the Ghost Flower pulled him into a dream meant that it hadn’t been appeased.

Unexpectedly, An Qiao woke up from his dream and received flowers from the Ghost Flower.

Not just one, but all of them!

The usually cruel and mischievous Ghost Flower suddenly became incredibly attentive and obsequious around An Qiao. It became docile and harmless—a truly astonishing turn of events that made one question the nature of life.

Could this be a fake Ghost Flower?

Could a real Ghost Flower really be this docile and kind?

Now, let’s look at the other four contestants.

Three of the contestants tried to soothe the Ghost Flower, but to little avail. After a brief struggle, the flower pulled them into a dream, leaving them with expressions ranging from terror and despair to grotesque horror—they were clearly trapped in a nightmare.

Fan Weixin wasn’t dreaming. He was struggling to calm the ghost flower with his plant-based abilities. Fine beads of sweat glistened on his forehead, and the two bloody welts on his neck from the ghost flower’s relentless attacks made him look disheveled.

In contrast, An Qiao’s hair remained perfectly styled, and he seemed completely at ease. He appeared to be there for a leisurely stroll rather than a competition.

Without a doubt, although the third qualifying match hadn’t ended and the final results hadn’t been announced, it was clear that An Qiao would win the championship.

Meanwhile, Fan Weixin—a researcher at the Mo family’s research institute and originally a strong favorite to win—luckily managed to appease the Ghost Flower in the last few minutes before the time limit expired. He received a flower as a gift and secured second place.

**
“Qiao Qiao, why did you seem to be in a dream just now?” Chu Heng asked, puzzled, as An Qiao stepped off the stage.

Dealing with an S-rank Ghost Flower should be easy for An Qiao, an elf. How could he be affected by the Ghost Flower and fall into a dream? That shouldn’t happen!

“I didn’t want to be too conspicuous,” An Qiao said softly.

However, the final result was unexpectedly beyond his expectations.

That ghost flower was too timid and cowardly!

Chu Heng was speechless for a moment at An Qiao’s words. “…Qiao Qiao, you’re conspicuous enough just standing there.”

He was so beautiful, every move captivating and attracting attention. He wanted to hide him away and not let anyone else see him!

Of course, he could only think about it. He had the desire, but not the courage.

Besides, An Qiao was his crown princess. He was the only contestant who didn’t outwardly show any signs of being aware of his abilities, so it was hard for him not to attract attention.

“By the way,” Chu Heng asked curiously, “Qiaoqiao, you seemed to be in a good mood while you were dreaming. Did you have a wonderful dream?”

An Qiao: “… ”

Hearing this, he immediately recalled his “queen” in the dream—Chu Heng dressed as a woman.

To be honest, it felt a bit strange but also strangely beautiful.

“It was a wonderful dream, I suppose,” he said, resting his cheek on his hand and giving Chu Heng a meaningful look while raising an eyebrow.

Chu Heng: “… ”

Chu Heng always felt unsettled by An Qiao’s gaze, which gave him an uneasy feeling.

But he quickly ignored this subtle feeling.

Instead, he secretly thought—
Since Qiaoqiao said it was a pleasant dream and stared at him seriously several times, it must mean that he was in Qiaoqiao’s dream!

Dreams reflect what one thinks about the most.

Qiaoqiao must miss him too much and unconsciously dreamed of him!

Thinking this, Chu Heng felt comforted and joyful, as if he were floating on air.

An Qiao was puzzled by Chu Heng’s overly smug, almost arrogant demeanor.

He had a “beautiful dream,” so why was Chu Heng so excited?

Just then, the personal terminal on Chu Heng’s wrist suddenly beeped.

He glanced at it, his brows instantly furrowing and his expression turning grim and serious.

“What’s wrong?” An Qiao asked.

Chu Heng showed him the contents of the terminal directly.

It was a message from his adjutant, Xue Luo, saying that traces of the Zerg had been detected at the border.

An Qiao couldn’t help but frown as well.

The reappearance of Zerg traces gave him a sense of an approaching storm.

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