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Part 7. The Hazy Vermin Disaster
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After the sun, mirror, cell phone, and other smoke shapes, the wisdom caterpillar exhaled three new smoke shapes— one was a castle, another was a crown, and the last was a bird mask.
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"Is that mask... Mr. Blackfeather?" Amisa asked in confusion.
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"Amisa! Why are you still calling him Mister.'?" Toosb protested.
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After releasing the smoke, the wisdom caterpillar asked the three of them, "You've probably heard about the history of White Castle, right?"
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Jasky replied, "You mean this place used to be called the Chess Kingdom?"
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The wisdom caterpillar nodded, and then exhaled a smoke in the shape of a skull, which spread throughout the entire castle. "Decades ago, the Chess Kingdom was struck by a plague, and countless citizens were infected and lost their lives. Even the king fell victim to the disease. Taking advantage of this situation, the Red Queen launched a coup and established the Kingdom of Hearts. That's how history was recorded..."
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The wisdom caterpillar then revealed the crown smoke shape. "...but the truth is: the Red Queen obtained the Forbidden Dream Device and used its power to absorb the dream force of the citizens. Dream force is equivalent to the soul of the dream spirit, and losing dream force means losing one's life."
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"So, that Forbidden Dream Device is..."
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Amisa showed a worried expression, and the wisdom caterpillar disassembled the old cloth lying on the bed, revealing the pitch-black mirror frame. The aura emanating from it sent shivers down everyone's spines. "The Black Mirror. It has the ability to absorb and subvert dream realms. Whoever possesses it gains unprecedented power, but at the same time, they are consumed by the mirror's desires and negative emotions, turning into a cruel and insatiable tyrant."
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"I see. So, during the Tea Cup House and the Inverted House, Amisa turned into that because of it?" Jasky still vividly remembered Amisa's terrifying expression.
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"That's right. Not only the possessor but also those who are too close to the Black Mirror can be indirectly affected."
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"Oh! So that's why Amisa and the Shy Boy were arguing so fiercely," Toosb said.
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"Yes... I'm sorry..." Amisa felt a bit embarrassed and looked down, but the wisdom caterpillar smiled and said, "No, Amisa, I actually want to praise you."
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"Huh?"
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"Even though you were in the Five Dust Trials, influenced by the Black Mirror, your mental strength didn't collapse. Your willpower is beyond imagination."
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"Really? It was alright... After all, I've been through darker times..." Amisa scratched her face shyly.
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"Squeak, squeak!" Mido happily poked its owner's face.
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"Amisa's resilience is unmatched by ordinary people. Hahaha!" Toosb proudly declared.
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"What are you so proud of..." Jasky said with a wry smile.
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Finally, the wisdom caterpillar brought out the bird mask smoke shape. "Unfortunately, the Red Queen didn't have it. She was directly manipulated by Mr. Blackfeather to use this dreadful device, resulting in an irreparable tragedy."
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Amisa looked frightened. "An...irreparable tragedy?"
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"Under the influence of the Black Mirror, the Red Queen became an insatiable tyrant. Under her oppressive rule, the people suffered immensely. At that time, we tried to gather a revolutionary army to resist, but we were overwhelmed by the overwhelming Poker Card forces and vast dream power. We were defeated and pushed back. At the point of desperation, Hoelex secret organization appeared!"
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Excitedly, the wisdom caterpillar exhaled new smoke shapes, the silhouettes of a man and a woman, using them to disperse the bird mask. "Time and Alice, the two of them displayed unimaginable dream powers, making a powerful team with Hoelex's support. The revolutionary army counterattacked once again and forced the Poker Card army to retreat. We marched directly to the final showdown in the Red Queen's castle!"
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"Wow! It's like a hero battling the demon lord!" Toosb said excitedly.
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"That's right, Toosb! It's only natural~ Time and Alice defeated Mr. Blackfeather and the Red Queen, and we achieved ultimate victory, finally obtaining the peace we longed for... or so we hoped."
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Changing the subject, the wisdom caterpillar's expression became serious. "Remember I mentioned that even during the Enchanted Hour, it wouldn't easily disturb the Dream Caverns' order unless someone deliberately opened the entrance through a specific item or power?"
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Jasky's face turned pale. "Are you saying..."
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"Black Mirror" appeared as a smoke and turned into a black hole that sucked in Time, Alice, the castle, crown, and other smoke shapes. "That's right, besides Time's dream power, the Black Mirror also has the ability to influence the Dream Caverns. Coincidentally, during the Enchanted Hour, precisely at the time of the disaster, the Red Queen released all the power of the Black Mirror. The Forbidden Dream Device, which had accumulated so much dream power, couldn't control it, leading to the disorder in the Dream Caverns and causing the Hazy Vermin Disaster, or as you call it, the Vermin Disaster. That catastrophe sucked dream realm people and objects into the Vermin Hole. Some people were trapped in the Dream Caverns, while others were taken to other worlds..."
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At that moment, Amisa suddenly thought of something. "Could it be... the illusion of the White Castle?"
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"Oh! You mean the news about the car accident at the city square?" Toosb said.
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At this point, the wisdom caterpillar's expression showed a slight surprise. "You're talking about... the White Castle?"
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Jasky explained, "In our world, a massive car accident happened at a location about a month ago. Many people suddenly fell asleep on the road and simultaneously dreamt of the White Castle."
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"I see," the wisdom caterpillar said, rotating its spiral-shaped smoke and closing its eyes, nodding. "The Vermin Hole effect in your world is equivalent to a month in our collective dream realm. This should be the time when the Hazy Vermin Disaster occurred."
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The wisdom caterpillar opened its eyes, and it seemed like some images appeared in its gaze. "The illusions you saw in your world were a tremendous disaster in our collective dream realm. Many of our companions, citizens, and friends were sucked into the Vermin Hole, causing immeasurable casualties. The Mad Hatter and March Hare, who were absorbed, can only wander in the Dream Caverns forever, always stuck at six o'clock..."
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"This is the real story behind Time's clash with the Black Mirror?" Jasky asked expressionless.
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"Yes, Jasky. It's similar to the difference between historical records and the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms; Dreamland also embellishes historical facts."
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The wisdom caterpillar looked at the black hole smoke and its hand, holding the smoke, trembled continuously. "To prevent this disaster, Time and Alice used up all their dream power to seal the Black Mirror, but they also disappeared, and we don't know where they went. So, in order to carry on their legacy and defend against enemies, our like-minded companions reformed the Hoelex secret organization to maintain the hard-won freedom and peace until now."
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"Wow! What an epic story!" Toosb couldn't help but applaud.
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"That's why everyone sees the Saint Alice as a hero," Jasky nodded in understanding.
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"You've been through a lot of hardship," Amisa said with concern.
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"Thank you, Amisa. Let the past be the past," the wisdom caterpillar smiled.
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The wisdom caterpillar then exhaled the flags of White Castle and the Kingdom of Hearts. "But up until now, there's a new crisis. Queen Elizabeth executed the Red Queen, and her daughter, Queen Mary of Hearts, established the Hearts Strasbourg Fortress on the border, waiting for the right moment to seek revenge. Coupled with past hatred, conflicts between the Kingdom of Hearts and White Castle have intensified. I've tried to persuade the revolutionary army's leaders—General White to avoid military conflict with the enemy. However, he ignored my advice and persuaded Queen Elizabeth to send the Chess Army to attack the Hearts Fortress, angering Queen Mary of Hearts. She sent the Sky Dragon and the Four Poker Generals to counterattack. Adult Sky Dragons possess unprecedented power, and under its lightning, the Chess Army was utterly defeated."
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The wisdom caterpillar then exhaled smoke shapes of the Duchess of Sophie and the Pudding Cup Stage. "To prevent further escalation, the Duchess of Sophie organized the Mentor's Guild and established the Royal Pudding Cup Stage, holding the Red and White Talent Competition to promote peaceful competition instead of fighting. However, recently, strange events like bus attacks and kidnappings have occurred one after another, intensifying the conflict. If this continues, war may become unavoidable."
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At this point, the wisdom caterpillar suddenly thanked Amisa, "By the way, thank you for saving the Toosb. Without him, this year's talent competition would have been difficult to conduct."
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"Mr. Wisdom Caterpillar," Amisa asked with concern, "Do you really think that these actions, like the Toosb's incident and the bus attacks, were caused by people from the Kingdom of Hearts? I've interacted with the residents of the Kingdom of Hearts before, and they don't seem like bad people; they just have different beliefs. I don't think they would do such things..."
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Toosb chimed in, "Yeah! Like Little Tea Princess is from White Castle, and Unicorn Girl and Lion Boy are from the Kingdom of Hearts, but they get along very well. They even plan to join the Float Parade together! Why do they have to resort to war?"
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The wisdom caterpillar answered, "Actually, we don't want war either, but political and racial issues are more complex than we imagined. Our Hoelex secret organization is also working on finding a solution, but to make matters worse, Mr. Blackfeather has quietly reappeared. With his ability to possess anyone, we find it challenging to catch him. For now, we can only place our hope on..."
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"Seeing how we can resolve this conflict," Jasky said, taking out the crystal ball he received from the Fifth Dust. "Mr. Wisdom Caterpillar, you gave us this, and it must have some significance, right?"
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The wisdom caterpillar nodded and exhaled a smoke pattern of the Heart's Dream App. "The reason the Heart's Dream App chose you is that you possess the extraordinary dream power of Time and Alice, which is the power to create dreams."
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"Power to create dreams?" The three of them felt a bit puzzled at this new term, and the wisdom caterpillar lifted the heart-shaped pendant borrowed from Amisa. "That's right, you are chosen Sleepwalkers!"
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"Sleepwalkers?" Everyone looked at each other in confusion.
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