Chapter 351: Ch.350 Within and Beyond Dreams
"Hey, mister newcomer, would you like to try some of our clover cookies?"
A rabbit in a red vest hopped over, warmly inviting him to join the tea party. These anthropomorphic animals were sitting under the shade of a tree, enjoying colorful snacks.
But Su Ming had no time for this.
Besides, it was hard to imagine anyone except a rabbit enjoying clover-flavored cookies.
"No, I have things to do." A demonic voice came from beneath Su Ming's mask as he glanced at the castle and turned to leave.
The rabbit's eyes welled up with tears, and its lips quivered as it cried and hopped away. It just wanted to make friends, but this person scared it.
Everything here seemed incredibly innocent and dreamlike, but the massive rift above reminded Su Ming that time was of the essence.
The little animals didn't sense the danger, but Su Ming knew that the attack from beyond the Source Wall was happening on all fronts.
And the changes occurring in the Dreaming were unknown to the Justice League.
The cloak carried him directly to the castle terrace, where a raven was watching him intently.
"Stop staring at me. I'm just passing through."
"I know you came from Death, but the master isn't here," replied the raven. It was one of the servants of the Lord of Dreams, capable of moving freely between dreams and reality, yet it wasn't even a truly existing being.
Su Ming grabbed the raven, pinching its beak. "Which is why I need to find your master. I plan to hitch a ride using someone's dream."
The raven nodded desperately, struggling to breathe.
"Good, take me to see the dreams of the heroes in the main world." Su Ming lifted a corner of the cloak and used it to tie up the raven's foot.
"If it's Death's command, of course we must obey. Come with me." The raven let out a human-like sigh. It never had any thought of escaping.
Everyone's dreams converged here, like unwritten stories and unfinished poems, all belonging to the realm of the "unexistent."
The raven led him around the castle, to a wide grassland. After crossing a small hill, they found countless bubbles floating in the air before them.
In the sunlight, they glistened with iridescent colors.
Su Ming flew around with the help of the cloak, but he found no dreams belonging to superheroes. The raven seemed to notice his confusion.
Su Ming successfully hitched a ride, appearing in the Hall of Justice.
The only awkward part was that Harley and he were in the same bed, and it was a single bed belonging to Diana.
Su Ming sat up as if nothing had happened and walked out of the chamber. He needed to find Barry and check on things.
Harley, meanwhile, was a bit disoriented, struggling to understand what had just happened.
Why was Deathstroke in bed with her? What had happened in the dream? No, better start from the beginning—what happened after she fell asleep last night?
The rest of the Suicide Squad wasn't in Diana's quarters. They had probably gone off to deal with other matters. The Hall of Justice's barriers had already been lifted, meaning that, for the time being, the issue with the Invisible Spectrum had been resolved.
Su Ming hadn't seen if Umbrax was completely destroyed, but at least it had suffered a major blow and could no longer control people on Earth.
However, because of all the previous chaos, it would be some time before anyone visited the Hall of Justice again.
Su Ming found Barry in the command center. As expected, Barry was still holding the cigarette Su Ming had given him. The cigarette had barely burned since the time Su Ming had left.
Su Ming took the cigarette from Barry's hand, put it in his mouth, and took a deep drag.
"Are you okay?" Barry's eyes were filled with concern. He hadn't seen what happened outside but knew that the Invisible Lanterns had started to fall. He and Superman had caught them one by one, turning them back into ordinary people, which had exhausted them.
All of it was thanks to Deathstroke. He had said he'd deal with Umbrax, and he had really accomplished it.
"Looks like I moved quickly. Umbrax should be quiet for now."
Su Ming blew a smoke ring. His mission wasn't over. Sometimes a mission had multiple clients, and that was the case now.
Batman, Olympus, and the Endless—all their commissions were tied to this major event.
"You were actually gone for quite a while," Barry said awkwardly, scratching his face.
"Oh?"
The Flash smiled. "Just like you said, I could close the door from the inside. I comprehended the Still Force and froze the cigarette's flow of time."
Su Ming nodded. That was good news. "Nice. Now you can trap enemies and deal with them at your own pace."
"Uh, not quite yet. This power conflicts with my body's cells. My body wasn't made for deceleration. Right now, the range I can control is only as small as a cigarette tip."
Barry sighed, extending his thumb and forefinger to show a tiny gap.