Episode 8: The Totem of Dreams

“Activate the Dream Totem. Everyone, hand in hand.”

Lu Chen’s voice rang out inside the makeshift tent, resolute and unwavering. The campfire crackled, casting flickering light on the weary faces of the soldiers from the Inverse Entropy Battalion—fresh from a brutal sand-scorpion attack. Each bore wounds, their eyes still shadowed with lingering fear, fragile as sparks soaked by rain, ready to be extinguished at any moment.

Su Qing crouched in the center of the tent, drawing a complex totem on the sand with camel’s blood. Her movements were swift; droplets from her fingertips stained the sand, blooming into clusters of dark red flowers. This was the ancestral “Calming Formation” of the X Tribe, said to connect collective consciousness, enabling them to seek answers through shared dreams.

“Hold tight to the hand next to you, don’t open your eyes,” Su Qing’s voice trembled—not from fear but excitement. “This totem can amplify our subconscious. Maybe we can find a way to fight the sand-scorpions from the memories of our ancestors.”

Old Dao spat, then spat again into his palm before grasping the hand of a nearby young soldier. “I’ve lived half my life and never dreamed hand in hand with a bunch of men.” His words were gruff, but his gaze was serious. The bone knife rested at his side, ready for any sudden danger.

Lu Chen was the last to join the circle, placing his right hand over Su Qing’s wrist. The faint golden scar on his index finger brushed against her skin. At that contact, both shivered, as if a subtle current had passed through them.

“It’s starting.” Su Qing closed her eyes and softly chanted an ancient incantation.

The air inside the tent thickened suddenly, the firelight dimmed until only the blood totem on the sand glowed—red and pulsating like a beating heart. The soldiers’ breathing gradually synchronized, their chests rising and falling in time with the totem’s glow. Outside, the wind seemed muffled, leaving only the sound of their hearts drumming—thump, thump, thump—like a rhythmic beat on a drum.

—

Lu Chen snapped his eyes open, finding himself standing in an unfamiliar desert.

The sand beneath his feet was scorching hot, like a branding iron. He wore no longer his combat uniform but a worn leather armor, its plates scratched and stained with dark red blood along the edges. The wind carried the scent of rust, and the distant clash of battle and blaring horns rolled like thunder across the horizon.

“Form ranks! Hold your ground!”

A hoarse shout came from beside him. Turning his head, Lu Chen saw a burly man with a full beard, wearing the same leather armor, brandishing a rusted long blade engraved with the X Tribe’s totem.

Could this be... an ancient Sand Guardian?

Before he could fully grasp it, the ground shook violently. Out from behind the dunes surged a dark swarm of riders atop towering camels. They wore black robes, their faces veiled, revealing only fierce eyes. Most terrifying of all was their banner—a white bone pole draped with black cloth embroidered with a snarling sand scorpion, its venomous stinger piercing the sky, glinting ominously in the sunlight.

“Sand Scorpion Tribe!” the bearded man howled, raising his blade. “For the oasis, we fight to the death!”

—

The clash erupted instantly. Lu Chen’s body seemed to move on its own, swinging the curved sword that had mysteriously appeared in his hand, striking at the charging foes. Yet his movements slowed; the sand beneath him seemed alive, creeping through the seams of his armor, growing heavier and denser as if filled with lead.

“Help…” he tried to cry out, but no sound came—sand filled his throat.

His body sank rapidly, the armor grinding painfully against the grains. Desperately, he lifted his head. The last image he saw was the scorpion banner fluttering in the wind, countless eyes beneath it staring coldly at him, like a dying prey.

The suffocation tightened, and his consciousness blurred...

—

“Ha!”

Lu Chen sat bolt upright, cold sweat soaking through the back of his clothes. The campfire still burned in the tent, and Su Qing along with the soldiers gradually woke, their faces as pale as paper, foreheads drenched in sweat, as if just hauled from water.

“Did you... all dream it too?” A young soldier’s voice trembled, his hands shaking uncontrollably.

No one answered, but their eyes spoke volumes—the same ancient battlefield, the same black robes, the same scorpion banner, and the overwhelming despair of being buried by the yellow sand.

“Damn it!” Old Dao suddenly cursed, fumbling to light his pipe with a lighter that took several strikes to spark. Taking a long drag, his expression remained grim. “This isn’t just an ordinary dream!”

His gaze swept over everyone with unprecedented gravity. “This is the ancestral nightmare of the Sand Guardians! My grandfather told me that before he joined the Bone Core sealing, he had the exact same dream! It’s a warning—we’re too close to that thing, close enough to hear its heartbeat!”

Silence fell over the tent, broken only by the crackling fire. The soldiers exchanged fearful glances. The legend of the “Bone Fire Calamity” was no longer a distant tale but a sword hanging over their heads.

Lu Chen said nothing but instinctively touched his right index finger. The faint golden scar gleamed brighter than before sleep, as if confirming Old Dao’s words. He recalled the scorpion banner from the dream and suddenly realized—it was nearly identical to the totem of the S Tribe.

Could it be... that the S Tribe is connected to the ancient Sand Scorpion Tribe?

—

Meanwhile, at the S Tribe’s camp.

—

Inside a sealed tent, four warriors injected with the sand-blood serum writhed in agonizing contortions, suppressing guttural growls. Their skin peeled off like a snake shedding its scales, revealing fresh pink flesh beneath—yet this new skin was abnormal, covered with dense sand crystals that shimmered coldly under the tent’s dim light.

“It hurts… it hurts so much…” one warrior clawed at his arm, nails digging deep into the flesh, blood dripping onto the sand, instantly absorbed.

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