Chapter 1452: The Blood-Colored Strange Sword—Lei Zi finally revealed the truth. For Landun, two thousand yuan is no hardship. Besides the money he earned by selling Yang Yanping’s never-fading tears in the county town, the current income from his convenience store alone is sufficient to help Lei Zi through this difficult period. However, although two thousand yuan is manageable for Landun now, he still feels it’s necessary to verify the amount with Xiao Jing. It’s not that Landun doesn’t trust Lei Zi; rather, for their rural community, two thousand yuan is absolutely a significant sum. Landun wants to verify it to ensure that Lei Zi doesn’t use the money for purposes that might contradict his original intentions. Though young, Lu Yun—never particularly religious—was well aware that boys his age, once they had enough money, often did unexpected things. He decided to prove his mother’s illness right now, and if two thousand yuan weren’t enough, he’d continue helping them later. Nodding, Lu Yun said, “Lei, I’ll take care of this. You go to my convenience store tomorrow afternoon to pick up the money.” Upon hearing this, Lei jumped out of bed with excitement. Though Lu Yun had taken over Mrs. Liu’s convenience store, Lei had never imagined that he’d be able to collect two thousand yuan all at once from him. Now that Lu Yun had agreed to pay it in one lump sum, Lei didn’t know what to say—he kept thanking him, and eventually Lu Yun couldn’t help but give him a good scolding. Lu Yun watched Lei, gently massaging his temples with a look of excitement that seemed almost like he was on his way to becoming a immortal, and smiled softly in his heart. "Lei, these funds are specifically for saving Xiao Jing's mother—use them wisely, every single cent." Before Lu Yun could finish speaking, Lei immediately stepped forward, chest out. "Cloud Brother, don't worry. I won't let myself down, nor will I let you or Xiao Jing down. If I still spend these funds on random, pointless things, then I'm not even human anymore." Lu Yun nodded, waved his hand, and lay down flat. "Time to sleep." And with those words, he seemed to fall asleep instantly. Lei called out to him several times, but he showed no response at all. Xiao Jing's mother now has a steady source of medical expenses. Lei Zi was so excited that he couldn't fall asleep, calling out to Lu Yun several times. When Lu Yun didn't respond, Lei Zi quietly got up and stepped out of the room, eager to head toward the women's dormitory area to share the good news with Xiao Jing. At the very moment Lei Zi left, Lu Yun slightly raised his head and glanced at him with a side-eye, a gentle smile forming on his lips as he made a conscious effort to drift off to sleep. Lei Zi's matter had been resolved, but Lu Yun's own situation was now pressing urgently—there was no one else who could help him. At this point, Lu Yun had to rely entirely on himself. As he tried to fall asleep, Lu Yun honestly felt uneasy about the ancient-dress figure that appeared in his dreams. Yet, recalling the scars on Zhang Ning's back, even with his deep-seated fears, he managed to hold on, forcing himself to clear his mind and focus on nothing at all, and gradually drifted into a peaceful sleep. As soon as he stepped into the dream, having not yet seen the silhouette of the ancient-clad little figure, a blade suddenly descended from the sky and plunged into the space in front of Lu Yun. Lu Yun was drenched in cold sweat. Man, this was his very own dream—having the guy perform some dramatic stunts with the blade and finally puncturing his dream like a hole in a tent—well, that would be a total disaster. "Old giant, step out! I'm going to learn your blade techniques from you!" After waiting for a while, still no sign of the ancient-clad figure, Lu Yun finally shouted out. The sound of his voice echoed through the dream, yet the figure seemed to vanish completely—except for the blade, there was no trace of the little man to be seen. This left Lu Yun quite frustrated. Had the figure finally decided to have second thoughts and stop pressuring him to learn his outdated blade style? Yet, that thought only flickered through his mind before fading away. After all, if the figure truly intended to let him go, then what about this very iron blade standing right before him? After waiting a bit longer, Lu Yun gradually grew impatient. Since the ancient-clad figure hadn't appeared, he might as well have a good sleep and wait for the monster to show itself. Just as he was about to lie down and drift off to sleep, his gaze involuntarily settled on the iron sword. The calm expression in his eyes suddenly tightened. Lu Yun could no longer bear this sudden change. He bit his teeth and shouted, "By the gods, I'm not the kind of guy who's easily scared!" As he spoke, he instinctively reached out and grasped the crimson strange blade, lifting it with a sharp metallic clink—the blade now firmly held in his hands. A sudden pain shot through his palm, as if pierced by something. Suddenly, Land Yun felt his arm being controlled by an unseen force. The river of blood flowing along the blade surged and roared, rushing down the hilt and seeping through his palm, then flowing into his arm and filling his entire body. Fear spread through him, and he could no longer control himself. His resentment now boiled over, compounded by deep regret for having picked up this useless blade. "Damn it! I'm done! Quick, get rid of this cursed blade, little monster!" As the blood river entered his body, Land Yun felt as though he had been plunged into a vast pool of blood, radiating an overwhelming, pungent scent of freshness and decay.